by C. Fonseca
Amongst Ben’s photographs, Jess had found pictures of her mother with Usha bundled together with a letter, handwritten in such a scrawl that it was hardly decipherable. It was from Usha to Ben, dated April last year. The fact that Ben had kept in contact with their mother’s friend stirred so many memories. Jess was eager to meet with Usha. She could barely remember the time of her parents’ divorce, and hoped Usha could shed light on that period, although it would be painful.
The smooth water under the pier and light air had a calming effect. It was as though she could see things clearly for the first time since she’d arrived. She didn’t want to leave. Not yet. She would extend her stay in Australia. Not too long. Just long enough to connect with Usha and spend as much time with Aruishi as possible, to hopefully establish a bond which would continue after she flew back across the globe. A bond for life.
One of the photographs was of her mother and Usha standing in front of the giant passenger ship that would transport them across the world to Australia. They would have been younger than Jess was now. Their long black hair fell over their shoulders in tight braids. They wore colourful salwar-kameez—the traditional baggy trousers and fitting dress tunic of northern India that had been adopted by women all over the continent. Jess liked the style, and it was obviously more practical for travelling than a sari.
They’d been fortunate to receive sponsorships, and graduated from a medical college in Pune. Usha and Jess’s mother were granted residence in Australia on condition they practised in country Victoria for a minimum of five years. They’d both settled in the small town of Wylie.
If the Englishman Benjamin Harris Senior hadn’t tumbled off his bicycle during a cycling tour of Australia, requiring stitches—he and Doctor Aruishi Annand would have never met. Jess sighed. Their whirlwind romance had lasted only six years.
Jess drove into Faodail Farm and continued up the tree-lined lane to Ailie. She collected the leather folder of documents from the rear seat and hurried across the courtyard. She was fifteen minutes late.
Through the kitchen window, she spied Lili leaning back against the bench, her hands moving quickly as she talked to someone out of Jess’s view. Lili looked totally at ease as laughter and gesticulations accompanied her speech.
Jess turned the handle, walked through the French doors, and stepped into the kitchen.
Lili’s expression shifted from happiness to uncertainty. It was obvious that Jess’s arrival instantly changed her mood.
“Hi, Jess. How are you?” Alex asked. She looked from Jess to Lili and back to Jess. “How’s your day?”
“I’m well. I had a productive morning, thank you.” Jess turned to Lili. “But I am sorry I’m late.”
“Don’t worry, so was Lili,” Alex said as she smashed thick slices of avocado onto a toasted bagel. “I’m making Lili a snack. Would you like something?”
“No, thanks.” Jess’s stomach rumbled, and she coughed to hide the noise. She should have eaten something with her two coffees this morning. When she looked up, Lili had her head tilted to one side as she appraised her. Jess took a deep breath and released it slowly. “Please go ahead and have your meal. I’ll wait on the terrace. I don’t need lunch.” Her stomach rumbled loudly as if to punctuate her words. How embarrassing.
Lili reached into the under-bench refrigerator and pulled out a bagel. “What would you like with it?” She pointed to an array of ingredients on the benchtop. “You have choices. But let me suggest Mum’s apricot-and-ginger preserve with aged cheddar, or my favourite—vegemite and avocado.”
Alex turned the split bagel that was toasting under the open grill.
“Vegemite and avocado? Strange combination,” Jess said, moving closer to Alex, who removed the bagel from the grill and spread layers of vegemite and avocado onto the golden surface.
Jess’s mouth watered. Of course she should eat. Why was she being so obstinate about it? “Hmm, I will have half a bagel like that…if that’s okay, please?”
After adding a quick twist of freshly ground pepper, Alex pushed a laden plate along the bench to Lili and another one with two halves towards Jess.
“Don’t knock it till you try it. This is one of my go-to favourites.” Lili leaned casually against the bench, picked up her bagel, and bit into it.
