House of Secrets Read online

  He closed his eyes. Afghanistan had been back. The visions that he’d tried so hard to keep away had fired around in his mind, like fireworks on Bonfire Night. He’d immediately begun seeing the explosions and the carnage. There had been men, women and children killed; his friends, his colleagues, Karen.

  He shook his head, first gently, then more vigorously to rid himself of the images that flashed continually through his mind.

  He opened his eyes wide and gulped in the fresh air. This was not Afghanistan and the realisation hit him, but the dangers here were just as real. He’d watched one too many people get hurt in the past and he fully intended to keep his promise to Poppy that she would not be the next.

  Chapter Eleven

  ‘I swear, Jess. He just ran in, caught the glass as it dropped, slashed his hand in the process and dragged Poppy out. I couldn’t believe it,’ Madeleine whispered holding her hand around the phone as she stood to one side of the hotel reception and smiled at guests as they walked past the open stone and wood window frame, which looked out into the hallway. It was through this frame that the guests would collect their keys, pay their bills and request extras for their rooms. It was an extension to the original coach house where a butler’s window could still be seen, indicating the place where the original house had ended and the new wing had begun.

  Two guests walked out from a door next to reception and Madeleine watched as the lady tapped away, texting on her phone.

  ‘Good evening, Mr and Mrs Woolass. Thank you,’ she said as she lowered the phone from her mouth, took their room key and hung it on the rack. ‘Enjoy your meal.’

  She waited for just a moment, ensuring the guests had left before returning to the call. ‘Jess. Are you still there?’

  ‘Yeah, I’m here. I’m eating Hobnobs and thinking about your Rambo man.’

  Madeleine giggled at Jess’s statement as another middle-aged couple walked in through the front door, waved and took a left towards the bar. Madeleine had offered to look after reception for an hour between the day staff leaving and the night staff coming in. Her father would normally work then but had set off early that morning on a mission to look at a reproduction bed that he wanted to buy as soon as he’d heard about the sale. Beds of that quality didn’t stay on the market long, he’d told her, and he’d known the moment he saw it on the Internet that it would be a perfect fit for one of the newly refurbished rooms. Each room had been decorated in the style of Victorian gothic revival and beautifully recreated wallpapers and bathrooms had been used in them all.

  At this time of the evening, the hotel was normally quiet. Some guests sat in the bar, or by the fire. But most would be still in their rooms, watching TV, napping, changing and getting ready for their evening ahead.

  Poppy had already taken a shine to Nomsa and had happily trotted behind her to the kitchen for tea.

  ‘He’s not Rambo. He’s rough, ready and just a little bit bloody annoying, if you know what I mean.’

  ‘Mmmmm, that makes him sound even more intriguing.’

  Madeleine stared up into the air. She wanted to describe Bandit. Wanted to explain to Jess how he was, and what he looked like, but couldn’t find the words.

  ‘Ohhhhhh, how can I describe him? Err.’ She tipped her head from side to side. ‘He needs a bit of a tidy up, I guess, bit of a haircut, a shave and all that. He looks a bit like Brad Pitt in that movie we watched last New Year’s Eve, what was it called?’

  ‘God, Maddie. I don’t know. Which one was Brad Pitt?’

  ‘You know, the one where they live in the wilderness. The one with that Silence of the Lambs man in it … Oh … Oh … I know, Legends of the Fall.’

  Jess went quiet.

  ‘Do you remember who I mean?’

  ‘Give me a minute, I’m googling him.’ Madeleine could hear a tapping sound at the end of the phone followed by, ‘Ohhhhhh, if that’s how he looks, I’m definitely coming over.’

  Madeleine sat down at the desk and began to panic as she watched three new emails drop into the inbox. ‘Jess, I have enquiries on the email. Do you think I have to deal with them, or do you think Ann will sort them all out when she arrives?’

  ‘So, you like him then?’ Jess asked, totally ignoring her question and bringing her thoughts back to Bandit.

  ‘No, yes, oh I don’t know. He’s really annoying.’

  ‘Wow. Annoying or not, if you don’t like him, I could always take him for a turn.’

