‘What will he never know? What could have been so different, Granny?’
Martha looked over her shoulder to find Isla and Bea standing behind her.
Martha was trembling, her face pained and her eyes blurred with tears. Isla bent down and took her grandmother’s hands.
‘Whatever it is, it’s okay, really it is,’ she said reassuringly.
‘The whole situation spiralled out of control, and it could have been so different for your mum.’
‘What could have been different for Mum? Whatever the argument was about between the two of you, you can sort it out, I’m sure of it.’
‘Do you want us to give you some time alone?’ asked Nolan looking from Martha to Isla.
Martha shook her head. ‘This concerns you and Gwen.’
‘Me?’ queried Nolan.
‘Yes. And now I don’t know what to do for the best.’
Isla was still crouched down at Martha’s side. ‘Granny, there’s something you need to know. I’m not sure how you’re going to react to this and I just want you to remember I’ve done it for the best reasons because time is going so quickly. I’ve told Mum that you want to see her. Please don’t be mad with me,’ she pleaded softly. ‘I thought with it being a special birthday…’ Her voice trailed off.
‘Of course I miss her. I’ve always missed her. She’s my daughter and if you only knew what I was up against, bringing a child into this world as a single mum… If it wasn’t for Bonnie and all the support she gave me…’
Martha dabbed her watery eyes again. She looked fragile.
‘Gwen agreed to come home,’ Isla said softly.
Bea could feel the adrenalin pumping through her veins as she looked from Isla to Martha, then caught Nolan’s eye. Judging by the look on his face, he hadn’t worked it out yet.
Martha mopped her brow with a tissue. ‘When is she arriving?’
Isla hesitated. ‘She’s already here.’
The silence hung in the air.
‘Shall I make us all some tea?’ chipped in Bea, knowing tea was always good in a crisis and this seemed like one of those. She didn’t wait for an answer before heading towards the kitchen.
‘Shall I go and get Mum?’ Isla asked Martha.
She nodded.
ChapterTwenty-Four
It wasn’t the happy reunion that you’d expect if you haven’t seen someone for many years.
Bea and Nolan had placed more chairs around the small coffee table and there was steaming hot tea in the pot. Martha was still looking distraught and clutching the teddy bear that Morgan had kept all these years.
Everyone on the boat was silent.
‘You’ve got to believe me when I say that I never meant to withhold information from you. I was just frightened and I didn’t want the situation spiralling out of control.’ Martha looked at Gwen, her voice earnest.
When Gwen didn’t speak, Isla placed a supportive hand on Martha’s knee.
‘There’s no other way to say it and it’s the information you have wanted to know for years. The man in the painting … Morgan Hemingway…’ Martha took a deep breath. ‘He’s Nolan’s grandfather but he’s also your father.’
Gwen and Nolan gave a tiny gasp at the same time.
‘I wasn’t expecting this,’ Nolan said. ‘My grandfather never said a word or even hinted that…’
