by Sarah Hope
‘I understand you’re annoyed...’
‘Annoyed? That’s the least of it! You really don’t seem to comprehend how much this has affected him! And it’s not just her calling him a bully, it’s the fact that you rushed both him and Lauren out of your home – their home - without their dinner. That just reinforced the fact that you put Ruby first and don’t feel they are a true part of your family.’ Laying her free hand down flat on the table, she tried to stop it shaking.
‘I just wanted to get them out of the situation.’
‘What do you mean, out of the situation? Kids argue, that’s kids, but reacting the way you both did is not normal. It’s not right.’
Silence.
‘Trevor?’
‘You’re right. I, we, could have handled it better.’
‘That’s an understatement.’
‘I’ve said we were in the wrong.’
‘I know, but it’s easy to say. Now you’ve got to try to make it up to him.’ Molly shook her head. ‘I just can’t believe how something as normal as kids arguing could have been so blown out of proportion.’
‘All right. I get it. How many times do I have to say we were in the wrong? I suppose you’re the perfect parent?’
Taking a deep breath in, Molly bit down on her bottom lip. It was done. There was nothing any of them could do to change the past. ‘Sorry. It was just so heartbreaking to see how upset he was. But now you just need to figure out how to fix it.’
‘Can I talk to him?’
‘He’s asleep.’ She’d already told him that. ‘Look, why don’t you give him a call tomorrow and sort it all out then?’
‘Okay.’
Lowering the mobile to the table, Molly leant her elbows on the hard surface and rested her chin on her hands. It was good that he could see what he’d done wrong, that he could have, should have handled the situation better. How could Jessica not have told him what she’d said straight away? Unless he’d been covering for her and was trying to blame Ellis’ overactive imagination?
She shook her head. No. She needed to take this at face value. She had to. There was no point in always thinking the worst of Trevor.
‘Mum! Here you are! I’ve been calling you, the timer’s going off on the oven.’ Bursting through the door, Lauren folded her arms and glared at Molly.
‘Oh right. Sorry, sweetheart, I just had to take a phone call. Did you get them out?’
‘No, I didn’t know if they were ready or not.’
‘The timer going off would suggest that they are.’ Forcing a laugh, Molly pushed herself to standing.
Chapter Seventeen
‘And then if you just pull the wool a little bit taut, it’s got less chance of falling off your needle.’ Patting Bill on the arm, Molly stood up and glanced around the group. They had two new people join them today. Tara and Catherine. She recognised them both from the Village Fete.
‘I’ll just get you another ball of wool, Pat. It looks like you’re about to run out any minute now!’
‘Thanks, love.’ Glancing up from her knitting, Pat smiled.
Walking across to the basket, Molly dipped her hand into the soft balls of wool, rummaging around until she found the correct shade of pink Pat was using.
‘Morning everyone. Hi, Molly.’
Keeping her eyes on the basket of wool, Molly momentarily closed her eyes. She knew that voice. It was Richie. What with everything that had happened with Ellis yesterday, she hadn’t been able to give much thought to what he’d done, but now... Now, she could feel her cheeks redden.
Straightening her back and focusing her eyes on Pat, she walked over and passed her the soft pink ball. ‘Anyone for another drink?’
‘I think I’ve still got...’
Placing the mugs hurriedly onto the tray, she ignored the coffee spilling onto the surface of the coffee table before she turned her back and walked towards the kitchen. Plastering a smile on her face, she focused on putting one foot in front of the other, trying to appear as natural as possible.
Kicking the kitchen door shut, she placed the tray on the work surface before resting her hands, palms down, either side of the tray and dipped her head.
‘Molly? You okay?’
Jerking her head up. Molly spun around. ‘What are you doing in here, Richie?’
Blinking, Richie ran his fingers through his hair. ‘Sorry, I just... I came to see if you were okay. You just seemed to blank me out there.’
‘Yes, well, some of us have things to do. We can’t just gallivant around chatting to people when we’re supposed to be working.’
Fiddling with his radio attached to the front of his uniform, he frowned. ‘Have I done something to upset you?’
