Home is Where the Heart Is (12 page)

"I'm afraid she's taken some of her clothes too," Lindsey was forced to tell him, icy fear gripping her. "It looks as if she really has run away."

By now a blizzard had blown up, and the situation was looking grimmer every moment. Simon began to systematically 'phone round all the places where Susan might be, but to no avail. Then he took the car out for the second time and scouted the streets. In the end he contacted the police. He came into the kitchen looking drained and exhausted, as Lindsey was making a pot of tea.

"They're getting a search party together. I'm going of course."

"Then I'm coming too—
Mrs. Parker will take care of Tommy. She's said she won't go home until she knows Sue's safe. Have some tea first."

"Tea—who wants tea!
My daughter's missing and all you can talk about is tea…! We're wasting valuable time. The child could be buried under a snowdrift —abducted—almost anything by now. All this would never have happened if we'd insisted she'd come with us this morning. I blame myself entirely for leaving her in that frame of mind." He suddenly caught hold of her arm. "Oh, Lindsey, why ever do these dreadful things happen to me?" She longed to comfort him, but instead, poured a cup of tea and pushing it towards him, said briskly,

"
Mr. Kirkby, listen—Maybe Susan’s gone to Andrews? Oh, I know you've been to the flat already, but does she realise he's gone to London today, or would she wait until he returned? Has he got a shed in the garden?"

"No—he hasn't got a garden—but Lindsey, he's got a garage—Come on you could be right. Why ever didn't I think of that before?"

They went as far as they could in the car, and then got out and ploughed through the snow. Simon took Lindsey's arm to help her. There was still no light in Andrew's flat. Simon opened the garage door and shone his torch. A small figure blinked at them owlishly from a pile of sacks and Susan whimpered,

"Daddy, oh Daddy, thank you for coming!"

In two leaps Simon was by her side, and had gathered her into his arms.

"Thank God," he said over and over again. "Thank God you're safe—Oh Sue, why ever did you do it?"

"I thought you didn't care about me—I wanted to pay you out. I was in a rotten mood, but, Daddy, I did try to come back earlier honestly, but the snow was so deep, and then it got dark, and I fell and hurt my leg. It was awful!—I was so frightened."

"And you didn't know Uncle Andrew was out?"

"Yes because he was here when I came first of all this morning. He was very, very angry and told me to go home, but I just couldn't, and I didn't know where else to go. Katy's mum would have split. He bought me some coffee and a bun in the precinct, but it made him miss his train, and he said Aunty Sonia would be fearfully angry with me, for making him late…Daddy, I thought you were going to marry Aunty Sonia—I don't understand."

Simon ignored this remark. "You're frozen, and this leg looks as if it needs a stitch—
Have you been here all day?"

"No-o, I went to the Saturday cinema this morning, and then I had some fish and chips for lunch."

Simon questioned her no further. He bound her leg with his handkerchief, and gathered her up in his arms. "Lindsey, it's going to be a bit of a job—I'll need some help."

At last they reached the car. Susan did not speak to Lindsey and Lindsey guessed she was feeling a bit sheepish.

"Lindsey if you take Sue to the hospital, I'll go to the station and try to sort things out there."

"Why?" asked Susan
drowsily. "Are you meeting Uncle Andrew? Is something wrong with his car?—He usually parks it at the station. You should send Miss Meredith, as she's so nuts about Uncle Andrew."

"Susan dear, you've got it all wrong," Lindsey said wearily.

"Anyway, he was pretty horrid to me. I thought he would have at least taken me with him to London."

"Susan, you can't expect people to…Oh what's the use? It's a great pity he didn't fetch you home instead of seeing you on the bus, that's all I can say," Simon remarked grimly. "I suppose you got off at the next stop?"

Susan nodded. "You can go off people, you know…What's for supper, Merry? I'm starving."

At the hospital Susan's leg received a stitch, and she was given an anti-tetanus jab. Lindsey was told to keep her in bed for a couple of days, in case she had caught cold. Lindsey was shivering herself when she eventually reached the Point, but Susan came first and was given a hot
bath, and then supper in bed.