  ‘Jess,’ Madeleine squealed. ‘Didn’t I bring you up with any etiquette at all? You don’t take men for a turn.’

  She smiled; she had missed Jess. They had always been close, but the whole incident with Liam had brought them even closer and she was determined that they wouldn’t leave it months before they saw each other again.

  ‘Oh, Jess, I’d love to see you,’ she said, knowing that Jess visiting Wrea Head Hall might not go down well with her father.

  Madeleine watched as a female guest excitedly ran down the stairs, crashing straight into a young waiter walking through the hall. The contents of his silver tray almost flew out of his hands, making him stop abruptly in his tracks.

  ‘For God’s sake, watch where you are going,’ the woman rudely bellowed as she threw back her shoulders and glanced back at her boyfriend, smirking in his direction.

  ‘I’m so sorry, Miss Woods.’ The collision hadn’t been his fault, but the young man who Madeleine’s father had introduced to her as Jack apologised politely. He waited for them to pass, before continuing on his way to deliver the drinks. It was obvious to Madeleine that he’d been trained in hospitality. He knew how to smile in all the right places and had handled the situation perfectly. He hadn’t deserved to be spoken to like that, yet Madeleine knew there was nothing she could do.

  She returned to her phone call with Jess. ‘Are you still there?’

  ‘What on earth was that?’

  ‘Oh, Jess, it was nothing. The customer is always right and all that. Look, I’d better go.’ She looked towards the kitchen where Poppy was most probably refusing to eat. They’d only been here a few days and already Poppy had bent Nomsa around her little finger, getting her to make her exactly what food she required. Which, in Poppy’s world, meant chocolate spread on bread or chocolate spread on just about anything else.

  Madeleine loved speaking to Jess, but was also aware that she couldn’t expect Nomsa to babysit Poppy for much longer, even though her father had made it very clear that Poppy should be allowed to enjoy the hotel. Nomsa had her own job to do and at this time of night, she really should be assisting chef with preparations for the evening meal.

  ‘Okay, honey, take care. I’ll speak to you soon. Love you.’

  ‘Love you too, Jess.’

  She hung up the phone and turned as Jack walked back into reception. The telephone immediately sprang back into life and without thought, he answered it, took a booking and then made his way back to the dining room where he began to seat couples for dinner. He seemed to be everywhere, all at once. There didn’t seem to be a job that he didn’t do and Madeleine watched as he chatted easily to the guests who were waiting to be served. It was the way that she’d need to be with guests too and she hoped that in time she could do it just as well as Jack did.

  When Ann arrived, Madeleine excused herself, walked through the back corridor and into the kitchen, where Poppy sat quite happily eating a bowl of strawberries and ice cream at the kitchen table. Nomsa sat at one side of her and Bandit sat on the other.

  Madeleine stopped in her tracks, watching her daughter who appeared not only to be happily feeding herself the strawberries, but also sharing them. She offered her new friend, Bandit, the spoon. He laughed, shook his head and pushed the bowl back to her.

  ‘Let’s see how many you can eat. Your mummy’s going to be really amazed if you eat them all up,’ Madeleine heard him say as Nomsa placed a second bowl of strawberries on the table before him.

  ‘There you go, Bandit, some strawberries
for you too. Let’s see which one of you eats them all up first,’ Nomsa sang out as Madeleine watched both Poppy and Bandit tuck into the strawberries, both giggling and dribbling ice cream down their chins, yet neither seemed to mind.

  Bandit had been right. Madeleine was amazed. Not only was she amazed, she was completely astonished to see the child eating at all. Not just eating, she was actually having fun while she was doing it.

  ‘Ohhhhhh, look at you two. Can I have some?’ Madeleine asked as she sat down beside Bandit.

  ‘Nope,’ Poppy said with a giggle. ‘You have to eat all your dinner first. Nomsa said.’

  Madeleine poked her daughter and then began fidgeting with the salt and pepper pot which stood central to the table. She was acutely aware of the kitchen staff who were busy chopping fresh food ready for the evening service and felt as though they were intruding on a normally well run kitchen.

