Unexpected Blessings

CHAPTER SEVEN

The four of them walked slowly around the perimeter of the estate – Jack Figg, Gideon Harte, Evan Hughes and Desmond O’Neill. Jack had a captive audience and he was in his element. He was talking about his favourite subject, Security with a capital S, and he did so enthusiastically.

‘For years all that’s ever been needed here are burglar alarms, because there are so many people around most of the time … Wiggs and his gardeners, the stable lads, Joe and his estate workers. But it’s very different now. We’re living in dangerous times, things are not the same anymore. England’s changed and not for the better,’ Jack pointed out.

‘You’re absolutely right in everything you say,’ Gideon answered. ‘It’s the same at Allington Hall, by the way. My father hasn’t got proper security either, except for alarms, and it’s downright neglectful when you think about it … all those horses, valuable horses, for example.’

Desmond said, ‘Uncle Winston has been talking about security with Dad. I heard them wittering on about it a few weeks ago. But I think Dad and Uncle Winston are very trusting.’

‘Perhaps that’s true when it comes to their homes,’ said Gideon. ‘But I know for a fact that your father is extremely high on security for all the O’Neill hotels, and certainly Dad knows it’s a priority at the newspaper offices, the television network and our radio stations.’ He glanced at Jack. ‘I’m hiring you right now to overhaul the security system at Allington Hall. And I’d like you to tackle the newspaper offices, television studios, radio stations as well. Make sure we’ve got the latest.’

‘Thanks for your vote of confidence, Gideon,’ Jack said, ‘but I will be hiring outside companies, if that’s all right. Of course I’ll be working with them, supervising.’

Gideon nodded.

‘One thing’s for sure, the store has huge security in place,’ Evan volunteered, smiling at Jack. ‘And I know you’re responsible for that.’

‘Yes, it was always at the top of my list when I was head of security at Harte’s.’

At this moment Evan’s mobile phone began to ring; she reached into her pocket and pulled it out. Bringing it to her ear, she said, ‘Hello?’

‘Hi, Evan honey, it’s me,’ Owen said.

‘Dad! Hi! It’s nice to hear your voice.’ As she spoke she walked away, giving Gideon a wide smile, went to sit on a drystone wall. She watched the three men as they moved on, talking between themselves in an animated way.

‘I can’t wait for you to get here. I’m dying to see you and Mom,’ she continued.

‘We’re here already, honey,’ Owen announced, a chuckle in his voice.

‘You are! But why didn’t you let me know you were coming earlier?’ she exclaimed, startled by this news but not unduly put out. ‘When did you get to London, Dad?’

‘Wednesday night. Three days ago. I decided to change the date so we could recover from our jet lag before we started running around. Anyway, we’d love to see you today if you can make it. Your mother’s excited about your new apartment, and so am I. We thought we’d come over later.’

‘Oh Dad, it would have been great, but I’m not in London. I’m in Yorkshire.’

‘Oh, are you working up there?’ he asked.

‘No, not today, not on Saturday. I came up for a few days of rest, and I’ll be here until next Wednesday, since I do have to help India with certain things at the Leeds store. I have to spend three days there, so I guess I won’t see you until next Thursday, which is when I get back.’

‘I see.’ He sounded disappointed, his voice suddenly flat. ‘Too bad, honey,’ he added. ‘Thursday it is then.’

‘I’m so sorry, Dad. I didn’t know you were coming early and I made my plans around your original date. Gee, I don’t know if I can change things –’ Her voice trailed off as she wondered how to reschedule everything; she knew she couldn’t do so, at least not very easily.

‘Your mother wants to talk to you, to say hello, Evan.’

‘Put her on, Dad.’ A moment later she was exclaiming, ‘Hi, Mom, it’s so good to hear you. How are you?’

‘I’m very well these days, Evan,’ her mother said, her voice loving and warm. ‘I gather you’re not around.’

‘No, I’m in Yorkshire. I didn’t expect you until next week.’

‘I know, I know. I told your father you’d probably be busy, but you mustn’t worry about us. We’ll see you as soon as you return. At least, I hope we will.’

‘Absolutely. The hotel’s nice and cosy, isn’t it, Mom? I know George and Arlette must’ve made you very comfortable there, haven’t they?’

‘Yes to both your questions. They miss you, of course, now that you’ve moved out. But I don’t blame you, it’s nice to have a place of your own, isn’t it, Evan?’

