Chapter 6
‘Can we talk?’ I asked my dad nervously as I stood in the doorway to our kitchen.
‘You came back.’ Dad looked relieved to see me, and I felt guilty all over again. ‘What’s up, love?’
‘I did something that was maybe just a tad childish…’ I admitted, walking in and sitting down at our table.
Maple followed, plonking herself on my feet.
I reached down to pat her, glad of her comfort and support.
‘Mr Suit… Henderson,’ I corrected myself, quickly, ‘…is likely to be late for your meeting.’
Dad came over. ‘What happened, Willow?’ he asked wearily, sinking into the chair opposite me.
I told him what happened at the café. ‘I just couldn’t stop myself, I’m sorry.’
‘Oh, love. I knew you were having a hard time with this but that was definitely a childish response.’
I winced. I hated disappointing him. ‘I’m sorry. He just seemed to have his nose in the air about our town and the café, and our farm. He got my back up, and I just blurted out the wrong directions.’
‘Did he? Or was that just what you wanted to see? I’ll phone him and help him find his way,’ he said, reaching for his phone on the table.
‘Hang on just a minute.’
Dad paused and raised an eyebrow at me.
‘I know I handled that badly but it’s because I really don’t want to have to leave the farm.’
‘I know. I’m sorry, I’ve let you down.’
‘What do you mean?’ I asked him in surprise, certain that it was me who had let him down, not the other way around.
‘I should have done more to keep things working well around here but maybe after your mother, I did lose my way a bit then it was too late; things just seem to get worse each year. And I’m stumped on what we can do to stop it. That’s why I wanted to meet with Henderson Homes.’
‘It’s not your fault,’ I told him firmly.
‘It’s been a hard few years. I have had an idea that might work but, Dad…
’ I trailed off to gather the courage to say the next part.
I was terrified to hear his answer but I knew I couldn’t be selfish.
I loved my dad, and he had to come first as much as I was desperate to stay here.
‘Do you want to save the farm? If you wanted to leave, it would be hard but I would understand, and I have to… I’d accept it,’ I finished, swallowing the lump in my throat again.
‘Willow,’ Dad choked out, sounding like he had a similar lump to me. ‘I don’t want to leave but I don’t know if we have another choice.’
‘What if we did, though?’ I cleared my throat, relieved that in his heart he didn’t actually want to leave the farm.
‘I was in town and looking at how the High Street is decorated for autumn, and the café has seasonally themed food and drinks on the menu now. Plus, we always go big for Halloween around here, don’t we? ’
Dad nodded with a smile. ‘That we do.’
‘Well, what about getting into the autumn mood around here too? Bring people to the farm for some seasonal fun. I was thinking we could set up a pumpkin patch.’
‘A pumpkin patch?’
I nodded. ‘We would sell pumpkins. We could have an autumn trail with lots of cool seasonal and Halloween-themed props, places for people to take pictures. We could have pumpkin and autumn-themed food and drinks, maybe the two Pats would want to get involved; it would be a fun place for families to come like when they visit for our pick-your-own. But it would be to pick a pumpkin and before you say it, I know we don’t grow pumpkins but for this year, we could just buy them in and then in the future?—’
‘Love,’ Dad interrupted me gently. ‘I can see you’re excited about this but not only does it sound like a lot of work for us, what about the costs involved? You’re talking about buying in pumpkins, and creating a trail… How would we afford it? We’re trying to make money, not spend more.’
I leaned back in my chair, the wind sucked out of my sails suddenly.
Once again, I’d got carried away with something without thinking about the basic part, like how we’d afford to do it.
The pumpkin patch was already forming in my mind; I could see it out there on the field.
But how could I make it happen without money?
‘I think it would be really popular, it would make money; I just know it, Dad.’
‘I think it could too. People love autumn and Halloween, and there isn’t anything like that nearby. It was a good idea, Willow. But I don’t see how you could make it happen. Not only is it only a couple of weeks until October, but we don’t have extra funds for it.’
‘What about getting a loan?’
‘No,’ he said quickly. ‘We can’t take out a loan and risk the farm. I’m not leaving you with nothing for your future. If we can’t save the farm, we need to sell it so we both have something to live on. We’d need to start over somewhere. You have to be more practical about these things.’
I bristled. I hated the implication that I was too much of a dreamer. ‘Mum would have loved the idea,’ I said. ‘She would have encouraged me, not told me to just give up. You say you want to save the farm but you won’t help me do it.’
‘That’s not fair. We have to be sensible. Think with our heads, not our hearts.’
‘Why?’ I asked stubbornly. I could tell he was losing patience with me but I just wasn’t willing to give up.
Then the lightning bolt came. ‘What about the jewellery?’ I asked, although my heart did ache at the thought of parting with any of it.
I shook it off. ‘You said I should be practical. I’ve kept hold of it for years even though we’ve needed the money. ’
‘No, Willow, you love those pieces,’ Dad told me, alarmed.
I thought about the jewellery box in my bedroom upstairs handed down to me by my mother.
Some of the pieces had been in her family for generations, and I knew selling a few would raise some much-needed funds.
Neither of us had ever wanted to touch it before.
My mum had adored her jewellery and I would hate to part with any of it but I also knew she would understand.
‘I do love them, but the farm is more important, isn’t it?
We’ve both resisted even mentioning it. It’s been a bit of an elephant in the room at times.
But we are close to selling up, Dad. If this isn’t an emergency situation, I don’t know what is.
Mum would want us to use the jewellery to save the farm, wouldn’t she? ’
My question hung in the air and before Dad could respond, Maple let out a warning bark. She looked towards the window and I followed her gaze. Then I could hear the sound of tyres on the driveway.
I stood up, looked out of the window and sighed.
‘Looks like you don’t need to phone him after all,’ I said as I watched a fancy car make its way towards us.
It had to be Mr Suit Man. No one I knew had a car like it; this was mostly a four-by-four area.
This car was sleek and shiny and just screamed, I’m not from around here .
‘Not much harm done in the end then,’ Dad said, getting up from his chair stiffly. ‘I’ll put the kettle back on for tea. Let’s just listen to what he has to say, okay? Then we can talk more later.’
‘I already know what he will say, and the answer is no,’ I replied, sitting back down and folding my arms across my chest. ‘My idea can work, Dad, I just know it.’
Before Dad could answer, the doorbell rang and Maple let out a low growl.
‘I know how you feel,’ I told her.
Dad sighed. ‘Be friendly, you two, please,’ he said as he walked to the door.
‘I wish we didn’t have to be,’ I confessed in a whisper to Maple. ‘Stay though, girl,’ I told her, knowing that after sending him in the wrong direction, I better not let my dog chase him out, although the idea of doing just that was appealing, I had to admit.
‘Come on in,’ I heard my dad say.
I braced myself as Mr Suit Man walked into my kitchen and saw me, his face dropping instantly once our eyes met.