Sam Stone
The writing was stylish, written in in real ink.
‘What’s going on?’ Aiden asked, appearing at the side of the desk. ‘What have you got there?’
Pippa couldn’t hold back. ‘Elle Cooper here has landed the best birthday present ever. A signed copy of the new Sam Stone novel. Look!’ she enthused.
‘How cool is that?’ Aiden said, as his eyes darted towards the page.
‘I don’t get it. This is off-the-scale amazing and just the best present…’
Pippa pretended to look hurt.
‘You know I love the earrings but how would Sam Stone even know I existed or where I worked?’ asked Elle, puzzled. ‘And how did it get here?’
‘I’ve no idea. It’s a mystery but a very lovely one,’ chipped in Pippa.
Elle’s mind was racing with all the possibilities.
‘Maybe it was Mum?’ She looked at Pippa and Aiden. ‘Maybe she had a contact after working in the library all those years.’
‘That doesn’t make sense, because she would have just given it to you tonight. She would have wanted to see your reaction,’ Pippa said, taking the book from her hands again and flicking through the pages. ‘And if Irene had a contact that knew Sam Stone you would have heard about it before now.’
‘Very true,’ agreed Elle, still thinking. ‘What do you think, Aiden?’
He shrugged. ‘I think Pippa’s right. If Irene had a contact, you would have known about it by now.’
Elle couldn’t believe she’d received such a wonderful gift. Someone knew something about how it got here, and she was going to try her damnedest to find out who and how.
ChapterEight
The rest of the day passed quickly and Elle felt loved for every single minute. Isla had popped in and gave her a meat hamper from the farm shop. Flynn and Julia had given her a voucher for a spa day up at Starcross Manor, and Bea from The Little Blue Boathouse had given her a voucher for a luxury champagne day cruise. After telling Pippa a little white lie about why she wasn’t travelling back with her on the bus this evening, Elle locked the library door behind her and Aiden. The next bus out of the village was due in a little over an hour, which would still give her plenty of time to be out of the library before the cleaners arrived and to arrive at Irene’s in time for tea.
Switching off the lights in the main foyer, Elle felt her heart racing. She sat down at her desk, her hands slightly shaking as she brought up the Salvation Army web page. She was already familiar with the form she had to complete as she’d researched it many times but her emotions were all over the place now that it was time to actually fill it out. She felt hopeful yet fearful of what – if anything – she was about to discover, but she knew she had to take the chance if she had any hope of ever knowing exactly who she was.
Taking a sip of water, she tried to calm her nerves as she began to read section one of the guidance notes. Elle had the information that the Salvation Army needed to begin the trace. She’d googled the name Cora Hansley on many occasions but with no results. Elle hoped that the Salvation Army would be more successful.
After completing all the relevant details, she took a moment to check back over the form and printed it off. After scanning the form and attaching a photo of her birth certificate, she paid the fee online and swallowed a lump in her throat, she briefly closed her eyes as she hovered the mouse over the ‘send’ button before she pressed it down. Hearing the whoosh of the email leaving her sent box, she knew it had gone. As she stared at the screen her head and heart were in battle. She began to wonder if she was doing the right thing? Or were some things better left in the past?
There was no going back. Her search for her biological mother was now in the hands of the Salvation Army. She exhaled and tried to calm her rapidly beating heart.
There was no guarantee they would even be able to trace her mother, or, if they did, that she would want to be found, but this was a start. And even if they weren’t able to uncover any information, Elle knew she wouldn’t be any worse off than she was now. Or at least that’s what she kept telling herself.
* * *
Fifteen minutes later, she was still looking at the screen, trying to digest the scale of the journey she was just about to embark on. But whatever the search threw up she knew she could face anything with Irene by her side. Finally shutting down the computer she grabbed her signed Sam Stone novel and her bag and jumped as she heard a voice.
‘Are you still here, Elle? You’re working late. Look at those balloons. Do we have a birthday in the house?’
The cleaners, Gwen and Julie, were strolling towards her, Gwen pushing a hoover and Julie with her arms full of cleaning products.
‘Yes, it’s mine! Thirty today.’
‘Happy birthday,’ they chorused.
‘Any plans for tonight?’ asked Julie.
‘I’m having tea with Irene,’ she answered. ‘If you would both like a slice of cake there’s some left in the staffroom.’
