Chapter Twenty

CHAPTER TWENTY

As librarians the first task each day involved getting the Reading Lounge ready for the elderly townsfolk who enjoyed the facility, some regularly, others not so often. Here they could catch up with current events in the way they always had, via the newspaper.

The room was invariably in a state of confusion and Lyndsay Roth had declared that all should be ship-shape and Bristol fashion before the doors opened at ten o'clock sharp. She had a habit of running spot-checks throughout the day and the job of overseeing this area always seemed to fall on my shoulders. Mrs O'Neill from the shop saw to it that all the nationals were delivered daily, the Herald and the South East Echo weekly and various periodicals on a monthly basis.

There were low tables and easy chairs where people liked to sit and read and sip beverages from the machine. Some liked a single cushion, some multiples, and others had no cushions at all. The resulting confusion saw papers, mugs and cushions lying in al directions.

I was absorbed in relocating said items to their places of rest on the morning after my shopping trip. Silence reigned supreme during the pre-reading hour so I was left alone with my thoughts; deep, melancholic thoughts.

“Hey, Bella, have you seen this?” Dolly wandered through the door holding the latest copy of the Yewell Valley Herald which he had snagged from the bail on the trolley.

The front page banner advertised an YCCS special pull-out including a touching story by d.b.cooper. Dolly flicked through to the page and we read together.

'Friends and neighbours of the Yewell Valley, I'd like to introduce you to my friend, Jessie.

At the age of 75 this dear lady faces a battle against the 'Big C', a battle for her life, a battle she cannot hope to win.

But is Jessie burdened by the inevitable outcome? Does she let it get her down? No Sir! With the support of her grand-daughter Jessie continues to look on the bright side. She talks of her next birthday and Christmas, of watching the Five Nations Rugby next Spring. She listens to everybody's news, and keeps up to date with the daily lives of family and friends. She is ready to listen to their woes with a sympathetic ear and a loving heart. Jessie loves and is loved by all.

What lies ahead for Jessie's remaining time no one can tell. Yewell Community Cancer Support supplies carers, free of charge to patients like Jessie, which enables them to stay at home for as long as possible. The charity provides support and counselling for their families and offers a friendship scheme. Volunteers visit homes and hospitals to talk, read, even play games or music. They help with every day tasks and provide transport for outings and hospital appointments. I, myself, drove Jessie to the graveyard to lay a bouquet on her husband's grave. There are many more like her, but YCCS can not continue without our on-going support.

I was one of the throng at the start of the fun run this Sunday past, and this is only the beginning. The craft fayre, auction and gala ball are yet to come. So dig deep my friends. Empty the loose change jar, turn out your pockets check the lining of your coats and Spring clean the three-piece suite. YCCS needs every penny we can muster to enable them to continue their vital and valuable work

We are all links in the chain. If we all pull together I know the good folk of the Yewell Valley can make this the most successful fundraiser yet.

d.b.cooper

The article was about Aunt Jen, I just knew it. Rosa Allsop was right; reporters did whatever they needed to get their story. Had Daniel used his relationship with me to get close to Aunt Jen? I felt so betrayed, used, crushed. But was he already writing the piece before he talked of marriage? If so was he in fact serious about us or would I get dumped after he had enough material for another article, or even a book? I felt so angry.

Dolly , ever the peacemaker tried his best to calm me down.

“Don't do anything silly, Emily” he cautioned “we don't know all the facts.”

“He didn't tell me Dolly”, I hissed urgently. “This is the first I've heard of it.”

“Didn't Jen mention it? She must have known, how else could Daniel have written it? He'd need to have Jen's permission, unless he wrote it without.”

As always Dolly's was the voice of reason. He had been there for me since we were children and I trusted his opinion on all things. A part of me could not believe Daniel would have gone ahead without Aunt Jen's okay. But Jen was gravely ill and probably forgot to tell me, thinking perhaps, that Daniel had himself.

“Don't do anything you'll regret later” Dolly urged again. “Talk to the man.”

“I can't!” My voice rose and Mrs Roth, passing by the door, gave us a stern look., pressing a finger to compressed lips. “I'm not even sure where he's gone!” I wailed quietly.

Dolly closed the reading lounge door.

“I'm sure he had his reasons, Em. Talk it over when he gets back. He's a decent sort, you'll see. This is all a monsoon in a coffee mug.”

“I don't know if I can trust him, Dolly. He didn't even tell me he had a twin sister!”

“The one you thought was his girlfriend? But that was all Cassie's fault.”

“He encouraged me to enter the fun run....” I began

“So did I”. Dolly grasped me firmly by the shoulders to emphasize his point.

“What if he did it just for an angle? Got close to me and manipulated Aunt Jen, a terminally ill woman. He took her to visit Lewis' grave, did you know?”

Dolly remained mute.

“What if Daniel's every move is just a means to an end? Look at how he just took off with that runner.”

Dolly's grip tightened.

“Where's all this coming from Emily?” he demanded irritably. “The man's genuine. He asked you to marry him, almost.”

“Let him ask again” I spat, shoving Dolly away and jerking the door open. “He'll get a short answer.”

I spent the rest of the morning in the depths of despair; Rosa Allsop's words resounding in my mind. 'Don't trust no reporters.' All I could think about were the bad things, the things Daniel had forgotten to tell me. The good times, the tenderness, the love, were pushed away, filed, forsaken. But I still loved him, despite everything, and it was making me miserable.