‘Yes, it is,’ she laughed. ‘Oh Mom, I can’t wait to get back to town now I know you and Dad are there.’ She meant this, and she was particularly pleased that her mother sounded so normal. That was the only word for it. Normal. And yes, happy. Actually happy. She who was always depressed.

They went on talking for a few more minutes, and after promising to phone them at the hotel tomorrow, Evan clicked off the cell. She hurried after Gideon and the others, whom she could just see in the distance, heading for the front gates of Pennistone Royal.

It was true, she was glad her parents had arrived in London. She hadn’t seen them since January, and it was now August. Eight months in which so much had happened. Her life had changed in many different ways. And, in a sense, she had changed. She was a different person. She couldn’t wait to see them, but at the same time she was slightly apprehensive. Although she and Robin had agreed, only a few days ago, that she would not tell her father about him, there were, nonetheless, many other things she had to discuss. Difficult things.

Tessa stood at the window of her bedroom, looking down at the driveway, her eyes on Jack Figg. He stood talking to Gideon, gesticulating, obviously explaining something to him and to Desmond who was with them.

She guessed it had to do with security. Jack had brought in a number of experts since Adele’s disappearance on Wednesday, and for the past few days scores of men had been digging, laying cables, hauling in cameras and monitors and all manner of other devices. Linnet said they had been invaded by an army, and that’s how it seemed to her, too. Parts of the estate had been mangled, but she didn’t care about the mess they had made. Things could be put right once they had completed their task and left; Wiggs had told Linnet and her not to worry about it. And so she wasn’t going to, kept reminding herself the most important thing was that Pennistone Royal was being made impenetrable.

Turning away from the window, Tessa moved through the bedroom and went into her small sitting room which adjoined. She glanced around, as always filling with pleasure when she was in this intimate room, loving the way it looked. The walls were primrose, there were yellow-and-red draperies at the windows made of a toile de Jouy cotton, and the small loveseat next to the fireplace was upholstered in a yellow-and-white flower print. It was a cheerful, sunny room, and it had been hers since she was a little girl; it was her safe haven now as it had been then.

She paused in front of the Victorian mirror hanging on the side wall, staring at herself, not liking what she saw. She felt totally drained and she realized she looked it; her face was a ghostly white and there were dark smudges under her eyes. Because she had not eaten much over the last few days her face seemed narrower, and it was taut with lingering tension. Only her silver-blonde hair was as beautiful as it always was.

Sighing under her breath, moving away from the mirror, Tessa went and sat down at her desk, the French bureau plat which had stood in the same spot for as long as she could remember. Next to the big yellow porcelain lamp was a photograph of Adele taken earlier in the summer, and she reached out, touched the child’s image with one finger. An overwhelming feeling of the most intense love for her daughter surged through her and Tessa was more deeply aware than ever that her child took precedence before anyone on this planet, and certainly before anything else in her life.

Mark’s abduction of Adele had changed her forever. Tessa had understood that within a few hours of her little girl’s disappearance. Now she realized that in the next few days she would have to start assessing her entire life, in order to decide what to do, what changes to make. And there would be changes. She wasn’t prepared to sacrifice her daughter’s well-being for her career. Suddenly, being the boss of Harte’s one day lost its lustre, at least for the moment. Perhaps her attitude would change when everything settled down, when Mark had been neutralized, although she was sure …

A few gentle taps on the door interrupted Tessa’s chain of thoughts, and she exclaimed, ‘Come in!’

The door opened and Elvira’s face appeared around it. ‘Could I have a word with you please, Mrs Longden?’

‘Yes, of course, Elvira.’ Noticing at once that the nanny was alone, she asked swiftly, ‘Where’s Adele?’

‘She’s fine, Mrs Longden, perfectly safe. She’s with Margaret in the kitchen, giving a tea party for her dolls.’

‘I’m sorry, Elvira, you did tell me that was what you’d planned.’ Tessa forced a smile. ‘I think I’m getting paranoid.’

‘No, you’re not, and anyway it would be natural, wouldn’t it?’ Elvira hovered in front of the desk, twisting her hands together and looking worried.

‘What’s wrong, Elvi?’ Tessa asked, using the diminutive, hoping to put the nervous young woman at ease.

