Gloria smiled and, with a parting nod, returned to the kitchen, leaving Annabel mulling over what she had said. What a price to pay to give your children a head start in life, to leave them behind in someone else’s care and move overseas to look after a stranger’s family. She had warmed to Gloria immediately, but respected her all the more after hearing her story. She felt glad that she’d found such a lovely home among Emma’s family. Her mind wandered to Ah Ling and the way she had played a similar role in Dotty’s family. Had she had to make sacrifices like Gloria had? Annabel was eager to find out more.
Annabel finished her breakfast and replied to her messages from her friends and her brother. She had no desire to reply to Luke and found herself deleting his last few texts.
It was another beautiful day and Annabel decided to spend some time down by the swimming pool. She was looking forward to a dip and some lazy sunlounger time with her book. She was keen to make the most of her time in Singapore and do some sightseeing, and had marked several sights in her new guidebook during the flight. But that could wait for another day; today she was tired and just needed to relax and recharge her batteries. Gloria gave her a pool towel, a bottle of water and a key card so that she could let herself back into the building,then tucked a banana and a home-made cookie in her bag as she left. The woman really was a marvel.
Annabel went down in the lift, crossed the foyer and stepped out into the condo gardens. The early-afternoon heat met her like a solid wall and beads of sweat gathered on her lip within moments. How anyone ever got used to living in this, she couldn’t fathom. She took her time following the winding path through the lush greenery, admiring the tall palm trees and exotic flowers along the way. She passed flame-orange birds of paradise and bright pink ginger, and delighted in the scent of the delicate white jasmine and soft yellow frangipani. It was a sensory overload, the sights and scents were a heady mix. She smiled and said hello to a couple of staff who were out working, pruning the bougainvillea bushes and sweeping the paths.
It was a relief to reach the pool and escape the direct heat of the sun underneath an umbrella. She put down her bag and stripped off her dress, flip-flops and sunglasses. After a quick spray of sunscreen for her face and shoulders, she straightened her cornflower-blue bikini and slid straight into the water.
In contrast to the sun’s powerful rays, the water felt chilly and she swam a full length of the pool to acclimatise. It was a quiet afternoon in the condo and, apart from one mum with an excited toddler in the shallow end, she had the pool to herself. It felt good to cool down and shake off the lethargy of the jet lag, and she swam a full ten lengths before climbing out.
Annabel dried herself off with the warm towel, had a long drink of water then stretched out on the sunlounger, enjoying the shade of the umbrella. She thought of her little house in Bath and how different her life was from Emma and Tom’s. Apartment living had never appealed to Annabel and she enjoyed having her own space. But having tropical gardens anda pool like this on her doorstep could help her change her mind, she thought, smiling to herself. It must feel like being on holiday all the time.
She took out her book and relaxed. The sunlounger was comfortable and she was feeling all warm and cosy. Three pages in, her eyelids became heavy and sleep took over.
An enormous crack of lightning woke Annabel with a jolt a while later, her heart racing as she resurfaced from the depths of a foggy, jet-lagged nap. It was followed by a low, menacing rumble and what sounded like rapid gunfire. She sat up, trying to make sense of the scene around her. Gone was the beautiful blue sky from earlier, replaced by stormy black rain clouds and a torrential downpour. The heavens had well and truly opened and rain was bouncing off the ground and splashing all around her.
The sky crackled again, spurring her into action. Heart still racing, she quickly gathered her belongings and shoved them back in her bag before throwing her dress over her still-damp bikini. She slid her feet into her flip-flops and, carrying the towel over her head in lieu of an umbrella, she ran along the path back to Emma’s apartment block. Deep puddles had formed and it was soon apparent that the flip-flops were useless. She kicked them off and scooped them up with her free hand, then splashed barefoot along the rest of the flooded pathway and into the safety of the entrance lobby.
Annabel had never seen anything like it; this ferocious deluge had come out of nowhere. She had been asleep for less than twenty minutes, yet in that time the weather had done a complete one-eighty. She wasn’t scared of thunderstorms, but she didn’t exactly love them either. She was glad to be safely back inside.
Gloria had a towel and a sympathetic smile ready for her when she came in.
‘You OK, ma’am? The weather change very quick here. Always take umbrella!’
Annabel thanked Gloria and locked away that little nugget of information for future outings.
Half an hour later, Annabel had dried off and was curled up on the sofa with her book and a cup of tea. Gloria was ironing in the dining area and the radio played softly in the background. Annabel had spent a good few minutes watching the lightning storm from the safety of the living-room balcony, absolutely fascinated. Still, the rain continued to machine-gun down outside.
Just after half past three, a key turned in the lock and the door burst open noisily as Emma and the twins tumbled in.
‘We’re home!’ Emma called cheerfully, as she steered the children through the routine of depositing school bags and removing wet shoes.
‘Sorry we’re a bit late, it took forever to get a cab! Always does when it’s raining.’
Annabel got up from the sofa and went over to say hello. She was given a warm hug from Emma and curious glances from the twins, who were dressed in their school uniform of green polo shirt and black shorts. Annabel bent down to their level and introduced herself. They smiled at her and said a shy hello.
‘Thank you, Leila, for letting me stay in your bedroom. It’s very kind of you to share with your brother so I can sleep in there. I brought you a little something from England to say thank you.’ The little girl’s face lit up and Annabel brought out a gift bag from the toy shop back in Bath.
‘Here you go, I hope you like Lego?’ Annabel smiled as she handed Leila a dinosaur kit from the bag. Leila gasped in delight and thanked her new friend with a wide beam. Her brother watched on, pleased for his sister, but Annabel spotted a slight hint of envy on his young face.
‘And Daniel . . .’ She paused dramatically. ‘Thank you for putting up with your sister invading your bedroom while I’m here!’ She winked at the young boy and pulled out a second Lego race car kit. His face turned into a broad grin. He had Tom’s cheerful round face and the same dimples when he smiled.
‘Thank you, Annabel, I love Lego! Mummy, can we do it now? Pleeease?’ Emma nodded and with a celebratory ‘Yes!’ Daniel took his gift over to the dining area. He showed it to Gloria, who helped him open the packet then sat down with him to offer a helping hand.
Feeling bolder now, Leila said, ‘I came to see you this morning but you were still asleep. You were snoring quite loudly. Thank you for my lovely present.’ With a front tooth missing, she beamed a gappy six-year-old smile then, blonde pigtails swinging, she followed her brother over to the table. Annabel chuckled and Emma rolled her eyes in embarrassment.
‘Let’s leave this mad house and go out tonight!’ Emma said. ‘Fancy a cocktail or three? I reckon it’s time to give you a proper Singapore welcome!’
CHAPTER 13
Singapore
November 1938
Dorothy had never been happier. She was completely infatuated with Douglas and couldn’t believe her luck that he was interested in her. For the next few months, he took her out once a week in a gentle, steady courtship. They explored the island together, driving in his car or going for walks in the Botanical Gardens or on one of the beaches. They went to the movies, played tennis and had dinner in smart restaurants.
Her favourite nights were when he took her dancing, either at the Tanglin Club or at Raffles Hotel. After a couple of cocktails (she had learned to hold her drink better after that first, fateful night), she loved nothing more than getting lost in the music as she whirled around the dance floor in Douglas’s strong arms. They drew curious glances wherever they went and their names were often the subject of whispered gossip. Not that Dorothy either heard or cared; so swept up was she in Douglas’s attention.
