It was as she neared the door that Jess caught her arm. ‘Laura, are you quite sure that there’s nothing I could do to help?’
‘Ssh,’ Laura said sternly. ‘We’ve already had this conversation and I’ve told you, this is
our
baby now.’ Impulsively, she leaned forward and pecked Jess’s cheek. ‘You just concentrate on you and Mel,’ she urged kindly, and then she was gone.
Just as he had promised, Emile turned up on the following Sunday loaded down with yet more bags, which he promptly unpacked.
‘Now you two shoo,’ he told them, flapping his hands dramatically. ‘You must not disturb a great chef at work. I shall call you when it is all ready to serve.’
The meal which followed three hours later was delicious, and Jess was thrilled to see that Mel ate every mouthful. Just as he had said, Emile was a surprisingly good cook. They dined on an enormous leg of pork covered in crunchy crackling, a selection of vegetables, and crispy roast potatoes all swimming in thick creamy gravy.
‘Oh Lord, I won’t be able to eat another thing for at least a month,’ Jess groaned as she eventually staggered away from the table.
‘Rubbish!’ Emile exclaimed. ‘You are far too thin. A woman should have curves.’ Jess grinned. It was a very long time since there had been any light-hearted banter in this house.
In the afternoon, they watched the omnibus edition of
Eastenders
on the television, all curled up on the settee together, and then Mel went to her room to do her homework, leaving the adults to talk. It was then that Emile asked, ‘Have you thought of moving from here, Jess?’
‘Moving?’ she asked blankly. ‘But how could I? Mel has been through so much just lately. It would be unfair to expect her to move house on top of everything else.’
‘But have you
asked
her how she would feel about it?’ he pressed.
Jess had to admit that she hadn’t.
‘Then I should put the idea to her,’ he said bluntly. ‘It will be hard for both of you if you stay here. There are too many memories.’
Jess gave what he had said a lot of thought, and when he had gone and she and Mel were alone again, she put the idea to her over a light supper.
‘Mel,’ she began, struggling to find the right words, ‘how would you feel about moving?’
‘What? From here, you mean?’ Mel’s face lit up. ‘I’d love it!’ she said immediately. ‘Even if you, me and Alfie just ended up in a little flat somewhere. I
hate
it here.’
‘Right, in that case I shall get an estate agent around to value the place just as soon as possible,’ Jess promised – and that is exactly what she did the very following day.
Beth came home from hospital four days after having the baby. Jess knew that she should go to see her but dreaded it. The pain she felt at losing her own baby was still raw and she couldn’t imagine how she was going to react.
She was still struggling to come to terms with the fact that Simon had tried to kill her, and was missing Jo terribly, but she tried to remain positive for Mel, who still had very dark days when she did nothing but cry. The house also felt strangely empty without Martha’s presence, and Jess kept expecting to hear the whispers start up again. Now she was looking forward to seeing the
For Sale
board go up and could hardly wait to be gone from there. It was no longer a home but just a place full of bad memories.
One morning, she waited until Mel had gone to school then set off to Blue Brick Cottage to visit Beth and the new addition to the family.
When she entered Laura’s homely kitchen she found her sitting in a chair giving the baby a bottle whilst Beth sat at the window staring sightlessly out across the garden. Jess went over to the girl and planted a kiss on her head before approaching Laura, who smiled a greeting and said, ‘I’ll put the kettle on as soon as I’ve finished feeding his lordship here. Unless you want to finish him off, that is?’
Jess nodded mutely, her heart thumping as Laura rose and placed him in her arms. Jess’s heart broke afresh as she stared down into his perfect little face. He was so like the baby she had lost that he almost took her breath away. The same blue eyes, the same shock of dark hair, but then Simon had always joked that all babies looked alike.
The baby snatched at the teat of the bottle greedily when she offered
it
to him and she cuddled him to her as her maternal instincts rose in her like a tidal wave.
‘He’s lovely, isn’t he?’ Laura whispered, feeling Jess’s pain.
