Life Less Lived Ch 07

Friday, 2 shopping days to Christmas

As expected, Sir Philip had Lady Barbara collected early on Friday morning with his chauffeur-driven limousine, which pulled up and parked outside the row of cottages precisely at six o'clock. She was ready to go, with an overnight bag packed and waiting inside the front door. She stepped out of her cottage as soon as the sleek vehicle pulled up almost silently outside. The chauffeur, a young man she didn't know, stepped smartly around the car and opened the rear door for her to enter and offered to take her bag.

"Thank you, please," as she handed over the bag, "you must be new, young man, what's your name?"

"James, Lady Barbara."

"Thank you, James. How long do you think it will take to get to London?"

"At this hour, probably about 90 minutes, no more."

"Thank you, James."

The surprise for Lady Barbara was that Sir Philip was already sitting in the car waiting for her.

"Hello, Barbara, you look fresh, even this early in the morning."

"Philip! Well, this is a surprise, and a pleasant one. I hadn't expected to see you until we collected you from the office. Is it all right for you to take the whole day off like this?"

"Of course," he grinned. "I am still the boss, after all, Babs."

They kissed each other briefly on the cheek by way of greeting, before settling comfortably in the back of the luxury car.

"But can they survive without you for a whole day, Phil?"

"Well, they will have to learn to deal with it, Babs, my mobile phone is switched off. No, it's not a sacrifice on my part, really. There's not much I can do at work at this time of year. Everyone's knocking off early to get ready for the company ball, anyway, this being the last working day before Christmas. The way things have been going lately, I think they all believe this could be the last Christmas Ball we hold as a company."

"Things that bad? I've not really kept up with all of the goings on at the firm, just the dry, sanitised notes from the Company Secretary."

"It's this damn hold up on the extension to the South Coast Motorway, really. Successive Governments have wanted it, the big towns and coastal resorts definitely want it and we bloody well need it, it's only the Nimbys that don't. With everything else we've bid for in Europe on hold, lost on price or fallen through, we need this delay in giving us the go-ahead as agreed after the long drawn out Public Inquiry like a hole in the head. The delay makes us vulnerable to a takeover bid."

"So Daniel's news spot the other day was not interpreted as being particularly helpful?"

"No, it weren't helpful to our cause at all, damn him."

"I'm sure if you altered the route slightly and put a little more emphasis on the environmental side, Daniel would fully come on board."

"I've got environmental experts assaulting me from all sides, but there's only so much the Government have allowed for the environment in the budget and, if we have to modify the route, some of the additional cost will have to come out of the Government's environment purse, and that's been squeezed until the pips squeaked already."

"I am sure it'll all work out, Phil, there's no point worrying now about what might never happen."

"Well, I hope so, Babs. Let's just concentrate on having a great day and evening. And hopefully that will spill over into a brilliant Christmas together with our Natalie."

"All right, let's."

"Oh, by the way, Nat's on her way down from St. Andrews, or least she says that she'll set out once it gets light up there. Probably about now. Silly girl, afraid of flying, while you were a flight attendant once upon a time. You should be able to see her either late this afternoon or in the morning."

"I know, I spoke to her last night. So, exactly where am I staying tonight?"

"I got Mrs MacKenzie to make up the bed in the guest room at the London flat tonight and then I was hoping to persuade you to stay with us over Christmas at the Cobham house and see more of our daughter. Also, Junior's coming over to Christmas Dinner and, apparently, he's got some news for us."

"Oh? Well, I don't know about all of that, Phil. Let's see how it goes today shall we?"

***

Marina awoke before Sophie this morning. Perhaps it helped that she was in her own comfortable pyjamas. She had a few of her own clothes here now, that she had brought with her, along with her essential toiletries placed on the shelf in their shared bathroom. Not that she had much in there other than soap, deodorant and her electric toothbrush, which she had to admit she had missed over the last few days. She hardly ever wore make-up, although she found a moisturiser essential in the winter to keep the skin on her hands and face in good condition.

As for continuing to share Sophie's bathroom and bedroom, there had been no question of her moving to a guest bedroom once Daniel had firmly reiterated his earlier insistence that she come back with them for the Christmas holidays. Besides, the main guest room had been cleaned by Sophie and Marina and readied especially for Ginny and Giles' use on Christmas night.

