Divided Loyalties

by Patricia Scanlan

  ‘Champagne in the sitting room,’ Bobby announced gaily, his barbecue apron protecting his mauve shirt and black trousers.

  ‘How are things in the kitchen?’ Carrie asked as she divested herself of her coat and hat and bent down to help Hannah with hers.

  ‘To be honest, I’d be better off on my own. Dad’s got very slow, hasn’t he? He keeps getting in my way,’ Bobby whispered.

  ‘Do you want me to come out and help?’ she offered good-naturedly.

  ‘He won’t have it. Do or die, he’s going to repay you and Shauna for all the meals you’ve cooked for him. He’ll do and I’ll die,’ Bobby said dramatically, speeding back to the kitchen.

  ‘Mom, this is a great Christmas,’ Chloe announced as she shrugged out of her new red coat with the soft furry collar. ‘Grandpa said that I could sit beside him,’ she added happily as she pranced into the sitting room to join her cousins.

  The doorbell rang and Noel called out, ‘I’ll get that.’ He hurried out to the hall with the tea towel over his shoulder. ‘Come in, Mrs O’Neill, and you’re very welcome,’ he said warmly to his neighbour, who stood at his front door with a huge pudding on a plate. It smelt divine.

  ‘Is that for us?’ Davey’s eyes widened.

  ‘It certainly is, love,’ she laughed.

  ‘We’ve loads of puddings,’ Davey announced gleefully to the others. Christmas pudding was his absolute favourite food after roast potatoes.

  ‘There was no need for that now, Mrs O’Neill. We’re delighted to have you here,’ Noel said warmly, ushering her into the hall and taking the pudding from her.

  Bobby came out to greet her with a kiss. ‘Hi, hon, get in there and have a glass of champers and that will fix you,’ he ordered and she hugged him tightly. When her daughter had phoned to say that they wouldn’t be coming until New Year because the youngest child had measles, she’d been devastated. She’d cried telling Noel the news, much to his dismay.

  ‘You’ll come and have dinner with us,’ he’d said firmly.

  ‘I couldn’t do that. You’ll just want to have all your family around you,’ she’d demurred.

  ‘Mrs O’Neill, you’re as dear to me as family. You’ve been a great friend to me. And given me sound advice,’ he added with an uncharacteristic twinkle in his eye. ‘We’d be honoured if you’d dine with us.’

  ‘No, Noel, but thank you for asking,’ she’d said, to his disappointment.

  ‘Leave it to me,’ Bobby had said when his father informed him of the state of affairs, a week before he was due to fly home. He’d phoned Mrs O’Neill immediately. ‘Do you think I’m going to poison you, is that it?’ he demanded when she’d answered the phone. She burst out laughing.

  ‘Go on, ya little rip,’ she exclaimed.

  ‘Please have Christmas dinner with us?’ he begged. ‘We’re all so grateful to you for the kindness you’ve shown us all over the years. And you introduced Dad to bowling. That alone deserves a nosh-up. Please, please come. Or have you a secret lover you want to spend Christmas with?’ he teased.

  ‘Now that you mention it,’ she responded, ‘when are we going to meet your young man?’ Bobby had told her all about Anton in the summer.

  ‘Sooner rather than later, I hope, but we’ll get Christmas out of the way first. If Dad and I survive cooking a Christmas meal together, we’ll survive anything. So won’t you come to us for dinner?’ he urged.

  ‘All right then,’ she agreed. ‘If you’re sure that I won’t be intruding.’

  ‘Don’t be silly,’ Bobby had chided, delighted that she’d agreed. Now, a week later, he shooed her into the sitting room.

  ‘Go and put your feet up by the fire. Dad and I are coming in to have a drink in a minute. We just have a few more little chores to do. Carrie, look after our special guest,’ Bobby ordered, following his father back into the kitchen.

  ‘I just need you to spoon the oil over the parboiled potatoes for me,’ he explained to Noel. ‘They’re the last to go into the oven, then we can have a quick drink, take the turkey out of the oven to rest, steam the veg nicely al dente, serve the starters and we’re away on a hack.’

  ‘Right you are,’ said Noel, who was thoroughly enjoying himself despite being a tad flustered.

  Bobby heated the butter and oil in the microwave he’d insisted on buying, until it was boiling and showed his father how to dip the floury spuds into it with a slotted spoon before placing them on the roasting tray. The smells emanating from the oven were tantalizing and Noel was looking forward to his dinner. While he did the potatoes, Bobby put the finishing touches to his starter of roasted peppers, olives and feta cheese. He was very good under pressure, Noel acknowledged as he watched him garnish the dish with fresh basil. They were working very well as a team. They had shared the preparation of the vegetables and the stuffing the night before and Bobby had got up early to dress the turkey while Noel had set out their breakfast. Then they’d joined the rest of the family for Mass and the visit to the grave.

