Secrets at Meadowbrook Manor

by Faith Bleasdale

  ‘Loads, everyone wants to know what’s going on at Meadowbrook,’ Pippa said, oblivious to Gemma’s discomfort.

  ‘You know, I still think maybe you should say a few words.’ Gemma tried a last-ditch attempt.

  ‘Oh I’m going to. After John and his gang have done their dance, I’m going to introduce you.’

  That wasn’t what Gemma had in mind.

  Gwen and Gerry arrived with a mountain of cakes. Gemma felt physically sick.

  Freddie gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder when he arrived with the rest of the family.

  ‘Are you OK?’ Freddie asked, surprising her with his kindness.

  ‘I’m just nervous,’ she said, trying to sound dismissive. ‘You know it’s really important to us that we clear up any negativity – a lot rests on this.’ She wasn’t making herself feel any better.

  ‘Oh just imagine the audience naked,’ Freddie suggested.

  ‘Not a good idea, that might send her over the edge – Samuel, eww!’ Harriet looked horrified as she laughed. ‘Connor will be here a bit late, unfortunately,’ Harriet said. ‘He had a last-minute emergency at the vets’.’

  ‘Amanda should be here any minute,’ Gus said, glancing at his watch.

  Just then, Amanda burst in, all fresh-faced and wearing a nice dress, which was unusual. After everyone cheek-kissed in greeting, they all settled in chairs near the stage at the front of the hall. A PA system with a wireless microphone had already been set up, chairs lined each side of the room, and Gemma, once again, tried to suppress the need to throw up.

  ‘You look lovely,’ Harriet said as she hugged Amanda.

  ‘Well, my lovely partner is taking me out to dinner at the Ivy Bistro in Bath tonight, so I thought I’d make an effort.’

  ‘Yes, I know the timing isn’t great, but I booked it ages ago.’ Gus looked slightly bashful. ‘And anyway, hopefully we won’t miss much of the meeting.’

  ‘Hey, if you need to leave then you leave, we can handle this,’ Freddie said kindly.

  Gemma took a second to check if she’d heard right. Freddie was being nice to everyone and he hadn’t taken the mickey out of anyone yet, which must be some kind of record.

  Edie, Rose and Doris were first to arrive, and they took their spots in the front row, where they also saved a seat for Hilary, and Samuel, as his hearing dictated he would need to be near the action. Gemma was slightly relieved that she would have some allies up front. Edie reached into her pocket, pulled out a paper bag and offered everyone a sherbet lemon.

  ‘I always like a sweet when I go to the cinema,’ she announced.

  ‘But, Edie,’ Harriet said, lips twisting in amusement, ‘this is a village meeting.’

  ‘Yes, well I am sure it’ll be just as entertaining.’

  That was what Gemma was afraid of.

  ‘So, in conclusion, we are still very much in the planning stages of opening Meadowbrook as a small boutique and, most importantly, family hotel. We have a long way to go, which is why we haven’t spoken to you all in the village about it before.’

  Gemma paused and wondered for a moment if she were having an out-of-body experience. She could hear herself talking but it didn’t sound like her. Who was this confident woman who had managed to orate to a hall full of people without stumbling more than a couple of times? She had even held the microphone without hitting herself in the face with it. To her ears, her voice sounded clear. She’d remembered everything she rehearsed, and the speech she had prepared had been seamless. She could hardly believe it, it was as if someone else had inhabited her body.

  ‘And as I have said, you have our assurance that nothing will be done to the detriment of the village. Parker’s Hollow is such a special place and Meadowbrook is part of that; the Singers are proud to be part of it, and I promise you that the hotel will reflect that. In fact, the reason they have chosen to open a hotel is to ensure that Meadowbrook Manor can very much be a part of Parker’s Hollow for many years to come.’

  ‘Can we have that in writing?’ a younger man who Gemma didn’t know said, but he was sat next to Steve, the pub landlord, and Steve and Issy were nodding their heads vigorously.

  ‘I don’t see a problem with that, um …?’ Gemma glanced behind her to where Harriet was sat with the others; Harriet gave a nod of her head.

  ‘Gavin, I’m Gavin.’ He smiled. ‘I’m a teacher at Parker’s Hollow Primary.’ He then stood up. ‘My wife and I are fairly new to the village, well we’ve only been here five years, and we’ve got two little ones now, so for us, we want to keep the village as it is.’

