Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
Imelda
L ate February brought warmer days, but still, the nights were chilly. It had been three months since she’d dumped the boxes for her children to sort through and begin preparations for running Copper Island. Christmas and New Year had been about celebrations. Isobel’s first Christmas, and as a family, they were all together for the first time in nearly thirty years.
Imelda had cried so hard on Christmas night. Grateful she’d found the courage to come back. Everyone had squashed into her parents’ house on Boxing Day to eat leftover turkey and gorge on sweets. It was handy her father was a butcher.
Luke was getting frustrated that he couldn’t marry Freya immediately and threw glances at Daisy and Nate across the table at family dinner time. Daisy was pregnant, and so was Erica. Heidi was far along and showing proudly, which added to his exasperation of being last to marry and father a child.
Imelda found great joy living in the fifth cottage beside her children. They were raising families, and she would be a part of that.
She was wrapped up warm under a fleecy blanket, reading a book mid-afternoon, when an alarm sounded on her phone. It was their version of a bat signal.
Imelda sighed heavily, closed the paperback she was reading and tossed it onto the glass-topped coffee table. She swung her legs from the sofa cushions and placed them carefully and slowly on the floor. It was her way of buying time to settle the anger brewing.
The alarm was Bailey’s notification that Cynthia was on her way.
Clutching the edge of the cushions, she bowed her head, closing her eyes. Then she swung her head to look across the lawns. Striding across was a spritely Cynthia. Even at eighty-one, she showed no signs of fatigue.
When Cynthia was near enough that it was no coincidence where she was heading, Imelda stood up and shed the fleece blanket and draped it over the back of the outdoor sofa. The winter sun had some heat, but it didn’t stop the shiver when Imelda focused on Freddie’s sister.
Imelda didn’t consider herself violent, but she could cheerfully throttle the woman. Cynthia’s pinched face came nearer. Shrewd eyes narrowed in on her, but Imelda resisted the urge to flee.
Her children would protect her, and God love them. All eight of them were striding out onto the lawn behind Cynthia to play an impromptu game of frisbee.
“Cynthia,” Imelda said, frostier than she intended .
“Imelda. You’re back.”
“We both know you knew the moment I stepped foot on Copper Island months ago,” Imelda replied, coming to the opening of her patio and stepping onto the path.
She didn’t want Cynthia in her home.
A tabby kitten pushed between Imelda’s ankles, looked up at Cynthia and hissed. Imelda suppressed the urge to laugh. The kitten was Daisy and Nate’s new pet, but the cat seemed to prefer Imelda’s home.
Cynthia glared at the creature and then looked back at Imelda’s face.
“I was a little shocked that they did not invite me to Daisy’s wedding,” Cynthia replied, then cleared her throat.
Imelda laughed humourlessly, which drew the attention of her children. When she stopped, they kept throwing the frisbee around. Most times, it landed on the floor as they were busy looking her way.
“You’re shocked? Shocked? You’re shocked that she doesn’t want you at her wedding after being locked in a room with no food for two days? Christ, you are a piece of work.”
“Well, at least I wasn’t the only one not invited. The child didn’t invite her brothers.”
“And that was your fault, too,” Imelda yelled. “All the heartache this family has suffered is from your actions. Even your own misery was because you were a scared bully.”
“I’ll remind you that you are on Turner land,” Cynthia haughtily cautioned.
“And I’m a fucking Turner. Right to the end. You cannot take that away from me. I married a Turner, and I bore the children that will take over this island and do a better job of making it prosper than you ever did. ”
“I did the best I could. Father never left me any instructions after Freddie died.”
“Karma is for the next life, but it looks like it made an exception for you. You should’ve been a nicer person, then perhaps you would have had a nicer life. How is vegetarian life going for you?”
Cynthia blanched at the comment.
“That’s right. You’re not the only one who has spies. I would never lower myself to your level and poison another living creature. What do you think you were going to gain by killing me?”
Without her clocking it, the frisbee game had inched nearer the rear of her cottage, and Teddy was the only one tossing the piece of plastic around. Erica held Isobel in her arms, swaying and distracting her from the tense vibe no doubt wafting out from their conversation.
“I wasn’t trying to kill you,” she whispered, twisting her sapphire ring.
