Читать книгу Lady E - Jeanette Walker - Страница 8

UNSEEN FROM THE RESORT, Jillian smiled as she stopped to view the scene before her.

Rising majestically above the shore, the lighthouse stood pristine white against the sea beyond. A railing edged the parapet around the outside of the lantern-room. No longer accessible to the public, the sight always reminded her of the numerous times she had climbed the steps inside the tower. Many happy hours were spent up there with her uncle, observing the huge assortment of island birds.

She lowered her gaze to the small building attached to the base of the tower. Once housing a lighthouse keeper’s family, it was now a popular museum for tourists containing memorabilia of early island life.

Her aunt’s house stood proudly further along the sandy track. Surrounded by a neat picket fence, the charming cottage had recently been repainted brilliant white. Softening the stark exterior, blue shutters, the same hue as the roof, framed all the windows. She could see many of the shutters were closed in readiness for the impending storm.

An outbuilding, nearly obscured by tropical plants, sat beside the house.

-oOo-

“Hello! Are you there, Aunt Norma?” Jillian called, climbing the porch steps. She then stopped and peered in through the screen door that led into the kitchen of Norma’s house.

As she called, she caught sight of her Aunt sipping her cup of tea before putting it down when she heard the voice at the door. Standing and walking toward the door, she called back, “Yes, I’m here. Who is it?” and continuing before Jillian could answer, “Why Jillian! What are you doing here? Whatever’s the matter? Oh, come in, come in.” As it had done for many years, the hinge squeaked as the door was pushed open. While she spoke, looking very bewildered, Norma wrapped her arms around her niece, dragging her into a lingering hug.

“Hi Aunt Norma. Sorry if I startled you. Everyone’s okay but I may as well come straight out with it and tell you that I’ve called off my wedding,” and another tear slid down her cheek as she spoke. “Sorry, I’m a bit teary, but I’m not really upset, just relieved.”

“Oh, do come and sit down, you poor pet, you must be so distressed. I’ve just made a cup of tea and for some reason I made a large pot, so I’ll pour you one while you make yourself comfortable.”

“Thank you, that would be lovely. I could do with one.” Jillian sat in the chair her aunt had indicated and looked at the glorious sea view, before turning and accepting the cup from her aunt.

“Now, start again and tell me what you just said.”

Jillian took a sip of tea, then a deep breath and said “I called the wedding off, and no, I’m not really upset. I realized I just didn’t love Richard. Not like one should when they’re going to spend the rest of their lives with someone. I’ve been very embarrassed that I left it until the last minute to do it, but that’s the way it is and I can’t change that now.”

Stopping to drink more tea, she then continued, “Anyway, to make a long story short, I felt I needed to get away and as you were going to Brisbane anyway to keep your appointment, decided not to tell you the wedding was off. But I came up in the hope that you’d let me stay here while you’re away?”

“Of course you can stay!” Norma replied, patting Jillian on the hand. “That’d suit me really well. I was worried about my ferns all dying while I’m not here to water them. If you don’t mind doing that for me then everything should be just fine. It’s just a bit awkward as I’ve a few places I need to visit before your wedding and decided to go down a bit early. I’ve booked into a hotel in the city for a few days so no need to tell Ben and Marge. Friday will still be okay to head to them.”

Standing and placing her cup in the sink, she tried to think of details to give Jillian before she left.

“The supply boat is delayed until this storm blows over so I’m a bit low on provisions, but of course that isn’t so desperate now there’s a shop on the island.”

“Oh yes,” Jillian said absently, dragging her eyes back from the scene beyond the window. “I’ve only just heard a cyclone is brewing.”

Refilling Jillian’s cup, Norma sighed and said “At least now I can tell you I was never really fond of Richard. How did my brother take the news?” she said, trying to contain a giggle.

“Amazingly well. You always could see the funny side of any situation, couldn’t you?”

“Yes, sorry.”

“That’s okay,” chuckled Jillian, snuggling deeper into her chair. “I’ll probably laugh about this myself in a week or so, but at the moment all I want to do is put the mess right out of my mind.”

“So,” ventured Norma, “have you cancelled all the wedding arrangements, including your honeymoon?”