She stretched luxuriously, taking her time to wake up fully, her movements waking Sophie up in the process.

"You're awake early this morning," Sophie remarked, wiping the sleep from her eyes.

"I think I slept better last night than any other night."

"I'm sorry I disturbed you the other -"

"No, no," Marina threw off the covers and sat on Sophie's bed stroking the girl's hair, "I didn't mean that you were wrong in disturbing me at all."

"I know, I just can't help feeling ... thank you for making me feel so much better. I'm so pleased that Daddy was clearly enthusiastic about asking you to stay. I was right, though, wasn't I?"

"Yes, you did say he would be and yes, he was quite insistent," laughed Marina, "he did make me feel as though I really was a wanted guest. I suspect, but can't quite understand why, but he seems quite excited at the prospect of meeting my sister Alex and particularly her daughter Tracey."

"Well, if you do take him to meet them, I'll have a chance to have Ginny all to myself to explain my situation to her in private. I just can't do it over the phone. I want her to hug me like you did."

"Oh, sweetheart, you are not going through this alone."

"I know. I just want her to know as soon as I can. I will miss out on seeing Tracey this time, but maybe in the New Year, before I go back to Cambridge."

"That sounds a plan. Tracey will be surprised by your presents, she was there when we saw your father on the local news. I'm reluctant to take him away from Ginny, though, as your father has missed you both."

"Tracey, she's still to tell her Mum that she's pregnant, isn't she?"

"Yes, and it looks like she's going to face having the baby all on her own, her boyfriend's pretty useless. She's not sure if she'll stay with her mother or come back to stay with me and continue her studies."

"I'm sure she'll work something out. Will her Mum be all right about her pregnancy?"

"Oh, I'm sure she'll explode when she first hears about it, but yes, I think she'll be alright. Staying with her mother is her best option, she still has five terms to go before she graduates, and I need to get a job in the New Year."

"Do you want to go out for a ride this morning?"

"OK... What horse will I be riding?"

"Daisy, of course, I can handle Storm, he just needs a firm hand to show him who's the boss," Sophie said, "I've ridden him before, in fact I've had to when Ginny was still away at Med School and Daddy was struggling with Mummy's illness and ... you know, after. We didn't have a clue that he was working on Mummy's book when he locked himself away all day like a recluse."

"Where are we going for our ride then, up through the fields again?"

"No," she said, getting up and looking out the window, "I want to introduce you to our Nanny first ... Oh look, it's snowed a little overnight, just a dusting on top, and the trees are covered in hoar frost. And the sun's just coming up."

Marina joined her at the window.

"It looks lovely out."

"You jump in the bathroom, I'll go get the tea and coffee started."

Daniel was already out by the time they were washed, dressed and got to the kitchen, having helped himself to some of the coffee that Sophie had prepared. The post-it note on the fridge showed he was out checking the poly tunnels, and informed them that he had heard from the Hammonds, they were on their way down and due to arrive during the afternoon.

The stables were warm and welcoming. All the horses were pleased to see them and Sophie made a fuss of Daniel's horse first, giving him an apple and carrot, ensuring that his water was fresh and the hay ricks were filled.

"I think we'll clean out the stables this afternoon after lunch, so they are clean and fresh over Christmas. I really don't know when Dad last cleaned it out properly, but it is in need of doing."

"Can I help?"

"Yes, of course you can, it'll be good exercise and fun."

"I wasn't offering for fun, Soph, I just want to help out where I can, I feel a bit of a loose wheel around here. Can I cook tonight's meal?"

"Yes, why not? We'll pop to the village stores on our way past Nanny Mavis's cottage and see what they have in. Since the roads are now clear they should have got in fresh supplies."

"Maybe we could check the larder first, I'm not sure what veg you have in."

"Oh, we are pretty well self sufficient in potatoes, carrots, onions. There'll be Brussels, leeks, parsnips and cabbages in the garden, but they'll be frozen in."

"I'll just use what you have in the larder then."

