A Place in the Country (25 page)

“Okay, so I'm ready.” She posed near the door, enjoying the effect her outrageous appearance was having on them. She wished she'd put on the big shoulder-skimming chandelier earrings, it would have been the last straw. The thought made her smile.

They were all looking at her, stunned until finally her grandpa said, “All set then? Well, time to go.”

As they left, Caroline was wondering where she got a grown-up daughter like that when just last week she had been a mere child.

 

chapter 58

Jim had already driven
to the pub once that day, to drop off Melanie Morton and her daughter. Now he was driving to the pub again. It was seven o'clock and he was going to the big meeting where, he guessed, all was to be revealed. He wondered if Melanie Morton had really been coming on to him when he'd dropped her off earlier that afternoon. Jim was twenty-seven years old and had been flirted with and had flirted back with plenty of girls since the ripe old age of thirteen when a friend of his sister's had pinned him down in the mud room (the small hallway where everybody dumped their wellies and wet boots before coming into the kitchen at Thompson Manor) and told him breathily he was cute and didn't he think she had nice breasts. She'd lifted her shirt obligingly so he could make a judgment and he'd looked—obligingly—at the twin spheres pointing aggressively at him and agreed that indeed she had.

The fact that she was all of seventeen and he was thirteen had only increased his liking for “older” women, since they knew a lot more about things than he did. That was then.

He had learned more in the intervening years and whenever they met could even smile unembarrassed and say “how are you” to the girl who'd attempted to seduce him as a boy, and who was now married with twin sons the same age Jim had been then. Unblushing, she would smile and always say, “Better for seeing you, Jim, and I'll bet you say the same about me.”

Cheeky, but she was fun.

Melanie was another matter. When he'd driven her to the pub earlier, she had strapped her child into the backseat and then come and sat next to him, and lit a cigarette. She didn't ask him about the cigarette though Jim did not smoke and disliked the smell of it in his car. Anyhow he thought she shouldn't smoke around children. He opened his window and let the air blow in instead.

“Sorry,” she'd said, glancing sideways at him under her lashes. She'd cracked open her window and blown out the smoke and thrown out the cigarette. “I just can't break the habit. A lifetime of smoking, you know.”

Jim had told her she was crazy to throw a lit cigarette out. Didn't she know she could start a fire? He opened the ashtray and said would she use that in future.

“You mean you and I have a future, Jim?” She'd turned to look at him. “I know we've only just met and I shouldn't be saying this because of Caroline, but I find you so sexy. Most men adore me,” she murmured in his ear. “They always like naughty girls.”

Jim thought stunned, either she was insane or he was. He was driving her to the pub, and later that night they were going to a meeting to settle the parentage and future of her child. And discuss James's supposed murder! And now she was sex-talking him?

He'd removed her hand from his arm as he made the turn into the village, and said coldly, “You've got the wrong man, I'm afraid.”

She laughed and said, “Oh, please, Jim, don't be afraid. I won't hurt you.”

He brought the car to a stop, tires squealing, then turned to look at her. He said, “Did you kill James Evans?”

She looked into his eyes for a long moment then she'd flung herself back against her seat. “You're mad after all, just like all the others,” she'd said. Then she'd slammed out of the car, unhitched her child from the back and marched off into the pub.

Jim had not told Caroline about this. If he had to, though, he would.

Now, he parked in front of the pub again. It was exactly seven
P.M.
Showtime.

 

chapter 59

While her parents
waited in the Land Rover Caroline called Georgki. She filled him in quickly on what was happening and he told her Jim had been in touch and he knew all about it. “Except not the truth,” he added.

“Me either,” Caroline said. “We're kind of hoping to find that out, or at least some of it, tonight. Can you come, Georgki? I really want you there.”

“I will come. I always there for you, you remember this.”

“I do,” Caroline said. “And remember I thank you for it. Seven, then? At the pub?”

“You will see me.”

Caroline got behind the wheel, they were in her Land Rover. Her father flung Isabel's duffel in the back then climbed in beside her. Cassandra sat next to her granddaughter.

