by Susan Lewis
There might not be any significance to this, but there again there just might.
‘“At risk?”’ Brian Wade demanded, quoting from Alex’s initial assessment of Ottilie’s family situation. ‘What on earth do you imagine Ottilie is at risk of, may I ask?’
Keeping her tone light, while throwing a playful look Ottilie’s way, Alex said, ‘If you read on it will explain why I consider this to be the case.’
He was already doing so, and from the look of his wife she was engrossed in the report too.
They were in the sitting room of the North Hill house – no fire, or tea and scones this time. Ottilie was sitting cross-legged on the floor next to her mother’s chair, her solemn brown eyes fixed watchfully on Alex. She was wearing a purple corduroy dress with red tights and black buckled shoes. Her hair was bunched into two curly topknots, making her look so cute that Alex wanted to eat her all up. Who did her hair, she wondered, her mother, or her father? What had been the thinking behind presenting her this way, and who had made the decision?
‘You’re looking very pretty today,’ Alex told her softly.
Without taking her eyes from Alex, Ottilie hugged her bear more tightly and rested her cheek on his head.
Alex wondered what she had been told about her since the last visit. What crafty little messages, or threats, or lies had been drummed into her to prepare her for today? Perhaps none, since she didn’t look frightened, or even anxious, more curious if anything. However, she still wasn’t communicating, so who knew what was going around in her impressionable child’s mind?
‘Has Boots been behaving himself?’ Alex asked chattily.
Erica shifted in her chair, knocking Ottilie with her foot.
Alex wondered if it was deliberate, a reminder not to speak – or perhaps a prompt to answer, because Ottilie gave a little nod.
Whether Brian Wade noticed any of this seemed doubtful; his eyes were still riveted to the page.
Smiling at Ottilie, Alex said, ‘I expect you’re pleased, because we like good teddies, don’t we?’
Again Ottilie nodded, this time unprompted, or at least Erica Wade didn’t move.
An uneasy silence ticked on as the Wades continued to read, so Alex put a hand over her eyes to start a game of peekaboo. From Ottilie’s reaction it was doubtful she’d ever played it before, since she appeared to have no idea what Alex was doing. However, after several more goes, to Alex’s amusement she put a hand over her own eyes and peered out through her fingers.
‘Boo,’ Alex whispered.
Ottilie stayed as she was.
‘Boo,’ Alex said again.
Ottilie took in a large, noisy breath and, to Alex’s amazement, she broke into a smile.
Just about melting, Alex quickly noted that there was nothing wrong with her teeth; they were as perfect as pearls. She was an absolute picture, in fact; so sweet and huggable that it was hard to resist gathering her up off the floor and squeezing her.
Her hand was over her eyes again, but before Alex could return to the game, Brian Wade said, ‘Well, I suppose it’s good to know that you people are so thorough when it comes to protecting the nation’s children.’
Letting the patronising tone sweep past her, Alex replied, ‘We do our best.’
He appeared slightly affronted. ‘I’m sure you do, but your diligence where my family is concerned can only be viewed as a waste of valuable resources. You see, my daughter is not at risk of anything, and certainly not neglect, so I can’t help taking offence at your suggestion here that she is.’
Alex’s tone remained friendly as she said, ‘You’ll also see written there that she doesn’t speak ...’
‘And I explained at our first meeting that she’s very shy with strangers. With us she’s as talkative as any child her age.’
‘That may be so, but the fact that she is so nervous with strangers strongly suggests that she is not being properly socialised. And we know she isn’t because by your own admission she doesn’t have any friends, or cousins, nor does she go to nursery. She also hasn’t had a visit from a health worker since moving here – I’m sure you’ll agree that all of the above can be classified as neglect ...’
‘Not at all, the health visitor was nothing more than an oversight on my part which most would consider understandable, given the stressful circumstances surrounding our move.’
‘I’m not going to argue that point, but I will say ...’
‘... and I told you last week that a health visitor is coming tomorrow.’
