the houses for a fair price than go down that road.’
‘Well, that’s that then. We’ll never sell.’
‘Gran, do you think you and Gramps should at least think about the offer? No, hold on a minute – don’t look at me like that. I’m just saying, this house is lovely and Cupid’s Way is worth fighting for, of course it is, but might you two be better off living elsewhere? I mean, somewhere warmer and cheaper to run and easier to keep on top of. And the money you’d get for this place, you could afford to go on holidays, live it up a little …’ She tailed off, finding her grandmother’s icy gaze too painful to bear.
‘Evie Stone. I can’t believe what I’m hearing. We asked you to come here and help us, not to go off consorting with the enemy – and now you’re trying to do his dirty work for him!’
‘Gran, it’s not like that. I just–’
‘All I’m hearing is “Michael says this” and “Michael says that”. I wonder if you’ve forgotten whose side you’re on, young lady.’
Evie sighed and slumped lower in her chair. It was useless trying to reason with her now. But she had to admit, if only to herself, that she was a tiny bit conflicted. While she would certainly fight to preserve the history of this little slice of Victoriana, she wasn’t convinced that all of Michael’s arguments were flawed. Frank and Mavis might well be better off moving, in more ways than one. The rights and wrongs of it aside, she was worried about them.
‘I’m going back to bed,’ she said. She stood up and reached for her cup on the worktop. Mavis grabbed her wrist and held it in her freezing hands.
‘Evie, I’m sorry for what I said. I know you’re on our side. But whatever you’re thinking about your granddad and me, just remember this. If I move away from this house it will kill me. It’s as simple as that.’
*
The light didn’t fully penetrate Cupid’s Way until past ten o’clock, when the overcast clouds began to dissipate and a weak sun shone through. Evie had gone back to bed after finding her gran in the kitchen, but had been unable to sleep. She’d waited until she heard Frank get up – Mavis hadn’t come back upstairs at all – then she’d waited for the water to heat up and had gone in the shower to chase away the chill.
Downstairs, she found Sarah Lowry and her gran sitting on the sofa comparing letters.
‘They came this morning,’ Mavis explained. ‘Everyone’s got one.’
‘Except the renters,’ Sarah said. ‘Morning, Evie. How are you?’
Evie said she was fine and reached out to take the offered letter from her gran. She read it quickly, then handed it back. Its contents weren’t a huge surprise.
‘It’s a good offer,’ she said. ‘I’d say that’s at least five grand more than they’re actually worth.’
There it was again, that nagging question at the back of her mind. Why were Dynamite willing to pay over the odds for the houses? What was in it for them? Already she was thinking of Michael and Dynamite Construction as two separate entities, although she still held him entirely responsible for their actions. He was the face of the company, he was its voice.
‘What’s all the fuss about?’ Frank came in the back door and stood in the entrance to the living room, his head nearly touching the top of the frame. His hands were filthy and he had coal smudged on his nose. Mavis started fussing around him with a tea towel.
‘You’ve all had letters,’ Evie told him. ‘From the council.’
He swore and batted Mavis’s hands away. ‘What do the bloody leeches want now? Will you stop it, woman? I’m not a child.’
Sarah held out her letter but Frank didn’t take it. She said, ‘It just goes over what was said at the meeting on Friday. And it sets out the official offer from Dynamite Construction.’
‘Which is very generous,’ Evie put in. Mavis glared, and flicked her with the tea towel.
‘It doesn’t matter if they offer us the crown
‘Well, that’s that then. We’ll never sell.’
‘Gran, do you think you and Gramps should at least think about the offer? No, hold on a minute – don’t look at me like that. I’m just saying, this house is lovely and Cupid’s Way is worth fighting for, of course it is, but might you two be better off living elsewhere? I mean, somewhere warmer and cheaper to run and easier to keep on top of. And the money you’d get for this place, you could afford to go on holidays, live it up a little …’ She tailed off, finding her grandmother’s icy gaze too painful to bear.
‘Evie Stone. I can’t believe what I’m hearing. We asked you to come here and help us, not to go off consorting with the enemy – and now you’re trying to do his dirty work for him!’
‘Gran, it’s not like that. I just–’
‘All I’m hearing is “Michael says this” and “Michael says that”. I wonder if you’ve forgotten whose side you’re on, young lady.’
Evie sighed and slumped lower in her chair. It was useless trying to reason with her now. But she had to admit, if only to herself, that she was a tiny bit conflicted. While she would certainly fight to preserve the history of this little slice of Victoriana, she wasn’t convinced that all of Michael’s arguments were flawed. Frank and Mavis might well be better off moving, in more ways than one. The rights and wrongs of it aside, she was worried about them.
‘I’m going back to bed,’ she said. She stood up and reached for her cup on the worktop. Mavis grabbed her wrist and held it in her freezing hands.
‘Evie, I’m sorry for what I said. I know you’re on our side. But whatever you’re thinking about your granddad and me, just remember this. If I move away from this house it will kill me. It’s as simple as that.’
*
The light didn’t fully penetrate Cupid’s Way until past ten o’clock, when the overcast clouds began to dissipate and a weak sun shone through. Evie had gone back to bed after finding her gran in the kitchen, but had been unable to sleep. She’d waited until she heard Frank get up – Mavis hadn’t come back upstairs at all – then she’d waited for the water to heat up and had gone in the shower to chase away the chill.
Downstairs, she found Sarah Lowry and her gran sitting on the sofa comparing letters.
‘They came this morning,’ Mavis explained. ‘Everyone’s got one.’
‘Except the renters,’ Sarah said. ‘Morning, Evie. How are you?’
Evie said she was fine and reached out to take the offered letter from her gran. She read it quickly, then handed it back. Its contents weren’t a huge surprise.
‘It’s a good offer,’ she said. ‘I’d say that’s at least five grand more than they’re actually worth.’
There it was again, that nagging question at the back of her mind. Why were Dynamite willing to pay over the odds for the houses? What was in it for them? Already she was thinking of Michael and Dynamite Construction as two separate entities, although she still held him entirely responsible for their actions. He was the face of the company, he was its voice.
‘What’s all the fuss about?’ Frank came in the back door and stood in the entrance to the living room, his head nearly touching the top of the frame. His hands were filthy and he had coal smudged on his nose. Mavis started fussing around him with a tea towel.
‘You’ve all had letters,’ Evie told him. ‘From the council.’
He swore and batted Mavis’s hands away. ‘What do the bloody leeches want now? Will you stop it, woman? I’m not a child.’
Sarah held out her letter but Frank didn’t take it. She said, ‘It just goes over what was said at the meeting on Friday. And it sets out the official offer from Dynamite Construction.’
‘Which is very generous,’ Evie put in. Mavis glared, and flicked her with the tea towel.
‘It doesn’t matter if they offer us the crown
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