Weekending
The trip to Heathrow airport took longer than the family had
hoped, but they were in good time to meet the direct flight from Cape Town. To
describe the event would be to repeat what anyone has experienced who has met
someone at an airport.
Joe was probably the most surprised as his daughter was in
the company of the woman Joe had left behind, but one look at Grit was enough
to reveal that she had had a hand in this reunion.
One look from Sonia to Gary and then to Joe caused shear
disbelief to break out on Sonia’s face. Even Charlotte was dumbfounded by
seeing two editions of her father until Joe held out his arms for her to run
into them.
He greeted Sonia as if she were a porcelain doll. It was
hard to see whether he was more astonished or reluctant. Joe was quite good at
hiding his emotions when he wanted to.
***
“I’m sure someone will tell me who arranged all this,” he
said.
“You should not leave phone numbers in pockets of jeans you
want washing, Joe,” said Grit.
“It could have been just anyone, Mother.”
“I left the phoning to Cleo. She knows exactly what to do in
such cases. I don’t think she would have let just anyone come here.”
“Did my sister-in-law let you come here, Sonia?”
“I was coming anyway,” said Sonia.
Ouch!
***
You could have cut the atmosphere between Joe and Sonia with
a knife. Joe was only just polite. He was flummoxed and disturbed. Joe’s
delight at seeing his daughter was muted by Sonia’s presence.
Gary thought he was a bit of a sod for not showing Sonia
more warmth even if did not want her in his life. Grit had jumped the guns. He
would have to keep the little group in good spirits given that Joe had been
eager to have Charlotte back in his life. It was not their business to sort out
the relationship between Joe and the person Gary assumed to be estranged. It was
a lucky coincidence that the little girls got on well from the start.
Grit thought the situation was painful. She had gone behind
her son’s back. She had meant well, but the atmosphere between Sonia and Joe
was filled with Joe’s resentment and Sonia’s belief that she would be welcome. She
must know why she had wanted to keep her arrival a secret. Joe would no doubt
explain why later. In the meantime they would all have to cope.
***
“Come on, you lot. Let’s get home,” Gary enthused. “Cleo
will be champing at the bit waiting for us. I’ll just send her a text to say
you have arrived safely.”
The text Gary sent warned Cleo that an ex of Joe’s had come
along ostensibly to look after Charlotte. Joe was not pleased.
***
Gary was uneasy about Sonia being there. She was quite nice,
but not at all the kind of woman he would have thought Joe would take up with.
She had a doll-like appearance and her heavily painted face and coolness was
quite the opposite from Cleo’s natural beauty and physical warmth. Sonia was
not very tall, very slim and white-skinned. She looked as if she had always
ignored the African sun and would crack a rib if Gary hugged her the way he
hugged Cleo.
“We’re cousins,” Charlie announced. “Cousins always get on
well, especially if they have the same name.”
“Do they always call you Charlotte?” Grit asked. She too had
noticed the coolness between Joe and Sonia and was angry with herself for
interfering. Sonia had accompanied Charlotte without any kind of invitation. Had
Joe jilted her? Grit had not thought of that.
“You are my grandmother, aren’t you?” said Charlotte, plainly
overawed by everything.
“Yes, my dear, and I’m so glad to get to know you,” said
Grit, drawing Charlotte into an embrace. The girl did not seem much used to
being hugged. She was tense and stiff.
“I’m going to call you Lottie,” said Charlie. “Will that be
OK?”
“That’s a good idea,” said Joe. Apart from that one hug at
arrivals, Joe had not been forthcoming with a response to anything. He seemed
to be in shock.
The party returned to the car. Joe walked beside Sonia, but
Gary could see that Sonia was not welcome. He did not hold her hand or put an
arm round her shoulder. He was definitely put out by her presence. Gary hoped
that Cleo would sort things out between them and help them to overcome their
seeming indifference, whatever caused it.
