The Soft Whisper of Dreams (11 page)

‘Good call,’ the builder, Pete, commented as he put the finishing touches to the arch which was now all that separated the kitchen from the living room. ‘And it’ll be even better once I’ve done the conservatory. Lots of light.’

The rooms definitely needed light, since the windows at the front were small, if quaint. Which was why Alex had chosen primrose and white for the downstairs areas. He’d meant to ask Maddie, but after their recent altercation he’d decided to just go with his own gut instinct. Besides, surely you couldn’t go wrong with such basic colours?

‘Thank you, yes, I think it’ll be great.’ He grinned at the man, who hadn’t once mentioned Alex’s past, even though it was probably all over the neighbourhood that the prodigal son had returned. Alex was grateful and hoped to prove to everyone that he was a different man now.

Everyone including Maddie? He quashed that thought.

He looked around, trying to visualise the sort of furniture he’d need to buy, but instead Maddie popped into his mind again. She’d know, he thought. Women had a flair for that sort of thing. One glance and they’d decide what suited a room. Well, perhaps not all women. But he had a feeling that Maddie, with her artistic tendencies, would be good at interior decorating. Maybe he’d bring her down here as soon as the building work and painting was all done, despite their differences. They had to stay friends for Wes and Kayla’s sake, so this might be a good way of interacting safely.

‘So you’re going to live here yourself then?’ Pete’s question brought Alex back to the present.

‘What? Oh, no, I’m going to rent it out.’

‘Ah.’ Pete nodded knowingly. ‘Thought so or you’d have had the missus in here sticking her oar in.’ He shook his head. ‘Mine won’t even let me bang in a nail without her permission. Women, eh?’

‘Er, I don’t have a “missus”, but I do have a friend who I might ask.’ He grinned. ‘Tough if she doesn’t like this colour though, it’s staying.’ He looked at the pretty yellow which made the sunlight seem multiplied.

Pete laughed. ‘You tell ‘er, mate.’

There was nothing to be gained by procrastinating and Maddie set off the following morning on the long drive to Wiltshire. She’d told Annie she was going to visit a friend of her late mother’s and that she would be away all day.

‘All right. I’ll leave you a cold supper for when you get back in case they don’t feed you enough,’ was Annie’s only comment.

Maddie had laughed. ‘I think it would do me good not to eat for a day or two. I must have put on at least five pounds since I arrived here, thanks to your excellent cooking.’

Annie beamed at the compliment. ‘Get away with you,’ she laughed.

The car radio was turned up and tuned in to one of the local radio stations, and thanks to the regular traffic reports Maddie was able to avoid a huge jam in the vicinity of Exeter. She followed the smaller roads east, rather than the M5, since she found motorways deadly dull. At least on the A-roads there was more to look at and towns and villages to pass through.

She made good time and after stopping at a fast food outlet in Trowbridge for a burger, she finally arrived in Shepleigh just after lunch time. It turned out to consist of more or less just one long street, which also happened to be the main road, with some fairly large houses on either side of it. There were a few little lanes leading off it, but they weren’t very substantial. Maddie parked the car and made her way to the village shop, thinking it was as good a place as any to start.

Two elderly ladies were gossiping with the shopkeeper, a cheerful lady in a green apron, and Maddie walked around for a while studying the shelves. She smiled to herself as she heard the broad Wiltshire dialect of the other customers. It had a wonderful ring to it and she found it fascinating. Finally the women took themselves off, however, and Maddie reluctantly approached the lady behind the till.

‘Hello there. Haven’t seen you in here before,’ the woman greeted her with a smile.

‘No, I’m just visiting.’ Maddie hesitated and gulped in a fortifying breath of air. ‘Actually, I was wondering if you could help me. I’m looking for someone.’

‘Oh, yes. And who might that be, then?’ The woman leaned her elbows on the counter and rested her chin on her hands, gazing at Maddie with interest.

‘A man by the name of John Kettering. He was a friend of my father’s and the last address we have for him was here in Shepleigh. Then they lost touch.’

‘Kettering?’ The woman pursed her lips and looked towards the ceiling as if for inspiration. ‘Can’t say as it rings a bell. What did you want him for?’

‘My father would so like to get back in touch with his old friend and I thought I’d surprise him by trying to find him.’

