Chapter 40
Chapter Forty
R ose picked up her phone to call Aunt Cherry.
She’d already done the math to make sure she wasn’t calling too early or too late with the five hour time difference.
Magnolia never said much about her sister.
She hadn’t attended Magnolia’s funeral. Her health made it difficult for her to travel from England.
Rose hoped Aunt Cherry might know answers to her questions about the past, concerning the months before she was born.
The line connected. They exchanged greetings and common niceties. The weather there and here was discussed. Her aunt asked about the memorial service and apologized for not attending.
As a child, Rose had noticed Magnolia pursed her lips more during Aunt Cherry’s visits to Evers Hollow. She’d never questioned why, but when Aunt Cherry began talking about the aftermath of Magnolia’s passing, she began to understand.
“I suppose Broome will have to deal with Briar House now.”
Rose said, “Broome didn’t inherit the house. I did.”
Her tone came across as condescending. “Hogwash. Did my sister lose her mind? What’s a young thing like you going to do with that creepy old place? Are you old enough to vote?”
“Aunt Cherry, I’m twenty-eight.”
A harrumph came through the earpiece. “I’ll need to see your driver’s license next time I visit.”
Rose rolled her eyes. There was no way her aunt could see her. “Aunt Cherry—I need to ask you about the past, back when Magnolia was pregnant.”
“Pregnant! Are you saying my sister was pregnant when she died? That’s impossible.”
Rose shook her head. This wouldn’t be easy. “You misunderstand. I’m talking about before, twenty-seven years ago. She spent a few months in the Cotswolds cottage.”
Only silence followed. Had the phone disconnected?
“Aunt Cherry?”
Her voice came through, tinged with authority and judgment. “You mean the illegitimate one. I remember. She got rid of it. Gave it away. What’s it to you?”
Rose’s mouth fell open. Her fingers gripped the phone. Aunt Cherry didn’t know. Why wouldn’t Magnolia have told her own sister that Rose was, in truth, her daughter?
Her aunt continued. “I told her to flush it. There was still time. The father sounded like a ne’er-do-well. Not the sort to hobnob with the rest of us Everson’s.”
Rose couldn’t decide if she was more shocked or horrified at her words.
A semblance of laughter reached her ears. It held no kindness. “So the town darling’s big secret got out. I told her it would. Nothing stays hidden in that rotten place. It’s one reason I chose to live with our mum when our parents divorced.”
Was that glee in her voice? She tried to speak, but Aunt Cherry wasn’t finished.
“Bet Louise Winston is eating cake over this. She always hated my sister.”
Rose frowned. Why had she thought this phone call was a good idea?
Perhaps she should have called Uncle Tamarack instead to get information.
The space behind her right eye throbbed.
She tried to break into the conversation, tell her the secret remained hidden.
The older woman rolled right over her attempts.
“Downright scared she was, to take you all in after that father of yours got him and Daisy killed. I told her she was a loon. Told her again when she asked me if I would help raise all of you. The nerve. Five children. In my cottage, at the same time.”
Again, Rose tried to speak. She didn’t get past opening her mouth.
“It would be safer she said—across the Atlantic. I refused, of course—told her she’d lost her bloody mind. I think she may well have.”
Rose pressed her palm to her forehead.
“I can’t believe she left the house to a girl. Do yourself a favor. Light a match and take it down to its foundation. Better that it never stood.”
Burn down Briar House? What was wrong with this woman? One she was supposed to claim as family.
She had to defend this house, herself. “I love this?—”
It was too late. The line cut off. A dial tone eventually sounded, followed by silence. There was no sense in calling Aunt Cherry back. Unless she wanted to compound her headache. She slipped her phone into her pocket, then pressed her fingers to the outside of her right eye.
Confusion and more questions filled her mind. Was she supposed to believe that Magnolia hadn’t wanted them here? That she’d wanted them to live overseas? Because of fear.
She sank into her couch, clutched a pillow to her chest. Of course, she didn’t believe the woman’s words. No wonder Magnolia never told her the truth.
Aunt Cherry called Rose’s birth father a ne'er-do-well. An outdated term, but Rose got the message. The woman felt the father of her sister’s illegitimate child was unfit for what previous generations called the Everson Legacy.
And why had she mentioned Louise? And cake?
She needed to take something for the emerging headache.
Rose did so, then made another call to her friend, Ada, asking if she could come over. She quickly agreed.
