Still Waters

by Linda Kavanagh

Ivy wished more than anything that she could tell Joseph the truth. But that would mean telling him his father was a murderer. And she’d never blight his future by burdening him with that. Of course, truthfully, his father wasn’t a murderer at all, since his real father was Joe Heartley …

  Lifting up the receiver, she began to dial again. Firstly, she needed to speak to Peggy, then Owen, and of course, Brian …

  Owen had been deeply shocked when she told him of Danny’s death, and had offered to come to England right away to support her.

  “Look, Brian and Charmaine can run the place while I’m gone –”

  “No, honestly, everything’s under control,” Ivy explained gratefully. “Mum and Dad are arriving here later this evening and Joseph’s back from university. Needless to say, he’s in bits, but I think he’ll be okay.”

  “Losing your father at such a young age is bound to be a huge shock – and especially while he is still at university. Are you sure I can’t be of some use? Obviously, I’ll be over for the funeral – I mean, if there is a funeral …”

  “I’ll keep in touch and let you know if there are any developments,” Ivy told her brother. “But the rescue people have said that because of the currents in the Channel, it’s unlikely they’ll recover his body at this stage.”

  “Will I get Brian on the line?” Owen asked astutely. “I’m sure he’ll want to offer you his condolences.”

  “Yes, please,” Ivy said, grateful that her brother couldn’t see her blushes. Although she’d loved Danny very much, she was suddenly shivering at the bittersweet realisation that she was now free to begin a new life. As she waited on the telephone line, she envisioned being in Brian’s comforting arms, then felt guilty for having such thoughts when her husband had only just died …

  “Ivy?”

  “Oh, Brian!”

  Suddenly, they were both talking nineteen to the dozen, and Ivy told him everything that had happened.

  Brian whistled. “So the mystery caller was your own husband!”

  “Yes, and now we both know why,” Ivy said dryly. “It’s a relief that I no longer have to search in the lake – but I still need to make good the wrong I committed all those years ago.”

  “Would you like me to come to England? I’m sure Owen wouldn’t mind – he and Charmaine can run Siyak’atala without me.”

  “No, Brian – thanks, but this is something I need to get through on my own. But I’ll be thinking of you, and I’ll take strength from knowing that I have your support.”

  Brian hesitated. “When it’s all over – whatever that means – will you please come back to South Africa?”

  “I will,” Ivy said, and she was smiling through her tears.

  In the days that followed, many things gradually fell into place, and Ivy found that incidents from the past assumed a clearer meaning. Obviously Danny had been the one who’d sent her the congratulations card from Rosa when she landed the starring role in Bright Lights. It shocked her to think he’d been so calculating. But clearly a successful murderer had to cover his or her tracks carefully in order to allay suspicion. It was hard to think of Danny as a murderer, but that was the reality she now had to face.

  The presence of Ivy’s parents at her home at Sussex had been a great comfort, especially for Joseph’s sake. Peter and Eleanor had been able to give her son the support he needed, because every time she and Joseph were together in the same room, all they seemed to do was cry. But Ivy’s feelings of loss were for the Danny she’d grown to love over time, not the murderer who’d managed to hide his crime for nearly twenty years.

  Ivy was also acutely aware that her parents needed to get back to Willow Haven in order to support Hannah during her final days at the hospital in Allcott. As soon as Joseph felt well enough to return to university, she intended driving her parents back to the village. They would also be expecting her to keep up the search for Rosa – fortunately Danny’s death had created an acceptable delay.

  Alone in her bedroom, Ivy buried her face in her hands. I’ve covered up Rosa’s murder, she thought, what sort of person does that make me? But then, I covered up Joe’s death all those years ago, because I was afraid of getting into trouble. But now I’m not just covering up for my own sake – there’s Joseph’s future to think of. Nor could Peggy cope with knowing that her younger brother was a murderer, and that he had always known her older brother was dead at the bottom of Harper’s Lake.

  Ivy sighed. Anyway, Peggy would have enough to cope with when Joe’s body was recovered. Because once Hannah died, it would be time for Joe and Rosa to be given a proper burial.

