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Replacing the papers, Poppy took a deep breath and composed her face into a neutral expression. Then she pushed the drawer closed, turned and picked up the holdall.
‘Ready.’
29
Lifting the holdall further up onto her shoulder, Poppy pushed open the door to the waiting room then held it open for Ginny.
She kept her eyes focused on the floor, the strap of the holdall in her hand, keeping it in place on her shoulder.
‘Have you heard anything yet?’ Ginny asked the assembled group – Percy, Susan, Alex, Sally and Mack.
‘Nothing. We should do soon, though.’ Percy nodded.
‘I’ll go and grab you two a coffee now.’ Alex jumped up from his chair before leaving.
‘Hey, you okay?’ Mack stood up and walked across to Poppy. ‘Shall I take that?’
Ignoring him, she walked towards the window and shrugged the holdall from her shoulder before sinking onto the plastic chair. As she twisted the handle around her finger, all she could focus on was a stain on the floor. What was that? Blood? Coffee? It must have been coffee.
What had Aunt Flora been thinking? All of those loans. Same-day loans at that with the super high interest rates. And the information about remortgaging the cottage?
‘Here you go, coffee.’ Alex held out a plastic cup, the bittersweet aroma filling the room.
Poppy shook her head. She didn’t want coffee. She couldn’t drink at the moment. She needed to think.
‘Are you sure?’
She nodded, too many thoughts in her head to even answer out loud. Remortgaging? That was a big deal, wasn’t it? It would mean Flora’s home being on the line. She’d lose it if she couldn’t repay the money. What would that mean for the dogs’ home? Possibly everything. Possibly nothing. The home would be separate from the cottage, wouldn’t it? But where would Aunt Flora live?
‘Don’t worry. She’ll be out of surgery soon.’ Mack’s voice was quiet, kind.
She frowned, keeping her eyes focused on the stain. She couldn’t look at him. Not now. Not at this moment. Yes, she understood why Mack couldn’t give discounts for the treatment he gave the dogs from Wagging Tails, but now she knew Flora had been struggling financially, knew what had led her to be in surgery, she just couldn’t trust herself not to say something to him. Not to blame him, even though she didn’t. Not really. She did understand but… No, it was best if she just tried to concentrate on waiting for Flora to get out of the operating theatre. However much she understood though, the facts were clear, if he had honoured Gavin’s wish, continued giving veterinary treatment for free. Continued to only charge for medication. If he’d done that, Flora wouldn’t have needed to jump-start the van again, she would have replaced the battery. If he’d honoured Gavin’s wishes, Aunt Flora wouldn’t be in so much debt, she wouldn’t be looking to remortgage her home. And she couldn’t lay that on him. She couldn’t blame him. It wasn’t fair.
‘Poppy?’ Mack touched her hand.
Pulling her hand away, she sat still. ‘You should probably go. I don’t want to keep you here.’
‘Don’t worry. I’m happy to stay. I want to support you.’ He lowered himself into the chair next to her.
She swallowed. She couldn’t have him here. She needed time to think. Space to think. ‘It’s fine. I’ve got Percy, Ginny, Alex, Susan and Sally here. I don’t want to keep you.’
‘You’re not keeping me.’ Mack shook his head. ‘I can wait.’
Poppy chewed her bottom lip. He needed to go. She couldn’t sit next to him. Not as though nothing had happened. Not as though she hadn’t just found out he ultimately was the reason her aunt was here. ‘Please, Mack. I’m fine. Just go.’
The confusion was clear in Mack’s eyes, his brow furrowed as he ran his fingers through his hair. Still, he kept sitting.
Please just go. She squeezed the strap of the holdall tighter in her grasp. It wasn’t his fault. He didn’t know this would have happened. It wasn’t his fault. ‘Aunt Flora doesn’t need us all here. She’ll probably be embarrassed about what’s happened.’
‘Why would she be embarrassed?’ Mack turned to face her and tried to take her hand in his again. ‘There’s no reason for her to be embarrassed. It was just an accident. It could have happened to any one of us.’
Poppy snatched her hand away again. She could taste the blood from her lip now. The strong metallic taste filling her mouth. ‘It wouldn’t have…’ She caught herself just in time. She couldn’t tell him that it wouldn’t have happened to him, not with the money he was making off her aunt. She couldn’t tell him that every time he spoke an irrational anger rose from the pit of her stomach. She knew it was just the shock, she knew he could never have foreseen what had happened, that he was just trying to look out for his family. But she knew if he stayed here, in this small room, sitting next to her for a moment longer then she’d say something she’d forever regret. ‘She doesn’t need to come around and havestrangersaround her bed.’ She winced at her own voice. She hadn’t meant for the word strangers to escape, hadn’t meant to sound so impersonal. ‘Just leave. Please.’
Standing up, Mack shifted on his feet, unsure of what to do.
‘Please.’ She looked up at him, blinking back the tears behind her eyes. She knew she’d hurt him but she couldn’t cope with this. Not now. Not yet.
‘I don’t understand.’ Mack’s voice cracked as he shoved his hands in his pockets. ‘I—’
