Lottie mulled over whether to ask the question that was worrying her. Dayea sipped her tea. ‘Look, Dayea, I don’t mean to be rude, but—’
‘But you worry about your uncle. Yes?’
‘Great uncle,’ corrected Lottie. ‘But yes. Nana made a lot of alterations here to help Bernard, like the stair lift,’ not that they’d need one of those in the caravan, ‘the grab rails and a shower with a seat in it. And I know that all cost a lot of money.’ The motorised scooter was the most expensive thing, and Lottie was absolutely sure there was no way that would fit in the caravan.
Dayea stared at her for a moment. She started to chuckle. ‘It really is okay, Lottie. Money is not a problem.’
‘Nana didn’t leave him much, and he only has his statepension.’ Lottie knew Dayea genuinely loved Bernard, but she didn’t want her to be under any false illusion about how much money Bernard had.
‘I know,’ she said. She sipped her tea and continued to study Lottie. ‘I trust you, so I will tell you.’ Dayea put down her mug, her expression intense. ‘My father, he had a hotel business in the Philippines. Lots and lots of hotels. He worked hard, but it did not make him happy. I worked for him for a long time, but when he found out he was dying, he told me to travel. To not marry the company like him. You understand?’
‘I think so,’ said Lottie, wondering about Dayea’s previous life in the corporate world. It seemed at odds with the person she’d grown to know.
‘When he died, my sisters and me, we sold the hotels to a big American company and made lots of money. I travelled the world like I promised my father. But I get bored. I found I liked caring for old people. In my country old people are very special. In your country they are not cherished as they should be. I have a number of jobs with the elderly here and I find this is what makes me happy. This is the job I should be doing.’
‘So money’s not a problem?’ She was dying to ask why Dayea was living in a caravan.
‘Not at all. I am having my house altered now, making big changes to make it easy for Bernard. That is why I live in the caravan. It’s too dusty in the house.’
‘The big house is yours?’ Dayea nodded.
Lottie couldn’t hide her grin. She was reassured her great uncle would have everything he needed, and she was also pleased that her mother had been so wrong about Dayea being a gold-digger. ‘I have to say it’s a big relief to know you can cope financially.’
‘But it’s only money. It does not buy you people who care.’ Dayea gently patted Lottie’s hand.
‘Very true.’ And yet the pursuit of money was what drove most people; well, certainly most of her family.
‘I need to go.’ Dayea stood up. ‘You like my house?’ she asked Lottie.
‘I do. It’s lovely.’ She picked up the heavy case and followed Dayea into the hall. They could hear raised voices coming from the snug and they shrugged their shoulders simultaneously.
‘You want to come live with me, Bernard and Duchess?’ asked Dayea. Lottie was taken aback.
‘That’s really sweet of you, Dayea. Thank you. I’ve got a lot of decisions to make. Please can I think about it?’
‘You are welcome, any time,’ said Dayea, taking the case from her. ‘Bernard says, “Button is the best of the lot”.’
‘Thank you. Give Bernard my love. I’ll visit him tomorrow.’
‘And bring Duchess?’
‘Um … okay,’ said Lottie, a little reluctantly. And she waved Dayea off.
Lottie entered the snug and World War Three was in full swing. The tension bubbling between Nicola and Daniel had erupted, volcano-style.
‘You don’t care about Rhys or you’d never have got involved with that slut.’ Aunt Nicola’s whole body was shaking.
‘It was before he was even b—’ Daniel halted when he spotted Lottie hovering in the doorway.
Nicola looked like she was fighting back tears, and Daniel was as cross as she’d ever seen him. They werehurting each other, and it was a hard thing to witness. Truth was, they’d been hurting each other for years. Was this what happened to relationships when the initial excitement faded? Did couples just chip away at each other until all that was left was hurt and resentment, lies and regrets? Or was she just feeling particularly negative today?
They were both staring at Lottie so she couldn’t just sneak away. ‘I’m sorry to interrupt. I’m looking for the Duchess.’ She knew it sounded lame, but it was true; now the cat was going to have a new home, Lottie wanted to spend a bit of time with her before she moved on. She also had a niggling worry that the Duchess wasn’t herself; she perhaps needed to get their usual vet to check her over before she went. She really didn’t want to have to see Joe.
‘No. We’re sorry,’ said Daniel. ‘You shouldn’t have to witness this.’
‘At least we’re communicating,’ said Nicola, her expression grim.
‘This isn’t communicating.’ Daniel looked sad. ‘I can’t keep saying I’m sorry.’
