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‘Nothing?’ Shay’s lip curled. She’d expressly told Paula that she must make sure she put some food down in front of her mother because she was bound to say she wasn’t hungry, but would eat it anyway. Her sister really was a lazy hound.
‘Did she leave out your tablets for you?’
‘I think so,’ replied Roberta. Her face and fingers were covered in chocolate.
‘I wish I had a camera,’ said Shay, smiling. She reached over for the swivel mirror that stood on the windowsill and held it up so Roberta could see herself.
‘Oh my goodness – the state of me,’ said Roberta laughing. ‘I look like that day I was with your father eating an ice cream and someone bumped into me on a pushbike and it went all over my face.’
‘You never told me about that one before,’ said Shay.
Roberta chewed her lip as she tried to dredge up the memory. ‘They needed Russian language teachers you see. I volunteered. I was away from home for months.’
‘Right,’ said Shay; but this was a false memory, stirred up by her reading Russian poetry.
‘Yes. Your auntie Stella and your father looked after Paula between them. She was only a little girl.’
Shay was confused now. ‘So Dad… wasn’t… with you then?’
Roberta closed her eyes, tried to solder together the missing electrical links in her memory chain. ‘No, he wasn’t there. I got that bit wrong.’ She made a noise of frustration. ‘Why can’t I remember this, because it’s important?’
‘Who was it that needed teachers?’ asked Shay. Usually when her mum got confused, there was some truth to be picked out from the chaff in her stories.
‘The government. They needed people with Russian language skills. It was very exciting, very hush hush. It was the time of the Cold War, you see. Yes, yes I remember now.’ The look on her face said that her mind had secured a floating memory and was hauling it in for closer inspection. ‘We lived in a huge building, old with ivy growing all over the walls. There were iron gates at the front. So many wonderful people from around the world. It was top secret, we were told we could be put in prison if we ever talked about it.’ Another recollection popped to the surface like an air bubble in water. ‘We caught a trainto the seaside. It was chocolate ice cream,’ Roberta went on. ‘Why would I remember that when I’ve forgotten so much else?’
‘I have no idea, Mum,’ replied Shay, wondering if her mother was mixing up some memories with the films she’d been recently watching with Dagmara. She waited for mention of a centipede but none came. ‘Was this in Russia?’
Roberta’s head snapped round. ‘Russia? When have I ever been to Russia, silly girl? No it was here in England… somewhere. Chelmsford – that rings a bell. There was a famous headquarters there.’
‘You don’t mean Cheltenham do you? GCHQ?’
Roberta’s lips curved into a face-splitting smile. ‘That’s it. That’s the place.’
Paula, at this point, would have told her mother not to be so daft, but what harm was it doing, letting her mother think she had an important role in the Cold War, even if it was taking romancing to another level.
‘We should go for lunch, I know a place that serves the best ice-cream sundaes. Maybe that would help jog some more memories.’
‘I don’t want to leave my house at the moment in casetheyknow I’m out.’ Roberta pointed at the wall.
‘You haven’t been out for ages, Mum. You’ll start to get stir crazy.’
‘I will soon. Just give me a bit of time.’
Shay didn’t nag her to go out if she didn’t want to. Roberta’s hips were often sore and she’d had a slip in the snow in January which had scared her. Shay had suggested before that they borrow a wheelchair, but that had been met with a deeply scornful response. Roberta’s world was presently the home she loved and the extent of her universe thesafe, quiet circle of Merriment Close. The fact that it was presently under threat had shaken her considerably.
‘I’m going for lunch tomorrow,’ said Shay. ‘With Lesley. You remember her, don’t you? My friend from college. She was one of my bridesmaids.’
Roberta licked the chocolate from her fingers. ‘Is that the nice one or the other? Who’s the tall girl?’
‘Tanya.’
‘Ah yes, Tanya, the nice one.’ Roberta smiled and nodded. ‘Do you see much of her?’
Her mum had even forgotten that Tanya had died.
‘Now and again,’ said Shay.
‘I didn’t like that other one very much,’ said Roberta. ‘There was something not right about her.’