"I suppose you hate me," Susan said when Lindsey went into her room to collect the tray. Lindsey, who was nearly dropping from fatigue, pushed her hair back from her forehead wearily and said gently, "Hate you, Sue, why ever should I do that?"

"Well, I have done some pretty mean things to you, haven't I?"

"Yes, you have rather, but that doesn't make me hate you."

"You're nice Merry, and I'm sorry, truly I am."

Lindsey wasn't quite sure just what Susan was apologising for. She found a pair of arms suddenly wrapped tightly round her neck.

"Well," said Simon, entering the room. "What's all this—cupboard love, young lady?"

"I was telling Merry sorry."

"I see, and are you Sue—really sorry, I mean?"

"Yes, daddy, I won't be
mean to her any more, and I won't run away again, I promise."

"Then we'd better forget the whole incident, hadn't we? And tomorrow I'd better help you with that Maths that's bothering you."

Lindsey was not sure that Susan meant what she had said, but left her and Simon together and went to have her bath.

Later, as Simon and Lindsey shared a supper of soup and sandwiches together in his study; she felt that the day had drawn them together, and that they were trembling on the brink of a new relationship.

It was gone midnight when she got to her feet, blind with tiredness, but filled with a new-found happiness. Simon got up too.

"It's been such a long, long day. Thank you for all you've done, Lindsey," and gently he cupped her chin in his hand. Her heart pounded, and, for a moment, she thought he would kiss her again, but instead he said, "I've changed my opinion of you, Lindsey Meredith." And then abruptly, he gathered up the tray and left the room. Lindsey stared after him, wondering if her love might not be quite unrequited after all.

If Lindsey had hoped life would suddenly change for her overnight, however, then she was greatly mistaken. Susan developed a cold and proved to be a very bad patient. Simon, obviously regretting his moment of weakness, became more moody and withdrawn than Lindsey had ever known him to be and she, feeling thoroughly miserable at the strange turn events had taken, buried herself in her typing and wondered if she ought to apply for another job after all. The snow had turned to slush; the magic was over. The enchanted fairy-tale land had gone, leaving Lindsey feeling more desolate than ever.

Rob 'phoned up a few mornings later, just as Lindsey was about to prepare Simon's lunch.

"Lin, you haven't written to father yet have you?"

"No, I keep putting off the evil moment—Why, Rob?"

"He 'phoned me last night—that's why! He's joined Gavin in Nairobi. They've had to sort out some business matters, apparently. Gavin's told him the news. You've done it this time, sister dear, make no mistake about it."

"Oh, no!" gasped Lindsey. "I wanted to tell him in my own way. What was his reaction?"

"What did you expect? You've upset the apple-cart as far as he's concerned, and he's simply livid. After all you have been rather impetuous, haven't you Lin, telling Gavin you're not returning to Africa. Father wants to know what on earth you're playing at—says he wants you to return on the first available flight. He can't manage without you a moment longer. He says if he doesn't hear from you within a week, then he's coming over to sort things out himself."

Lindsey laughed shakily. "He must have taken it badly, and he's being melodramatic as usual. He seems to forget I'm grown-up now—Thank goodness he doesn't know about my job."

"Oh, I think he suspects something. You know how father jumps to conclusions."

"Did he—did he mention Aunt Mary, or the bungalow?"

"Nope, not a word, and I didn't dare bring the subject up with him in that frame of mind…Look I must go now —got a lecture, but I'll keep in touch. 'Bye, Lindy, and chin up, love."

Lindsey went to sit on the landing window seat in a complete daze. It was all so totally unfair. What had she gained from coming to England anyway? She had set out to have a wonderful holiday, her last before settling down with Gavin, and had ended up having to get a job, and then falling hopelessly in love with her employer. As the days passed, she had realised that there was little chance of her having her love reciprocated. How she longed for those grey eyes to light up in approval of her. Even so, it was something to be working under the same roof, and now her father would want to take her away from even that.

