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Lily opened her mouth to argue, but movement in the house caught her attention. A face peered through the window and the older lady waved, then came to the door.
“Hello!” she said, apparently unconcerned that her granddaughter was chatting to a stranger on the doorstep. “Sorry, I was just settling my grandson for his nap.”
“This lady is Kit’s friend,” Ellie said.
“Lily, I assume?” The woman extended her hand. “I’m Mirren. Kit said you might call in.” Stepping back, she beckoned Lily inside. “I was just about to make myself a cuppa. Would you like one?”
“Yes, please.” As Lily followed Mirren into the large, homely kitchen, Ellie kept her unwavering gaze on her.
“Do you want to see my toys?” she asked. “I have lots.”
“Umm…”
Mirren placed a hand on Ellie’s head. “Lily has come to speak to me, not to play. And you’re supposed to be clearing up the living room so you can have TV time, remember?”
She looked thoughtful before agreeing and heading out of the kitchen.
“She’s a sweet little thing,” Mirren remarked. “Had a tummy ache this morning so she couldn’t go to school but she seems as right as rain now. I think she just knew I was having her brother for the day and wanted to spend the day here too.”
Lily smiled amiably and took a seat at the table when Mirren nodded in that direction.
“So you’re interested in the old ice cream shop?” she asked, once she’d filled the kettle and switched it on.
“Yes. I’m interested in the owner. Do you remember her name, by any chance?”
Mirren took a seat. “Gail. It’s funny, I haven’t thought about her in ages, but when Kit told me you’d been asking about her, it stirred my memory.”
Gail.The name didn’t stir any memories for Lily.
“Did you know her well?”
“Pretty well. My kids were still young at that time so I spent a fair bit of time in the ice cream shop.”
“Were you friends with her?”
Mirren frowned. “I wouldn’t say that. She was always lovely and friendly… and I guess we were around the same age. We were at different phases of life, though. She was focussed on her business and I was chasing around after my kids.”
“Do you know her surname?”
“It’s going to annoy me.” Mirren rubbed at her forehead. “It’ll come back to me in a minute, I’m sure.”
Lily wasn’t convinced Mirren was going to prove overly helpful. She had a first name at least, so that was something.
“How long did Gail live on the island for?”
“Not too long. A few years, I think. She was one of those who turned up with a dream of living remotely and being her own boss. If I remember rightly, she’d worked in an ice cream shop when she was a teenager and had always dreamed of having her own shop. Finally, she gave up the drudgery of her office job and moved here.”
“But it didn’t work out?”
“As far as I know, things were going well for her. She never gave any indication that there were problems with the business. She made ice cream fresh on the premises and was hardly ever short on customers.”
“Do you know why she left?”
Mirren shook her head. “I remember she was out of sorts for a couple of months and then there was the fire. That shook her up. People pitched in to help fix the place up again, but she’d lost her spark. Her heart didn’t seem to be in it after that. To my recollection, she shut up shop one day and left without saying goodbye to anyone. It was all a bit odd.”
It was certainly intriguing. “You said she was out of sorts?” Lily pressed.
“I think she was having some personal problems. Someone died… I can’t remember if it was a family member or an old friend… but I remember it really got to her. I thought it was just one of those things and it would take time for her to bounce back, but then she was gone.” She shrugged. “Kit reckons she never sold the shop, and that she still owns it.” Her eyes widened and she snapped her fingers loudly. “Greenway! That was her last name.”