“Sorry. I don’t think my mother ever knew how to spread the right amount of vegemite on our sandwiches. She was originally from India.” Jess smiled. Why did she just say that? Obviously Alex and Lili knew her mother was from India. Jess and Ben had suffered some weird sandwich combinations in their school lunchboxes. Salami and jam rolls. Curried mince, mayonnaise, and lemon pickle. “I could never convince anyone to swap.”
“Oh, really?” This time when her gaze met Jess’s, Lili’s face relaxed. “Didn’t most kids have vegemite sandwiches at school?”
“Probably, but not half an inch thick with Kraft cheese and parsley.”
“Oh.” Lili smiled. “You saw for yourself, this has only a thin scraping of vegemite.”
Jess bit into the crunchy bagel. “Hmm…”
“Hmm? That’s it?” asked Lili, her eyebrow raised.
Jess shook her head. “It’s good.”
“Told you.”
“No, it is good. The avocado is creamy, the vegemite a little salty. Goes well with the bagel.”
Alex leaned forward and wiped Jess’s chin with a kitchen towel. “Sorry, you have a little avocado—”
Jess stepped back involuntarily. “That’s okay, I’ve got it.” She put her hand to her face.
“Oops.” A flush crept across Alex’s cheeks. “I’m out of here,” she said sheepishly. “See you both soon.”
“Thanks Alex, see you tomorrow.” Lili cleared the ingredients from the bench and gave it a quick wipe down. “Actually, Jess, I’m done here for the day.” Lili pointed to the folder Jess had placed on the benchtop. “Let’s do this in my office at home. Bring your bagel with you, if you like.”
“That’s fine with me. The Mini’s outside. I’ll meet you back at the house.” Jess stared at the remaining half of her bagel, picked it up, and headed for the door. “It would be a shame to waste it.”
Looked like there had been no need for the mad dash back to the restaurant after all.
Lili drummed her fingers across the top of her desk and watched Jess leaf through the papers on her lap. Lili was ready. Couldn’t they just get on with it? She swivelled around to stare out of the window. The wind had picked up since this morning, and the distant waves were topped with choppy whitecaps. “That does look like a storm coming in.” Perfect weather to suit her mood, now that they were back to business.
“Lili.”
She looked back to meet Jess’s penetrating stare.
“Are you ready?” Jess sat back with an anticipatory look on her face.
Lili quickly nodded her head. “I am.”
Jess held up a piece of paper and waved it between them. “This document outlines Ben’s initial investment in your restaurant and the proposed interest on pay-out.” She peered at Lili over the top of her reading glasses.
“I have the figures.” Lili clenched her jaw. She knew the figures off by heart; she could recite them backwards in her sleep.
“Okay, then,” Jess said. “Then let’s just agree how to do this.”
“Do what?”
“Settle the loan.”
“I’m sure you think it’s just a walk in the park.” Lili tapped her fingers on the desktop, again. Why should she expect Jess to understand her situation? The sooner she could fly back to her glamorous life in London, the better.
“Pardon me?” Jess asked, with her eyebrows raised. “The sooner this settles, the sooner I will be out of your hair. Isn’t that what you want?”
Lili sighed. “Yes.”
“Are you positive? You don’t sound sure.”
<
br /> She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “It’s just that I haven’t had enough time to—”
Jess cut her off. “That is exactly why I suggest you talk with your accountant. Then we can decide on how and when.”
A flash of lightning lit the room, followed by a slow rumble of thunder, and a stream of rain splattered across the window.
Jess flinched. Her eyes widened.
“There’s a storm moving in—” Lili’s phone rang, and she lifted it from her desk “It’s Mum, I need to get this.”
Jess jumped to her feet and moved her chair into the middle of the room, further away from the window.
Lili ended the conversation with her mother and slipped the phone back onto the desk. She turned to Jess. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” Jess snapped, and sat up abruptly as a crack of thunder echoed through the study.
Jess’s gaze darted around the room—she was nervous of the storm, or afraid, or both.