Gary was puzzled by Sonia’s evident reticence, though he put
it down to Joe’s reaction. Why on earth had she undertaken such a long journey
to see a man again with whom she did not seem to have any rapport? Charlotte
would have been fine in the care of a stewardess. It was quite normal for
juniors to embark on flights alone. They usually enjoyed V.I.P. status.
Gary knew that Cleo would have behaved quite differently with
him. They would have shared the same emotional greeting that generally follows
a separation of lovers. Joe had shown more emotion when they had met.
***
The car was retrieved, the luggage stuffed into the boot,
the four ladies sat in the back while the brothers sat in the front again. They
were fortunately not held up by tailbacks or enhanced by Gary and Joe singing
along to the radio. The girls, sitting one each side of Grit with Charlotte
furthest away from Sonia, tried to sleep leaning on Grit and holding hands with
Grandma. Grit and Sonia could not find much to talk about. Sonia warmed a
little to Grit, but Grit was uneasy.
At the cottage they all scrambled out of the car and were
given a huge welcome by Cleo.
“Well, here we are,” said Gary gratuitously, drawing Cleo to
one side, ostensibly to embrace her as if they had been apart for months, but
in fact to warn her that the air between Sonia and Joe was frosty and it was
going to be difficult.
“I don’t know if they had a relationship at one time, but
there’s nothing of it left now,” said Gary.
“I’d like to thank you for getting in touch with Sonia,”
said Joe to Cleo. Gary did not think Joe really meant it. Cleo was sure he
didn’t.
“I was coming anyway.”
“You were?” said Joe as if he had not heard her say the same
thing at the airport. Was he making an effort to be nice to her?
“I could not let Charlotte fly all that way on her own,
Joe.”
“Is that the only reason?”
“It was going to be my excuse if you don’t want me here.”
“But you are welcome here,” said Cleo.
“Thank you,” said Sonia, looking at Joe with tears in her
eyes.
“Joe did not echo Cleo’s sentiment.”
Charlie decided that Lottie should sleep in her bed because
the grownups had not finished talking. Later, Grit asked politely if Sonia would like to sleep in
Lottie’s room that night. They could reorganize things the following day.
“I expect we could manage in my room,” said Joe.
“But I expect Sonia is tired,” said Grit.
“Are you two more than just passing acquaintances?” said
Gary.
“Can you leave Joe and Sonia to organize themselves, folks,”
said Cleo. “You Hurleys are the limit.”
“That’s OK,” said Sonia. “We’ll come to a satisfactory
agreement, I’m sure.”
“That would depend on what you call satisfactory,” said Joe.
***
When Grit, Sonia and Joe finally left to go to bed, Cleo
could not help berating Gary for not supporting Joe.
“It’s quite obvious that they were in a relationship at one
time,” she said.
“He left her to come to the UK,” said Gary.
“That does not mean that he doesn’t love her.”
“ Come on, Cleo. Joe did not show her any love at all,” said
Gary. “I don’t think he has any feelings for her and it’s quite obvious that he
does not like her being here.”
“He doesn’t have your kind of feelings, Gary.”
“Am I too demonstrative, Cleo? I’ve never heard you complain
before.”
“I love your effusiveness and everything else about you,
Gary, but it may not be what Sonia is used to.”
“She responded to my hug quite convincingly, but turned cold
again almost immediately,” said Gary.
“I hope you didn’t treat her to what I’d like to call a full-body
hug.”
“Of course not. To be honest, I think she would have
preferred a peck on the cheek.”
“Maybe you were expecting Joe to behave like you, Gary, but
you are exceptionally emotional and prone to hugging all and sundry.”
“I wasn’t like that until we met, Cleo,” said Gary. “Joe
needs someone like you.”
“Some people have cool relationships and very little
physical contact. They don’t want it.”
“I’d hate him to be landed with her. She did not ask him if he
was pleased to see her and he did not say so of his own accord.”
“Leave them to sort themselves out, Gary. It’s none of our
business. Let’s go to bed. It’s already tomorrow.”