  ‘Here you go, my lady, there’s your dinner,’ Nomsa’s rhythmic Caribbean voice sang as she placed a plate on the table before Madeleine. She looked between her and Bandit, raised her eyebrows, tapped her temple with a finger and then nodded with a knowing look.

  Madeleine smiled, she liked Nomsa already. She was short, rotund and wore a permanent smile. She seemed to embrace life, enjoying everything she was doing and what’s more she had a way about her that made you listen when she spoke. Poppy had loved her the moment she’d set eyes on her and for a child who barely ate, she’d already eaten more in the last few days than she would normally have done in a week.

  Nomsa was a darker version of Jess, yet almost old enough to be their mother, and Madeleine guessed that she’d be somewhere around forty years old.

  ‘Thanks, Nomsa.’ Madeleine smiled as she happily tucked into the perfectly presented steak.

  ‘Mummy, Mister Bang’it said he’ll show us the ha-ha,’ Poppy proudly announced as her new friend shrugged his shoulders in a silent apology. His eyes caught Maddie’s and held them for just a moment too long, making her nervously glance back down at the steak.

  ‘I would have asked,’ he sheepishly explained. ‘It’s only on the front lawn. I thought you might like to see it too.’

  Madeleine was hungry and pushed another piece of the steak in her mouth.

  ‘I’ll tell you what, young Madeleine, if it’s okay with you I’ll go with them, just while you finish your dinner?’ Nomsa said as she picked Poppy up from the bench and headed for the back door. ‘It is just on the front lawn. You can easily see us from the house.’

  Maddie nodded and continued to eat her dinner as the others went outside. She felt comfortable that Nomsa was with Poppy and after she’d finished eating, she used the opportunity to walk around and study the hotel. The wood panelled dining room was beginning to fill up with couples; some chatted happily, and others sat silently. The main courses were just starting to go out. Each meal was perfectly plated, individually created. The head chef, Bernie, had worked wonders with the pheasant, duck and rabbit, all of which Bandit had brought back for him fresh from the hunt that morning.

  ‘Each dish is based on the food that would have been eaten here in the late eighteen hundreds,’ Nomsa had explained earlier. ‘It was the time when the house was first built. The family had lived in London for most of the week, only travelling to Wrea Head on weekends and holidays.’

  ‘Some weekend retreat,’ Madeleine had thought as she looked everywhere for pictures that might show her who the family had been. She was amazed that the whole house had retained all of its original character. Its history screamed from every wall and she felt sure that someone would have saved photographs from the past. Surely the guests would be interested in its history too, of seeing the family, of how they’d looked and lived. She made her way to stand by the window in the grand hall. She recognised it as the dark wood panelled room where, just a few nights before, she’d spied guests drinking champagne through the windowpanes. Its huge inglenook fireplace stood to her left, its fire already lit and where the logs already crackled and spat as flames shot up the chimney, warm and welcoming, with a luminosity that lit the whole room.

  Beyond the grand hall was a bar. It was painted grey and had a bright white frieze around the top of the room. This was where most of the guests seemed to congregate. Madeleine walked towards the door and then changed her mind and headed instead to the library next door, where she found a room surrounded with old mahogany bookcases and a second open fire. There were two huge dark blue Chesterfield settees, which stood opposite each other and gave a warmth to the room.

  ‘Can I get you a drink, Mrs Frost?’ Jack’s voice made her jump as she looked towards the adjoining door that stood between the library and the bar.

  ‘Thank you, Jack. Do you think Father would mind if I had a small glass of wine?’

  ‘I’m sure he wouldn’t mind at all. I’ll see to it immediately. Would you like red, or white?’

  ‘Oh, red if that’s okay?’

  She walked along the bookshelves, digging through the old, dusty books that lined the shelves. There was every classic that she could think of. Everything from Gulliver’s Travels through to Pride and Prejudice. All were beautifully leather bound and perfectly preserved and Madeleine couldn’t resist pulling one after the other off the shelf. Opening each one in turn, she flicked through the pages breathing in their scent.

  ‘Mummy,’ Poppy’s voice shouted from outside. ‘Mummy, come look at the ha-ha. I can see the sheep.’

