Page 18 of Escape to Tuscany

Tori, WTF?

I thought we were friends.

Tell. Me. EVERYTHING.

Wow!!!!

This is really hard on me, you know.

That last one lands like a punch to the stomach. For a second I think it’s Duncan; that he’s broken his silence. But it isn’t. It’s Charlie.

Been trying to call you all morning. Why won’t you answer? This is really hard on me, you know.

I’m staring at the message when her name flashes up on the screen. She’s calling again. I accept the call and put the phone to my ear.

‘Mummy is livid,’ she says, before I can even speak. ‘Absolutely livid.’

‘But she hates Duncan. Thinks he’s common.’

‘Doesn’t matter. She’s been biting my ear for days about how disgraceful it is of you to desert your husband and run off abroad like a… well, you know how she is.’

‘I do,’ I say. ‘Sorry.’

‘Whatever,’ Charlie says. ‘Better she should bite my ear than yours.’

‘Thanks,’ I say, and I really mean it. Because she’s like that, Charlie – she’s bossy and annoying and smug, but then she does something so totally generous that you forgive her everything. It’s just like her to keep Mummy off me.

‘Honestly, though, between her and Duncan I’m never off the phone. Ben had to take the boys to forest school the other dayandbring them back. Ben! I’m amazed he managed to collect the right children.’

There’s a nasty cold feeling in the pit of my stomach. ‘What do you mean?’

‘Oh, you know how hopeless he is. The other day—’

‘No,’ I cut in before she can go off on one of her Ben diatribes. ‘What do you mean about Duncan?’

‘Oh. Well, Tori, you can hardly be surprised that he’s upset. We speak, what, two or three times a day sometimes? I suppose I’ve become his shoulder to cry on.’

‘Right,’ I say. ‘Right.’

‘Don’t start,’ Charlie says. ‘He’s having a really tough time. It’s a very stressful life up there, you know.’

‘I know, believe me.’

‘And then with you just leaving like that, out of nowhere, and flinging around these accusations…’

‘Charlie,’ I say, ‘what do you mean? Are you talking about the stuff I told you the other day, when you asked me specifically to prove myself? Because I don’t call that “flinging around accusations”.’

‘Well, maybeyoudon’t, but—’

‘And did he really say I left out of nowhere? Because I told him I was going, and he didn’t seem to care.’

‘That’s not what he says.’ Charlie sounds defensive.

‘Well, it’s what happened.’ They’re flooding back again, the memories. Hauling my suitcase out from under the bed. Duncan staring at me, just staring, his expression scornful. ‘I told him I’d had enough, that I couldn’t trust him any more and that unless something really changed, unless he could assure me that he understood why I was hurt and that he’d never lie to me like that again, then I would have to leave. And he said…’ My throat is clogged – I have to swallow. ‘He said, “Do what you want. Makes no difference to me.”’

‘Well, maybe he wanted to give you some space,’ Charlie says. ‘He was probably scared you’d overreact.’

‘Overreact?’ I squeak. ‘You weren’tthere.’

---