Page 162 of The Sun Sister

Cecily followed Katherine into the entrance hall, which doubled as a living room. To her left was a narrow corridor, housing a room the size of a closet that was a study for Bobby to use, and beyond that, a small kitchen with a scrubbed pine table and two chairs. It was of course as neat as a pin. Everything about Katherine was.

‘I’m surprised you didn’t put your kitchen in a separate block like all the other houses round here,’ Cecily commented as she watched Katherine expertly peel some potatoes.

‘Given I have no staff to cook for me, it seemed absurd to do that. One of my favourite moments of the day is when Bobby sits down right where you’re sitting and we eat and chat over where we’ve been and what we’ve done.’

‘I’m afraid I have never learnt to cook,’ Cecily confessed. ‘Do you think you could teach me?’

‘Of course I could, but I’m sure that Bill will employ someone to do it for you.’

‘Still, I should know what to do so I can direct them.’

‘Yes, you’re right, although I doubt the likes of Kiki or Idina have ever put together toast and jam, let alone a beef casserole,’ said Katherine.

‘Well, there’s no harm in learning, is there? I’d like to.’

‘All right then,’ Katherine agreed, handing Cecily some carrots and a knife. ‘Lesson one,’ she grinned.

925 Fifth Avenue

Manhattan, New York 10021

30thApril 1939

My darling Cecily,

Your Papa, your sisters and I were overjoyed to receive the photographs of your wedding ceremony. You looked beautiful, honey, and I must say that your Bill is very handsome indeed. Although your dear Papa was somewhat surprised at his age, I assured him that it was a good thing you have chosen a husband who is more mature.

As you may know, Jack and Patricia are now on their honeymoon on Cape Cod. Junie DuPont attended and she told me that Patricia looked nowhere near as beautiful as you and her hair was very unfortunate. She said the reception was like Mardi Gras, and rather crass. (There has also been gossip recently that Jack’s family bank is on the verge of collapse. As Mamie said, it looks like you had a lucky escape!)

Baby Christabel is a delight and Mamie has been a perfectly serene mother. And I must tell you the big news: Priscilla is expecting too! Your Papa and I are so very happy that all of our three daughters are married, and maybe it won’t be so long before you too have some baby news for us.

Cecily, even though you say you are safe from any war that may happen in Europe, we do worry about you, honey. I only wish that you and Bill would come stay out here until things are more certain, but I understand his livelihood is in Kenya.

Write me soon and send my best to Kiki and to your new husband.

All my love,

Mama xx

Cecily sighed heavily as she read her mother’s letter, and tried to summon joy at Priscilla’s news, but all she felt was a cold lump of anxiety as she wrote back to her mother telling her of her own pregnancy.

‘...I am due in December,’ she wrote, although she knew she would be sending them a telegram far earlier to announce the birth.

‘I’ll deal with that when the time comes,’ she murmured as she folded the letter into an envelope.

The good news was that the days at Inverness Cottage passed far faster than they had at Mundui House. She was kept busy helping Katherine plant out a vegetable garden at the back of the cottage, and learning how to prepare dinners and to make cakes (which, after a number of failed attempts, convinced Cecily that baking was never going to be her forte). If she woke early, she would ride Belle, her beautiful chestnut mare, over to Bill’s farm five miles away, to check that the builders were doing what they should.

Subsequently, Cecily fell into bed exhausted each night. She found the rain that pounded on the roof above her comforting somehow, but worried about Bill out there on the plains, with the rivers swelling and the risk of mudslides from the mountains. When it rained too hard to sit outside, Bobby would light a fire in the small grate and they would play cards or listen on the crackly wireless to the BBC World Service. This was often a sobering experience, as the news continued to report the political situation in Europe; many commentators believed that war was inevitable, despite the various pacts and alliances that had been formed.

While the tensions in Europe were never far from Cecily’s mind, Katherine could not have done any more to make her feel welcome. Bobby was away too with his cattle, but somehow always managed to return every few days to see his wife.

At least, Cecily thought, as she bathed in the tin tub that sat in an outhouse at the back alongside the lavvy, Bill was due back here tomorrow. She couldn’t believe how eager she was to see her new husband. The following morning, she drove with Katherine into Gilgil and went into what claimed to be a hair salon, but was actually a spare room at the back of a shack. Cecily winced with nerves as the Kikuyu woman chopped away at her hair.

‘There,bwana, is okay?’

Cecily tried to view her reflection in the small piece of cracked, faded mirror the woman had offered her.

‘Why yes, I’m sure it’s fine.’