He looked away from me and I thought he was going to say something else but then his shoulders began to hitch and I realised he was crying. My heart reached out for him. He looked so broken in that instant. I took his hand, leading him to the sofa. He sank onto it and I put my arm round him, watching as the tears flowed silently down. “I’ve never told anyone that,” he said.
“That’s a long time to keep that pain to yourself,” I replied. “Too long.”
We sat there for a long time. So that was why he had so many of her pictures in his house. That was why he hadn’t given consent for so long. It must have been impossible for him, having to cope with the pain of losing her and having to keep silent about it, not telling anyone who she really was, the fact that she was pregnant. I couldn’t imagine what it must have felt like to deal with such a thing. And there I was, waltzing into his life to get permission like he was only a grumpy old eccentric, not someone who’d endured two decades of agony completely on his own. Suddenly, something occurred to me and it was impossible to stop a smile spreading across my lips.
“I have an idea,” I said, kissing his cheek. “A way to save your house and the theatre.”
“How?” he asked, turning to look at me, his eyes bloodshot.
“Trust me,” I replied, kissing his hand before getting to my feet. “I’ll be back.”
“Where are you going?”
“To sort all this out. Don’t go anywhere.”
I left before he could say anything else. Joshua had been gloating when he’d told me George was selling his land but his gloating was my good fortune. It had led me to the truth, the truth about the past and if I got this right, it would lead to the brightest possible future for everyone. I marched back into town, hoping the drama group were still at the theatre. I needed an address and Joshua was going to give it to me. Whether he wanted to or not.
TWENTY-NINE
DONNA
“Joshua,” I said, pointing at him as he crossed the stage. “Where does your uncle live?”
“What? Why?” he asked, as I climbed the steps and stormed over to him.
“His address. Now!” I grabbed his collar and gave him my most menacing face. It worked.
He gave me the address and I made a mental note of it. “Thank you,” I said, letting go of him and turning away.
“Wait, where are you going?”
“To see a man about a house,” I called back over my shoulder.
I stuck the address into my phone as I walked and by the time I reached my house I was ready. I climbed into my car, praying it would survive the journey. He lived ten miles outside of town and though the engine grumbled in protest at the drive, I made it there alive. I climbed out at his gate, looking at the huge detached house in front of me. I pressed the bell on the gate and waited, tapping my foot impatiently.
“Yes?” a tinny voice said eventually.
“I’m here to see Simon Green.”
“And you are?”
“Donna from the club.”
The gates swung open a second later. I climbed back into my car and drove slowly up the drive, finally stopping in front of his front door. It opened as I mounted the steps towards it, a man appearing a second later, looking out at me with a frown on his face. “It’s too late,” he said. “I gave him a chance to give me you and he chose to sell.”
“Cancel the sale,” I said, reaching the top of the steps a second later. “Cancel it right now.”
Simon smiled back at me. “And why would I do that?”
“Because if you don’t, I’ll tell the whole world just what you like to do at the club.”
“What? You wouldn’t. You can’t. It’s against the rules.”
“I’m not a member,” I said with a smile. “So there are no rules.”
“But…but…”
“Cancel the sale or see your name on the front pages tomorrow. Understand?”
All the colour had drained from his face as he looked down at me, his eyes pleading. “But the development, I’ll lose a fortune.”
“You’ll lose a lot more if you don’t cancel.”
“All right,” he said, holding a hand out in front of him. “Just promise me, you won’t tell anyone.”
I shook his hand. “Pleasure doing business with you.”
I turned away, returning to my car with a grin fixed across my face. I set off with my heart soaring, unable to stop giggling. I was still giggling when I told George what I’d done.
“And he just agreed to cancel?” he asked, sounding bewildered. “But why?”
“Because I said if he didn’t, I’d tell the world what he does at the club.”