The Angel Tree by Lucinda Riley Read Free Book Online Page B

now your mind’s made up, I’m going to tell you how I may be able to help. What you need is a roof over your head and a bit of
peace and privacy until the baby arrives. Yes?’
    ‘Yes, but . . .’
    ‘Hush, and listen to what I have to say. I have the use of a cottage in Monmouthshire, on the Welsh borders. I was thinking you could go and stay there for a while. Have you ever been to
the area before?’
    ‘No, I haven’t.’
    ‘Well, then you won’t know what a special place it is.’ He smiled. ‘The cottage is on a big estate called Marchmont. It’s near the Black Mountains, in a beautiful
valley not too far from the town of Abergavenny.’
    ‘What a funny name.’ Greta managed a half-hearted smile.
    ‘I suppose you get used to the language when you’re brought up there. Anyway, with me working in London, I don’t need the cottage at the moment. My mother lives on the estate,
too. I telephoned her last night and she’s prepared to keep an eye on you. A lot of the land is farmed, so there’s enough fresh produce to feed you during the coming winter. The cottage
is small, but clean and cosy. It would mean you could leave the Windmill, have the baby and if you wanted to, come back to London without anyone even knowing. Well, there it is. What do you
think?’
    ‘It sounds lovely, but—’
    ‘Greta, all I can do is offer you an alternative,’ he said, seeing the doubt and fear in her eyes. ‘And yes, it’s very different from London. There are no bright lights,
there’s nothing to do in the evenings and you may be lonely. But at least you’ll be safe and warm.’
    ‘This – er – estate is where you were brought up, is it?’
    ‘Yes, although I was at boarding school from the age of eleven and, after that, university. Then the war came and I was away with my regiment, so I haven’t been back as often as
I’d have liked. But Greta, you’ve never seen anything more lovely than a sunset over Marchmont. We have over five hundred acres, the house is surrounded by woodland that’s home to
endless plant and bird life, and a salmon river runs right through it. It really is a very beautiful place.’
    A glimmer of hope for her hitherto devastated future began to glow in Greta’s mind.
    ‘You say your mother has said she won’t mind if I stay? Does she . . . does she know about the baby?’
    ‘Yes, she does, but don’t worry, Greta. My mother is unshockable and very broad-minded. And, to be honest, I think she’d enjoy the company. The main house on the estate was
used as a convalescent home in the war and, since all the staff and patients left, she misses the activity.’
    ‘It really is very kind of you, Taffy, but I wouldn’t want to impose. I have very little money to pay rent. In fact, none at all.’
    ‘You don’t have to pay anything. You’d be there as my guest,’ he confirmed. ‘As I said, the cottage is empty and it’s yours if you want it.’
    ‘You really are very generous. If I did take you up on your offer,’ she said slowly, knowing that whatever this cottage was like, it had to be preferable to an unmarried
mothers’ home, ‘how soon could I go?’
    ‘As soon as you would like to.’
    Two days later Greta went to tell Mr Van Damm that she was leaving the Windmill. When he asked her why, despite strongly suspecting that he already knew the reason, Greta
merely said that her mother was unwell and she had to return home to care for her. She came out of the office apprehensive, but feeling better that she’d made a decision. Later that day she
informed her landlady that she’d be vacating her room at the end of the week, and spent her last few days at the theatre trying not to worry about the future. All the girls signed a card for
her and Doris hugged her goodbye, at the same time discreetly handing her an envelope containing a tiny pair of bootees.
    It took Greta no time at all to pack her few belongings into two small suitcases. She paid her landlady and