Chapter Fifteen
Saturday afternoon, and back from a shopping trip in Cambridge, Venetia was climbing the stairs to her apartment when she was set upon by the Enforcers.
It was almost as if they had been lying in wait to ambush her and she braced herself ready to take them on if this was about Bon-Bon.
But she needn’t have worried because in breathless tones of scandalised horror, they informed her that that very afternoon Cassie and Ben had been seen having sex in the woods.
‘In daylight!’ Cheryl stressed in case there was any doubt of the depravity of the situation. ‘Actual broad daylight and for anyone to see. I saw them with my own eyes!’
‘Well, I never,’ Venetia said cheerfully. ‘But I can’t say I blame them as it is a beautiful day and in my experience al fresco rumpy-pumpy was always the best fun! And still would be,’ she added with a mischievous wink, ‘if I were given the chance. You should try it. Toodles for now, ladies.’
At the satisfyingly sharp intake of breath, she swept past the two women, all the while hoping Bon-Bon wouldn’t give the game away from inside her tote bag. As always, the zip was undone, and he could have poked his head up at any moment.
Inside her apartment, she lowered her bag to the carpeted floor and Bon-Bon immediately hopped out and gave himself a quick stretch and a shake.
After receiving a kiss on the top of his head from her, he trotted off to his water bowl in the kitchen while Venetia dealt with the carrier bags of shopping, taking them through to her bedroom.
She’d treated herself to a couple of nice things in a super dress shop in town.
Joining Bon-Bon in the kitchen, she thought of Cassie, hoping that whatever had been witnessed in the woods was a step in the right direction.
The dear girl really needed to think more of her future and less of her past. One of the many things Venetia had learnt as a child was that no one should ever let the past define their present or their future.
It had been a favourite mantra of Lady Constance.
‘Girls and boys,’ Lady Constance would say, ‘just because you haven’t experienced what is considered a conventional family life, you mustn’t ever let anyone tell you you’re not special and unique, you most certainly are!
Each one of you has something only you can offer the world. Never forget that.’
Venetia felt that Cassie could do with a Lady Constance in her life and she rather fancied taking on the role herself, so that she could persuade her young friend that hanging on to an event from her past and nurturing it as a grudge would do her no good.
They had enjoyed another two chats in the woods this past week while walking Bon-Bon and it had revealed much to Venetia about Cassie’s insecurities beneath the delightfully bubbly exterior and flashes of humour.
Venetia could see that she put on a good show of bravado, but scratch the surface and the fear that history could repeat itself with Ben was all too apparent.
Later that evening, when Venetia had poured herself a tumbler of whisky and was on the sofa with Bon-Bon, there was a knock at the door.
She put a finger to her lips to make sure the dog didn’t bark, and after putting him in her bedroom, she went to answer the door, peering through the spy hole before opening it.
She was delighted to see that it was Cassie.
‘Are you receiving guests?’
‘Only those who have been caught in an indecent act in the woods,’ Venetia said, stepping aside to let her in.
Cassie rolled her eyes. ‘Oh God, word’s gone round, then?’
‘I’m afraid so. What a wonderfully naughty pair you are! Can I offer you a drink to help with the sparing of your blushes? Not that you have anything to be embarrassed about in my opinion.’
‘A drink would be great,’ said Cassie, ‘I’m not disturbing you, am I?’
‘Absolutely not. I’m having whisky but if you want wine, there’s a bottle of white in the fridge. Help yourself while I let Bon-Bon out of my bedroom. Glasses are in the cupboard to the left of the window.’
Once they were settled on the sofa, one at each end and with Bon-Bon on Cassie’s lap, Venetia said, ‘Am I to understand, based on your woodland shenanigans, that you’ve cleared things up with Ben?’
Cassie smiled coyly. ‘You could say that.’
‘And?’
‘Apparently he really had been planning something for my fortieth birthday.’
‘Oh, you silly girl, all that worry for nothing!’
‘No need to rub it in, I feel stupid enough as it is.’
‘And just to be sure, you believe Ben?’ Venetia asked. ‘You trust him?’ She put a heavy emphasis on the word trust.
‘I’ll be honest,’ Cassie said after taking a sip of her wine, ‘there was a moment when I struggled to believe him.’
‘Was that because you still wanted to hang on to the comforting sense of righteous hurt?’
Cassie’s eyes widened. ‘Wow, you make me sound like a total grudge-bearing psycho!’
‘That’s not my intention, but we can all fall into the trap of victimhood, it’s a defence mechanism, it gives us an extra layer of protection. It also gives us the moral high ground, which invariably is as stable as shifting sands.’
With a faint smile, Cassie said, ‘I’m beginning to regret knocking on your door. I only came to say thank you for listening to me.’