‘Which is noted in that report. I’ve already got her details from your doctor, so I’ll have a chat with her after she’s been to get her initial assessment of Ottilie’s physical health.’
‘Well, I think you can see for yourself that there’s absolutely nothing wrong with my daughter, but I accept that the system requires all children to be under the care of a health worker until the age of five.’
Alex nodded, feeling far less impressed than she looked. ‘May I ask if you’ve had any luck finding a nursery?’ she said pleasantly.
At that he gave a weary sigh. ‘Well, we’ve certainly been looking,’ he assured her, ‘but I’m afraid we haven’t been able to find anywhere that has a vacancy yet. At least not one that we could afford.’
Unsurprised by that, since it was famously difficult to get children into the most sought-after pre-schools, Alex said, ‘Not to worry. I thought you might have a problem, applying this late in the day, so I took the liberty of making a few calls myself. I hope you don’t mind – well, I’m sure you won’t because the Pumpkin playgroup, next to the station, has a fantastic reputation and the really good news is their rates are very reasonable. What’s more, they can take Ottilie from next Monday. I’m not sure if you’re aware of this group,’ she ran on, as Wade’s frown deepened – he clearly didn’t take well to being railroaded, even if it was in his daughter’s best interests, ‘but it’s highly sought after, so we’re very lucky to get her in there. I’d say, given how new it’ll all be to her, that just a couple of hours three times a week will be plenty enough to get her socialising under way.’
Wade glanced at his wife, who was still staring at the report, and folded his hands together in a patient, headmasterly sort of way. ‘I’m sorry, but we’ll need to know more about this place before we can agree to anything.’
Reaching into her bag, Alex pulled out a smart colour brochure for the Pumpkin playgroup. ‘They also have an excellent website,’ she informed him as he took the brochure. ‘They’re Ofsted registered, and have passed all the required health and safety checks.’ She looked at Ottilie. ‘Would you like to go to school and play with other children?’ she asked excitedly. ‘It’ll be fun, won’t it?’
Ottilie didn’t look sure, on the other hand she didn’t appear too worried either.
‘Mrs Wade,’ Alex said, ‘I imagine you’ll be the one taking her, so can I ...’
‘Actually, my wife doesn’t like to go out,’ Wade interrupted. ‘And as I’ve just said, we’ll need to carry out our own background checks before ...’
‘Oh, you won’t find anything to object to with the Pumpkin,’ Alex assured him. ‘It’s received some glowing recommendations from parents who’ve sent their children over the years. You can always contact them directly, should you wish, to discuss any particular concerns you might have.’ It wasn’t unusual for her to pressurise parents like this and most complied, particularly if they thought there was a risk of their child being taken from them. However, she could tell that Mr Wade was far too used to being in the driving seat himself to enjoy being pushed around.
Too bad, his daughter should be mixing with other children her age, and he knew it.
‘Is there anything you’d like to ask, Mrs Wade?’ Alex invited, turning to her again.
Though Erica Wade took a while to register the fact that she’d been spoken to, Alex felt certain she hadn’t missed a word of what had been said. However, she simply shook her head while mumbling, �
�I don’t think so,’ and since her husband had returned to the assessment, Alex said to Ottilie, ‘Shall we teach Boots to play peekaboo?’
Ottilie looked down at her bear, but before she could make any kind of response her father was saying, ‘Would you mind explaining to me why you felt it necessary to delve into our time in Northumbria? You already know what happened while we were there, so ...’
‘We talked about this during my last visit,’ Alex reminded him. ‘I’ve simply put it there, in writing, in order to make our agreement official.’
‘Agreement?’ he echoed with a frown.
‘You gave me your permission to contact the authorities you dealt with before, so I could ...’
‘Yes, yes, I remember that, and I’m aware that you’ve spoken to Derek Tolland ...’
‘Your old headmaster ...’
‘And he told you what I’ve already told you myself. Did you have any reason to think I was lying to you?’
‘Not at all, but I’m sure you’re aware that not everyone is as forthcoming as we’d like, and all too often people who sound perfectly plausible turn out to be anything but.’
