by Heidi Swain
Catherine had elected not to come and was staying at the hall with Dorothy and Elise, who was giving Suki a much-needed bath. The little dog had been running amok with Floss since the night she made a bid for freedom and was certainly nothing like the pampered pooch who had arrived in her own Louis Vuitton carrying bag. I could tell that Elise was secretly seething, but credit to her, she had managed to keep a lid on it, so far at least.
‘For those of you who haven’t taken part in the celebration before,’ said Molly when we reached the circle of beech trees in the wood, ‘I’ll explain what is going to happen and then we can search for our Yule logs before coming back to the Wishing Tree for the ceremony itself.’
As I listened to her explain how, once we had found the log we wanted, we had to ask for permission from the tree, the woods and the universe to take it, I felt a mixture of excitement and trepidation. This was like nothing I had ever experienced before and I hoped I didn’t get it wrong. How on earth was I supposed to know which log to select? The ground was littered with them and they all looked pretty much the same to me.
As had become my habit during moments of stress I ran my hands over the smooth surface of the holey stone which I always carried in my pocket now. The repetitive action made me feel a little soothed, as did the kind words of the lady who had gifted it to me.
‘Anna, don’t look so worried,’ Molly smiled as everyone began to fan out. ‘You’ll know it when you see it.’
And she was right.
Jamie, Angus, Floss and I had been wandering around for about half an hour when I realised I was walking with purpose, as if I was being drawn to a certain spot. It was hard to explain, but as I reached a magnificent oak and began to circle its trunk, sifting through the leaf litter and logs, I knew I was going to find what I was looking for and when I did I was rather pleased I had the boys to help me because it was pretty immense.
Far too large for a regular fireplace – but of course the Wynthorpe grates were anything but regular – the log was gnarled and had pieces splintering off in all directions. It looked as if it had been torn from the tree, rather than just fallen of its own accord, and I would have staked my life on it being in that spot at that moment with me in mind.
‘Is this it then?’ said Angus. He sounded very serious and there was no hint of amusement in Jamie’s expression either.
This was clearly an incredibly important tradition to the Connellys and indeed everyone who had shown up, and the burning of the Yule log was highly significant to their Christmas celebrations – or perhaps that should have been Yule celebrations as we were standing amongst the local pagans and wiccans.
‘It is,’ I said, putting down my lantern and laying one hand on the log and the other on the trunk.
I closed my eyes and thought about what Molly had said about asking for permission. I had thought I’d feel silly and prone to giggle, but I didn’t. She had been right – when the time came, I had known exactly what to do, and I hoped that when push came to shove it would be just the same when I had to rubber-stamp my decision about my future.
Once everyone had found their logs and gathered at the beech trees again, we moved on to the Wishing Tree, where Molly and Annie created a circle, which felt like proper witchcraft to me. Then, with everyone sitting inside the circle, we watched a fascinating reenactment of the battle between the Holly King and the Oak King and the passing on of the crown, which was all a part of the turning of Nature’s wheel and the changing of the seasons. After that, the circle was opened again and everyone lugged their Yule logs back to the house, where more guests had arrived and Dorothy and Catherine were waiting with mulled cider and a plentiful buffet.
‘So what did you make of it then?’ asked Catherine as she admired the massive piece of oak Jamie and Christopher had struggled to carry and set down next to the fireplace in the hall.
‘It was wonderful,’ I told both her and Annie, who had wandered up to join us and was appraising me with her periwinkle gaze. ‘I know I didn’t really understand all of it,’ I admitted, ‘but it was very special. It would have been nice to actually see the sun set,’ I added, ‘but unfortunately we can’t control the weather.’
‘My dear,’ said Annie, lightly laying her hand on my arm, ‘there are many things in life that we can’t control.’
‘That’s true enough,’ I sighed.
‘But you must remember,’ she said, increasing the pressure of her hand a little and ensuring I looked at her, ‘that just because we can’t see something, just because we can’t hear it or feel it, it doesn’t mean that it isn’t still there. The sun was still shining away up there today, even if we couldn’t lay our eyes on it. We always carry its power and the belief that it is above us in our hearts.’
