by Anne Ashby
A thrill of anticipation rushed through her as she hauled the first box close. She’d sort through everything this visit, and then Robby could look later if he wanted to. Unlike Robby, she was desperate to understand the situation they found themselves in.
Why had Mum and Dad never mentioned Penelope Maguire? The connection must be through them. But why wouldn’t they have shared her existence? There had been nothing in their papers about her...Leath had poured through every scrap again and again, trying to understand how her father could have made so many rash and careless business decisions.
Resting her shaking hands on top of the carton, Leath took some deep breaths. This was it. She closed her eyes, a shiver running right down her whole body as if the answer was transmitting itself from the box into her splayed fingers. Soon she would have answers.
Slowly, so the shakes didn’t cause any injury, Leath slid the craft knife through the tape and drew back the lid, her heart pounding in her ears.
****
As far as finding answers went, the first carton proved hopeless. Leath lay slumped against the sofa. There’d been nothing personal packed in the carton at all. Not one damned thing.
Blinking frustrated tears away, she glared at the other boxes, giving the closest one a kick. What if there was nothing in any of them? No answers? What if I never find out?
Swallowing the lump in her throat, Leath stood and picked up the pile of gardening and handcraft books and stacked them on the empty bookshelves at the end of the lounge. Flicking through each book one more time, just in case she’d missed a slip of paper or some valuable clue, Leath tried to lift her lagging spirits.
These gardening books would be invaluable, she told herself. She’d need them if she tried to revive the huge gardens.
By the time her eyelids began to droop, Leath still had no answers. She’d emptied six cartons, and the shelves were filling with an eclectic mix of books. The depressing thought as she stomped off to bed was the suspicion the other cartons merely contained the remainder of the bookshelves’ previous stock.
Curbing her frustration as she snuggled inside her sleeping bag, she forced her mind away from her search, only to be confronted by the image of a tall, dark figure with amazing bright, blue eyes. The mix of such dark hair with the blazing intensity of those eyes had been a killer combination. She just bet he’d used them to his advantage, roping in willing playmates.
****
Next morning Leath dragged a lounge chair outside and enjoyed coffee with her feet propped up against the wall of what might have once been a beautiful patio. Adding its surface to her weed killer spraying programme for this morning, she forced her mind onto more pressing tasks.
She had agreed with Robby that work on the house would take second place after the units. Moving out onto the grass—whether it would ever be lawn again seemed very doubtful—Leath looked around between sips of her second cup of coffee.
The view was spectacular—the sandy cove, the shimmering blue water, and the islands on the horizon. Leath gave herself a little hug. Views like this cost the earth in Auckland, and yet here, this was all theirs.
A thin spiral of smoke off to the left caught her attention. She rose to tip toes and could make out a series of red roofs on the grassy hill. Was that where Kirk Buchanan lived? Smiling grimly she wondered about his desperation to buy this land. It looked to her like he already had plenty of his own.
Dragging her mind away from the infuriating male who’d invaded her sleep, Leath returned to the kitchen and consulted their priority list of jobs. Weed killing the driveway before a sea breeze developed was number one. Flexing her stiff shoulders she headed outside.
****
The following week notification came from the solicitor that details of Penelope Maguire’s trust should be finalised within a fortnight. The attached addendum shook in Leath’s hands, eventually escaping from lifeless fingers to flutter to the floor.
“Carrie!” she called to her flatmate. “Read this for me.” She retrieved the paper and waved it about in the air. “Tell me what it says.”
The words Carrie read out remained the same.
Leath shook her head, trying to digest just how much Penelope’s combined bank accounts and insurance policy amounted to. Her mind whirled. “You’re sure that’s what it says?”
Having not even a dollar to spare for what seemed like a lifetime, the idea of not waiting until payday to settle a bill or go to the supermarket sent her into a state of euphoria. She wrapped shaking arms around herself, holding her breath, hardly daring to believe.