“Well,” Cassandra said pleasantly, “isn't it a lovely evening. One of those grand English nights when you wonder why you ever left the place anyway.”

“The midges,” her husband remembered. “The midges always get you on nights like this.”

Issy said nothing. She crouched in her seat, hauling on her skirt to make it longer.

“It won't,” her grandmother told her. “It's short-short and you bought it that way and you have to live with it and be proud of it.”

Issy met her grandmother's eye and they both laughed.

Caroline spotted Jim's white truck already parked in his favorite spot, round the corner under the trees near the church even though he got irritated by all the bird droppings on his roof. She also saw Georgki's Hummer cresting the hill at the top of the village street, and Melanie's black rental car parked dead-in-front of the pub where nobody ever parked because it blocked the entrance.

“Looks like we're all here,” she said, climbing out from behind the steering wheel managing to smack her shoulder as she turned.
Bad omen,
she thought opening the door for Cassandra.
Clumsy is never good. I must remember to be cool, careful, watch what I say and always ask the right questions.
She only wished she knew what they were.

She had parked behind Jim and now Georgki trundled round the corner seeking a spot. “Over there, after the church gate.” Caroline waved him on. She waited while he'd parked and came walking past the church toward them.

“My goodness,” Cassandra said mildly. “What a big man.”

“You should see him in his canvas overalls with a plastic visor and an electric drill in his hands,” Caroline told her.

“Is pleasure,” Georgki said, bowing formally over Cassandra's hand, which she thought charming. Then Caroline introduced her father and her daughter.

“This is Issy,” she said, putting an arm round the girl's shoulder.

“I have heard,” Georgki said, giving her a smoldering Russian look that made Issy wonder uneasily what
exactly
he had heard.

She threw her mother a suspicious glance but they were already walking up the street to the pub, where Sammy was waiting, blond and plump in denim cutoffs and a Duran Duran tee.

“Ohh, Sammy, Sam.” Issy ran to her and Sam ran to her. They met in the middle, hugging frantically, jumping up and down, saying how they'd missed each other. Then Issy pulled back. “Have you seen
her
yet?” she asked.

“No. I get the feeling she's being kept as a sort of surprise.”

They didn't have time to say more because by then the grandparents were there. Cassandra hugged Sam and told her she knew all about her, there were absolutely no secrets, which made Sam blush, wondering what she meant.

They pushed through the pub doors and were instantly engulfed in the familiar smell of old log fires and chicken pot pies, beer and wine and food.

“I'll bet Sarah's already cooking,” Issy said, and Sam told her she was right and that Clumsy Lily was skipping homework tonight to help, which Maggie did not approve of but had no say in the matter; it was up to Lily's mom. Besides she knew Sarah and Lily were dying of curiosity and couldn't wait to see what happened.

Jesus was standing by the door leading into the kitchen. “We're in here tonight,” he said, when the introductions were over. He smiled admiringly when he met Cassandra, shook her hand and told her he hadn't known Caroline had such a “cute” mom. Cassandra held her breath and counted to ten then smiled and said people always said that about her.

They followed Jesus into the kitchen where Maggie was waiting. Sarah was already hovering over the stove with Little Billy right there in his swing chair, busily booting himself back and forth with his little socked feet. Lily was washing up and seemed suddenly overcome with shyness and true to form dropped a plate, said oh shit then sorry and hastily swept it up. Maggie welcomed everybody, full of smiles, while Jim waited in the background not quite part of the family.

Caroline spotted him though. “Mom, I'd like you to meet Jim,” she said, taking his hand and hauling him forward. “I warned him I was going to introduce him as my lover, except that wouldn't be true.”

Jim threw her an exasperated look; it was not the way one wanted to be introduced to one's girlfriend's mother. And Caroline was now his girlfriend, or would be by tomorrow anyway, if he could ever get her alone again.

