Chapter 4
When Kazz opened her eyes on Friday morning, two thoughts leapt into her head. The first was that she had just spent her last night in her grandparents’ old house. The second was that her mother was flying to Spain today to start a new life, and she didn’t know when she would see her again.
With a heavy heart, she hauled herself out of bed and got dressed. She had promised Mum a champagne breakfast, and that’s what she would give her.
Kazz could hear her mum pottering around in the bedroom as she trotted downstairs, and her chin began to wobble. In a little over an hour her mother would be getting in a taxi and leaving for good, and although Kazz was thrilled for her, she was sad for herself.
Determined not to let her mum see how upset she was, she dug deep and slapped a bright smile on her face as she prepared eggs Benedict on brioche with smoked salmon.
She made enough for two, even though she didn’t have an appetite, knowing that her mother would refuse to eat on her own. And although Kazz was tempted to drink most of the bottle of champagne by herself, she wouldn’t, because Mum was under the impression that Kazz had to work today. Kazz didn’t feel comfortable with hiding her job situation from her mother, but she didn’t want anything to spoil the day. If her mum knew that the restaurant was closed for the foreseeable future, she mightn’t get on the plane. And if she realised her daughter wouldn’t have a home in eight weeks, she definitely wouldn’t.
Kazz knew how much this meant to her, so she would keep schtum, and she would keep on being quiet about it until she was able to give her mum some good news.
‘Don’t you look lovely!’ she exclaimed when Diana walked into the kitchen.
Her mother wore a pair of tailored trousers, a pretty long-sleeved top in the most gorgeous shade of turquoise and a linen jacket.
‘I thought I’d better make an effort.’ Diana glanced down at herself anxiously. ‘I hope I’m not going to be too cold. Vince says that the past few days have been cooler in Valencia than average for the time of year.’ She pursed her lips. ‘Never mind; I’ll be wearing my nice winter coat to the airport, so I can always pop it on when I get to the other end if I’m chilly.’
‘You’ll be fine,’ Kazz assured her. ‘Sit down and I’ll dish up.’ She waved the bottle of champagne and grinned. ‘Fancy a cheeky one?’
‘Ooh, I don’t mind if I do. Only one, though, I don’t want to be nodding off in departures.’
Kazz poured her a glass and handed it to her.
Diana took a sip. ‘Lovely! Aren’t you having any?’
‘Better not.’
‘Ah, of course. Freddie wouldn’t appreciate you rocking up for work smelling of alcohol.’ Her mother’s gaze narrowed. ‘You will be all right on your own, won’t you?’
Kazz put a plate in front of her. ‘Mum, I’m a grown woman – of course I’ll be all right. I can stand on my own two feet, you know. I’ve been doing it for years.’
‘I know you have, but you’ll always be my little girl.’
Kazz’s smile was watery. ‘Stop it, you’ll make me cry.’
‘I already am,’ Diana said, dabbing at her eyes.
Kazz gave her a one-armed cuddle, and then sat down. ‘Eat up before it gets cold.’
She forced her breakfast down, despite feeling as though she was eating lumps of cardboard, and when they were finished, she gathered up the dirty dishes.
‘You may as well throw that old frying pan away,’ her mum said. ‘It’s not fit for the charity shop and I doubt the house clearance company will take it.’
Since Tuesday, her mother had made great inroads into ridding the house of the more portable items, and all Grandad’s clothes were gone, as well as all those items of clothing that Diana wasn’t taking with her to Spain. There were very few ornaments left, hardly any pictures, and most of the smaller contents of the kitchen were now displayed in the three charity shops which were within walking distance.
All that was left was the furniture and the white goods. And the books. The hundreds and hundreds of books.
‘What do you want me to do with the books, Mum?’
Her mum shrugged. ‘I suppose you’d better see if the clearance company will take them off your hands. I did think about giving them to the charity shop, but who wants books like these? People want popular thrillers and swoony romances, not those old things.’
Kazz had been thinking along the same lines. No one wanted dusty old doorstops (although, to be fair, there were also plenty of smaller books) and she had been scouring her brain for ways to get rid of them, even going as far as wondering whether she could donate them to the local library.
