The Long-Awaited Granddaughter
Mary Thompson kept ringing her son, whod sailed off again, his voice lost somewhere beyond reach. The ocean devoured all connection.
Oh, what a mess youve made, my boy! she sighed, her words caught between worry and hope, redialling his number which only responded with silence. No matter how many calls she made, he would not answer until the ship docked at some distant port. That might be days yet. And now, of all times!
Mary hadn’t slept a wink in two daysall of this her son’s doing!
* * *
The oddness had begun some years ago, back when James wasn’t yet a sailor on distant waters. Her son, grown into a man, somehow never found the right womana parade of relationships, none ever good enough, at least by his own impossibly precise standards. Marys heart would clench, watching what she thought to be perfectly lovely young women vanish from his life, one after another.
“Youve a nature no one can bear! shed chide. What woman could possibly live up to your standards?
I dont understand your complaints, Mum. Youre just after a daughter-in-law, any kind will do as long as you get one?
Thats not true. I just want someone decent, who loves you.
Hed respond with that infuriating, knowing silence. It drove Mary mad. Since when had her boy, who once sobbed on her lap, grown so sure he knew the world better than she did? Which of them was the elder here?
What was wrong with Alice, then? shed blurt, losing patience.
I told you, hed say.
Fine, she was untrustworthy, you claim. Though Ill never see it…
Mum! Lets not pick it apart. Alice wasnt right for me.
And Beth?
Her, too, would come his calm reply.
“Or Emily? She was so sweet, proper, always offered to help me at home. Isnt that good enough?
Yes, she was sweet, Mum. But she never loved me. Nor did I love her, I suppose.
“And Charlotte?
“Mum!”
What’s it with you? You’ll never settle! Cant you start a family already so I can look after your children?
Lets just stop this pointless argument, James would finally snap, storming off.
Just like his fatherfussy and stubborn to a fault! Mary would stew, disappointed yet oddly proud.
Time passed; girlfriends came and went. But Marys cherished hopeto greet her son’s bride and cradle his childrenremained unfulfilled. Then James switched paths entirely, bumping into an old mate who offered him work at sea. Off he went. Mary pleaded in vain.
“Mum, its a great deal! Dyou know what those lads earn? Well want for nothing!
“What good is money if I never see you? Youd be better off starting a family!”
“I have to provide first! Besides, once there are kids, I wont be off to seaIll stay and raise them. Ive got to earn now, while I can.
And truly, James made good money. After his first trip he spruced up the flat. After the second, he got a bank card and handed it to Mary.
Use it for anything you need, Mum!
I dont want for anything! All I lack are grandchildrenIm getting old!
Youre hardly olddont make me laugh! Youve years before pension!
Mary never touched his money. Her small wage from the local chemist was enough for her modest needs. Let it stay on the card, James wont notice. Hell be amazed at how thrifty his mother is! she often congratulated herself.
That routine lasted several years. Each time James returned, he threw himself into missed experiencesnights out, laughter, drinking, mysterious girlfriends whom Mary never met. When she pressed him, his brusque reply stung:
Thats so you dont worry about me not marrying them. Theyre not marrying type, Mum!
Mary winced. Worse, hed called her too trusting. Just so:
You look for the good in everyone, Mum. In truth, you never really knew any of my so-called fiancées. They put on a show just for you.
That criticism lingered, gnawing at herher best trait now paraded as folly. Trusting meant foolish; he thought her a fool!
But the evening she glimpsed him with another girl, her resolve blazed anew. She strode up, and grown-up James actually blushed. Well, mothers will do as they please.
Clara charmed Mary. Tall, slender, wild curls and a cheery face; gentle manners. Maybe lucks come at last, Mary privately hoped, good thing the others didnt work out, or hed never have met such a beauty!
Their romance spanned Jamess leave. Clara visited repeatedly, well-educated and endlessly chattyMary was delighted. Yet, as James packed for sea once more, Clara vanished.
Were not in touch anymore. Best you stay away from her as well, he said flatly, and was gone.
Mary puzzled for weeks, but found no answers anywhere.
* * *
A year passed. James came home now and then; questions about Clara were met with cold brevity.
What was wrong with that one, then? Mary finally snapped. She seemed wonderfulwhat went wrong?
Mum, thats my affair. If weve parted, its for good reason. Dont interfere!
Mary nearly wept. But James, I worry about you!
Please, stop! And leave Clara be! Enough!