  ‘Well it will be, honestly. We will put anything in writing if it helps.’ Gemma looked back at Harriet, who nodded. ‘And Meadowbrook will only work as a hotel if Parker’s Hollow stays the same, if that makes sense.’

  ‘OK, well then I’m happy,’ Gavin said.

  ‘Great, thanks, Gavin. Right, are there any other questions?’ She was feeling so pumped – she had got through her talk in one piece and not only that, but the audience in the hall also looked enraptured. No one was baying for her blood. Yet.

  ‘Hi.’ A grey-haired woman stood up. ‘I’m Derry, and I work at the local store, well, I manage it, actually.’

  ‘Hi, Derry,’ Gemma said. ‘And what’s your question?’ she prompted.

  ‘Yes, well, it’s a bit embarrassing, but I just have to say it. What about the sex parties?’

  The room went quiet. Gemma glanced back at the Singers. Freddie coughed to disguise his laughter, and Harriet looked startled. Pippa and Gwen were both blushing.

  ‘What sex parties?’ Gemma asked, sounding as calm as she could.

  ‘We were told that you were going to be holding sex parties at the hotel. You know, where people pay money to have orgies.’

  The hall was totally silent. Gemma didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

  ‘There will absolutely be no sex parties,’ she stated. A sea of hands went up. ‘And yes, you can have that in writing.’ The hands went down again. ‘Not only are they illegal—’ she paused, not actually sure if they were ‘—or they should be, but Meadowbrook is not going to countenance anything like that. Where did you hear that?’

  ‘Pat who delivers the papers heard it from someone and he told—’

  ‘Yes, OK, I understand,’ Harriet interrupted impatiently. She had come to join Gemma on stage.

  ‘These rumours are ridiculous, and we can assure you that they are totally false,’ Gemma added. ‘Right, so any other questions?’ Surely that was enough?

  Edie put her hand up.

  ‘Is there any more entertainment?’ Edie asked.

  ‘Um, no, Edie, I’m afraid not.’

  ‘But the morris dancing was so good,’ Doris added.

  Half the hall started clapping.

  ‘Thank you.’ John and his troupe who were standing at the back of the hall took a bow and flushed with pleasure.

  ‘Yes, they were, but there’s no more, I’m afraid,’ Gemma said.

  ‘Can you sing?’ a man, who identified himself as Jack, the church organist, asked. ‘Because I’m happy to play the piano if you can.’ He gestured to an upright that was against the back wall.

  ‘Um, no.’ Gemma was horrified.

  ‘Oh that’s a shame, it would be nice to have a sing-song, wouldn’t it?’ Margaret said, and the hall all mumbled in agreement.

  Even the younger members seemed keen. What was it with Parker’s Hollow?

  ‘I’m tone-deaf, I’m afraid,’ Gemma explained.

  ‘What about rapping?’ Edie suggested. ‘You’re a youngster, surely you can rap? I have to say I do like a bit of that Jay-Z man, he’s really quite good and doesn’t swear too much, either, not like that Eminem man.’

  Harriet finally took the microphone from Gemma, whose mouth gaped open, goldfish-like.

  ‘Sorry, ladies and gentlemen, but there won’t be any rapping tonight. However, there is cake at the back of the hall, baked by our very own Gwen, and you ar
e all invited to stay for a drink and something to eat, and to ask us any other questions you can think of.’ Edie put her hand up. ‘As long as they are to do with the hotel,’ Harriet said sternly, and Edie’s hand went back down again.

  ‘Ah, Gemma, if I might have a word,’ John said as he tried to move her away from the crowd without knocking his cymbals together. It wasn’t proving easy.

  ‘John, thank you for this evening, it was a really lovely way to open the meeting,’ Gemma said.

  Although she wasn’t an expert in morris dancing, and she was pretty sure they weren’t the most coordinated dancers ever, they made up for it with their enthusiasm. Handkerchiefs flying everywhere.