She might have been referring to the sun but I knew she wanted me to interpret a deeper meaning. She was talking about Mum. She was confirming what I had been feeling almost since the first moment I arrived at the hall. Just because my mum was no longer physically present, it didn’t mean she wasn’t actually around. The roses, the music box, and the sleigh bells themselves were all signs that she was still with me, and as long as I carried her around in my heart and looked out for her, she always would be. Unable to find the words, I simply nodded and placed one of my hands over Annie’s.
‘What on earth?’ laughed Cass, who had now joined us but was distracted by a commotion that was happening on the other side of the room.
I followed her gaze and my eyes fell upon Elise, who had arrived wearing her finest designer outfit and with a squirming, decidedly fluffy-looking Suki wedged under her arm. In other circumstances she would have looked elegant but in the hall at Wynthorpe among the local cloak-clad pagans she looked rather ridiculous, and the fact that she was swaying a little did nothing to help her blend in.
‘I thought you said your parents were having a party?’ she hiccuped to Archie in a voice that carried far further than she probably realised. ‘This isn’t a party,’ she snorted, ‘this is a gathering of Middle Earth wannabes.’
I looked at Annie, who started to chuckle. I was relieved she had a sense of humour.
‘Oh dear,’ said Catherine, sounding embarrassed.
‘I’ll deal with her,’ said Cass, marching over and steering Elise by the elbow back towards the kitchen.
I allowed myself a tiny smile. The wickedest witch at the party looked like she’d taken her apple and turned it into very strong cider.
‘I’m so sorry,’ said Catherine.
‘You’ve nothing to apologise for,’ said Annie sharply. ‘I’m sure you didn’t pour the drink down the poor creature’s throat.’
I didn’t have time to enjoy Elise being referred to as a ‘creature’ as the sound of raised voices filled the air again and this time Hayley was joining in.
‘Anyway,’ I heard her yell in response to whatever Elise had said first, ‘you’re nothing but a blood phoney with your fake Jimmy Choos and your surgically enhanced tits!’
‘How dare you!’ Elise retaliated. ‘These were a present from Archie.’
I wasn’t sure if she was talking about her shoes or her breasts.
‘They’re fake,’ came Hayley’s voice again. ‘Anna said so and she knows what she’s talking about. She’s got a wardrobe full of designer footwear.’
Out of the corner of my eye I saw the Connelly brothers making a dash towards the argument, but not before Elise had left her parting shot.
‘Yes, well,’ she shouted, her voice reaching as far as the rafters, ‘she’s also got a bag full of Catherine’s jewellery which no doubt went some way to buying them. I bet you aren’t thinking she’s the princess you all had her pinned as now, are you?’
I stood open-mouthed as everyone’s eyes turned to me.
With all the poise and elegance I would have expected of her, Catherine quietened her guests, apologised profusely for the interruption and insisted everyone carried on enjoying their evening. Then she told Archie to get his girlfri
end upstairs and that she would deal with her in the morning, but I wasn’t going to be satisfied with that.
Elise had accused me of stealing just hours after Jamie had questioned me about my references, and it didn’t take a genius to work out that the two things were connected. I was going to clear up this allegation and the sooner the better.
‘Forget it,’ Cass hissed in my ear. ‘She’s pissed and she’s poison. No one believes a word she said. We all know you better than that, Anna. She’s a scheming madam and she’s also drunk. Just let it go.’
‘But I can’t,’ I said, shaking with anger and fear.
‘You have to.’
‘You don’t understand,’ I told her, smiling for the benefit of the curious guests who were still looking in my direction and no doubt wondering what on earth was going on. ‘I did have some jewellery in my bag and it was Catherine’s.’
