Vivien's Heavenly Ice Cream Shop (22 page)

‘This is her again, isn’t it?’ she said.

Imogen read slowly over her shoulder. ‘Definitely,’ she said, annoyed. ‘There’s no doubt about it. Different name, but you can tell – she’s even used some of the same phrases later on.
Appalling
 – that’s one of her favourites.’

‘It’s clearly Sue,’ Anna said, turning on her stool to face Imogen. ‘I don’t know how we missed it. How do you think she heard about the food-poisoning stuff?’

‘I don’t know, but people talk, don’t they? It could be that she knows Jill and Jeffrey, the couple who were affected.’

‘That’s possible,’ Anna said. ‘Look, I know we said we’d
ignore this, but I feel like we need to do something. What if it gets worse?’

‘I agree,’ Imogen said reluctantly. ‘I mean I doubt she’d have the courage to do anything that doesn’t involve skulking behind a computer screen under a fake name, but you never know.’

‘But what do we do?’

Imogen picked up the address book and flicked through it until she found Sue’s name. There, as she’d hoped, were Sue’s details. ‘Her address is in here,’ she said, pointing at it.

‘So, what, are you suggesting we go round and confront her?’ Anna said.

‘Kind of,’ Imogen said. ‘Don’t get annoyed, but I’m actually suggesting
you
go round and confront her. I know it’s partly my fault we’re in this mess, but I think it’s going to have to be you, for the sake of the business.’

‘Me?’ Anna said, a surge of adrenalin running through her. ‘Why? I can’t!’

‘You can,’ Imogen said. ‘You’ve got a far better record than me at conflict resolution.’

‘You’re serious, aren’t you?’ Anna said. ‘You’re going to make me go over there on my own.’

‘You know what’ll happen if I go,’ Imogen said. ‘I won’t be able to hold back from telling that woman what I really think of her – which we both know will only make things worse.’

‘OK,’ Anna said, steeling herself, and scribbling down the address on the menu pad. It wasn’t far from Vivien’s house
– she could be there in ten minutes. She ripped off the sheet of paper and put it in her wallet. ‘Wish me luck.’

‘Luck,’ Imogen said.

On the walk over, Anna mentally rehearsed what she was going to say. Calm and polite, she told herself. As long as she stayed like that, things would be OK.

She checked the address again as she arrived at the entrance to Sue’s road. Number 3a. She took a deep breath, went to the door and pressed the buzzer.

The door opened a crack, held back by the chain. Sue’s eyes peered through the gap.

‘You,’ Sue said bitterly. ‘Nothing to say to you.’

She closed the door in Anna’s face. Anna stood there on the doorstep. How was she supposed to reason with a woman who was so set on hating her and Imogen? She considered turning to go, then pressed the buzzer one more time. If her grandmother could find something to like about this woman, then there had to be a way for her to do so too.

‘I thought I made myself clear,’ Sue said, talking through the gap again.

‘Five minutes,’ Anna said. ‘That’s all I’m asking. Just hear me out.’

The door closed and Anna heard the clanking of the chain as Sue undid it. ‘Five minutes. And I’m only doing this for your grandmother’s sake.’

Sue stood back and Anna passed her and went through into the hallway. ‘Through there,’ Sue said, motioning for her to go through into her compact living room.

Anna sat down and tried to remember what she’d planned to say now that she was actually here.

Sue sat opposite her on a flowered armchair next to her gas fire. On the mantelpiece were framed photos of her family – a young man and woman in a wedding photo, and a baby girl in a pink bonnet. Despite her cold expression, Sue looked somehow softer here in her own home.

‘I’m sorry, Sue, about what happened,’ Anna started.

Sue raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.

‘I mean, I’m sorry about what we did, letting you go. I know our grandmother thought a great deal of you – she told me so herself.’

‘She did?’ Sue said.

‘Yes. And if there hadn’t been two of us working at the shop already, we might have come to a different decision.’ A white lie never hurt anyone, Anna reassured herself.

‘It was all a bit brutal,’ Sue said. ‘And sudden, I must say. When I heard that the business was staying in the family, I assumed my job would be safe. Thought you would look out for me, just like Vivien did. Didn’t expect to be tossed aside like a bit of rubbish.’