“Yes. Mum and dad were terrific, of course, and rang everyone they could think of immediately. Then Richard rang me and said he couldn’t cancel the honeymoon, but he could postpone it, so he will probably take it as a holiday in a year or so.”

“How did you connect with today’s flight?” Norma was still astonished at Jillian’s arrival.

“That worked out well, too,” said Jillian. “I drove to Hervey Bay last night and stayed in a motel. I left my car at the airport this morning, so I’ll give you the keys before I forget.”

Jillian picked up her handbag and rummaged through it, while her Aunt asked with a puzzled look on her face, “Why are you giving me keys?”

“You can drive it to Brisbane rather than having to hire a car. It’s new. A pretty pink Kia,” Jillian explained with a grin on her face.

“What’s wrong with it?” her Aunt queried.

“Nothing. I just remembered I picked it as it is the same color as Sophie’s bridesmaid dress. I just fell in love with the color.”

Jillian then explained further, “It has a fancy burglar-proof locking device, that’s why the remote is a little larger than usual. You’ll find it in the second row of the airport carpark. If you’re not sure which one it is, just press the remote unlock and the lights should flash at you.” Jillian laughed at the thought of her aunt prowling around trying to find her car.

She passed the keys to her Aunt who said “That’ll be terrific. In my haste to get organized I’d forgotten to book a car. But it’s your new one?”

Zipping the keys into a side pocket in her blue leather handbag, she added, “I hope I don’t put a dent in it!”

Jillian explained further, “I had my suitcase already packed for my honeymoon, so I just opened it, took a few dresses out and put in extra old clothes for scarping around the beaches. And here I am!”

“Where were you going for your honeymoon?” her aunt enquired, still trying to let all this information sink in.

“Hayman in the Whitsundays, so I was well packed, apart from a few evening dresses that I won’t get to wear here. They can stay packed on the bottom of the suitcase. Everything else was suitable.”

“Well, you always were full of surprises Jillian. I’m glad to see you haven’t changed. But I’d better think about moving over to the airstrip in case Brad goes off without me.”

“No, that’s okay. Brad said he’d bring my case over and collect you as he had a few extra things he had to attend to before taking off.”

“Oh good. As I don’t have to rush off, I’ll just go over the house with you to remind you where everything is kept,” she said smiling, still thinking she should pinch herself to make sure all this was happening.

She went on “As you can see, in case this storm arrives, I’ve closed all the shutters on the windows except for the ones here in the kitchen. This storm is hovering around up north, so you may as well leave them closed for a few days to see which way it’s going to go before opening them up. If it does come close, maybe you could also cover the kitchen window? If you don’t like being on your own, go over and stay at the resort. But I always keep the cellar well stocked in case I have to batten myself down for a few days. If it gets bad that’s the safest place to sit it out.”

Taking a breath, she continued, “All the electric radios in the house have a battery back-up, and as I said, the supply boat is due in a few days. Last time it was here I filled up with ample fuel in the tanks to keep the generator running if you need to start it up. Oh, and thinking about electricity,” she said, dashing out to the porch, only to return immediately. “There. I’ve just switched the hot water back on. It won’t be cold as I only turned it off half an hour ago.”

Jillian finished her tea, and as she stood up leaned closer to the window.

“Oh! There’s a small yacht moored in close to the supply boat ramp,” she said.

“Yes. That belongs to Tony. A lovely man from the Department of Natural Resources or somewhere. He’s really nice and we’ve become good friends. I even told him he could come in here if the storm gets really nasty. He’s been on the island a few weeks now, and set up camp in an unused shipping container further along from his boat. The container has power so is easier for his work. He’s supposedly doing a study of the wildlife, but if you ask me, I think he’s being paid under false pretenses. Seems to spend most of his time either on the beach or over at the resort. Anyway, he keeps to himself most of the time so you won’t see much of him.”

Norma thought to herself for a moment before adding, “But you can rely on him for assistance if you have any problems.”

She smiled at Jillian and said, “I still can’t believe you’re really here.”

Jillian was still standing near the window and now said, “Here comes Brad with my case. Are you all ready to go?”

“Yes, all ready. Just sorry I can’t spend more time with you,” and she moved across the room to her suitcase.