‘Oh, what a lovely idea!’ The woman beamed.

‘Thank you. It would mean a lot to my dad.’ Maddie felt bad about lying, but didn’t know what else to do. I can’t tell her the truth, after all.

‘Well, the only thing I can suggest is that you talk to the vicar. He’s been here forty years at least, so if anyone knows it would be him.’

‘That’s a brilliant idea. Where will I find him?’

‘He’ll either be in the church or pottering around his garden which is right next door. Red house with white painted windows, you can’t miss it.’

‘Thank you very much. You’ve been very kind.’

‘Not at all.’

Maddie left the shop and had to stop and rest for a moment. Her legs were trembling and she closed her eyes to regain control. It had seemed like such a good idea to come, but now she was actually here she found it extremely difficult.

‘Don’t be so stupid,’ she admonished herself. ‘No one here would ever guess the real reason for your questions.’ With renewed determination she set off in the direction of the Norman church – the square tower clearly visible some fifty yards further down the road.

As luck would have it, she passed the vicarage first and there was an old man in the garden, bending over his roses with a spray can of insecticide. Maddie cleared her throat noisily and he looked up and smiled a greeting.

‘Excuse me, but are you the vicar?’ she asked.

‘Indeed, young lady, I am. Are you in need of my services?’ He approached the fence, leaving the can on the grass by the flowers.

‘Well, not exactly,’ she began, and repeated the story she had told the shopkeeper.

The old man’s face clouded over while she spoke and he shook his head.

‘I’m terribly sorry, dear, but John Kettering is no longer with us.’

‘You mean ...?’

‘Yes, he died two years ago. He’s buried over there.’ He nodded towards the cemetery.

‘Oh, that’s too bad.’ The grief Maddie felt was genuine enough, although it wasn’t for the reason the vicar would think. ‘Dad so wanted to see him again,’ she lied, crossing her fingers behind her back in order to somehow make it better.

The old man patted her arm. ‘Don’t worry, dear, they’ll meet again. The good Lord will make sure of it.’

‘Yes, I suppose so.’ Maddie tried to think rationally. It was really bad luck that the only lead she had should end this way. She decided to try one last thing. ‘Didn’t Mr Kettering have a sister? I think I heard my dad mention her.’

‘Yes, I believe he did, although I’ve not seen her for years. Didn’t even come to her brother’s funeral, so she might be dead herself for all I know.’

‘You didn’t know her?’

‘Not very well, no. She came to stay with John just after he moved here. She was pregnant at the time, I believe, but after that she never visited once. I must admit I thought it very odd.’

‘I see. Is there anyone here who would know where she lives?’

The vicar shook his head. ‘No, I’m sorry, my dear. She kept herself to herself, if you know what I mean. Didn’t make friends with anyone. And it was a long time ago, must be thirty years at least.’

Twenty-seven, she longed to shout. It was twenty-seven years ago and she was my mother. But of course she couldn’t do that. Instead she thanked the old man for his assistance and made her way back to the shop.

‘Oh, you’re back. Any good?’

Maddie made a little face and smiled sadly. ‘Yes, but it turns out Mr Kettering is dead.’

‘Oh, dear, how sad. Never mind, you’ve done your best, haven’t you? Can’t do no more.’

‘Yes, I suppose so.’ Feeling depressed and dispirited, Maddie bought several bunches of flowers and returned to the cemetery. She found the grave of her uncle and arranged the bouquet in a vase she found nearby, before sinking down onto the soft grass. She buried her face in her hands and gave in to the sadness and despair which engulfed her. Sadness because she would never know her uncle now, and despair because she had come all this way for nothing.

Finally, with a whispered goodbye to John Kettering, she set off back to Devon with yet another headache and eyes that stung from tears and having to concentrate on the road.

Life was so unfair sometimes.

Chapter Eleven

There was a telephone on the landing outside Maddie’s room and its shrill old-fashioned ringing woke her the next morning. When no one answered it, she stumbled out of bed and rushed out to pick up the receiver.

‘Hello? Marcombe Hall.’ She cleared her throat to stop her voice from sounding like John Wayne with a cold.

‘Maddie, it’s Jessie. I’ve got some news for you.’ Jessie’s cheerful voice grated on Maddie’s ears. She had spent most of the night awake, tossing and turning, before finally falling asleep, only to be haunted by the dark nightmare once more. She felt completely exhausted.