‘We didn’t mean to make you feel that way.’ Anna thought back to how she and Imogen had reacted after Sue left the shop, with relieved laughter. It seemed callous now. ‘I’m sorry. We had to make a plan for the business, and there was hardly any money left over after we factored in the essentials. It was a business decision, pure and simple.’

‘Well, let me tell you, I know all about hardly any money
left over,’ Sue said. ‘This thing –’ she pointed to the gas fire next to her – ‘barely had it on this winter. And what little Jamie used to bring round to me –’ she glanced up at the picture of the young man on his wedding day –‘that’s gone now that he’s inside.’

‘That must be hard,’ Anna said.

‘Yes. But not as hard as the judgements,’ Sue said, shaking her head. ‘Neighbours staring. I know they’re talking about me too, thinking that I’m a bad mother. Looking at his wife, Sally, the same way. Even little Carrie-Ann’s had stick at school for it – seven years old, and she’s getting a hard time about her dad’s stealing.’

Sue’s hands were clasped in her lap. ‘It was wrong what he did,’ she said. ‘But he’s not a bad man, Jamie. Six months out of work – with a mortgage and a child to support – it did something to him.’

Anna nodded, listening.

‘It wasn’t right what I did either,’ Sue said. ‘I know why you’re here. The reviews I wrote. But I was angry.’

‘I can see why,’ Anna said.

‘Your grandmother,’ Sue said, ‘she was the first person round here not to judge me. When the news came out, all the neighbours were gossiping in the corner shop. Thought I couldn’t hear them, but of course I could. And you know what your grandmother did?’

Anna waited for her to go on.

‘She was straight round here, knocked on my door. Gave me a card, and a soft toy for Carrie-Ann. Said she was thinking
of us all. Two weeks later, she offered me the job.’

That was Granny V
, Anna thought to herself. That was her all over. And today had shown that she and Imogen still had a lot to learn from her about compassion.

‘I didn’t know her well,’ Sue said, ‘but there was something special in that woman.’

‘She had a good heart,’ Anna said. ‘How much longer is it, until Jamie gets home?’

‘Two months,’ Sue said slowly. ‘Sally’s got a job working school hours at the deli now. That’s made things a bit easier. It’s Jamie’s chances when he gets out I’m worried about.’

‘I’m sorry there’s not more we can do to help,’ Anna said.

‘Things change,’ Sue said. ‘Maybe I should have understood that better from the start. It’s not you and your sister’s fault. Not really. Seemed like an easy answer, but let’s face it – life’s not often that straightforward, is it now?’

‘No,’ Anna said, the complex reality of the situation sinking in. ‘It really isn’t.’

‘Hi, Mum, is Dad there?’ Anna said. ‘I wanted to check in with him, after everything that’s happened.’

‘Yes, love,’ Jan replied, sounding more positive than she had in a while. ‘I’ll just put him on.’

‘Hi, Anna,’ her dad said. ‘How are you?’

‘I’m fine. And you, how did things go after we left the other day?’

‘It wasn’t exactly comfortable, as you’d expect. But Françoise and Martin left politely.’

‘Thanks for sticking up for us.’

‘You don’t need to thank me,’ Tom said. ‘I was only doing what any father would do. Martin’s been letting that woman run riot over his life since the day they got married, but I’ll be damned if she thinks she can interfere in our family too.’

Anna smiled to herself. ‘You sound better.’

‘Well, it’s up and down, but that argument certainly woke something up in me. And it feels good to feel something.’

‘You must miss Granny V a lot still.’

‘Of course I do,’ Tom said. ‘Her calls every day. The homemade biscuits she’d send over in packages, do you remember those?’

‘Yes. I miss those too.’

‘It still feels incomplete without her here, in our family. Like there’s a gap where she used to be. It was difficult being in her house, all that space that she used to fill with her chat and her laughter. It seems so big and empty now. But the house is one of the last things we have of her, and I’ve made it clear to Martin that I want us to keep it for a little while.’

‘He agreed?’

‘Yes,’ Tom said. ‘He’s called off the plan with the developers. Whenever we’re on our own we can work things out. It’s when Françoise is around that the problems start. Anyway, for now at least she’ll be keeping her nose out of
your business at the shop. Should be smooth sailing for you two now.’

‘Yes, something like that,’ Anna said. How could she gloss over things, pretend that everything was OK? He deserved to know how things really stood, financially. ‘I wanted to talk to you about that, actually,’ Anna said, taking a deep breath. ‘As you know, we’ve had some issues getting started, but what I didn’t mention is that we’re running lower on funds than we expected.’