Which reminds me …”
“… It’s your day off tomorrow.”
“So it is, but I have a feeling that I’m not going to enjoy
it.”
“Let’s just enjoy the here and now,” said Cleo. “I don’t
mind if you warm my duvet while I look in on the girls.”
“I’ll look in on all the kids while you warm mine,” said
Gary.
***
At nine a.m. Greg rang.
“We have a new corpse, Gary. Can you drop in?”
“Don’t tell me Frank killed himself.”
“No, but he complained about the breakfast. He’s vegan,
Gary.”
“What’s that?
“No animal products at all.”
“He should be OK with the synthetic canteen cheese then. Who
is the corpse?”
“I don’t know who it is, but it was in the courtyard behind HQ.”
“I’ll be there by eleven, Greg.”
“Sorry to bother you.”
“It’s no bother, Greg. I’ll be quite glad to get out and
about.”
“That sounds ominous.”
“What would you do if a friend arrived at an airport and you
were not expecting them?”
“I’d be surprised, but make him or her welcome.”
“Joe did not behave as if he wanted Sonia here.”
“Sonia being the jilted one, I assume. Cleo will sort them
out, Gary. She has gangsters cringing
when she gives them advice.”
“I don’t want any cringing in my family, Greg, but I think
we are going to get some.”
“Sonia sounds like a cold fish,” said Greg.
“And that corpse sounds like a blessing in disguise,” said
Gary. “See you soon.”
***
Sonia came to talk to Cleo soon after Greg’s phone call.
Gary made himself scarce. He needed a shower, he said. There was new corpse to
be dealt with. He would go to HQ and support the skeleton staff. Corpses at
weekends were normally a nuisance rather than a blessing in disguise.
“I’ll just get you a fresh bath towel,” said Cleo, leaving
Sonia to help herself to coffee and following Gary into the bathroom where they
sneaked in a body hug to keep them going. “So this corpse is the blessing in
disguise, I take it.”
“I’m chickening out of the intellectual duel between Joe and
the girl he left behind, Cleo. Where is he, anyway?”
“I don’t think they slept together,” Cleo said. “He’s
probably out somewhere with Dog.”
“No doubt preferable to Miss Iceberg,” said Gary.
Be glad you have something to take you out of here, Gary.
I’ll deal with the situation. The girls will help with the twins and PeggySue.”
***
“Sorry about that, Sonia,” said Cleo, returning to the
breakfast table. “Would you like a bagel?”
“Yes please.”
Presently, Gary wafted through smelling strongly of the
erotic perfume that Cleo always found irresistible, planted a kiss on her mouth
and hugged Sonia, a gesture to which she did not respond. After sharing hugs
with the all the kids assembled, he left them to it, promising to be back as
soon as he had summed up the situation at HQ. He would take the big girls out
that afternoon, he said.
Cleo accompanied Gary to the door to get one more hug to
charge her batteries.
“Tell her to go home,” said Gary. “Without Lottie. I got the
impression that the little girl hated Sonia spoiling her reunion with her
Daddy.”
***
As if to pre-empt any questions Cleo might ask when she came
back to the table, Sonia said “I slept in Charlotte’s bed last night.”
“I thought that would happen,” said Cleo. “Why did you come,
Sonia? The reunion is are not functioning between you and Joe.”
“It’s my fault, Cleo. I told him he had to choose between me
and the UK.”
“Do you love him?”
“Not the way he is now. Gary’s warmth gets to me. Joe’s
coldness does, too.”
Sonia was eating her second bagel with obvious enjoyment.
Cleo, who was always complaining about her waistline, could not help
commenting.
“Were you always this thin, Sonia?”
“Metabolism, Cleo. I can eat like a horse and don’t gain an
ounce.”
“What a wonderful talent to have, Sonia. I put weight on
just thinking about good food.”
“But you have a talent for loving people,” said Sonia.
“You could learn how to, Sonia,” said Cleo taking that
comment literally. “I just need to show the people I love that I love them. I
don’t hug people I don’t feel any warmth for.”