‘Mrs Longden, there’s something I need to tell you … I saw Mr Longden on Wednesday morning, just after leaving the estate. He was sitting in a car with another man, about halfway down the road, and he … well, he flagged me down. I think he recognized my car.’

Tessa’s eyes narrowed instantly and she asked in an urgent voice, ‘Who was the other man? Did you know him, Elvi?’

The nanny shook her head. ‘No, I didn’t, Mrs Longden. I’d never seen him before. Anyway, Mr Longden just said hello, told me he was on his way to see Adele, and asked if you were about or had you gone to the Harrogate store? And I said no, you were at Pennistone Royal, working in the library and that Adele was on the terrace playing –’ She broke off. Tears sprang into her eyes, and she tried to flick them away with her fingertips. ‘I wish I hadn’t stopped, just driven on, I feel so responsible for what happened.’

‘Oh, Elvira, you mustn’t. It wasn’t your fault,’ Tessa replied, her tone kindly. ‘But why didn’t you tell me before? After all, you were back on Wednesday evening, just when Mr Longden returned Adele. Surely that was the time to say something?’

‘It was, yes, you’re right, but you were agitated, and exhausted, and I was very distressed myself, thrown if you know what I mean.’

‘Today’s Saturday, Elvi.’

‘I know, but on Thursday and Friday you were ever so preoccupied and busy with Mr Figg. I didn’t really like to disturb you. I did keep trying to find the right moment, but there just wasn’t one. Besides, I was a bit afraid, to be honest, I felt very guilty about talking to Mr L. And I thought you’d be angry with me.’

‘Never mind all of that. Now, tell me, Elvi, do you think Mr Longden was parked down the road here actually waiting for you? Do you think he was expecting you to leave Pennistone Royal around the time you did?’

‘I don’t know, Mrs Longden, but I always have the same routine on my day off. I usually leave about ten or ten-thirty. And he knows Wednesday is my day off, I’ve always taken Wednesday ever since I began to work for you when Adele was a baby.’

Tessa inclined her head. ‘I understand, and let’s forget it. However, Elvira, if anything ever happens, anything at all, that you think is strange, you must tell me.’

‘I will, Mrs Longden, I will, I promise.’ The nanny attempted a smile but it didn’t quite materialize, and she added, ‘Well then, I’d better get back to Adele.’ Without another word she scurried out.

Left alone in her lovely sunny room which she had always loved, Tessa felt oddly alien and chilled, and just a little frightened once again. Mark had obviously planned the abduction very carefully, right down to the last detail … waiting for Elvira on the roadside, quizzing her, and then swooping in and scooping up Adele. While his accomplice, whoever that was, did all that dialling on a mobile phone. She shivered involuntarily, and bit her lip, and suddenly her eyes filled with worry.

After a few moments Tessa managed to calm herself and she made a vow to outwit Mark Longden. Whatever it took that was what she was going to do. Outwit him.

‘My parents are here,’ Evan said, staring at Gideon.

A look of genuine surprise crossed his face, and then his brows met in a puzzled frown. ‘I thought they were coming next week?’

‘They were. Dad changed the date, he said he wanted a chance for them to get over their jet lag. Anyway, they’re in London. At the hotel. That was Dad on my mobile when we were walking with Jack.’

Evan and Gideon were seated at the table under the old oak tree at the bottom of the lawns which sloped away from the back terrace of Pennistone Royal. Gideon Harte put down his glass of white wine and leaned across the wrought-iron garden table. ‘So when am I going to meet them?’ he asked. When she didn’t immediately answer, he said, ‘I am going to meet them, aren’t I?’

‘Of course. But I thought I’d better see them by myself first. On Thursday when I get back to London. It has been eight months and there’s a lot to catch up on, and I just think it’s better that I see them alone.’ Evan didn’t add that they might resent his presence, although she was thinking that.

‘I understand,’ he said, and went on swiftly: ‘Tell you what, I’ll take the three of you to dinner on Friday evening. Somewhere really nice.’ He spoke in a firm voice that forbade argument and looked at her very intently. There was a steely glint in his eyes.

‘That’ll be great,’ Evan responded softly, realizing it was better to acquiesce rather than refuse for the time being.

Gideon experienced a small stab of dismay at her lack of enthusiasm which was obvious and made him feel suddenly awkward, and he reached out, took hold of her hand. His green eyes bored into hers. ‘I know I’ve said this before, but I’m in love with you, Evan.’

