The Daily Dormouse. (aka Bike, est. 2007) Part 2677 by Angharad Copyright© 2015 Angharad

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This is a work of fiction any mention of real people, places or institutions is purely coincidental and does not imply that they are as suggested in the story.
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“What was all that about?” asked Simon.

“The social worker attached to Hannah.”

“It didn’t sound too good from here.”

“It wasn’t. She believes that the system and the courts would back her mother over us because that’s the way it works.”

“Even though we could give her a better life?”

I nodded. I suppose in the majority of cases, the courts get it right, and the social workers have an impossible job. The problem is I’m not concerned directly with the majority of cases, but with this one, I’ve allowed myself to become involved. The consequences could be far reaching as well. I could lose our chef and friend because of it. Sadly, a child’s future is more important than that, but I didn’t know what else to do.

What I didn’t appreciate was that Trish had been listening in on the conversation and she then swapped notes with Julie. It was early the next morning that she went to speak with David. I found out from David later what had transpired when he asked to come and see me.

I was busy preparing a beef casserole for the slow cooker. “May we talk?” he asked me.

I shut the kitchen door and continued my culinary task. “I hope we can sort out this thing about Hannah,” he started.

I finished the casserole and popped the lid on the slow cooker. “Tea or coffee?”

“Coffee.”

For a change I made ground coffee and while it was brewing I switched on the bread maker, then poured us two cups. I gave him a black one to which he added sugar and I added milk to mine—cold milk. Then we sat at the table.

“Julie spoke with me this morning before she went to work.”

“Oh?”

“According to her you discovered that Ingrid was working as a prostitute.”

“The social worker attached to her case confirmed it. Two of her punters are the ones who beat her up, the police have got them and they’ve been charged and bailed. I’m not making value judgements because it’s not my place to do so. I don’t think I could do it but how she earns a living is up to her. She as good as accused me of prostituting myself to Simon to live in a big house and drive a nice car. I don’t but I can see her point.”

He nodded. “Can I speak with Hannah—you can stay.”

I was about to remind him of my insistence he wait until after the weekend. I called her and she came bouncing into the kitchen. “Hi, David, you wanted me Auntie Cathy?”

“Shut the door, sweetheart.”

She looked apprehensive. “You’re not going to make me leave, are you?”

I shook my head and she looked slightly less worried.

“You enjoying living with Cathy and the girls?”

“Yeah, it’s brill and I’m going to a fab school with Trish and Livvie. I got exams next week but I’ve been revisin’ with them an’ I think I’ll be okay.” She glanced at me and I smiled back.

“I’m glad you’re doing well, girl,” said David, “I’ll be sure to tell your mother.”

“Her, she’d take me outta school all together if she could, but I wanna do somethin’ with my life, be a teacher or a nurse or somethin’, not like her, gettin’ money from all those blokes.”

“D’you know the men who hurt her?” he asked.

“I’ve seen ’em before with her, if that’s what you mean.”

“Why d’you think they hurt her?”

She shrugged, “I dunno—probably to do with sex. She gives them sex and they give her money. She says it beats stackin’ shelves in Tesco and she don’t pay tax on it.”

David shook his head and there were tears in his eyes. “Has she been doing it for a long time?”

“She used to do it before we came to stay with you an’ Cathy, then she got that job with the tourist people and when she lost that, she went back to it. Usually, I’m up in my bedroom when she’s got men there, but one night my lap top wouldn’t work and I knocked on her bedroom door and she took it and smashed it . Sammi got me a new one.”

“She didn’t make you watch or anything?”

“Ugh no, I had to stay in my room but I knew what she was doing.”

“What d’you think of it?”

“I don’t like it, do I? I don’t like havin’ to stay in my room. I don’t have to do that here, I’m never alone here, I’m with my friends an’ it’s like havin’ sisters. That’s really nice.”

“You wouldn’t prefer to stay in the cottage with me?”

“That’d be better than home but I really like it here with Trish an’ Livvie.”

“Are we still friends?” he asked her and I knew his relationship with her was important.

“Yes,” she said and gave him a hug, “You won’t take me away, will you?”

“No,” he said shaking his head.

“An’ you won’t let, Mummy do it, will you?”

“I can’t stop her, poppet, but I certainly won’t help her.”

“You like Mummy, don’t you?”

“Yes,” he said and tears ran down his face, “I thought I did, but I don’t think she’s actually the person I thought she was.”

“Wassat mean?”

“I think it means, David used to like her but not anymore.”

“Why not?” she asked looking at me, seeing as I’d interrupted them.

“People can be very complex and you can think they’re one thing but in fact, they’re quite different to what you thought. Sometimes, it’s like they’re acting, playing a part to please you and you don’t realise it for some time.”

“Mummy said David was so easy to fool,” she said blithely totally unaware that it stabbed him like a knife. “He was kind, which she liked, but boring.”

I couldn’t bring myself to look at him. We let her go and I shut the kitchen door again. David was seated at the table sobbing. I put my hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry,” I said quietly. “It was my fault you met. I thought I was doing the right thing offering them somewhere to stay. I didn’t know either.”

He sniffed for a couple of minutes. “I thought she loved me.”

What could I say in response to that? I stayed silent.

“I’ve been a fool. I’m sorry. I’ll leave in the morning.” He went to rise from the table.

“David, I think we’ve all come out of this less than perfect. I hope that you see me as more than an employer, and I’d like you to stay.”

“But I betrayed your trust.”

“You were misled. It can happen to any of us. Please stay, I think your presence could be important to Hannah, as long as she stays here—I don’t know how long that could be.”

“Thank you, I won’t let you down again.”

“Friends allow each other to make mistakes and forgive them afterwards.”

“Thank you.”

“Dinner is at six—don’t be late or Simon will eat it all.”

“Okay, I won’t.”