“I really meant that figuratively,” said Sonia, who was
embarrassed by Cleo’s directness. Sonia did not know that Cleo was provoking
her deliberately..
“I know you did, but you can’t go on indefinitely loving
someone and not letting them be aware of it. If you love Joe, show him some
passion. It might work for you, and if it doesn’t you should fly home and
forget him.”
“I’ll try. He’s a nice guy, but I ‘ve no idea if he ever felt
any genuine affection for me.”
“Ask him!”
“I don’t think I could. He’s so aloof.”
“He isn’t really, Sonia. He asked me if I have a sister.”
“Do you?”
“No, and Gary is the love of my life. I would never swap him
for Joe, though Joe is a nice guy. Give him a chance to bridge the gap that is
open between you.”
“I’ll try if he will,” said Sonia, “but I don’t feel
attracted enough to him at the moment.”
Cleo was astonished. Hadn’t Sonia come to rescue her
relationship?
“Did you sleep together, Sonia?”
“Sort of. May I have another bagel?”
***
Very soon after that revealing chat, the girls quit assessing
the quality of Charlie’s fashion dolls and
came in for their second breakfast. Tommy and Teddy had been looking
around contentedly in the playpen, but opened their arms when the two girls
went to pick them up.
“Daddy fed them before he went out,” said Cleo. “But think
they need another drink. Can you help, girls?”
“Me too?” said Lottie.
“Of course,” said Cleo. “One each!”
PeggySue had witnessed Sonia and Cleo’s talk from her high
chair, where she had spooned away her cereal and banana mix quite happily, and
preferred to sit and watch when the grownups were talking.
“How do you do it, Cleo?” said Sonia.
“I love them all and Lottie is joining the crew, as you
see.”
“But you are having another one. Why bother when you have so
many?”
“It isn’t a bother, Sonia. It’s a joy. That’s what love did
to me.”
“Not carelessness?”
“I’m not careless, Sonia, and neither is Gary. We let it
happen. Love expands.”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.”
“You are not prying. I like talking about what makes me
happy. I have to talk to so many sad and misguided people in my job as
sociologist. I just hope you don’t mind having all these kids around. They’re
here to stay, and that includes Lottie.”
“Am I sad and misguided, Cleo?”
“How would you answer that question, Sonia?”
“I think I must be. I came here expecting Joe to want me in
his life, although he chose to come here and left me.”
“Why don’t you talk to him about that?”
“I don’t think I can.”
“Try! You can see how happy Joe is to have daughter back. He
won’t let her go, and we won’t either.”
“I thought she would want to go back to school in South
Africa.”
“She’ll go to school here. Just look at her with Teddy. If
that isn’t integration I don’t know what is.”
“Those babies are cute,” said Sonia.
“Warm and beautiful,“ said Cleo. “A child teaches a lot
about love, Sonia. Test it on PeggySue.”
To Cleo’s surprise, Sonia did just that. She lifted the child
out of her high chair complete with sticky bib and hands. PeggySue turned to
cling on to her like a little chimpanzee.
“See what I mean?” said Cleo.
Sonia put PeggySue into the playpen. Then she went into the
kitchen to get rid of the sticky cereal on her hands and blouse. Cleo
immediately retrieved PeggySue and covered the little girl with kisses before
cleaning her up a little. Sonia looked on, a little repulsed. That did not
escape Cleo’s notice.
“I never wanted children,” said Sonia. “They make a mess and
spoil the figure.”
“So what! If someone only loves you for your waistline, you
might as well be a hooker,” said Cleo.
“I didn’t mean it that way.”
“How did you mean it then, Sonia?”
“It’s alright for some to lose their figure. I don’t want
to.”
“You’d have to lose your heart first, Sonia, and I doubt if
you could.”
Gary would have explained Cleo’s reaction as shock therapy.
