Abigail: Chapter 19

Several hours and one uneventful journey later, I made my way through the village. Not for the first time, I thought about how glad I was we’d ended up here. Gloddfa Bont could be a bit invasive, it was almost impossible to keep anything a secret for long, but the people were kind and it felt like home. I couldn’t imagine leaving my two teenage daughters to fend for themselves in Cardiff but here it was like the most natural thing in the world to ask one of the neighbours to check in on them, even if the girls thought it was totally unnecessary.  I parked the van in front of our house and was glad to see the lights on. We’d not decorated for Christmas yet but there was a warm glow from the lamp in the front room. It was good to be home. I turned the key, giving the door its customary shove, and waited to see who’d greet me first.

“Hello? I’m home!”

Missy came rushing into the hallway, almost falling over her own feet in her excitement. I gave her a fuss, laughed as she danced around in circles, then headed into the kitchen to find Louise and Grace sat together at the table, heads together over a phone. I wanted to hold that moment in my mind forever, a picture of happiness in stark contrast to our usual reality.

Louise saw me first and she leapt up. “Mum! Hello!” She gave me a kiss and we exchanged hugs.

Grace looked up and nodded her head in my direction. “Hello.”

“Hiya Gracie.” She offered me the side of her head and I planted a kiss on it. “You okay?”

“Yep. We were just looking at lights for the tree.” She pointed at her phone.

I turned to Louise and gave her a look.

“Christmas tree lights,” she explained. “Thought it was about time we got a bit festive. Did you see lights on The Bont on your way up? They look amazing!”

I had to smile. Every year they did this. I’d pretend I didn’t want us to make too much fuss and they’d totally ignore me and decorate our home like it was the local pub with streamers hanging from every visible beam, fairy lights round the fireplace and a nine foot Christmas tree in the front room window. Secretly I loved it but I knew that if I didn’t play along it would completely ruin their fun.

I put the kettle on then delivered my expected line. “Are we sure we want to bother this year? Maybe we should tone things down a bit?”

“No way!”

“Oh Mum!”

They rolled their eyes at me and I laughed. “Okay, okay, if you’re sure. Speaking of The Bont, how do you two fancy nipping in there for dinner tonight?”

“On a Tuesday? Are you sure you want to after what happened last week?” Louise asked.

“I’ll stick to water tonight. Been such a long drive, even the one glass of wine’ll probably tip me over the edge!”

It was at times like this that I missed being part of a couple. The girls were great but it wasn’t like them to ask how my journey was or if it had been a worthwhile trip. There was no-one to commiserate with when things were tricky and when I had a breakthrough on a case, it ended up being a celebration for one. I thought about ringing Rob but he’d made it clear how he felt about my case. The last thing I needed was him twisting this latest development to prove yet again that he was right and I was wrong.

“How hungry are you? Have I got time for a quick shower before we go?”

They could wait, they told me, so I headed upstairs to freshen up. I’d just stepped under the shower when I heard the phone ring. After a couple of rings though it stopped and I smiled, one of the girls must have got it. I took my time, thankful that the days of having to go running down the stairs dripping wet to answer the phone were long gone.

Twenty minutes later I was all scrubbed up and ready to go. I practically skipped downstairs, the prospect of an evening with my girls giving me a burst of energy. Grace was waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs and when I saw her face I wanted to disappear back upstairs.

“That was Gran.”

My heart sunk. “What did she want?”

“Dinner, tomorrow.”

“And you told her we were busy?” Please say yes, please say yes.

“Sorry Mum. She caught me off guard. I couldn’t think of anything to say.”

“Cleaning the oven, plucking my eyebrows, bathing the dog? Any of the above?” I smiled. I couldn’t be cross with her, I knew how tricky my mother could be. “Don’t worry about it. What time does she want us?”

“Six. Can I stay here?”

“You’re kidding right?” I laughed. “You’ve got about as much chance of skipping dinner with Gran as I have of winning the lottery.”

“But you don’t even do the lottery Mum.”

“I don’t fancy your chances then.”

Grace pulled a face.

“Don’t look at me like that. You’re the one who said yes. Anyway, forget about it for now. Let’s go.”

I grabbed my keys and purse and followed my daughters outside and down the road towards our friendly village pub. I watched them as they walked together, counting the Christmas lights on our neighbour’s houses as they went. They’d been playing the same game for years. Each picked a side of the road, the crown being awarded to whoever picked the side with the most lights. And yes, the lights had to be switched on and, no, multiple sets of lights on the same house didn’t count more than once. The competition was fierce but good-humoured and I didn’t think I’d ever tire of watching them play. Thoughts of Christmas inevitably brought Abigail front of mind. After a good night’s sleep in my own bed I was determined to get straight back to work. First stop, Abigail’s house.