Page 81 of The Sisters at the Last House Before the Sea

Connie sniffed before shuffling away. After a moment, Isla followed her along the hall into a large sitting room, which reeked of cats. The old lady made her way to a shabby armchair that had been placed right next to the window and sank into it.She glared at Isla.

‘Following me now, are you? Who are you again?’

‘I’m Isla, granddaughter of Jessie in Heaven’s Cove who died recently. I think you knew her.’

‘She died, did she?’ Connie looked out of the streaked glass, at the fields still covered in snow, down to the sea beyond. ‘I fancy someone told me that the other day but I’d forgot ’til now. That’s a shame.’

‘Maisie told me that you gave Gran – Jessie – the carved angel that she always carried with her.’

‘That’s right. She was kinder than the rest of them in the village.’

‘Shall I get you a cup of tea, Connie?’ asked Maisie, poking her head around the door.

‘That would be kind of you, child.’

‘Uh, Isla, did you want a drink, too?’

Isla tried not to let the surprise show on her face. Maisie had never offered her a drink before. She thought about Connie’s kitchen with its grimy wooden countertops and chipped mugs piled up in the sink.

‘No, I’m fine.’ She smiled. ‘But thanks for offering.’

‘Yeah. Whatever.’ Maisie disappeared into the kitchen and began clattering about.

‘She’s a good girl,’ said Connie. ‘You’ve brought her up well.’

‘That’s nothing to do with me. It’s my sister who’s Maisie’s stepmum.’

‘What happened to her real mum?’

‘I’m not one hundred per cent sure. She went to live in Canada a few years ago.’

‘Without her daughter?’ Isla nodded. ‘So Maisie’s living with you in Heaven’s Cove now, then.’

‘Just for a while, until she and my sister have sorted out their…issues.’ Isla changed the subject because Connie didn’t need to know the ins and outs of their family history. ‘How are you getting on, living out here on your own?’ She glanced at the Zimmer frame in the corner and the dust piling up on top of the bookcase.

‘Perfectly fine,’ retorted Connie. ‘You’re not a do-gooder, are you? Here to try and encourage me to leave?’

Isla shook her head. ‘Definitely not.’

‘Good. I’m content up here on my own and will never join’ – she shuddered – ‘a retirement community. If I’d wanted to be part of a community, I’d have moved into the village long ago. I like it up here where I can hear the bird song and the wind in the eaves, and no one bothers me…Usually,’ she added pointedly.

‘It is very peaceful up here, and I hear that the village residents’ association gives you a helping hand sometimes.’

‘They help me get my groceries delivered and they came out in the snow to check on me, which was unnecessary. That was when I first met Maisie.’

‘Do you like her?’

Connie tilted her chin, her eyes boring into Isla’s. ‘She reminds me of me and how I used to be.’

The door suddenly whammed into the wall and Maisie came into the room, carrying a mug in one hand and a chipped plate bearing two digestive biscuits in the other.

‘Here you go,’ she said gruffly, manoeuvring a side table towards Connie with her foot. ‘I thought you might be hungry ’cos it’s almost lunchtime.’ She handed the mug to the old lady and put the plate on the table, within her reach.

Connie lifted the mug to her lips with shaky hands and took a sip. ‘I’ve been talking to your aunt.’

‘Yeah?’ Maisie shot Isla a nervous glance. ‘Talking about what?’

‘This and that,’ said Connie, taking another sip of her tea, which looked awash with milk.

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