Evergreen House: Book Four 2000s

By Amelia Keldan

After spending her whole life deciphering the emotions of those she holds dear, Tildy now watches as her son grapples with the burdens of his own unique gift.
By assuming that there are no more secrets left to reveal, Tildy finds herself unprepared for the revelations that can no longer remain buried.

Can the ramblings of an old war veteran be trusted?
Is an ailing old woman the best source of information about a past that has been riddled with heartbreak and deception?

As an old friend returns to help everyone celebrate the union of two cherished loved ones, Tildy remains nervous that the patterns of the past will repeat themselves forever.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amelia Keldan
• Release date: Dec 22, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370776962

Amelia Keldan

Amelia Keldan is a women’s fiction writer, full time Mother and lover of all things vintage. When not reading and writing, you can find her trawling through second hand stores, re-furbishing old furniture and creating playlists on her iPhone. Amelia grew up amongst the foothills of South Australia and now resides in a beachside suburb, which helped to provide the setting for her latest stand-alone novel, The Memories of Misty. Her next novel, The Arrival of Amber is due in 2019.

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Evergreen House

By Amelia Keldan

Copyright 2017 Amelia Keldan

Smashwords Edition

Cover Art Design - www.apriltwentydesigns.com

Thank you for downloading this eBook. Although this is a free book, it remains the copyrighted property of the author. It may not be reproduced, copied or distributed for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book please encourage your friends to download their own copy at Smashwords.com, where they can also discover other works by this author. Thank you for your support.

Whilst being set in a non-fictional town, this is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events and incidences are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Epilogue

Prologue

Adelaide Hills, South Australia – Circa 1990s

Tildy pulled into the supermarket parking lot and carefully opened the driver’s side door. The trolley bay was filled to capacity, with a few escapees too close to her car for comfort. Picking one out that looked precariously close to rolling away, she swung her handbag inside and headed toward the automatic doors.

Her eye caught the metal cage that displayed a larger picture of the front cover of Woman’s Day magazine. Her Aunt Helen, her body looking frail and much younger than her years, stared back at her with a strong and resolute expression on her pale face. The trial was almost over; the jury having deliberated over a verdict for almost five days. It had taken a while for the story to break but once it did, the press had parked themselves out the front of Twenty Evergreen Avenue, waiting impatiently for someone to give them the scoop on the ‘woman that had shot and killed Todd Newberry."

The general public had been mostly supportive. The nasty reputation of the once corrupt businessman, who had physically abused his wife and countless others in the past, allowed for most to feel sympathetic and understanding of Miss Green’s actions.

She saved Penny McVee’s life! Not to mention her young daughter’s life too.

She did the public a great service getting rid of scum like that.

Just think about what may have happened if she hadn’t been there that day!

If anyone had stopped to wonder about how Helen Green had known to be in the exact right place at the exact right moment, they were keeping that thought to themselves. Maybe most assumed she had been living with the McVees and saw what had been happening – racing out at an incredibly crucial moment.

The story of once having been a hermit, living high up within the Adelaide Hills would not come out until much later, the story eventually being told in the memoir of Lillian Bolden: How I Almost Became a Victim – the story of a successful Real Estate Agent’s ties to the Todd Newberry killing. The police of course knew all about Helen’s backstory. Her past drug problems, her estrangement from her Father, the desire to live off the grid and then the necessity of hiding once she had committed a crime.

Despite all that she had done, Tildy had high hopes for her Aunt. It’s true that Helen had made many grievous mistakes; shooting a man to death with an unregistered handgun and then fleeing the scene was her first, failure to inform the police of her actions and taking almost twenty years to confess was her second but the fact that this had gone to trial by jury was a blessing that Tildy felt sure would result in her Auntie’s release.

As it so happened, the very next day, Tildy was proven right.

