‘What are these musical events like? Tell us honestly, darling,’ said Anthea. ‘Will it be embarrassingly awful even for the strange ones of this party who say they love a bit of ukulele music?’
Simone drew herself up to her full height. ‘Awful? Why would it be anything butmagnifique?’ she said. ‘People come from miles around to enjoy our music. We are famous in the region and beyond.’
Anthea had the grace to look mortified, which was never her default mode, thought Vee, exchanging glances with Rick. He widened his eyes at her and she grinned. ‘I’m really looking forward to it,’ he said. ‘Come on, let’s help Simone to finish clearing the table and we can get going.’
By the time the group reached the market square, the regular tables were all full and several men were putting out extra chairs. Yolanda was everywhere, it seemed, organising the seating, keeping an eye on the food preparation and making sure the musicians, who were tuning up, all had drinks in front of them. Vee decided to keep out of her aunt’s way for now, but was well aware that at some point in the evening she’d need to make her peace with Yolanda. Since her outburst of white-hot fury of the other day, she’d had plenty of time to think. She was by no means settled in her mind about Finn’s forthcoming visit but she was beginning to see that her aunt had a point, even if she still thought the interference was way out of order.
A burst of clapping heralded the mayor getting to his feet and making what sounded like a fulsome introduction to the musicians, and without further ado, they swung into their first piece. It was a toe-tapping number which the locals appeared to know well, and soon a few dancers were on their feet, resulting in another round of applause from the audience.
‘I reckon most of them have been pre-loading, like us with all that wine,’ said Rick. Vee noticed that he’d switched to water now, as he’d promised to take the first stint of driving on their homeward journey the following day. There were a lot of miles to cover, so they’d decided to make an overnight stop in Chartres, after which Vee would take over for the next part. The thought of getting home to Dragonfly Cottage was heartwarming but the prospect of what was to come next overshadowed this feeling. She reached for her wine glass and took a hefty sip, just as Yolanda tapped her on the shoulder, causing Vee to splutter.
‘Choke up, chicken,’ said Yolanda, patting Vee on the back and taking her back in time to a scary experience at one of her mother’s birthday picnics when, desperate to eat more cake than her sister, Vee had got a glacé cherry stuck in her throat and Yolanda had needed to step in to dislodge it. A slap on the back had done the trick and the cuddle afterwards had made Vee realise how much she loved her aunt.
‘Thanks,’ Vee gasped, reaching for Rick’s water glass and taking a large gulp. ‘You made me jump.’
‘Sorry. I wanted to grab a quick word while the musicians are doing their thing,’ said Yolanda. ‘When they take a break I’ll be busy again and by the time this is done, I’ll be on my knees. Come with me.’
It was an order rather than a request. Vee followed the older lady to a bench under a tree, far enough away from the action for them to be able to hear themselves think. They sat down together, and Yolanda turned to her niece.
‘I want to say how sorry I am for muscling in on your life,’ she said. Vee opened her mouth to speak but Yolanda raised a hand. ‘No, let me finish. I need you to understand what made me act in what must seem a very high-handed way.’
Yolanda paused for breath and instinctively Vee reached out and took her by the hand. The warmth of their entwined fingers was another blast from the past. They’d often walked hand in hand when her aunt had taken her to school on one of her many extended visits to Willowbrook.
‘It’s like this,’ Yolanda said. ‘When I was fifteen, I had a baby boy.’
There was a shocked silence as Vee digested this news. Before she could say anything, her aunt was speaking again.
‘Mine and your mum’s parents were very strict, but I think if I’d made more of an effort, I could have persuaded them to let me keep my son. As it was, I didn’t want to be a mother. My much older boyfriend wasn’t interested in me any more. I was desolate. I just wanted the whole affair to be over. The baby was adopted and I have never seen him since. I assume he didn’t want to meet me because I know it’s possible to trace your birth parents these days. I’d come to terms with that. Or I thought I had, until you had your baby.’