Say nothing, say nothing. He wasn’t worth getting upset for. Turning around slowly, Molly bit her bottom lip. He looked so casual, though. So together. How could it not be affecting him in the slightest? How could he not feel a smidgen of guilt? Feeling the flush of anger return to her cheeks, she looked him in the eye. ‘I know, okay? I know.’
‘You know what? What’s happened?’
Why could he not just admit it? ‘Just go.’
Stepping forward, Richie laid his hand on her forearm. ‘I don’t understand. What’s happened?’
Pulling her arm away from him, she took a step back. ‘Please leave.’
‘Molly, please? I have a right to know what’s happened. Everything was so good Saturday night. I really enjoyed spending time with you and I thought you did too?’
‘I did.’ She would not cry. She would not cry. Scrunching her eyes up, she looked away, blinking back the tears.
‘Molly?’
Turning back to him, she looked him up and down, trying to find a chink in his armour, trying to find a telltale sign that told her who he really was. What he was really capable of doing.
‘Hey, sorry to bother you, but I’ve got myself into a bit of a pickle.’ Tara pushed the door to the kitchen ajar and held up a muddle of knitting needles and wool, a sheepish grin spreading across her face.
‘That’s all right. I’ll bring these out and come and help you.’ Pouring the boiling water into the mugs, Molly stirred as the door gently swung shut again. ‘Richie, I’m sorry, do you mind if we do this another time? I’m just in the middle of something.’
‘Right, of course.’ Looking down at his shoes, he looked back up at her, shook his head and left.
Gripping the side of the work surface, Molly took a deep breath. She would speak to him. She would tell him that she knew about Diane, just not at the moment. Not with the knitting group in the next room, and not until she’d got her own head around everything.
THE CEILING ABOVE MOLLY’S bed had a blue mark on it. She’d never noticed it before, but every time the lightning struck and illuminated the room, she caught a glimpse of it. Maybe it was a stray lick of paint. Maybe before Diane or Richie or whoever had painted the walls magnolia, they had been blue. Maybe Richie had painted it to help it to sell. That was the advice, wasn’t it? Strip the property of all colour in order to help prospective buyers to visualise their belongings in place.
She wouldn’t have minded the blue, it was a bright colour. The colour of peacock feathers. She liked peacocks. They reminded her of the country estate she used to take Lauren and Ellis for picnics with Florence and her daughter when they were young. She missed her friend, Florence, but she and her family had moved to the coast. Maybe she’d call her sometime, invite them to come and visit.
‘Mum?’
Pulling the duvet down, Molly peered into the dark. ‘Ellis? Do you want to come and snuggle?’
‘Can I?’ The sleep in his voice carried across the room.
‘Of course, you can, sweetheart.’ Holding the duvet open for him, Molly held her other hand out to guide him.
Just as Ellis began padding towards the bed, a bolt of lightning lit the room, as bright as a floodlight, before an almighty clap of thunder vibrated the flat. Running the short distance
towards her, Ellis dived into Molly’s arms.
‘It’s okay. It’s outside. You’re safe.’ Pulling his shaking body towards her, Molly hugged him tightly and kissed the top of his head. ‘Try to go back to sleep now.’
Nodding, Ellis pulled the duvet further up, covering his face as another bolt of lightning lit the room.
He had never liked thunderstorms, not like Lauren, whose favourite thing to do was to sneak out into the garden mid-storm and hold her arms out wide, catching the pelting rain and vibrations from the thunder. It wouldn’t surprise Molly if she had opened her bedroom window and was leaning out, revelling in the storm's electricity.
As another bolt of lightning shot across the sky, flashing behind the curtains, Ellis squeezed his arms tight around Molly’s forearm. The clash of thunder which ensued filled the room just as an enormous thud shook the flat.
‘Mum? What was that? What was that bang? Has it hit us? Has the lightning hit us?’
‘No, no, sweetheart, it hasn’t hit us.’ Staring into the darkness enveloping them, Molly bit down on her bottom lip, the metallic taste of blood quickly filling her mouth. Something had been hit, she was sure of that. Not the flat, not Bramble Patch, but something close. Very close.
