Page 23 of The Reno
Tentatively, I stepped into the social club’s arched porch and through the double doors. The room was split into twoverydifferent events. In the left-hand room, a man with a grey ponytail in a silver waistcoat was crooning a Dean Martin tune while a single disco ball spun, with an audience of about eight clapping women, all in their sixties.
On the right-hand side, a football match playing on a big projector garnered a much bigger crowd of men and women wearing red football shirts and silent disco headphones. The headphones flashed bright neon colours, a comical contrast to their grave expressions as their eyes tracked the ball.
The door banged closed behind me, andeveryhead in the room swivelled towards me.
About forty people stared at me curiously. I gave a weak smile as I shuffled to the bar, desperate to find Sandy and justify my existence. I walked up to the bar, my foot tapping repeatedly. I was beginning to get desperate when a blonde head appeared from a room behind the bar.
My stomach dropped. Oh god.
“Hiya, love.” My auntie Sandra hadn’t looked up yet, busying herself putting away pint glasses. “Have you got your membership card?”
Her voice sparked a memory—the church—the musty smell, incense, and candle wax. Panic rose in my throat, and my cheeks were red with shame. Before I had a chance to flee, Sandra turned around and faced me. Her dark green eyes went wide, her moutha perfect “O”. Sandra always had the perfectly quaffed blonde bob, and today was no exception.
“Kat? What—” She rushed around the bar.
“Hi, Sandra,” I said meekly. She pulled me into her chest, and the dark sludge of shame filled me.
Sandra pulled back, her hand coming up to my cheek as she inspected my face. “What are you doing here? Are you okay? Do you need money?”
I laughed despite myself. “No, no. I’m fine. I’m sorry. I thought Lydia would have mentioned it. Dad left me the house on Evanshore Road.”
“Evanshore Road? Where our Brian grew up?”
“Yeah. He bought it a year ago and didn’t tell anyone.”
Sandra frowned. “Why don’t I get you a drink, and you can tell me all about it?”
Ten minutes later, I had explained the whole plan to Sandra, but I hadn’t touched the pint of Guinness in front of me. I just stared at it like it was my worst enemy. Sandra had been supportive, offering help if I needed it and promised to tell Brian, too.
“Brian will be so excited!” Sandra smiled.
My eyes widened. “About the house?”
Would Brian want me to keep it? Or, worse, would he have an opinion on the renovation?
Sandra shook her head. “No, he’s got no eye for this stuff. The man would still be sitting on camping chairs if it weren’t for me. I mean, he’ll be so excited you’re up here! We finally got you out of London.” She grinned.
Oh.
I hadn’t considered they would even want to see me. My mum had always given me the impression they’d sided with my dad during the divorce. I’d always assumed the exclusion extended to me, too.
“We’ll get you sorted out in no time, love.” Sandra patted me on the arm. “I’ll add it to the agenda for tonight.”
“The agenda?” I frowned.
“The quarterly members meeting is happening in—” Her eyes widened as she checked her watch. “About fifteen minutes. Shit.”
“Oh—don’t worry about putting it on the agenda. Please,” I insisted, as Sandra’s attention moved away.
“Ray!” she shouted to the man crooning in the silver waistcoat. “Ray! Five minutes, then we need to set up.”
Ray halted mid-way through “Fly Me to the Moon”, his face turning chartreuse. He stomped his foot. “Sandra, I am mid-set.”
“Ray, I told you—”
Ray threw down his cravat. “They would have never done this to Ol’ Blue Eyes. I’ll tell you that for free! Every week, Sandra. I never get my slot—”
He continued to argue with Sandra, who just cocked her hip and argued back. Ray had moved on to complaining about football taking precedence over “culturally significant performances” when the door swung open, and a burst of colour walked in in the shape of my cousin. Lydia scanned the room, finding me perched on a table between the two events, not wanting to side with either.
