Eight to ten weeks!It would pass in a flash. Lilly felt the echo of loneliness that was her greatest fear, the very thought of losing this place and moments like this in the kitchen when the kettle boiled and she and the girls laughed around the table – all of it about to be lost, and it felt like there was very little she could do about it. Quite out of ideas as to what might be her next move, how she might be able to effect a different outcome.
There was a knock at the door.
‘Lord above!’ Glenda shouted for no particular reason, but it certainly added to the drama.
Lilly went to the door.
‘Hi, is Clodagh here?’ The young man was handsome, well dressed and smiling as he gripped Apollo’s hand. ‘She said to try here first, so...’
‘I’ve been to the park!’ Apollo yelled as he slipped his hand from his dad’s and ran into the apartment.Mayhem ... glorious mayhem ...
‘Yes, let me go and get her for you. One sec.’ She decided against asking Sab in; this was, after all, a safe space for Clodagh, a refuge, and the last thing she wanted to do was put memories of Sab in it. She knew how those images and thoughts could linger and taint a place, picturing her dad at the kitchen table crying, not long after her mum had packed up and shipped out.
Although if what Joshua had said was true it seemed almost inevitable that they were both on the move. The date made it seem very real, imminent, and she recalled Denzel’s advice, that the wealthy developers had more money, time and resources than her.They could tie you up in legal knots that would be costly, and you could end up with nothing. They are quite powerful ... I would advise you to take the money, take as much money as you can, and run.
‘We’re right here,’ she whispered to Clodagh. As she passed in the hallway, Lilly gave her an intense stare which she hoped conveyed that she was only a few feet away, should the young woman need anything.
Lilly hovered out of sight by the bedroom door, not to eavesdrop but to be on hand should the need arise.
‘All right, Clo?’ she heard Sab ask.
‘Yep.’
‘I think he had a nice time.’
‘Yes, he loves the park.’ It was heartbreaking to hear Clodagh’s voice sound so shaky.
‘He’s grown so much!’
‘Yep. Look, Sab, I don’t want to argue with you, but you can’t just turn up like that and take him. I was put on the spot. That can’t happen again.’
Lilly recognised the tremor of fear in her voice, and it took all her strength not to rush forward and scoop her up.
‘And you can’t kick me out of the flat and do a runner, but that’s what happened!’ He raised his voice.
‘I didn’t kick you out, I sent you back to your fiancée. The fiancée who is probably now your wife. You strung us both along – we had a child!’
‘I’m aware – a child you took away from me!’
There was a beat of quiet and Lilly held her breath.
‘As I said, Sab, I don’t want to argue with you, not here, not anywhere, but especially not here. This is my friend’s flat.’ Clodagh’s voice had calmed a little.
‘Well, we need to sort it out. I’m not going to let you disappear for eighteen months and not let me see my son! You won’t be doing that again!’
‘Okay, okay.’ Clodagh was doing her best to keep the situation civil. ‘I hear you. I think we should let things settle and make a plan, calmly and sensibly, like adults. You have my number now, socall any time; tonight, next week, whenever you’re ready. As I say, let’s talk calmly and make a plan and—’
‘You are not going to shut me out again, Clodagh. He’s my son!’ Sab yelled then, igniting the atmosphere in an instant.
It was as Lilly was deciding whether or not to intervene that Joshua Vaughan ran from the kitchen and came to a stop in the doorway.
‘She said you can call her any time to make a plan. Sheliterallyjust said that, and yet you’re still shouting!’
‘And who are you?’ Sab, jaw tense, stance rigid, pointed at Mr Vaughan.
‘I’m a friend.’
His presence seemed to do the trick. Sab shoved his hands into his jeans pockets and looked directly at Clodagh. ‘Next week, then.’ These parting words sounded curiously threatening as he made his way down the stairs.
