Free Found by Elle Field Page A

grasp that his health is currently in a fragile state, that he’s not out of the woods just because he’s out of hospital.
    ‘Are you still at the hotel?’ Dad asks as we move to the sofas. I look for Atlas but then remember he’s in the New Forest.
    ‘We are,’ I groan as I pick up a cushion to squish since Atlas isn’t around for a cuddle. It doesn’t have the same comforting effect. ‘But we move the day I fly back. We tried to book an extra night but they’ve got a wedding party who booked out the entire hotel.’
    I’m only in London for three days, though I originally wanted to get a flight back immediately after the funeral until Piers convinced me to stay longer. He was right. I need to pack up some things since we’ll be living in New York for a while – I want to avoid a trip back to London if I can help it.
    I see Mum and Dad shoot a look at one another. Again .
    ‘What?’ I ask with a sigh, but they don’t say anything. ‘What?’ I demand. It’s unlike my ’rents to be secret squirrels like this.
    ‘It’s...’ Mum hesitates. Dad nods at her, reaching over to squeeze her hand reassuringly.
    Please don’t let them have bad news. I can’t cope with more bad news. I’m too tired for all of this, too emotionally drained. My cup is full. All I would like to do is crash into bed and sleep for a week but I can’t: I have to be up at the crack of dawn to head over to North London for a funeral I never imagined would happen anytime soon.
    ‘Are you putting your life on hold for Piers?’
    What ? Where has that come from? As I gawp at my parents, I wonder if I have fallen asleep and this is some twisted dream – more worrying because that makes it my preconscious that’s suggesting this.
    ‘What sort of a question is that?’ I snap angrily as my brain kicks in. ‘If Dad was ill you’d drop everything to be with him.’ I glare at Mum, and then shoot an angry look at Dad for good measure. ‘Ditto for you, Dad. What’s this really about?’
    I can’t believe she’s asked me that. Piers is my fiancé . We’re getting married . Of course I’m going to be with him in New York whilst he recovers.  
    ‘What your mother means is, shouldn’t you stay here until you’ve fully dealt with Felicity’s affairs? You’ve got a lot to sort out. You can’t ignore your responsibilities.’
    ‘We weren’t actual business partners,’ I remind them, ‘and there’s no longer a shop in Bournemouth. All the stock was sold at the pop-up.’
    Mum and Dad shoot another look at one another. They both look tired and a lot older than I remember, more weathered. If Felicity can die before her time then the same is true of my parents I realise with a sickening pang.
    ‘You’re required at the reading of the will...’ Mum trails off as I stand up angrily and walk towards the window, a bubble of fear spiking in me. The view isn’t as impressive as the one from the hotel suite, even though I’m sure that any visiting Americans would swoon at the sight of the grand Georgian houses on our street. Why has Felicity included me in her will? I never wanted anything from her.
    I take a deep breath and turn back around to face my parents. ‘Piers is ill,’ I state. ‘He could have died. Do you get that? We’re not in New York for some extended jolly. We’re there because he’s too ill to travel back, because he needs to recover.’
    ‘We know, sweetie, but–’
    ‘What your mum is trying to say is that you seem to be avoiding Felicity’s death. She’s gone,’ Dad softly says. ‘You need to start thinking about your business. You’ve got customers out there who want to buy from you, but they have no way of doing so. You should see all of your tweets!’ Dad tries to joke though I know, like Felicity, he didn’t get the whole social media thing when I first explained it to him.
    They sure know how to pick their moments. Do they think I don’t know that Felicity is gone? I’m going to her funeral