  Madeleine replaced the book back on its shelf and walked outside to where an excited three-year-old ran towards her. She grabbed hold of Madeleine’s hand and dragged her across the lawn to where the grass suddenly dropped off and down to the meadow below. A four-foot dry stone wall supported the upper lawn, creating an optical illusion that made it look as though the sheep could easily trot right up to the house. Of course, the wall stopped them and Poppy thought it very clever that she could lie on her belly, overhanging the wall and watch the sheep so closely, without them being able to chase her.

  Nomsa excused herself and went back to the kitchen, just as Jack appeared behind her. He’d walked down the lawn without being heard and had waited patiently for her to turn around and accept one of the three drinks that were on his tray.

  ‘For Mrs Frost, a red wine,’ he politely said as he passed her the drink. ‘For the little lady, milk and a chocolate cookie that Nomsa baked for her earlier.’ Jack knelt down and allowed Poppy to help herself to the cookie and Madeleine watched as Poppy threw her arms around Jack’s neck and gave him a huge thank you hug.

  ‘Thank you, Jack.’ Madeleine turned to where Poppy now sat on the grass, happily munching. ‘Wow, Poppy. Did Nomsa make you a lovely biscuit?’ she asked as Poppy pushed the last piece into her mouth.

  ‘It’s all gone, Mummy. Look!’ Poppy had cheeks that looked like a hamster, but held out her empty hands to prove a point.

  ‘Your usual, Mr Lawless, sir.’ Jack held the tray out to Bandit. A glass of iced water remained and Bandit gladly took it from the tray and drank it down in one.

  Chapter Twelve

  Poppy was fast asleep, surrounded by piles of teddy bears, along with her large V-shape pillow which went everywhere with her. Her thumb was firmly in her mouth and her soft blonde curls lay around her face. She was so beautiful, so perfect and Maddie felt so guilty for having disrupted her life once again, albeit Poppy seemed to have settled in at Wrea Head Hall far more quickly than she had herself. Even Buddy seemed quite happy in his new surroundings and didn’t seem to mind his kennel at all.

  Picking up a portable baby monitor, Madeleine took one last look at Poppy before walking out of the room and down a narrow, oak staircase that led down to the back of the hotel. She thought of the servants’ staircase that had been in Liam’s house. She’d never been allowed to see it and wondered if it had looked anything like this one, with its bare floorboards and unpainted walls. Liam had kept the door to the staircase locked. He’d said that the stairs had woodworm, that
they were dangerous and that he’d been worried that she or Poppy would have an accident on them.

  Her hand now stroked the wooden banister that was separated into three lengths, each piece made from different wood, yet it looked uncannily new compared to the rest of the decor, making her wonder if it had been a health and safety addition after the house had been turned into a hotel. Surely if it had been there when the house had been built it would have been made of the same wood and rubbed smooth with the constant use of the servants as they’d run up and down to look after the family, who, of course, would have only used the grand staircase that led down into the lounge. There was a long, upholstered window seat halfway up the grand staircase on the landing and Madeleine could imagine that it would have been the perfect place for the women of the house to sit, sew and admire the grounds.

  ‘You okay, dear?’ her father asked as she reached the bottom of the stairs and entered the office. Madeleine nodded, yet continued to stare up the staircase as though waiting for the ghosts of the past to follow her down. Turning her attention back to her father, she closed the door and leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek.

  ‘How was the shopping trip? Did you find a new bed?’

  ‘Yes, yes, I did. It arrives a week on Friday.’ He smiled. ‘Reproduction Victorian beds are so difficult to come by. The one I’ve found is beautiful and very, very rare. I can’t wait for you to see it.’

  ‘Sounds amazing. Do you have any pictures?’

  He looked pleased and enthusiastic with his purchase. He picked his phone up and began to flick through the photos showing Madeleine what he’d bought.

  ‘It’s beautiful. Look at the carvings. You’re going to love it. I thought it would go in room four when it’s finished. That room is huge and I’m led to believe that it used to be the room that Mr Ennis slept in. So, it’s only fitting that we should give it the best bed that I could find.’