Kitty Neale 3 Book Bundle. Kitty Neale

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СКАЧАТЬ She had someone on her side now, and at last the future looked brighter.

      Though around seven years had passed since he’d last seen his brother, when Tommy walked into the living room, he recognised him instantly. ‘Jeremy,’ he gasped, ‘I can’t believe it.’

      ‘It’s good to see you, Tom. What were you, about thirteen or fourteen when I left home?’ Jeremy asked as he stood up.

      ‘Yes, about that.’

      ‘You’ve grown up, but you’re still a skinny runt,’ Jeremy said, his grin taking any malice out of the words.

      As they hugged awkwardly, Tommy noted that his brother was still taller than him, his body muscular, and with his dark hair and vivid green eyes, he was strikingly handsome. Jeremy had been his idol, the older brother he’d looked up to, and it had been gut-wrenching when he left home. Now he was back, and Tommy hoped it was permanent as he asked, ‘Is this just a visit, or will you be staying?’

      ‘I’m not sure yet, it depends.’

      ‘On what?’

      ‘This and that, what prospects there might be for me here, that sort of thing,’ Jeremy replied.

      ‘Thomas, it’s wonderful to have Jeremy home again and I hope we can find a way to persuade him to stay.’

      ‘I hope so too, Mum.’

      ‘Jeremy and I have been chatting for so long that I’ve got behind with preparing dinner. I’ll get on with it now and leave you two to catch up.’

      As their mother left the room, Tommy coughed and sat down. He felt rough and had spent the day shivering or sweating in equal measures. Mild, familiar symptoms had started a couple of days ago, signalling the onset of bronchitis, but as he was too busy to take time off he’d have to work through it. Jeremy took a seat too, and Tommy managed to rally, saying, ‘From your letters, I know some of the places you’ve seen, but I’d be interested to know more.’

      ‘Well now, as I told Mum, I made my way home from Greece, but I went to so many countries that it would take a long time to describe them all,’ Jeremy said, going on to talk about one or two.

      As Tommy listened, he felt that in comparison to his brother he’d hardly seen or done anything. Yet even so, he’d never had a yearning to travel, preferring all things familiar. The thought of having to find any menial sort of work in a foreign country to earn a crust, as Jeremy had, didn’t appeal.

      ‘That’s enough about me,’ Jeremy said. ‘What about you? Mum tells me that you’re getting married.’

      ‘Yes, that’s right.’

      ‘I’m twenty-five and don’t fancy settling down yet. Don’t you think you’re a bit young for the marriage game?’

      ‘No, I don’t. Amy is the girl for me.’

      ‘She must be pretty special.’

      ‘She is,’ Thomas enthused.

      ‘In that case, when am I going to meet her?’

      ‘This evening if you like,’ Tommy suggested, though in truth all he wanted to do was to crawl into bed. He couldn’t give in though, and if his mother saw that he was under the weather she’d start mollycoddling, something he didn’t want. ‘Amy only lives at the bottom of the Rise so we can pop down there after dinner.’

      ‘You’re on,’ Jeremy agreed.

      ‘Thomas, I don’t think you should take Jeremy to meet Amy this evening,’ Celia said. ‘Surely it can wait. With all that travelling to get here, he must be tired.’

      It was Jeremy who answered, ‘I’m fine, Mum.’

      ‘Well don’t be long. It’s bound to catch up with you and I think you need an early night.’

      ‘We won’t be out for more than an hour or so,’ Tommy assured her.

      ‘Make sure you aren’t.’

      ‘Yes, Mummy,’ Jeremy mocked, affecting the voice of a child.

      ‘Oh you,’ she said, yet smiling as she went back to the kitchen.

      With a wry grin Jeremy said, ‘Mum’s already making me feel like a ten-year-old again. Is she always like

      this?’

      Tommy nodded, relieved that his mother was too focused on Jeremy to worry about him. ‘It’s worse if you’re ill. You’ve only got to sniff and she wants to confine you to bed, though with a business to run I can’t take time off unless I’m really rough.’

      ‘Yes, we’ll have to talk about your business,’ Jeremy said, ‘but it can wait for now.’

      Tommy frowned, but then Jeremy said he was going upstairs to freshen up before dinner, leaving him to wonder about his brother’s enigmatic remark.

      Though he hadn’t said as much, Jeremy had grown tired of travelling. He’d already been thinking about returning home when his mother’s letter arrived, and reading her impassioned words had set the seal on his decision. What he hadn’t thought about at that time was his father’s piddling little business, but that had changed when his mother had shown him the accounts. He was interested now – very interested, and somehow he was going to make sure that as the elder brother, he rightfully got his share.

      A little later, over dinner, his mother looked at Thomas and said, ‘You look a bit flushed. Are you all right?’

      ‘Yes, I’m fine. It’s just a bit warm in here, that’s all.’

      Jeremy wasn’t so sure. Out of their mother’s sight he’d seen Tom use his inhaler a few times and had heard him coughing. However, soon after they had finished eating, Tom said, ‘Right, Jeremy, are you ready?’

      ‘Yes, let’s go,’ he replied.

      ‘Don’t be long. You look exhausted, Jeremy.’

      ‘I must admit it’s catching up on me, but it’s still far too early to go to bed. See you later, Mum.’

      She called goodbye and shortly after he and Tom walked out into the cold night air. Jeremy shivered, stuffed his hands into his pockets and picked up his pace. They were halfway down the Rise when Tom started coughing again, bending over and holding a hand against his racking chest.

      ‘Tom, are you all right?’ Jeremy asked, worried that his brother seemed to be struggling for air.

      ‘Yes … yes … just give me a minute.’

      Jeremy wondered if they should turn back, but then Tom rallied and they began to walk again until they came to some houses with the fronts partially obscured by scaffolding. Tom knocked on one of the doors and because the light was behind her, Jeremy could barely see the young woman who opened it, though he did notice that she was tiny.

      ‘Tommy, I wasn’t expecting you, but come in,’ she invited, stepping back.

      As СКАЧАТЬ