‘Well I’m certain you had good reason,’ she said straightaway, and right there and then I could have kissed her. Not a shadow of doubt or suspicion had crossed her face and I truly appreciated that, especially as Jamie hadn’t come anywhere near me to back me up since Elise had disappeared upstairs with Archie.
‘Of course she did,’ said Angus, rushing to my side. ‘I’d given it to her. It’s Catherine’s diamond bracelet.’
‘The one with the broken clasp?’ Cass questioned.
‘Yes,’ I said. ‘Angus asked me to take it to town to get it fixed as a surprise for Catherine on Christmas Day, but what I want to know—’ I said, feeling even more furious.
‘Is how Elise knew,’ said Angus and Cass together.
‘Exactly.’
It seemed to take forever for the last few guests to leave. With all the in-house entertainment they had witnessed earlier in the evening I was certain the hard core were hanging on to see if anything else was going to happen, but they were out of luck. Neither Archie nor Elise reappeared all evening, which was just as well because I would have been hard pushed not to wrap my hands round her throat. As soon as the last plate and glass was stacked the rest of us rushed to the sitting room to confront Elise’s nasty allegations.
Adamant that she was right and I was the one who was going to end up with egg on my face, she had been polishing her story and waiting for everyone to assemble.
‘How did you know about the shoes?’ was the first thing Archie hissed to me when I walked into the room.
I had been hoping for an apology, but clearly that was going to have to wait, assuming it was going to come at all.
‘Believe me,’ I told him, ‘I’ve worn enough designer footwear to know when a bogus pair crosses my path.’
‘The guy who sold me those Choos said she’d never know the difference.’
‘Well,’ I said, feeling rather amused, ‘in his defence, she didn’t, did she?’
‘I hope,’ Hayley cut in, ‘you stumped up for the real things when it came to her—’
Fortunately her second breast reference of the evening was cut off by the arrival of Angus. He looked absolutely furious and the room fell silent as he marched across to the fireplace and cleared his throat. Elise, not sensing the atmosphere was stacked against her, stood up and began to deliver her well-rehearsed sermon.
‘I’m so sorry to have shattered your illusions about your latest recruit this evening, Angus,’ she began, sounding only marginally more sober than she had earlier. ‘But I’ve said to Archie on more than one occasion that you and Catherine are literally putting your lives and your property at risk by taking in these waifs and strays who turn up on your doorstep with their sob stories.’
Angus began to chew his lip and I wondered if I were going to witness him really losing his temper.
‘I know you are both very fond of Mick, Hayley and Dorothy and I’ll concede that so far so good when it comes to keeping them out of the silver drawer, but the same cannot be said for this one.’
At this point she actually pointed across the room at me, and Cass, knowing the full story, began to look well and truly amused. I had no idea how Mick, Hayley and Dorothy were managing to keep quiet but I admired their restraint.
‘So what has this one done?’ asked Christopher.
I could tell from his tone that he knew I was innocent and that he was happy to help Elise secure her own noose. She didn’t however, have a clue.
‘Yes, Elise,’ I asked, ‘what exactly have I done?’
‘You’ve been stealing,’ she said with relish. ‘In your bag right now, you have Catherine’s beautiful diamond bracelet. Of course, I’m sure someone like you would have no idea how much it’s really worth.’
‘I bet she knows it’s worth a darn sight more than your nasty shoes,’ spat Hayley.
Clearly the silence from the Wynthorpe employees wasn’t going to last much longer.
‘And if you’d got as far as a pawn shop,’ Elise continued without missing a beat, ‘you would have had a very pleasant surprise, but fortunately you aren’t going to get that far.’
‘All right,’ said Cass sternly, with a wink for me. ‘I think Anna should go and get her bag and I’ll go with her to make sure she doesn’t offload the loot on the way back.’
‘Good idea,’ agreed Elise.
I knew Cass was having fun gearing up to humiliate Elise, but I was more concerned by Jamie’s reaction – or should I say, lack of reaction. Rather than springing to my defence he hadn’t said a word, and I would have bet a winning Euromillions ticket on it being Elise who had planted the idea about chasing up my references in his head. Was he really thinking that I could have done this terrible thing?