‘Are you sure? It sounded like it did. It sounded on top of us.’
‘Don’t worry, it hasn’t hit the flat. Let me just go and have a look out of the window.’ As she tried to slip her arm from underneath Ellis’ head, he gripped tightly.
‘No, don’t, Mum. Don’t leave me. Please?’ The fear in his voice echoed in the momentarily silent room.
‘Okay, okay.’ Positioning her arm back beneath Ellis’ sweaty head, Molly twisted her head to look towards the window. She couldn’t see the glow of fire or anything, so maybe nothing had been hit, maybe it had just been the noise of the thunder. She looked back down at Ellis, his eyes still wide open with fear. She’d slip out and take a look to be on the safe side when he’d fallen back to sleep.
As another flash flooded the room, Ellis’ body stiffened.
‘One, two, three.’ The rumble of thunder interrupted Molly’s counting. ‘There, see, it’s getting further away now. It’s not right above us anymore.’
‘It’s still close though.’ The shudder in Ellis’ whisper penetrated the night.
‘Not for long. It’s on its way. Close your eyes and we’ll count together.’ On cue, the bedroom illuminated once again. ‘One, two, three, four, five.’
YAWNING, MOLLY PEEKED down at Ellis, his eyes were closed and his breathing had slowed. He was almost asleep. She just had to stay awake that little bit longer so she could go and check out of the window. ‘One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.’
Chapter Eighteen
‘Ellis, stop being a slow coach! You’re going to make us late!’ Chucking Ellis’ rucksack at him, Lauren checked her reflection in the mirror for the third time in as many minutes. ‘Tell him, Mum.’
‘Calm down. Let him put his shoes on. Throwing his bag at him isn’t going to help. It will only slow him down.’ Shrugging her arms into her thin jacket, Molly glanced in the mirror too. Not that it mattered that she hadn’t had time to put any makeup on or even to brush her hair. She wouldn’t be getting out of the car, anyway. She could sort herself out when she got back from dropping them off.
‘Come on!’
‘That’s it, Ellis. Now grab your coat. I’ll get your bag.’ Stooping down, Molly retrieved Ellis’ rucksack from the floor.
Pulling the front door open, Molly stepped out into the light, the fresh clean air only a thunderstorm could bring filled her lungs as she shielded her eyes from the low morning sun. ‘Oh.’
‘You’ve got to be kidding me?’
Standing still, her keys in her hand, Molly stared in front of her.
‘Was that what the bang was last night? I told you something got hit, didn’t I, Mum?’ Taking his rucksack from Molly’s hand, Ellis shifted it onto his shoulder.
‘You sure did.’ Looking at the tree lying sideways across the entrance to the parking bays in front of Bramble Patch, Molly tucked her hair behind her ears. Tilting her head, she followed the thick tree trunk with her eyes. Before last night it had stood on the small green outside Richie’s mum’s house next door. Now, though, over half the length of the tree, complete with branches, leaves and a smattering of blossom, lay awkwardly across the pathway and parking bays, while a stub of trunk remained stubbornly in the ground where it belonged.
‘How come it didn’t catch fire?’ Lauren dropped her school bag by her feet.
‘It probably had too much moisture in or something.’ Walking around the back of their car, Molly blinked. Apart from a small twig full of blossom having got caught on the back wiper, the car had got away unscathed. ‘The car’s okay.’
‘That’s not much use when we can’t actually get out though, is it, Mum?’
‘It’s a lot better than having a squashed car, Lauren.’
‘Yes, but... what do we do now? How am I going to get to school without the car? I’m going to be mega late now and I wanted to be early.’
‘All right. There’s nothing we can do about you being late now, anyway. We’ll just have to get the bus.’ Rummaging in the pockets of her jacket, Molly pulled some coins out. ‘Come on. I should have enough change here.’
‘What time does the bus come?’
‘I don’t know, we can look at the timetable when we get to the bus stop.’
