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“Lydia Marie Archer, that was mean. All because it seems insignificant or silly to you doesn’t mean it’s any less upsetting for your sister.”
Feeling suitably chastised, Lydia drank her tea in silence. “Sorry, Mum.”
“Just talk to her, okay? Now, do you want some lunch? I’m making chicken pesto salad.”
When Lydia said goodbye to her mum, she did so with the promise of heading over to Fe’s that evening. It would be nice to see the kids, and to clear the air. Although Lydia wasn’t sure how that was going to play out. Would Fe expect Lydia to stay away from Halle?
Sending her sister a message letting her know she was stopping by this evening, Lydia tried to put the issue with Fe to the back of her mind. Norris was on her shift today, meaning Lydia needed to summon every ounce of patience to get through the day without beating herself to death with a dinosaur bone to escape his whining.
Pete, the security guard, gave her a warm smile as she entered the museum. There were kids running wild, parents looking harassed, and groups of tourists taking pictures. It was mayhem, and Lydia loved it. “Afternoon Pete, everything good?”
“Aye, lass. You’re gonna be busy today.”
“Just how we like it. Catch you later.”
A busy shift was just what the doctor ordered. Lydia had far too much zinging around her head this afternoon. The upcoming blood tests were at the forefront of those thoughts. Excitement and trepidation bubbled low in her tummy. She’d waited so long to move in a positive direction, it was difficult to believe that in less than 24 hours, she might have some answers. Then it was only two weeks until the exploratory surgery. What would happen? What would the doctor find?
“Norris is on the warpath.” Gillian, another visitor assistant, mumbled as she scooted past.
Great.
* * *
Fe’s house was lit up like Blackpool Tower. Paying the cab driver, Lydia took a deep breath. “Here goes nothing.”
The door was unlocked as expected. What wasn’t expected—or maybe it should have been—was the three screaming children sprawled out on the floor in the foyer. Fe was nowhere to be found. Clearing her throat, Lydia hoped to catch the triplets’ attention, to no avail. The screaming continued, with a fist thump on the floor thrown in for good measure.
Tiptoeing her way around the kids, Lydia set off to find Fe, who she found sipping on a rather large glass of red wine in the kitchen. “Oh hey, sis,” Fe shouted over the din.
“Um?” Lydia jabbed her thumb over her shoulder towards the chaos.
“They’re all taking some time out to think about their actions.”
“I doubt there is a lot of thinking happening, sis.” Lydia’s ears were ringing.
Sighing, Fe stood from the stool, held her index finger up to Lydia, silently asking her to wait a second. Lydia’s eyes followed Fe into the foyer, where she laid in the middle of her children and let out an ear-piercing scream. The children immediately stopped their tantrums and stared wide-eyed at their mother, just as Lydia did. Fe was still screaming. It was almost primal.
Fe finally fell quiet, presumably after she ran out of air. That woman had a set of pipes on her. Sheesh!
Standing, Fe returned to the kitchen and her glass of wine. Lydia stood dumbstruck, not knowing what to do or say. Finally, she addressed the kids first, who looked disturbed by their mum’s performance.
“Kids, why don’t we head upstairs and get your pj’s on?” They nodded simultaneously. Upstairs, the triplets were still silent. What in the heavens above was going on in this house. “Jenny, why were you all screaming on the floor?” Jenny shrugged. “Jack?”
“Daddy was supposed to be home by now. He promised he would read to us.”
“He’s said that every day, Jack,” Joey huffed.
“Daddy called Mummy and said he would be home later. Mummy got mad and then told us we had to go to bed without a story.” Jack sniffed.
“Mummy could read to us, but she doesn’t want to anymore.” Jenny’s voice was quiet, almost a whisper.
“Oh, my little darlings, come here.” Doing her best to stretch her arms around all three, Lydia squeezed the children tightly. “Mummy is probably really tired. Of course she wants to read to you. But sometimes she might not be able to, and if that happens, you can’t throw yourselves on the floor like that. You scared me when I walked in.”
“Sorry, Aunt Lydia. We just wanted to see Daddy,” Joey said, his voice muffled in Lydia’s top.
“And we wanted a story,” Jenny added.
“Well, I can help with that. Go and brush your teeth and then I’ll read to you, okay?”