  Noel felt a rare sense of contentment as he worked with his son in the kitchen. He’d never dreamed that they would prepare a family Christmas meal together. If he hadn’t been so bitter and foolish in the past it could have happened long ago, he thought with a pang of guilt. Forget about it now, he told himself as he oiled the last potato. The past was the past; it was time to let go of it.

  ‘There you go, chef. Potatoes are ready,’ he said with satisfaction.

  ‘So’s the starter. Let’s go and have that drink,’ Bobby said, taking the roasting tray from him and sliding it onto the lower shelf of the oven. When he took out the turkey he’d move them up to the top shelf to crisp them golden.

  There was a happy buzz in the sitting room when they joined their guests. Mrs O’Neill was sitting, pink-cheeked from her champagne, beside the fire, with Chloe perched on the arm of her chair showing her the new Barbie Bride doll that Santa had brought her. It was just like the one that Olivia had. She was thrilled with it. Shauna was cuddling Hannah who was ready to fall asleep after her early start and Carrie, Dan and Olivia were watching Davey do magic card tricks with great panache.

  ‘Let’s toast the chefs,’ Carrie proposed gaily, raising her glass. ‘Dinner smells divine.’

  ‘He should have been a chef,’ Noel said proudly. ‘He’s as good as any of those fellas on the TV.’

  ‘Say that after you’ve had the dinner,’ Bobby grinned, his face flushed and his hair dishevelled from the heat of the kitchen.

  Twenty minutes later they were tucking into his starter with hearty appetites and murmurs of appreciation.

  ‘That went down well enough,’ Bobby murmured to his father as they carried the dirty plates back into the kitchen.

  ‘It was very tasty,’ approved Noel.

  ‘Oh my God! Look at the fucking cat, Dad!’ Bobby yelped as he opened the kitchen door and saw Twiskers on the table, where the turkey steamed succulently, with her nose stuck in the stuffing.

  ‘Ya brat of hell,’ Noel exclaimed, swatting the culprit with his tea towel. Twiskers jumped off the table and meowed indignantly as Noel gave her another whack of the towel, and then she escaped into the safety of the hall.

  ‘What are we going to do?’ Noel whispered, looking over his shoulder to make sure no-one had followed them into the kitchen. He gazed at the turkey, horrified. ‘We’ll just have to serve the ham on its own.’

  ‘Stay calm.’ Bobby put the plates down and ran his fingers through his hair. He inspected the turkey. Twiskers had taken a bite out of a leg, as well as sampling the stuffing.

  ‘Look, if no-one knows, it won’t bother them. I’ll say nothing if you don’t,’ he proposed.

  ‘Would they get food poisoning?’ Noel asked doubtfully.

  ‘No. Not at all.’ Bobby hoped he sounded convincing. He wasn’t quite sure, to tell the truth, but he wasn’t going to let on to his father. ‘Look, I’ll carve away the bits that Twiskers was at and we’ll put them in a dish for her, even thoug
h the little brat doesn’t deserve it, and I’ll do the same with the stuffing. I’ll carve from the other side for the dinner and we’ll forget about it. OK?’

  ‘If you think it’s all right, then we’ll do what you say,’ Noel agreed, relieved. ‘You couldn’t have a Christmas dinner without turkey, sure you couldn’t?’

  ‘Absolutely not,’ Bobby agreed as he began to carve away the offending bits of the bird.

  Fifteen minutes later the guests were demolishing their Christmas feast with much praise and many compliments to the chefs, oblivious of the drama in the kitchen earlier.

  Bobby raised his glass. ‘To Dad,’ he said, with a little conspiratorial wink at his father.

  A beam of pleasure crossed Noel’s face. He felt strangely happy. In spite of the disaster in the kitchen his family meal was a success. He had them all around him and even though some things caused him concern, like Bobby’s . . . problem . . . and Shauna’s broken marriage, they didn’t seem to matter right now.

  ‘To the best grandpa in the universe and outer space even,’ Davey toasted.

  ‘To a great neighbour.’ Mrs O’Neill smiled at him.

  ‘To a sound father-in-law,’ Dan said firmly.

  ‘To Dad.’ Shauna and Carrie lifted their glasses.

  Twiskers came and rubbed her face against his leg. He leaned down and patted her forgivingly. His little companion deserved a Christmas banquet the same as the rest of them.

  It was the best Christmas he’d had in many, many years. God had been very good to him, he reflected as he stroked the linen tablecloth gently. He felt very close to his wife today. He knew that she’d be very happy to see them all like this, and that was the greatest gift of all.

  ‘I’m bushed.’ Bobby was yawning as he lay sprawled in front of the fire in Carrie’s sitting room.

  ‘I’m pissed.’ Carrie grinned as she took a slug of her brandy Alexander.

  ‘And I’m off to bed.’ Dan uncoiled himself from the sofa where he’d been sitting with his arm round Carrie. ‘’Night, you guys.’