  Chapter 61

  As Ivy opened the boot of her car, she noticed that the boxes of assorted wigs and clothing were still there, waiting to be returned to the Bright Lights Props Department. She was about to take them out to make room for her parents’ luggage, but decided against it. Once they were in the car, she was more likely to remember to return them. As she squeezed in the travel bags, she felt relieved that she wouldn’t be needing all that paraphernalia any more – thankfully, her days of using disguises were over.

  Joseph had left for the university earlier that morning, assuring Ivy that he was gradually coming to terms with his father’s death and was more eager than ever to get started in Betterbuys. His resilience brought tears to Ivy’s eyes as she waved goodbye to him at the train station.

  That afternoon, as Ivy and her parents set out on the long drive from Sussex back to Lincolnshire, everyone was silent, each alone with their thoughts. Ivy felt exhausted and longed for the oblivion of sleep rather than having to concentrate on the road ahead. But she knew how much Hannah needed her parents’ support. They had all agreed that there would be no mention of Danny’s death in Hannah’s presence. Even though she was now delirious much of the time, there was no point in risking any additional distress.

  As she left the A1 and drove onto the A46, Ivy’s thoughts turned to Danny. Only now was she beginning to understand how much he must have suffered over the years. It would have cost him dearly to appear the successful businessman and genial dinner-party host while secretly living each day in fear of discovery. Because he had wanted her so badly, Danny’s life had been filled with subterfuge and stress. And despite eventually winning her love, both he and Rosa had both paid a terrible price for their obsessions.

  Her eyes filled with tears and angrily she brushed them away. She needed to concentrate on the road ahead. Glancing in her rear-view mirror, she noticed that both parents had dozed off, her father’s head resting on her mother’s shoulder. They looked the picture of marital contentment, and Ivy was glad they each had a supportive and loving partner.

  Then she thought of Brian, and a surge of joy supplanted her tears. He was the only person she’d ever been able to confide in, and it felt good having someone with whom she could share all the unsavoury details of her life, knowing he wasn’t judging her. Tenderly, she recalled those piercing blue eyes in a tanned earnest face, remembering how good it felt to be held in his strong brown arms. And she remembered how desperately she’d longed to make love to him. Now, she was truly glad they hadn’t, and not just out of respect for Danny, but because if it happened at some time in the future, it would be all the more special …

  As Ivy and her mother walked into the private hospital room, Hannah’s sister Joan was just leaving her bedside, her eyes red from crying.

  “I’m sorry about your husband, Ivy,” Joan said, gripping her in a tight embrace.

  “Thanks, Joan,” Ivy replied, feeling a fraud since she’d been daydreaming about another man on the drive to Lincolnshire.

  “It’s so good of you to come here, I mean, despite your own problems – and thank you for arranging the private room for Hannah –”

  “How is she?”

  “I’ve been holding her hand for hours, but the only person she wants is Rosa,” Joan sobbed. “She keeps calling out her name, and I can’t bear to see her so unhappy. Where on earth is Rosa? I’ll
never forgive her for putting her mother through all this suffering!”

  Ivy bit her lip. She was the only one present who knew that Rosa wouldn’t be turning up.

  Eleanor sat down beside Hannah’s bed, in the chair just vacated by Joan. “You look done in, Joan,” she said. “Why don’t you go back to your hotel and rest for a few hours? Ivy and I will sit with her until you get back.”

  Joan was staying at the Allcott Arms Hotel as she didn’t feel comfortable staying in Hannah’s house since the burglary

  Joan wiped her tear-stained face. “Thanks, Eleanor – I really could do with a break. I’ll be back after I’ve showered and changed.”

  Ivy and Eleanor both nodded as Joan kissed her sister and left the room.

  Shortly afterwards, a nurse entered the room and checked Hannah’s pulse.

  “She’s still very agitated,” the nurse whispered. “She’s calling all the time for her daughter Rosa –”

  Eleanor grimaced. “Unfortunately, we don’t know where Rosa is.”

  “Is Hannah aware of what’s happening?” Ivy asked, but the nurse shook her head.

  “She’s hazy and confused, and slipping in and out of consciousness. She’s not fully aware of what’s going on around her, but she’s very distressed, and the sedation doesn’t seem to have helped. Her daughter would want to get here quickly – I don’t think Hannah has long to live.”

