Chapter 28 #2
Looking further around the deck, there was no sign of Gerald, but Anouska, she noticed, was posing on a lounger in a far corner. She held her phone and was busy taking photos.
Influencers never stop influencing . . . Hattie thought.
With no sign of Gerald, she was relieved that Anouska was a safe distance from him and less likely to stir up trouble.
It was a comforting thought, but wrong.
Gerald was in the lounge, sitting by a window, and his face lit up when he saw Hattie.
‘Hello,’ he said, ‘come and join me. I can see that you’ve caught the sun. Your freckles are very pretty.’
Hattie smiled. Only Gerald could overlook her bright red nose and still find something lovely to say. ‘How are you?’ she asked.
Gerald smiled. ‘Still alive and counting down the hours until an Anouska-free life. And I’ve begun drafting The Middle-Aged Man’s Survival Guide. It’s a manual for how to spot a gold-digger when you’re getting older, foolishly vulnerable and prone to impulsive mistakes.’
Behind Gerald’s joke, Hattie noticed his anxiety and wished she could comfort him. ‘Things happen,’ she said. ‘Don’t be hard on yourself.’
‘I had a text from my daughter.’ Gerald reached for his phone. ‘Judith received a message from Anouska, and I thought you might like to see it . . .’
Hattie took Gerald’s phone and began to read Anouska’s words.
This is a photo of the woman your father has taken up with on the cruise.
I don’t know what he’s told you, but he’s treating me appallingly.
I’m in pieces and can’t stop crying. I’m devastated that he can be so cruel.
I’m begging you to speak to him to help him come to his senses.
But if he truly intends to end things with me so abruptly, please make sure that he does the decent thing.
I have given him so much and cannot be cast aside with a pittance.
The message was attached to an unflattering photo of Hattie, asleep on a sunbed, in her pink tankini, her nose slathered in factor-fifty cream.
‘Oh my word . . .’ Hattie gasped, horrified. ‘Poor Judith, whatever must she think?’
‘Perhaps it would help if you read her reply.’ Gerald scrolled to the next message.
Hello Dad! Well, that’s a corker from Anouska!
I can’t tell you what a relief it was to receive it!
Who is this lovely lady? Anyone who wears pearls and pink has my vote!
I am over the moon that you’ve come to your senses and called it a day on your marriage.
Please don’t give in to Anouska bullying you for money.
You deserve the freedom to enjoy what you’ve worked so hard for, and Mum would be proud of your decision.
Spend every penny you’ve got and enjoy it!
Hattie raised an eyebrow. ‘There doesn’t seem to be any love lost for Anouska with Judith?’
‘None.’ Gerald nodded. ‘Judith can’t stand Anouska. I think she’s always hoped that the marriage wouldn’t last.’
Sue began gathering the guests, and Gerald and Hattie followed the group towards a doorway at the side of the stage. Beyond it, a small stairway led down to the boat’s bridge, where they were instructed to squeeze into the narrow space.
At the centre, enthroned in a wide, high-backed chair, sat the captain. Wearing a long, flowing galabeya, he gripped the wooden wheel and stared fixedly ahead at the dark ribbon of river.
Neat in his Horus Line uniform, the first mate stood at the captain’s shoulder and informed them that the Egyptian captain didn’t speak any English, but would be happy to answer questions, which he would translate.
Questions ricocheted from all directions on the cramped bridge, and soon everyone learned that the captain had been working the Nile for thirty-five years and didn’t use any navigation aids.
The river, he said, ran in his blood, and a sixth sense, honed by decades on the water, would guide them through.
Hattie felt a flicker of amusement as she studied the captain’s chair, which looked as though it had been cobbled together in someone’s shed.
It reminded her of her old aunt’s brocade sofa, which had dominated the cottage until Hattie consigned it to a skip.
Here too, the fabric was tattered, foam rubber poked out of the seams, and everything was held together with lengths of gaffer tape.
In one corner of the bridge, a single mattress lay on a metal bed frame, beneath a shelf lined with the captain’s family photographs.
Hattie considered that the captain must like things this way, for there were no modern amenities and little navigation equipment, yet when he turned to smile for photographs, one couldn’t mistake the depth of knowledge in his dark and steady eyes, and Hattie had no doubts that this weathered man would carry them safely along the Nile.
After the tour, back in the lounge, Sue told them that they would soon be approaching the Esna Lock, where they would join a queue of boats to pass through. The best vantage point for this feat of engineering, she added, was on the top deck.
Gerald, filled with anticipation, gripped Hattie’s hand. ‘I can’t wait to see it. Will you come as well?’
‘Why not?’ She smiled. ‘You can explain it all to me.’