‘I doubt I fall into the same category as most people you deal with.’
‘We don’t make exceptions for status of any kind.’
‘Mm, well, I suppose that’s a good thing,’ he grunted grudgingly. ‘It’s simply that Derek Tolland is a very busy man, as am I, so I’d hoped you might factor in a useful amount of common sense when deciding on how best to spend the taxpayers’ money.’
Well used to that one, Alex said, ‘I think the taxpayer would be outraged to think that we excluded anyone of any standing from the process of investigation where a child’s welfare is concerned.’
Colouring, Wade put the assessment down on the coffee table. ‘Let me assure you my wife and I are willing to comply with the recommendations you have outlined, but only up to a point,’ he informed her. ‘After that I would like you to bear in mind that I am ultimately responsible for Ottilie’s welfare, not you. She’s my daughter and as such she will only do what I feel is in her best interests.’
Oh really, Alex was thinking. Well, we’ll see about that. What she said – because in her position it was all she could say – was, ‘Of course, I respect that. I’m simply trying to help you ...’
‘But I don’t need your help. However, I’m fully aware of the kind of conclusions you people jump to if things don’t happen your way. So it’s with this in mind that I shall not withdraw my consent to you continuing your background checks, but I would like it on the record that I feel them to be a complete waste of time and resources. There are plenty of children out there in need of your care, which is where your efforts should be focused, not into the home of a child who is loved, extremely well cared for and who happens to be a little shyer than most.’
‘You’ll find the section for your comments at the back of the report,’ Alex told him helpfully. And moving on, ‘Do you think Ottilie will be ready to attend the Pumpkin next Monday?’ She glanced at Ottilie and gave her a hopeful shrug, as if it was exactly what Ottilie herself wanted.
Wade was regarding her in astonishment. ‘Did you not hear what I said just now?’ he enquired.
‘That you’d like to carry out some checks? Yes, I heard, but that isn’t going to take more than an hour, and I’d like to let the playgroup know whether or not to expect her.’
‘I’m sure you would, but there are a number of other things to sort out before I can answer that.’
‘Such as?’
‘Such as how she’s going to get there, for one thing. I can’t keep taking time off to suit you, Ms Lake ...’
‘Not me, Ottilie. This is about her, remember?’
He flushed. ‘Indeed. Nevertheless, I have my own position to consider, and unless you’ve forgotten I have more than two hundred other children in my care.’
‘I’ll take her,’ Erica suddenly stated.
The words were so unexpected that both Alex and Wade gaped at her.
‘Well,’ Alex finally managed, ‘that’s that sorted. Good.’ Excellent, so the mother was going to step up to the plate, meaning that agoraphobia might not be the problem after all.
One step at a time.
To Ottilie, she said, ‘Isn’t it exciting, you’re going to school? You’ll be able to make lots of friends and ...’
‘Please don’t discuss this with her until I’ve had a chance to do so myself,’ Wade broke in crossly.
Alex flushed. ‘I was simply ...’
‘Ottilie, go to your room.’
Ottilie immediately got to her feet and kept her head down as she went, her face buried in her bear. Alex wanted to ask why he’d done that, but he was already standing up, making it clear that it was time for her to leave.
To Erica Wade she said, ‘I think it would be useful if we had a chat, just the two of us, Mrs Wade. Maybe I could come back tomorrow?’
‘My wife wouldn’t be comfortable with that,’ Wade informed her shortly.
Alex waited for Erica to contradict him, but she didn’t even focus her gaze.
Following Wade into the hall, Alex said, ‘You’ll have seen my recommendation that your wife should undergo a mental health check ...’
‘Indeed I have, but I thought this was about Ottilie, not me, or my wife.’
