Page 33 of The Beach Cottage
“But aren’t you related?” Bea asked.
“She’s my granddaughter.”
Penny’s eyebrows rose skyward. It was unusual for a grandchild not to recognise the name of her grandmother.
“We’re estranged,” Betsy continued. “My son doesn’t want anything to do with me, so he’s kept me away from her.”
“Even though you both live on the island?” Evie asked, her eyes wide. “That seems impossible — it’s such a small community.”
“We make it work. We don’t tend to run in the same circles. He stays away from Kellyville for the most part. He works on the mainland, so I rarely see him.”
“I’m really sorry to hear that,” Penny said. “I can’t imagine how hard that must be. My parents moved away, but if they were here, I’d want to spend every moment I could with them. I miss them so much.”
Betsy reached out a hand to pat Penny’s. “You’re a sweet girl and a good daughter. Where did you see Sam?”
“She came to the refuge a few days ago, and I fed her cake. Then I saw her playing on the side of the road today, alone. She should be in school, shouldn’t she?”
Betsy sighed. “Yes, she should.” She fell quiet and stirred sugar into her coffee.
“Maybe you could talk to your son?” Bea asked.
Betsy’s lips pulled tight. “I wish I could. He won’t see me.”
“Have you tried lately?” Evie’s face was lined with compassion.
“Not lately. I suppose I could give it another shot. He can’t hold onto the hurt forever, surely.”
“I’ve given Sam my phone number and told her to call me. If she does, I can let you know, and maybe you can see each other,” Penny offered.
Betsy met her gaze. “I’d like that. Thank you.”
“What happened between the two of you?” Bea asked, her voice gentle.
“It was his wife. I didn’t approve of her, and I told him so. He said I couldn’t be part of their lives, but then she left him and Sam. I was right, although I get no pleasure out of it. I genuinely wish I hadn’t been.”
“Of course you do,” Bea mused with a shake of her head. “Those things are so difficult to navigate.”
“He’s always been a bit of a hothead. I struggled with him when he was young, but I loved him. He doesn’t seem to recall any of that, apparently.”
“Maybe he does now. You should see if he’ll give you another chance.”
Betsy nodded. “You’re right—I will. I can’t bear to think that little Sam is being neglected. My son works hard and he’s a good father, but she needs her grandmother.”
“I think you’re right,” Penny said. She hated to see the pain in Betsy’s eyes, but she was grateful there might be a solution for Sam’s situation. And the fact that the solution might well include the care of a loving grandmother was all the more perfect because it was Betsy, one of Penny’s favourite people.
She couldn’t believe she’d never heard the story before. She vaguely recalled something about Betsy’s son from years ago, but she’d assumed he’d moved away and had never really thought about it. It amazed her how much pain and suffering the people around her could hide from everyone they knew.
Fifteen
The library smelled of old books and rose potpourri. Bea let her finger trace along the spine of a book, then she walked down the aisle, following the line of books with her fingertips as she read the titles to herself. There were so many books, and this was only one library out of thousands, all over the world. Books on every subject imaginable, as well as every fiction genre and style. It was hard to believe so many people had put pen to paper over the years and written whatever was in their head for others to read. She couldn’t imagine doing that.
Give her a cake to bake any day of the week, but she wouldn’t bleed herself dry on a page.
Evie, Taya and Penny were seated at a long rectangular table with a microfiche machine at one end. Taya sat in front of the machine, feeding microfiche across the lens and whispering what she found to the others. Bea sat with them and crossed one leg over the other. She leaned forward.
“What is it?”
Taya pushed her chair away from the machine. “Nothing about Penny’s grandmother’s murder yet. We haven’t found the exact date, since Penny isn’t sure of it. We only have the year to go by. And there’s a lot of news that year, if you can believe it.”