‘Well, I’ve got news for you too. I went to that damned village yesterday and all I found was a grave.’

‘A grave? Whose grave?’

‘John Kettering’s. My uncle, remember?’

‘Oh, well never mind. It doesn’t matter.’

‘What do you mean it doesn’t matter? It’s a bloody disaster, that’s what it is!’

‘Oh, shut up, Maddie. I’d forgotten what a grump you are in the morning.’

‘I’m not a ―’

‘Listen, I went back online and checked the records for the years before your birth, and guess what I found? Ruth Kettering’s marriage. She wasn’t a single unmarried mother at all.’

‘What? But then why didn’t I have a father?’

‘I don’t know. I sent for the marriage certificate and it just arrived this morning. She was married in 1981 to someone called Saul Blake-Jones.’

Maddie gasped and sank slowly down onto the floor with her back against the wall. Her vision swam and her legs refused to support her. She had to grip the receiver harder as her hands began to tremble violently.

‘B-Blake-Jones? That awful man? Oh, my God! No, it can’t be true.’ On top of her wasted journey of the previous day, it was simply too much. She felt physically sick and swallowed down the bile which threatened to choke her.

‘Awful man? You know him?’ Jessie sounded perplexed and Maddie told her about some of her strange experiences in Dartmouth.

‘Well he might not be your father,’ Jessie said. ‘Perhaps they had been divorced by the time you were born. I didn’t check that, but I will. Why would she put her maiden name otherwise and not name him as the father?’

‘Great. This just gets better and better,’ Maddie muttered. ‘Shit, I’ve got to talk to Jane.’

‘Who’s Jane?’

Maddie swallowed hard. ‘Blake-Jones’s daughter.’ She added the details about her meeting with the girl.

‘Then you definitely need to talk to her. She might be able to find out more somehow.’

‘Yes, you’re right. I’ll ask her if she knows whether her father has been married more than once and I’ll call you when I have more news. And Jessie, thanks for your help. I’m sorry if I was a grouch, but this whole business is getting to me.’

‘Don’t worry, I understand. Let me know what happens, okay? Bye.’

For fear of missing Jane’s phone call, Maddie stayed indoors all day trying to concentrate on a book. When she had read the same page five times without being able to make sense of the words, however, she gave up and went to the kitchen to do some baking.

‘What do you want to do baking for in this weather?’ Annie asked suspiciously. ‘You should be outdoors, so you should.’

‘I’m waiting for a phone call and it’s very important. Sorry, I don’t mean to get in your way, but I need something to do.’

‘Oh very well, help yourself to whatever you need.’

Maddie had produced a batch of brownies and a sponge cake by the time the phone finally rang and driven Annie nearly to distraction by being underfoot all day. Fortunately for Annie’s sanity it was Jane calling at last.

‘Thank God it’s you! I’ve been waiting all day hoping you’d call.’ Maddie heaved a sigh of relief.

‘Oh? What’s up?’

‘I need to see you. Can we meet this afternoon?’

‘Well, I don’t know, it’s a bit difficult, but perhaps I can get away for a short while. I’ll try to meet you in the car park at half past four, all right?’

‘Great. I’ll see you there.’

Jane was ten minutes late, and Maddie’s fingernails had once again been chewed to within a hair’s breadth of their lives by the time the girl slipped into the seat next to her.

‘Shall we go outside town like before?’ Maddie asked.

‘Yes, please. I don’t want anyone to see us if we can help it.’

They were both silent on the ride to the little lay-by, but once there Jane started talking in a rush. ‘So what did you want to see me about? Have you found something?’

Maddie nodded. ‘Tell me something first. Do you know whether your father has been married more than once?’

‘No, not that I’m aware of.’

‘And what’s your mother’s name?’

‘Ruth. Why?’

Maddie took a deep breath to slow down her heartbeat, which had suddenly escalated to an almost unbearable frenzy. ‘And do you know what her maiden name was?’

‘Yes, of course. It was Kettering, but why do you want to know?’

Maddie drew in another deep, steadying breath. ‘I’m not sure I should be telling you this, but … I think I may be at least your half-sister. Ruth was my mother too.’

Jane’s mouth fell open. ‘You’ve got to be kidding, right?’