‘It’s okay, it’s just Drew, he’s stacking the boxes onto the trailer to take to the farm. It’ll only take him a minute. Shall I put the kettle on? Then you can tell me what’s going on here.’
Florrie nodded. Numbly, she moved to the window, but there were a couple of tourists taking photos next to The Vintage Flower Van so she moved away again, not wanting to be spotted, and sat down on the settee.
She heard the slam of the trailer door and the engine of the tractor, which meant that Drew was leaving. She felt terrible for not having even said hello, but she was about to burst into tears.
‘Here, a nice strong tea.’ Isla gave Florrie a warm smile as she handed her a mug before sitting down next to her on the settee. ‘So, what’s all this?’
‘You have to promise that this stays between us.’
‘Of course.’
‘Not even Martha can know.’
‘Not even Gran,’ reassured Isla.
‘I feel like I’m going mad. After I left yours, I picked my post up from Buttercup Barn and Love Heart Lane and then went for a walk. For a while I sat on the bench on the green near The Old Bakehouse and then I decided to make a quick visit to Aunt Ada’s grave. As I neared the cemetery, I heard raised voices and saw Tom arguing with his father at the gate.’
‘Edward Houston is in town?’
‘Yep, right here, in Heartcross.’
‘Did you hear what they were arguing about?’
‘I’ve been trying to remember exactly what I heard. I’m sure it was something along the lines of “How could you be so stupid? You’re meant to be building up trust. We need those houses to be built.”’
‘You’re kidding me?’ Isla raised an eyebrow.
Florrie shook her head. ‘Unfortunately not. It suggests Tom has known all along what was going on, and when he asked me to “just trust” him he was simply hoping that he still might be able to sweet-talk me into not causing them any more trouble or negative publicity. He even had the cheek to come to The Vintage Flower Van and buy my favourite flowers.’
‘Cheek indeed. What are you going to do now? I’m assuming you’ll want to share this information with the community and expose their wrongdoing?’
‘I can’t.’
‘Why not? This is the perfect opportunity to show them we’ll not be walked over.’
Florrie had her hand on her heart; she was close to tears. ‘Two reasons. The first is that they could have me over a barrel. I need to chat with Jaydon to find out my legal position.’
‘What do you mean, they could have you over a barrel?’
‘Isla, I feel sick to my stomach. These are Aunt Ada’s bank statements and she recorded all cash transactions in what she called a spends book,’ she said, gesturing to the pile of paperwork on the table in front of them. ‘What do you make of them?’
Isla picked up a couple of the statements and then the spends book. She studied them carefully. ‘Monday, she liked food shopping and Friday she always visited the teashop? I don’t really know what I’m looking for but it’s clear that she was a creature of habit.’
‘Precisely. Those were my thoughts exactly. Aunt Ada was a creature of habit. The same regular standing orders went out of her account on the same regular basis … all except one.’
‘Which payment?’
‘These statements go back years, and not one of them has a single rent payment to W. Houston Property Developers.’
Isla looked surprised, picked up a handful of bank statements and flicked through them to confirm what Florrie had said. ‘You’re absolutely right. I can’t see one single payment.’
‘Does that mean that Aunt Ada was living here rent-free? If so, I’m just not sure why that would be the case, unless…’ She paused as an idea began to form in her mind. ‘Isla, I’ve got a stupid notion going around in my head, and I don’t even want to say the words out loud because as soon as I do, it could all become too real for my liking. But I have to say it. We all want to believe that Uncle Ewart was the love of Aunt Ada’s life –’ Florrie took a breath ‘– but do you think it might be possible that Aunt Ada had an affair with William … or even possibly Edward?’
Isla laughed loudly. ‘Don’t be ridiculous! Your imagination is running away with you. Ada and Ewart were solid as a rock.’
‘I’m glad you said that.’
‘Of course they were. Those two were made for each other and anyone who ever met them could clearly see it.’