  The nurse left, and Ivy and Eleanor surveyed Hannah as she dozed in her bed, her breathing laboured. She looked no bigger than a doll, her limbs shrunken and the bones clearly visible.

  “Rosa!”

  Ivy and Eleanor both jumped as Hannah let out a pitiful groan.

  “Rosa, where are you? Please, Rosa, put your arms around me, I’m feeling so cold –” Hannah stared at them, but it wasn’t clear if she recognised them. “Is Rosa here? I really need to see her –”

  Ivy and her mother looked at each other, and Ivy could see the horror on her mother’s face. She and Ivy’s father had done all the practical things for Hannah, but the one thing they couldn’t give her was her daughter. Yet that was the only thing she wanted.

  Suddenly, Ivy had a daring idea. But could she pull it off? Or would she only make things worse? She beckoned to her mother and, outside the room, she outlined her idea.

  “Oh God, Ivy – what if it went wrong? Hannah would be so upset, and Joan would be furious with us –”

  “The nurse said she doesn’t have long. Joan’s back at the hotel, so no one will know but us. If she’s about to die, we could help her to do it in peace.”

  “But shouldn’t we call Joan if she’s near the end? I don’t know, Ivy –”

  “Joan mightn’t be able to get back in time. Mum, I’m an actor – let me do it.”

  Eleanor looked doubtful. “I suppose there’s no harm in trying. I mean, if it helps –”

  Even before her mother had finished her sentence, Ivy was running down the hospital corridor and out the main door, heading towards her car at breakneck speed.

  Hannah’s room was silent, except for the sound of her laboured breathing. Ivy and her mother watched, both apprehensive, as she drifted in and out of consciousness. Her pulse was faint by now, and Eleanor felt that Hannah was only hanging on by sheer will.

  Suddenly Hannah’s eyelids fluttered, then she opened her eyes and stared across the room to where Ivy standing by the door, wearing the fluffy blonde wig that had been in the boot of her car.

  “Rosa, oh Rosa – you’re here at last!” Hannah whispered. “Oh, I’ve missed you so much –”

  As Hannah reached out her skinny arms, Ivy stepped forward and slipped into her embrace, allowing Hannah to hold her tight, saying nothing and keeping her face averted as she hunched over the bed.

  Hannah was rambling now, her voice no more than a whisper. “It’s been so long, Rosa, but you’re here at last. Those photographs you sent me – are you going to marry that nice man in the photographs?”

  “Yes, Mamma,” Ivy whispered, knowing that this was what Hannah longed to hear. She could feel Hannah visibly relax in her arms, and as Eleanor watched, a beatific smile appeared on Hannah’s face.

  “Oh Rosa, I’m so happy for you,” Hannah whispered. “I’ve put some money aside for a new outfit –”

  Ivy stayed motionless in Hannah’s arms, listening to her shallow breathing. Her back was hurting by now, but she didn’t dare move. She was willing to suffer any discomfort so that Hannah could believe she was holding Rosa in her arms again.

  Gradually, Ivy could feel Hannah’s grip loosening, but still she stayed as she was, feeling Hannah’s pulse gradually slowing down. Suddenly, Hannah gripped her tightly again.

  “Rosa!” she whispered, straining as though to sit up. Then she fell back, and Ivy knew that Hannah had just taken her last breath.

  The next few minutes seemed like an eternity as Ivy gradually extricated herself from Hannah’s embrace. Leaning down, she kissed her old friend’s cheek and gently closed her eyes.

  “She’s gone,” she told her mother, taking off the wig and stuffing it into her handbag.

  Eleanor burst into tears, and she and Ivy hugged each other tightly.

  “At least she’s at peace now,” Eleanor sobbed, as they both turned to look at Hannah, who looked amazingly happy in repose.

  For a long time, Ivy and her mother sat by Hannah’s bedside, tears running down their faces. Eventually one of the nurses reentered the room, and finding that Hannah no longer had a pulse, nodded sympathetically and whispered her condolences. Then she hurried off to inform one of the doctors.

  A few minutes later Peter and Joan walked into the room, and Ivy embraced each of them in turn.

