Page 54 of Love in Tune
A silver people carrier pulled up outside the home a couple of mornings later and a dark-haired care worker wheeled her charge into the building.
‘Could I possibly speak with Lucille and Mimi please?’ the man in the wheelchair asked the care worker walking through reception.
Nikki smiled. ‘Of course. Who can I tell them is calling?’
The man straightened his shoulders.
‘Please tell them it’s their brother.’
And so it was that Mimi, Lucille and Ernie sat down together for the first time in their lives that morning and shared a pot of tea.
Mimi found herself stripped of any lingering anger or reticence by the kind, frail man who so resembled her, and when he held both of their hands in his trembling ones and his tired eyelids drifted down midway through their conversation, she held on to him until he woke again and apologised for his terrible manners.
‘It’s not you who needs to apologise,’ she said. ‘It’s me. I was a silly old fool not to see you sooner.’
Mimi hated the fact that time obviously wasn’t on Ernie’s side. What had she been thinking of? She was thoroughly ashamed of herself.
‘I couldn’t believe it when I saw you both yesterday on the news,’ he smiled. ‘You first, Lucille, and then of course you, Mimi. I’d have known you anywhere.’
‘You both look like our mother,’ Lucille said.
Ernie’s face turned wistful. ‘I’ve never looked like anyone else before.’
‘Two peas in a pod,’ Lucille smiled, pouring them all more tea.
‘I came to give you something,’ Ernie said, looking around for Carol, who’d tactfully taken a seat across the other side of the conservatory with a magazine.
She caught his eye and crossed to hand him a file from a bag on the back of his chair.
Once she’d faded away again, he pushed the file into Lucille’s hands.
‘What is it?’ she asked, looking down at the beige file and wishing she had her glasses with her.
‘It’s my savings. I want you two to have them.’
‘Ernie, no,’ Mimi said, agonised. ‘Please, we don’t want your money. Let’s just all have another cup of tea, and we’ll meet up again. We can do it every week, can’t we, Lucille?’
She turned to her sister for back-up, and Lucille nodded.
‘Of course we can.’
Ernie sighed. ‘I’ve known I had two sisters for many, many years. Dozens of birthdays and Christmases without being able to give you anything. This is for all of those years.’
‘You have nothing to make up for,’ Lucille rushed. ‘If only we’d known about you, Ernie, things would have been so different.’
‘It’s no one’s fault, don’t upset yourself,’ he said, squeezing her fingers gently. ‘We’re here now, and I won’t take no for an answer about the money.’
‘How about we say we’ll talk about it another time?’ Mimi tried, but he shook his head.
‘I’ve already been to the bank this morning.’
Lucille knew that the fact that Ernie was out of the house at all was a rare thing. He must really feel strongly to have visited the bank too.
‘What’s going on, Ernie?’
His eyes lit with mischief that made him look more like Mimi than ever.
‘I beat Mick Jagger.’
Both of his sisters frowned.
‘And Jamie Oliver.’
Lucille looked down at the folder, not getting it.
Ernie nodded towards it, his expression proud.
‘There’s enough in there to buy this place twice over.’
Mimi and Lucille gasped.
‘How on earth …?’ Mimi managed.
Ernie looked as gleeful as a dying man can look.
‘I play poker online,’ he whispered his secret with wide, laughing eyes. ‘Against young hotshots in Vegas, all from the comfort of my own living room.’
‘No,’ Lucille laughed, shocked. ‘I can’t believe it, how exciting!’
‘Lord, don’t tell Billy you can do things like that,’ Mimi muttered, shaking her head in amazement.
‘I want you to buy this place with my winnings,’ Ernie said. ‘I want to buy the roof over my sisters’ heads.’
Both Lucille and Mimi were rendered temporarily speechless by emotion.
‘You’re the best big brother I’ve ever had,’ Lucille said, wiping a tear from her cheek with the hankie Ernie produced.
‘ We’ve ever had,’ Mimi corrected.
‘That’s settled then.’ Ernie nodded, pleased. ‘I never did like The Rolling Stones.’