Chapter Ten Evie’s House
Chapter Ten
Evie’s House
Later in the day, after her swim with the Selkies, Evie sat down in her kitchen on the beautiful Orkney chair that Freya had gifted to her, restored and crafted by Ross, and made several attempts to reply to Amelia.
She wished that the woman had given her a phone number. It was always so difficult to get the tone right in an email. It either came across as cold and clinical, or over-friendly. And if you tried to be funny it could fall flat. Eventually she had a version she was reasonably happy with.
Dear Amelia,
Thank you for your email.
It was a surprise to hear from you, but from what you have found out it looks highly likely we could be related.
If you are planning a trip to Orkney then of course I would be more than happy to meet you and help in any way I can. I’m afraid our family is very small. Neither my sister Liv or I have had children.
My father died in 2024 and my mum has dementia. She still has some good days but I’m not sure if she would be able to give you much information.
I do have a lot of uncles and aunts and cousins on Hrossay and I know they would also help with any questions you might have.
Let me know if you are coming.
Evie
She read through her words one more time, then took a deep breath and hit send. Writing the email had stirred up painful memories.
When Evie had travelled back to Orkney two years ago, it was because of Freya’s desperate attempts to let her know her father was dying.
It was only knowing that she needed to say goodbye to him, that she managed to find the courage to travel home.
Her friend Sophia helped her, but Evie had been too late.
Her father died before she landed in Orkney and she never had the chance to tell him she was sorry she left him, and that she loved him. She would never again hear him call her ‘Teenie’, his pet name for her when she was a little girl.
Then there was Liv. She hadn’t seen her older sister in months. Evie and her friends had paid for Liv to go into rehab and helped her find a rented flat in Stromness. As far as she knew, her sister was still clean and holding down a job as a waitress.
Evie had sent her a few texts but heard nothing back and had eventually given up.
Despite this, Evie had decided from the start to give Liv a founding stake in her gallery, but hadn’t worked up the courage to tell her yet.
Liv had been so defensive about the money for her rehab, and Evie wasn’t sure how her sister would react.
But it was important to Evie that there was some fairness between them both.
She had been left the house by her father, and so felt giving Liv a stake in her business redressed that balance, but she’d need to let Liv know soon and have all the paperwork drawn up.
Then there was her mother. The last time Evie went to see Cara in the care home, she hadn’t recognised her at all, and that had hit hard.
Even if Cara had never been the mother Evie and Liv had needed, there was still the heartache of watching the person who raised you slowly disappear.
Evie wasn’t sure what Amelia was expecting, but their family was complicated, and she still wasn’t at all sure how much she wanted to let this stranger into her life, even if they were related. Would it bring back those dark feelings from the past when she’d finally found peace in the present?
Her iPad pinged. Amelia had replied right away.
Evie
You have no idea how much this means to me! I am checking flights now and will let you know when I am due to arrive. I don’t want to bother you too much and I know you are really busy but it would be so helpful if you could give me some tips on somewhere to stay?
It would be wonderful to talk to someone who knew Sheila and might even have met my dad and I would love to talk to you and your sister Liv about your parents, and to meet all the relatives on Hrossey. Let’s keep in touch.
Thank you again. See you soon.
Amelia xx
‘Well,’ thought Evie, her heart racing. ‘There’s no going back now.’
She knew nothing about Amelia and hadn’t wanted to ask her too many questions in her email, so she scrolled through Facebook and Instagram trying to find an Amelia McLean. She didn’t have much to go on. She didn’t even know Amelia’s age or even her address or place of work.
There was a long list, but no sign of anyone who might fit the description.
She was pretty sure that she wasn’t a 29-year-old ski instructor in Utah or a bizarre Kardashian lookalike from Santa Monica.
Evie sighed and got up to make herself a coffee.
She felt like she was being daft, but just couldn’t shake off feelings of dread.