***
At that moment Grit, Roger and Joe arrived. Roger had
clearly spent the night with Grit and Joe had clearly approved. Cleo thought things
might get difficult between Sonia and Joe if the family did not act as a
catalyst.
Grit was her usual warm self. She and Cleo hugged warmly
before Grit kissed and hugged all her grandchildren and cleaned PeggySue up thoroughly
over the kitchen sink before getting her some juice and returning her to her
high chair after giving it a good wipe.
“So many kisses in one go and a sticky granddaughter to make
it all even more fun,” said Grit, getting round to hugging Sonia briefly as a
matter of form.
Joe came to sit at the table after hugging his daughter and
Charlie. He was learning the hugging custom fast, though his hugging did not seem
to include Sonia.
“Good morning, Ladies,” he said. “Did you sleep well?”
“You are very formal, Joe,” said Cleo. “Don’t you love your
women enough to give us all a hug?”
“Well … I suppose I do,” said Joe, getting up to go round
the table to hug Grit first, then Cleo.
“I really meant Sonia,” said Cleo, angry with Joe for that
pointed snub he had awarded her. “What the hell’s the matter with you?”
“Nothing,” said Joe.
“Everything,” said Cleo. “If you don’t want Sonia here why
don’t you just say so? Or are you too much of a coward?”
“I quite like having Sonia here,” fibbed Joe.
“You could have fooled me. Show it for crying out loud,”
said Cleo.
“It’s OK, Cleo. I understand,” said Sonia, who didn’t.
Sonia stood up and went to the playpen. She was humiliated
and decided at that moment to go home.
“Now see what you’ve done,” said Joe to Cleo.
“What I’ve done?” said Cleo.
Grit got up from the sofa, where she had been reading a
Sunday paper with Roger, and went to comfort Sonia.
“Go away for an hour, Joe. Sonia needs a little tenderness
in her life and she came hoping to get it from you. But you are not interested,
are you?”
“She told me she never wanted to see me again, Cleo.”
“But she came to find you.”
“She should not have. I did not invite her and I was fine
without her.”
“You talk as if she was visiting a sick relative. If you
loved her once, just show her affection now. Sonia won’t stay here now she
knows what a mean little jerk you are.”
“That hurt,” said Joe.
“Good. Now stop hurting Sonia.”
Joe got up. He wanted to leave but the sight of Sonia
leaning over the bars of the playpen just watching those babies gurgling
happily affected him despite himself. He went to Sonia and put an hand on her
shoulder. Grit retreated to the sofa after exchanging looks with Cleo that we
somewhere between exasperation and puzzlement.
“I’m sorry, Sonia,” Joe said, and Sonia turned to him and
leant her head on his chest. “I didn’t mean it to be like this. I did not want
this at all.”
“Like what? What did you mean?” said Sonia. “What didn’t you
want?”
“You laughed when I told you I wanted to find my family and
you told me to get out of your life. So I did that, didn’t I?” said Joe in a
tone that startled all the listeners.
“But I did not mean it,” said Sonia, “and I came here to
tell you that.”
“I’m glad you came,” said Joe.
“Show me, then,” said Sonia.
“I’m glad you came so that I have a confirmation that I did
the right thing,” said Joe. “You never once offered to come with me. You and
your damned school were more important.”
Cleo decided to interrupt.
“You both need therapy,” she said. “I should knock your
heads together. For heaven’s sake kiss and make up.”
The couple obliged with a peck.
“Well, that’s a start, isn’t it? I can’t believe that the
brother of such a seriously ardent lover as Gary could be such a cold fish,”
said Cleo.
To Cleo’s relief that made them all laugh.
“I’ll do better now we know what the problem is,” said Joe.
“Coming for a walk, Sonia?”
“I’ll get my coat,” said Sonia.
“I’ll get mine, too,” said Joe. “And I’ll get Dog. He needs
another run.”
“Is there more coffee, Cleo?” said Grit. “I don’t need my
coat. I don’t want to go for a walk. Roger and I danced the night away – well
almost.”
