‘It’s funny how a bonfire smells comfortable, while a trapped fire smells terrifying.’
Thea stayed close to Shaun’s side as they sat as far back from the flames as they could, while still benefiting from the warmth.
‘If you want to get further away from the fire, all you have to do is say. No one will mind.’
Thea held him tighter. ‘I won’t pretend I’m exactly relaxed right now, but perhaps it’s a good idea to do this. I don’t want to become afraid of bonfires.’
Mabel’s lasagne was being consumed at speed. As congratulations and thanks for her thoughtfulness for cooking for them combined with frequent checks that Thea and Tina were alright, the conversation drifted into speculating on the future of Mill Grange and its mill.
Thea knew the time had come. She had to tell them.
Shaun hugged her closer to his side as he felt her tense. ‘Is it weird that no one’s commented that we’re together? Nor that Tina and Sam are sitting so close to each other you couldn’t fit a teaspoon between them?’
‘Bigger things to worry about, which is good, but I’d rather have had some scandal than…’ Thea put down her plate of barely touched lemon cake. ‘I’m not sure I’ll be able to eat again until I’ve told them about the Trust’s decision.’
Dropping her voice to a whisper, Thea added, ‘I wish I knew who’d bought Mill Grange. At least then we’d know if it was a business intending to turn it into a corporate meeting place, or if it was a private individual who just hopes to live quietly.’
‘Which is worse?’
‘I have absolutely no idea.’ Thea shifted uneasily. ‘Shaun?’
‘Yes?’
‘It isn’t you, is it?’
‘The buyer, you mean?’
Thea suddenly felt shy about asking. ‘I’m sorry, that was a foolish question. You’d have said.’ Not giving him the chance to respond, Thea said, ‘Unless it isn’t sold anymore, of course.’ She looked at Shaun. ‘Do you think the buyer will still want it? Fire damage is expensive to put right. They might pull out.’
Shaun shrugged. ‘It depends if the mill was included in the sale. Did Malcolm say?’
‘No he didn’t. I just assumed it would be.’ She massaged her thudding forehead. Thea desperately wanted to go to sleep, but knew if she didn’t share her news now, she’d never relax enough to manage more than a night of conscience troubling tossing and turning. ‘Here goes nothing!’
Picking up a handy twig, Thea banged it on the side of her plate. Despite the crackles of the fire and the hum of her friend’s voices, everyone turned in her direction.
They’ve been waiting for me to speak.
As Shaun whispered, ‘You can do this’ under his breath, Thea cleared her throat, apologising in advance for her husky throat. An apology that was brushed away under a series of dismissals and comments of ‘of course you have a rough throat,’ ‘being trapped in a burning building does that,’ ‘we’re just glad you’re okay…’
Am I okay? Thea hadn’t had a minute to think about that yet. She swallowed, taking a sip of water from the glass Shaun offered, concern deepening in his eyes.
I can do this. This is my new start. This moment. Now.
She raised her hands to bring the group back to order and gave a smile which she hoped didn’t look as forced as it felt.
‘I’m glad you’re all here.’ She nodded at Tina, who gave a secret thumbs up from the opposite side of the bonfire. ‘Tina and I are fine. A bit shaken and in need of new clothes and some sleep, but thanks to Shaun and Sam we’re in one piece and in far better shape than the mill.’
Derek raised his glass of beer in Thea’s direction. ‘Do I dare ask how bad it is inside the mill?’
‘I don’t know for sure.’ Thea wiped her gritty eyes as she spoke. ‘We aren’t allowed back in until there’s been a health and safety check. The impression I got was that the spinning-room is a write-off, especially the ceiling. The walls are smoke- and soot-stained, but it’s the structural integrity of the building that needs checking. If that’s compromised then it’ll take more budget than we’ve got to put it right.’
‘You mean the mill may have to come down?’ Mabel pulled her coat tighter around her shoulders.
‘Possibly, or it may just be a case of a massive clean-up and redecorate. We won’t know for a few days. In fact—’ Thea took another sip of water ‘—it may not be our problem at all.’
Every eye was focused on her as Mabel spoke for them all. ‘What did the trustees say about Mill Grange’s future?’
Not wanting to catch anyone’s eye as she spoke, Thea stared at a small patch of earth just short of the bonfire. ‘It’s been sold.’
‘What?!’
Suddenly everyone was talking at once. Gasps of ‘but Mabel said it would never happen,’ merged into ‘sold, but weren’t they supposed to tell us about selling it, not that it’s a done deal already? How about Open Day?’
Through the cries of consternation, Thea spotted Mabel looking uncomfortable. Thankful that Bert was with her and had already grasped his wife’s hand, Thea raised her voice as much as she could. The result was rather squeaky.
