Page 44 of Forgive Not Forget
“Only one way to find out.”
Katherine listened to Anna speaking with Lucy. She could gauge from her tone that it was the news they were dreading to hear. She held her breath as Anna finished the call.
“Okay, we’ll see you tomorrow then as arranged, and we’ll talk to him. Thanks for ringing.” Anna hung up. “They’ve had the results sent through and emailed them on to both of us. She wanted to let us know they would be coming rather than them just appearing without warning.”
“And?”
Anna nodded and looked down to where Katherine had just placed a hand on her arm. “It’s Parkinson’s dementia.”
Katherine pulled Anna into her. “I’m sorry.”
“Is it different to regular dementia?” Anna asked with a sniff, her voice shaky.
“It’s the name given when a Parkinson’s patient develops dementia after a year or so of motor problems. It’s dementia, no matter how you wrap it.” She reached for her phone. “I’ll read the report now and translate for you.”
“Thank you.” Anna wiped her face and gave a weary sigh. “I think I’ll take a shower.”
CHAPTER18
“I’m not sure about this,” Katherine called out to Anna. Anna was a good two metres in front of her and making good headway despite carrying two duvets and two pillows. Left to carry the tent, which had shrunken considerably since she’d last seen one, Katherine found herself sent straight back to her Girl-Guiding days. Trampling across a field led by a domineering brown owl that, now that she thought about it, had probably been the same age as she was now. How on earth had she reached the age of a brown owl?
“Come on, it will be fine,” Anna reassured her.
“I can’t even remember how to put a tent up.”
Anna stopped by a crop of trees where she had already placed a picnic basket, the blow-up bed, a rucksack, and two fold-out chairs.
“Luckily for us, I do, and luckily for you, it only takes one pair of hands,” Anna bragged.
“In that case, I shall sit and observe,” Katherine said, relaxing back into the fold-out chair. The squeak it gave under her full weight gave her a moment of concern. Thankfully the chair held its own.
Anna threw a most welcome blanket at her and then scrabbled in the picnic basket, extracting a bottle of chilled champagne and two glasses.
A smile swept across Katherine’s face. “Okay, I could get used to camping if it comes with a bottle of champagne.”
“I’ll remember that!”
With champagne in hand and the slowly setting sun on her face, Katherine watched as Anna impressively erected the tent. She pumped the air bed to near its popping point, knowing Katherine liked a firm mattress, and then made several trips in and out of the tent, making her final preparations.
Katherine held the glass of champagne between her thighs and stared up at the reddish hue of the sky as she tried to clear her mind and absorb the tranquillity of the moment. There was only one thing missing: her best friend by her side. Would she ever be back there beside her? Or was this to be one of those moments where neither side backs down and twenty years passes without another word? She took a gulp of champagne at the thought. Their bond was too strong to let that happen.
After two rounds of Anna’s sandwiches and another glass of champagne, Katherine finally started to relax. They had pitched the tent behind a crop of trees with full sight of the chapel wall. The sun was on its final descent behind the ruined abbey and the birds were beginning to settle into silence, ready for the owl to begin its turn.
“Shall we go for a romantic walk in the ruins before we settle in for the night?”
It was the best idea Anna had produced all day; she could do with clearing her head before bed.
They walked in silence towards the abbey. The light breeze was unseasonably warm. Katherine had originally been worried about being cold whilst camping out; she now feared being too warm.
“I guess this area will be full of archaeologists soon,” Anna said finally, her hand scooping up Katherine’s.
“Next week in all likelihood. Sophie sent an email this morning to say she had the results from the burial. We’ll know more on Monday when she comes over to do some prep work. She’ll leave her team to pack up at Halsey, and then they’ll join her.”
“I hope they don’t leave a mess. The last thing we need is a patchwork of dead grass.”
They reached the chapel and made for their favourite spot by the window.
Katherine sat with a sigh. She hadn’t meant to; the tranquillity of the chapel pulled it from within her.