Praying that the house clearance company wanted them – because if they didn’t, she might have to hire a skip – Kazz set about washing the breakfast things while her mum had a quick wee and made a final check around the house.
‘There,’ Diana announced, after Kazz had helped her haul her cases downstairs (she had four of them!). ‘I’m all set. The taxi will be here in a minute. Oh, I wish you were coming to Spain with me!’
‘No, you don’t. I’d be a spare wheel with you two all loved up.’
‘You’ll come and visit us, won’t you?’
‘Try and stop me! I’m not giving up the chance of a free holiday in the sun.’ Kazz swallowed, the small amount that she had eaten sitting heavily in her stomach. ‘Are you sure you don’t want me to come to the airport with you?’
‘I’m sure. I don’t want to make you late for work. Aw, come here.’
Diana opened her arms wide and Kazz stepped into them, revelling in the last cuddle her mother would give her for a while.
‘I’m going to miss you, my gorgeous girl.’
‘Not as much as I’m going to miss you ,’ Kazz replied. ‘You’ll be having far too much fun.’ She clung to her mother tightly.
They were still hugging when the taxi driver rang the doorbell, and it was only his third demanding ring that forced them apart.
‘Love you, Karen,’ her mum said. ‘Take care of yourself, and if you need me, phone me. I’m only a couple of hours away.’
‘Love you too, Mum.’
Kazz didn’t stop waving until the taxi turned the corner and her mother was out of sight. Then she trudged sadly back inside, and wondered what on earth she was supposed to do now.
Kazz hadn’t mentioned anything to her mum about having arranged for a clearance company to come and give her a quote this morning, so after she’d waved her mum off, she didn’t go back to the flat. Instead, she wandered around the house, killing time until the chap or chaps arrived.
Many of her childhood memories were housed inside these walls. Apart from Mum, Kazz didn’t have much in the way of family, her father not having wanted anything to do with her when she was born. Grandad had stepped into the breach, his solid no-nonsense presence providing her with a masculine balance to her mum and nan, and the rest of the women in her young life. Stevie’s Aunt Peggy had been one of them, and Kazz had spent nearly as much time with Stevie’s aunt as Stevie had.
Thinking of Aunt Peg led to thoughts of the tea shop, which reminded Kazz that Stevie had suggested she pay her a visit. She decided she would take her up on the offer, if Stevie was still happy to have her. A few days away might do her good. Besides, she hadn’t told Stevie about her misfortunes yet – she had been so focused on the news that her mum was moving abroad, she no longer had a job and, to cap it all, she was being evicted, that all she’d wanted to do was crawl into a cave and hide. It was said that things came in threes, and Kazz fervently prayed that she’d had her three pieces of bad luck for the time being.
Getting another job was her priority, because without one she wouldn’t be able to find anywhere to live. She would get this house clearance business out of the way, pay a flying visit to Stevie for a shoulder to cry on, and then she would start job hunting in earnest.
Her wandering took her into the living room, with her grandad’s faded, careworn wingback chair and overbearing mahogany sideboard. It was a massive old thing, and Kazz wondered how anyone would get it out of the house. Or how they had got it into the room in the first place. She hoped it wouldn’t have to be dismantled. It would be such a shame. The sideboard mightn’t be fashionable, but it was a solid piece of furniture and hopefully someone would be able to make use of it.
Her attention was drawn to the bookcases on the opposite wall, and she strolled across the room for a closer look at their contents, smiling at the memory of Grandad standing behind the counter of his old shop, weak sunlight filtering through the slightly grubby windows to illuminate whatever book he happened to be enthralled in at the time. Nan used to reckon he only owned a bookshop as an excuse to read. People used to bring him old books all the time, asking whether he would like to buy them, which he sometimes did, depending on the book.
Kazz laughed aloud (a small sad laugh, but a laugh nonetheless) as she remembered how, when she was young, she thought he must have read every book in the overcrowded stuffed-full shop.
Only with the benefit of age and hindsight did she understand that he had been running a business. The books he’d bought had been ones he had thought would sell. And he must have done all right because there had always been plenty of food on the table and treats in the cupboard.