“What did you think would happen when I got so ill? What do you feel when you know I missed out on my children’s lives because you had this drive to be an heir? Now that you have the island, was it worth it?”
Imelda flung her arms out to the side in exasperation. She could feel her voice lifting as she spoke. Any answers she was given would be meaningless because Freddie would still be dead, and she still would have lost out on decades with her children.
Cynthia remained quiet, looking up to the eaves of the cottage and then back to Imelda. It struck her that Cynthia was a different woman from the one who had walked across the grass to see her.
“What do you want? Why are you here?” Imelda demanded .
Silence came again. Cynthia’s lips folded in like she was bracing herself. Then it dawned on Imelda what Cynthia wanted.
Needed.
“You want me to forgive you,” she said.
Cynthia’s eyes snapped up to Imelda’s face. There was barely a nod, but she saw it.
“I forgive you,” Imelda said boldly.
A collective gasp went up from the peanut gallery. Imelda swiped her eyes along the row of her children and their loved ones and nodded to them. Like a formation of soldiers, they all turned and marched off in a line. Daisy looked back as Nate grabbed her hand, and Imelda smiled at her daughter. She nodded and then turned her gaze back to Cynthia Turner, who seemed to shrink before her eyes.
“You will give me and my children the freedom to roam this estate. You’ll hand over the reins of Copper Island within the next twelve months. You will do this openly and willingly and won’t interfere with how Archer wants to set up the future of this island,” Imelda said.
Cynthia opened her mouth to speak, but Imelda held up her hand.
“I know what is most precious to you, and that is the Turner name. If you don’t do as I ask, I will take them away from Copper Island, and we’ll set up a home elsewhere. You have proven through your actions that my four children are resourceful and can earn a living without the Turner name.”
Imelda knew Freya wouldn’t leave her family, and if Freya stayed, then Luke was staying. If Luke was staying, they were all staying. The same went for Heidi, but Cynthia didn’t know that.
“We got a deal?” Imelda pushed .
There was a wave of relief in Cynthia’s eyes when she nodded fully.
“I’ll hand it over. Whenever Archer wants to meet with the lawyers, let Bailey know, and he’ll arrange everything.”
“That’s settled. If you behave yourself, I’ll see you have an invitation to Luke and Freya’s wedding.”
Cynthia’s eyes widened.
“Thank you.”
“It’s more than you deserve. But I will not spend another moment of my life with resentment in my heart. You did what you did, and we can’t reverse that. We can only make it better. Watching my children tiptoe around this place is heartbreaking. This is their legacy. It’s about time they enjoyed it while they are young. I want their children to run around this place with no fear in their minds. It’s the very least I can do for them.”
“Understood,” Cynthia said with conviction.
Imelda went to turn away and then turned back. “And another thing?”
“Yes?” Cynthia said a little too brightly.
“Put their names on the damn gravestones. We all know who is buried there.”
Cynthia’s head dropped, her chin touching her chest. Imelda heard the quiet sob before the woman turned and walked away. When she was halfway across the lawn, Imelda was swarmed with bodies around her that had walked out from her kitchen door. Daisy hugged her from behind, and Archer slung an arm around her shoulders. They must have gone through Daisy’s home and let themselves in through her front door.
“You kicked ass, Mum,” Luke said.
His arms were folded like Jason’s stance as they watched the elderly woman keep a swift pace as she walked back to Turner Hall.
“I think we’re all free. I hope you’re ready to take over Turner Hall. At least there are eight of you to take the burden. It was too much for Freddie,” Imelda said.
She burst into tears, her legs buckling, but Archer caught her and gently put her on the sofa. Erica bundled Isobel onto her lap, and the gurgling baby chuckled and patted her grandmother’s cheek.
“I am so excited to see my grandchildren grow up,” Imelda said, looking at them all one by one. “It’s going to be bedlam, but I’m going to love every moment.”
“Can I please get married next week?” Luke said.
“No,” came the chorus of replies.
His pout started a ripple of laughter.
“I’ll get the kettle on,” Freya said and headed back inside.
Heidi followed, as did everyone else apart from Archer.
He sat down next to his mum and tickled his daughter.
“Are you okay, Mum?”
“Yeah,” she said, sniffing back tears. “You all call me Mum, and that’s enough for me.”
Archer wrapped his arm around her shoulders and brought her in for a hug.
“And Granny,” he said.