Secrets in Pelican Crossing (Pelican Crossing #2)

Thirty-two

Finn felt more upbeat for the rest of the morning, the prospect of seeing Liz that evening putting a smile on his face. But it disappeared when he set out to meet Joe. He had no idea what he would do if The Courier closed. Newspapers were all he knew.

As he pushed open the door to the town hall offices, the gravity of his situation hit home. No Courier meant no job for him in Pelican Crossing. What would that mean for him, for Adele and Sandy, for his relationship with Liz?

‘I hope you’ve come up with a solution,’ he said to Joe, when they had shaken hands and exchanged pleasantries. ‘If The Courier closes, I’m screwed.’

‘I don’t know about a solution, but I do have a few ideas,’ Joe said. ‘I ordered sandwiches,’ he gestured to a low coffee table, ‘and the coffee from the machine is drinkable. Hope you don’t mind Coco,’ he added, nodding to the chocolate labrador lying at his feet. ‘She hates being left at home on her own, so I’ve taken to bringing her into the office some days.’

‘Not at all.’ Finn knew the dog had been Joe’s sole companion since his wife died. ‘And thanks.’ He took a seat on one of the chairs by the coffee table and, once he’d made coffee, Joe joined him.

‘I’ve been giving this some thought – don’t have much else to do with my time these days – and I have a few ideas.’ Joe took a sip of coffee. ‘We discussed a fundraiser. I still think that’s our best bet. I’m assuming the owners aren’t going to change their minds? ’

‘No chance.’

‘Right. The first thing we need to do is to let people know, get the community behind us – A Save the Courier campaign. We could use the paper to do that.’

Finn rubbed his chin. ‘First, I’ll have to let the staff know. I’ve been keeping it to myself. I wanted to have something positive to tell them before I broke the news.’

‘Best do it soon. They’ll find out before long anyway if, as you say, it’s happening elsewhere too. Then we can get into action – posters, placards, a town meeting. The last one went well,’ he said, referring to one held before Christmas which scared off a developer.

‘That’s all well and good, but we’re going to need money, a lot of money, Joe.’

‘That’s just the start, to get people’s ire up. Then we start with the fundraisers and asking for donations. We can have one of those tracking thermometers on the outside of the town hall, keeping track of what’s been raised… and a mammoth party when we reach our target.’ Joe rubbed his hands together. He was enjoying this.

‘It all sounds good, Joe, but…’ It wasn’t his livelihood at stake.

‘Oh, ye of little faith.’ Joe laughed. ‘I haven’t felt so energised in ages. This is what the community needs, a reason to pull together for something really worthwhile.’ Then he became more serious. ‘You’re not likely to lose staff when you tell them the news, are you?’

‘I hope not. It’s difficult to predict how individuals will react. Most of my guys are young with families and mortgages. They may not feel they can afford to sit around and wait till we have a result. But I’ll do what I can to persuade them.’ Joe’s enthusiasm was beginning to rub off on Finn. He could visualise the big thermometer on the wall of the town hall, the amount rising steadily towards their target. ‘You know, Joe, this might work.’

‘Of course it will work. I have every faith in the people of Pelican Crossing. They always rise to the occasion when help’s needed, and this is an issue affecting every one of us. Now, in terms of fundraisers…’ he took a bite from a sandwich and a gulp of coffee, ‘I vote we contact all the charity groups in town. I believe you belong to quite a few of them.’

‘Yes, Lions, Rotary, a few others, when I have time. ’

‘Good. They’re used to raising money. There are also the schools, churches and sporting clubs, then we can ask for individual donations. We have a few well-heeled families who I’m sure would be happy to contribute to keep our newspaper alive.’

‘You seem to have thought this through,’ Finn said admiringly.

‘As I said, I don’t have a lot to do these days when I’m not here in the office.’

Finn didn’t comment. He knew Joe had developed the reputation of being a workaholic since his wife died, staying late at the office, and even going in on weekends. No wonder his dog was fretting.

By the time he left the mayor’s office, Finn’s mind was in a whirl. He’d agreed to speak to his staff and the various groups he belonged to, and to put a full-page notice in the paper later in the week. He dreaded to think what his employers would say when they heard about it, but he suddenly didn’t care. They’d already decided to cancel the paper. There wasn’t much more they could do – except sack him, a tiny voice in the back of his head said. He decided to ignore it.

*

Finn was exhausted by the time he arrived home. The meeting with staff had gone much as he had expected, their shattered expressions mirroring his own initial feelings. He explained what he and Joe intended and managed to raise a cheer, but he was sure there would be a lot of soul-searching when they had time to fully consider the implications.

‘Grandy!’ Sandy greeted him, Bluey at his heels – the two were inseparable. ‘Can you play ball with us?’

Finn stifled a groan.

‘Give your granddad time to draw breath,’ Adele said. ‘Difficult day, Dad?’

‘Mmm. Tell you later. I need to freshen up.’ He headed to his bedroom and ensuite.

After a shower, Finn felt better. When he walked into the kitchen, Adele handed him a beer.

‘You look as if you need that. ’

‘Thanks.’

‘Want to talk about it?’

He didn’t, but she deserved to know. ‘Sit down. I have something to tell you.’

‘Sounds serious.’

‘They want to close down The Courier .’ He took a swig of beer, the icy liquid going some way to improve his mood.

Adele’s eyes widened. ‘They can’t. What will you do?’

‘It may not come to that. The owners want to consolidate all the regional papers, go digital. It was coming. I should have seen it.’

‘How long have you known?’

‘Since last week. Wait…’ He held up one hand as she opened her mouth to complain. ‘I’ve been talking to Joe Harris about it. He has a few ideas, ways we can raise enough money to buy the paper. The community needs it. We can’t let it disappear. It’s not only my job at stake here, there are the staff, and all the residents, shopkeepers and businesses in Pelican Crossing who rely on The Courier for local news and community announcements – and for somewhere to advertise.’

‘What a brilliant idea. I’ll help in any way I can, and I know a lot of others will too.’

‘That’s what we’re hoping. We’ll have a full-page feature in the next edition telling everyone what’s happening and encouraging them to get behind us, to Save The Courier .’

‘It’s a great slogan. I like it.’

Finn heard a note of enthusiasm in Adele’s voice, the first he’d heard in a long time, since… since Tim died. Maybe the potential demise of the newspaper wasn’t all bad if it could bring Adele back to the person she used to be.

‘I can talk to the teachers and the Mother’s Club at school about it,’ she said, ‘and I can help put up posters and give out fliers and stuff. Maybe we could have tee-shirts made. I know a woman who prints them.’

‘That would be great, honey.’ If everyone was this keen, they might even succeed.

‘Can you play with us now?’ Sandy and Bluey appeared in the doorway.

Finn glanced at Adele .

‘On you go,’ she said. ‘Dinner in half an hour.’

‘Okay, champ. You heard your mum. For half an hour.’