Lost and Found

Chapter - 5

Chapter 5

 Saturday 21st October 2007

Amelia was again ruing her bad decisions as she boarded the midnight flight home from Milan. Milan, supposedly the centre of European fashion, and all she’d seen was the inside of her hotel room and three offices. Her inability to seal her deal before five pm meant she’d missed her commuter flight home, she was extremely lucky to get a second chance on this flight. The previous day when daydreams and recollections had hampered her clarity over the business deal she was working on, she’d decided to go home, not London home, but her father’s home.

She hadn’t been there more than five times since she was sixteen.

Sol’s words had echoed in her head constantly since she’d met him earlier in the week. Now she was convinced that Alex had something to do with her father turning up, she had to confront him. The last she’d heard he was working with her father, managing the estate, had that been his plan all the time?

Amelia ordered a coffee from the air steward and opened her Kindle; hopefully this flight would pass quickly.

Landing at four am, she got a cab home, by the time she showered and changed it was after six, so she left a note for Li and loaded her battered old car and headed out of the City.

The drive should take ninety minutes, but she was so tired she had to stop several times for strong takeaway coffees, it was over two hours later that the sight of the long undulating driveway set her teeth on edge. It was a long time since she’d been back here, a long time since she’d really honestly thought about it. But here it was - Chatford house and estate, the bane of her life.

It was still dark; heavy dew soaking the foliage and grass, a heavy mist blocked the horizon. Her father was always an early riser, so she had no qualms about climbing out of the car and knocking the heavy door. Even though this was her childhood home, she had no ties, emotional or otherwise to the building, and didn’t feel she could just open the door and walk in. Amelia didn’t even know if she had a key anymore.

The house had always been imposing, and now as she stood on the doorstep she felt more small and vulnerable than she ever had as a child. Taking a deep breath she banged the door, loudly.

She was about to step back to the car and give up when the door finally creaked open, stood there was a much frailer version of her father than she had ever envisaged. He stared wide-eyed for a long time before he finally spoke.

                “Amelia? Is that you?” he squinted, trying to work it out, he’d worn glasses when she’d lived here nearly ten years ago, but he wore none now.

                “Hi Dad, I needed to talk to you.”

He nodded and smiled, “you don’t need a reason to come here, whatever you think, it is your home!”

Shrugging, she wasn’t sure about that at all, she followed him into the hall. So many memories flooded back, but the strongest was that fateful night, the night she remembered as though it was yesterday.

After Alex had discovered them kissing that day, they both knew they had to be discreet. Sol was determined to play down the relationship. It had worked for at most one day. It was hard to hide things from her father, but it also helped them calm the heat of their relationship. Over the summer of that year, they spent days walking the grounds, picnicking on river banks, trips to the cinema. All the time Sol was the perfect gentleman. They held hands in private, shared some very promising and poorly controlled kisses, and he joked about how many cold showers he was taking. But he was determined that nothing more happen between them.