by Holly Martin
‘Right, keep going on this one, buddy. I’m going to give Isla a hand.’
Elliot started using an ice cream scooper to get out the straggly bits around the edges as Leo moved over to Isla’s pumpkin.
‘We need to talk later,’ Leo said, his hand grazing hers as he reached inside to get the flesh out.
She smiled up at him. ‘There’s no need. Don’t get yourself in a flap over this. I just wanted you to know. It doesn’t change anything between us.’
‘It changes everything,’ Leo said, gruffly.
She frowned. ‘It really doesn’t. I love you, you care about me a great deal. You’ve given me everything. I don’t need anything more than that.’
He opened his mouth to speak and she reached up and stroked his face with a slimy hand. The cold of it was something of a shock. She giggled slightly as she realised what she’d done. ‘You don’t need to make this into a big deal. Don’t freak out.’
‘I’m not freaking out.’
‘You are a little,’ Isla said, turning her attention back to the pumpkin.
‘I’m really not. I’m just… I’m not getting a chance to tell you—’
‘You don’t need to tell me anything,’ Isla said, gently.
Leo groaned in frustration. ‘What kind of person tells someone else they love them for the first time at a bloody pumpkin-carving competition? Couldn’t you have told me at home this morning, or even in bed last night?’
‘I’m sorry if my timing isn’t convenient for you,’ Isla said.
‘It’s not bloody convenient. Because all I want to do right now is take you back to bed and make love to you for the rest of the day and instead I have to carve the best god damn pumpkin I’ve ever carved.’
She smirked. ‘Well, you’ll just have to wait until later.’
‘And before that you’re going to let me talk, whether you like it or not,’ Leo said.
‘OK,’ Isla nodded.
‘Good.’
Isla passed him a knife. ‘Now, less talking and more carving. You don’t want to disappoint your son.’
Christ. His son.
He looked over at Elliot who had his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth as he scraped the last bits of flesh from inside the pumpkin.
‘No, I bloody don’t.’
He turned the pumpkin around to see where the best place would be to start carving and then he started cutting the pattern of Batman’s mask. Isla stood and watched him for a while and then, while his hands were occupied, she leaned up and kissed him on the cheek.
‘I love you,’ she whispered in his ear.
He grunted, knowing she was doing it now to tease him, but before he could say anything else, she moved over to help Elliot.
These thirty minutes were going to be the longest of his life and then he needed to go somewhere quiet with Isla. He wondered if he could get Melody or Aidan to look after Elliot for him for a few hours so he could talk to Isla properly, and then spend the rest of the afternoon celebrating their love for each other in bed.
He slipped with the knife and stabbed himself in the finger. He quickly sucked the cut in his mouth but thankfully it was only small. Damn it, he really needed to concentrate on the task in hand and not what the rest of his day might look like.
‘You have fifteen minutes left,’ the mayor said over the loudspeaker.
‘What kind of thing do you want over here, can we do anything?’ Isla said, meaningfully, and Leo looked over at Elliot bouncing up and down impatiently.
‘Yes, you could start carving out a belt shape in the middle, about this wide.’ Leo showed them with his fingers. ‘Don’t worry about any kind of detail, just a belt all the way round. Try not to go all the way through with the knife, just score the skin.’
He watched as Isla guided Elliot to cut very carefully along the middle of the pumpkin and he returned his attention back to his own pumpkin, carving out the thin triangular eyes and then the bottom half of the face. Satisfied with the head, he joined Isla and Elliot to help them with theirs. He scored the Batman logo on the chest of the pumpkin and then helped Elliot to cut along the lines so that the bat was removed completely. Elliot started playing with the bat, swooping it around Isla and Leo as they carried on cutting. Leo cut out triangular bits from the back for the cloak and Isla added detail to the utility belt.
‘You have one minute left,’ the mayor said.
There was a last frantic attempt from all the teams to get their pumpkins finished, theirs included, although Elliot was still busy playing with his pumpkin bat, and then the air horn sounded.
‘OK, ladies and gentlemen, your time is up. We are now going to dim the lights and you can put your candles inside and then the judges will come by each pumpkin to decide on the winner.’
