Rise and Fall of a Domestic Diva by Sarah May

to a public declaration of not being able to cope .
    She was just pouring the eggs into the pan when the phone rang. It was Jessica.
    ‘Hello,’ she said, distracted, as she slid the dish under the grill and the sound of scraping metal drowned Jessica out. ‘What’s that?’
    ‘I said I was just phoning to make sure that Arthur was okay after nursery.’
    Kate, preoccupied by the tortilla, had barely any memory of leaving two small children at the crumbling leisure centre the Lib Dem council was forever promising to regenerate.
    ‘He seemed fine.’
    ‘Fine?’
    What sort of details was Jessica prompting her for?
    ‘He didn’t seem quiet or anything? I mean, like, too quiet?’
    Kate slid the tortilla out, satisfied herself that it was bubbling in all the right places, then slid it in again.
    ‘Jessica, he was fine.’
    ‘He seems to have become quiet latelyand he’s started biting his nails. I noticed that the other day.’
    In the silence that followed, Kate turned off the grill.
    ‘Did he have everything he needed? I kept thinking I might have forgotten something. So Robert’s picking the boys up from swimming still?’
    Kate had completely forgotten to phone Robert and remind him. ‘Of course.’
    ‘Brilliant,’ Jessica breathed out, relieved.
    ‘And don’t forget about the PRC meeting tonight.’
    ‘I’ll see…it depends on—’
    ‘Ellie. I know.’
    Kate rang off, passing her face over the tortilla and inhaling. She was about to phone Robert when she heard Flo in the lounge.
    Margery was still asleep and the man on screen had sold nearly all 200 CD players. Trying to imagine the sort of people who were buying themthen giving upshe took Flo upstairs into her bedroom. Once there, she stared absently out through the window at a eucalyptus they’d planted two years ago that was already over fourteen feet tall, thrashing about in the wind and rain. The house the Hunters backed onto was being painted white, but they’d only got half of it done before the rain must have started.
    She watched Ivan make his way unevenly along the fence that separated their gardens and jump onto the shed roof, certain he was limping. Lying Flo under her baby gym, she pulled up the sash window, which was difficult because thewooden frame was swollen with rot at the bottom and got stuck after about four inches, and called out Ivan’s name.
    He stopped, settled onto his haunches and looked up at her. After a while he licked at one of his front paws and looked away, distracted.
    Sighing, Kate watched Flo pull off one of her socks.
    A cloud must have shifted then, as late afternoon sunshine broke through into the room, the trees still blowing outside, making it move restlessly round the walls and ceiling. Even though it was only April, the sun had warmth in it and, where it fell on her, Kate felt warm. When the sun vanished the room was suddenly much colder and darker.
    Overcome with exhaustion, she went through to their bedroom and, without thinking, rolled under the duvetpulling it up over her head and curling her body round her clenched fists. There was something she needed to do that she kept forgetting to do. What was it?
    In less than a minute, she was fast asleep.

Chapter 14
    When she woke up just over an hour later she couldn’t even remember falling asleep. The house was silent and dark and, lying there, Kate wasn’t entirely convinced she was awake. It was too quietas though the entire city had been evacuated while she slept. Rolling onto her side, the events of the morning came slowly back to her. The St Anthony’s letter. She sat up in a sudden panic. Where was the St Anthony’s letter? Her hands groped instinctively around the bed, remembering the suit jacket she’d worn to work and left on the bedwas almost certain she’d left on the bedbefore going to the allotments.
    She threw the duvet off and slid awkwardly out of bed without bothering to put the light on. A vague trace of migraine remained and it