by Ruth Hay
Remedy House
Ruth Hay
Contents
Remedy House
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Afterword
Also by Ruth Hay
Remedy House
by Ruth Hay
Phase three in the Co-housing project:
Home Sweet Home
Can anything surpass their first year together in Harmony House?
One thing is certain. This amazing group of women has proved they are full of surprises.
But life is never perfect for long.
How the women deal with difficulties will test their friendships to the limit.
“Mavis and Hilary found us and brought us together. Vilma found her dogs. Eve found safety. Jannice found a career. Honor found a niece. And all of us found the unexpected; both good and bad.”
Chapter 1
“Am I being paranoid? I expect you to tell me the truth. You know how much I respect your powers of observation.”
The two women were settled on cushions on the bench at the back of the garden, now a bower of cream roses thanks to Mavis’s efforts.
Hilary waited patiently for a response but her friend knew she had to carefully consider her words. She picked up the carafe of coffee and poured a second cup to give herself time to think.
Hilary looked out over the raised flower beds to the rear of Harmony House and tried to remember back over the eighteen months or so since six women had taken possession. How had matters come to this point so quickly? What had she missed in all the excitement of that first year? Certainly, there was much to take her attention. Furnishing rooms and establishing routines and making connections among diverse personalities was a task she had never presumed to be simple. Was she so absorbed in the financial details that she had ignored vital indicators?
One thing was clear to her now. It was time to take stock and Mavis Montgomery was the one who could best help with that.
“Don’t dare blame yourself, Hilary! You know it was always possible that we entered this co-housing project with unrealistic expectations.”
“Are you saying we have failed in some way?”
“Now, Hilary Dempster, that is not at all like you. Of course, we haven’t failed! Just look around you and see the success we have achieved. Jannice has completed her training and is working as a Personal Support Carer, Honor is busier than ever with her financial investment clients, Eve is becoming an amazing artist, Vilma is delighted with the progress of her dogs and best of all, you have done wonders with Faith Jeffries; she is a triumph of hope over adversity. You have every reason to be proud. What on earth has brought you to this low point?”
Mavis looked carefully at her friend for the first time. Was there a sign of illness in the well-loved face? Was there a sign of aging? Neither of them was any younger and it could be said that the ups and down of the last year had taken a toll on both women. They were the senior members of the group, of course, but surely they were not that old? There should be decades of good health ahead.
Hilary was the prime mover in Harmony House. All looked to her for direction. What was this self-doubt about?
“I don’t really know. It’s just that I have this feeling of impending doom. Perhaps everything has gone too well and we have been tempting the Fates.”
“But, there must be something concrete to get you thinking in such a negative way. What is it?”
Hilary looked upward and caught the flower head of a beautiful cream rose in her hand, pulling it to her nose and inhaling the delicious scent.
“These are the last roses of summer. There are a few signs of fall around us. I suppose I am a little afraid of what another winter will bring. Oh, I know the house is secure and warm and our finances are solid. We need not worry about the practical items. It’s just the unknown that bothers me.”
“Well, my dear, there’s not much we can do about that, is there? Not one of us can predict the future.
Would you have imagined your struggles with Desmond could be resolved so speedily? He’s well established in the new company position, and he’s nearby, and seems to be grateful to his mother at long last. Take heart from that amazing turnaround.”
“Yes, you are right, Mavis. As usual. I am worrying about nothing, I suppose.
Look, isn’t that Vilma coming through the woods with the dogs? Please don’t say a word to her or to anyone about our little talk.”
* * *
Vilma Smith’s early walk with her dogs was a time for contemplation. The woods were quiet. Birds ceased to chirp when the dogs arrived. The only sound was the burbling of the stream, their border marker. Astrid and Oscar rooted around happily, searching for the scent of squirrels. Treeing a squirrel was one of their delights. Vilma knew she could sit on a log and think in peace while they patrolled beneath a tree and watched until their prey got up the nerve to jump the distance to escape on the nearest branch of a further tree. She knew she could summon the dogs to her side with one whistle no matter the distraction. They were well trained now, thanks to Andy.
These days her thoughts were never far from Andy Patterson.
When she returned from the Jamaican beach holiday at the end of February, they had reached a kind of border marker in their association, something similar to the stream beyond which the dogs were forbidden to go. She did not think of it as a relationship prior to that point. It was a student/ teacher association for mutual benefit. She got a superb dog trainer’s advice and he got………….
Well, the truth was she did not known why he was keen to take on two rambunctious rescue animals. He could easily have dismissed her feeble efforts to restrain the dogs’ temperaments. It was only after Jamaica that she heard the reason and she was still adjusting to that reality.