The blinds were drawn and the lights flicked off, plunging the whole room into semi-darkness. There were oooohs as the room went dark and then lots of whispering as if the darkness commanded that everyone went quiet. Candles were lit and placed inside the pumpkins and golden orbs of light slowly filled the room. Leo and Isla put their tealights inside the two pumpkins and then Leo carefully lifted the head onto the body. They all stepped back to admire their handiwork.
Leo looked down at Elliot, who was beaming hugely.
‘I think our pumpkin Batman is the best pumpkin in the whole village,’ Elliot declared loudly.
Leo smiled. They hadn’t seen any of the others yet and Leo suspected some of the carvings would be amazing, but if Elliot thought theirs was the best, that was good enough for him.
‘Two pumpkins,’ Tori said, as she came over with Aidan to admire Leo’s creation. ‘Surely that’s against the rules?’
‘Actually, it’s not,’ Leo said. ‘We checked, it doesn’t mention anything about the use of multiple pumpkins.’
‘I think they’ll probably add that rule in for next time,’ Aidan said. ‘That list of rules seems to be getting bigger every year.’
Leo noted the judges coming round and making notes on each entry.
‘Love your Batman,’ Jamie said as he came over with Melody.
‘Even if he is a bit on the tubby side for a superhero,’ Melody said. She had a point; with the roundness of the pumpkin, their Batman did look like he had been feasting on all the cakes.
‘Shall we go and see what everyone else has done?’ Leo suggested to Elliot and he nodded keenly.
They first wandered over to see Aidan and Tori’s pumpkin, which was a really cool spider on a web. Leo didn’t know if he wanted to look at Jamie’s as he was a brilliant sculptor and it would certainly put his to shame. Sure enough, he had carved the shape of an amazing dragon. They wandered over to Emily next, who had carved a ghost into her family’s entry.
Agatha and Stefano had done the pizza logo for Stefano’s restaurant. Nothing like a bit of free advertising, though Leo was slightly disappointed that Agatha had done something so normal. But as the kids hurried on to look at the next pumpkin, Agatha turned their pumpkin around to show a couple in the throes of sex. It was a very basic stickman-like recreation but there was no doubt what they were doing. Agatha winked at him and he burst out laughing. It seemed that Agatha and Stefano had both carved their own design after failing to agree on what to carve as a team. Stefano quickly turned the pumpkin back around so the pizza design was facing outwards as the judges walked past, clearly a bit embarrassed by what Agatha had done. If Stefano had finally succumbed to Agatha’s advances and agreed to go on a date with her, he would soon find out that that level of naughtiness was just the tip of the iceberg.
They moved around the rest of the hall and saw witches, cats, haunted houses, owls and a multitude of scary faces.
There was a lot of talk up near the stage as the judges made their decision and then the microphone squeaked to life.
‘We have seen some very impressive entries this year, a much higher standard than last year. First of all, we are going to announce the runner-up and winner of the te
am competition. The runner-up caused a lot of discussion between the judges but it was a unanimous decision that it should go to the Jackson family with their fabulous Batman.’
Everyone clapped, though there were a few boos, which Leo strongly suspected had come from his own family.
He gave Elliot and Isla a hug as one of the organisers came over and presented Elliot with a little trophy – so tiny that Leo thought they might need a magnifying glass to see it – and a box of chocolates.
Elliot ran off to show Marigold his trophy just as Leo’s phone beeped in his pocket with a text message and he quickly fished it out. It was from Thomas. He was vaguely aware of the mayor announcing the other winners as he opened the text.
Sadie has agreed to go down to sixty-five thousand, but says she won’t go any lower than that.
He sighed. It was still too much.
Isla’s phone beeped in her pocket and she dug it out too.
‘Thomas has just texted me,’ Leo said. ‘He says Sadie will do sixty-five, but she won’t go any lower than that.’
Isla pulled a face as she swiped open her phone. ‘There was no way she was going to accept twenty-five. I’m surprised actually that she agreed to come down from seventy-five.’