  ‘You mean you’re not going to walk me home?’ Bobby demanded, horrified.

  ‘You can take your chances.’ Dan laughed. ‘It was a great meal. Thanks a lot.’

  ‘You’re welcome,’ Bobby said warmly. ‘It was long overdue.’

  ‘Better late than never.’ Dan bent down and kissed the top of his wife’s head. ‘I’ll warm the bed for you.’

  ‘I won’t be long,’ she assured him.

  ‘Do you know what I’d love?’ Bobby said dreamily a little while later.

  ‘What? You couldn’t possibly eat anything else.’ Shauna eyed him in amazement.

  ‘I’d like a mug of hot chocolate.’

  ‘Oohh, that sounds nice.’ Carrie perked up. ‘I’ll make us some.’

  Ten minutes later the three of them were sitting in the firelight under the glow of the Christmas tree, sipping steaming hot chocolate and nibbling mince pies.

  ‘It was a great day, wasn’t it?’ Carrie said appreciatively.

  ‘Poor Dad. The snores out of him before I even left the house, and it was only half nine. He was wrecked.’ Bobby blew bubbles in his froth.

  ‘Chloe had a great time. She can’t remember the last Christmas we had at home,’ Shauna said. ‘This one was so different,’ she added dryly. ‘No Greg and no Freeloaders.’

  ‘How did you feel? Were you very lonely?’ Bobby sat on the edge of her armchair and dropped an arm round her shoulder.

  ‘Sometimes. But not as much as I thought I’d be. It really helped that we spent last night and tonight here. Poor old Chloe was very apprehensive that Santa wouldn’t realize that she was here. There’s notes everywhere in the apartment and Greg was instructed to leave notes all over the one in Abu Dhabi before he went to Hong Kong. She was ecstatic when she found her toys on the end of her bed this morning. That was hard to beat.’

  ‘Stay as long as you like,’ Carrie invited.

  ‘Thanks, but it’s great that I’m only down the road. I might take you up on it when Greg comes to visit at the end of January.’

  ‘How do you feel about that?’ Bobby asked.

  Shauna shrugged. ‘I’m glad for Chloe’s sake. And I want him to see her whenever he wants. I’ll even take her out to Hong Kong at Easter if he wants me to, but that’s it. I’ve decided to ask him for a divorce,’ she said quietly.

  ‘Have you?’ Carrie looked startled.

  ‘When he took the job in Hong Kong, and I knew that he would, that was the end of it. I might have muddled along with him if he’d come home to live with us. At least I would have known we were important enough for him to make the effort. But that’s not Greg.’ She sighed.

  ‘Bastard!’ Carrie said hotly.

  ‘Ah, no, Carrie, it’s not all his fault and I don’t want him to take all the blame,’ she said firmly. ‘I was as much to blame in some ways as he was. I married him because I thought he was so different from Dad, but in his own way he was just as controlling. And I didn’t listen to him when he said that he didn’t want any more children. So I have to accept some responsibility for the mess we’re in. But I don’t want to live with him again, not after what he did to me. And I certainly don’t want to live in Hong Kong.’ She shuddered. ‘I need to make a fresh start. Chloe’s settled in well here. All her toys and stuff have been freighted home from Abu Dhabi, so now it’s time for me to decide what I’m going to do with myself. I want to get a job and earn my own money. I want to put down roots,’ she told her siblings.

  ‘Wow. A divorcee and a homosexual in the family! Poor, poor Dad,’ Bobby said wickedly.

  Shauna giggled. ‘You’re awful.’ She dug him in the ribs.

  ‘No, hold on, you might be entitled to a Church annulment, according to Dad. I didn’t tell you this before, I didn’t think you were ready for it, but to all intents and purposes poor old Greg’s now become a eunuch,’ Carrie informed them, straight-faced.

  Bobby nearly choked on his hot chocolate as he guffawed. ‘Oh, my God, that’s the best I ever heard. Oh, he’s priceless,’ he said fondly, tears of mirth streaming down his cheeks.

  Shauna started to giggle and then she was rolling around in the chair, splitting her sides laughing. Carrie joined in and they laughed their heads off, happy to be in each other’s company again.

  ‘Oh, that was a tonic,’ Bobby declared as he wiped his eyes.

  ‘Are all families like us or are we unique?’ Carrie demanded.

  ‘Oh, I think we’re unique. Let’s face it, who else has a eunuch for a brother-in-law?’ Bobby hooted and they all started laughing again.

  ‘Well I’d rather be us than anyone else,’ Carrie said tipsily, raising her mug. ‘To Family,’ she toasted.

  Shauna and Bobby leaned over and clinked their mugs to hers. ‘To Family,’ they echoed, smiling at each other, as the wind howled outside and the rain lashed against the windowpanes.

  THE END