Birds of a Feather

She took the long way in, not wanting to be faced with Peacock Cottage and its emptiness, but walking past the gate of Swallowtail House was as strong a reminder of her time with Jack. The house looked beautiful in the sunshine, its crumbling stonework and cracked sills not visible at this distance, and it seemed to beckon her towards it. She lifted the hefty padlock Jack had bought, and a lump lodged in her throat.

She felt winded, like she’d been hit by a car and her breathing was refusing to settle, everything bruised and tender. She was also angry with herself. Was this normal? Had some of Octavia’s air for the dramatic rubbed off on her? She hadn’t felt like this when she had broken it off with Darren. She had been sad, of course, but it had been a relief more than anything. Now she felt hollow, as if she would crack open at the lightest touch.

‘Get a grip, Abby,’ she said out loud, and a robin landed on a branch ahead of her, its delicate beak opening, its song firing something inside her, spurring her on.

The visitor centre was quiet when she arrived, and as she hung up her coat, she heard Stephan whistling ‘Dude Looks Like a Lady’loudly and tunelessly. He placed a steaming mug of tea on the reception desk.

‘Thanks so much, Stephan.’

‘Good couple of days off?’ he asked, his eyes finding hers and then flitting away.

Lead settled in her stomach. ‘You’ve seen?’

‘Joyce and Karen came to mine for a roast yesterday and, well, Karen’s a fan of those online news sites – Daily Mail bar of shame and all that. She reads some of the articles out to Joyce. They were quite excited – they had no idea you were involved with Jack.’

‘Shit,’ Abby whispered, resting her elbows on the desk. ‘It wasn’t – I’d never met Eddie before. He tricked me.’

Stephan nodded sympathetically. ‘I thought it would be someone playing silly buggers. Your event with Jack, though, how did that go? Always best to focus on the positives.’

‘It was lovely,’ she said. ‘Really lovely. Anyway,’ she added, desperate to change the subject, ‘did you have a nice weekend? I didn’t know you were close to Karen and Joyce.’

Stephan grinned. ‘We’re getting on, the three of us’ he said. ‘Though I’ve got my sights set on Joyce, as it happens. She’s a wonderful, strong woman, Abby. And so funny. I’m quietly confident that that she feels something for me, too.’

‘Stephan, that’s wonderful. I’m so happy for you.’

‘I haven’t asked her yet, planning on officially inviting her on a date tomorrow night, scintillating conversation over a large bowl of paella, and I – uh-oh.’ Stephan’s eyes widened, and Abby turned in time to see Penelope striding in, followed closely by Rosa, who levelled her with a meaningful stare.

‘The three of you,’ Penelope said without slowing down, ‘in my office in two minutes. No dawdling.’

‘Shit,’ Abby muttered again, once Penelope’s door was closed.

‘Abby!’ Rosa rushed over to her as she pulled off her coat. ‘What on earth is going on? I saw the paper. Are you OK? What happened?’

‘It’s a long story,’ Abby said. ‘But the thing with Eddie, it was false. He made it up as another way to get at Jack.’

‘Crap,’ Rosa whispered. ‘And you and Jack?’

‘We—’

‘Now, ladies,’ Penelope said.

‘I’ll tell you later.’ Abby followed Rosa towards the inner sanctum.

The sun was streaming through the window, hitting the back of Penelope’s head so she looked like she had a halo. Stephan followed Abby and Rosa, carrying a tray of steaming drinks. Abby wasn’t sure that would be enough to mollify their boss who, in a high-necked, navy blouse, her hair scraped into its usual, tight bun, didn’t look like she was in the mood for a natter over tea and cake.

‘I was going to keep this discussion between myself and Abby,’ Penelope started once they’d all sat down.But I have decided it’s no use beating around the bush, and that this involves all of you.’

‘Penelope, I—’

‘I had several important meetings on Friday, one of which was with the bank,’ she said, talking over Abby. ‘And the situation at Meadowsweet isn’t improving. I value all your efforts, and I know you’ve been working hard to keep this place going, however, it hasn’t been enough, and while some publicity is good, some is decidedly not.’

She didn’t look at Abby, but her meaning was clear. Abby dropped her head, her neck burning.

