Chapter 28
28
Hamish
Sunday morning, Elliot returned as promised to help Hamish finish off the skylight. He looked so much better than he had on their first encounter in the shower recess at Ruth’s on Friday night. Despite Elliot’s enthusiasm, Hamish kept in mind that Ruth’s brother was a decade older than he was and not the fittest of specimens. But now they had successfully installed the skylight, the difference to the kitchen was remarkable. Except that, with all the extra light, he could see how desperately the room needed a coat of paint and just how shabby the cupboards were.
‘Ideally, the room needs gutting,’ he said to Elliot. They were sitting at the kitchen table having a cold drink and a sandwich for a late lunch.
‘But why would you bother? Let whoever buys it do what they want.’ Elliot finished his sandwich and wiped his mouth with a folded handkerchief he pulled from the pocket of his shorts. ‘If it were me, I’d knock out part of that wall, demolish the tacked-on laundry and build out. New kitchen, large living area. Glass along the back … Given it’s north-facing, it could all be glass. New wet areas that included a laundry and a second bathroom.’
Hamish nodded. He filled the kettle and switched it on. ‘Tea? Coffee?’
‘Tea. White and one. Why don’t you buy out your sister, renovate the place and then sell it? You’d have a place to live while you did it and you could make yourself a tidy sum when you sold. It’d be a project that’d keep a bloke occupied and out of the pub.’ Elliot paced around the kitchen, pausing to peer out the window. ‘Decent-sized block. Your main concern would be not to overcapitalise. Cutlers Bay isn’t exactly Kensington Gardens or Norwood.’
‘I had noticed,’ Hamish said.
Elliot chuckled. ‘Beggars belief why Ruth sank all her money into a business in a place like this.’
Hamish dropped the tea bag he’d been dunking into the bin. He put the mug of tea onto the table along with the milk and sugar. ‘Cutlers Bay isn’t that bad,’ he said. ‘Mum and Dad lived here happily enough for a lot of years. Golf course looks half-decent and you can even get a proper cup of coffee in town.’
‘You play golf, do you?’
‘Don’t mind a hit every now and then. You?’
‘Ah,’ Elliot said and sank down onto his chair. He doctored his tea and took a sip. ‘Rob and I used to hit a ball around at least once a week. He did it because he enjoyed the game and he was damned good at it. I did it because I needed the exercise and it helped pass the time. God knows what I’ll do now to fill in my days.’
Hamish didn’t say anything, too busy teasing out Elliot’s comments about the house. To use Elliot’s own words, it would give him something to do, a project. Not that keeping himself out of the pub was an issue for Hamish; his issue was more about being bored to death. There were only so many games of golf a bloke could play. He didn’t enjoy it that much. He liked to read, but there was a limit to how long he could sit with a book before restlessness set in. And buying out Nat’s share of their parents’ house would get her off his back. She’d be happy—ecstatic, more than likely.
When they’d talked on the phone the day before, she’d hinted at him paying rent, given he was virtually living in the house and it was half hers. His response had been something along the lines of: Not as long as my arse points to the ground, given the work I’m doing to clean up the place. She’d quickly backed down and he’d reiterated to himself that once their parents’ estate was settled there would be little need for him to communicate with her at all. Something about that notion both appealed and appalled, and left him feeling empty inside. She was all that was left of his immediate family. It was a pity she made herself so hard to like.
But to buy out her share of the house? Hamish had made some inquiries and had a rough idea what the asking price for the property would be. Settlement for his apartment was ten days away and he’d be fully cashed up with no need to delve into his superannuation. Really, there was nothing to hold him back. He liked the town well enough, although he shouldn’t discount how much a certain cafe owner factored into that.
Elliot coughed and jerked him out of his musing. ‘I’ll be on my way, if you don’t need me for anything else. Ruth said she’ll drive me back to Adelaide this afternoon, after the cafe closes. Thanks for lunch.’ He stacked their dirty plates into the sink.
‘Don’t worry about the dishes and thanks for your help. I’d still be fiddling about with the skylight if you hadn’t come along when you did.’
‘Happy to help. I’ll see myself out.’
They shook hands. Elliot frowned but didn’t say anything more. He had already apologised profusely for the unusual and embarrassing way they’d met.
Hamish cleared his throat. ‘Next time you’re up visiting Ruth, chuck in your sticks and we could have a hit.’
Elliot’s expression brightened. ‘I could do that,’ he said. ‘Next time I’m across this way.’