“That’s what it says, all right.” Her red-haired friend grinned. “You guys are going to be rolling in it. I’ll know who to come to for a loan.”
“I can’t believe it. Mr. Ellis said she had a little savings.”
“Perhaps to wealthy legal types, this is a little savings.” Carrie waved the letter.
Leath leapt up and paced around the minute kitchen table. “For God’s sake, she’s given us a property and all this money, and we still don’t even know who she was.”
“It’s weird, isn’t it?” Carrie agreed. “I wish someone would give me a couple of hundred grand.” Carrie put a hand on Leath’s arm. “The old girl can’t have had anyone else.”
“I know, but that makes me feel even worse. I think she’d been sick for some time. We could have been visiting her. I feel so bad thinking she died without anyone who loved her being beside her.”
“Why assume you’d have loved her?” Carrie asked. “She could have been a real bitch.” They stared at each other for some time before Carrie continued. “The connection has to be through one of your parents, right?”
“I don’t see how she’d know both Robby and I any other way.”
“Yet they never mentioned her?”
Leath shook her head emphatically.
“From what I saw of them, your parents were pretty okay guys, apart from your Dad’s get-rich-quick schemes. They wouldn’t have ignored someone unless they had a damned good reason.” Carrie patted her hand again. “And if that reason was good enough for them, then I think you have to accept—”
“But why would she single us out?”
“Who knows?” Carrie shrugged and began ticking possibilities off on her fingers. “She had no-one else. She was trying to make up for past crimes. Maybe she was trying to buy her way into Heaven. Personally, I don’t think you should worry about it. Take the money and enjoy yourself for a change.”
Leath stayed at the kitchen table musing while Carrie took her turn at preparing their evening meal, tipping an assortment of root vegetables into the sink for peeling.
“You’re right,” Leath decided. “Why should I feel guilty?” She rolled some of the tightness from her shoulders. “She knew enough about Robby and I for her solicitor to find us, didn’t she? So she could have found us herself. Or have him do it before she died.” She chewed her bottom lip and couldn’t keep the sadness from her voice when she added, “If she’d wanted to.”
“Forget all about Penelope Maguire and pretend you won the Lotto instead. You deserve to have a bit of luck after all you’ve been through since your parents’ accident.”
Leath leaned back in her chair grinning at the realisation she now had more money than she needed for the first time in her life. “You’re right,” she agreed. After sitting quietly for some time, she couldn’t help voicing, “But it would still be nice to know something about her.”
“Urgg.” Carrie glared across the kitchen at her.
“I can’t just forget about her, Carrie, not until I know at least something.”
“Then find out. You reckon she was in a home or something?”
“The house felt it had been locked up forever and the garden...” Leath refused to think about that garden.
“Then go and talk to someone at whatever home she was in.” Carrie’s suggestion was so obvious Leath felt stupid for not having thought of it. “They’d be able to tell you
something about her.”
Leath leapt up. “That’s right. And even if there are issues with privacy, I could talk to some of her caregivers and find out what sort of person she was,” her voice rose with excitement.
“Good idea.” Carrie’s deadpan voice halted her friend’s hurried exit from the kitchen.
With a grin, Leath poked out her tongue. “I’m going to see if anyone’s still at the solicitor’s office.”
“No luck?” Carrie guessed as Leath slunk back into the kitchen five minutes later.
“I’ll ring again tomorrow.”
“The other thing you can do is check all the official records,” Carrie said over her shoulder as she stirred a pot on the stove. “Mum’s into all that genealogy stuff. She could help you put some of the pieces together.”
Carrie slipped into the seat across the kitchen table. “I know you, Leath. You’re never going to stop worrying, are you?”
“I do need to understand.” Leath steepled her fingers and lent her chin against them. “I could try to forget where our good fortune came from, but I think it will drive me crazy if I don’t find out something.”
“Are you sure you don’t remember your parents ever mentioning this woman?”
