Chapter 38
Bridie arrived back at Cobblers Yard with bags of shopping and Barney.
She’d nearly left him at the theatre again.
She’d parked in the town, left him sleeping in his crate in the car while she shopped in the Co-op, and then decided to leave her shopping in the car and take Barney for a walk before going home.
They’d walked through the town, which took a lot longer than it should have.
Barney got lots of attention from passersby pausing to say hello.
They’d then taken the path by the side of the allotments which continued to the children’s playpark and the playing field.
The path ended ahead at a car park, with a small pub and a short driveway that led to the main road out of Aldeburgh.
Bridie could have taken the car and parked there, but it wasn’t far to walk.
Behind the allotments and the playing field were views of the Suffolk Wildlife Trust Hazlewood Marshes reserve.
When Barney was older, and she could take him for longer walks, she’d take him for a walk along Sailors’ Path across the gorse-laden heath into the reserve where there was a causeway; the walk had stunning views out across the marshes and the river Alde.
She was looking forward to revisiting that favourite walk, but today she’d let Barney off his lead and they’d played a game of fetch.
Barney had kept forgetting about the ball, too interested in exploring his new surroundings.
It was the first time she’d taken him there.
Fortunately, there were no children in the play park, otherwise Barney would have been wanting to explore it and making new friends.
Today the play park, the playing field and the car park were empty.
It was a typical January afternoon, cold with drizzle, and soon it would be getting dark.
Bridie had timed her walk so she would return to Cobblers Yard at closing time.
On the return walk along the path beside the allotments on her right, she’d been unable to help eyeing the stunning properties on the left, the extensive gardens backing on to the path, overlooking the allotments, with amazing views of the river and marshes beyond.
It was little wonder, with those views, that they were expensive properties. They were all detached and very large. Some were new and others were from the thirties, forties and fifties. But even the older properties had been beautifully renovated and extended.
Bridie had wondered, as she walked along that path, whether Jack had renovated some of the older properties and built some of the new ones there.
Perhaps he even lived in one. Just for a moment, Bridie had imagined what her life would have been like now if she hadn’t left for London at eighteen to follow her dreams, but had stayed in Suffolk with Jack.
Would she be living in a house like that?
She had quickly dismissed that thought. If she hadn’t gone to London to live with her grandad and work in theatre, her dream would have gone unfulfilled and all the money in the world would not have made her happy.
And then she wouldn’t have made Jack happy; she would always have been pining for something that would never be.
On that walk, Bridie had realised something; even if she never worked on the London stage again, at least she had fulfilled her dream.
When she’d thought about what she’d said to her mum about running a business – the theatre – it occurred to her that she couldn’t work on the stage forever, even if she did get another job working in London.
She was still young yet, but what would happen when she was older?
It was something she had been refusing to face.
Even her grandad had asked what she’d do in the future.
Bridie had walked back along the path, staring at the beautiful homes and enjoying the views of the marshes beyond the allotments. What if her future was there, in Aldeburgh? What if she’d found her back-up plan – reopening the theatre?
She’d looked at Barney walking happily by her side and only pulling on the lead when he spotted other people out walking too. When they’d had the path to themselves, she’d shared her idea with Barney, about staying there and running the theatre, if it was financially viable. ‘What do you think?’
Barney had woofed at her.
‘I think it’s a good plan too. There are just one or two problems. Where will I live?
I can’t live in the flat over the shop forever.
’ She had a dilemma. If she sold the theatre, she could buy a home, but then she wouldn’t have a business or an income.
If she didn’t sell the theatre, she’d be assuming the theatre was going to make money.
She realised her future was one big unknown and sighed.
When she arrived back at Cobblers Yard after the walk, she got the shopping bags out of the car, getting Barney’s lead tangled with them. Barney wasn’t helping, poking his nose into them to sniff their contents.
‘Barney – no!’
Somehow, she managed to carry the bags and keep hold of the lead as Barney tried to run ahead into the yard.
Hannah had obviously seen her enter the yard.
It was nearly closing time. She was already opening the shop door as Bridie approached.
She took one of the shopping bags before Bridie stepped inside.
