Chapter Two #2
When Hattie, dumbfounded, said nothing in reply, Leonie continued. ‘I’ve got to work abroad for a few months – it’s a temporary thing in Switzerland and they’ve made it very clear they’ll find a way to fire me if I don’t go. You know I can’t lose this job, not with Xander to look after.’
Hattie opened her mouth to respond but her sister still wasn’t finished. ‘You’re his aunt. You have to have him. Please.’
Hattie didn’t quite know where to start. ‘But surely he can’t just attend a college on a temporary basis?’
‘Of course not. If it goes well I’m considering moving out of town. My house would sell for a fortune. I thought he could try it for the second half of the summer term. And if it works out, he can stay on in September.’
‘Won’t it be hard for him, joining halfway through the term?’
‘He’ll be fine! I’m sure.’
Hattie could see that having come up with the idea of sending her son to her sister’s, Leonie wasn’t going to give up on it, no matter what Hattie thought.
‘What about his father? Couldn’t Xander go to college there?’
‘He lives in Scotland, Hattie, as you well know!’
‘But, Lennie, I hardly know Xander.’
‘And whose fault is that? You hardly ever come to Mummy and Daddy’s Sunday lunches!’
This was true: Hattie did avoid the lunches that Leonie drove down from London to attend. They were full of ritual built around overcooked meat and a forensic examination of Hattie’s life and how it could be so much better.
‘You know I often work at weekends.’ This was partly true; she did work on Saturdays sometimes.
‘Well, never mind that now. Is it OK if I bring him next week, on my way to Mum and Dad’s? It’s a trek to go via you but I have to say goodbye to them before I disappear to Switzerland.’
Hattie took a few calming breaths. ‘Xander is the most precious person in the whole world to you. Why would you leave him with a sister who has absolutely no experience with children? And even less with fifteen-year-olds.’
‘I have no choice. I’ll be there tomorrow week around two. And he only eats pasta with ketchup. You have to give him a daily vitamin pill.’ And Leonie hung up.
Hattie looked in the fridge and eyed the bottle of white wine. She drank very little these days (something her parents considered faddish – a bottle of wine between them every night kept them going). But sometimes…
She had reached for the bottle when her phone rang again. It was her best friend, Rose. ‘Are you up for a barbie? Sam’s cooking and we’ve got some lovely steak.’
An evening with Rose and Sam would be relaxing and fun and she needed that after the day she’d had. She heard herself saying, ‘Do you want me to bring anything?’ She would put the forgotten omelette into a stir fry the following day.
She was at her friend’s house forty-five minutes later. It would have been sooner had it not been for yet another telephone call – this time from her mother, who had evidently spoken to Leonie.
Although Rose had said she didn’t need to bring anything, Hattie had cut a bunch of herbs: parsley, thyme, mint and some coriander.
‘Oh, thank you!’ said Rose, burying her face into the bouquet. ‘They smell amazing and Sam will be delighted.’
‘They’re only out of the garden.’
‘But you make them grow,’ said her friend. ‘Wherever you live, there are always amazing herbs. You must be part witch. Now, come round. There’s a sun lounger with your name on it.
‘Wine?’ asked Rose as they walked through the house, a haven of bright colours, mismatched patterns, rugs, cushions and eclectic paintings that always lifted Hattie’s heart. ‘Or some sparkling water I’ve put cucumber and lemon into to make it seem special?’
‘Water, please. That sounds delicious.’
‘Only you could get excited about water,’ said Rose. ‘Now sit down and relax. I’ll bring it out to you.’
Sam was turning steaks on the barbecue but when he saw Hattie he put down his tongs and came over to give her a warm and brotherly hug.
‘How are you, Hats?’ he said.
‘Fine, thanks.’ Hattie smiled fondly at him. He was the only person who called her Hats and she allowed it because he was married to her best friend. And although he was completely unaware, he and Rose represented her most successful match to date.
Rose knew this because she was one of the very few who knew about Hattie’s visions.
Hattie had had to explain in order to get her friend to go to a very random fund-raising event that had nothing to do with either of them.