After Elliot had gone, Hamish wandered about the house and yard, thinking, imagining, calculating. He’d never renovated anything before. No old cars, motorbikes, stationary engines, not like a lot of mechanics he’d known over the years. To overcapitalise and never realise the money spent on the renovation would be an easy and costly mistake. He was handy and a quick learner but he didn’t have the skills required to do some of the work, tradesmen would need to be contracted for that. None of it would be cheap and the more he did himself, the better. From what he’d picked up over the years, anything involving building or renovation notoriously blew out the most carefully constructed budget. He would certainly need to do his research first.
But even before that, was it what he wanted to do? Could he afford another wrong turn? Did he have time for it? With any luck, he still had a lot of good years left. Regardless, it was imperative he set himself up over those years for the final decade of his life, because by all accounts, that was when everything came unstuck.
* * *
He was on his way into the Cutlers Bay real estate agent’s office on Tuesday afternoon when who should be coming out? None other than Ruth. He didn’t know who was the more surprised. Probably him.
‘You’re home,’ he said. ‘How was the city?’
‘Hot. Relentless. The traffic is worse every time I visit and there was smoke everywhere from a bushfire in the hills.’
‘So you enjoyed yourself, then?’
She laughed, which pleased him. Of late, her eyes had lost their sparkle.
‘How was Elliot?’
‘We talked. I told him he was welcome here any time. This morning I had a coffee with Lana, Robert’s widow. She puts on a stoic face, but underneath that? Her grief is very raw. She’s going to have Elliot over for a meal later this week.’
‘What about you?’
‘Oh, I’ll be fine. Robert and I never featured hugely in one another’s lives and although I’ll miss him, it won’t be the same for me as it will be for Elliot and Lana. I didn’t appreciate how much time Robert and Elliot spent together. Lana indicated that they saw each other most days and Elliot was there for a meal two or three times a week. Would have been hard on a new marriage, not that she sounded at all bitter.’
Hamish glanced at his watch. Ruth noticed. ‘Am I holding you up?’ she said.
‘No, you’re not. But I need to catch Bryan before he leaves for the day and that’s in about ten minutes.’
‘Okay, I’ll see you later then.’
He wanted to ask her to come around for a drink this evening but Bryan opened the door.
‘Hamish Adams?’
‘Yep, that’d be me,’ he said and the moment was lost. By the time Bryan ushered him inside, Ruth was already halfway across the street and walking towards the supermarket.
‘Remarkable woman,’ Bryan was saying when Hamish finally tuned in. Bryan wasn’t a big man—wiry was the word that described him—but he had an aura of unleashed energy about him. ‘Now, what can I do for you?’
Hamish sat in the proffered chair. ‘It’s about my parents’ place, 34 East Terrace,’ he said and went on to describe briefly the current situation with the property. ‘And to cut a long story short, I’ve decided that I will offer to buy out my sister’s share, if she’s willing, which I’m certain she will be. I’ve had a conversation with the solicitors acting for the estate and you’re to expect a request from them for a property valuation, including your costs.’
Bryan nodded. ‘They didn’t want an independent bank valuation?’
‘Nope. But if my sister wants to get her own independent valuation, she’s free to do so.’
‘Fair enough. When you do agree on a price, transfer of ownership shouldn’t take more than a couple of weeks. You have a conveyancer?’
‘I do.’
Instead of going home after the appointment, Hamish made for the supermarket. If he was going to be in Cutlers Bay indefinitely he needed to feed himself better than he had been. Sandwiches or toast most meals wasn’t a balanced diet, not by anyone’s standards. And while he liked Ruth’s food far better than what he prepared for himself, he couldn’t show up at the cafe every day.
Disappointingly, there was no sign of Ruth in the supermarket aisles. She must have whipped in and out while he was talking to Bryan. Making the most of her day off. He grabbed a few vegetables and salad items, bread, milk, meat and whatever else took his fancy and cursed to himself when he had to pay for more bags to carry the groceries home. There was already a pile of them back at the house. He needed to get better at this.
His phone rang while he was loading the groceries onto the back seat of the dual cab. He wished for it be Ruth, but no, it was Nat. He didn’t answer. He guessed why she’d be calling: the solicitors would have contacted her regarding his offer to buy out her share of the house. She’d be bitching because he hadn’t mentioned it to her first. But he would do this by the book, leave no room for her to come back at him any time into the future. He’d return her call later.