Andy Patterson was a survivor of a dreadful explosion that killed his police partner dog, King, and scarred his legs as well as his brain. The phrase he repeated whenever she questioned his monkish instincts to withdraw from society, was, ‘I warned you about being a damaged man.’
She heard this several times and it had become a theme of his excuses. And yet, she saw signs of progress when she looked around the old farmhouse whenever they went inside for a cup of tea following the dogs’ training sessions in the barn. It was the barometer of positive change as far as she was concerned. External change at least. She was not privy to his internal feelings, nor did she wish to be. She had given up on men.
The kitchen of the farmhouse now displayed a few touches of colour. Some arrived surreptitiously, accompanying the dogs while she was in Jamaica. Others, like the red kettle and matching toaster, she had insisted on as a gift to thank him. The set of red enamel mugs came later with the excuse that she could not pass on the great sale price. A stand of spoons with red handles was the last thing he was forced to accept and by then he was not at all pleased. She knew she could not push any further but it was a disgrace that he should be living in these sparse accommodations when he had marketable skills. She suspected he was punishing himself for the loss of King.
None of my business! I have truly sworn off
men forever!
But, as long as Andy was willing to continue training her dogs for competitions, she was obliged to be in his company and that meant improving his living conditions for her own comfort at least. That was what she told herself but the more time she spent in ‘Bleak House’, the more she felt it was up to her as one of the few people he talked to in any depth. No, make that only person he talked to.
It was up to her to do something to help. It was in her nature to try to make things better. It was how she coped with the unfairness of life. At Harmony House she found plenty of scope for this impulse to help, but most of her projects there had been fulfilled. Jannice was almost independent now she had a job and was about to take her driving test. She could still inject a little money here and there as needed from the seemingly endless source dear Nolan had left for her, but the house was running well and everyone was happy as far as she could tell. It was amazing, really, how six different women had blended into a supportive whole. Even the advent of the Teenager With Problems, as she always thought of Faith Jeffries, had not caused more than a ripple on the surface of their calm lives.
Of course, Hilary had taken on most of that burden with able assistance from Mavis. Vilma had little to do with the girl, after the November birthday fiasco, until the summer when she sat occasionally in the back seat while Jannice had preliminary driving lessons. Faith did not say much on these occasions. Vilma got the sense she was pretty tired from her summer job as packer in the grocery store checkout and the preparations her Aunt Honor was requiring before she took up grade ten courses at Saunders Secondary. As long as Faith caused no trouble with the dogs or their mistress, she was content to leave well enough alone.
Astrid’s sudden yelp signalled the escape of the squirrel and the end of the early morning walk. Time to return home for breakfast and naps and a read through of the information Andy had supplied about the competition he wanted to enter the dogs in before the end of the year.
She passed Mavis and Hilary deep in conversation on the garden bench.
Probably discussing the next phase of garden development. Mavis is keen on an avenue of fruit trees.
It could take years before fruit would be produced but the trees could be a good screen from the nosy neighbour next door.
* * *
Honor Pace was enjoying a coffee break on the stone patio. She waved at Vilma as she passed and thought again that she was a woman of style and generosity. A woman Honor envied for those qualities, but she had learned from Mavis and Hilary to seek the positives in her own life and there were certainly many of those. First, was the fact she still had unchallenged access to the lower level of Harmony House. Of course the others were welcome to do laundry, rummage in their storage bins or simply enjoy the garden view from the patio. None of this disturbed her. In fact, after many years working alone in an apartment building, she relished the sound of human voices and was getting to know the other housemates through these contacts.
Her work was the second benefit as it was responsible for her ability to contribute to the monthly funds for herself and Faith. She was conscious that Faith had not purchased a share of the co-housing home and she meant to put aside a sum of money to compensate for this lack. Not a full share; just a portion representative of the number of years Faith would require to complete the first stage of her education. She completely agreed with Hilary that this was the way to future success and independence for her niece. Since her Faith had arrived, Honor had more motivation than ever before, to succeed in business and more clients had been the result.
The third item on her list was a personal one, related to her health. Taking a cue from Vilma she built regular exercise breaks into her work day and ventured into the woods behind the house where she found a clearing perfectly suitable for a stretch and twist yoga program she found on television.
Extra space inside her clothes was evidence this was having a good effect on her shape, but even better was the effect on her spirits. And it required plenty of strong self-talk to deal with Faith Joan Jeffries.