Leath rubbed her forehead. “I’m absolutely sure. I’ve been over and over it in my mind. I can’t fathom where she could fit into our lives.” Leath thumped the table in her frustration.
Carrie dug into her pocket for her phone. “I’ll text Mum and see when she’s free.”
“But are you sure your Mum—”
“Come on, Mum would spend all her life doing family research if given the opportunity. She mentioned that she’d told you how to check your grandmother’s death. I bet she was hinting for me to find out if you needed any more help. She’ll be busting a gut to sort out your riddle once you tell her about it. You’ll see.”
Sure enough, moments after sending her text, Carrie showed Leath the reply. Though busy this week, Joyce happily offered her services. Leath would soon have a genealogy expert helping her.
“You’ll have fun. Mum loves digging around in all the records. Who knows what you might find.”
“That’s what I’m worried about.”
“If you’re intent on doing all this soul-searching, the official records should tell you who your benefactor is. At least it’ll stop all the conjecture.”
Leath pondered Carrie’s words as she set the table. Would she be better off knowing about Penelope Maguire, or would her own life be changed forever if she insisted on digging up the past?
After Robby had joined them and skimmed the contents of the solicitor’s letter, Carrie said, “Now you guys are going to be rich, you could wait a few weeks and pay someone to work on this place of yours. Or are you still going ahead with the working bee next weekend?”
Since opening the letter, Leath hadn’t given a thought to their plans for a full weekend at Greene Valley. She looked at Robby. He’d hardly had time to take in the contents of Mr. Ellis’ letter, but he’d organised the working bee. This had to be his call.
“We may as well go ahead. The guys are all keen. It’ll be more satisfying doing it ourselves, anyway.”
She let out a sigh of relief.
“Perhaps we should use some money on the house, though,” he continued. “Get it fixed up straight away. I’ve asked the boss to check it over.”
Leath’s eyes popped. Robby hadn’t specified who was coming, but she had assumed it would be the other apprentices and maybe a couple of hammer hands. “Your boss is coming?” she squeaked.
Robby grinned at her surprise. “You’d better turn out some decent food. I told the guys you’re a fantastic cook.”
His grin grew even wider as her mouth dropped open. “I suppose you could nip into town and buy the grub, now we have some ready cash. That’ll keep them from guessing the truth and calling me a liar.” Laughing, he ducked away from the hand she swiped in his direction.
Aghast, Leath demanded, “Exactly how many people are coming?”
“A couple of gangs and a few extra.”
Leath rolled her eyes. Two gangs, but that could be eight or ten men, or yikes, even more...
“Looks like you and I might be spending some time in the kitchen,” Carrie quipped.
“Don’t worry, Leath, I’ve got it all under control.”
Studying Robby, Leath noticed his shoulders seemed a little broader, his back a little straighter. She blinked rapidly; her little brother was almost a man.
Under control, he’d said. She knew he’d found a complete kitchen and bathroom during his scavenging. With two gangs helping they might have one unit structurally finished by the end of the weekend. Perhaps she hadn’t given him enough credit.
“Actually,” Carrie queried the siblings, “Mum and Dad wondered if they could help, too. If you don’t think they’d be in the way.”
“You’re kidding?” Leath’s jaw sagged again.
“Dad’s keen to see your place. After you described it, I could see the light in his eyes.” Carrie laughed. “There’s nothing left for them to do in their garden, except pull a weed or two before any organised garden tours. But something new, something untouched and wild...they’d love to help.”
“Are they sure?” Leath questioned. “It would be wonderful...but I couldn’t expect them...not for the whole weekend...”
“Come on, you’d be doing them a favour, letting them loose on your garden. And you could pick Mum’s brain as well.”
If Leath needed any further persuasion, the possibility of unravelling their mystery with expert help tipped the balance. Her head bobbed up and down. “We’d love to have them come.”
