then sat back down. ‘You serious?’
Lou had that feeling of having accidentally opened a massive can of worms. ‘Of course. It’s on the twenty-third, just in the evening. You’ve probably got hockey.’
‘Nope. Not that weekend.’
‘Great,’ Lou said. ‘I’d like to apologise in advance for anything my mother might say to you.’
He looked at her, studying her face. Lou was trying her best to look excited.
‘I’m sure they’re not as bad as all that,’ he said.
‘Tell me again after the twenty-third,’ Lou replied.
Jason smiled and nodded. There was something going on behind those eyes, something Lou couldn’t quite make out. He certainly didn’t look especially happy.
This is a big deal for me
, she wanted to say.
‘Okay, then, sure,’ he said. ‘I’ll come with you. At least it might mean I get to spend a bit of time with you, right?’
Ouch.
That was it, then? He was getting needy?
He came round the desk and kissed her, despite the kebab breath. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow night.’
Tempted as she was to carry on working, she was tired and vaguely pissed off, and now she was going to have to go and meet Scarlett Rainsford for the very first time.
SCARLETT – Sunday 24 August 2003, 14:10
Somehow, Yelena had managed to fall asleep. Scarlett watched her, stared at the bumps of her spine showing through the thin, pale skin of her back. If there had been a blanket she would have pulled it over her, despite the stifling heat. There was something about the sight of her bare back, her top ridden up, that made Scarlett want to cover it.
She’d cried, again, trying to keep quiet so as not to wake the other girl, snuffling into her sleeve which was filthy with grime and dried blood. She wished she could sleep too, but the heat and the sunlight and the drilling headache made it impossible. The water was all gone. She had already drained every drop from the bottles that were scattered around the room.
Thirsty, so thirsty.
Try not to think about it.
Eventually she collected all the bottles and moved them into the corner of the room, behind the bucket, which was now stinking badly. There. Now she wouldn’t have to look at them.
Yelena stirred, moving over on to her back, one hand thrown casually over her head. Scarlett looked at her and her eyes opened. Almost immediately her face crumpled and she put both hands over her eyes.
‘It’s okay,’ Scarlett said, although it was clearly far from okay. Nothing was okay, never would be again.
23:30
They were in a minibus this time, not the van that had brought Scarlett here; driving back through the winding roads and then, eventually, on to some sort of motorway where the engine whined at the demands that were being placed upon it. The interior of the vehicle was heaped with boxes, suitcases, holdalls, all over the seats at the front. Where they were, at the back, some of the seats had been removed to make a space on the floor. The two windows in the back doors of the minibus were painted over, allowing for a dull light to filter through to their space at the back, but not giving them any way to see out or attract attention from other drivers. In this disorientating space they were sitting facing each other, with their backs against the sides of the bus.
Yelena and Scarlett had been moved quickly, unexpectedly, before they’d had time to prepare or, worse, make use of the bucket.
Right now the bucket was one of the things Scarlett was thinking about a lot. More so because when they’d clambered into the back of the bus there had been another six-pack of water bottles already in there. They had drunk two each, somehow avoiding any spillages as the minibus jolted and swerved, and now they were staring at the remaining two bottles as though they were some sort of talisman.
Once again, the room had become the place she had begun to feel was her space – being taken from it by force had made her feel panicky. Now, her heart had
Lou had that feeling of having accidentally opened a massive can of worms. ‘Of course. It’s on the twenty-third, just in the evening. You’ve probably got hockey.’
‘Nope. Not that weekend.’
‘Great,’ Lou said. ‘I’d like to apologise in advance for anything my mother might say to you.’
He looked at her, studying her face. Lou was trying her best to look excited.
‘I’m sure they’re not as bad as all that,’ he said.
‘Tell me again after the twenty-third,’ Lou replied.
Jason smiled and nodded. There was something going on behind those eyes, something Lou couldn’t quite make out. He certainly didn’t look especially happy.
This is a big deal for me
, she wanted to say.
‘Okay, then, sure,’ he said. ‘I’ll come with you. At least it might mean I get to spend a bit of time with you, right?’
Ouch.
That was it, then? He was getting needy?
He came round the desk and kissed her, despite the kebab breath. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow night.’
Tempted as she was to carry on working, she was tired and vaguely pissed off, and now she was going to have to go and meet Scarlett Rainsford for the very first time.
SCARLETT – Sunday 24 August 2003, 14:10
Somehow, Yelena had managed to fall asleep. Scarlett watched her, stared at the bumps of her spine showing through the thin, pale skin of her back. If there had been a blanket she would have pulled it over her, despite the stifling heat. There was something about the sight of her bare back, her top ridden up, that made Scarlett want to cover it.
She’d cried, again, trying to keep quiet so as not to wake the other girl, snuffling into her sleeve which was filthy with grime and dried blood. She wished she could sleep too, but the heat and the sunlight and the drilling headache made it impossible. The water was all gone. She had already drained every drop from the bottles that were scattered around the room.
Thirsty, so thirsty.
Try not to think about it.
Eventually she collected all the bottles and moved them into the corner of the room, behind the bucket, which was now stinking badly. There. Now she wouldn’t have to look at them.
Yelena stirred, moving over on to her back, one hand thrown casually over her head. Scarlett looked at her and her eyes opened. Almost immediately her face crumpled and she put both hands over her eyes.
‘It’s okay,’ Scarlett said, although it was clearly far from okay. Nothing was okay, never would be again.
23:30
They were in a minibus this time, not the van that had brought Scarlett here; driving back through the winding roads and then, eventually, on to some sort of motorway where the engine whined at the demands that were being placed upon it. The interior of the vehicle was heaped with boxes, suitcases, holdalls, all over the seats at the front. Where they were, at the back, some of the seats had been removed to make a space on the floor. The two windows in the back doors of the minibus were painted over, allowing for a dull light to filter through to their space at the back, but not giving them any way to see out or attract attention from other drivers. In this disorientating space they were sitting facing each other, with their backs against the sides of the bus.
Yelena and Scarlett had been moved quickly, unexpectedly, before they’d had time to prepare or, worse, make use of the bucket.
Right now the bucket was one of the things Scarlett was thinking about a lot. More so because when they’d clambered into the back of the bus there had been another six-pack of water bottles already in there. They had drunk two each, somehow avoiding any spillages as the minibus jolted and swerved, and now they were staring at the remaining two bottles as though they were some sort of talisman.
Once again, the room had become the place she had begun to feel was her space – being taken from it by force had made her feel panicky. Now, her heart had
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