Grandie looked so pale and weak lying in the hospital bed. He was hooked up to a machine and I could see his chest rising and falling rapidly.
Both Connie and I sat by his side, praying he was going to pull through.
‘He’s been so good to me,’ Connie finally said, breaking the silence. ‘I don’t know what I’d do without him.’
I swallowed down a lump in my throat and blinked away the tears. I glanced at my phone one last time before switching it off to save the battery. There was still no reply from Mum. Granted, it was now midnight in New York, but surely she’d have picked up her message when I first texted over two hours ago.
As soon as Grandie arrived at the hospital, they took him off for a scan and we were still waiting patiently for the doctor to come and talk to us.
‘Do you think he misses her?’ I asked softly, not taking my eyes off him.
‘I’m assuming you mean your mum?’
I nodded.
‘I know he does,’ answered Connie.
‘How do you know? Has he said something to you?’
She paused. ‘Not as such, but I know him. I spend a lot of time with him, and since you’ve come back he’s been more pensive.’
‘In what way?’
‘The dresser in the gallery is jam-packed with old photographs, and the night before last he was sitting in the drawing room and was mooching through them all. I made him a mug of cocoa and that’s when I noticed him clutching a photograph of your mum. He quickly hid it back in the pile and wiped away his tears when he noticed me, but whatever they fell out about is deep-rooted.’
‘Do you think their argument is anything to do with me?’ I’d been wracking my brains since I got here, trying to work out what it was all about.
Connie shook her head. ‘I don’t think so, Alice. Remember, your mum was my best friend, and I’m just as stumped as you are.’
‘The day we left, did you ask her?’
She nodded.
‘And?’
‘Your mum couldn’t look me in the eye. All she said was, no doubt it will come out one day and everyone would hate her. I thought she trusted me, but obviously not with this … That hurt.’
‘This bizarre situation has begun to make me think about something else too, Connie.’
‘Go on,’ she answered softly.
‘Do you think this has anything to do with my father? Do you have any idea who he might be, Connie?’ I asked impulsively.
I’d no idea where the question had suddenly come from or why tears had sprung to my eyes or why I was asking about it now. Over the years I’d never been curious about my father at all. Mum had always been enough for me, but who was my father? And, where was he? Like everything else in this family, he was another subject that no one ever spoke about.
I could see Connie battling with her own conscience. It was written all over her face that she knew something.
‘Do you know who he was?’ I probed further, feeling a teensy bit guilty for pushing her, but I couldn’t help thinking that maybe this was something to do with the situation between Grandie and Mum. Maybe Grandie hadn’t approved of him? I might be clutching at straws but maybe that was the missing piece of this jigsaw.
Connie didn’t have time to answer as Grandie spluttered and opened his eyes.
‘You’re awake.’ Feeling relieved, I smiled warmly at him.
He extended a hand, which I took.
‘You don’t get rid of me that easily,’ he spoke slowly, his eyes drooped and exhausted.
‘I’ll get the nurse, she needs to know you’re awake.’ Connie stood up and kissed him on top of his head before disappearing out of the room.
‘My mouth is dry,’ he nodded towards the glass of water which I held to his lips before mopping his brow with a damp flannel.
‘Is that better?’ I asked.
‘Yes, thank you.’
He clutched my hand and I noticed that he gulped. ‘There’s no big mystery, you know.’
‘Big mystery about what?’ I asked, confused.
‘Your father.’
I swallowed – he’d heard me ask Connie.
‘Really? How come I don’t know anything about him or even who he is? It’s never even been spoken about for all these years.’
‘You’ve never brought this up with your mum before now?’
I shook my head. ‘Never really thought about it much. There was the odd time when I’d wonder, but I’ve never had the urge to delve further. I was quite happy with it being just me and Mum. So, what do you know about him?’ I asked, my hands fiddling with the hem of my jumper.
He smiled before speaking. ‘Your dad was a local lad, William Hall, a decent kind. His family emigrated to Australia. Your mum dated him a few times, knowing that he would be starting a new life in Oz soon. She was keen on him, but they weren’t in a serious relationship as such. I’m sure it would have developed further if he hadn’t been leaving. The sad thing was, your mum only discovered she was pregnant after he’d left, and she’d no clue which part of Australia he’d moved to, or how to contact him – no social media back then.’
