Both women looked at the child who was now on her knees, her hands clasped in front of her, her eyes bright with excitement at the prospect of London.
Veronika turned to the American and saw the tears shimmering in the other woman’s eyes. Knowing instinctively what to do, before little Ruby could see her aunt’s despair, Veronika rushed forward.
“Come, girl. We take a walk to see what Missus Kilpatrick is doing, maybe she makes bread. You help her.”
Ruby, always up for an adventure, shot out of the room.
Veronika quickly followed her but when she turned to close the door behind her to give the American some privacy, Julia was there, one hand on the door to stop Veronika.
“Thank you,” Julia whispered, her voice such an absolute ache Veronika felt it lodge in her own throat just hearing it.
Veronika nodded and gently closed the door.
No, Veronika didn’t know what to make of the American. But somehow, she felt maybe she could believe her luck had changed.
Chapter Five
Douglas’s Protection
The doorbell rang at Douglas’s house in the posh Kensington area of London just as Julia was walking down the stairs. She saw Veronika come out of the room where she and the kids were watching a DVD and she waved her back.
“I’ve got it,” she told the girl, Veronika nodded and walked back from where she came.
Julia opened the door and a short woman with dark hair highlighted expertly with blonde streaks charged in.
“Okay… I hope I’m not too late but I had a million things to do,” the woman announced without saying hello.
But she didn’t have to say hello.
Julia had never met Sam Thornton but she would know her voice anywhere.
Sam whirled around once she’d gained entry and stopped. Julia saw Sam was wearing a well-cut, black suit with impossibly high-heeled black pumps and still she was at least four inches shorter than Julia.
“Well, I can see I didn’t need to rush. Wow, that’s quite a dress,” Sam pronounced, her eyes giving Julia a head-to-toe.
“Sam,” Julia said and walked forward, bent down and tightly hugged the woman she’d known for months but had never met.
The last three days, as with the last five months, Sam had been her lifeline. She’d arranged for Julia to have a mobile phone, a laptop and had the technician come to Sommersgate to connect Julia’s new computer not only to the high-speed broadband that was already laid to the house but also to connect it to Douglas’s complicated, wireless network in the house. Sam acquired an e-mail address for her as well and this meant Julia was in touch with family and friends back home and for that she’d be forever grateful.
Sam had sent Julia all the forms she needed for her driving license and from the Home Office. She’d researched health insurance and sent her job openings and volunteer opportunities in Julia’s field. She’d even looked into getting Julia a bank account, which right now seemed impossible due to laws put in place to prevent terrorist activities and thus Julia had to be a resident of the country. It appeared Douglas had to open an account for her which was an aggravation Julia did not need and something she had to discuss with him on Sunday.
As the days went by, Julia was getting more and more uncomfortable with the “arrangement”, as Douglas had called it, and needing to rely so heavily on him, even when he wasn’t there. Her debts to him were mounting up and Julia was making carefully updated lists to tally these debts so she could (if she ever saw him for long enough to have a conversation with him) settle them.
Once Julia stepped back from Sam, the other woman started talking in her usual rapid fire way.
“Good to meet you too,” she said, obviously flustered at Julia’s show of affection. “I brought half a dozen frocks just in case you didn’t have anything suitable to wear tonight but it seems I didn’t need to worry.” She gestured at Julia’s outfit and then quickly on to another thought, she glanced around her. “Where are the kids?”
Without a response from Julia, Sam headed directly towards the lounge and the other woman’s command of the situation and everything around her made Julia smile.
She looked down at her dress thinking with amusement about Sam taking charge of even her wardrobe. Julia’s dress was jade green satin, with a high, mandarin neckline with intricate aquamarine frogs and scrolled cording. The hem was embroidered extravagantly in pale yellows, deep pinks, aquamarine with accents of black and gold with high slits up her thighs on either side. She wore a pair of delicate but dangerous-looking high, spike-heeled, slingback pumps. She’d twisted her hair up at the back, clipping it at the crown with a gold barrette inset with jade allowing the thick, waving blonde mass to fall over the clip.
She followed Sam into the lounge and it was clear the children knew her as they crowded around and Sam gave them affectionate hugs. Either they knew her or they were overwhelmed by the big chocolate bars she was freely distributing from her handbag.
Julia’s week had been hectic, settling in, getting sorted, understanding the children’s schedules which included daytime trips for Ruby to gymnastics and ballet classes and evening piano and violin lessons for Willie and Lizzie with Lizzie also taking ballet. There was also homework and instrument practice and the rigid schedule of the house mealtimes and bedtimes to keep.
That day they’d left early and Julia was thrilled to be free of the forbidding house that, even as enormous as it was, still felt claustrophobic. She sensed a strangeness there she couldn’t put her finger on and Ruby’s imaginary friend (whom the girl talked about all the time) was giving her the creeps.
Carter drove them to London where they spent an excruciatingly busy day visiting Kensington Palace, the mad, tourist-filled crush of Madame Tussaud’s and the equally crowded Tower of London.