We the jury, find the defendant Not Guilty…

Words like ‘justifiable homicide’ were thrown about the courtroom as a huge burst of celebratory noise filled the air. All Tildy could hear were the whoops and cries of joy from her family as they realised this nightmare was finally over. An immense feeling of relief permeated the room and Helen’s smile shone forth like a laser beam as she enveloped her lawyer in a fierce bear hug. Tildy smiled as she sensed a hand placed upon her shoulder. Turning about, she was not altogether surprised to find no one standing behind her. Feeling pleased that every member of her family was here to witness Helen’s moment of freedom, she made her way slowly forward as she waited for her turn to congratulate her Aunt.

A few weeks later, relaxing out the back of the home she had missed so much, Helen sipped from her cup of tea and smiled at her niece sitting beside her.

I was so sacred for you Helen…and so frustrated to not be able to predict the outcome. I tried and tried to get a sense of things, to see whether the jury would rule in your favour or not but it felt like I was being blocked. Like someone had turned my gift off, leaving me in the dark.

Helen mulled over her words and tried to make sense of it.

"Well…our gift. It’s never been about fortune telling or seeing the future. It’s more like…well, I can’t speak for you but I’ve always felt that any insight I’ve been given came about on its own. Whenever I’ve tried to force myself to know something, it’s failed. Or if I have pushed hard to have something revealed to me, and it ends up coming forth - I have a feeling it would have anyway, with or without my wanting it to."

"So did you know it was going to turn out okay?"

I’m only human Tildy, I was as terrified as anybody else would have been in the same situation.

Helen thought back on the first day she took the stand and the way the jury had looked at her, sitting up there all alone.

I will say this much though. I can read a room…it’s one of the easiest things to do. People give off how they’re feeling even if their faces don’t give them away. I knew almost from day one that the majority of the jury had no ill feelings toward me.

The majority?

Well, a few of them had their doubts but I could tell after a few days that they no longer saw me as a guilty person.

"Well that must have been a great relief."

Well sure, but I didn’t truly start to breath normally again until I heard the words ‘Not Guilty’. Until that moment, there was every chance that I had been wrong. Wishful thinking and all that…

Well, thank goodness that’s all over with…and just think! No more secrets…no more lies…you must feel free in more ways than one.

I do…but there will always be secrets out there Tilds, waiting to be revealed. I’m just glad that any that come to light from here on in belong to someone else. From now on, I’m an open book!

The two women clinked their tea cups together and sat in companionable silence.

Chapter One

Adelaide Hills, South Australia Circa 2000s

Estelle O’Malley manoeuvred her way through the busy dinner crowd, holding two plates high up above her head as she scanned the tables for Number Twenty-Three. Spotting the plastic number holder, she grinned at the happy faces of her customers, placing their hot meals in front of them with a flourish.

Friday nights were always busy at O’Malley’s. Her own part of the establishment, Estelle’s Eatery bought in half of the revenue and kept both she and her husband Daniel extremely busy. Having gotten married on the eve of Y2K, her friends and family had joked that they’d better tie the knot before the world ends. Opting to keep the pub closed on one of the busiest New Year’s Eves in recorded history may not have been a savvy business decision but having their nearest and dearest attend the wedding of the New Millennium had been the right choice.

They’d made their union official in the late afternoon and had happily rung in the new year as husband and wife. It’s true that a tiny part of her mind had worried that the predictions of total and utter chaos would come true and she found herself holding her breath as those around her joyfully made the countdown to January 1st 2000. The lights flickered a little come midnight and someone pulled the plug on the jukebox as a joke but other than that, the night had remained disaster free.

As Daniel now shouted out another order, Estelle watched as one of her staff deftly slid the plate away to deliver it to another hungry patron. Her eyes swept over the room, checking the levels of the water carafes and making sure her customers were being taken care of.

As she surveyed the crowd, her attention was snared by a young woman whose face looked all too familiar. It wasn’t the wide set blue eyes or the small upturned nose that rang a bell so much as the poor woman’s expression. Estelle knew that look; the nervous and desperate eyes, the lip quivering so much that she had to bite it repeatedly to stop from crying. Her long dark hair hung limp around her face and she repeatedly twirled a strand around her finger in a repetitive and anxious manner.