William Hall. That had been the first time I’d ever heard his name. I’d watched television programmes about relatives tracking down family members because they never felt complete until they discovered who their family were, but I’d never felt that urge – Mum was always enough. However, of course, hearing the name William Hall sparked a little curiosity. I liked the name – very English – and a part of me felt relieved that he hadn’t abandoned me as such. I wondered if things would have panned out differently if he’d known that Mum was pregnant with his baby. Would he have stayed in England? They may have made a go of it, but I supposed I’d never know.
‘So, he wasn’t a crook?’ I asked, thinking the worst.
Grandie seemed to stiffen a little and chewed on his lip. ‘No, William Hall wasn’t a crook, he was of good stock, unlike …’
‘Unlike who?’ I arched an eyebrow, not knowing exactly who he was talking about.
Grandie began to cough and I quickly reached for the glass again and held it up to his lips. As he sipped on the water I was vaguely aware that Connie was back in the room and hovering behind me, but my eyes were firmly fixed on him.
‘The nurse is just coming, you gave us all a scare there, Ted,’ she said softly, sitting back down on the chair.
‘Sorry,’ he managed a smile.
The nurse walked in pushing a trolley, followed by the doctor. She filled up his jug of water before examining the numbers on the machine that was bleeping away, and wrote something down on the chart that was hanging from the bottom of the bed.
‘How are you feeling?’ the doctor asked.
‘Tired, in fact exhausted, my legs seem to feel particularly heavy.’
The doctor nodded while the nurse took his temperature, followed by his blood pressure.
‘As soon as you came in we took you in for a scan and the results show you’ve had a small bleed to the brain.’
I couldn’t help myself – as soon as the words left the doctor’s mouth my eyes welled up with tears and they began to roll down my cheeks. Grandie squeezed my hand while Connie passed me a tissue to dab my eyes.
The doctor explained that he’d had a TIA, a transient ischaemic attack, a mini-stroke, caused by a blockage cutting off the blood supply to part of his brain, which was most probably a result of his fall and the bang to his head.
‘We need you to stay in hospital, so we can monitor you over the next few days.’
‘He’s going to be okay though, isn’t he?’ my voice faltered.
‘The symptoms usually last around twenty-four hours, and what Ted needs right now is rest.’
Connie and I agreed.
‘Go home and get some sleep, come back later when everything will be brighter.’ With that the doctor and nurse left the room.
‘By the time you get back tomorrow, actually today, I’ll be up on my feet dancing once more.’ Grandie tried to make light of the situation but I could see the exhaustion and worry written all over his face.
‘Don’t go anywhere,’ I said, by the warmth of my tone trying to cover up exactly how I was feeling. I knew this was a warning sign, his health was deteriorating. I gave him a hug but was careful not to squeeze him too hard. ‘We’ll be back later but try and get some sleep.’
He nodded his appreciation as his eyes began to droop. He looked pale and tired.
Connie and I walked through the silent, clean, white hospital corridors towards the car park.
‘I messaged her before, you know,’ I said, taking the phone from my bag and switching it on.
‘Who?’ asked Connie.
‘Mum,’ I answered, feeling anxious as I waited for the phone to find a signal.
‘Any reply?’
I stared intently at the screen. As soon as the 3G kicked in my phone beeped.
Connie raised her eyebrows, ‘Is that Rose?’
‘Yes,’ I said, quickly swiping the screen with my shaky hand.
‘What does it say?’ she asked, looking over my shoulder.
‘How are you both? I love you.’
We stared at each other for a moment.
‘What do you think?’ I asked.
‘I think that’s progress. She’s asked how you both are, which in my book, means she still cares very much.’ Connie squeezed me tight, pressing her soft cheek to mine.
My heart leapt a little as I realised Connie was right.
This was the first sign of mellowing Mum had shown, which meant there was hope, however small. I was going to take this and run with it. All I had to do now was convince Mum to buy a ticket and jump on a flight to England, but one step at a time.
‘My mission is to have her on that plane by the end of the week and there is only one way I’m going to achieve that.’
‘What are you thinking?’ Connie asked, narrowing her eyes at me.
I thought it over for a second. I knew I’d made up my mind to stay in Brook Bridge. My future was here – the school and the farm. Not only did I want her here with me, I needed the family feud to end. We all needed a fresh start … There was only one way I could see to entice Mum on to that plane …
‘I don’t like to admit it but,’ I paused, ‘emotional blackmail.’