Jess gulped and nodded. ‘Absolutely. Have you decided what to call him yet?’
‘Den and I thought we might call him Lucas,’ Laura replied. She could only begin to imagine how hard this must be for Jess, so soon after losing her own baby, and she felt for her. She had been through so much tragedy, it just didn’t seem fair.
‘And what does Beth think of the name?’
‘Oh, to tell you the truth she doesn’t even look at him,’ Laura said as she glanced worriedly towards her daughter. ‘It’s as if now that she’s given birth, it’s over for her, but then we expected that. But that’s enough about us. How are you and Mel doing now?’
‘We’re getting there. We just take one day at a time. To be honest, I can’t wait to move away from here now.’
‘I can understand that. And have you had any sign from Martha?’
‘Nothing,’ Jess told her as she dragged her eyes away from the baby. He had finished his milk now and she was patting his back as she winded him.
‘I’m not surprised.’ Laura frowned as she poured milk into two mugs. ‘You’ve got to try and go on now for Mel’s sake, and when you move you can make a brand new start.’
Jess nodded, but inside she was wondering how she would ever manage to move on. How did you forget a daughter and a husband who had suddenly vanished from her life in the blink of an eye?
‘And how is that handsome Frenchman who’s been visiting you?’ Laura asked as she saw Jess becoming emotional.
‘He’s been a godsend,’ Jess said fervently, then flushed as she saw Laura smile with amusement and rushed on, ‘But there’s nothing romantic going on, if that’s what you were thinking.’
‘I wasn’t thinking anything,’ Laura assured her. ‘It’s just nice to see someone being so kind to you and Mel. You need as many friends as you can get right now.’
‘Sorry.’ Jess looked suitably apologetic. ‘I’m just a bit touchy at the moment.’
Laura lifted her grandson from Jess’s lap. ‘You’d be rather strange if you weren’t,’ she commented, and they then turned the talk to other things until it was time for Jess to go.
It was when she got to the door that Jess suddenly remembered
one
of the reasons she had come. ‘I know we’ve passed on all the baby stuff we had, and you’re very welcome to it, but I’d like you to accept this for him from me and Mel. You can either spend it on anything he needs, or put it into a bank account for him. Whatever you like.’
Laura gasped as she looked down at the cheque that Jess had pressed into her hand.
‘B . . . but this is for five hundred pounds,’ she gasped. ‘I can’t possibly take all this from you.’
‘Yes, you can,’ Jess smiled. ‘I don’t know what I would have done without you over the last few weeks. And it isn’t for you anyway. It’s for little Master Lucas there. He’s just what we all needed. A brand new life after so much sadness.’
Laura’s eyes welled with tears as she hugged Jess to her with her free arm.
‘Thank you,’ she whispered. ‘I’m going to miss you so much.’
‘I shall miss you too,’ Jess said huskily. ‘But just because I’m moving doesn’t mean that we’ll never get to see each other again. I shan’t let you forget me that easily.’
She waved at Beth before slipping through the door, and as she closed it softly behind her, Laura gazed down at her little grandson, tears sliding silently down her cheeks. Life was strange, there was no doubt about it.
‘That’s it then, missus. We’re all loaded,’ the portly driver informed her as he slammed the back doors of the large removal van. Taking his handkerchief from his pocket he mopped at his sweating brow as the hot July sunshine beamed down on them. At that moment, Mel bounced out of the kitchen door with Emile and Alfie close behind her, and Jess smiled at them.
‘Right, you two, would you like to go on with the removal men and let them into the new house while I lock up?’ she asked.
Emile nodded as Mel piled into his car. It was almost as if Mel couldn’t get away from the place quickly enough, but then Jess supposed that this was understandable.
‘Are you sure you wouldn’t like us to wait for you?’ Emile asked, glancing towards the house with a frown on his handsome face.
‘No, honestly, I shall be fine,’ Jess assured him. ‘You two go on – I’ll be with you in no time.’