‘I’m sure any of your friends and family would have done the same. Although I do appreciate that sometimes it’s harder to talk to family or close friends because they’re not objective enough. Too often they tell us what they think we want to hear.’
‘I guarantee they would have said I was crazy to imagine Ben having an affair, that I was being paranoid.’ Her hand stroking Bon-Bon as the dog looked up at her with his soppily adoring eyes, Cassie went on to say, ‘I know I have trust issues, but if I could be so easily triggered, who’s to say it won’t keep on happening? ’
‘I think you’re looking at this the wrong way. From all that you’ve told me about your ex-husband, he was the real trigger. You had him neatly consigned to the past, and then he resurfaced.’
‘Yes,’ agreed Cassie, ‘he barged his way back into my life by convincing Emily that he was a changed man and wanted to be a part of her life.’
‘You didn’t believe that he was?’
‘No. Even if I did, it doesn’t change the past, does it?’
‘But it changes the future. Especially for your daughter.’
‘I get that, I really do, but I’m worried that he’ll hurt Emily, just as he hurt me. In fact, it’s happening right now because he’s already hurting her by bloody well dying!’
‘I hate to play devil’s advocate, but I doubt he deliberately involved himself in a potentially fatal accident just to get one over you.’
‘Yeah, that’s the logical approach, but inside I’m screaming that he should have been more careful, and I’m all too aware that makes me sound like a heartless bitch.
’ She took a gulp of her wine. ‘For years I fantasised about him dying and then dancing on his grave, but now I desperately want him to live for Emily’s sake. ’
‘That, if I may say, is not the wish of a heartless bitch.’
‘It’s a selfish wish.’
Venetia smiled. ‘Most wishes are.’
At the thoughtful expression on Cassie’s face, Venetia said, ‘I think that’s quite enough serious talk, let’s get down to your scandalous behaviour in the woods.’
‘Let’s not!’ said Cassie with a laugh.
‘Spoilsport. But I hope you put on a decent show for the Sisters Grim.’
Cassie laughed at Venetia’s moniker for Cheryl and Joanna. ‘Cheryl was on her own, thank goodness, although it doesn’t sound like she wasted any time in rushing to share what she’d seen.’
‘Did she say anything directly to you at the time?’
‘There was an initial expression of disgust but then she disappeared, leaving us collapsed on the ground in near hysterics. I might add that we’ve never done anything like that before, we’re not a pair of kinky exhibitionists who regularly get up to this kind of thing, it was a totally spur-of-the-moment thing, and at Ben’s suggestion. ’
‘The million-dollar question is, was it a good suggestion?’
‘Let’s just say, it was a bonding moment.’
‘Wonderful!’ declared Venetia.
‘But as wonderful as it was,’ Cassie said, ‘Cheryl and Joanna are no doubt going to share our escapade with anyone who will listen. They’re such a pair of mean girls!’
‘Then you’re going to have to hold your head up high and brazen it out.
Rest assured though, spreading tittle-tattle doesn’t show Cheryl and Joanna in a good light.
And I guarantee their husbands will be as jealous as hell!
Who knows, you might have set a trend and there’ll be no end of woodland romps going on.
Which will be a nuisance for me,’ she added with a smile, ‘when I need to take Bon-Bon for his walks.’
Cassie stroked the dog’s head, paying extra attention to his ears, which he always loved. ‘Do you really think you can keep up the secret of having him here with you?’ she asked.
‘Time will tell. But I’m a risk-taker at heart and pretty good at keeping secrets.’
‘Well, as I told you before, your secret is safe with me, and with Ben too. I told him earlier about Bon-Bon and he was very amused. We’ll both back you if anyone starts making trouble for you and we’ll approach the management company to have the rule changed if needs be.
I’m sure others will feel the same way. Ronnie Sharp will definitely be an ally. ’
‘I certainly don’t want to be the cause of any friction or division. Besides, as much as I appreciate your support, I’m used to fighting my own battles.’
‘Such as?’
‘Oh, numerous battles,’ she said with a careless shrug. ‘Everyone has them; it’s life.’
‘But given the start you had in life, in a children’s home, that must have meant you had more than your fair share of battles to overcome in the early days.’
‘A few, but we were taught to regard them as challenges.’
‘Are you still in contact with anyone from those days?’
Venetia shook her head. ‘No.’
‘So no reunions?’
‘Goodness me no.’
‘Have you never wanted to arrange one?’
‘People change and some might not want to be reminded of those old days.’
‘You seem to look back on that time with fondness, it’s why you’re here, surely? Why shouldn’t they feel the same way?’
‘Because not everyone is the same.’
‘Did you have a best friend here, someone with whom you could confide and share all your secrets and do silly things together?’
Venetia smiled. ‘I did.’
‘What was her name?’
‘Actually, my best friend was a boy, and his name was Lucien.’