I shook my head. ‘It’s so lovely of you to offer, but Iwouldn’t be able to pay you back until next month.’
‘That’s fine.’ She shrugged. ‘There’s no hurry. Have a thinkabout it and let me know.’ And she went off with her coffee and cake to her usualtable.
By the time she came into the café next day, I had my speechall prepared. ‘I’d like to take you up on your offer of a loan but I want topay it back with interest, okay?’
‘Oh, I don’t need interest.’ She brushed off the suggestionwith a smile. ‘How much do you need?’
She mentioned a figure that would easily cover the shortfallin the rent and I accepted gratefully. I immediately transferred the money tothe landlord and breathed a sigh of relief. I still had an overdraft at my bankthat was costing me a fortune and seemed to be increasing by the month, but atleast I still had a roof over my head, thanks to April. I paid her back withinterest as soon as I got paid, although of course that meant me leaning evenmore heavily on my bank overdraft to meet my monthly bills.
And then April, who I thought at the time must be my fairygodmother, guessed my predicament and offered to help me get out of debt withthe bank. Her face didn’t flicker when I told her the size of my overdraft. Shejust shrugged and asked me how I’d feel to have the bank off my back – with nomore vaguely threatening letters about paying it back and the hefty interest Iwas incurring. I nodded, agreeing that it would be such a relief.
‘Well, there you go, then.’ She smiled. ‘What are friendsfor, Krystle? I’ll pay off your overdraft and you can pay me back ininstalments, okay?’
It made sense. Of course it did. I hated starting everymonth in debt, and April seemed happy to lend me the money. So I agreed, and itfelt so good to pay in the money and wipe out the overdraft. I wasn’t even tooworried when she told me the rate of interest she’d be charging me. After all,if April was good enough to lend me money, there had to be something in it forher.
But then she spelled it out to me – the cold hard figures –and that’s when it started to dawn on me. She’d done this before with otherpeople. All the warmth had vanished from her eyes. They were as cold and bleakas the North Sea on a winter’s day.
April was a moneylender and she’d been manipulating me fromthe moment she first entered the café and overheard me telling Bertha I wasshort of money.
I’d thought the only bully in the café that day was Serena’sex, but I was wrong...
*****
I was such an idiot to fall for April’s deception. And I’mbeing an idiot now, sitting on the edge of my seat on a Saturday night glued tothe TV, waiting for the live National Lottery draw.
My heart is beating so fast, and yet I know it’s ridiculousbecause no one ever actually wins. Well, hardly anyone. But I suppose there’salways that hope, isn’t there? That your life could change with a series ofrandom numbers...
More than ever now I desperately need my numbers to come upso that I can pay back the loan to April and get her out of my life. I haveeverything crossed, and in my head, as I’m waiting for the draw, I’m promisingmyself over and over that if by some miracle tonight goes my way and I manageto escape from April’s stranglehold, I will nevereverdo anything sostupid again...
After one of her henchmen threw a brick through my window afew nights ago, I’ve been living on my nerves. Carrie was supposed to be comingover for dinner the following night but I had to put her off while I got thewindow repaired.
I haven’t told her anything about the mess I’m in and I’vemade Adam promise not to mention the broken window to her because I know she’llbe suspicious and think something’s up. The police came round after Adam phonedto report it. They concluded it was probably an act of mindless vandalism and Iwas so relieved that was an end to it.
But Carrie would be so cross with me if she found out I’dgot myself tangled up with a moneylender. She’d want to know why I didn’t cometo her for a loan, instead of going to a complete stranger. But I’d never askCarrie for help. It was my fault for getting into debt and I’d have to sort itout myself. Carrie and Ronan worked hard but they weren’t exactly rich. Theycouldn’t afford to lend me money, although I know Carrie would go withoutthings for herself to make sure I was okay.
That’s the way it’s always been for us. Carrie’s the oldertwin by eight minutes and she’s always been so much more practical and sensiblethan me. Our parents are workaholics and they never had much spare time tofocus on us. So from being small, Carrie took on the role of ‘little mother’ tome, making sure I was okay.
Everything is a business arrangement with our parents. Theytake great delight in telling everyone the reason they got married was becauseit was in their financial interest to do so (married couple’s tax relief).People think they’re joking but we know they’re not. They’re ambitious andhighly driven people, and Carrie and I have long been resigned to finishingrunners-up to their growing boutique hotel business.
We’re so different, Carrie and I.
I have a tendency to float around with my head in theclouds, believing that things will turn out fine, while Carrie’s feet arefirmly on the ground. There’s no way she wouldeverhave allowed herselfto be conned by the likes of April Bentham.
I don’t know why I’m getting excited about the lotterynumbers because it’s never going to happen. It’s something like a one in forty-fivemillion chance, isn’t it? But the trouble is, I was told a long time ago that Iwas destined to hit the jackpot, and I’ve never been able to shake the idea thatone day, I might be rich...
Now, more than ever, I need that palm reader’s predictionto come true. But how likely is that?
I was sixteen, it was June, the sun was shining, and I wasat the fair on Sunnybrook village green with a group of friends. We werelarking around, having fun and eating candy floss, when we passed a fortune-teller’scaravan and the woman grabbed my friend Fay’s hand and asked her if she wantedto know her future. Fay laughed and said okay, and the woman – who I think wascalled Mona – told her she’d meet the love of her life in six months, which ofcourse we all thought was hilarious. Then she took my hand and studied my palm.And even though I’m thirty-two now, the things she said to me have stuck in myhead all these years.
‘I see riches for you,’ she said. ‘You’re going to havemoney. Lots of it.’
Of course, we shrieked with laughter at that as well.
Fay was tempted into the caravan for a proper reading andwhen she emerged, she shrugged off Mona’s predictions, pretending to becynical, although underneath her nonchalance, I could tell that the idea ofmeeting someone special had made her day. Well, it would, wouldn’t it?
At the time, I thought no more about it. She was aneccentric old woman and it was all just a laugh, wasn’t it? But then in theDecember, Fay went to a party and met Joe – and five years later, they weremarried. And they’re still happily married to this day.
It was only when one of the girls remarked at Fay’sengagement party that the palm reader had been right about her meeting the loveof her life that it hit me.