‘I still think we should take this to court,’ Leo said as Isla pressed a few buttons to open up her own text message.
Tears suddenly filled Isla’s eyes as she read the message.
‘Shit, what’s wrong?’ Leo said.
She passed him the phone and his heart sank as he read the text message from Karie.
I tried to call you but I couldn’t reach you. I think we may have to postpone the adoption hearing in a few weeks. Now Sadie is back, I’m afraid we cannot go ahead with the adoption without her consent. I’m going to talk to my boss about this on Monday and after talking to Sadie I feel sure we can get her consent soon so please don’t worry. It will happen, just not when we hoped it would. Call me if you want to talk it through, if not I’ll speak to you on Monday when I’ve spoken to my boss.
He wrapped his arm around her and held her against him. ‘Look, it’s OK, it’s just going to be postponed, it’s not cancelled for good. This is just a blip, a bump in the road.’
Isla wiped her tears from her face. ‘God, this is such a mess. It feels like one step forward, three steps back. I just want Elliot and to not have the threat of losing him hanging over our heads. I’d give her the whole god damn house if it meant she would give us consent to adopt Elliot. I just want him with us, where he belongs.’
‘He will be soon, you have my word,’ Leo said, holding her tight.
Enough was enough. He was going to sort this out once and for all.
Chapter Twenty
Leo walked into the hotel where Sadie was staying and straight up to the reception. He knew the receptionist, Steve, in fact he had played football with him a few years before.
‘Hey mate, how you doing?’ Leo said, forcing a bright smile onto his face.
‘Leo, good to see you. Haven’t seen you for ages.’
‘I know, I’ve been busy. How’s the wife?’
‘Pregnant with her third child,’ Steve said.
‘Wow, you didn’t hang about, you guys only got married…’
‘Two years ago, I know, she’s a baby-making machine. How’re things going with Isla?’
‘Good, really good in fact,’ Leo said, not at all surprised that Steve had heard they were together. Nothing was a secret, even for those who didn’t live in the village any more.
Steve nodded. ‘What can I do for you today?’
‘Can you give me Sadie Norton’s room number?’ Leo said, keeping his voice as casual and light as he possibly could.
Steve narrowed his eyes slightly. ‘I heard what she’s doing to you and Isla, I think it’s disgusting. Everyone does actually.’ He checked on his computer, writing a room number on a slip of paper, and made to pass it over the counter. He held onto it as Leo made a move to take it. ‘Leo, I need this job, more than ever with the baby on the way. Tell me I’m not going to regret giving you her number.’
Christ, what kind of monster did Steve think he was? He had a bad reputation for being a bit of an ass in his teenage years, got into a few fights, but surely Steve couldn’t think that he was going to hurt her?
‘I just want to talk to her, that’s all,’ Leo said.
Steve hesitated for a moment and then passed him the number. ‘You didn’t get it from me. Take the lift to the third floor and then follow the hall to the left.’
Leo nodded and took the slip of paper before Steve could change his mind.
He took the lift, his heart racing in his chest. He had to do this. He found her hotel room and knocked on the door. After a few moments Sadie answered it.
She looked startled at seeing him there.
‘Bloody hell, Leo, have you come to kill me?’ she said dryly.
‘I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it,’ Leo said.
She hesitated then stepped back. ‘You better come in then.’
He moved into the room and she closed the door behind him.
‘Drink?’
‘No thanks,’ Leo said, coolly. ‘Bit early in the day for me.’
He watched her move to the minibar and pour herself a gin, straight, no ice. She looked… haggard, there was no other way to describe it. Her face showed a lot more wrinkles than he remembered, her face was puffy in parts and he wondered if that was due to too many years partying too hard. She’d always liked a drink, but then so had he. He’d always liked Sadie, he’d had a good laugh with her when he’d gone to the pub with her and Matthew. She was completely useless at being a mum, but he’d never thought less of her because of it. Some people were just not cut out to be a parent and he’d often thought, back then, that if he had been forced into parenthood, he would be as rubbish as she was at it. And though it would be a push to say she was forced into it, she had definitely been… coerced into keeping the baby when she’d found out she was pregnant. She had never wanted a child, but Matthew had been over the moon. Even still, Leo was stunned when she had walked out on Elliot and Matthew shortly after Elliot’s first birthday, but in his heart he had known it was for the best and he’d wondered if Sadie had thought that as well. And though his opinion of her had slipped quite considerably because of it, he had never thought she was a nasty person. That was until she came back and ruined everything. She had changed over the years, become harder, he could see that. She wasn’t the same person who had walked out of Sandcastle Bay over four years earlier.
