Chapter 13
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Immy was standing in her shop the next morning surveying the empty walls and bare concrete floor.
Right now, the shop looked worse than when she first moved in here.
There was so much to do and she didn’t know where to start.
As it was Tuesday there wasn’t much time left to get it all finished before the Easter egg hunt on Sunday.
‘Hello,’ a voice called from the door.
Immy turned around to see Belinda standing there. ‘Hi.’
Belinda walked in. ‘How are you doing?’
Immy nodded. ‘There is so much to do but I’m feeling cautiously optimistic that the hunt will still go ahead.
The cardboard bunny ears will be delivered tomorrow and the Easter-themed sweets will be delivered on Thursday.
We can store it all in Xander’s shop until the day of the hunt.
So as long as you can get the map and clues printed off somewhere we should be all systems go.
Although if we’re in the middle of decorating or doing the floor, it could make it tricky to run the hunt from in here, but we can run it from a table outside. ’
Belinda stepped closer. ‘I meant, how are you doing?’
‘Ah… I’m OK. It’s hard to see my shop like this and yesterday, when it was all ruined and watching everyone throwing everything out, that was difficult.
I spent so much time getting my shop looking how it was, painting it, decorating it with all my little sweet-themed ornaments.
Some of my decorations were one of a kind.
And I know they are only things, but they were mine.
I know I’m incredibly lucky that I’m OK, Jacob is OK, no one else got hurt.
I’m so relieved that there is no structural damage so I can return to my flat to get my stuff and that we can get in here and clear up.
But it’s still difficult to know I have to start from scratch all over again.
I love my little shop, I loved working in it.
Meeting people, chatting to them. And right now, it feels like I’ve lost all of that.
I know we’ll get it back to how it was, or maybe even better.
And the community room hasn’t been touched at all so all my little local groups can still come back once we’re all finished, but I feel like I’m at the bottom of the mountain right now and I’m not sure how to get to the top. ’
‘I get it, I do, I know how heartbreaking it is. And knowing that it’s just superficial damage doesn’t make it any easier to deal with.
But we will all help you get back on your feet.
You are a valued member of our community and while I would say that to any shop owner because everyone contributes something to our little town – the pet shop, the candle shop, the costume shop, everybody brings something wonderful to our little corner of the world – what you do here with the community room is something special.
We don’t really have anywhere as big as your back room to hold these activities, or the spaces we do have are too big and too expensive, and the fact that you offer it out for free is really kind.
You have so many little groups that meet here, sometimes you’ll have two or three different groups on one day.
Plus your sweet shop has been the focal point for the Easter egg hunt for many years.
I think it’s safe to say Lovegrove Bay has felt this tragedy more than it would have if the fire had affected any other shop.
So many people have contacted me offering their help.
And…’ She dug out a cheque from her bag.
‘Lots of people have donated too.’ She passed Immy the cheque.
Immy stared at it in shock. ‘Five thousand pounds? But why would they give that much?’
‘People care about you and the shop.’
Immy was so unbelievably touched by that.
She wasn’t strictly a local as she hadn’t been born and raised here.
She was a blow-in, someone with no roots in the town, and, although her sister had been there for around eight or nine years and she had been there for around four years now, she didn’t think she would ever be classed as local.
So for all these people to want to help her made her feel warm inside.
‘But… I don’t think I’ll need that much money.’
‘I don’t know. You’ll need cleaning equipment, paint, new flooring, wood for shelves, a new coffee machine, new till, new sweet dispensers, new stock, possibly a new sign outside if you can’t clean that soot off.
There might be repairs to pay for with the electrics.
I’m sure there are more things I haven’t thought of, but I don’t think five thousand pounds will go far once you start buying things.
If you have any left over once you’re completely finished, then donate it to a brain injury charity or Alzheimer’s or dementia charity. ’
‘OK.’
‘But don’t skimp either. Get what you want – people want to help so let them help.’
Immy nodded. It was a weird feeling to accept help, but she could see she would have to get used to it.
‘Also, if you’d prefer a bank transfer so you have access to the money immediately, I can do that. I figured the cheque was a bit more symbolic.’
Immy laughed. ‘Yes thank you, that would be great.’ She gave Belinda the bank details for the shop.
‘Right,’ Belinda said, taking her tablet out of her bag and suddenly sounding a lot more formal than she had for the last few minutes. ‘Hit me with your list of things that need to be done and let’s see if we can get these jobs allocated to people as quick as we can.’
Immy let out a heavy breath as she focussed her attention on the room.
‘Well, I’ll need an electrician to come round and check all the electrics in the shop and flat, that was one of the things that Coral flagged up.
She told me not to use any electricity until an electrician had declared it was safe. ’
‘I can sort that out,’ Belinda said, making notes.
‘Everything needs cleaning, the walls, ceiling, even the floor. I know we’ll be putting down a wooden or tiled floor but all this dust will need to be cleared up before we start painting. I’m going to need some access to electricity to vacuum it all up.’
‘We have some power generators that the council use for various building projects and events around the town, but we don’t have many and they are mostly always in use.
I actually just put an order in for a few more as we are always short and the ones we have are not that reliable.
But they won’t arrive for another few weeks.
Let me see if I can get you one, for today at least.’
Immy nodded. ‘That would be great. The walls might need sanding down and in some places, where the damage is particularly bad, it might need replastering too. It’s hard to tell right now because there is so much soot and dirt covering the walls.
Then we’ll need to paint them and we might need several coats, especially in the areas that have been replastered.
Same with the ceiling: cleaning, sanding down, replastering if it needs it, painting.
Then the floor, either wood or tiles so if sweets get squashed into the ground, I can easily wash it away.
I’ll need new light fittings. Some shelves.
The community room will need to be cleaned, the walls, and the floor.
I can handle shopping for new stock, a new coffee machine and till.
’ She chewed her lip. ‘I think that’s it for now. ’
‘See, once you break it down it doesn’t seem so unsurmountable. Cleaning, painting, new floor, lights and shelves. That isn’t that much.’
‘I don’t suppose it is.’ She chewed her lip.
‘Thank you. For everything,’ Immy said. ‘We wouldn’t be anywhere near as far along as we are without you.
I’d still be waiting for a structural engineer to assess the place if I was doing this on my own and if I went through the insurance company, I’d probably be waiting months just for that.
And everything else you’ve done so far, raising that money, rallying the troops, you’ve been wonderful. ’
‘It’s my pleasure, genuinely. I took this job so I could help the people of the town.
Something like this is a challenge I thrive on.
Not that I’m relishing in your grief but I love being able to get on board with a project like this.
Right, I think the first thing we need to do is start cleaning the walls to see what kind of surface we are left with. Leave it with me.’
‘We can do that. Xander’s brothers have been helping and my sister and Quinn are back from their holiday tomorrow.
I know they will help too. We can take care of some of the smaller stuff like cleaning and painting and I’ll leave you to source more appropriate candidates for plastering, electrics and installing the new floor. ’
‘OK, I’ll be in touch.’
‘Let me give you my number so you don’t have to contact me via Xander.’
They exchanged details and with a wave Belinda left.
Immy looked around the shop again. Now there was a plan she was feeling better about it already.