‘I know that.’

‘And what about you? How do you really feel about me?’

‘I’m in love with you, Gideon,’ she replied, her voice suddenly intimate, very loving. ‘You know I am.’

He realized she was being sincere, and now he relaxed, smiled, squeezed her hand. ‘I want to spend the rest of my life with you, as if you didn’t know that, and I want to marry you. I know I’ve said that to you before, but I’m asking you again … Evan, please marry me.’

There was only a fractional hesitation on her part before she agreed. ‘Yes,’ she said. ‘I will, Gideon.’

‘Let’s tell your parents on Friday over dinner! Then it will be official and we’ll phone my parents in New York to give them the good news. Do let’s get engaged.’ Without waiting for her reply, he grinned and rushed on, ‘I’ve got a confession to make. I’ve had your engagement ring for ages.’

‘You have?’ Evan’s grey-blue eyes sparkled and she began to laugh. ‘Gee, you sure are sure of yourself, aren’t you?’ Her voice was teasing, full of laughter.

‘I could only hope, my love, I could only hope. Actually, I can’t give it to you at this moment, because it’s not in my pocket. But I wish it were, so I could slip it onto your finger immediately. Unfortunately, it’s locked up at Allington Hall.’

‘Well, at least it’s good to know it’s in Yorkshire,’ she quipped.

‘I’ll give it to you tonight, and can we tell your parents next week?’ he pressed.

Evan took a deep breath and blew out a few puffs of air. ‘I’d like to tell them when we have dinner, but I’m still a bit worried about the Robin–Dad situation. I haven’t made my mind up … I don’t know what to do about that yet.’ She frowned and shook her head, groping for words that would accurately describe what she felt. ‘I’m so ambivalent, and having to tell Dad that his father wasn’t his biological father is going to be –’

‘Let’s not go there, let’s not get things confused,’ Gideon exclaimed, sounding impatient. ‘Our engagement doesn’t have anything to do with Robin, your father and Richard Hughes.’

‘But it does, because my father –’

‘Evan, please don’t start with that whole business of us being related. My grandmother Elizabeth and your grandfather Robin are brother and sister, but that isn’t troublesome. A genealogical chart would show that we are cousins a few times removed. So what! In this country it’s not illegal to marry even a first cousin, so we’re certainly within the law. And I don’t believe those old wives’ tales about children of cousins being born afflicted with something. My parents are cousins, yet Toby, Natalie and I are perfectly all right. Not that you’ve met Nat yet, what with her being in Australia at the moment. But you can take my word for it, my sister’s as perfectly healthy and sane as me and Toby.’

‘Oh Gid, don’t get angry, please don’t. I do love you very much, and being related has nothing to do with it. I do want to marry you. It’s just that my father seems to bear a grudge against the Hartes, and I want to find out why that is, Gideon. Can’t you understand that?’

‘Yes, I can. I know it’s important to you that my parents like you, and they do. In fact, they really approve of you. However, please understand that even if they didn’t like you, I would still marry you. They can’t live my life for me, and I would never permit them to influence me about my choice of a wife.’ He frowned, his eyes scanning her face as he finished. ‘Don’t you feel that way, too? Surely you believe in your own convictions, your own choices, don’t you?’

‘I certainly do. I’m my own person. But I want to get to the root of his dislike of the Hartes, so please try and accept that. Ultimately, whatever he says, and what my mother says, won’t alter my decision. I am going to marry you.’ A few moments ago he had released her hand; now it was Evan who reached out and grabbed his. ‘I think I know what it’s about, Gideon.’

‘You do? Then for God’s sake tell me, don’t keep me in the dark.’

‘It’s all to do with class differences, I think. Money, privilege, upbringing, background, those kind of things. Your life as opposed to mine. Look, my family wasn’t, isn’t, dirt poor. Not rich either, but there was always enough money for the things we needed. Not a lot of disposable income, I’m sure of that, but my sisters and I never wanted for anything. We had decent if somewhat plain clothes, yearly vacations, and we went to good schools. But in my father’s mind I come from a different world from yours, Gideon, and he believes there will inevitably be a clash, that a relationship with you will only end in unhappiness for me. In a way, I think he believes I’m not good enough for you, that I don’t have the right pedigree.’