‘I thought we could talk, no lawyers, no more going back and forth.’
‘OK,’ Sadie said, hesitantly. She took a big swig of her gin.
‘You need to leave Elliot out of all this.’
She cocked her head on one side, her face hard and resolute. ‘Why would I do that?’
‘Because that’s not why you’re here. You want money, that’s all. And I get that, I really do, but in all this mess, you’re ruining a little boy’s life, your son’s.’
‘All Isla has to do is pay me sixty-five thousand pounds and I’m gone, the house is hers, the boy is hers, and I disappear. I think I’m being more than fair, sixty-five is nowhere near half the value of the house. If she really loves him, surely that’s a small price to pay.’
‘She has to sell the house to get that money, and she has nowhere to go. You’re making your son homeless.’
She shrugged. ‘That really isn’t my problem. I’m sure someone will come to her rescue. You’re a big strong man, Leo, I’m sure you’ll swoop in and save her.’
‘Wow. I took you for a lot of things but I never thought you were such a heartless bitch. Clearly, I was wrong,’ Leo said and then cursed inwardly. He hadn’t come here to insult her, that wasn’t going to curry any favour with her. This was exactly why Isla hadn’t wanted him to talk to Sadie in the first place. She would kill him if she knew he was here, he had to get a good result
from this.
Sadie put her drink down and folded her arms across her chest. ‘I think I’d like you to leave now.’
‘Wait, I’m sorry. I’m finding all of this so hard. I’m Elliot’s godfather and I’m supposed to protect him, but I can’t protect him from this. Have you thought about Elliot in any of this? Have you thought for one second what his life was like when you left?’
‘A thousand times better than when I was here, I suspect,’ Sadie said, bitterly.
He was going to come back to that, that was his way in.
‘I don’t suppose he has any recollection of you, he was still a baby when you walked out of his life. It was just him and Matthew for three years. They were so close, thicker than thieves. Elliot adored his dad, anyone could see that,’ Leo said, his voice choking unexpectedly. ‘And then, one day, Matthew was gone and we had to tell Elliot that Daddy was never coming home. Do you know how hard that was for him? He was four years old and he had to accept that he was never going to see his dad again, never play with him or have him read him a bedtime story again. It destroyed him.’
He looked out the window a moment; he had to keep this together.
‘Isla upended her entire life to come here and look after him. She left her home, she left London where she had spent her entire life, quit her job, even left a boyfriend behind to be here for Elliot, to raise him. Elliot was content and settled again. Of course he misses his dad, but he is confident, brave, kind, and most importantly happy, and that is all down to Isla. She was the mum he never had.’
Sadie narrowed her eyes and he wondered if he had gone too far with that comment.
‘All Isla has wanted since Matthew died was to adopt Elliot formally, to provide him with security, a home with her and not lose him to foster care or to someone who doesn’t love him as much as she does. Every step of the way, this adoption has been blocked because no one could find you. To adopt him we needed your consent. And finally, finally, last week, the adoption was given the go-ahead. The courts had made every effort to find you and decided to let the adoption process be completed. We were due to go to court in a few weeks for the final time for the adoption to be made official. But now you’ve come back, it’s ruined all of that. Because you won’t give consent, the adoption hearing has been cancelled and… it’s broken Isla. She’s scared she’s going to lose him and I’ve never seen her so utterly defeated before. Her brother died, her boyfriend dumped her when she agreed to take on Elliot and none of that broke her, but this… She can’t lose Elliot and I dread to think what that poor boy will go through if he is taken away from her.’