Alex wondered if he had any idea how badly he was coming out of this, and suspected not. On the other hand, he wasn’t giving her any good reason to remove Ottilie from the home either, which actually she felt glad of (provided nothing untoward was happening to her, of course), because putting a child into care, especially in this area, was often no more than the best of the worst options. And if it happened, she couldn’t see a tender little soul like Ottilie faring well at all. ‘Your wife’s state of mind will be highly influential on Ottilie,’ she was saying as he opened the door, ‘so we’d like an independent psychiatric check as soon as possible. I can arrange this for you ...’
‘Please don’t do anything until I’ve had a chance to discuss this with my wife. She’s extremely fragile, as you can see, and being pushed into having the kind of tests you’re talking about could have a most detrimental effect on her. However, if you wish to discuss her situation with our family GP you have his details, so please feel free to do so.’
‘Thank you. Perhaps you’d be kind enough to let him know that I have your permission for this, because he wasn’t terribly forthcoming when we spoke last week.’
‘I’ll be sure to call by the end of the day.’
Impressed by the sudden compliance, Alex said, ‘I’ll be in touch at some point tomorrow regarding the time your wife should take Ottilie next Monday – provided you feel the Pumpkin is of the right standard, naturally.’
He didn’t appear amused.
‘And once I’ve had a chat with the health visitor,’ she continued, ‘I expect a speech therapist will be brought on board fairly swiftly. Either the health visitor, or I, will keep you informed about that. I must say, I’m quite looking forward to hearing Ottilie speak. Hopefully it won’t be any time at all before she’s as chatty with us as she is with you.’
Though the gauntlet lay between them, smouldering and unmissable, he simply ignored it as he swept a hand forward, an indication for her to pass. ‘I’ll be sending my comments on your assessment direct to your superior,’ he advised her.
‘His name is Tommy Burgess,’ Alex replied. ‘You’ll find it written on the front of the information pack I gave you.’ Feeling suddenly certain that Ottilie was watching her, she turned to look up and broke into a smile when she saw the child sitting on the top stair.
‘Bye Ottilie,’ she said with a wave. ‘Bye Boots.’
Instead of encouraging her to respond, as most parents would, Wade simply stood waiting for Alex to leave. Then following her out into the porch, he pulled the door behind him. ‘I apologise if I have appeared less than thrilled by what is happening,’ he said, ‘but after everything we�
�ve been through – all the enquiries following Jonathan’s death, the endless prying into our affairs, the awful suspicions and then the accusations from an unfortunately deranged person, perhaps you can understand why we have become such a private family.’
Not unmoved by his little speech, Alex met his eyes, and wished she had a way to read what was really going on behind them. They had indeed been through a difficult time, and she mustn’t allow herself to forget it – or to be thrown off by it. ‘Of course I understand,’ she told him kindly, ‘and I’m very sorry for what you’ve been through.’
He nodded briefly, and as Alex turned to walk to her car she heard the front door click closed behind her.
Hearing the creak of the floorboards as her husband came back into the room, Erica got up from her chair and went to select an opera from her personal collection of CDs.
‘Why did you say that?’ he demanded, quietly closing the door.
Ignoring him, she ran a finger along the narrow spines of the discs, hearing her nail click on the Perspex, taking her time to decide which one she felt like listening to now that Alex Lake had gone.
‘Why did you say you’d take her to the nursery school?’ he repeated with the kind of calm she knew was supposed to unnerve her.
Choosing Angela Gheorghiu performing Mimi in La Bohème, she slotted it into the player and tilted her head in a kind of whimsy as she pressed play. A moment later the sound of violins, flutes, harps swelled into the room, making her heart sing in anticipation of the most beautiful voice in the world.
The sudden silence as Brian ripped out the plug was like a physical blow.
He was her stepfather again.
‘You know,’ he said, as she turned round, trembling, ‘that you can’t go to the playgroup, so why did you say that you would?’
‘Leave me alone,’ she retorted huskily.
He continued to glare at her, his crescent-shaped eyes covering her with contempt. ‘Don’t forget what they do to people like you in prison,’ he said thickly.
Though she flinched, she kept her thoughts – and her fear – to herself. What are you going to do, she wanted to ask, when they find out about you? It made her want to laugh.