Gideon was startled, and finally he said in a very quiet voice, ‘He sounds as if he’s extremely prejudiced, Evan, and a little bit out of date.’

‘Dad is old-fashioned. Stubborn and opinionated as well. And, yes, you’re right, he’s very prejudiced.’

‘And what about your mother? How will she react to our engagement?’

‘I’m not sure … I think she’ll be pleased if she knows I’m happy. But to be truthful, I don’t know my mother very well. All those years of … of her being ill, being a manic depressive, those years took their toll on our relationship, Gid. We missed out on such a lot when I was growing up, and I regret that. I wish we’d been closer then, I really do.’

‘I can understand that. Did you speak to her this morning?’ he asked.

‘Dad put her on, and you know what? I thought she sounded different. Much more like a normal person, no hint of depression, at least not in her voice, and it struck me that she sounded real happy. I can barely remember her sounding, or being, happy ever in my life. It was such a peculiar feeling, I was taken aback. But I was happy that she was happy.’

Gideon found this last statement so sad he didn’t speak for a moment, contemplating Evan’s mother and her illness. How terrible for someone to have lived that way for most of their life, virtually a prisoner trapped inside their own pain. A sudden rush of sympathy for Evan made him exclaim, ‘It can’t have been easy for you as a child. I’m so sorry, Evan.’

There was a moment’s silence; Evan looked off into the distance, staring up at Pennistone Royal, that great stately home sitting atop the hill, thinking about her childhood in Connecticut … It had been so bleak in many ways, and yet there had been her father, and of course her grandmother, who were her great boosters.

Evan’s face brightened and she exclaimed, ‘There was always Glynnis. She was there for me, my lovely gran. It was she who really brought me up, and she was – just wonderful.’

‘I bet she was. And she was truly beautiful, if that snap you showed me this morning is anything to go by,’ Gideon murmured.

Evan nodded. ‘It’s amazing to think that Robin kept it all these years.’

‘It’s obvious he had a real big thing about her, my sweet, just as I do about you. I wish we could go back to Allington Hall and make love.’

She laughed, shaking her head. ‘I do, too, but we can’t.’

‘I realize that. I have a sinking feeling that we’re stuck here for lunch. With Tessa.’

‘Yes, and Jack Figg. Just the four of us.’

‘Oh. Where’re Linnet and India?’

‘Linnet told me she was going to the Harrogate store, and later to see Sir Ronald. Julian’s brought him up from London, but he’s not well apparently. Julian’s worried about his grandfather. She was going over for lunch with them, and India’s meeting a friend.’

‘Thank God Jack’s here, he’s good company,’ Gideon said. ‘Tessa can be hard to take. How is she, by the way? I guess it was some ordeal on Wednesday.’

‘It was. She really suffered, as I told you. There were moments when I thought she was going to pass out from anxiety. She was frantic. Yesterday she seemed a bit better, less agitated, but so quiet. She seems to alternate between looking worried and being preoccupied. Linnet thinks she’s changed a lot in two days, but I’m not sure.’

‘I hope it’s for the better,’ he shot back succinctly.

They sat and finished their drinks in silence and then Gideon said suddenly, ‘I guess we’d better wend our way.’ They rose, picked up their empty glasses and began to walk slowly up the hill. It was still scorching hot and the blue sky and brilliant sunlight combined to make it the most gorgeous August day.

Gideon stole a look at Evan, thinking how young and fresh she looked in her strapless cotton sundress and sandals. She was not wearing any make-up except for a touch of lipstick, and she suddenly seemed vulnerable and tender and he wanted to protect her, cherish her. He couldn’t help thinking what a strange childhood she must have had with a depressive mother. Several times she had expressed worry about her own chances of inheriting her mother’s illness, wondering aloud to him if it was genetic. He wasn’t sure about that, but after eight months he knew her well now; he was quite certain she had not inherited that troubling disease, would not fall prey to it.

As for Evan, she was also thinking about her mother, wondering what had brought about this change in her … at least what had made her sound so … upbeat. There was just no other word for it. Her thoughts flew to her father: she dreaded the idea of telling him he was part Harte, that she was part Harte, and that she was contemplating marrying a Harte. Trouble lies ahead, she thought. I’m going to have trouble with Dad, especially about Gideon.

