They were at Leda House now, and ahead of them, where the high street gently curved to the right, one could just glimpse a few flashing lights. Jemima said, as she grabbed Gideon by the arm and practically shoved him back onto the pavement, ‘Just things like—I heard there were music appreciation lessons at the church hall once a week, and no one told me anything about them.’
‘This is going to be hilarious, I have a feeling,’ Jon said. ‘If my poor dad could see me now, he’d laugh.’
‘Why?’ said Tess.
‘I grew up in Brixton, right? My dad was from Jamaica, my mum’s from Clapham, when Clapham wasn’t a nice place to be from, you know.’ He nodded ruefully as the front door to the house opened. Adam was standing on the threshold, smiling at her. ‘Catch me, the architect living in the English village with the daughter who’s not even four yet and she’s learning the flute.’
‘This is Jon,’ said Tess, as Adam held out his hand.
‘I know what you mean,’ said Adam. ‘We had a cat when I was little that had vet bills so big my mum always said she and her family could have lived for a month off what it cost to keep him alive for a couple of weeks.’
‘Oh, hi!’ Jemima said, coming forward, holding a wriggling Gideon under one arm. ‘I’m Jemima.’ She shook her hair, and actually slightly pouted a little. ‘So this is who you were looking for yesterday, Tess!’
‘What?’ said Adam.
‘Nothing,’ said Tess, embarrassed. ‘I thought I saw—the door was open, I came in and had a look. Nothing,’ she added again, wishing Jemima to hell.
‘We’ll leave you to it,’ Jon said, nodding. Jemima looked at him crossly.
‘We can walk together. It’s lovely to have a Mortmain back in the house again,’ she said, in a tone like one of the BBC commentators during the Remembrance Day parade. ‘And when did you get back?’
‘Yesterday,’ said Adam, with a note in his voice that Tess knew meant, Don’t go any further. ‘So, you’re an architect, Jon?’
‘Yes, I am,’ said Jon. ‘Mainly working on green stuff. I’m just finishing off a town hall in Morely, it’s been great.’ He looked at Adam. ‘You’re the guy with the water meadows, is that right?’
‘Yep,’ said Adam.
‘Ah,’ said Jon. ‘ ‘Cause I love it down there, man. It’s really nice. Right,’ he said, taking his wife’s hand. ‘See you later, guys. Nice to meet you both.’
He held up his other hand and they moved off.
‘He’s nice,’ said Adam.
‘His wife’s awful,’ said Tess grumpily. ‘I have to teach her. One of those super-competitive women who thinks everything’s a race. I can’t stand her.’
‘Good teaching attitude there,’ said Adam. ‘Nice to know you’re completely impartial.’
‘You’d be bloody partial if you had to teach her too,’ said Tess. ‘Have you got everything?’ She looked behind her, at the dark house.
‘Yep,’ said Adam. ‘I’ve got everything, which is to say I’ve got nothing, really.’ He sighed. ‘I should bring my stuff over here, I just don’t want to.’
‘So you’re going to live here, then? Sell your mum’s place?’
‘I think I have to,’ said Adam, as they set off down the street at a slow walk. He pushed his hand over his forehead, through his short hair. ‘But—man, I don’t want to. God, it’s cold, isn’t it?’
Someone came out of the Feathers opposite. ‘Hello, Tess,’ she called. ‘Are you—’ It was Andrea Marsh. She stopped and looked at her, and then saw who she was with. ‘Oh. Hello, Adam. I heard you were back. Good trip?’
‘Yes, thanks, Andrea,’ Adam said politely. ‘How are you?’
‘Good, thanks,’ said Andrea. She sniffed. ‘Lot of people interested to know you’re back, Adam.’
‘Oh, right,’ said Adam, still polite. He nodded and smiled at her. ‘See you in a bit? We’re just heading down to the lights.’
‘Right you are,’ said Andrea. ‘Just waiting for—someone.’ She sniffed again, disapprovingly. Tess and Adam waved, and carried on walking.
‘Blimey,’ said Adam under his breath. ‘I really am persona non grata, aren’t I?’
Tess didn’t know what to say. ‘Um—well, you know,’ she began. ‘You know, a lot of people thought, when they found out about you—I guess the bridge being demolished was a bad sign. They thought it was all going to be cancelled.’ She felt awkward, being the person to say this, but he had to hear it. Adam looked quizzical. ‘The bridge? Oh.’
