Page 90 - Homestead By Ann Newhouse

A month had now passed since the celebrations. Josh and Liz had settled into the Homestead. John Tirrell had reluctantly accepted Liz and they all seemed to be getting on together. I travelled to the Homestead to collect Sofie as she was moving in with me. She’d got a job in the hospital and was starting in a week’s time. Margarete and Mr. Choo came back from Vegas all loved up. They were planning on extending the back of the hotel to make larger accommodation as they intended moving in together. (It’s never too late). This meant that Sofie and I would have the full use of the private quarters. Enough room to eventually start a family. . . I hinted.
Just as things were going smoothly, I received a frantic call from Sofie to say her father has suffered another stroke and was being air lifted to the hospital.
“Sofie honey . . .I’m so sorry I’ll be over as soon as possible.” leaving Margarete and Mr. Choo to look after things in the hotel, I went to the hospital. I was met by a sobbing Sofie, with Johanna trying to comfort her.
“Father has passed,” she cried . . .’
“Oh Sofie, I’m so sorry,” I sympathised.
“Ok honey, would you please go and get Josh. I’d like him to be here. Johanna will stay with me. He’ll be waiting for you,” Sofie said, regaining her composure.
Josh was indeed waiting and took the news of his father’s demise badly. They had grown close in the last few months. John Tirrell had apologised to his son, for any wrongdoing he had subjected him to. He had also asked Liz to convey his apologizes to her mother for the hurt over the years. Maybe he knew his time was up and wanted to cleanse his soul.
Sitting around in the big house after the funeral, Josh and Liz announced surprising, but good news. They were expecting a baby. I had good news also, Sofie had agreed to marry me, and we are planning to have a spring wedding. Now Josh was home he had recruited a couple of cattle hands and no longer needed me to fill in on the drive. I could now concentrate on the hotel and my future to Sofie.
Life is good for everyone at present. We have all had a second chance. I’ve been so lucky as the news of finding my parents bodies did not make the papers in Truth, so I didn’t have to explain the gory details to Sofie as to how they died and how I left my father. I would have to live with it. I’ll always regret not having the chat I wanted to have with John Tirrell, I feel he may just have come around to liking me and I could have built some kind of a relationship with him. I guess I’ll always wonder.