‘Anyway, that is an aside. My meeting with Mr Philpott was before the Sunday papers, and they had no bearing on his decision. We haven’t been making a profit, it’s as simple as that, and I cannot hold off the wolves any longer. I was given a number of options; seek an investor in the reserve or sell off some of its assets. While one of those is much more attractive than the other, I fear I no longer have a choice. Running Meadowsweet has never been about making money, it’s been about protecting the land, the wildlife, giving people the chance to see it, but without any sort of profit, it can’t survive. And now our time has run out.’

‘But couldn’t we keep looking for an investor?’ Rosa asked, her palms pressed together.

‘Rosa,’ Penelope said, a sigh in her voice, ‘I’ve been trying. A friend of mine has been exploring the options on my behalf, and it’s all been in vain. No, the decision is made. I’m going to have to sell Swallowtail House.’

There was a stunned silence, and Abby sank lower in her seat, wondering if things could get any worse.

‘Will that impact on the reserve?’ Stephan asked eventually.

Penelope pursed her lips, and Abby could imagine how hard it had been to say those words, to admit that the home she had been happy in with Al, that she had fought so hard to hold on to, was now going to be lost. What happened to the reserve was, perhaps, not the point for her.

‘It could do,’ Penelope said. ‘Of course, I own the estate, and am entitled to sell which parts I want, and the house itself is listed. But the grounds directly abut the reserve, and depending on who buys it and what their plans are, it could significantly impact on the harmony, the sanctity of Meadowsweet. Our only option is to move onwards and upwards, and hope that the new owner will be sympathetic to its position.’

‘I’m so sorry,’ Abby said. ‘I know what the house means to you.’

‘Do you?’ Her voice was sharp. ‘Do you have any understanding at all, of Swallowtail, of the reserve and their significance – of Al’s legacy? Because if you did, I believe you wouldn’t have been so casual in your handling of it.’

‘Penelope!’ Abby gasped.

‘I know Jack Westcoat, of course,’ she continued. ‘I can understand the attraction. But while you’ve been allowing him to take up all your time, you have let us down. Planning events halfheartedly, or leaving it so late that you’re in such a state by the time they come round you’re unable to deal with problems effectively. That is no way to run a public-facing business at the best of times, let alone when it’s in crisis.’

‘Now hang on,’ Stephan said.

‘Not to mention this latest failing.’ Penelope kept going, ignoring him. ‘While Reston Marsh is bathing in the wholesome publicity of Wild Wonders, you have got yourself embroiled in some sort of scandalous love triangle. I don’t claim to know the truth and I don’t want to know, but this, Abby, is not the kind of press we need. I don’t want you to be the only attraction anyone is interested in. First it was Jack, and now he’s gone back to London, he’s left you in his place. I had hoped, with his departure, the whole debacle would be over.’

‘Jack’s gone?’ Rosa asked, flashing Abby a concerned look.

Abby couldn’t move, couldn’t blink or breathe or open her mouth to respond to Penelope’s accusations.

‘I have been considering your position, Abigail, and I’m struggling to see any reason to keep you on here.’

There was a beat of silence, and then Rosa and Stephan started talking at once, leaning forward towards their boss.

‘Abby’s been brilliant, you can’t get rid of her.’

‘The whole thing will fall apart without her!’

Penelope held a hand up, stopping them. ‘I am still considering it. I’ll make my decision by the end of the week. Now, back to work, all of you. And I mean work, not gossip.’

They left her office, Stephan retrieving the tray of untouched drinks. Abby was last, and she half-expected Penelope to call her back, to give her a private dressing-down, or maybe ask what had happened with Jack. Leo had obviously been in touch with her, to let her know he was giving up his lease on Peacock Cottage, which was probably another blow to the finances of the estate.

‘She’s upset about the house,’ Rosa whispered as they walked slowly to the reception desk, where Maureen was talking to a group of visitors. ‘She’s not going to fire you. It would be a ridiculous, counterproductive move. Either she has no idea how much you really do here, or she’s just angry and can’t think straight. But what happened with Jack?’

They heard the click of Penelope’s door opening, and Rosa hurried back to the shop.