Lindsey loved her father dearly, but the time had come when she could not let him interfere in her life any longer. He loved running people's affairs, and, this time, she was going to have to stand up to him and say no. His temper, when he learned she had a job and was really not going to marry Gavin, or return to Africa, would know no bounds. He would reason with her, appeal to her conscience, make her feel thoroughly guilty at leaving him to fend for himself. He would work himself up into a terrible pitch. The accounts would be in a muddle; the houseboy would have ruined his clothing in the wash…She could only pray that father, at least, knew about the bungalow.

When Lindsey took Simon's lunch in to him, he cleared a space on his desk.

"All this money you've given me for that long distance call must have made a tidy hole in your salary. Have you got a boyfriend in every port?"

Lindsey was caught unawares. Feeling herself colouring, she passed him the side salad. They were skating on dangerous ground.

"You're rather jumping to conclusions aren't you,
Mr. Kirkby?"

Simon gave her one of his granite looks. "Am I? Then I apologise…This omelette's delicious. You're a good cook, Lindsey. I'm going to be out this evening, but I'll probably want some supper when I get back. There's no need for you to wait up. If you could just leave a tray ready with enough sandwiches for two, and switch the percolator on…”

Lindsey wondered if it was Sonia Vincent he was taking out and felt a sudden stab of jealousy. She would have given anything to be in Sonia's place just now.

"Oh, and can you collect my dinner jacket from the cleaners in the precinct, please? I forgot to mention it this morning—I've got the ticket here some-where—Ah yes, here it is."

Lindsey had a fleeting vision of herself in her new cocktail dress; being escorted by Simon to some exclusive night club. Realising he was looking at her expectantly, she hastily took the proffered ticket.

"Yes, of course,
Mr. Kirkby." She felt leaden-hearted as she closed the door. How hopeless it was to be in love with Simon. It was a completely impossible situation, quite beyond her control.

Lindsey threw herself into a frenzy of typing. She would not allow herself to dwell on either Simon or her father, but would concentrate on getting the articles finished in record time. She grimly drove herself on, pausing only to collect the children and get their tea. At last she was forced to stop, because of the cramp in her hands. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Tommy came bounding into the room, waving a model aeroplane.

"Look, Merry, it's finished—What d'you think of it?"

"It's
super, Tommy You'll have quite a collection now."

He stood there for a moment, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "It's Aunty Sonia's birthday on Saturday. We're supposed to be going to her party Daddy's taking her out to dinner tonight."

So that was it. Lindsey carefully inserted a clean sheet of paper into the machine.

Simon appeared in the doorway at that moment, looking remarkably handsome in his dinner-jacket and bow tie, and brandishing a clothes brush. "This wretched suit picks up every piece of fluff imaginable. Could you brush me down?"

Lindsey did so, wishing with all her heart that it was her he was taking out to dinner that evening.

"I suppose you haven't seen my gold cuff links anywhere?"

"Try the ash tray on the desk in your study."

"Thanks, I don't know what we'd do without Miss Meredith, do you Tommy…? What's that you've got there, another model aeroplane?"

Tommy showed it to him, proudly explaining every detail. Lindsey, watching father and son, realised again how dearly she had grown to love them both, and how much a part of her they had become.

She typed far into the night, lost to Simon's manuscript which she found intriguing, driving herself on because she knew she must keep her mind fully occupied, and that she would not sleep if she went to bed. It wasn't until she heard the sound of low voices in the hall that she realised Simon and Sonia had returned.

Some impulse made her peer over the banisters, as she was crossing the landing to the bathroom. As she did so, Simon took Sonia into his arms and kissed her, and suddenly, Lindsey was brought to her senses. What a fool she had been. How could she have ever imagined that the kiss Simon had given her had meant anything at all to him? It was obvious he was going to marry Sonia, and nothing could be gained by remaining here any longer. Even now, it would not be too late to tell Gavin that she had changed her mind, and that she wanted to marry him after all, that she had refused because of a sudden fit of nerves. Both Gavin and her father needed her; whereas Simon did not. She must forget all this and return to Kenya.