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‘Good. Just popped in to do a spot of essay writing. Pretty quiet today?’ The room was almost empty, with only an old guy sitting near the door, flipping through a newspaper and eating a gargantuan slice of pie.
‘Oh, I’m not long done with the breakfast rush. You’re a little earlier than the lunchtime regulars. You’ve not been around so much lately.’ Her fingers trembled lightly where she held her tiny notepad, age not entirely letting her escape its grasp.
‘I’ve had to do a bit of work in the evenings. Ruby broke her foot.’
‘So I saw. I could have given you a few hours here. You look plenty strong enough for sweeping up, and my arms get tired quicker these days.’
I smiled, tucking a stray piece of hair behind my ear. Telling her that I wouldn’t make enough there would offend her, but I didn’t want her to ask where I was working. I needed to deflect.
‘Thanks, Maggie. I’ll keep that in mind. The job I’m doing is only temporary, so I might need to take you up on that later.’
‘Terrible,’ the old man said, his voice making us both look over. ‘Just terrible.’
‘What’s terrible, Bill?’ Maggie asked.
‘A body washed up in the canal. Says it looks like he was tortured. That’s the third one this month.’
Maggie tutted. ‘Well, he was probably up to no good.’
‘You can’t blame the dead man,’ I said.
‘Can and will. He probably rubbed someone up the wrong way. Anyway, love, what can I get you?’ Maggie didn’t look fazed in the slightest by the spate of dead bodies that had been found locally.
‘Um. Coffee, please. And a brownie. I think I could use the sugar.’
Thirty minutes later, Maggie topped up my coffee and took away my crumb-dusted plate. I jumped in my seat as a loud knock sounded outside the window. Ruby waved at me.
‘Hey, Mags,’ she said as she hobbled in on her crutches, failing to avoid catching chairs as she passed through the cramped space. ‘A tea, please!’
‘Do you want something to eat?’ Maggie asked from behind the counter.
‘No, thanks.’ Ruby sat down, her face a touch paler than usual.
‘Hey, are you okay?’ I asked.
She gave me a crooked little smile and nodded. ‘Yeah. Course I am. You’ve got your nose in your work again.’
‘Trying to catch up. Thank god I only have to cover a few more weeks for you. I don’t know how you do so many late nights.’
‘Sleeping until noon helps.’ Ruby took her steaming teacup from Maggie, a slight tremor in her hands. I watched with concern as she took a sip. ‘Seth’s meeting me here. Thought I’d join you while I wait for him to pick me up.’
‘Seth?’ I asked.
‘The guy you watched ploughing me.’
I shushed her as the newspaper-holding man glanced up at us.
‘The guy who ditched you when you were hurt, you mean? So is he like a regular thing now?’
‘Something like that.’ Ruby looked out of the window, fidgeting with the handle of her mug. Her lips were dry and chewed near the corners; her clothes crumpled with a stain at the sleeve of her top. Her hair had been scraped back into a bun but was visibly greasy at the roots. My sister was always the glamorous one out of the two of us.
‘Are you sure you’re okay? Do you need help with anything?’ Maybe she couldn’t shower right with the cast on? Shit, I’d left her to mostly get on with things while I was dashing from uni to the club before collapsing into bed. ‘I can wash your hair if you are struggling?’
Ruby’s mouth turned down in a pout. ‘God, I skip one shower, and suddenly you think I’m some scab. I’m fine. How are you getting on at the club?’
I wanted to press her, to see what was going on, but knowing Ruby, it would only anger her further.
‘Okay. Molly is sweet. Adam’s nice.’