Issy looked round for the cat. Of course it was sprawled in the middle of the kitchen table but sat up when Issy said, “Oh, look, there's Blind Brenda.” The cat managed its weird little buzz that was meant to be a purr when she picked her up and hugged her.

“She remembered me,” Issy said thankfully.

But Caroline was looking around. There was no sign of Melanie.

 

chapter 60

Jim was looking round
too. He made a quick mental inventory of those present: Jesus and Maggie; Sam and Issy. Caroline with Cassandra and Henry; then there was Georgki and himself; plus in the background Sarah and Lily. Maybe he should count Little Billy in on the proceedings too; he might be able to be used as a witness in later years. That made eleven of them, well eleven and a bit (Billy), and the “stars” of the “show” had yet to make an appearance.

“There's only one person missing,” Caroline said, thinking of Mark.

“Two,” Issy said, thinking of James.

“If we were in an Agatha Christie novel this would be taking place in the library,” Jim said, accepting half a bitter from Jesus. He took a grateful swig wiping the foam from his upper lip. “All the suspects and participants assembled so Poirot can tell them who did it.”

“Isn't it always the butler?” Cassandra asked, thanking Maggie for the martini, with two olives, a rare find in an English pub.

Caroline said, “I wish Poirot were here now, he always knew what to do.” She had refused a drink; she wanted to keep a clear head. A great deal was at stake both from her and Issy's points of view, to say nothing of the other child involved. Poor little thing, being hauled fatherless halfway round the world to be presented by her mother like a … like a what? A human fait accompli? She looked at her own daughter, clutching the cat to her chest, looking tired and quite ridiculous in that awful red dress (
What had Cassandra been thinking?
) with her boobs hanging out. Caroline caught her eye and frowning, motioned Issy to hitch it up. Scowling back, Issy did so.

Issy said to Sam, “I almost forgot, I have a present for you. I'll give it to you now, before they come in.” She meant before
they
came and
ruined
everything.

“How lovely,” Sam said, admiring the tiny dark blue bottle of perfume called Evening in Paris. “Thank you for thinking of me, especially.”

Issy shrugged it was okay. “It's kind of antique, that perfume. Like from the forties or fifties, or something. It was quite glamorous then.”

“Smells wonderful,” Cassandra said nostalgically. “And I'm old enough to remember it.”

“No!” both girls said, disbelieving, just as the door opened and shrinking little Asia Evans walked in. Was
pushed
in, more like it.

For a second Caroline was frozen. Then she was on her feet and so were Cassandra and Maggie. They were all hurrying toward the child who simply stood there, looking at them, fist in her mouth, eyes bigger and darker than blackberries.

“Come with me, darling,” Maggie said, picking her up. “Come, sit at the table with all of us, we'll have some supper together. I'll bet you'll like an Orangina, then you can tell me where your mommy is.”

Asia's body went rigid. She refused so much as to bend her knees to sit.

“Very well then,” Maggie said. “You may stand right here, between Caroline and me.”

Asia stood, eyes now cast down, fist back in her mouth.

Caroline could see tension gripping her small body. Again, pity overwhelmed her. She looked across the table at her own daughter, who looked back at her over the top of Blind Brenda's head. She clutched the cat close to her face as though, Caroline thought, she didn't want Asia to even see her.

“Sweetie, where is your mommy?” Caroline asked Asia, but Asia only hung her head further.

“That bitch shoved her in here to face the music alone,” Cassandra said.

“And she knew perfectly well what she was doing,” Jim agreed, getting up and walking to the door. As he had expected Melanie was standing outside listening.

“Might as well come in now you've got an audience,” Jim said, holding it open and giving a theatrical wave of his arm. “The stage is all yours,” he added as she stalked past him in a waft of Versace.

Then all of a sudden Melanie seemed to lose her nerve, or her head, or maybe it was her heart, because she just crumpled to her knees and began to weep.

“You don't know how hard this is,” she murmured, hands covering her face. “You can't possibly understand what it means to be so completely alone, just me and Asia. James should not have left us like that, he shouldn't…”