Page 10 of The Promise
Chapter Three
Mumand I spend the morning loading Aunt Addy’s car up with my stuff and taking it to theflat.
“Bloody hell, Adds, you fell on your feet here,” she exclaims when she first sees theplace.
“Yeah, but at what cost?” I mutter tomyself.
“Did he not explain anything last night?” Mum didn’t get in until gone midnight, and when she passed through the living room, I made sure she thought I was asleep. In reality, I was wide-awake, tossing andturning.
“I told him not to. I wasn’t in the right frame of mind. He’s coming here after work,” I say on asigh.
“You sound so excited about it,” Mum comments with alaugh.
“What can he really say to me that excuses the fact he was out to dinner with another woman? You know how it looked—you were there. What can he say?” I repeat, as I consider what my future is going to be likenow.
“I don’t know, but you need to hear himout.”.
We get all my stuff in before going back to Aunt Addy’s to make it nice for her and ensure she’s got enough space to get around on her crutches. When I rang this morning, the hospital said she’d be discharged as soon as the doctor had done his rounds. We’re just finishing up making her bed and putting some extra pillows on when I get the phone call to say we can pick herup.
* * *
“How’re you feeling?” I ask as I lower Aunt Addy to thesofa.
“Exhausted and sore. I got no sleep last night with the lights andnoise.”
“Do you want to go to bed?” I ask, thinking she might be morecomfortable.
“No, I’m fed up of being vertical. I’d much rather behere.”
“Here you go,” Mum says, coming in with tea and somebrownies.
“How was London? Did you have a good time with Juliette?” Aunt Addyasks.
“It was good, thanks. It was nice to spend some time, just the two of us. It’s weird not seeing her weekly like we used to.” I know Mum and Aunt Addy will understand how close Juliette and I were, because they were the same until Mum upped andleft.
“Did you go out drinking in some fancybar?”
“Uh, no,” I admit. “Nothing wilder than coffee and girlchat.”
Once I’m happy Aunt Addy is as comfortable as possible, I make moves to leave. Both of them look sad I’m moving out but they keep their mouths shut. This place isn’t really big enough for two, let alonethree.
“Could you do me a favour before yougo?”
“Ofcourse.”
“There’s some stuff up in the loft from when Mum was unstable—a table to eat dinner at the sofa, a couple of hand rails for the bathroom. Would you be able to get them down for me? There’s no point me struggling if I’ve got stuff tohelp.”
“Noproblem.”
I grab the ladder from the garage before propping it up under the loft hatch in the hallway. Mum stands at the bottom, ready to grab the stuff I pass down. I’m halfway up when Ipause.
“What’swrong?”
The thought that I probably shouldn’t be up a ladder hits me full force, the weight of the last minute decision I made weighing down on me. Did I do the rightthing?
I shake off the thoughts and carry on. Getting Aunt Addy’s stuff is what’s important rightnow.
“Can you see it?” Mum asks as I wave my phone around with the torchon.
