off him.’
To her surprise, the missus’s friend was at the door, the mean old fat one.
Leonie didn’t wait for Rubiah to invite her in and walkedstraight past with an officious look on her face. ‘I’ve come to advise you that you have forty-eight hours to vacate the premises, so you better make arrangements to stay elsewhere, my girl.’
‘What you mean? Roger let me stay here.’
‘You’ve seen the last of Roger. He and his wife are back together and they’re staying put in Canada. The movers will be here on Thursday to pack their stuff and they’ve asked me to oversee operations.’
Rubiah couldn’t believe the words coming out of Leonie’s mouth. It was the end of her dream. After all her scheming, she’d been dumped. It wasn’t as though she’d ever loved Roger. The truth was she hated him, every bit of him – his big red bloated face, his white fleshy body, the way he couldn’t pass by without pinching her on the bum – but he had one big redeeming virtue: he was rich. How could this be happening to her after she’d spent all her money on a spell to drive Heather out. Jelian had cheated her. She frowned at her bare wrist and fingers. She was as poor as when she’d left the longhouse.
‘What I do with Mei Li? You take?’
‘You’re not foisting your kid on me,’ replied Leonie.
‘Mei Li not mine,’ she protested. ‘Her belong to Missus and the boss.’
Leonie felt guilty. She’d enjoyed giving Rubiah her marching orders – after all, the woman had tried to break up her best friend’s marriage – but Millie was something else. This was what came of bucking the system. None of the paperwork was in place and there was no way the baby could leave Malaysia. Even if they could get through the protocol, Leonie doubted if her friend would go ahead with the adoption. Heather wanted toforget she had ever been to Miri, and Millie would be a perpetual reminder of Roger’s infidelity.
‘You better take her back to Dr Kong’s clinic until matters can be arranged with the adoption agency,’ she said, washing her hands of any further responsibility. ‘The packers will be here on Thursday at nine o’clock. Make sure you’re both gone.’ She looked at the messy house with distaste. I’ll have to get Noor to come over and clean up before I give the keys back to the landlord.’
‘You know a missus needs an amah?’ Rubiah asked.
Leonie looked at her and laughed. ‘After what you’ve done you’ll get no work from any of the ex-pats. Roger wants you to have this.’ She held out a thick envelope. She’d steamed it open earlier and knew it contained two thousand ringgit. The wages of sin, she thought disapprovingly. She’d wanted to donate the money to a charity but Steve wouldn’t let her.
‘Give her a break. She’s little more than a kid. We all make mistakes,’ Steve had said, avoiding his wife’s eye. Latifah, his secretary, was a fetching little thing too, but after what had happened to Roger he resolved to keep his pecker in his pants.
After Leonie left, Rubiah phoned the drycleaners and asked to speak to Dedan. He told her he’d be round when he finished work but it wouldn’t be until after seven. He picked her up and drove her straight to the clinic. It was closed and there was a sign on the door. Neither Rubiah nor Dedan could read – nobody in their village could – but a passing Chinese woman told them that Dr Kong had relocated to a practice in Kuching, the state capital.
‘What am I going to do?’ Rubiah wailed. With the twothousand ringgit from Roger she could rent a place, buy some pretty clothes and find a rich man to set her up in business, but not if she was stuck with a baby.
‘Leave her with me. I’ll sell her for you. It’s a pity she’s not older. She’d be worth more.’ Dedan knew that many poor parents sold their children to brothels when they were five or six. Having to look after her until she was old enough to turn a trick would bring
To her surprise, the missus’s friend was at the door, the mean old fat one.
Leonie didn’t wait for Rubiah to invite her in and walkedstraight past with an officious look on her face. ‘I’ve come to advise you that you have forty-eight hours to vacate the premises, so you better make arrangements to stay elsewhere, my girl.’
‘What you mean? Roger let me stay here.’
‘You’ve seen the last of Roger. He and his wife are back together and they’re staying put in Canada. The movers will be here on Thursday to pack their stuff and they’ve asked me to oversee operations.’
Rubiah couldn’t believe the words coming out of Leonie’s mouth. It was the end of her dream. After all her scheming, she’d been dumped. It wasn’t as though she’d ever loved Roger. The truth was she hated him, every bit of him – his big red bloated face, his white fleshy body, the way he couldn’t pass by without pinching her on the bum – but he had one big redeeming virtue: he was rich. How could this be happening to her after she’d spent all her money on a spell to drive Heather out. Jelian had cheated her. She frowned at her bare wrist and fingers. She was as poor as when she’d left the longhouse.
‘What I do with Mei Li? You take?’
‘You’re not foisting your kid on me,’ replied Leonie.
‘Mei Li not mine,’ she protested. ‘Her belong to Missus and the boss.’
Leonie felt guilty. She’d enjoyed giving Rubiah her marching orders – after all, the woman had tried to break up her best friend’s marriage – but Millie was something else. This was what came of bucking the system. None of the paperwork was in place and there was no way the baby could leave Malaysia. Even if they could get through the protocol, