Page 58 of Forgive Not Forget
“McDonald’s!” Tom put in quickly.
“Burger King!” Abigail shouted over him.
Pleased she had lightened the mood with her plan, she wondered if she’d set herself up for some issues later. Why had she thought they would agree?
“After lunch, I’d like to pop in to see my dad,” she said. “I’m sure he’d be pleased to meet you.”
Abigail wiggled again. Tom rolled his eyes and exhaled.
“We won’t be able to stay very long. He has something called Parkinson’s disease, which makes him shaky, and he tires very quickly. So it will be more of a quick hello.”
“That’s sad,” Abigail said, dropping the sides of her mouth down like a clown.
“Yeah.” Tom bit his lip in and chewed on it.
“Once we’re done there, I thought we could watch a movie, make pizzas for dinner, and consume lots of popcorn and sweets.”
A smile finally broke through Tom’s lips, and he nodded.
* * *
Anna found it strange arriving at the abbey as a visitor, albeit one that jumped the queues in the ticket hall and headed straight into the grounds. Abigail had already seen some parts of the abbey when she helped stake out the Easter bunny trail, so Anna walked her round to all the top spots on her old tour and gave a more child-orientated version.
Tour completed, they swept Tom up from the high street and headed into town, where Anna agreed she would drive through both McDonald’s and Burger King since they were within a mile of each other. She cracked the windows down a little; the last thing she wanted was to stink up the car with fried food. Katherine wouldn’t approve.
She had hoped to bump into Katherine at the abbey. It would have been unlikely, as she would have been in her office or working from home. The initial anger Anna had felt towards Katherine for pushing her away had subsided, as she predicted it would. Just seeing her face would have lifted her spirits, which were rapidly descending into hopelessness. She had contemplated using the excuse of a forgotten item to pop home and see her, yet she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Katherine had asked for a little space, and Anna needed to respect that. A little time alone might bring Katherine to the same conclusion about her well-being as everyone else.
Harry was overjoyed to see Anna and the children as they arrived in the reception area of Baycroft, where Mabel was wheeling him through.
“Anna, look! I’ve got a set of wheels,” he said.
Mabel leaned forward and placed a hand on Harry’s shoulder.
“He was so unstable walking and taking forever to get about, I insisted they give him a wheelchair. Now I can get him out and about a bit more rather than him being stuck in that chair.” She beamed at the children. “Who are these two youngsters?”
“Dad, this is Tom and Abi, Laura’s kids. I’m looking after them for the weekend. Do you remember I told you about them?”
“Yes, of course. Hi, kids.”
Tom nodded in response.
Abigail stepped forward. “How old are you?”
“Abi! You aren’t supposed to ask people that,” Anna said, bulging her eyes at her.
Harry grinned and beckoned her closer. “I’m as old as my tongue and a little older than my teeth.”
Abigail laughed.
“No doc today, love?” Harry asked, looking behind Anna.
“No,” Anna replied. She hadn’t even thought to have an excuse ready for Katherine’s absence. “She’s, erm… busy at the abbey today.”
“Well, we were just heading to the craft studio to paint some pebbles for a new display in the garden. Would you like to help?” Mabel asked.
Before Anna could say they had just come for a chat with her dad, Abigail had answered for them.
“Please! I love painting.”
