Page 40

Chapter 40

Mid-May 1931

‘Keith didn’t stay long,’ said Isobel as she came back into the scullery from upstairs.

Ann didn’t reply. She picked up a potato and dunked it in a basin of water in the sink to get the last of the earth off.

‘That’s the bedroom fireplaces all cleaned properly at last,’ continued Isobel.

‘I needed to check no soot had fallen down, with them not being used for so long.’

‘Thank you.’

‘I don’t expect we’ll be needing any more fires until October.

’ Isobel watched as Ann removed the potato skin with the peeler.

‘You’re probably right.

’

‘And it might be a good idea to get a sweep booked; it’s cheaper in the summer.

’

Ann finished removing the outer skin, and kept peeling, taking away more and more of the creamy flesh in a single long, paper-thin strip.

‘Good idea.’

Isobel couldn’t remember the last time she’d had such a one-sided conversation with anyone, let alone with Ann, who was normally so chatty.

She tried again. ‘All the rooms are going to need a proper scrub if we’re going to have people sleeping up there.

And there’s the drawing room.

I haven’t started in there yet.

’

‘It won’t be necessary.

’ Ann lifted the almost transparent curl of potato up high in the air and dropped it into the bucket beside the sink.

She rinsed what was left of the potato, chopped it into quarters and added it to the saucepan beside her before drying her hands.

She turned to look at Isobel.

‘Let’s just say my conversation with Keith didn’t go according to plan.

’

Confusion was written all over Isobel’s face.

‘I don’t understand.

’

Ann examined her fingers one by one; they had become prune-like in the water.

‘I didn’t get the chance to explain it to him properly,’ she replied eventually.

‘I said I had a proposal for him and he laughed at me. I’m telling you now, I never want to hear that word ever again.

I feel like a complete fool.

’

Isobel tried again.

‘You are upset because he laughed at the words you used?’

‘No.’ Ann could still feel the embarrassment.

‘I mean, yes, a bit. I said I could offer him a free room. And I stupidly thought he would be pleased about it, but he wasn’t.

He was furious. He said he didn’t need charity and he’d manage without my help.

And that was it, more or less.

’

‘But what about doing the decorating as payment?’

‘I told you. He cut me off before I was able to tell him that part.’

Isobel sighed.

‘I did my best. There’s no point in standing there with that look on your face.

He went and fixed the front door and then he said he might be back to paint it tomorrow if he has time, but I’m not sure that’s going to happen now.

He didn’t even say goodbye when he left.

’ Ann’s voice had a catch in it.

‘So you see, I’ve messed everything up.

I’m not sure when he’ll be back.

It might be never.’

Isobel wasn’t given to displays of physical affection, but there were times when only a hug would do, and this was one of them.

She put her arms around Ann and didn’t let go until Ann herself started to pull away.

‘I think you care about him having somewhere decent to stay more than you are letting on,’ Isobel said softly.

‘I expect if you both leave things for a few days it will sort itself out.’

‘I’m not sure how.

’ Ann sat down on one of the kitchen chairs, suddenly feeling as though her legs wouldn’t support her.

‘I have no idea where he’s going to be staying.

’

Isobel reached into the deep pocket on her apron.

‘I don’t need a hanky.

’ Ann sniffed. ‘I’m fine.

’ She straightened herself.

‘I doubt he’ll come back.

I mean, why would he, after I’ve offended him so badly?

’

Isobel smiled. ‘Oh, I think he’ll be back, and sooner than you expect.

’ She laid the contents of her pocket on the kitchen table; the chisel had a smooth wooden handle around which had been painted two stripes, one in purple and one in turquoise.

‘I was in the parlour upstairs and I saw him go up the front path when he left. He wasn’t hanging about.

’ She paused. ‘He didn’t look quite right, though, and that’s why I kept watching.

’

Ann picked up the chisel, feeling the weight of it in her hand.

She rested it on her middle finger, feeling for the balance point before putting it back down.

‘This belonged to his brother. He must have left it by mistake.’

‘Oh, there definitely wasn’t any mistake.

He did walk off pretty quickly, it’s true, but then he came back after a couple of minutes.

I saw him put his bag down beside the gate and he bent down and took something out.

’ She pointed to the chisel.

‘And then he walked back up the path with that thing in his hand and he tucked it in beside the geraniums next to the doorstep.’ Isobel tapped the side of her nose.

‘I went out to investigate when I came downstairs and there it was, with the purple stripe matching the flowers, as though it had fallen there by accident.’

Ann sat down at the table and ran her finger along the painted handle.

She sensed a link to a young man she would never meet.

‘You think he’ll be back?

’ She was hard pressed to keep the hope from her voice.

‘Sure as eggs is eggs. It’s just a matter of when.

’ Isobel picked up the chisel.

‘I’ll put this back where I found it, and perhaps by the time he’s ready to talk the two of you will have learned to stop dancing around one another and kidding yourselves there’s nothing going on. ’