P.S. Seize every opportunity that comes within reach. They are often fleeting, so go with your gut.
Lottie felt Zach’s arm across her shoulders and she quickly closed the card. She could no longer see properly thanks to the tears streaming down her cheeks. She hadn’t been aware that Nana had known she was ill until now. Clearly it wasn’t the bolt from the blue they had all believed it to be; Nana had been keeping the biggest secret of all. Although looking at the pile of cards addressed to each of the family, Lottie surmised that Nana had intended to hand them out and tell everyone before Christmas. In the end, she didn’t get the chance.
Lottie pulled a tissue from her pocket and blew her nose. Zach’s card was open and she read it on the sly. Most of it was very similar, but what she had asked of Zach was for him to hold Melissa in his heart yet open up his life to love again; both for his sake and Jessie’s. Zach caught her looking.
‘What did yours say?’
‘Same,’ she said, without making eye contact.
‘Wise old bird, wasn’t she?’ he said with a chuckle. ‘What should we do with these?’ he tapped the card on the top of the pile.
‘I guess you hand them out.’ Lottie was already wondering what advice Nana had imparted in each of the other cards and was itching to find out.
‘Who am I? Postman Pat?’
‘There’s a touch of ginger in there,’ said Lottie, playfully tugging his hair. ‘And if Mother visited Yorkshire, she’d most likely have slept with everyone in Greendale.’
‘Ew, you have a sick mind.’ He gave her a shove.
They fell silent. ‘Maybe wait for a good time?’ Lottie suggested, although she feared that with their family this might be a very small window to spot.
Emily had found herself sitting in the huge room that she would have called a lounge, but the family called a drawing room. She’d not been good at history at school, so she wasn’t sure what a drawing room was for. Whatever they called it, this was a beautiful room: high ceilings, ornate cornicing and a proper chandelier in the middle of the ceiling – not a Downton Abbey-size one but still rather impressive. Perching on the sofa, she’d found a rare spot in the manor with okay signal, so she fired off a few last-minute emails from her phone. She loved her job in corporate recruitment and was close to getting a promotion. She’d worked all hours the past few weeks to land a new client and she was determined to get January off to a good start too.
Dayea joined her and sat on the same sofa. The two women smiled at each other politely. Emily decided to break the silence. ‘Hi, I’m Emily.’
‘I am Dayea. I am the carer for Bernard.’
Dayea was leaning forward as if expecting a similar job title from Emily. ‘I’m Zach’s girlfriend.’
‘Yes, Lottie, she tells me about you.’ Dayea did a lot ofsmiling and nodding but it didn’t quell the unease her statement had triggered in Emily.
‘Oh, um. That’s … what did she say?’
‘She tells me she is very much wanting to meet you. Zach has said …’ Dayea was looking at the ceiling as if trying to recall something. ‘Zach has said “buggerall”.’ Dayea seemed happy with her recall.
‘He hasn’t said much about his family to me either. Do you know them well?’ Perhaps this was an opportunity to get the inside track from someone outside the family.
‘I know Bernard very well. He is a kind and funny man. His family they just see an old man in a wheelchair. I see a lifetime of stories and a good heart.’
‘That’s lovely. What about everyone else?’
‘I also knew Rose. She was my friend. She was a lovely lady, very smart.’ Dayea tapped her temple. ‘She knows all the things that go on in the family.’ Dayea moved her hands as if shuffling imaginary cards on a table.
‘And what might they be? The things that are going on.’ Emily loved a bit of gossip.
‘They are like all families. They love each other but they don’t always show it.’ Dayea let out a giggle. ‘Rose would say they are like a good cake – sweet, full of zest, and with plenty of nuts.’
Lottie had spent the next hour preparing the Christmas Eve meal, which had helped to take her mind off Nana’s card for now. She rang the hand bell, a boot sale find from years ago. It was far less grand than it sounded, but came in useful in a sprawling house where shouting rarely worked. She started ferrying food to the large dining table as she heard doors opening upstairs and people approaching.
Dayea had fixed Bernard something earlier so whilst hewas taking a nap in the drawing room everyone else took a seat at the table and eyed the spread with interest. Zach unscrewed the wine and started filling glasses. ‘Right. There are fresh rolls,’ said Lottie, as Rhys leaned over and grabbed one, then dropped it because it was red hot, ‘but be careful. They’re straight out of the oven,’ she said pointedly at Rhys, who gave a smirk in response. ‘There’s spaghetti Bolognese. Then cheese, crackers and Nana’s chutney. And sausage rolls and mince pies.’ She pointed to the latter items just in case people weren’t sure, because they were homemade and had come out looking quite odd. She had been too generous with the sausage filling and it had escaped at both ends, plus they were slightly overdone.
‘They look like poo,’ said Jessie, covering her giggles with her hands.
‘Hey, cheeky,’ said Lottie, ruffling her hair, but the child did have a point. In their defence they had a lovely glaze, so ‘shiny poo’ would have been a more accurate description. ‘Tuck in everyone.’ And on cue, chatter started and arms came at the food from every direction. This was what Nana enjoyed – feeding her rabble of a family.
‘I helped make things,’ added Jessie over the chatter and Lottie kissed her head.
‘Is there no ham?’ asked Uncle Daniel, scanning the table from end to end.