Their riding gear was still in the stable from the last time they rode. They saddled up the two horses, Daisy and Storm. Once outside, both their mounts seemed keen to get moving and warmed up. Although the sun did have some warmth in it, the ice all around them seemed to suck all the heat out of the air, particularly in the shadows, where the frost persisted to ground level. They walked out through a gate into the yard in front of the poly tunnels and from there onto the lane. There were no cars going up or down the lane at the moment, but it was clear that one car had done so earlier that morning, the single track of its broad tyres clearly marked in the thin layer of fresh snow.

"Hardly anyone uses this lane, it's a wonder it was cleared by the council at all." Marina observed.

"There's only the Grange, the row of cottages at the end of the road and the home farm in the middle, which has daily collections during the spring and summer but only once or twice a week or so while the Hammonds are here during the winter months."

It didn't take them long to trot on horseback down the lane to the cottages. They led the horses into a field next to the houses and tied them to a rail under a broad oak tree. Bundles of hay were in ricks attached to the tree, Marina noticed, so this hitching area was clearly in regular use. They left the horses munching happily, while Marina and Sophie visited the end cottage to meet Nanny Mavis.

Mavis Short was in her mid-eighties, and not as good on her feet as she used to be, but her mind was still sharp as a tack, thought Marina, when they were introduced by Sophie. There was clear affection between the two, as Sophie had known her all her life.

"I retired as soon as Sophie started going to school, but I baby-sat for her and Ginny whenever her parents needed it," Mavis said. "Anyway, Sophie has only told me a little about you the other day, how you knew Daniel a long time ago and, after a long absence, saw him on the TV. Now, while Sophie goes and puts the kettle on for a pot of tea, please sit here next to me and the fire, and tell me all about yourself."

Before she really knew what was happening, she told Mavis, "When I was twelve, my mother died giving birth to the twins, who we now call the Older Twins, ever since Derrick and Junie had their set of young twins just over twelve years or so ago."

"That must've been a terrible shock for you, dear, losing your mother so young," Mavis was sympathetic, putting her arm around Marina's shoulders and patting the back of her hands.

"My father rather went to pieces for several years after the tragedy, leaving me to hold the family together, even though I didn't really have a clue what I was doing. I hardly attended school those next four years. I was the mum to my six brothers and sisters as well as trying to stop my father from slowly killing himself through the neck of a rum bottle."

"It sounds to me as though, if it wasn't for you, your family would have been broken up and put into foster care. How did you cope with the babies?"

"Back when I was a kid, a lot of mothers didn't breast feed. For instance, my mum couldn't feed Una, my younger sister born when I was eight, for some reason. I had helped feed Una bottles of formula at the time, and so I did the same with the twins. I knew how to sterilise everything but even so, I was probably lucky that they didn't get sick."

"And they have all turned out all right, dear?"

"I like to think so."

"Tell me about your brothers and sisters."

"Well, Sandie is two years younger than me. Actually, she prefers being called Alex now, her proper name is Alexandra. I try and remember to call her Alex when we're around her friends. She lives in London with her partner, Dave Baker."

"Are they not married, dear?"

"No, Dave's asked her a few times, but she says their relationship works just as it is, so why change it? The children, three of them, are all Bakers, though, not Shaws."

Sophie brought in a tray with teapot, cups and saucers, with milk jug and sugar bowl. It looked to Marina as if this was a common ritual between her and her Nanny.

"That's Tracey's mum and dad is it Marina, the Bakers?" Sophie asked.

"Yes, that's right," she replied, watching as Sophie put a spoonful of sugar and milk in her cup before filling it with tea and handing it to her, "they have two more children, Andy, who's 16 and Jenny, 12."

"And Tracey's the young woman staying with you, who is now pregnant?" Mavis asked, clearly brought up to date.

Marina didn't ask Sophie to keep it secret and Alex was unlikely to hear any of it from this source.

"Yes, I have to explain it all to my sister on Christmas Eve, because Tracey is afraid to tell her on her own."

"And hope that the news doesn't ruin everybody's Christmas?"

"Something like that. Dave Baker's all right, he's one of those guys who'll take it on the chin and accept it. He'll be disappointed, because he wants what all fathers want, the respect that goes with the white wedding that he thinks his eldest daughter richly deserves. Inside he'll be wanting to throttle Darren, that's the father, but I think Tracey has already written Darren out of the picture."

"What will Sandie do, dear?"