‘Oh great, so I will definitely be late then. Won’t I?’
‘Yes, you’ll be late but don’t worry, it’s not like there’s anything we can do about it. I’ll ring the office and let them know.’
Lauren kicked at a twig. ‘It’s going to be so embarrassing.’
‘No, it won’t. I bet people are late all the time. You won’t be the only one who’s ever been late.’ Bending down, Molly picked up Lauren’s bag and handed it back to her. ‘Come on.’
‘THANK YOU.’ SMILING to the bus driver, Molly stepped down onto the pavement before checking her watch. Momentarily closing her eyes, she shook her head. Although the journey to and from Lauren and Ellis’ schools had been pleasant, the bus had taken them around all of the narrow windy roads and through at least five other villages, none of which Molly had realised had existed, meaning the journey had taken at least four times the time it would have taken to do the school run in the car. She had fifteen minutes until Bramble Patch was due to open. Not that any would-be customers would have anywhere to park, anyway.
Glancing each way before she crossed the road, she reminded herself what she’d told Lauren; they were lucky the tree hadn’t hit the car. Or Bramble Patch, for that matter. If the lightning had struck further down the trunk and in a different position then it could easily have fallen towards them. Yes, they’d been lucky. She’d have to get on the phone to the council or whoever dealt with fallen trees. Hopefully, they’d be able to sort it sooner rather than later.
Turning the corner, Molly frowned and slowed down. Richie was hanging over the garden gate to his mum’s bungalow, chatting to her. Glancing behind her, Molly cursed under her breath. In a small village, what were the chances that someone would be walking behind her, along this particular road, at this particular time?
Yep, and now he’d noticed her. Zero chance of her avoiding him now. Slowly raising her hand, she gave a slight wave, telling herself she was waving to his mum rather than him. Looking down at the ground, she counted the steps until she crossed over to Bramble Patch.
‘Hi, Molly. You okay? Looks like you had a lucky escape last night!’ Waving to his mum, Richie walked over towards the front of Bramble Patch.
‘Yes, I know.’ Digging in her pocket for the keys, she eventually pulled them out and unlocked the front door.
‘I’ll put a call in to the council, see if we can get someone out to shift it.’
‘Its fine, I can do it.’ Slipping inside, Molly went to shut the door, stopping as Richie followed h
er in.
‘I’m happy to call.’ Grinning, Richie pulled his mobile from the pocket of his uniform.
Taking a step back just inside the doorway, Molly looked him up and down. He really didn’t have a clue that Diane had paid her a visit, did he?
‘I was going to ask if you’d like to pop for a coffee sometime if you get the chance.’
‘I don’t think that’s a good idea.’ Even if Diane hadn’t warned her off him, she normally worked through lunch, anyway.
‘Oh, right.’ Running his fingers through his hair, Richie looked down before looking her in the eye. ‘Have I done something wrong? I feel that yesterday and today you’ve been a little off with me.’
‘No, I just...’ This was silly. They were both adults. She had nothing to feel ashamed of. It was Richie in the wrong, not her. ‘I had a visit from Diane.’
‘Diane?’
‘Yes. She told me everything.’
‘Oh right. She told you how we broke up?’
‘No, not about that.’
‘About what then? About the shop?’
Was it that hard? That difficult to realise what she meant? Surely he should have twigged by now? Breathing out hard, Molly shook her head. ‘She told me about you two starting to see each other again.’
Opening and closing his mouth, Richie stood there watching her.
‘Well?’
Shaking his head, he glanced towards the front door and back to Molly. ‘I don’t know what to say.’
‘Have you been seeing her?’ Molly cleared her throat.
‘What? No. No, of course I haven’t been seeing her. I wouldn’t have gone to the dance with you if I was with her again, would I? Not that there will ever be anything between me and Diane again.’ Richie rubbed his hand over his face and tilted his head. ‘I did tell you how we split up, didn’t I?’
‘Yes, you did.’
‘Then you’ll understand why I’d never get back with her even if I liked her that way. Which I don’t before you ask.’
