Chapter 34
After Tess had closed the door on her friends at the end of the evening as they went on their way home, she couldn’t remove the smile that had planted itself on to her lips.
As she picked up the dirty crockery and placed it in the dishwasher, her mind played over every moment of the evening – their conversations, the food and wine which had gone down a treat and, most of all, the laughter.
They hadn’t stopped laughing the entire evening and Tess was left feeling energised and positive about the future.
She was especially pleased that Gina and Suzy had included Dilly as one of the group and Gina had even suggested that Dilly came along with them when they next went on one of their away trips.
Tess ran a cloth over the surfaces, made herself a decaffeinated coffee, and went and sat in the orangery, curling her legs up beneath her.
There was no point in retiring to bed just yet as her mind was still buzzing from the stimulation of the evening.
She checked her messages; there were a couple of texts from friends in the village, but still nothing from Hannah, a reminder that took down her mood several notches.
She couldn’t understand it. Despite her friends telling her not to worry, there was a deep sense of unease in the pit of her stomach.
She closed her eyes, resting her head back on a cushion, bringing Hannah to mind, wondering what on earth could be going on in her world that she hadn’t contacted her mum in almost a week now.
She knew that Charles and Sophie had been trying to contact her too, but there was a deadening silence on all fronts.
Perhaps she would call Charles in the morning and tell him how worried she was.
It would be better to do something rather than nothing at all and despite her antipathy towards her husband, they were both on the same side when it came to their daughter.
She brought her attention back to the room, where Barney had got up from his resting place on the floor and wandered across to the doors.
‘Do you want to go out, sweetie?’
She opened the doors for the dog and followed him outside, breathing in the cool night air. Immediately, he went across to the annexe, sniffing at the door, emitting a small whine to be let inside.
‘Sorry, Barney, he’s not here any more,’ she told him.
The solar lights dotted along the winding pathways threw soft shadows over the garden and Tess was reassured by the comforting silence, punctuated only by a medley of insect sounds from the shrubs and bushes.
Her gaze drifted upwards into the night sky, picking out the twinkling stars, imagining that those same stars had been sparkling over Hannah, in her part of the world, offering her some kind of protection.
After Barney had had a good old mooch about, they headed back inside.
Tess went around all the doors, checking they were locked.
She poured herself a glass of water and was just padding up the stairs when she heard something outside.
The approaching of a car on the gravel driveway, the automatic lights turning on.
She glanced at her watch, wondering who it could be.
It was way past midnight. Perhaps it was Gina or Suzy realising they’d forgotten something vital like their phone or keys, but then she hadn’t spotted anything when she’d been tidying up.
Or maybe it was someone who had taken a wrong turn up the lane and was using the driveway as a turning circle.
It wouldn’t be the first time. Tess stood stock-still on the stairs, waiting for the car to drive off in the direction it came, but when she heard the slamming of the car door and footsteps across the gravel, she braced herself for the inevitable knocking on the front door.
When it came, it struck a chord of fear in her chest. A visitor at this time of night could only mean one thing – bad news.
Barney’s barking, alerting her to the visitor, meant she had no other option but to head for the door, and with her heart beating loudly in chest, she prised the door open halfway, peering outside, not knowing what might be waiting for her on the other side.
‘Oh my goodness!’ Tess actually screamed and in the immediate moments after, she hoped she hadn’t woken Dilly next door, or the rest of the village come to that. ‘Hannah!’ she cried in an expression of relief and happiness. ‘What are you doing here?’
* * *
After a flurry of hugs, Tess helped Hannah to bring her bags inside, thanking the driver for his trouble.
Her heart was still beating frantically but now it was filled with excitement and anticipation, her mind racing in circles, trying to find a reason why Hannah was home.
It was about four weeks before her planned arrival.
‘Oh Mum, I can’t tell you how pleased I am to be home. And Barney, my best boy.’ She dropped to the floor, throwing her arms around his neck, burying her face in his fur.
‘Oh my goodness. Me too! We’ve been so worried about you.’
Even in the half-light, standing on the threshold to Hollyhocks Cottage, Tess had sensed that there was something wrong.
She might have expected Hannah to look brimming with health, happy with a light in her blue eyes, desperate to tell her mum every step of her adventure.
Instead, there was no sign of any excitement, only a sadness that exuded from every pore in her body.
Hannah was covered in baggy joggers and a sweat top, her hair scraped back behind her head, her eyes rimmed with red from where she’d obviously been crying.
Still, Tess knew that now wasn’t the time for a dozen questions.
She could tell that Hannah was shattered and emotionally wrung-out but now that she was safe and home, there would be plenty of time to uncover what might have gone so terribly wrong in Australia.
‘Oh my God, it’s looks so different in here, Mum.’ Hannah wandered into the kitchen, her gaze travelling around here. ‘It’s so bright and welcoming, and thank God you’ve got rid of all those old maps. I hated those!’
‘Me too! They went in the tip!’ Tess chuckled. ‘You should see your dad’s old office. It’s beautiful. I’ll show you in the morning. What would you like, darling? You must be exhausted after that long flight. We’ve got most things.’
‘I’ve been dying for a proper cup of tea and a bacon sandwich if there’s one going?
’ Tess was relieved to see that the tears had dried up for a moment and heard a note of the old Hannah in her voice.
Tess felt certain whatever it was that was going on in her daughter’s life, it wasn’t anything that couldn’t be made better with a cup of tea and a bacon sarnie.
‘Of course. I will have to text your dad and Sophie to let them know that you’re home. I didn’t have Billy’s number, and I didn’t know his surname, so there was no way of me contacting him.’
‘Huh, well he wouldn’t have been any use.
We’ve split up, anyway,’ she said, crossly, which came as no surprise to Tess.
It was just as she suspected, a holiday romance that had gone wrong.
Heartbreaking, but Hannah would get over it, even if she didn’t think so now.
Hannah went on. ‘Look, I’m sorry I didn’t call, but I was travelling and to be honest, I didn’t know what to say.
Is there any way we can hold off telling everyone that I’m back?
Just for a while. I’m not sure I can face anyone just yet.
’ She looked across at her mum with imploring eyes.
‘Yes, of course, if that’s what you want. What I’ll do is text them in the morning and tell them that I’ve heard from you and that you’re perfectly well. Just to stop them from worrying. How does that sound?’
‘Perfect, thanks, Mum. I do love you, you know,’ she said, before slumping down in a seat at the kitchen island.
‘That’s good because I love you too.’
And then a little later, once Hannah had finished her midnight feast: ‘Come on, let’s get to bed. I’m sure everything will look so much better in the morning.’