‘I can answer some of your questions, but not all of them. First, Mabel’s confidence at the manor’s safety with the Trust came out of a conversation someone had with her – a conversation during which Mabel’s good nature was cruelly taken advantage of.’ She turned to Mabel. ‘I’m sorry, Mabel. I should have told you how underhand John could be. I didn’t want to burden you with my problems.’
‘John?’ The collective murmuring of his name as they all bit back the desire to ask Thea about why John was a problem, sounded across the garden as loud as if they’d bellowed their queries skyward.
Deciding to clear the air in the hope the subject would then be closed for everyone, including herself, Thea cleared her throat. ‘Some time ago, John was my boyfriend. The relationship was short and meant far more to him than me. He, to my never-ending bemusement, became obsessed with the idea of us getting back together. I hoped that, when I came here, he’d give up, but…’
Mabel went pale. ‘But then you ended up doing the television broadcast and he found you! Oh my God, Thea, I’m so sorry, I had no idea!’
‘Of course you didn’t. You have nothing to be sorry for. And it turned out to be excellent for the manor, and it brought Shaun here. For which I’m more than grateful.’
Diane smiled, ‘And now John’s long gone, thanks to Mabel.’
Mabel blushed. ‘With a little career advice ringing in his ears.’
Thea felt a surge of love for Mabel that she’d never have believed possible a few weeks ago. ‘John aside, Mill Grange has been sold. Whether that sale will go ahead now that the mill has suffered a fire remains to be seen. According to the police and firefighters I spoke to, the fire report will state that it was an accident. If the Trust suspected arson in an attempt to stop the sale going ahead, then we could all have been facing some questioning from the police.
‘However, that is not the case. It was an accident. The wind banging the door closed caused a candle to fall and it hit the paper tablecloths under the fleeces.’ Mutters whisked through the group again as Thea pressed on. ‘We thought the flame had gone out. We were wrong.’ Thea sighed. I’m blaming myself for dropping the candle, while Tina’s blaming herself for having lit it in the first place.’
This time the mutters of protest were louder, each and every one telling the girls that it was nobody’s fault. A fact underlined by Sam who, asking for silence stated, very firmly that if the firefighters, who were experts, could see it was an accident straight away, then that’s exactly what it was.
Thea swallowed painfully as she moved the subject on. ‘The Open Day will happen. The new owner wants us to hold it. A way of us thanking everyone for their support and giving the locals a chance to see the house.’
For a while all that could be heard was the crackle of the branches Derek and his students had piled into the blazing bonfire. Thea nervously shuffled as she awaited the outcry of protests and declarations that they wouldn’t run the Open Day with her. She wouldn’t blame them. Why should they put more effort into the manor when it had been taken away from them?
It was Sam who broke the contemplative mood. ‘I think we should make the Open Day something special. It was going to be amazing anyway. Let’s make it something no one will forget. We’ve sold how many tickets?’ He turned to Tina.
‘All fifty pre-sales. We were hoping for another fifty on the day.’
‘And in the house, how many people could you comfortably have wandering around at one time?’
Thea leant forward, wondering where Sam was going with this. ‘Fire regulations put the limit at seventy people at once, spread throughout the house.’
Sam thought for a moment. ‘Let’s work on the assumption that the mill is lost, for the time being at least, and certainly for the purposes of the Open Day. So, as the three crafts folk booked will need somewhere to work, or at least display their work if power issues stop them doing demonstrations, we need an alternative location. Marquees would seem a sensible answer. Anyone know someone local who supplies them?’
Bill raised a hand. ‘There’s a firm in Wiveliscombe. Does hire for events and stuff. I’ll bring the phone number tomorrow.’
‘Excellent.’ Sam glanced at Thea, silently asking if she was alright with him making suggestions. As she nodded, he added, ‘And perhaps we could go beyond the cups of tea and coffee, as well as Tina’s excellent lemon cake, that we were going to provide in the kitchen.’
Sybil cut in from her spot by the fire. ‘If we can rustle up an extra tent, then I’m happy to do an afternoon tea service. Cream teas and dainty Victorian style sandwiches.’
Thea felt bewildered. She’d expected them to be less than excited about Open Day now they’d lost the manor. It appeared the contrary was true. The restoration of Mill Grange was going to end on a high.
‘A hog roast!’ Derek announced. ‘I know a bloke who does them. He’d come; I’m sure he would.’
Thea’s head began to swim. She’d been so worried about them taking the sale of the house badly, yet here they were, happily pouring ideas into ways to let go of their project with a bang. She didn’t have the heart to tell them that the budget was all but used up and that there was simply no money to hire marquees and hog roasts.