Hannah said, ‘Let me go and get Barney’s crate from your car after I’ve given you a hand with your shopping bags. Then I’ll head off. Oh, by the way, you’ve got a visitor.’
Bridie smiled, imagining it was Jack. She was anticipating that her business partner might call round to go over some more details of the works that would start on Monday.
Or perhaps it was something else. He had caught her hand as they were about to leave the theatre, the look on his face suggesting there was something he wanted to say before they’d been interrupted by the surprise arrival of her mum.
‘Is he upstairs?’ Bridie asked, wondering if Hannah had shown him up to her flat.
If that were the case, she wished Hannah hadn’t.
Imagining where Jack lived – she was thinking of those properties she’d passed overlooking the allotments and the salt marshes beyond – she suddenly felt embarrassed about living in a grace-and-favour flat above a shop.
Hannah stopped her in the doorway before Bridie walked in. ‘I don’t know who you were expecting, but it’s not a he,’ she whispered. ‘It’s your sister.’
Bridie looked at Hannah in surprise as she stepped inside.
‘We’ve already had a chat,’ Hannah whispered. ‘I expect she’ll fill you in. Now, do you need a hand with your shopping bags upstairs?’
‘No, I’ll be fine.’
Bridie stopped and looked at her sister, wondering what she was doing there. Hannah returned from the car, carrying Barney’s crate into the shop. She put it down, and said, ‘I’ve put the Closed sign in the window.’
‘But it’s not closing time yet,’ said Bridie.
‘It’s fine. I don’t think we’re going to get any customers in the next hour, to be honest – not with this weather.’
Hannah looked at Kate. ‘I’ll just help Bridie up with this dog crate, then I’ll go.’
Kate nodded.
On the way up the stairs, Hannah carrying the crate, and Bridie her shopping bags, Bridie whispered, ‘You didn’t mention the theatre, did you?’
‘No, of course not. You asked us to keep a secret, and we will.’
‘Oh, thank god. When you said you’d spoken to her, I thought it was about the theatre.’ Bridie had been worried that her mum had told Kate. The last thing she needed was Kate getting on her high horse and telling her what a bad idea it was to do up the theatre and stage a play.
‘No, not at all – it was about a job.’
‘A job?’
‘As I said, she’ll fill you in. Now, have a good weekend. And by the way,’ she lowered her voice, ‘we all want to know when we can come back and help out at the theatre.’
‘Ah, yes. I’ve got some news.’ Bridie had told her about Jack investing in the theatre.
That was the good news. The bad news, which she wasn’t looking forward to sharing, was that they wouldn’t be helping out anymore.
It’s not what she wanted, but Jack was right; it was time to call in the professionals.
They were on their way back down the stairs to the shop. Bridie paused at the bottom of the stairs. She wasn’t looking forward to telling Hannah the bad news.
‘It’s all right,’ Hannah whispered, ‘I get that you can’t talk now. Tell me on Monday.’
Bridie followed her across the shop floor to the door and gave her a hug goodbye. She closed the door and turned around. Kate was perusing the shelves.
‘What are you doing here?’ she asked. Hannah had mentioned something about a job, but she knew that wasn’t it.
She expected that Hannah, knowing it was her sister, had mentioned a job in the shop next door.
She just hoped that Kate hadn’t been rude and told her what she could do with her lowly shop work.
‘Kate?’
‘You told them, didn’t you? Mum and Dad. About my job.’
Bridie sighed heavily. So, that was it. If Bridie was that sort of person, she would have said, serves you right for showing Mum and Dad that social media post about me.
But she wasn’t that sort of person. She didn’t gloat.
And besides, she’d had no idea that their parents didn’t know.
Bridie looked at Kate. All she wanted was for her to leave as soon as possible.
She had shopping to unpack and a puppy to feed.
She raised her eyes to the ceiling when she heard Barney crying.
She thought that if she quickly explained that she’d had no idea their mum hadn’t known Kate had lost her job, then her sister would leave.
‘Look, I bumped into Mum outside the—’ Bridie caught herself before she said something she’d regret.
‘Um … on the promenade, and we got chatting, and I just mentioned it in conversation.’
Kate flopped down on the sofa, not looking as though she was leaving any time soon. ‘Fair enough.’