Nodding, he slid into his car and she stood and watched as he pulled out of the courtyard with the removal van close on his tail. And then she stood listening to the birds for a while before going back into the house. It felt strangely empty although the majority of the furniture and all the carpets and curtains she had bought would be staying there. She had taken only the minimum of things, as most of them would be far too big for the tidy four-bedroom detached house she had bought for herself and Mel in nearby Hartshill. It was a lovely house although it was a complete contrast to Stonebridge House. It was very modern and airy, but both she and Mel had taken to it straight away. Now she wandered from room to room, running her hands along the polished mahogany furniture and staring from the windows. The new owners were a lovely couple in their mid-forties and they would be moving in the next day. They were intending to run a bed and breakfast business just as she herself had once intended to do, and she hoped that they would be happy there.
Alfie stayed close to her side as if he sensed that something was
going
on, and she bent to stroke him, whispering, ‘It’s all right, boy. You’re coming too, don’t worry, and we’ll be right close to Hartshill Hayes so you’ll be able to go for some lovely walks there.’
He wagged his tail as if he understood every word she said as she slowly climbed the stairs to pause in the doorway of Jo’s old room. It still hurt her to go in there, but she somehow felt as if she should say a final goodbye. Not that she felt as if she was leaving Jo behind. She knew that the girl would live on in her heart wherever she lived.
It was as she was standing there that she heard footsteps on the stairs and the next minute Laura burst breathlessly into the room.
‘Oh,’ she gasped, as she leaned against the doorframe. ‘I was worried that I’d missed you but then I saw that your car was still outside so I guessed I’d find you here.’
Seeing the tears in Jess’s eyes she hugged her lovingly. ‘Don’t worry, pet,’ she said gently. ‘It will get easier.’
Too full to speak, Jess merely nodded, and then after looking around for a final time they walked downstairs together and once outside, Jess locked the door. Emile would drop the keys into the estate agent for her later that day.
‘I suppose this is it then.’ Jess looked at her friend. ‘You take care of that lovely new grandson of yours and I shall be round to see you as soon as I’ve got straight in the new house.’
‘You just make sure that you do.’ Laura was sad to see Jess go, but she knew that she was doing the right thing. There was nothing here for her any more and it was time for her to move on. She smiled as she thought of Emile. He had been marvellous to Jess and Mel over the last months, and she had watched the closeness between them grow. Although Jess hadn’t realised it as yet, he was obviously hopelessly in love with her, so who knew what the future might hold? Laura had a sneaky suspicion that Jess was beginning to return his feelings and hoped that when she finally felt ready to leave the past behind, the couple would find peace together.
Now she hugged her friend again and ushered her into the car. ‘Go on then,’ she ordered bossily. ‘And you just be happy, do you hear me? That’s an order.’
‘I’ll try,’ Jess promised as Alfie jumped onto the back seat and she got behind the wheel. And then Laura stood and waved until she had disappeared off down the drive.
It was only then that she turned to look at the girl at her side, who was whispering in her ear.
Martha had appeared in Blue Brick Cottage the day that baby Lucas had come home from hospital, but then that was no surprise to Laura. She had been expecting her.
Her thoughts raced back to the evening she had gone to the youth club that Beth had attended to speak to the person in charge about the boy who might have had sex with her daughter, only to be told that Beth hadn’t been there for months. From then on it had been easy to put two and two together. Beth had been with Simon, and when questioned, the girl had admitted that it was Simon’s child that she was carrying. But how could she have told Jess that? It wasn’t Jess’s fault, after all, and Laura couldn’t see the point in burdening her with any more worries. She had too many revelations to come to terms with as it was, without the added knowledge that her husband had fathered Beth’s child. She could only pray that the boy hadn’t inherited his father’s badness, but only time would tell. And so the Fenton curse would live on, and from now on Martha would be her constant companion, just as she had been Jess’s – unless she could find some way to break the curse and allow Martha to move on, that was . . .
Sighing, she glanced at Martha and side by side they set off towards Blue Brick Cottage.