“Mum called to let me know she and Ru were enjoying the weather event.” Lili got up to move in between Jess and the window. “Wow, the sky is really dark except for the lightning flashes.” Lili loved thunderstorms. She scanned the sky. She loved the turbulent clouds, the crackling sound, and the drama and energy of a spring storm.
Another sharp clap of thunder rattled the window. “Isn’t Aruishi frightened?” Jess asked.
“And here comes the heavy rain,” Lili said. “It will be great for the garden.” She smiled and returned to her desk. “Ru loves thunderstorms—if she’s indoors with her teddy bear and a blanket. Rumble, Thumble, Boom.”
“Pardon?”
“We need to introduce you to Rumble, Thumble, Boom. It’s a book about a boy and his dog and overcoming his fear of thunderstorms.” Lili saw a thinly veiled vulnerability in Jess’s eyes and posture. She wanted to comfort her but held back. Jess might misread her gesture and slap her. “You obviously don’t like thunder and lightning?”
“No.” Jess raised her eyebrow and pushed the papers across the desk towards Lili. “Can we get back to this?”
“Sure.”
“Do you agree with the principal and interest due?” Jess moved around uncomfortably, rubbing the back of her neck.
“It’s what Ben and I agreed.” For goodness sake, Lili was aware of the sum and the agreement between Ben and herself.
Jess glared at her.
Lili wiped her sweaty palms on her trousers and sat back in her chair. Her anxiety was not about the weather. “I don’t have the money to pay you back in a lump sum.” She had to shout to be heard over the howling wind.
The boom of thunder rolled across the lower valley, and rain hammered the iron roof. Lili recognised the sharp crack of a gum tree splitting, followed by a deafening crash.
Jess cupped her hands over her ears.
Lili got up and went to Jess, took her hands, and gently moved them away from her ears. “Listen, you’ll be okay if you stay in the house. I have to check what’s going on outside.”
“Okay, be careful. Sorry I can’t help you.”
Jess retreated to the safety of her room after Lili left to investigate the loud crash. She wished she wasn’t so wimpy. Lili was out in the thunderstorm by herself amongst all those eucalyptus gum trees and shallow root systems. Jess’s mother had died during a fierce storm when high winds downed a tree; it had fallen across her car, killing her instantly. Jess lay on her bed, trembling, and pulled the blanket up to her chin. She took slow, deep breaths and practised the meditation technique she’d learnt from her therapist to push those terrifying memories away.
Finally, the storm seemed to be abating, and rain no longer lashed the bedroom windows. Jess left the sanctuary of her bed to collect her laptop from the dresser. Lili said she couldn’t repay the loan—that was a surprise. She scrolled through her inbox and found a new e-mail from Jonathan. She hoped he’d managed to find the data she’d requested. If anyone could unearth information about Lili’s financial situation, Jonathan could.
She clicked on his e-mail, read the accompanying letter, and opened the attached PDF document. Apart from Ben’s investment, Ailie had been co-financed by Scott and Helen through their self-managed superannuation fund. Ailie, on paper, was in the black, running on profitable earnings. Per the last financial statement, the restaurant had increased its turnover by fifteen per cent since it opened. The figures were good, and over the next two years the projections estimated a further increase in net profit. So what was Lili’s problem?
Jess scrolled down the page. “Ah-ha…”
There was a substantial mortgage on her house, and Lili was in debt to her parents. It must be tough keeping a business afloat, employing eighteen people, as well as raising a child on her own. The financial pressures would be enormous—something Jess never had to worry about.
Although her father had taken little interest in her—at least it seemed that way to Jess—he’d bequeathed a large portion of his estate to her. Her inheritance and investments gave her a secure future.
Lili was not so lucky. Jess hadn’t considered Lili wouldn’t have the funds to pay off the loan. She’d been so busy feeling sorry for herself, she’d never considered Lili’s predicament. She’d behaved like a selfish brat. Ben had died suddenly, and Lili had lost her friend. Now, here she was—pressuring Lili to pay back the loan.