While she waited for her to arrive, she thought more about the things she learned from Aunt Cherry. Secrets often found their way out here in Evers Hollow. Why hadn’t Magnolia’s?
A knock came at the cottage door. Thoughts of the past disappeared.
Ada, her closest female friend, held a bottle of wine and a box of chocolates. “I’m glad you called. I bought these weeks ago. I knew you’d need me at some point. Phone calls and texts are not enough.”
She wore yoga pants and a tunic style sweatshirt.
Her curly blond hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun.
Gold metal rimmed glasses perched on her nose, accenting the gold flecks in her brown eyes.
Rose ushered her in. Once seated, she told her everything she’d learned since Magnolia’s passing.
A glass of wine later, Ada set her glass down and pushed up her glasses. “So, what you’re saying is that your—what do you want me to call her?”
“Magnolia. It’s easier. Anything else is plain confusing.” The pain in her head hadn’t dissipated. She sank farther back. The wine probably wasn’t wise, but it paired too well with the chocolates Ada brought. She ran a finger around the rim of her glass.
Beside her, Ada folded her legs beneath her. “So, Magnolia got pregnant with you after her husband passed away. The woman who is technically your older sister, Daisy, had her kids already.”
“Yes, except she was still pregnant with Thorne. I think that’s why they changed my birthdate. We were too close in age for anyone to believe that my mom, Daisy, delivered me.”
“Damn girl. That’s a lot. No wonder you called.” Ada held out the box of chocolates. “Have another one. It’ll make you feel better.”
Rose massaged her temples.
“You should take something for the headache,” said Ada.
“I did. I’ll take more before I go to sleep.”
Ada ended up crashing in the cottage’s guest room. They’d finished the bottle and most of the chocolates. At breakfast, over scrambled eggs, maple sausage, and cinnamon apples, Ada asked more questions.
“So, you don’t know who your real dad is?”
Rose said, “No. No clue. It’s why I called my aunt.”
Ada pulled one knee to her chest. “She sounds lovely. I hope I never have to meet her.”
Rose finished her breakfast. “No worries, we haven’t seen her in forever. I couldn’t even say when. She came to one of the weddings. Maybe Broome’s.”
Ada forked her last bit of sausage and held up a finger. “Tell me, why are you still living in this cottage?”
“We’re figuring out a weekend to move me in.”
“Good.” She sent her an accusatory look. “Why didn’t you tell your besties about the creep in the cafe? And the cemetery?”
“You heard about that?”
“I own a flower shop on Center Street. Of course, I heard about it. I would prefer to hear it from you.”
Rose stood, set her plate in the sink. “I’m sorry. I?—”
“Didn’t think how worried we’d both be?”
Rose turned to face her. “Does anything stay private in this town?”
Ada cocked her head. “Becks would say no. That’s why I can’t convince her to give up her job in New York and move down here.”
“I’ll call her. I promise.”
Ada stood, glanced at her watch. “Would you like me to help move some things now? I’ve got a bit of time.”
“Sure, if you don’t mind.”
“Awesome. I’d love to see the progress in the dining room. I can’t see much in the pictures you sent us.”
Together, they filled a few boxes. Rose stuffed her suitcases with clothes and shoes she wasn’t currently wearing.
After unloading the boxes, they climbed the stairs with the suitcases. When Ada wheeled one toward Magnolia’s room, Rose said, “I can’t sleep in there yet. We’re still going through her things.”
“Oh,” said Ada, before she turned around. “I imagine that’s difficult.”
“Willow, Aspen, and Simi have been helping. We’ve gone through most of her clothes. Aliya loves the costume jewelry.”
Ada pressed a hand to her chest. “A girl after my own heart.”
“Willow will sort through the last of the clothes. Most will go to the women and children’s shelter in town. Willow’s got some ideas for the rest.”
Ada followed her up the stairs to the third floor. “Knowing your creative sister, she’ll come up with something cool.”
They emptied the suitcases and set them back downstairs.
Rose walked Ada through the house. They peeked into the dining room through the crack in the plastic curtain the disaster team had hung. They’d be here later in the day.
She’d have to find a new dining table. Initially, the old one appeared to have held. Closer examination revealed a splintered crack through the oak top.
Most of the chairs made it through with minor damage. They’d been taken to the ballroom. Willow had offered to chalk paint them. Rose needed to find out what that meant.
Ada asked, “What do you have planned for today?”
“Since my call with Aunt Cherry was useless,” she said, “I need to visit the Conroys. Maybe they know something. Surely, Magnolia would have confided in someone.”