The body language of the couple was all wrong. The man’s shoulders were tense and strained, his hands gripping the knife and fork unnecessarily hard. His thin blonde hair that was long and layered around his face, seemed to annoy him. Every few minutes he would run his hand through it, re-arranging his part to the other side. Estelle wondered if this action was a nervous tick or borne out of vanity. He had a habit of looking about the room after his hair flicking show, as though to take note of who was admiring his healthy head of hair. With her head bowed down and her hands folded in her lap, the full plate of food sitting in front of the woman remained untouched.

Estelle’s mind went back to her first husband, Todd Newberry. The abuse had gone on for years with Estelle never once admitting to herself that there had been a problem. Her self-talk had been as harsh as her husband’s.

It’s understandable that he’s so angry, it’s all my fault, I should have known he didn’t like eggs for breakfast, I’m getting old and flabby, no wonder he’s fed up, I’m so stupid! He told me to have lunch ready on time and I’d been too busy cleaning the house.

It wasn’t until after Todd had been shot dead that day that she’d started to slowly think differently. Now that she was with a man who encouraged her to be all that she was, faults and all, she realised just how much hell she had gone through all those years ago.

Watching the couple some more and recognising herself in the frail and frightened looking young woman, Estelle made her way toward the couple’s table.

Everything okay here? Estelle asked brightly, nervous about the man’s wrath being turned toward her.

We’re fine, the man mumbled, deliberately not making eye contact with what he deemed to be the help.

Can I get you anything else? Estelle persisted, this time directing her question to the woman who seemed to want to disappear into the floor.

She’s fine. I’m fine...I said we’re both fine…how about heading back to the kitchen. Maybe then you’ll get your food orders out on time instead of bothering those of us who are trying to eat in peace.

The man’s barely controlled rage was way out of proportion to the situation at hand. Recognising that her presence was only making things worse, Estelle bit her tongue and nodded silently. Making her way back toward the kitchen she resisted the very strong urge to tell Daniel that something was wrong. She had no proof after all, just a hunch. Feeling helpless and afraid for the woman she saw as a kindred spirit, Estelle discreetly kept an eye on them both until they left.

Simone placed the dinner plates into the dishwasher and watched through the screen door as Mark sat peacefully with her Grandparents. Bonnie and Roland Anderson were of an age that they didn’t like to venture out too often. More comfortable in their own space, they only made an effort where family were concerned. Suspecting that neither had had a good and hearty meal in weeks, Simone put on a good old fashioned roast and had decided to eat on the back deck given the Spring weather was rather pleasing; making her small garden look almost as good as Bonnie’s.

As she listened to Mark talk to Bonnie about her own garden, she smiled. She had been so fearful the night of her Aunt Helen’s arrest. Deeply hurt and shocked to learn that Mark may have been the one to rat her Aunt out over Todd Newberry’s murder, had shattered her faith in the man she had fallen so deeply for. Refusing to answer his calls and avoiding all contact, she had focused all her energy on supporting Helen and the rest of the family during a trial that had exhausted them all.

When the verdict had finally gone in Helen’s favour and they could all breathe deeply once more, her mind had once again turned back toward the handsome detective. Deciding to call on her sister’s talents, she had turned to Tildy for advice. Knowing her knack for judging a character well, a talent that went deeper than just analysing body language, Tildy had just smiled and asked Simone what had taken her so long.

I guess I’m afraid of the answer, she’d confessed one night over soothing cups of peppermint tea. If he’s untrustworthy…if he was using me…

Tildy had placed her hand on Simone’s knee and shook her head slowly.

You can trust him Sim, Tildy stated plainly.

"Are you sure? I mean, he was looking into the case…researching what had happened to our Mum, interviewing people about the ‘mystery blonde’. He’s admitted all of that."

Yes, I know but he eventually dropped the investigation Simone. When he got in too deep with you…when he got to know us all, he dropped it remember?

"Yes but that is what he says and if he’s a liar…" she let the sentence hang.

"Well, you didn’t come to