Her phone rang, jolting Jess out of her funk. Jonathan’s number came up on the screen.
“Good evening, Jess. Sorry it took longer than expected to find the information you asked for.”
“Good morning, Jonathan. Thanks for your e-mail.” It was good to hear his voice, even if he was miles away. “Lili can’t repay the loan right now.”
“She told you that?”
“Actually, she yelled it at the top of her lungs.”
“Did you have a fight?” He sounded alarmed.
“No, there was no fight.” She snickered. “There was an enormous thunderstorm, and she raced out to check on a fallen tree.”
“Okay. I hope she’s all right,” he said. “So, what do you want to do?
“What do you mean, what do I want to do? I was hoping you would give me some suggestions.”
“There are choices. But in the end, you should decide, rather than have the executor make the decision for you.” Jonathan’s cough was followed by a sneeze. “Sorry, Jess.”
“No, I apologise. You mentioned you were feeling poorly in your e-mail. This can wait.”
“No. I’m okay, it’s just a head cold.” Jonathan cleared his throat. “Whatever you decide, you need to tell Lili and put her out of her misery. Your best options are P, G, or B.”
“GBP? Explain.”
“PGB. Payment plan, gift it, or barter.” He coughed again. “Jess, I think a payment plan is the only option for Lili. Forget the bartering; I don’t imagine she’ll let you have a share in the restaurant. She has enough on her plate, pardon the pun. As your accountant and friend, I’m not going to encourage you to wipe the debt. But it is up to you.”
“Payment over time was my thought as well. Something that doesn’t put her under too much pressure. Lili is proud; I can’t see her taking on a partner—especially me.” There was pride, and there was the fact that Lili had her daughter’s future to consider. As Aruishi’s aunt, Jess had the opportunity to take the pressure off and help them both.
“Many people won’t accept help, even when they need it,” Jonathan said in a croaky voice. “By the way, don’t forget, I’ll not be contactable next week.”
“That’s right. Your conference in South Africa. You’d better be over your cold by then.”
“Indeed.” He laughed. “Boot camp at the Londolozi Game Reserve. Just me and fifty other bean counters. If you don’t hear from me, I’ve been eaten by a lion.”
“Boot camp, my arse. I’ve heard about th
e place. Luxury accommodation and fine cuisine.”
“Okay. I am looking forward to the little ecotourism jaunt, but I don’t like being away from Maxine and Rupert. Now, back to you. Talk to Lili and see if she agrees to repayment over time. I can’t see she has any other option. Once that’s settled you can come home.”
“Yes.” Jess hesitated. “On that topic, I’m not sure I’m ready…”
“You’re not ready to come home?” he asked. “Is it Aruishi?”
“There are some things I’d like to follow up on.” Jess paused. “But yes, you are right about Aruishi. I would like to get to know her better. She follows me around. I think she likes me.”
“How does Lili feel about that?”
“That’s another matter. Lili is protective of her daughter, and I’ll have to work hard to earn her trust.” Lili assumed she was merely a celebrity playgirl on wheels. Jess aimed to prove her wrong.
What was expected of an aunt? There was so much to learn. Maintaining a relationship with Aruishi after she returned to England depended on her building a strong bond with her niece and winning over her mother.
“I understand you want to spend time with Aruishi. Can you extend your visit?”
“As long as I keep up with my exercise programme and push myself. I’m all for taking time to decide what I want to achieve for the next chapter of my life.”
“You do have a lot of things to think about,” Jonathan said. “You’re currently living with Lili. Do you think she’ll have you longer?”
“I don’t want to outstay my welcome,” she said. “Ben’s shack is an option, but I’d have to ask his housemate. It’s not that big, and Lili did mention his girlfriend spends time there.”
“That could be awkward.”
“Yes, you know me and awkward.”
“Talk to Lili,” he said. “I’ve got to go. I have a meeting in fifteen. Best of luck, and we’ll reconnect when I’m back in London.”