‘Go down there tomorrow,’ she said. ‘Have a look.’
Adam frowned. ‘I—’
‘Don’t you love it down there?’ Tess said curiously. ‘I still do.’
He stared at her. ‘I never thought about it.’
‘Well, you should.’
‘I will,’ he said, meeting her eyes. ‘I promise I will.’ He patted his pockets. ‘Right. Have I got the keys to the house? It’s confusing, having these two places.’
Tess wrinkled her brow. ‘It is. Could you—could you ever sell this place?’
‘I can, but it’s difficult. It’s Grade One listed, and the terms of the will mean I’m not allowed to for five years.’ He sighed. ‘She wanted me to stay on here.’
The sound of people in the street grew louder as they drew closer to the lights.
‘I’ve been thinking about Philip Edwards,’ Tess said. ‘You should talk to Joanna, see if there are any church records you could look at, find out a bit more about his family, all that.’
‘Definitely,’ he said. ‘Especially since his family is practically the only family I’ve got. Do you know what my only beef with my mum is?’ he said suddenly.
‘Er, no?’ said Tess.
‘I just wish I knew something about my dad. He was a lecturer like her, they had an affair, he was Irish—at least I think he was Irish, he could have been from Greece or Japan or Toxteth for all I know.’
‘I think you’d know if he was from Japan,’ Tess pointed out. ‘And I think it’s understandable, what she did, even if she might have wished it was otherwise. When you think how she’d grown up.’
‘Maybe.’
‘She wasn’t close to her parents, was she?’ said Tess. ‘I mean, her adoptive parents.’
‘No, luck of the draw, I think,’ said Adam. ‘I feel sorry for them, I think she was foisted on them, poor thing. It was after the war, they couldn’t have kids of their own, I don’t think they had any choice. They moved to Australia when she was twenty, I don’t think she saw them much after that. I never met them, anyway.’ He looked up at the starry sky. ‘God, it’s so ridiculous, isn’t it. My only family—what?—some random great-aunt’s relatives and I don’t know the first thing about her or where she lives or anything.’
‘Primula Edwards,’ said Tess thoughtfully. ‘Awesome name. Straight out of Miss Marple.’
‘It’s cool, isn’t it,’ Adam said. He grinned at her.
‘I love that name,’ Tess said.
‘Go on, change it,’ he said seriously. ‘I can really see you as a Primula. Grow your eyebrows again and find that old cardigan. Then you can move in with someone called Lettice and breed cats together.’
‘Oh, you can just bog off,’ Tess said snappishly. ‘Liz is coming along later, by the way,’ she added meanly. ‘If anyone’s going to be my Lettice, it’s her.’
‘I’m sure,’ said Adam solemnly. ‘By the way—I keep forgetting to ask.’ He scratched the back of his head. ‘What are you doing for Christmas?’
Tess said, ‘Well, Mum and Dad are going on a cruise, so—’
‘I’ve been thinking,’ said Adam. ‘Do you want to come round for Christmas? I was going to do a thing. Get Suggs, Mick, Diana and Richard, a few other people over, cook up a storm—’ He trailed off, watching her expression of dismay. ‘Don’t look so horrified, T.’
‘It’s not that,’ Tess said. ‘It’s just—oh, that’s a real shame. I’m going to—um, I’m supposed to be going to Rom
e for Christmas.’
‘Rome?’ he echoed blankly. ‘Why?’
The door next to Jen’s Deli banged loudly as someone came out, shutting it behind him. It was a young man, who glared when he saw Adam and carried on down the street.
‘Er—well,’ Tess said, feeling this ought to be obvious. ‘To see Peter. Because Mum and Dad are away, that’s why.’
‘You’re—wow.’ Adam nodded, a bit too enthusiastically. ‘You’re still with Peter?’
‘Well, I’m clearly not with him,’ Tess said, gesturing around her. ‘But—yeah.’
‘Well, that’s great!’ Adam stopped in the street. ‘When was the last time you saw him?’
‘I see him all the time,’ Tess explained. ‘On Skype.’
‘On Skype,’ Adam echoed. ‘Right. But actually, in the flesh, instead of the two of you being like those weirdos who get together because their avatars meet on Second Life. Actually in the flesh, when was the last time you saw him?’
Adam was so annoying sometimes. ‘Well, when we were in Rome.’
‘So—you haven’t seen him since June.’