"Oh, she'll rant and rave no doubt, tear Tracey off a strip, but she'll come around after she's thought it through for a half hour or so. Dave's an insurance broker, doing very well, apparently, so I think they can easily afford to bear the cost."

"Are your other brothers and sisters nearby to help?"

"Some are, some not. Derrick, he's the next oldest, he lives in Melbourne, with his Australian wife Junie, they have twin sons Dougie and Craig, who are 12. I've not seen them for seven or eight years. They send over a few snaps every Christmas."

"What does he do down there, dear?"

"An electrician, he started working in a factory, when he first came out of the Navy, but has his own little business now, keeping him too busy to visit. I may have to get myself a passport and go visit them!"

"The Josephs used to travel a lot, dear, and I had to go with them when Penny was small."

"You looked after Sophie's mother as well as the girls?"

"I was originally employed by Penny's Uncle and Aunt. Penny's Uncle Henry inherited the farm and was the first to put a farm manager in. He was a merchant banker in the City and only home at the weekends, he was never a farmer. I looked after Henry Junior, Clarence, who was three years younger, and baby Charlotte, four years younger."

"What happened to them?" Marina asked. "How did the Grange go to Penny?"

"It was rather tragic, dear. The marriage got into difficulties, with the master working away from home so much. He had affairs, it emerged, which Mrs Josephs found out about. So Mrs Josephs, Henry's wife Janice, started doing the same. They argued all the time, frightful rows they were. They eventually, separated, but didn't get time to divorce, it all happened so quickly. One dark night, after the children had a day out with Janice's latest beau, they skidded on some ice and went through a road safety barrier into a freezing lake. All four, mother and three children drowned. The boyfriend got out of the water and saved himself and told the police that Janice kept diving into the water to find her children and eventually failed to surface herself."

"Oh, my, that must've been terrible!"

"It was, awful, all the poor lambs were between 14 down to 7. They could all swim, of course, but strapped in the car, with the shock of impact and the freezing water, I like to think that they couldn't have suffered much."

"How did Henry feel about losing all his family?"

"He couldn't take it, the inquest, his own guilt over his behaviour. He took his own life barely six months later, hanged himself in the woods. That's when Penny's father Martin had to take over the farm."

"That's our Grandpa," Sophie volunteered to continue, "He's lived in Spain for as long as I remember. We used to go over every summer, but I haven't seen him since Mummy's funeral, though we exchange messages and cards all the time. He said at the funeral that that would be his last trip to England, he's not been well for years."

"Oh, Soph, sorry to hear that."

"He's not on his own, he married a Spanish woman years ago, after Gran died. She looks after him now."

"That must be a comfort."

"I suppose so, she's quite nice, very strict with Grandpa, but then she needs to be!"

Sophie stirred hot water into the teapot and refreshed everyone's cup.

"Una is my next youngest," Marina continued after Mavis's gentle prompt, "who's still in her early thirties. She's single and not looking to settle down with anyone anytime soon. She lives in Southampton and works in the library for the local evening newspaper. She used to keep clippings in files, which they still have, but it's largely all electronic filing now, pictures and stuff. They have to be stored for easy recall, because they sell a lot of photos."

"Sounds quite interesting," Sophie suggested.

"Ha!" Marina laughed, "you'd think so, although she always says it's boring, but she stays on doing the job all the same. The twins are the youngest, a boy and girl, Pierre and Haven. Haven lives with Una, as they both work at the same place, but Haven's a photojournalist; she does sports photography mostly, as well as general stuff like awards ceremonies, restaurants, business features. She loves it. She takes all the photos at family functions of course. Haven's still single, with a boyfriend John; he's a bit older than her, several years older and divorced, works as a sports reporter, following the City's football team and the county cricket all round the country. Finally, Pierre is a coffee shop manager in the City of London. He has a cute daughter, Joodie, that's spelt J-double-o-d-i-e, not J-u-d-y as you would expect. His partner Allison also works in the coffee shop part-time, now that Joodie's just started school."

"You're going to see Pierre's family over Christmas, when you go to London?" asked Sophie.

"No, they have already flown to Melbourne for two months. Pierre has been saving his holiday up for the last two years so they could go. They are staying with Derrick and Junie."