The girl was an expert manipulator when she wanted something. She knew her aunt had no previous experience with a female teenager. She also knew Honor had guilt attached to her feelings about an unknown niece who appeared out of the blue. The situation was rife for manipulation and Honor had to be constantly on her guard. Their relationship was much better when Honor set the rules.
They now had regular hours for homework help and that established a respectful manner. Faith sometimes erupted in frustration when she realized how far behind she was in her course content but Honor had a model in Hilary’s teaching during the summer school months when Faith first appeared. Following that model she kept calm and gave the girl space to rant for a few minutes before pulling her attention back to the task in hand. It was one of many learning experiences with her niece.
High school courses had changed since Honor qualified in business technology. She could not really provide much help with advanced chemistry and physics but, fortunately, Jolene and Jarvis were able to coach Faith in after-school study group sessions at Jolene’s house, leaving the internet-based courses for Honor to tackle.
On the one-to-one connection with Faith, however, things were moving slowly. Every now and then, Faith would reveal another incident from her life with Felicity. This was done to shock Honor and at first she was stunned to hear how her twin and Faith had managed to survive in the world with little money and fewer resources. She had no reason to disbelieve Faith even when her stories demonstrated a lack of moral conscience. Thieving from stores and taking flight from rental accommodation seemed to be normal for the pair and Honor always kept in the back of her mind that her niece might revert to these behaviours again if challenged enough. She knew Hilary would not entertain the idea of harbouring a thief in Harmony House.
The prospect of having to leave her comfortable life here, was a recurring nightmare for Honor. She could not abandon Faith to the world alone, ever again. If teenage chaos arrived to disrupt their existence, Honor would have no choice other than to recoup her investment and vacate Harmony House with Faith.
* * *
Vilma was cleaning the dogs’ feet with the cloths and towels she kept in the closet near the front doors when Eve stumbled on the stairs and almost fell into her arms. The dogs scattered in alarm and began to bark a warning. Vilma quickly hushed the dogs and pulled Eve upright again.
“Are you all right, Eve?”
“Oh, sorry! I lost my balance for a moment. The sunlight was in my eyes. I needed a breath of air. I haven’t been sleeping well lately.”
Vilma took a look and saw dark shadows under Eve’s eyes. She seemed disoriented.
“Look, Eve! Give me a minute or two to settle the dogs and I’ll join you on the porch. It’s a fine morning. I’ll bring us coffee and we can have a chat. Okay?”
Eve just nodded and stood there watching while Vilma cleared away the towels into a bin stored there for the purpose, then ran up the stairs with the dogs. She marvelled at the way Vilma seemed to handle everything with such confidence and style. Taking on two rambunctious dogs was not something Eve had ever aspired to do. In fact, when she compared her life to that of most of the inhabitants of Harmony House, she felt inadequate. The Kitchen Queen label was mostly a joke since the others were capable of producing good meals when they needed to. She did a little baking and kept the cupboards and fridge in order but others could take on those tasks if necessary.
She had grown to admire the ambition of that girl Faith who managed to keep up with school work, do some babysitting locally and still help with grocery shopping, even while working in the summer months. Of course, Faith was a teenager with all the energy in the world. Eve Barton’s energy seemed to be fading with every month that passed. She had given up on painting. Her efforts were amateur and she feared comparison with the many talented artists residing in London.
Sighing deeply, she opened the front door and stepped out onto the por
ch. A breath of fresh air might help dispel the nightmares that were destroying her sleep of late. She plumped up the chair cushions on the wicker furniture and brushed a stray leaf off the table. Fall was approaching. Another long winter was coming. Last winter had been shortened by the fabulous week in the beach house in Jamaica but she could not count on that treat again. Hilary and Honor might want a chance to go there with Vilma.
She knew she should be doing something to earn money. She did not like seeing her inheritance deplete every month but her old skills in accounting were far behind those used currently and she did not have the confidence to start again, as Jannice had done, to acquire new marketable skills.
Another deep sigh escaped her lips but she managed to smile weakly when Vilma appeared with a tray of coffee mugs and two muffins on a plate.
“I found these in the warming oven. I don’t know how you feel about eating your own baking, Eve, but these smelled so delicious I couldn’t resist. You look as if a muffin or two would not do any harm. Have you lost weight?”
It was a personal question and Eve began to respond in the negative but Vilma’s genuine look of concern made her stop and rethink. It was past time to let someone know how she really felt and Vilma Smith was not judgemental. She would listen.
“Yes. You are right. I am not eating properly and neither am I sleeping well. I hate to complain since I am so comfortable here and it seems a disgrace not to prosper in these surroundings. I have the peace I sought for so long but I don’t seem to be able to enjoy it.”
