I found her crying in the toilets and after a little gentle prompting,she told me her name was Serena and the man was her ex and had been abusivetowards her before. He’d persuaded her he’d had counselling for his bouts ofanger and she’d given him another chance, but he was back to controlling heragain.
‘I can’t believe I thought things would be different thistime,’ she told me, tears coursing down her cheeks. ‘I’m so stupid.’
‘No, of course you’re not. He’s just a narcissistic pig, bythe sounds of things.’
‘He’ll be waiting out there for me.’ Serena’s arms werefolded tightly and she was shaking.
‘No, he won’t. I’ll get rid of him.’
She laughed. ‘How? He’s not going to leave without a fight.’
‘I’ll tell him I’m calling the police because he’s causing adisturbance.’
‘Will you?’
‘Of course.’ I laid my hand on her arm. ‘Tell you what, youjust wait here and I’ll go and deal with him.’
Next second, though, he was at the door, banging furiously –as I attempted to keep the door shut by leaning back against it – and demandingthat Serena come out.
‘Lock yourself in a cubicle,’ I murmured. ‘And don’t worry.It’ll be fine.’
Bertha was there and I could hear her telling him that she’dcalled the police. I slipped out to support her and the woman from the café wasalso there.
‘I’m a solicitor,’ she was saying, ‘and I have plenty ofexperience of cowardly scumbags like you! So unless you want to be looking at acharge of stalking and harassment, I’d leave now if I were you.’
The guy was obviously just full of angry bluster becauseafter hurling a few choice insults at us, he stormed away, and we watched withrelief from the window as he got in his car and drove away.
‘Thank you so much for that.’ I looked at the woman. ‘Areyou actually a solicitor?’
She smiled. ‘Me? Oh, no! It was the first thing that cameinto my head to get rid of that low-life arsehole.’
I laughed and Bertha nodded. ‘Well, we’re very grateful toyou. Your coffee and Danish are on the house!’
At that moment, Serena came out and we talked to her, makingsure she’d be okay. And after she’d gone, saying she was going to move back inwith her mum for a while, we talked about bullies and how cowardly they were,exerting control over others to make themselves feel superior.
‘It’s happening more and more,’ murmured the woman, who wascalled April. ‘They should lock up bullies like him and throw away the key.’
‘Couldn’t agree more,’ I murmured. ‘Another coffee?’
April had just started a new job in the area and she cameinto the café every day after that, usually around lunchtime, and we always hada good chat. I liked her. She was warm and friendly, and I felt I could talk toher about anything.
It was just a few weeks after the bullying incident that Imade the terrible decision that’s landed me in so much trouble...
CHAPTERTHREE
I’ve never been a very confident person. Only thepeople I’m close to know that my outward show of being a bubbly personality is mostlyan act. My twin sister is much more confident and sure of herself than I am.
I love her to bits but I’ve always known that Carrie wasmorethan me: more intelligent, more streetwise, more practical and down-to-earth.We both have white blonde hair, but somehow it’s me who’s managed to fall intothe cliché of being a ‘ditsy blonde’ with not much common sense. I find myselfplaying to the gallery sometimes, exaggerating my ‘silliness’ to make peoplelaugh. Because if I can make people laugh, I feel they’ll like me and they’lloverlook the fact that really I’m a bit of a lightweight, compared to my sister.
All the time, I tell myself that I’m ‘good enough’. But beingconned into borrowing money has tumbled me to a whole new low in terms of confidence.Looking back, the warning bells should have been clanging in my ears. But theyweren’t because I’m such a bloody idiot.
April and I had taken to chatting about our lives when shecame into the café, and I’d confided in her about being behind with the rentand having the landlord on my back about it.
‘I could lend you the money to get back on your feet,’ Aprilsaid, shrugging as if it was nothing. ‘Pay your landlord the few hundred youowe and keep him happy. You can reimburse me any time.’
‘What? No, I couldn’t let you do that.’
‘It’s fine. I had a tax rebate last month. I can afford it.’