James disappeared again, and Mary, heart torn, returned to her routine.
One day at the chemist, a familiar figure arrived for baby formulait was Clara, head lowered, adjusting the woolly hat on the little girl in her buggy.
Clara, love! Im so glad to see you! James told me nothing, just vanished off to sea and forbade me to ask
Did he Claras eyes saddening. Well, so be it.
Mary, nervously fidgeting, pleaded, Tell me the truth, my dear. What’s happened? I know my sonstubborn as they comedid he hurt you?
It doesnt matter, Clara replied, softly. I bear him no ill will. But we should be offa shop to visit still.
Please do stop by! Even here at workI do shifts, we could chat awhile!
Clara returned, and slowly, Mary coaxed the truth. Clara had fallen pregnant with Jamess baby, but hed wanted nothing to do with ithe was always off at sea, didnt want long-term ties. And then he vanished.
So, he sailed away, I suppose, Clara shrugged. No matter, well manage. Were quite all right on our own.
Mary all but dropped to her knees before the pram, gazing at the child. Dont tell meshes my granddaughter?
It appears so, Clara whispered. Her names Hannah.
Hannah…
***
Mary could no longer find any peace. With care, she learned that Clara had nowhere to goshe was from out of town, renting, struggling with a baby and irregular work. Clara was considering moving back in with her own parents. The thought of her granddaughter moving away and out of Marys life wracked her with dread.
Move in with me, Clara! Bring Hannah! Shes my granddaughter, after all! Ill help with everything, youll find steady work, and James sends more than enough moneyI cant spend it all. Hannah will lack for nothing!
What would James say?
Does it matter? He ought to answer for himself! He abandoned you both and told me nothing! I have to put things right, at least. When he gets back Ill have wordswith a proper reckoning this time! Mary clenched her fist in the air.
So began their new life. Mary poured her money and, more importantly, her time into little Hannah, switching to shorter shifts at the chemist. Clara found a job, leaving the baby with Mary most daysoften arriving home exhausted.
I was run off my feet, so many customershalf of them quarrelsome!
Dont worry, love. You restI’ll bathe Hannah and get her to bed!
Jamess leave drew near. Mary imagined greeting him, fists ready, to bang some sense into him, while Clara grew ever more nervous. But Mary only grew more determined to shield frail Clara and vulnerable Hannah.
James will be back soon, and hell throw us out! I shouldnt have moved in! I’ll start looking for a flat tomorrow, Clara fretted.
Throw you out? Not a chance! He wouldnt darewait until Im through with him!
Oh, hell throw us out, Mary, I just know it! I shouldn’t rely on your kindnessI want nothing from you! Youve been wonderful, but its better I move back to my parents. Of course, well stay in touch
Mary scoffed, Dream on! I own this flat, and Ill put up whoever I like! Let him try to say otherwise!
Clara resisted, but Mary held her groundHannah was there to stay.
Ive been thinking, Mary mused over dinner, I ought to put the flat straight into Hannahs namejust so therell be no questions later. If James never marries, at least his daughter will have something. Besides, hes not even named on her birth certificate, is he? Mary shot Clara a look; Clara glanced away, embarrassed.
Sorry, Clara whispered. I honestly thought
“I know, darling. But if anything happens, itll be hard to prove shes his. Tomorrow, well sort out the paperwork.
No, Mary, thats not necessary! My folks have a flat too
Dont you dare argue! snapped Mary. Ive made up my mind!
Alas, the solicitor refused: Your son must be removed from the deeds before you can transfer the flat.
Mary was irked, although James would be home soon, and she could settle it then. Clara became more anxious and seldom at home.
Why are you out so late? Mary asked one evening.
Just…work, Clara faltered.
Mary trailed her to their room, noticing a packed suitcase hidden behind the bed.
Where are you off to? Youre not planning on moving out, are you?
I must leave, Mary. James will be back soon…
I wont let you and my granddaughter go anywhere! Mary declared. Then, after a moment, said: And really, you must stop running yourself ragged at work. You know where the card is, and the code. Use it! Buy what you need; dont work yourself to nothing. Hannah hardly remembers what you look like! If you want James to accept you, mind the house a bit.
Clara stayed silent. James returned in two days.
* * *
Waking before dawn on the day of Jamess return, Mary tiptoed to peek in on Clara and Hannah, hoping to watch them asleep. But Claras bed was empty; only Hannah, tucked beneath her blanket, dozed peacefully.