“They suggested they’d drive their caravan up so you won’t have to worry about finding a corner for them to sleep.”
Sleep. Leath groaned. She hadn’t thought about that. Where was she going to put everyone to sleep? She chewed her lip; this weekend might get out of control, despite Robby’s confidence.
Robby sensed her unease. “All you need to do is feed and water everyone. Let me worry about everything else.”
The week sped by, Friday night arriving far too soon. As she and Carrie left the city, Leath hoped she’d remembered everything. Planning food and drink for anything from a half dozen to twenty people, not to mention places to sleep as well, kept Leath’s mind off everything else.
Sensing her unease, Carrie tried to lighten the tension. “There are shops somewhere around this Greene Valley, aren’t there?”
“Of course, about fifteen minutes away.”
“Then we can easily drive there and get anything you might have forgotten. Correct?”
“Yes, all right,” Leath snapped. She smiled. “I know I’m worrying needlessly, but what if—”
“We deal with what if when it happens, not before.”
Leath managed another smile. Carrie was right. She needed to relax a little. She gripped the steering wheel. Everything would work out fine. She hoped.
****
Surprised, Kirk looked up as Jenny strode into the kitchen while he and his parents were having morning tea. His sister’s Saturday mornings were normally full of schoolgirls’ netball.
“You made such a song and dance about activity at Penny’s place,” she said after giving her father a quick kiss, “I thought I’d better tell you there’s a ton of people there now—trucks, and caravans, and who knows what.”
Kirk’s eyes narrowed as he glared at her.
“I thought you’d want to rush down with your cheque book.”
His fists clenched around the coffee mug at the smirk on her face. Why couldn’t she understand his need to do something for their father? Something practical.
He glanced across the table at Terry, vacantly sipping his tea. That was what made it so hard to accept. No-one would suspect anything was wrong with his dad. Kirk dragged his gaze away. Buying Penny’s place would help. It would allow them to take him back to his childhood home on a
regular basis.
“Going somewhere?”
Kirk glared in response to Jenny’s teasing question.
“I’m giving Cade a hand up at the top forty.”
“Oh, yeah,” she scoffed, her eyebrows rising.
His teeth clenched at the disbelief in her voice. At that moment he almost hated her.
“I saw binoculars hanging behind the door in the mud room, if you need them up the paddock.”
He tried to ignore the sarcasm in Jenny’s voice. Slamming the kitchen door didn’t drown out the quiet laughter behind him.
What was so wrong about wanting to know what was happening down at Penny’s? That slip of a girl and a scrub cutter wouldn’t get the place on its feet again. He’d let her play at it for a few weeks, then make another approach. With a far lower offer this time, though. She’d pay for making him wait.
Despite Jenny’s ribbing, he really was heading up to the back paddocks to help Cade. He’d warned his brother he’d need a couple of hours at the computer this morning checking on his business. But he’d intended going straight after sharing a cuppa with his parents. Jenny could think what she liked.
Swinging the truck across the paddock adjacent to the house—which just happened to overlook the Maguire place—was on the way to the top forty, Kirk justified. Although why he needed the binoculars sitting on the seat beside him was not so easy to explain.
His heart slammed in his chest as he crested the rise and looked down. Grabbing the field glasses and stumbling around the bonnet, he blinked in disbelief.
Angry frustration lashed through him. Pitiful and pathetic frustration. Heartbreaking frustration.
Thank God no-one was near to hear his feeble roar of pain. His chin bounced against his chest, the glasses dangling from stiff fingers fallen to his side. Several minutes passed before he forced his head up and put the glasses back to his eyes. Couldn’t he even achieve this one little thing for his dad?
He’d assumed his smart-alec sister had been exaggerating to get a bite out of him. But she’d been spot-on. The place was buzzing. Not the chaos of individuals playing at “tidying” the place up, either. These appeared to be professional tradesmen with well-worn work belts strapped around their waists.
