“Mam, I’m so sorry that I lied to you.”
“Ssshh… you did it for the right reasons. I know that now.”
“And I’m sorry I got so mad over that stupid magazine article.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve seen your magazine spread, too.” Starla pulled away and smiled at Marnie.
“You have?”
“Yep. It’s a long story. I will tell it all to you at some point.”
“And Skye’s real father? Do you know about him too?”
“I can’t say that I do, Marnie. No.” Starla shook her head.
“Well, I need to tell you because it’s someone that…”
“Marnie! Starla! Marnie! Marnie!”
Billie came running from the house screaming, her eyes streaming with tears.
“Marnie! Starla! Come quickly…”
They both ran through the gate and jumped down the four steps.
Morgan had climbed on top of Clara and was pumping her chest up and down with his hands.
“She’s not breathing!” screamed Billie. “Mam, Mam, oh Mam!”
“Quick, Billie,” instructed Marnie, dragging the oxygen tank across towards Clara, “call 999 and ask for a bariatric ambulance.”
Starla thought quickly, too. The amulet! She needed to return Cole to his family.
“I’ll just… let me just…” Starla reached behind the photograph of Guy and Gav to retrieve the amulet that she’d put back there. She slipped behind Clara’s chair and pushed the necklace over her head.
“What are you doing? Are you crazy?” Marnie yelled as she pulled on the oxygen mask. “This isn’t dressing-up time for god’s sake!”
“No, I’m just going to… I’ll just… just a rub…”
Starla rubbed the amulet as best she could around Marnie trying to affix the mask to Clara’s face.
Clara inhaled and opened her eyes.
“Thanks love,” said Cole as he stretched high up beyond the body below, in a mist that only Starla seemed to notice. He was on his way home at last!
Clara exhaled and closed her eyes for the very last time.
44
Saturday
STAR
It was well after midnight when Starla finally went upstairs to the boxroom to lay down.
Billie was understandably distraught and ended up resting next to Jakey in his bedroom. Neither of them could really sleep. They put Skye in Billie’s bedroom, since it had been decided that Marnie should still travel.
When Star appeared on the end of Starla’s bed, she looked like a ghost. Her clothing was diaphanous; and her skin was translucent. Her eyes seemed too large for her face and her words were slow and vaporous when she spoke.
“She’s gone then,” breathed Star, moving from side to side as if caught by a draught.
“Yes.”
“And you’re wondering what’s next for you?” The words were blown around Starla like a summer breeze.
“Yes.”
“Hmmm…”
Starla waited for Star to continue.
“Well,” Star eventually whispered, “it’s up to you.”
“How so?”
Star leaned forward and pushed her face into Starla’s. Starla felt as though a band had been tied around her forehead, its vicelike grip sapping her thoughts and emotions.
“If I let you keep my body, you must take care of it,” instructed Star. “My jewellery will lose its magic and you must make a life as Starla. You won’t be able to follow people around invisibly, push gossiping nursery nurses into sandpits, blackmail unfortunate muggers or pretend to be someone you’re not.”
“But…”
“Ssshh… I know. I am you, remember!”
Starla felt a strange prickling sensation as Star climbed into the side of her body. Then, in a bizarre flourish, it felt as though someone had zipped her up and she was alone in the room.
“Hello,” said Skye, wandering into the small bedroom clutching a cuddly seal.
“Hello, Skye. What are you doing up? It’s the middle of the night!”
“How do you know my name?”
“I’m your grandma’s special sister and she can’t be with you anymore so she’s asked me to play with you instead.”
“Grandma can’t really play,” said Skye sadly. “She’s too big.”
“I know sweetheart, that’s why I’m here. I’m going to do all the things with you that Grandma didn’t get to do.”
“We have to ask my mammy first,” smiled Skye. “She’s gone away today but she’ll be back in one week. That’s seven days.”
“When she gets back,” whispered Starla, “shall we ask her if we can go to the park to play on the seesaw? Perhaps Billie would like to come too?”
“Oooh yes, she would. We love the seesaw. I like to pretend that my hair reaches the clouds.”
Skye held Starla’s hand and smiled up at her.
“You look a lot like my grandma.”
“Well, that’s because we’re sisters.”
“Can I snuggle into my Princess bed now?”
“Of course you can darling. Shall I let you have the bed all to yourself and pop myself into Billie’s room?”
“I think that would be fine,” considered Skye, “but please may you tell me a little story first, and maybe give me a big cuddle?”
Starla smiled.
“Once upon a time, there was a faraway, fairy dell, complete with magical, sprinkly-tinkly waterfall; dragonflies hovering above water lilies or aside bulrushes; delicate, flaxen-haired fairies skipping and flitting from one pebble to another, laughter tinkling like a kitten’s collar-bell. Skye, of course, is the beautiful fairy princess: the one that is singing an enchanting little ditty about how love has escaped her until that very day…”
Epilogue
“Jakey Jackson: The New Face of Baking”
(Interview notes for Femme Fanfare as recorded by Steven Kelly)
“It’s nice to welcome you to our home again Mr Kelly.
Oh you do remember? Good. Yes, well, I know it was some time ago now, wasn’t it? You interviewed Clara – my late partner.
Come and have a seat in here.
It has changed, that’s right.