  ‘You are most welcome. I will do anything for the family, you know that. Which brings me to the next order of business. Myself and my men, David, Ian and Malcolm especially, have been asking around about how this rumour started. So, Steve from the pub was told by Rachel, who delivers vegetables, who heard it from Pete in the butcher’s, who heard it from Seth, the farmer, who heard it from Claire, the hairdresser, who heard it from Louise, one of the teachers at the primary school – she works with Gavin who you just met – and she heard it from her boyfriend, Wayne, who works in a garage in the next village, and he heard it from Pat who delivers his Sun newspaper every day, and he got it from Rita in the post office, and she heard it from this man who bought one first-class stamp.’ He looked satisfied and Gemma was speechless. ‘I, I mean we, are pretty sure that although it spread around like wild flower, the man with the stamp was the one who initiated it.’

  ‘And does anyone know who this man is?’

  ‘Unfortunately not. He’s not from Parker’s Hollow, we are sure of that. But we questioned her at length, and although Rita gets a bit carried away, she remembered him as she thought it was odd that he only wanted one stamp when he didn’t even have a letter with him, so she was a bit suspicious, but only after, when she thought about it. At the time, she was happy to sell him a stamp and listen when he said that Meadowbrook was going to be a rowdy hotel.’ John turned very red at the mention of the parties. ‘He said all sorts, from what I can gather. All while buying a single stamp! Anyway, he didn’t give a name, but we have managed to get a description and do a Photofit drawing of him for you.’ John proudly produced a piece of paper.

  On it, Gemma found herself staring at a man with what seemed to be a triangular head, little hair, a very large nose and a pair of round glasses. It reminded Gemma of a character in the game Guess Who, which she loved as a kid. She bit her lip as she felt the irrational urge to giggle. She was pretty sure this wasn’t going to lead her to whoever started these rumours.

  ‘John, you’ve been very helpful, really amazing job you’ve all done. Can I keep the picture?’ Gemma asked, trying to sound polite but knowing they would never identify the culprit from this.

  She felt her heart sink. If someone was trying to scupper the plans for the hotel, they needed to know. They needed to make sure that the hotel wasn’t sunk before it opened. OK, she might be being a bit dramatic, but that was how it was when you cared about things. Apart from taking care of her nan, this was the first thing she had ever been truly passionate about.

  ‘Of course, and anything else you want us to do, you only have to ask.’

  ‘Thank you.’

  Gemma was genuinely fond of John and his wife, Hilary, who came up and handed her husband a piece of cake.

  ‘Aww, how lovely,’ John said, clashing his cymbals together joyfully.

  ‘So, well done this evening, Gemma,’ Harriet said when they were all back at the house, exhausted.

  It felt as if they’d been in that hall for hours. No one would leave until the last piece of cake had been eaten, and there was a bit of a scuffle between Samuel and Jack as to who would get said last piece. Gwen had split it and the worst fight in the world had been averted. Gwen really should work for the United Nations, Gemma thought.

  ‘I’m sorry I missed most of it.’ Connor looked genuinely disappointed. ‘But the morris dancing was good.’

  ‘They were on fine form. They only dropped their sticks five times, and I think one of the handkerchiefs is still on someone’s head.’ Freddie laughed.

  ‘Well on a more serious note,’ Gemma said, pulling the drawing out of her pocket, ‘John gave me this, after much questioning of everyone in the village, and I can’t even begin to recount the people the gossip went through. Anyway, he has come up with a drawing of the man who they think started the rumour. But I warn you, it’s highly unlikely that anyone actually looks like this.’ She handed it to Harriet. ‘In fact, I didn’t like to say this to John, but it’s quite ridiculous.’

  Gemma stood back as they crowded around Harriet.

  ‘Blimey, does anyone look like this?’ Freddie said.

  ‘I hope not,’ Harriet said.

  ‘I have never seen anyone like that in the village,’ Pippa said.

  ‘Or anywhere,’ Freddie added.

  ‘Right, well we might have averted this crisis but, unfortunately, despite John and the morris dancers’ best efforts, we’re no further forwards,’ Gemma finished.

  Chapter 22

  Gemma was frustrated. It was a week after the presentation and things had been, as usual, full-on at Meadowbrook. She was drowning in paperwork, and her head was close to exploding. She went for a walk in the garden.

  ‘Hey, pet.’ Edie stood up from where she was tending the roses and smiled broadly.