Rose had been sceptical but went along to please Hattie and so met her future husband. Rose had been convinced ever after.
Rose put a misted glass into Hattie’s hands. ‘Now, tell us why you sounded so stressed.’
‘Did I sound stressed?’ She took a bracing sip of flavoured bubbles. ‘It’s my sister—’
‘What’s she said now?’ asked Rose, who had a glass of red wine by her side.
‘It’s not what she’s said, it’s what she’s done!’
Rose and Sam were aghast at the outrageousness of Hattie’s sister’s request. Sam had handed out crunchy baguettes filled with sliced steak and fried onions before Hattie got to the follow-up phone call from her mother.
‘She said, “Harriet! It’s vital that you do this for your sister. I know you don’t seem to care about it, but family is the most important thing!
Your nephew needs you. You must step up.
” She really said all that. I wouldn’t have minded so much if I hadn’t already told Leonie that I’d do it.
’ She sighed and took a bite of her sandwich.
It was delicious, the steak perfectly cooked, the onions complementing it, and just a smear of homemade salsa.
‘My family prepare long speeches and then insist on delivering them even if they’re not necessary. It’s very annoying.’
‘Are you sure you don’t need a glass of wine? You could stay the night,’ said Rose. ‘I know you have excessively strict rules about drinking and driving.’
Hattie shook her head. ‘I feel better for getting it off my chest. And it’s Xander I feel sorry for. Stuck with an aunt he barely knows in a strange place, going to a new college.’ She paused. ‘Xander has been struggling with school, so this is a new opportunity and I want it to go well for him.’
Rose took a moment before responding. ‘I can see why Leonie might want Xander to give this a go. And also why she has to go to Switzerland to safeguard her job.’ She took a sip of wine.
‘It’s a compliment in a way. Your sister is devoted to her son; she’d never do anything she didn’t think was right for him. ’
Hattie nodded. ‘I hadn’t looked at it quite like that before. It is a compliment.’
Later, in the kitchen, while Hattie and Rose were clearing up, Rose said, ‘So are you going to tell me why you look washed out? It’s not your sister, is it? Have you had a – you know – vision?’
Hattie exhaled and nodded.
Rose looked firm. ‘You have to tell me!’
Hattie was actually quite glad to talk about it. Rose might have some ideas on how the situation could be helped.
‘It was horrible. We were in a really gorgeous house that would have been perfect for them if Lance wasn’t so unbelievably rigid that he can’t ever see beyond the decor. They’d gone upstairs to look at the bedrooms on their own and suddenly I was looking at him in bed with another woman.’
‘Gross!’
‘I know! And his fiancée is so sweet. She’s pretty and cheerful and kind. And this snake has – well, another snake on the side! How am I going to let Fiona know without telling her? I really like her; I can’t let her marry that man.’
‘God no! But what can you do?’ Rose put the kettle on while she spoke. She knew some sort of hot beverage was required.
A few minutes later, Hattie was sipping mint tea made with the mint she’d brought with her.
‘Fiona – that’s the woman – is staying with her parents until the wedding which is only a few weeks away.
I could make an excuse to go and see her.
’ She took another sip. ‘I could offer to take her to another house?’
‘A house just for Fiona? Do you know of anything suitable?’
‘I do. And it would be perfect for Fiona but no good for them as a couple. He wants a sweeping drive, which it hasn’t got. Apart from that, it’s a great house.’
‘So?’
‘I could try and get a good conversation going about Lance being in London a lot and see what I can do. Fiona might realise this isn’t the house for the two of them, and with luck, she might realise that Lance isn’t the man for her, either.’
‘It’s a shame your special powers aren’t more manageable,’ said Rose. ‘Why can’t you find someone lovely for Luke, for example?’
‘I’ve tried! But I never have visions for him and he never likes any of the women I find for him in the normal way. And no, he’s not gay.’
Rose pursed her lips. ‘Do you want more tea? Chocolate?’
Hattie got up. ‘No, thank you. I should be off. I’ve got a busy day tomorrow. But thank you for tonight, I needed it.’