Sunday 29th October
Jodi handed Aunty Ruby a wodge of cotton wool. ‘You’re dribbling,’ she said, guiding her hand to where the dye was running down her cheek. ‘Hold that, I’m nearly done.’ She continued to paste on the dye, watching the colour darken and worrying whether her aunty had picked the right shade. She looked at the instructions again.
‘Everything all right, love?’
‘I think so.’ Jodi turned the box over. ‘What colour did you say this was?’
‘Dark brown. Has it covered the yellow?’
Jodi looked at her aunty’s hair. The mixture had been beige on application, but over the last ten minutes had rapidly darkened to a flat black. It didn’t bode well. ‘It’s definitely covered the yellow,’ she said, omitting to mention it’d also absorbed all the light in the room. Maybe it would wash out a lighter shade? She could only hope. She checked her watch. ‘Another fifteen minutes.’
‘Excellent. Cup of tea?’ Her aunty climbed off the breakfast stool.
‘Stay where you are, I’ll do it. You’ll drip dye all over the floor.’ Checking the towel was firmly secured around her aunty’s neck, Jodi went over to fill the kettle.
‘And pop some bread in the toaster while you’re at it. You haven’t had any breakfast.’
‘I’m not hungry.’ Jodi’s stomach was so knotted she could barely tolerate fluids, let alone food.
‘You’ve got to eat, love. You need to keep up your strength.’
‘What’s the point?’ Jodi unhooked two mugs from the stand, knowing she was being morose, but unable to shake it off. ‘Nothing I do makes a difference. I don’t know why I bother even trying.’
‘You don’t mean that.’ Her aunty’s consoling tone only made her feel worse.
‘It was bad enough before Harvey Elliot showed up. Now it’ll be impossible. Everyone knows about my criminal record. They’ll never trust me.’ She went over to the fridge, swallowing back the lump in her throat.
There was a brief pause before her aunty spoke. ‘Have you considered this might be a good thing?’
She turned to her aunty. ‘Are you kidding me? In what way?’
‘Don’t get me wrong, what’s happened is awful and I could brain that bloody man for what he did. But the worst has happened now. Everyone knows about your past. It’s out in the open.’
‘I don’t see how that’s a good thing.’ It felt like the end of the world.
‘Living with a secret is exhausting. You spend the whole time looking over your shoulder, waiting for someone to discover the truth. Well, they know now. Big deal. You’ve been punished, served your time and more than made amends. They no longer have a hold over you.’
‘Nice theory, but reality doesn’t work that way.’ She blinked away tears. ‘God only knows what Vivienne will do with this information. She’s been itching to call the police all week. I’m amazed they haven’t shown up here this morning to arrest me. And she’s bound to tell Petrit.’
‘Dealing with those two is going to be tricky, I grant you…’ Her aunty shifted on the stool. ‘If you don’t stop stirring that tea, love, there’ll be nothing left in the mugs.’
‘Sorry.’ Jodi fetched a cloth from the sink. ‘I’m a little distracted.’
Her aunty fanned her face, trying to disperse the potent fumes radiating off the dye. ‘What about the rest of the staff? How did they react?’
‘Eddie didn’t say much at the time, but he found me later and gave me a hug. He said his opinion hadn’t changed and he knows I didn’t take the money.’
‘That was nice of him.’
‘He’s a nice man.’ She mopped up the spill, noticing her aunty’s pink-cheeked reaction to the mention of their latest houseguest.
‘And what about the lad who gave you the book?’
Jodi stilled. ‘Leon.’
‘What was his response?’
Jodi averted her gaze, suddenly fascinated by the cherry patterning on the side of the mugs. ‘I don’t know, I ran out without looking at him.’ She hadn’t wanted to see the look of disgust on his face.
It wasn’t like things between them hadn’t already changed. Ever since the money had disappeared a week ago he’d been cool with her. Nothing major, no accusations, or visible hatred like Petrit and Vivienne, but there’d been no gifts, no hot drinks made to cheer her up and get her through the day. Whatever connection they might have experienced during their lunch out, it had evaporated the moment news of the theft broke. And she was sadder than she could have imagined. More fool her for believing a lovely, kind and decent bloke like Leon would be interested in a damaged, untrustworthy girl like her. Would she never learn?
‘Give him time. I’m sure once he knows the facts, he’ll come around.’
Jodi doubted it. She’d blown it with Leon. Once again, her past was affecting her future. She brought the mugs over to the table. ‘Would you like a biscuit?’
‘Not for me.’ Aunty Ruby pushed the barrel towards her. ‘But you have one. You need to eat something.’
Jodi sat at the kitchen table.
Her aunty unearthed a Penguin and unwrapped it. ‘I know this is hard, and life feels cruel at times, but this is all part of moving forwards.’ She handed Jodi the biscuit. ‘This is your first proper job. You’re being tested, just as everyone is when they start work. I know your situation’s a little different, but workplace issues are commonplace. I had an awful time when I first started teaching. I had to deal with disgruntled parents, unruly children and a head teacher who didn’t think I was up to the job.’
Jodi nibbled the biscuit. ‘What did you do?’
‘For the first month, I cried myself to sleep every night.’ Her aunty tilted her head, causing the dye running down her forehead to change direction. ‘During the second month I thought about quitting and trying something different, like working in a flower shop.’