  ‘Edie, how are you?’ Gemma asked as the older woman grabbed and hugged her. ‘It’s not gardening club today, is it?’

  ‘No, but my roses need a bit more work this time of year, so Gus brought me up. By the way, love, I’m not sure I told you how well you did the other day, you know, the presentation – well it was very good.’ She went back to the roses.

  ‘Thanks, Edie.’ Gemma knelt down next to her. ‘To be honest I was so nervous, and well, I’m glad it was OK.’

  ‘Oh you must be used to doing presentations to people much fancier than us; Harriet told us you did, anyway. But you did a great job, and I for one am glad the family are all on track with the village again.’

  ‘Yes, it’s such a relief. This hotel means a lot.’

  ‘You know, Andrew Singer would approve. Of the hotel and of you,’ Edie said as she pruned.

  ‘Wow, that’s lovely to know, Edie. I find the work quite overwhelming at times, well I do at the moment, actually.’

  ‘I know, and you’ve got your nan to worry about. You know I don’t have family, either. Meadowbrook, Parker’s Hollow, that’s become my family, so I understand. And if you want to become a member, well I’m very welcoming.’ She clipped a bright pink rose and handed it to Gemma.

  Gemma inhaled the scent. It smelt of summer, and she found she had tears in her eyes.

  ‘I would love that, Edie, thank you.’

  They hugged again.

  Once she pulled herself together from that encounter, Gemma knew she needed to be away from the sanctuary, from Meadowbrook, from the Singers, just for a few hours to go through the paperwork with a clear head. She reasoned that she just needed a change of scene.

  She found herself in the small town where Edward’s hotel was and selected an old-fashioned tearoom on the high street. She found a seat tucked right at the back, pulled out her laptop and ordered a pot of tea. This was quite a treat, actually. She started reading the latest email from the solicitor and lost herself a bit in the document.

  ‘Mrs Farquhar,’ a voice said loudly. ‘What are you doing back?’

  Gemma turned around, startled at the sound of the name. A very tall, smartly dressed woman stood at the counter – she was clearly Edward’s mother. Gemma felt relieved – for a minute she thought perhaps it was Edward’s wife. The woman serving behind the counter seemed very excited to see her.

  ‘We’re back from France for a bit. You know, to keep that son of ours in check and look in on the hotel,’ Mrs Farquhar said, smiling
warmly. Gemma tried not to stare, but she did resemble her son in a way.

  ‘I hope it’s all good,’ the tearoom lady said.

  ‘Of course, it’s all going swimmingly.’ There was an impatience in her voice. ‘Now, Christine, dear, could you do me a takeaway Earl Grey? Edward seems to have run out, and as soon as I get hold of him, we’ll be having words.’ She laughed, unconvincingly.

  As she passed over the tea and waved away any offer of payment, Gemma turned back to her screen. Pippa didn’t mention anything about Edward’s parents being here. Oh well, she didn’t have time to dwell on it; she had a load of legal jargon to decipher.

  ‘What’s going on?’ Gemma said as she walked into Meadowbrook and straight into Harriet, who was fuming.

  ‘Oh! Thank goodness, where were you?’ Harriet snapped.

  ‘I was working off site. What’s wrong?’ Gemma thought about telling Harriet about Edward’s mum, but Harriet looked thunderous, so she decided against it.

  ‘We’ve had a health and safety person turning up, saying that there were reports we were serving food to the public here, which of course we’re not. Pip opened the door to them. Of course she welcomed them in and told them all about the hotel. Thankfully, Freddie called me and I rushed up here.’

  ‘But how? We are nowhere near open.’

  ‘Exactly, I did explain that, and they were fine, but apparently someone called them and reported us for not having a commercial kitchen.’

  ‘We know that – it’s on my list, but not yet.’

  ‘You weren’t here,’ Harriet pointed out.

  ‘I know, Harriet, but I wasn’t to know this would happen. I didn’t call them. Now, did you ask who did?’

  ‘Of course, I’m not an idiot.’

  Gemma kept quiet. Harriet was back to being scary although, actually, Gemma didn’t feel as scared of her as she used to. She was all bluster.

  ‘And?’ Gemma asked calmly.

  ‘Anonymous tip. What if it’s the same as whoever started the rumours?’ Harriet responded a little more calmly.