‘Come on,’ said Cass, guiding me out of the door and along the corridor. ‘This is going to be brilliant,’ she gushed. ‘We’re finally going to be rid of her.’
I didn’t say anything.
Back in the sitting room I walked across to the coffee table and tipped my bag upside down and shook it out. My purse and car keys, along with some tissues, tampons and a Dior lipstick cascaded out, but there was no sign of the Crown Jewels.
‘I can’t believe this is actually happening,’ said Catherine, her voice catching in her throat. ‘I’m so sorry, Anna.’
‘Why are you apologising?’ Elise snapped, reaching over and snatching the bag from my grasp.
‘Be careful with that,’ I warned her as she yanked open zips and checked the lining for secret compartments. ‘Unlike your shoes, it’s genuine and vintage.’
‘She must have offloaded it already,’ she seethed, ignoring what I had said.
‘Perhaps she took it to town,’ said Angus. It was the first time he had spoken and had I not seen his mouth move I wouldn’t have believed the thunderous tone was actually coming from him.
‘Yes,’ said Elise, throwing my bag back down and latching on to the idea. ‘Of course, she’s sold it already.’
‘I can’t stand this,’ said Catherine, beginning to sob.
‘Me neither,’ said Angus. ‘Elise?’
‘Yes?’
‘You are quite right, Anna did have the bracelet in her possession and she has got rid of it already.’
‘I knew it!’
‘Because I gave it to her.’
‘What?’
‘I gave it to her and asked her to take it into Wynbridge to the jeweller’s to have the clasp mended as a surprise for Catherine on Christmas Day.’
‘But—’
‘No but,’ said Angus. ‘Anna had the bracelet at my bidding.’
Elise’s bottom lip began to tremble but I found no satisfaction in seeing it. I threw my scattered possessions back into my bag and zipped it up.
‘But—’ she said again, before I cut her off.
‘What I would really like to know,’ I said, struggling to stop my voice trembling, ‘is how you knew I had the bracelet in my bag.’
‘That’s a very good point,’ said Christopher. ‘How did you know, Elise?’
‘Well, I . . .’
I had no intention of stick
ing around and listening to how she had slipped into my room and rifled through my things. She had obviously been in there the morning I caught her looking sheepish in the corridor after my run. She had no doubt looked through everything, all my private things, and I hated her for the intrusion almost as much as I hated how she had suddenly changed her attitude towards me because she thought she had an ace up her sleeve and could unmask me as a thief at any given moment. What a truly wicked woman.
I didn’t know what it was that I had done to become the focus of her horrid attention and I didn’t much care.
‘If you will excuse me,’ I said, trying not to notice the pile of still unopened birthday presents which were stacked next to the fire or the fact that Catherine and Cass were holding out their hands to me, ‘I think I’ll go to bed. Thank you for making yet another of my birthdays so memorable, Elise.’
Chapter 31
When I fell into bed that night I had no intention of leaving my room for at least the next day or so, Christmas or no Christmas, but the thought of enduring the no doubt endless knocking as Dorothy, Cass and Hayley, and possibly even the boys, tried to coax me out was too much to cope with. So, even before there was so much as a hint of light on the horizon, I slipped out of bed, hastily dressed, grabbed my jewellery-free bag and left.
I had briefly toyed with the idea of leaving for good, but that wasn’t my style, and neither was it something I could have done to Catherine and Angus. They had shown me nothing but kindness and consideration from the moment I arrived at the hall and I couldn’t bear the thought of disappearing without saying goodbye to them and everyone else.
I didn’t know how I was feeling about Jamie. Of course he hadn’t joined in with Elise’s accusations, but he hadn’t gone out of his way to spring to my defence either. For someone who claimed to be in love with me and who wanted me to be his partner in both work and life, he hadn’t put up much of a fight to keep me, and there was still the unfinished business of the sudden interest in my references to clear up.