I know… it looks a lot bigger and lighter now we’ve removed the bariatric bed and had a builder in to change the window back into patio doors. Not having Clara’s special armchair in the corner has opened up this end of the room beyond belief. The décor? Thank you, we’re pleased with it too. Completely different, I know, but we were sick of all the clutter and we had to redecorate really once the builder had finished the doors.
It felt right to stay in Hawpeak so that my daughter could finish her education. She had about a year and a half off after her mother died and then went back to restart her GCSEs – she’s coming to the end of taking them now. We’ve arranged for her to do her ‘A’ level courses at Marlingstone Girls. My stepdaughter’s fiancé is the headteacher there and her daughter, Skye, is in the lower school.
We’re just in the process of buying a house on the same road as my stepson and his partner – in Bilberrymoor. It’s closer to Marlingstone Girls and there’s a train station there so I can whizz up and down the country as required. There’s a wonderful market in Bilberrymoor on a Wednesday. We buy all our fresh fruit and veg there – I’m sure our friends Alf and Shirl would enjoy having their names mentioned in your article. Best fresh produce for miles around!
Don’t laugh but I’m learning to drive. I must be one of the oldest learner drivers in South Yorkshire! My dear late mother always said I should learn. I’m sure she’s beaming down at me from whatever cloud she’s sat on, wondering why it took me nearly fifty years to get around to it.
Mr Kelly, can I get you a cup of tea? I baked a delicious triple layer devil’s chocolate cake earlier if you’d like to try a slice.
Baking… that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? You’re here to find out all about my baking career. Everyone seems interested. It’s totally overw
helming but very, very flattering.
Well, Clinton Montague-Scott approached me a few years ago. He was an avid follower of my Jakey-bakes blog. Clint suggested that I write a recipe book. I was lucky to employ the services of Lola Watson who agreed to photograph my baking for free so that she could boost her portfolio. She’s with your magazine group now, isn’t she? That must be all the food photography for quite a few publications! When we can sort the dates, she’s going to shoot for my new recipe book – Jakey Bakes On. We do keep in touch, yes. Funnily enough, her daughter, Rosie, is a nurse at the Yorkshire Royal Infirmary and is engaged to my youngest stepson, Guy. He also works at the hospital – in the IT department. They actually got together when they were both backpacking around Australia. Lola suggested that they meet up after we realised they were both in Brisbane at the same time. The rest, as they say, is history!
As you know, the book did terrifically well and I was offered a baking slot on All Rise For Sunrise. Many of my bakes are regional, so they asked me to incorporate my ideas into different parts of the UK. That’s when one of the producers suggested that I start the Weather To Bake feature. As you probably know, I suggest recipes to fit in with the weekly weather outlook. If it’s sunny, I recommend picnic bakes. If it’s going to be stormy, we look at comfort eats. We try to include special events, bank holiday ideas, etc. So for ‘Ladies Day’, I made sure it was all delicate chocolate recipes. For the rugby, it was all about those chunky pies with gravy. I match a recipe to each region and demonstrate one or two, depending on how much time there is in each programme.
The popularity of my feature is staggering and I’m constantly blown away by its success. I even get asked for my autograph! Me! It’s unbelievable!
My wife is incredibly supportive, of course. Oh didn’t you know? Yes, we’ve been married well over a year now. We married on a beautiful beach in the Maldives. I’d like to say it was quiet but there were fifteen of us. We practically took over the whole hotel with family – five children, four of them with partners, and the four grandkids.
You’d like to see some photos? Of course. This one is my favourite. Me, my wife and our grandchildren: Skye, Nicole, Joe and Gertie.
This one has our children and their partners in it. There’s Marnie, James and Skye; Mikey, Tina and baby Joe; Gav and Morgan with their beautiful adopted baby daughter, Gertie; Guy and Rosie (Lola’s daughter); then Billie and her gorgeous little daughter, Nicole.
I’d rather you didn’t publish pictures of our children and grandchildren, so I’ll give you this photo: my wife and I drinking champagne on the beach as the sun goes down.
Good. Glad you like it. She’s stunning, isn’t she?
If you hang around for a bit, you’ll be able to meet her. She’s only just nipped down to the beauty salon on Church Street to get her nails done. She’s always having some beauty treatment or other even though I tell her every day how beautiful she is… but you know what women are like!
She reckons she’s put on nearly two stone since the wedding. I’ve told her she looks fantastic with a few curves – I’ve created some new recipes to cheer her up, you know! The chocolate mars bar cake is her favourite; I’ve even heard her getting up in the night to sneak a few slices… she seems to have developed quite a sweet tooth lately…
About The Author
Abby Beverley currently works as an English teacher in one of the largest Academies in the Midlands. She holds a B.Ed and Masters degree, both of these in the field of education.
She had her first story published in a national competition when she was just seven years old – a story about a horse that ran away from the circus to join a stable yard! Since then, she has had numerous short stories published, as well as several scholarly articles.
Abby spent a number of years living and working in New Zealand; she enjoyed the literary lifestyle there, getting to know several kiwi authors in the Western Bay Of Plenty and learning from them.
‘Dying To Be Slim’ is Abby’s first novel.
When Abby is not teaching or writing, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, participating in a wide variety of leisure activities.
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