Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Samantha bustled around the spacious kitchen, producing coffees and carrot cake. Lily took a few mouthfuls before getting the conversation back on track.
“What did you mean about my grandmother riling people up?” she asked, lifting her coffee.
“Only that she ruffled a few feathers after the fire.” Samantha wrapped her hands around her mug. “It’s a long time ago now. Not something to dwell on.”
“I’d like to know,” Lily said levelly.
She chewed on her bottom lip, apparently choosing her words carefully. “It was understandable, really. Your grandmother had just lost her daughter and her son-in-law, so of course she wasn’t thinking clearly.”
“She accused Harper Developers of starting the fire?”
“Yes. Poor Mr Harper took a lot of abuse from her. Very upsetting for him, but he was patient with her – full of compassion and understanding. Clearly he had nothing to hide, and I think the whole thing left him shaken.”
She tapped her manicured nails against the side of the mug.
“For a while there was still talk of them going ahead with their project, but Mr Harper had lost all enthusiasm and eventually withdrew the offers to buy. I imagine that’s when Clara realised he hadn’t set the fire.
” She inhaled a deep breath. “I think grief consumed her. She needed someone to blame.”
Lily gave a gentle nod. “What happened after that? Marcie made it sound as though Clara had turned the entire village against her, but surely everyone understood her anger towards the developers?”
“It wasn’t only the developers Clara accused.” Samantha stared into her coffee. “Once she decided it wasn’t them, she turned her attention to the neighbours. The ones who wanted to sell and were upset that Julia and Christopher didn’t want to.”
So her grandmother had had the same thoughts as Lily.
“Did she accuse you?”
“Oh, yes.” Samantha stretched her neck. “Repeatedly. She thought I’d lit the fire thinking the house was empty.
I was the one person who definitely knew your parents should have been out, since I was looking after you.
But I told her, I also knew they’d come home early.
I’d seen the taxi pull up. That’s irrelevant though, because no matter how badly I wanted to sell, I’d never have done something like that.
Not to a stranger, never mind to one of my closest friends. ”
“It must have been difficult, though, if you wanted to sell and my parents didn’t.”
Samantha toyed with one of her earrings, and the light sparkled on the polished gold. “There was a bit of tension. Mostly between the men. Martin was more keen to sell than I was.”
“Your husband?” Lily asked.
“Yes. He had all these ideas about what we’d be able to do with the extra money. I may have got caught up in his enthusiasm, but I was still a little torn. The kids were settled here, and uprooting them didn’t fill me with joy. I also knew I’d miss living next door to your mum.”
“Kids?” Lily said. “Do you have more than one?”
“Yes. Johnny’s five years older than Nancy, so he probably wasn’t around much when you and Nancy were playing together.
The two of them were never particularly close.
The age gap, I suppose. But that’s another reason I always loved that Nancy had you right next door.
” She flicked her gaze to the garden, and Lily was certain she was fighting off tears.
“Vanessa said some of the other neighbours still live here too,” Lily said.
“Yes. Charles and Serena are opposite me. This seems to be more of a holiday home for them these days.” The words held a bite of disdain.
“They have a house in London and one in Italy. I believe they’re off to Italy next week.
They’ll stay there for a couple of months to avoid the worst of the winter here. It’s all right for some, isn’t it?”
“Don’t you get on?”
She shrugged. “They’re fine. Just a bit above themselves for my liking.
Then there’s Jackie at the other side of…
” She looked slightly pained. “Your old house. Then Bert opposite her. He’s not in the house any more, but he still lives in the village.
On a boat, if you can believe that. Boat Bert, people call him.
He’s a little eccentric, but I have a soft spot for him. ”
Lily had so many questions, but was nervous of putting Samantha on the defensive. She could always ask Nancy more questions about the neighbours later.
“What about the houses at the start of the road?” she asked. “And the one at the end here?” There’d been nothing about them in Richard Harper’s notes.
“New builds,” Samantha said, then shrugged. “Not really new – they’ve probably been there fifteen years, but they weren’t here when you lived here.”