Vee squeezed her aunt’s hand and tried to think what to say. Eventually she managed to croak, ‘So that’s why you’re so keen for Finn to know I’m his mum? Although as far as I’m concerned, Cassie and Marissa are the only ones with the right to be called that.’
‘Yes, that’s why I stepped in, feet first,’ said Yolanda with a wry smile. ‘Vee, I’m so very sorry for what I did, in telling Finn the truth. I was wrong to meddle in your life, but I still think good will come of it. I hope you can forgive me.’
Vee thought for a moment. This new revelation had shaken her to the core. The trauma her aunt had gone through at such a young age with no support from the father of the child made her want to rage against the unfairness of it all. An idea came to her and she turned to face Yolanda, catching hold of her other hand.
‘Why don’t you come home with us tomorrow? We can get you put on our ferry ticket. Come and see Finn too. I’m sure he’d love it! And so would I,’ she added, with honesty, knowing that having Yolanda with her would make the whole situation a lot less stressful.
Her aunt shook her head. ‘I would love to, my pet, but my passport ran out years ago and I didn’t renew it because I couldn’t see when I’d ever need it again. I was angry with you for giving up your child so easily and livid with your mother and father for supporting you. I’ve made a new life here and I’m happy enough with it.’
‘But could you get a new passport? Come and see me later? Would it be too much?’ Vee asked. A longing for Yolanda to see what she’d done with her old home and to have a chance to really talk to her was intense.
‘I… might. Yes, I think I might just do that. I could fly from Bergerac or Bordeaux.’ Yolanda clapped her hands. ‘I’ll do it, so long as I can find someone to look after Ferdinand and the chickens. And the sooner the better. None of us are getting any younger. That’s a foolish saying but true, unfortunately.’
They sat together quietly for a few more minutes until the end of a song and a louder than usual burst of applause signified the end of the first half of the entertainment.
‘I must go and supervise the refreshments,’ said Yolanda, getting to her feet rather stiffly. ‘Come on, you must be ready for a drink by now, after all this soul-searching.’
Vee stood up too. She felt as exhausted as if she’d just finished a long run, but somehow more peaceful. The thought of the approaching meeting with Finn was still daunting and the prospect of a visit from her aunt wasn’t nearly as cheering as it would have been before Yolanda’s surprise revelation. Still, there was no knowing how many more chances there would be for family get-togethers, so she put her reservations firmly on one side for the time being.
‘I’m sad to be leaving you and this lovely place,’ Vee said, impulsively hugging Yolanda, who almost fell over but rallied and hugged Vee back. ‘I’m really glad I didn’t manage to drag the others home early.’
‘I think you’d have had your work cut out there,’ said Yolanda. She pointed to the square, where Maurice and Anthea were performing an impromptu tango to the piped music now coming from the speakers, and Winnie and Sid were doing something that looked between a Morris dance and an Irish jig. ‘Your friends are party animals, that’s for sure. And I think you’d be wise to detach that young man of yours from the clutches of the fearsome Simone before she eats him alive.’
‘Rick’s not my young man,’ Vee protested, but as she walked towards the hubbub of happy merrymakers and saw Simone snake an arm around Rick’s waist to pull him into a passionate smooch of a dance, she felt a red mist descending. How dared the woman?
‘Of course he isn’t,’ said Yolanda. ‘Even so, off you pop and claim him back. He’s turned out rather well, has Ricardo. I had my doubts about him at one time. And on that subject, I think you still have a few things to talk to him about, regarding… well, I’ll leave that to you to find out.’
Yolanda had disappeared into the crowd before Vee had time to ask her to elaborate. She watched Simone drape herself more comfortably around Rick as they swayed together to the music. He had his back to her so Vee couldn’t see his expression, but Simone looked like the cat who’d got the cream, to coin one of Yolanda’s own phrases. As she made her way towards them, Vee seethed. From a brief period of calm, she was suddenly in a turmoil of unwanted jealousy. Not only that, there was now the unwelcome feeling that she would have to find out more about Rick’s involvement in the events of 1985.
