To Cut a Long Story Short (2000) Read online

  When they boarded the aircraft the following morning and the chief steward saw the state Angus was in, it took all Ruth’s powers of persuasion to convince him to allow her husband to remain on the flight. ‘I must get him back to his own doctor as quickly as possible,’ she pleaded. The steward reluctantly acquiesced.

  Ruth had already phoned ahead to arrange for a car to meet them - something else Angus would not have approved of. But by the time the plane landed, Angus was no longer in any state to offer an opinion.

  As soon as Ruth had got him back to the house and into his own bed, she immediately called their GP. Dr Sinclair carried out the same examination as the London doctor had put him through, and he too asked what Angus had eaten the night before. He came to the same conclusion: Angus must see a specialist immediately.

  An ambulance came to pick him up later that afternoon and take him to the Cottage Hospital. When the specialist had completed his examination, he asked Ruth to join him in his room. ‘I’m afraid the news is not good, Mrs Henderson,’ he told her. ‘Your husband has suffered a heart attack, possibly aggravated by a long day and something he ate that didn’t agree with him. In the circumstances, I think it might be wise to bring the children back from school.’

  Ruth returned home later that night, not knowing who she could turn to. The phone rang, and when she picked it up she recognised the voice immediately.

  ‘Max,’ she blurted out, ‘I’m so glad you called. The specialist says Angus hasn’t long to live, and that I ought to bring the boys back home.’ She paused. ‘I don’t think I’m up to telling them what’s happened. You see, they adore their father.’

  ‘Leave it to me,’ said Max quietly. ‘I’ll ring the headmaster, go down and pick them up tomorrow morning, and fly over to Jersey with them.’

  ‘That’s so kind of you, Max.’

  ‘It’s the least I could do in the circumstances,’ said Max. ‘Now try and get some rest. You sound exhausted. I’ll call back as soon as I know which flight we’re on.’

  Ruth returned to the hospital and spent most of the night sitting by her husband’s bedside. The only other visitor, who Angus insisted on seeing, was the family solicitor. Ruth arranged for Mr Craddock to come the following morning, while she was at the airport picking up Max and the twins.

  Max strode out of the customs hall, the two boys walking on either side of him. Ruth was relieved to find that they were far calmer than she was. Max drove the three of them to the hospital. She was disappointed that Max planned to return to England on the afternoon flight, but as he explained, he felt this was a time for her to be with her family.

  Angus died peacefully in the St Helier Cottage Hospital the following Friday. Ruth and the twins were at his bedside.

  Max flew over for the funeral, and the next day accompanied the twins back to school. When Ruth waved them goodbye she wondered if she would ever hear from Max again.

  He phoned the next morning to ask how she was.

  ‘Lonely, and feeling a little guilty that I miss you more than I should.’ She paused. ‘When are you next planning to come to Jersey?’

  ‘Not for some time. Try not to forget that it was you who warned me that even the letterboxes chatter on Jersey.’

  ‘But what shall I do? The boys are away at school, and you’re stuck in London.’

  Why don’t you join me in town? It will be a lot easier to lose ourselves over here, and frankly no one will recognise you in London.’

  ‘Perhaps you’re right. Let me think about it, and then I’ll call you.’

  Ruth flew into Heathrow a week later, and Max was at the airport to greet her. She was touched by how thoughtful and gentle he was, never once complaining about her long silences, or the fact that she didn’t want to make love.

  When he drove her back to the airport on Monday morning, she clung on to him.

  ‘You know,’ she said, ‘I didn’t even get to see your flat or your office.’

  ‘I think it was sensible that you booked into a hotel this time. You can always see my office next time you come over.’

  She smiled for the first time since the funeral. When they parted at the airport, he took her in his arms and said, ‘I know it’s early days, my darling, but I want you to know how much I love you and hope that at some time in the future you might feel me worthy of taking Angus’s place.’

  She returned to St Helier that evening continually repeating his words, as if they were the lyrics of a song she could not get out of her mind.

  It must have been about a week later that she received a phone call from Mr Craddock, the family solicitor, who suggested that she drop into his office and discuss the implications of her late husband’s will. She made an appointment to see him the following morning.

  Ruth had assumed that as she and Angus had always led a comfortable life, her standard of living would continue much as before. After all, Angus was not the sort of man who would leave his affairs unresolved. She recalled how insistent he had been that Mr Craddock should visit him at the hospital.

  Ruth had never shown any interest in Angus’s business affairs. Although he was always careful with his money, if she had ever wanted something, he had never refused her. In any case, Max had just deposited a cheque for over PS100,000 in Angus’s account, so she set off for the solicitor’s office the following morning confident that her late husband would have left quite enough for her to live on.

  She arrived a few minutes early. Despite this, the receptionist accompanied her straight through to the senior partner’s room. When she walked in, she found three men seated around the boardroom table. They immediately rose from their places, and Mr Craddock introduced them as partners of the firm. Ruth assumed they must have come to pay their respects, but they resumed their seats and continued to study the thick files placed in front of them. For the first time, Ruth became anxious. Surely Angus’s estate was in order?

  The senior partner took his seat at the top of the table, untied a bundle of documents and extracted a thick parchment, then looked up at his late client’s wife.

  ‘Firstly, may I express on behalf of the firm the sadness we all felt when we learned of Mr Henderson’s death,’ he began.

  ‘Thank you,’ said Ruth, bowing her head.

  ‘We asked you to come here this morning so that we could advise you of the details of your late husband’s will. Afterwards, we shall be happy to answer any questions you might have.’

  Ruth went cold, and began trembling. Why hadn’t Angus warned her that there were likely to be problems?

  The solicitor read through the preamble, finally coming to the bequests.

  ‘I leave all my worldly goods to my wife Ruth, with the exception of the following bequests:

  ‘a) PS200 each to both of my sons Nicholas and Ben, which I would like them to spend on something in my memory.

  ‘b) PS500 to the Scottish Royal Academy, to be used for the purchase of a picture of their choice, which must be by a Scottish artist.

  ‘c) PS1,000 to George Watson College, my old school, and a further PS2,000 to Edinburgh University.’

  The solicitor continued with a list of smaller bequests, ending with a gift of PS100 to the Cottage Hospital which had taken such good care of Angus during the last few days of his life.

  The senior partner looked up at Ruth and asked, ‘Do you have any questions, Mrs Henderson, which we might advise you on? Or will you be happy for us to administer your affairs in the same way as we did your late husband’s?’

  ‘To be honest, Mr Craddock, Angus never discussed his affairs with me, so I’m not sure what all this means. As long as there’s enough for the boys and myself to go on living in the way we did when he was alive, I’m happy for you to continue to administer our affairs.’

  The partner seated on Mr Craddock’s right said, ‘I had the privilege of advising Mr Henderson since he first arrived on the island some seven years ago, Mrs Henderson, and would be happy to answer any questions you may have.�€