‘Yes, but—’
‘Right,’ Adam said, barely controlling a smirk. ‘Wow. That’s a real trajectory you’ve got going on there, Tess.’
‘Shut up, Adam!’ she said touchily. ‘We have tried, it’s just things got in the way. Things like—well, your grandmother’s funeral.’
‘That was in August,’ Adam pointed out. ‘And?’
‘Well, he’s been away,’ Tess said. ‘Working in California.’
‘You couldn’t fly to see him?’
‘Not to California, no. He’s coming back for Christmas, I told you.’
‘So you Skype.’
‘Yep,’ Tess said airily. ‘It’s brilliant. We chat all the time.’
‘But you haven’t actually seen him since June.’
Tess ignored this. ‘Anyway, I’m going over for Christmas. Five days. And it’s going to be great. Rome at Christmas, how wonderful will it be?’ She tugged Adam’s arm. ‘Hot chocolate sitting in squares, all muffled up! Walking along the river! Going to see the Pope on Christmas Day, urbi et orbi and all of that.’
Adam looked as if he would say something, but didn’t. ‘That’s great, T.’
She looked gratefully up at him. ‘Thanks, bruv.’ She slid her arm through his and he squeezed it.
‘Come on,’ he said. ‘Time to face the music. And the lights.’
They walked towards the crowd, arm in arm, and as Tess grew accustomed to the noise and the sudden darkness—the street lights had all been switched off along that stretch of the road, in preparation for the Christmas lights being switched on—she looked around her, with a growing sense of amazement. She knew people, it was weird. She knew lots of people, that was weirder.
‘Hi, Tess,’ someone called out, and Tess turned to see it was Jen from the deli, holding a tray with little things with cocktail sticks attached. ‘How are you?’
‘Good, thanks,’ said Tess.
‘Ah,’ said Jen, recognizing the man at her side. ‘Adam.’
She offered Tess what turned out to be a fig and prosciutto snack, and then turned on her heel before Adam could take anything.
‘I think you’d better leave me,’ Adam said with resignation. ‘Sooner or later someone’s going to try and punch me, and I don’t want you at risk from a stray fist in the eye.’
‘Hello, Tess,’ said a male voice in the darkness. ‘How’ve you been? Enjoying these delicious snacks?’
‘Guy?’ said Tess uncertainly. ‘Is that you?’
‘Yes, it is,’ Guy Phelps said. ‘I’ve just been telling someone all about your delicious flatmate and her amazing skills.’
‘Oh,’ said Tess. ‘Actually, Francesca’s moved out, Guy, I thought you—’
‘No, silly!’ said someone brightly, next to her. Tess lurched forward in surprise, and grabbed Adam’s arm tightly.
‘Liz!’ she yelped. ‘Oh, my God, sorry, I thought you meant—’
‘No,’ said Liz, who really did have the sweetest nature imaginable. ‘I’m sure Francesca has many amazing skills, far more than me!’ Her face shone in the candlelight from a nearby window. ‘Here are the toffee apples, Tess. Have one! George says they’re very nice, so I must trust him! Hello, Adam! How very nice to see you!’
‘They look delicious,’ said Adam gravely. He smiled. ‘How are you, Liz?’
‘Oh, I’m very well indeed, thanks very much, Adam!’ Liz said gaily. ‘Take one.’
‘They are extremely nice,’ Guy Phelps said stiffly. ‘Anyway, I see Ron over there. Excuse me, please.’
He nodded at Tess, ignoring Adam, and pushed through the crowd towards the edge of the kerb. Tess watched him, and saw Ron Thaxton and Andrea standing side by side, chatting to Diana and Jan. In front of them, Jemima was talking to another mother, both of them holding children, their heads nodding animatedly. As Tess looked, Diana caught sight of her, and saw the person next to her. She excused herself and came over.
‘Adam, my dear,’ she said, hugging him briefly. ‘How lovely to see you.’
Adam bent down and kissed her on the cheek. ‘It’s lovely to see you. I called you earlier.’
‘I know, Richard said.’ Diana patted him on the arm. ‘It’s good to have you back. Are you staying at the big house?’
‘Yes.’
She nodded. ‘Fine. There’s things we need to discuss. I’ll come and see you tomorrow.’ She looked as if she would say more, but suddenly she said rather loudly, ‘Ah, here’s Jan. Right. How nice.’