It hadn’t done well enough to enable her grandparents to buy a house of their own, though. They’d rented this one all their married lives, which was remarkable when she came to think of it. No one stayed in one place for long these days. Look at her!
A loud ding-dong startled her, and Kazz hurried to answer the door, her heart thudding.
A man wearing a porkpie hat, spectacles and a tweed jacket with a set of overalls underneath was standing on the path, and she caught him eyeing the outside of the property.
‘Them’s the original windows,’ he stated, not looking at her.
‘Right, er, do you want to come in?’
‘I suppose I better had, if you want me to give you a price.’ He looked closely at her. ‘Is this your house?’
‘No, it’s my mother’s, but she has given me full authority to act on her behalf. She’s just moved to Spain. This morning, actually.’ A lump formed in Kazz’s throat and she coughed to clear it.
‘You’ll have to sign a disclaimer,’ the man said, following her into the hall. ‘The name’s Gold, Arnie Gold, licenced to clear.’ He chuckled at his own wit.
Kazz didn’t think the James Bond analogy worked, but she smiled politely and said, ‘Kazz Fernsby.’ Not licenced to do anything at the moment , she added silently.
‘Point me at what needs to go,’ he instructed.
‘Everything, I think.’
‘Aren’t you sure?’ He frowned at her.
‘No, I’m sure. Everything.’
‘I’ll start in here, shall I?’ He pointed to the first door in the hall. It led to the living room, and without waiting for a reply, he went inside.
Kazz followed anxiously, trying to read his body language as he went from room to room, but he was giving nothing away.
After peering into the third bedroom, which was full to the brim with boxes of books, he turned to her. ‘So, that’s two reception rooms, one kitchen and three bedrooms to be cleared. Any sheds or garages?’
‘No, but there’s an attic and a cellar,’ she told him, pointing to the ceiling hatch above his head.
She dropped the ladder and waited at the bottom as he clambered up. While she waited, she took out her phone and pinged off a quick message to Stevie. How soon can I come visit?
It didn’t take long for her friend to reply.
As soon as you like!
Before Kazz had time to change her mind, she looked up the train times from London Paddington to Tanglewood’s nearest station and booked a ticket. It was eye-wateringly expensive, considering she didn’t know where her next pay packet was coming from, but she didn’t care. She desperately needed someone to talk to.
Arnie Gold reversed down the ladder, and when he got to the bottom, his expression was blank, but Kazz was convinced she could see mild panic in his eyes. She didn’t blame him – she would be panicking too, if she had to shift all those books.
Without saying anything, he stepped around her and went downstairs, heading for the kitchen. The cellar door was next to the pantry, and when he reached it, all he said was, ‘The cellar’s down there, yeah?’
‘That’s right.’
She flicked the light switch and watched him descend into the depths. It felt like he’d been down there an age, but it probably wasn’t much more than a couple of minutes.
When he emerged, his face was grim. ‘Likes reading, does she?’
‘The books aren’t hers. Well, I mean, they are, of course, but they originally belonged to my grandad. He had a bookshop and—’
‘Can’t take ’em,’ Mr Gold cut in. ‘Not sure if I can take any of it, to be honest. There’s not much call for this kind of furniture. Too big and dark, see. And it usually stinks of mothballs and is full of woodworm.’
Kazz’s mouth dropped open. He wasn’t going to take anything ? How else was she supposed to get rid of it?
Her face must have said what her mouth was having trouble spitting out, because he held up a hand. ‘Now, I’m not saying I won’t take it, but to be honest, I should be charging you for getting rid of it. And I definitely can’t shift any of those books. Got no call for ’em, see; no one I can sell them on to.’
‘How much will you give me for the rest of it?’ she asked.
And when he named a figure, she didn’t know whether to laugh or be insulted. Poor Nan and Grandad would be turning in their graves if they knew how little their worldly possessions were worth.
‘Tell you what,’ he said, ‘think about it, yeah? You’ve got my number. If you decide to go ahead with the clearance, I can do it the tail end of next week, or the week after.’
Kazz shook the hand he offered her, then saw him to the door.
As soon as he had gone, she didn’t linger. She grabbed her bag, coat and scarf, and quickly locked up. She had some packing of her own to do.