Free Lane's End by Jill Paterson Page A

could remember. A shiver went through him as it always did when his thoughts drifted into the past with its shadows and untold truths. ‘She was a bit miffed actually that Laura hadn’t got back to her,’ continued Audrey.
    ‘That’s probably because she was waiting for the right moment to bring the subject up with Dad. It’s always been a closed topic with him,’ replied Ben.
    ‘Oh, I didn’t know that. It would have made it difficult for your step-mother to broach the subject then.’
    ‘Did Emma say how else she planned to conduct her research about our mother, Audrey?’ asked Joanna.
    ‘No, although she did say that she’d spoken to a woman who’d known your Mum. I think her name was Theodora.’
    ‘Theodora Hunt?’ chimed Ben and Joanna.
    ‘Yes. That’s it. You know her then?’
    ‘She’s the wife of our father’s business partner, Emerson Hunt.’
     
     
    Ben shut the front door behind Audrey McIntyre and returned to the kitchen. ‘So, Emma went ahead with including our mother in her book after I told her it wasn’t a good idea,’ said Ben, sitting down at the kitchen table again. ‘I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, but I’d hoped she’d listened for a change.’
    ‘Saying it’s not a good idea isn’t telling her not to, Ben,’ replied Joanna.
    ‘Well, that’s what I meant.’
    ‘Then you should have spelt it out. Emma is very strong willed. Anyway, why didn’t you want our mother included in the book? I think it’s a wonderful idea. By all accounts she was a talented artist.’
    ‘I don’t doubt she was. I just thought it would cause more friction between Dad and me.’
    Joanna reflected for a moment. ‘Mmm. You’re probably right. Let’s face it, Dad never did get over you choosing a photographic career instead of academia, did he? But I did think that when you became so successful at what you do, he’d have eased off a bit.’ Joanna paused. ‘I wonder what was really at the bottom of his contempt.’
    ‘What do you mean?’
    ‘I mean that I believe there was another reason that Dad made life difficult for you. If you think about it, things weren’t much better between the two of you even before you went to university.’
    Joanna was right, of course. Things had never been good between him and Dad. Why was that? Did it have something to do with the past? After all, he knew that Lane’s End, once the Carmichael’s summer house by the sea, was a source of sorrow for his father. It was almost as if he wanted to erase it from his memory. Ben thought of his father’s last words. “He told me you s... I’m sorry...”. What had his words meant? Was he saying sorry for the hostility that had existed between them or did they have some other special significance? ‘Well, whatever it was, Joanna, it doesn’t matter now, does it?’
    ‘No, I guess not.’ Joanna picked up the solicitor’s letter again. ‘What are you going to do about this letter?’
    Ben shook his head. ‘I can’t deal with that right now.’
    ‘I think you must. After all, Dad is still a suspect in this man’s murder. You might be able to find out why he asked after you.’
    Ben shook his head. ‘It’ll have to wait, Jo. I’ve got to find Emma first.’

 
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER 9
     
     
    With his dark wavy hair falling over his forehead, his skin browned by the Middle Eastern sun, Ben Carmichael cut a striking figure as he walked into Fabrique en France later that morning. He found Theodora humming to herself while rearranging a table full of bric-a-brac, lost in her own world. A friendly woman in a light kind of way, Ben had always seen her as possessing an innocent gaiety. She had never professed to have been close to his mother, but he was comforted in the knowledge that she was, nevertheless, a link.
    Theodora looked around when the bell on the door rang, her face full of concern. ‘Ben, I’m so glad you’ve come by. I did plan to call you today. I heard about Emma on the news. I’m