‘Didn’t Mum leave you something to start up with?’

‘Yes,’ Anna said. ‘But we’ve been getting through it much faster than we thought. I’m thinking of getting a loan to tide us over.’

‘Sounds sensible,’ he said, without hesitation. ‘Most small businesses do it at some point, don’t they? I’m sure whatever decision you make will be the right one.’

‘OK,’ Anna said, feeling relieved at her father’s reaction. It was as if he’d somehow given her permission to take what had felt like a risky step. ‘Thanks, Dad.’

After speaking to her dad, Anna talked her plan over with Imogen, then called up and made an appointment with the building society. She met with the same small business advisor as before, and the woman was understanding about the challenges they were facing. She couldn’t offer a large loan, but what the bank could lend would be enough to help them get back on their feet again. Once more, Vivien’s stood a fighting chance.

As she stepped out into the bustling high street, Anna took out her mobile and dialled Imogen’s number.

‘Time to get sourcing the figs and vanilla pods,’ Anna said.

‘Really?’ Imogen said, sounding excited.

‘Yes, we’ve got a new loan. But promise me, this time … ’

‘I will buy nothing—’ Imogen said, in a sombre tone—‘I repeat nothing – not even fancy wafer cones – without consulting you.’

‘Correct.’

‘In other news,’ Imogen said cheerfully, ‘the van’s fixed, and it barely cost us a penny. Finn did it. Do you fancy taking it for a test drive?’

‘I’d love to. And now that the heat’s off, I think I actually mean that. But I’m going to meet Jon after work – I want to fill him in.’

‘OK, see you in the shop tomorrow and we can start buying in some stock. Thanks, Anna. I know we’ll get there.’

‘We will,’ Anna said, feeling for the first time in days that it might just be true.

She wandered slowly through the Lanes in the direction of Jon’s office; she was really looking forward to sharing some good news about the ice cream shop with him. Lately, it seemed as if all she’d done was talk to him about everything that had been going wrong with it.

The concrete-and-steel offices of his brand management firm, EnVision, were easy to spot beyond the low-rise Georgian
houses. She walked up to the entrance and stepped through the revolving glass doors that led to the reception.

‘Hi,’ she said to the young receptionist. ‘Could you call up to Jon Garrehy please? It’s Anna, his girlfriend.’

As the receptionist checked her phone list, Anna glanced around at the reception area, dotted with bright reclining chairs and beanbags. She suddenly felt a little out of place in the formal suit she’d worn to her meeting at the building society.

‘I’m sorry, I can’t do that,’ the receptionist said finally.

‘Are you sure? It’s not normally a problem.’

‘I’m afraid I can’t help you.’

Anna undid one of the buttons on her jacket. She felt hot and awkward.

‘Why’s that?’ she said. ‘I’ve never had any issues before, and I used to drop by here quite often. I know it’s a personal visit, but … ’

The phone started to ring.

‘It’s not that,’ the receptionist said, smiling apologetically as she went to take the call. ‘Jon Garrehy left the company three weeks ago. He doesn’t work here any more.’

Anna stood, bewildered for a moment, then slowly walked back out into the street. She took out her phone and called Jon’s mobile. There must be some kind of a mistake. The receptionist had been new, so she could easily have made an error.

‘You’ve reached the answerphone of Jon Garrehy. Please leave a message.’

Anna pressed the red button, then immediately tried
again. When the same thing happened, she put her mobile away in her handbag and took a deep breath. There must be some explanation, she told herself, and there was no point trying to work out what was going on before she spoke to Jon. What she needed was a walk to clear her head. She found herself heading in the direction of the Pavilion Gardens.

She sat down on a park bench, overlooking the grand white pavilion that she’d worked for so long to promote. Jon had mentioned that his work situation had changed, but that was all. He certainly hadn’t said anything to suggest he had left the company. She tried his mobile one last time, then hung up again at the message.

After a few minutes, she got up to leave, and as she did she spotted a callbox. She stepped in, brought up Jon’s mobile number on her own phone and tapped it in on the buttons of the callbox.

After a couple of rings, he picked up. ‘Hello, Jon speaking.’

She held her breath, tried to stop any sound from escaping. Her mind raced. Why had he ignored all of her calls only to pick up now when her real number was withheld?