Page 88 of Fire Fight

I wakewhen Mum calls out for me, easing away from Drake’s arms; even in slumber he has me in a tight embrace.

“Dinner’s ready,” she says, pausing halfway up the staircase. “Have you seen Drake?”

I hurry down, putting a finger over my lips before whispering, “He’s sleeping. He got a nasty headache during class today and I had to drive him home.”

“Should I check on him?” she whispers back, glancing over her shoulder as I lead her downstairs. Then she veers off towards her room. “Wait. I’ve got something that might help.”

She returns with a small container of codeine. The patient’s name isn’t one I recognise, but the label is the same as the others.

“He mightn’t need it, but two tabs will help him sleep if the pain gets too intense.”

I pretend to take it upstairs, secreting it in my pocket to return to her tomorrow. I can’t even imagine what he’d think if I gave them to him.

“Is Arnold home?” I ask as a distraction, coming back downstairs.

“Working late again.” She shakes her head, standing at the bench and staring at her hands like she’s forgotten what she was doing. I set places for us on the table, and she jerks back into life.

My head is still a tangled mess with everything that happened yesterday, but I decide not to waste the earlier opening. “Do you still visit the pharmacist?”

She smiles to herself, shaking her head. “It’s miles away from here and I don’t have a car, yet. Or the credit card Arnold promised me. I can’t even take an Uber.” She sighs, massaging the dry skin of her elbows, nostrils pinching together. “The want list seems to grow longer rather than shorter.”

“We’ve only been here a few weeks,” I remind her with a gentle laugh. “Do you remember Maggie Arlington?”

Her gaze sharpens, face wary as she portions our meal onto plates. “Drake’s mum? Sure.”

I sit still. “I thought you didn’t remember Drake?” My lips press hard together, then I burst out with, “Why didn’t you say?”

She shrugs. “I wasn’t sure at first, then you both pretended like you didn’t know each other, and I didn’t want to rock the boat. You want gravy?”

“No, thanks.” I chew on my bottom lip, wondering how far I can push her. “Arnold told me he met you a year ago.”

“That sounds about right. We went on a few dates, then he didn’t phone for ages. I thought he didn’t want to see me again.”

At my frown, she laughs. “No, before you ask, it wasn’t me. I tried calling, but only ever got through to voicemail. After ghosting me for months on end, he suddenly rediscovered my number.” She rubs her forehead. “I guess he had another relationship and waited to end it before going further. Does it really matter? He was there when I needed him.”

“Did you ever…” My stomach pulls so tight, the colour drains from my face. I hate confrontation. Especially when I don’t know if my instincts are right or wrong. “Did you ever give pills to Maggie?”

Mum snorts. “I nevergaveanything to anybody.” She looks torn between amusement and indignation. “Unlike some people who apparently thought it was fun to hand Xanax to her friends.”

“One friend.”

She narrows her eyes.

“It’s true. I only took one bottle for a friend and one for me.”

Mum drags her chair close enough to hug me. “At least twice that went missing.” She bumps my elbow with hers. “But I’m not angry. And we can go to a doctor for a real prescription if you’re still having trouble sleeping.” She studies me for a second. “Are you?”

The truth is too complicated, and I still haven’t asked what I need to. “I don’t think I’ll need them.”

“Good.” She spears a sizeable chunk of potato, chewing happily. “And to get back to your point, those pills were income. Why?” She frowns, a quick burst of irritation. “Is Drake blaming me for something? Because if he is, tell him to get his arse in here and do it himself. His mother was never a customer of mine. All the bloody woman talked about was how proud she was to get clean and every single time, it sounded like a dig.”

Her indignation takes a weight off my shoulders.

I had thought Mum might have been tangentially involved with Maggie’s overdose. The coincidence of her meeting Arnold and his ex dying around the same time set off a raft of conspiracy theories inside my head.

To an outsider, the connection wouldn’t make any sense. Drake’s mum obviously had nothing to do with Arnold and hadn’t for years.

But my mother’s reasoning is often at a tangent to other people’s. If she thought Maggie stood between her and a man she wanted, there’s a chance pills could have changed hands to nudge her out of the picture altogether.

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