Leaning against it was a large oil painting depicting a pelican in full flight over the island’s lighthouse. She picked it up, then with a rueful smile, turned and passed it to Jillian.

“This was to be your wedding present. I guess I’ll just leave it home now. I didn’t have any wrapping paper here so thought I’d fix it up on the mainland. Do you like it?”

“That is beautiful. I love it. Thank you. Perhaps you’d better keep it for me till the next time I get married,” Jillian said with a mischievous chuckle, taking it from her aunt and looking around for a suitable empty hook on one of the walls to hang it up. That was one good thing about an old house. There were always hooks and nails left in the walls from days gone by, and she hung it on a nail next to a couch.

“Hi. Are you ready to roll, Norma?” Brad called passing Jillian’s case in through the doorway and picking up Norma’s to replace it. “Oh! Is that tea fresh?”

“Yes, would you like a cup?” asked Norma.

“Only if you have another with me. The in-flight service leaves a lot to be desired.” He put Norma’s case down on the porch and strolled into the kitchen.

“I’ll pour you another,” he said as he picked up Norma’s cup. “What about you Jillian?”

“Yes, why not,” she replied, blushing slightly under Brad’s intense gaze. “No milk or sugar for me, but Norma usually has milk.”

“No worries,” he said as he competently refilled their cups, and then sat, still smiling at Jillian who now realized she was enjoying his obvious flirtation.

“So how did you like your little surprise, Norma?”

“I always love my ‘little surprise’,” Norma replied, also smiling at Jillian. “I hope she stays on for a while when I return, otherwise I’ll miss seeing anything of her.”

“And when exactly are you returning?” Brad asked.

Norma finished her tea, then thinking about her doctor’s appointment and what it might involve said, “Not sure, but not for at least a week, so hopefully Wednesday or Thursday week.”

They talked for a while then standing, Brad said, “Thank you for the tea. Better get this show on the road.”

Jillian and her aunt followed him to the door.

As Jillian gave her aunt a kiss on her cheek she whispered in her ear, “I hope you get a really good result from the doctor. We may all be worrying for nothing.”

Her aunt, suddenly too emotional to reply, nodded her head and turned to walk with Brad to the plane.

Jillian, closing the screen door behind them, stood admiring her aunt’s stylish appearance as she walked away from her house with Brad. Her greying hair, although presently in need of professional care, blew around her face as she turned to wave. Suntanned, she was smartly dressed in long blue pants under a matching top in assorted blue colorings.

‘Please don’t let it be cancer,’ Jillian thought to herself, controlling her emotions to prevent upsetting her aunt before she boarded the plane.

In an effort to restore her usual cheerful nature, she filled the sink with hot water and carefully washed the cups.

The cottage had been modernized a few years previously. An abundance of muted green cupboards under darker benchtops now housed new appliances any chef would envy. Allowing easy access to other rooms, a timber table made from Satinay, with four matching chairs, was situated slightly off-center of the kitchen.

Floors throughout the building were also made with Satinay; milled from Fraser Island trees long before sand mining and timber felling were forced to close when the island became Heritage listed.

Once the timber had been sanded back and re-polished, the whole cottage literally glowed from the floor up.

The walls were constructed with tongue and groove vertical timber. Originally painted a gaudy pink, Norma and Jillian were both pleased with the color change to pale mushroom.

The wall between the original kitchen and lounge had been removed, cleverly creating one huge, functional room.

Next to the kitchen, a lounge area had been created, containing three comfortable lounge chairs in front of a coffee table. Several book cases lined two walls, with paintings placed tastefully between them. Mounted on one wall, a large television was easily viewed from all areas of the room.

At the far end, filled with natural light when the shutters were open, was Norma’s showpiece – her art studio.

Leading from the lounge, a hallway provided access to the guest bedroom. Opposite were steps leading to the cellar. A modern, well-designed bathroom was next. Beyond that, situated at the end of the cottage, with windows providing uninterrupted sea views, was Norma’s bedroom.

Jillian was placing the cups back in a cupboard when she heard the aircraft engine start and the plane taxi to the end of the runway.

She walked outside before the plane was airborne and waved as Brad turned the plane around and headed past the lighthouse back towards the mainland.