  “She’s just passed away – very peacefully,” Ivy assured them, fresh tears running down her cheeks. “Hannah believed that Rosa was with her at the end, and she died with a smile on her face.”

  As Ivy left the hospital with her mother a little later, Eleanor looked at her astutely.

  “Thank goodness you were able to help Hannah die happy, Ivy – it’s almost as though you knew all along that Rosa wasn’t coming back. Funny that, isn’t it?”

  Ivy nodded, afraid to look directly at her mother. “Yes, it is, isn’t it?”

  Eleanor then took her daughter’s hand, a gesture that surprised Ivy. Her mother hadn’t held her hand since she was a small child.

  “I’m very proud of you,” Eleanor whispered. “What you did for Hannah – well, I’ll never forget it. I just wish Hannah had been as lucky as me – I’ve got the best daughter in the world.”

  Chapter 62

  “Hello – Mrs Brampton?”

  “Yes?”

  Ivy extended her hand. “My name is Ivy Heartley – I’m Danny Heartley’s wife.”

  She couldn’t bring herself to say ‘widow’ yet.

  “Oh! Well, come in, come in –” The woman looked closely at Ivy. “Don’t I know you from somewhere – oh my word, you’re Isabella in Bright Lights!”

  Ivy stepped inside as Mrs Brampton continued to babble.

  “Oh God, I never realised that Mr Heartley was married to someone as famous as you! He never said – oh, if only Sean was here, but he’s playing soccer this afternoon –”

  Mrs Brampton was in quite a state – she could hardly believe that the star of Bright Lights was standing in her own hall!

  “I’ve come to clear out my husband’s things from the flat upstairs – I don’t know if you’re aware, but my husband recently drowned at sea.”

  Mrs Brampton covered her mouth in shock. “Oh my God! I saw something on the News about a Mr Heartley of Betterbuys, but I didn’t realise he was our Mr Heartley – oh, how awful! I was wondering why we hadn’t seen him lately. Oh dear, let me get you a cup of tea –”

  Ivy waved aside the offer of tea. “No thanks, Mrs Brampton, I’m just here to collect his computer and notes from his office upstairs.”

  “Of course!” said Mrs Brampton warmly. “Let me help you
carry the stuff downstairs.”

  “No, thanks,” Ivy assured her quickly, “I’ll be able to manage them myself. On second thoughts, maybe I will have that cup of tea.” She certainly didn’t want Mrs Brampton having any opportunity to pry into Danny’s clandestine activities.

  While Mrs Brampton fussed around in her kitchen downstairs, Ivy made several trips to her car, bringing out the computer, Hannah’s letters to Rosa, notebooks, camcorder, digital-sound-editing machine and Rosa’s rucksack, and placing them in the boot of her car, which she’d parked directly outside Mrs Brampton’s front door. It felt very odd being back in Cherrywood Road legitimately!

  When she returned to the house after loading up everything she needed, Mrs Brampton was in her kitchen, pouring out the tea and looking decidedly uneasy. For a moment Ivy’s heart did a somersault. Was something wrong? Had the woman somehow uncovered some aspect of Danny’s sordid other life?

  “I don’t like to trouble you at a time like this,” Mrs Brampton said falteringly, “but I suppose you’ll be wanting Sean and me to move out soon. But if we could just have a few weeks’ notice …”

  Ivy smiled, relieved. “Mrs Brampton,” she said, touching the other woman’s sleeve, “my husband always intended the house to be signed over to you eventually. He said you were great tenants, and I agreed to transfer the house into your name if anything ever happened to him.”

  “What? Are you serious? Oh my God, I can’t believe it!” Mrs Brampton looked shocked, incredulous and excited all at once.

  “There’s just one condition –”

  “Anything!”

  Mrs Brampton looked like an excited little dog about to be taken for a walk, and Ivy had to suppress the urge to laugh.

  “You must never, ever tell anyone about Mr Heartley’s generosity – my husband was a shy man, and he wouldn’t have wanted any publicity. Nor would I.” Ivy took a sip of her tea. “Since my husband’s body hasn’t been recovered yet, it may be some time before the house can be formally signed over to you. But until then, there’s no need to pay rent, and my solicitors are already preparing the documentation that will ensure it’s transferred to you in due course.”