That made sense. Lily took a sip of her coffee before asking her next question. “What about the people who live in my old house? What are they like?”
“The Burtons.” She sighed heavily. “They seem fine. I don’t have much to do with them, and they haven’t lived there long. A couple of years, maybe. No one stays too long in that house.”
“Really?”
She nodded gravely. “I think it has some bad energy,” she said, with a ring of apology in her tone.
Lily decided not to dwell on it. “It’s strange that people still hold a grudge against my grandmother. After all this time, you’d think people would put it behind them.”
Samantha frowned deeply. “No one has a grudge. At least, not that I know of. What gave you that idea?”
“Marcie from the gift shop. She told me I’d be better off not mentioning Clara’s name around here.”
Samantha rolled her eyes. “Ignore her. Marcie can be dramatic. I’m surprised she said that, though. That’s far-fetched even for her.”
“So people don’t have an issue with Clara?”
“No.” She waved a dismissive hand. “She got everyone’s back up at the time, but emotions were high anyway. People were annoyed with her – it’s difficult not to be when she’s accusing you of arson, but there was a lot of sympathy for her too.”
Her gaze softened. “I felt terrible when she had that fall. When the doctors said they didn’t think she’d survive, there was a part of me that wondered if that might be for the best.” Her hand jerked up to her mouth.
“Oh, god. I’m so sorry. That sounds awful.
It’s just that the poor woman was suffering so much.
I thought it might be the kindest thing for her. So she could finally have some peace.”
Lily dipped her head, trying not to react strongly. “I should go,” she said after a moment of uncomfortable silence.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.” She sounded irritated with herself. “I always do that – open my mouth and put my foot in it. What an insensitive thing to say. Please don’t rush off.”
“It’s not that,” Lily said. “I suppose hearing about the past is draining. I’ll go for a walk and clear my head.” She pushed the chair away, then paused. “I really would like to reconnect with Nancy. If I leave my number, could you pass it on?”
“Yes, of course. She’d love that.” Hurriedly, she retrieved a notepad and pen.
Lily had just scribbled her number down when a sound from upstairs had her looking up. “Is your husband home?”
“No. We divorced years ago. That’s Johnny,” she said, pointing overhead.
“Your son?”
“Yes. Thirty-three years old and still living at home. Nancy teases him for it mercilessly, but I enjoy having him around. The house is too big for one person.”
With a tight smile, Lily headed for the door.
“I’m glad you called in,” Samantha said. “Feel free to pop over again. If there’s anything you need, just let me know.”
“Thank you.” She needed answers to her questions, but was aware that she should tread carefully.
Outside, she turned back. “Do you think it was an accident?” she blurted, apparently not quite so concerned with treading lightly.
“You don’t think there might have been any truth in what my grandmother said? ”
Samantha’s shoulders drooped. “No, sweetie. It was a terrible accident. I’m certain of it. Thinking anything else is a sure way to drive yourself crazy.”
“It’s just such a coincidence that it happened right when the developers had made the offer. Are you sure no one would have done anything to try and nudge the sale through? I’m not saying anyone set out to hurt anyone, but if they thought the house was empty…”
“It crossed my mind, but it doesn’t even make that much sense.”
“Why not?”
“Because I think your mum would have come around in the end.”
“You think they’d have sold?”
“Maybe. Her gut reaction was that she’d never sell. She didn’t want to give up a home she loved for any amount of money. But the deeper into development talks we got, the more she saw it wasn’t just about that.”
“How do you mean?” Lily asked.
“She realised it wasn’t just about her. It would have been life changing for the people who did want to sell.
She felt some guilt about that. And she also liked the idea of what Harper Developments proposed.
She thought it would be a good use of the land.
We were five families living on this beautiful patch, but the development would provide a wonderful home for so many more people.
And in a nice way, not just a block of flats, but a community for the elderly. ”
“I didn’t think about it that way,” Lily murmured.
She said goodbye and left with a lot to chew over.