She stole a surreptitious look at him through the corner of her eye, and her heart seemed to melt within her. He was the nicest, kindest man she had ever met, not to mention charming and good-looking with his reddish-blond hair and green eyes. Emma Harte’s colouring, she thought, the same as Linnet and his father. He was a full-blooded Harte and she was half Harte, but so what? She loved him very much and she had every intention of marrying him, no matter what her father said. Well, I’ve finally made up my mind, she thought, at least about Gideon. And she smiled to herself, pleased.

‘Where have you been, Emma? Dad’s been looking for you all over the place. It’s about Lady Hamilton Clothes.’ As he spoke Sir Ronald Kallinski adjusted his glasses and peered at the couple standing in front of him. The sun was behind them and he could not see them properly; he blinked several times, focusing first on the woman and then on the man.

‘Is that you, Michael? What are you doing with Emma? You’re delaying her.’

‘Grandfather, it’s me, Julian, not my father. And this is Linnet, my fiancée, not Emma. You know Linnet, Grandfather, she’s Paula’s daughter, Emma’s great-granddaughter. We’re engaged, remember?’

‘Yes,’ the old man said vaguely, sitting up straighter on the sofa.

‘I think you must’ve been dozing, Grandfather, and having a dream perhaps – about the old days, eh?’ Julian smiled at him.

Sir Ronald blinked again and peered at the couple. ‘Of course it’s you, Julian, and Linnet! I suppose it’s possible I was daydreaming about the past, that’s what you do when you’re over ninety: dream about the days long ago, live with the memories. I’m one of the last, you know, except for Bryan O’Neill, Linnet’s grandfather, and Edwina, Robin and Elizabeth. All of the others are gone now. Yes, I’m one of the last.’

‘That’s true, but you’re pretty healthy,’ Julian said in a strong, reassuring voice, motioning for Linnet to sit down next to his grandfather on the sofa. He took the chair opposite them; he was worried about his grandfather, to whom he was close, and cared about his well-being.

Sir Ronald turned to gaze at Linnet, and said in a voice tinged with awe, ‘But my goodness, Linnet, you could be her. Now, when I look at you, I feel as if I’m seeing a ghost, a reincarnation. You’re the spitting image of Emma, lass.’

‘I know, Uncle Ronnie, everyone tells me that.’ She smiled at him and went on, ‘Julian and I have come to have lunch with you, and tell you about our marriage plans.’

‘Although I’m a bit doddery on my feet, I’ll be there!’ Sir Ronald announced in a voice much stronger. ‘You can be damned sure of that. I’ve not made any plans for dying, oh no, not just yet. I still have too much damage to do.’ He began to smile. ‘It’s going to be the joy of my life, seeing you two get married. It was always a dream of Emma’s … that a Kallinski and a Harte would wed one day.’

‘And don’t forget I’m also part O’Neill,’ Linnet reminded him. ‘So Julian and I will be linking the three clans when we tie the knot.’

He nodded. ‘That’s fantastic, my dear. And what’s the date then? Last time I asked, you said you didn’t know. Julian, do you know yet?’

‘We haven’t settled on the actual date, Grandfather. But it will be during the first week of December, probably the first Saturday. We’ll make a final decision in a few days.’

‘And where will you be wed?’ he asked, beaming at them. Their arrival had cheered him immensely. Nothing like the young to keep you young.

‘Mummy wanted it to be at the church in Pennistone Royal village, but now we’re not too sure about that … there seem to be a lot of people to invite. So Dad’s been talking about Ripon Cathedral.’

‘Aye, that’s a grand place, a very beautiful cathedral indeed. Your father sang “The Minstrel Boy” there, long, long before you were born, Linnet.’

‘Yes,’ she said softly, ‘at Emma’s funeral, wasn’t it? He told me about it once.’

‘Aye, it was. Where’s your father, Julian? I thought he was coming up here this weekend.’

‘He is. He said to tell you he’ll be arriving in time for dinner, Grandfather. Now, would you like to go in for lunch? Mary told me when we arrived that we can sit down any time you wish.’

‘Well, all right, why not. Got to eat a bit, keep myself alive and kicking for your impending nuptials.’ He smiled benignly at them both. ‘I think you’ll have to help me up,’ he muttered, staring at his grandson. ‘My bones ache, you know. I’m living on borrowed time, I suspect.’ He chuckled and turning to Linnet, he said, ‘That’s what your grandfather’s always telling me, so it must be true.’