‘Adam Mortmain, is it, you’re calling yourself now?’ Jan said, coming up to Adam. ‘Hello, Tess, dear,’ she added. Behind her, Ron and Andrea stood silently, like the massed ranks of foot soldiers at the beginning of Gladiator. ‘So, Adam. What’s happening with the development, eh?’
‘Oh, dear,’ said Diana, running her hand through her hair in a manner almost identical to Adam’s.
‘Hello, Jan,’ Adam said in a hearty voice, which really didn’t suit him. Beside him, Tess tensed. She wished, just for one evening, his first evening back, they could leave him alone. ‘Nice to see you, how’ve you been?’
‘Fine.’ Jan waved her hands, distracted. ‘Listen. What’s going on? You promised you weren’t like your bloody grandmother, so why have you let the developers start on the water meadows?’
Adam put his hand lightly on her arm. ‘Jan, I’m sorry, but I only got back this morning. I’ve got to catch up with them. It was my understanding they weren’t starting the work till January.’ He bowed his head. ‘I need to find out what’s going on. I’ll do it first thing tomorrow. You understand.’
‘Er, yes,’ said Jan, as Tess looked at her friend admiringly. ‘That—of course that makes sense.’
‘You’re becoming more and more like a Tory MP,’ said Tess, as Jan, much mollified, moved away, followed by Diana who smiled briefly at them. Adam looked at her in horror.
‘Don’t say that!’
‘That’s what you’re going to need to be, round here,’ she said frankly. They were in the middle of the road, buffeted by people walking past, gathering in front of the small podium a few metres away. Tess spoke quickly. ‘You do realize that, don’t you? Like it or not, the Mortmains were the big family for years and years, you know they were, and there are people who’ll still look on you as the young lord. Especially now you’ve got the—’ She stopped. ‘Anyway. Let’s go, shall we?’
‘Money,’ Adam supplied grimly. ‘Especially now I’ve got the money.’ He shook his head. ‘It’s pathetic.’
‘It’s not just about the money,’ she said, trying to sound reasonable. ‘People here have long memories. The Mortmains were the big grand family in town. Look at someone like Miss Store, she was your grandmother’s maid for years. Now they know about you, it’s going to take a long time for them to see you as someone else.’
He stared at her. ‘When did you become such a local expert?
’
When you and Francesca both went away and left me, she wanted to say, but she didn’t. She smiled at him. ‘Come on. I see an ancient celebrity and a fat local councillor on a rickety makeshift stage. If that’s not a recipe for fun I don’t know what is. Let’s go.’
Suddenly, there was a loud crackle, and half the assembled crowd jumped. ‘Lay-dees AND jennelmen,’ came a smooth voice incredibly loudly over the speaker system, ‘PURleease welcome TO the stage…THE one and onleee—’
Tess nudged Adam. ‘He’s introducing himself!’
Sure enough, the small wizened figure of Martin Riviere was bent slightly with his back to the audience, speaking into a microphone.
‘You KNOW HIM from those CLASSIC TV shows Fall Out and the LEGENDAREE Blind Man’s Bluff…Misterrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…Martin…RIVIERE!!!!’
It was the kind of introduction that couldn’t fail to leave you clapping, even if—as was the case with some of the crowd, especially those under twenty—you had no idea who was being introduced. As he finished, Martin Riviere dropped the microphone, spun round, and smiled brightly for the audience, clapping them back and twinkling like a cut-price Norman Wisdom. He gestured for the microphone to the large councillor who stood next to him and he, after scrabbling in a bewildered way on the ground, handed it back to the smaller man, who said, in a more normal voice, ‘Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls! And Happy Christmas to you all!’
‘Happy Christmas!’ the crowd chorused back, the voices of the children loudest. Someone started crying.
‘Oh, dear, I’ve lost a vote already,’ said Martin Riviere. ‘Who’s crying?’ A mother at the edge of the crowd smiled ruefully and pointed at the screaming little girl on her hip as she bounced her up and down.
‘Come up here,’ said Martin Riviere to the mother. She shook her head. ‘Go on,’ he said. ‘I won’t bite. I’ve got a present for your little girl.’
‘Dodgy tactic,’ said Adam and Tess bit her lip, trying not to laugh.
But the mother was persuaded, and she moved towards the front of the crowd. ‘What’s your name?’ Martin Riviere said to her.
I Remember You Page 42