What in the world? Wheres Clara gone at six a.m.? Shes never left this early!
Mary hurried to the kitchen, intent on finishing preparations before James arrived and the baby awoke. She busied herself cooking his favourite dishes, buoyed by thoughts of confronting him with Hannah in her arms, demanding an apology for Clara when she returned.
At last, the bell rang.
James froze at the threshold, seeing Mary with the little girl in her arms.
Hullo, MumWhose child is that? What did I miss while at sea?
You ought to know very well!
I dont understand. James, shedding his boots, stared blankly. What wild adventure have you been on?
Some adventure! I found my granddaughter, Hannah! Thats your doing! Mary shot him a look.
My granddaughter? Have I other brothers and sisters Im unaware of? James protested, bemused.
Stop this pantomime, James! Clara told me everything! Im ashamed of you!
Clara? I told you to stay away. What does Claraor this childhave to do with me?
Mary, bristling, told her tale in full, scattering accusations like breadcrumbs. At the end, James clutched his head.
“Oh for heavens sake, Mum!”
“What, am I foolish again? Go onsay it! But I
Shes not my child, Mum! Clara tricked you, and youhow could you be so credulous? She only wanted the moneywhats she taken from you?
Nothing! Youre ungrateful
Mum! Check your savings! Shes probably made off with them!
Shes at work! Mary argued.
They bickered for ages; James finally agreed to wait for Claras return and sort it all out.
They waited into the night and the next. In the meantime, Mary told James the whole storyhow shed met Clara, offered them a home, and how shed tried to sign the flat over to Hannah. James, every time, insisted hed been duped…
I refuse to believe your accusations! Claras a wonderful girl
Shes a wonderful con artist! And you fell for it!
Say no more! When she returns, youll seeand youll be ashamed! Ill go play with my granddaughter.
Shes not your granddaughter!
Mary glared at her son.
If it comes down to it, he added, DNA will sort it.
So we shall! Mary replied, chin high, leaving the room.
Evening fell, then night. Clara did not appear. Nor the next day. Her phone silent, Mary tracked down the address where Clara claimed to have worked. With Hannah in tow, she found to her shock that Clara had never workedor been seenthere. No one recognised her photo.
Panicked, Mary hurried home and at Jamess urging, checked her savings: the cash, the bank cardgone. Claras clothes were nowhere, only Hannahs remained. Only then did Mary grasp shed been swindled.
But how? No, I cant believe it! She wouldnt abandon Hannah and just vanish?
Shed do worse, James said darkly. I was warnedmates told me shed robbed them too. And Fred said shed done the same to him. But I was seeing her thenbrought her home to meet youthen she claimed she was pregnant. Hardly from me, though. She was with all sorts by then.
How naive I am! Mary wept. Why didnt you tell me? Id have known!
I hated to poison your opinion. Youre too kindalways seeing the best in people.
So what do we do now?
Report it to the police! Thank heavens you didnt get the flat signed over. You couldve been put out on the street.
They reported Clara missing. Shed vanished without a trace; months went by, nothing heard. Luckily, she hadnt drained the accountJames had managed to cancel the card in time. It turned up abandoned at a train station far away.
While the search was on, Hannah was allowed to stay with Mary. She left her job, but Jamess generous earnings kept them afloat. A DNA test confirmed what James had said: Hannah was not his daughter. Yet Mary was so attached to the child she couldn’t let her go. She and James, after much thought, decided to raise Hannah as their own. Claras parental rights were eventually removed in absentia. It took months for Mary to gain guardianship: she had to return to work, secure a nursery spot for Hannah, and navigate endless paperwork. But finally, life resumed.
A year later, James returned from the sea witha wife.
Mum, meet Sophie. Were going to live together now.
But what about Mary gestured uncertainly towards Hannahs room, wondering if James had told his wife everything.
Sophie beamed. Lovely to meet you, Mary! James has told me everything, and honestly, I admire what youve done. If I may, I should be honoured to help raise HannahId be thrilled. She turned to James.
Yes, Im quitting the sea. Sophie and I plan to adopt Hannah for real. This time, Ill make sure it happens!
Mary glowed with happiness.
My goodness, what joy! Come in, both of youI’ve been expecting you, cooked up a storm! We’ll get to know each other properly. I’m so happy! she cried, wiping a happy tear from her cheek.