Jodi reached across and dabbed the leakage with cotton wool. ‘What stopped you?’
‘The realisation that being a florist wasn’t an easy job either. Early starts, long days, and cold weather? I hate being cold. I’d have made a terrible florist. My point is, whatever job you do, there’s always an induction period to get through. A bumpy road before things get smoother. Your situation might be more extreme than most, but it’s not unusual.’
‘As Tom Jones would say.’
She laughed. ‘Exactly. And he’s a man worth paying attention to.’
Jodi nibbled her biscuit. ‘So you’re saying I should suck it up and not quit.’
‘The truth is, wherever you go you’re going to have to get over the same hurdle.’
God, what a depressing thought. But her aunty was right. She couldn’t change her past. She was stuck with it. She discarded the Penguin, no longer hungry.
Aunty Ruby patted her hand. ‘Like I said, the worst is over. It’s out in the open now. Dig deep, keep your head down and work hard. Prove to everyone they’re lucky to have you. Okay?’
She nodded. ‘I’ll try.’
‘I know you will.’ Her aunty sipped her tea. ‘Lovely cuppa.’
Jodi checked her watch. ‘Unfortunately, it’s time to rinse off the dye.’
‘Oh, well, it’s probably a good thing. I’m getting high from the ammonia.’
Jodi followed her aunty upstairs, mulling over her advice. Maybe there was something to be said for not having to worry about her secret getting out anymore. She was dreading going into work tomorrow, even though Tom had assured her it would be business as usual. He’d phoned last night and apologised for his father’s behaviour, assuring her he would personally deal with any attempts to undermine her authority. She’d just have to hope he stuck to his promise.
‘How are things going with Eddie?’ Jodi unhooked the showerhead in her aunty’s en suite, glad to focus on something other than work troubles. ‘Is having an extra houseguest making things harder or easier for you?’
‘Both.’ Her aunty leaned over the bathtub.
‘I noticed he mended the hinge on the freezer door.’ She rinsed off the dye, trying to ignore the stream of black circling the plughole. ‘It must be nice having someone to help with that kind of stuff.’
‘Oh, it is. If something needs fixing, he mends it. If the bins need putting out, he takes them out. If I’ve put a casserole dish into soak, he washes it up. Whatever needs doing, it’s done before I have a chance to think about it, let alone do it. Last night he replaced the shower screen in Becca’s bathroom.’
Jodi laughed. ‘He’s certainly very attentive. So what’s the downside?’ When her aunty didn’t respond, she prompted her. ‘Come on, share. What awful habit have you uncovered? Does he pick his teeth? Wear women’s underwear?’
‘Can you imagine!’ Her aunty’s laughter morphed into a coughing fit.
Jodi handed her a flannel. ‘Am I drowning you?’
‘I’m fine.’ Her aunty wiped her face. ‘I had a visual of Eddie wearing stockings and suspenders. It gave me quite a shock.’
It wasn’t an image Jodi wanted to entertain. ‘So what’s his crime?’
‘When he’s around I get…flustered, and hot. I drop things and trip up the stairs. He always seems to catch me making a…what is it you girls say? A complete tit out of myself… Is that the right phrase?’
Jodi laughed. ‘Sounds to me like you have a crush.’
‘More likely the menopause.’
She soaped up her aunty’s hair. Even the shampoo turned grey as she lathered it through to the ends. Not a good sign. ‘Why don’t you tell him how you feel?’
‘Goodness, no.’
‘Stop shaking your head, you’re spraying the tiles.’ She rinsed her aunty’s hair and covered it in a healthy dose of conditioner, hoping it might soften the intensity of the colour. ‘Only a couple of weeks ago you were telling me you wanted some excitement in your life. You said running the guest house was hard work on your own. Well, now you have a hot bloke helping you out. The fact that he makes you feel all gooey is a bonus. Why wouldn’t you want to embrace that?’
Her aunty had gone quiet.
‘You know I’m right.’ She massaged her aunty’s hair. ‘Eddie’s old-school, a proper gent, so he’s never going to make a move. If you want things to progress you’re going to have to take a risk.’
‘But what if he’s not interested? I’ll make a fool of myself and lose his DIY skills. I couldn’t bear that.’
Jodi laughed. ‘Trust me, the man’s smitten. Nothing you could do will ruin that.’ She rinsed off the conditioner. ‘But if you’re worried, start with something low-key. Ask him to lunch, or say there’s a film you want to see. Better still, come along to the next tea dance. He’s promised to be there on Friday, and you know Becca would love it if you came, so what have you got to lose?’
‘I would say my dignity, but I think I lost that years ago.’
Jodi reached for a clean towel. ‘I promise you, if you ask Eddie out, he won’t say no.’ She rubbed her aunty’s hair, hoping the cream towel wouldn’t turn black. ‘And if you were honest with yourself and stopped focusing on the negatives, you’d realise only a love-struck man would voluntarily take the bins out.’
Jodi stood back from the bathtub so her aunty could straighten and shake out her hair.
Oh, heaven, hell and damnation.
It was jet black. Worse still, the dye had stained her hairline. Her aunty looked like she’d lost a fight with an inkpot. ‘Although, you might want to buy another hat first,’ she said, turning her to face the mirror.
Aunty Ruby screamed.