“I doubt very much if those two have a walk in mind. I just
don’t know what they’d do instead. There’s no love lost between them. Maybe Dog
will bring them closer together.”
***
Greg was glad to see Gary in time for some decent coffee out
of Gary’s espresso machine.
Gary was more than glad not to have to witness Joe and Sonia
behaving like two strangers.
“Do you know who the corpse is?” Gary asked.
“One less on the gangster menu in Middlethumpton,” said
Greg. “Remember that guy at the armed bandit retreat down the road?”
“Pooth?”
“That’s him.
“I’m surprised he lasted this long,” said Gary. “I wonder if
he has anything to do with Frank Wetherby’s case?”
“What would Frank be doing in such a dive?” said Greg.
“It takes all sorts, Greg. Is Chris in the path lab?”
“Yes. Do you want to see the corpse?”
“I’m training myself. After watching the birth of my twins
I’m much braver. The midwife praised me for not fainting.”
“Pooth is pleasantly undramatic in death,” said Greg.
“All that blood when ...” said Gary.
“No blood.”
“… kids come into the world. That really shocked me.”
“I hope you are over it now. Aren’t you going to go through
it all again soon?”
“I hadn’t thought of that.”
“Practice makes perfect,” said Greg.
“You can say that again,” said Gary rising to the innuendo
with one of his own.
“Let’s go then,” said Greg. “Chris is waiting for us in his hellhole.
We can take the lift. It’s quicker.”
“To hell?”
***
Another intravenous death,” said Chris. “I’m getting used to
these clinical killings. Just one little jab in the shoulder and that only
bruised because this guy is probably on rat gift for his heart.”
“He’ll save the National Health a steep bill, then, won’t
he?”
“What does rat gift do?” asked Greg.
“Thins the blood,” said Chris.
“This guy won’t need it anymore,” said Gary.
“No. Any idea who wanted him out of the way?” Chris asked.
“All the other gangsters, I should think,” said Greg. “Or customers
who objected to Pooth’s programmed slot machines. I don’t think anyone had ever
come away a winner.”
“I wonder if he visited Upper Grumpsfield last Wednesday,”
said Gary.
“I should not have thought he got up early enough to set a
house on fire,” said Greg. “He was always half-soaked when he opened up his business
at nine.”
“He may not have been to bed,” said Gary. “I wonder if he drove
a car?”
“We can find out from the driving licence people,” said
Greg.
“I shouldn’t think he’d be bothered about having a licence,”
said Chris.
“I’ll ask Frank Wetherby about him tomorrow. I can’t imagine
Pooth winning a fight with Frank, but if he knocked him down from behind, got
out of the salon fast after setting fire to it for good measure….”
“And then phoned the fire brigade?” said Greg.
“That is admittedly a loophole,” said Gary.
“I expect Frank will like the idea of there being another
suspect,” said Chris.
“Especially if being in a coma cancels him out,” said Gary,
“but I’m not convinced that it will.”
“You don’t sound convinced about anything,” said Greg.
“I’m not.”
***
Cleo phoned Gary to find out who the corpse was. Gary told
her that he thought Pooth might have a hand in Rita’s misfortune.
“Don’t even try to explain how, Gary.”
“How are the non-lovers, Cleo?”
“I think they went for a walk with Dog to work it out.”
“No doubt you interfered a little, didn’t you?”
“Only before they decided to resume communication.”
“The main thing is that we don’t want a cold war on our
hands.”
“Sonia could not understand why we have so many children,
Gary. I tried to explain.”
“It took me a while to be convinced, Cleo, though they are
mine!”
“I don’t believe you. Being a daddy has made a man of you.”
“I’ll ignore that.”
“At your peril.”
“Back home soon, my love. There ain’t much I can do here.”
“There’s plenty to do here, Sweetheart.”
“Don’t I know it. Is Lottie OK?
“Just fine, Gary. She already feels like one of mine.”
“That’s probably because you’re broody,” said Gary.
“Better come home and find out.”
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