‘And did that meeting go well,’ asked Jakob. ‘Is Hilary going to have a puppy?’
‘It was never in doubt from the minute we arrived,’ Nina said. ‘It was extraordinary the change that came over her when she saw the puppy that was still for sale. Honestly, I’d never seen that soft side of her as she cradled the small bundle of white fluff. She was a woman transformed, talking away to the dog as though they were old friends. I took a photo to capture the moment for her, because it was just priceless. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it.’
While driving home afterwards, and having seen that new side to Hilary, it had made Nina wonder if she’d previously misjudged the woman, that she might have been a wonderfully loving grandmother if she’d had the chance. Well, it was too late now, that ship had well and truly sailed.
‘It was a good idea of yours for her to have a dog,’ Jakob said, ‘when will she have the puppy?’
‘Shortly before Christmas, when it’s old enough to leave its mother. It’s the perfect breed for Hilary as it requires a lot of companionship and that’s exactly what she needs. I’m not saying it’s going to cure all her problems, but it will give her something to love, and a sense of purpose.’
‘And talking of companionship,’ asked Jakob with a tilt of his head, ‘how much of my company do you think you’ll require?’
Nina laughed happily. ‘Plenty,’ she said, then glancing at her watch and seeing how late it was, she added: ‘I should do something about supper, or we’ll never get around to eating.’ She was on her feet when Jakob reached for her hand.
‘I have a much better idea,’ he said, smoothly pulling her back down to him. ‘Let’s forget about eating, unless you’re hungry, of course.’
Sinking into his embrace and the warmth of his mouth against hers once more, the thought of food suddenly couldn’t interest her less.
Chapter Fifty-Five
When Keith had shared with Diane what Nina had told him and how hurt he’d been by the severity of her criticism of him, he had hoped for Diane’s support. But it hadn’t been forthcoming, certainly not in the way he’d anticipated or hoped for.
‘Nina’s right, you can’t abandon Hilary, you’ve both been through too much together to walk away without helping her when she’s in such profound pain. I’m shocked that you would even think of doing that.’ Nina had warned him that Diane wouldn’t think well of him if he abandoned Hilary by refusing to help her.
Just as he had with Nina, and not without a degree of exasperation, he’d said, ‘But what aboutmypain? Why does Hilary’s grief always have to trump mine?’
‘The strong should always help the weak,’ Diane had replied, her voice mild but tinged with what he’d perceived as admonishment, as if he were a naughty child.
He’d found her comment particularly galling. Why did she think he was stronger than Hilary? For that matter, there was nothing weak about Hilary! He’d tried saying this, but Diane had shaken her head and told him he was taking her too literally.
‘I’m not talking about a physical state of being,’ she’d said, ‘I’m talking about the inner person, the soul. Perhaps your wife has never been as mentally strong as you thought she was. It’spossible she was always trying to be the woman she believed you wanted her to be. Have you ever thought that the two of you have never really been honest with each other?’
He’d sensed a change in Diane in the last month or so. He blamed it on her attending a spiritualist church, because ever since she’d started going, he hadn’t felt as in step with her as he had before. For a start, he couldn’t understand her sudden interest in spiritualism, the whole concept was bunkum as far as he was concerned. Surely she was far too grounded and sensible to believe a word of it? Everyone knew that the psychic world was a con that took advantage of the vulnerable, who were desperate to feel closer to those they’d lost.
After seeing a poster at the local library advertising a talk to be given by a supposedly well-known medium, Diane had announced that she wanted them both to go. He’d initially thought she was joking and said he couldn’t think of anything he’d like less.
‘You might at least have an open mind on the subject,’ she’d said. ‘A closed mind is as good as an empty mind.’
It had been the first time they’d really disagreed on anything, but he’d stuck to his guns and refused to go with her. When she came home after the talk, he’d felt duty bound to encourage her to tell him all about it, if only to hear her admit that it had been a load of old hokum. ‘I’ll tell you about it if you’re genuinely interested,’ she’d said.
He’d lied and urged her to share what had gone on. She spoke cautiously at first and then she warmed to her subject and said how amazing it was when the medium started receiving messages to pass on to various people in the audience.
‘The woman knew so much about them and about the loved one they’d lost and how they died. It was very moving.’
Of course it was, it was a stage show acted out by a grasping charlatan!Keith had wanted to say. But wisely, he’d held his tongue andhad merely nodded and made what he hoped were supportive comments.
Since that evening, Diane had begun reading something calledThe Seven Principlesand signed up for a workshop and lecture on healing, as well as attending Divine Services at the spiritualist church where the talk had been held. Every time she came home, she pressed Keith to go with her the next time.
‘It’s really nothing like you think it is, you’re falling into the trap of imagining something out of a television programme with people being tricked,’ she’d explained. ‘There are hymns and prayers at the Divine Service, just like in an ordinary church service. There’s a healing part to the service and time for when a medium connects with the departed in spirit and shares their messages. Next Sunday I’m going to ask if the medium can connect with my daughter, Fiona.’ Reluctantly, and because Keith didn’t want to see her made a fool of, or be hurt, he agreed to go with her.
But now, as Diane parked her car and pointed across the road to where they were going, Keith felt his worst fears rise to the surface of his dread. Their destination looked unlike any church he’d ever been to before. It was a brutal seventies-built eyesore, squat and ugly and with a flat roof. One of the windows was boarded up and there were daubs of graffiti on it. On a bitterly cold December afternoon, with what little light there had been that gloomy day, the so-called church could not have looked less inviting.
They were greeted by two young women wearing beanie hats and an excessive amount of metalwork pierced into their lips, noses, eyebrows and ears. They smiled brightly at Diane, saying it was good to see her again.
‘And this must be your friend, Keith, who you’ve been telling us about,’ the taller of the girls said. ‘Welcome, Keith,’ she added,increasing the wattage of her smile and revealing what looked like a bit of spinach stuck between two of her teeth. ‘It’s so lovely that Diane persuaded you to come. We’re sure you’ll feel right at home with us.’
Nothing could have been further from the truth. This was so far out of his comfort zone, he might just as well have been transported to Mars.
The service was led by a tall, thin man about the same age as Keith dressed in an ill-fitting suit, the trousers of which were too short. The bright strip lighting in the low-ceilinged room reflected off the man’s shiny balding head, giving him an alien-like quality. Or perhaps others saw it differently: aura-like. He was exceptionally quiet spoken which had the effect of making his audience lean forward as though afraid to miss what he was saying. There was no show to the man, no flamboyance or obvious quackery; in fact he was disappointingly mundane.
