Page 16 of The Politician

“Thanks.” Kendra held Sarah’s gaze as she sipped the drink then turned her attention back to the plan.

“Can you pass me that foil?” Abi pointed, and Sarah obliged.

“Kendra, can you cut me eight silver strips three centimetres wide and twenty long. They’re to represent the voltaic windows on the round houses.”

Kendra kneeled next to Sarah. She reached for the scissors at the same time as Sarah and touched Sarah’s hand.

“Sorry,” Sarah said and pulled back.

Kendra’s cheeks flushed. She picked up the scissors and started to cut. There was a slight tremble in her hands.

“Mum, can you make flowers out of the coloured felt?”

“Flowers?”

“Yep.” Abi laughed.

Sarah nudged her arm. “Cheeky. You know I hate the fiddly stuff.”

“That’s why you need the practice.” Abi threw the coloured felt in Sarah’s direction.

Kendra smiled. “I’ll swap with you if you like. I love working on the details.”

Sarah held her gaze and saw a hint of what she’d seen the previous evening. Warmth spread from her chest. It was nice to feel Kendra closer. She handed over the felt, took the silver foil, and started to cut.

“Make sure you cut it evenly,” Abi said.

Kendra laughed. “I bet you’re not used to being bossed around.”

Sarah tousled her daughter’s hair. “This one does all the bossing.”

Kendra smiled, and Sarah felt assessed. Kendra handed over the flowers she’d cut. Following Abi’s instructions, Sarah wrapped the solar panels she’d made around the buildings.

“We need to get to your first meeting,” Kendra said.

Sarah noted the time on the clock, and a dull feeling of disappointment slid into her stomach. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d had so much fun with her daughter. “It’s looking good,” she said.

“It’s amazing,” Abi said, her cheeks rosy from the effort and intense concentration she’d applied to bring her creation to life. “It’s going to be the best in the class.”

Whenever Abi did anything, she always gave a hundred percent. Sarah kissed her head. “You’rethe best in class,” she said. She stood and stretched her legs. “My knees didn’t like that too much. Right, we’d better get going, or Mrs Witherwright will be up in arms.”

“Mrs Witherwright?” Kendra asked.

Abi laughed. “She’s eighty-seven and at the last meeting, someone had put a beer can in her paper recycling bin after she put it out on the street for collection. It almost caused a world war because the bin men didn’t empty her bin for two collections in a row, so she had to wait six weeks. And then her bin overflowed. It was all over the local Facebook group.”

Kendra laughed.

“Bins are a serious business,” Sarah said. “And bonfires before seven in the evening. And cars parking at the front of the pub, which are an eyesore to the residents who live opposite, apparently. Then there’s Mrs Dawning’s cockerel. Her neighbours have tried to file a noise complaint against her several times.”

Kendra and Abi bent double laughing.

“It’s all highbrow stuff in the constituencies,” Sarah said. “We left the grass to grow at the roadsides last year to encourage the bees and received a petition to have it cut down. And don’t get onto boundary issues. If someone’s washing blows past a boundary line, I’ll get a letter about it.” Sarah laughed.

Thinking about it that way, she had two completely different jobs that were poles apart. It would be impossible to please her constituents while also pursuing a broader agenda for the country. There was always something that had to be compromised, and whatever was a problem in the constituency, she would get an ear-bending for it.

“I only went to one local meeting,” Kendra said. “One of the residents complained about the increased traffic down her road and the threat to her cat. I later saw her throwing litter out of her car window. Oiks and scumbags. Gotta love ’em.” She shrugged.

“That’s fucking dumb. It pisses me off,” Abi said.

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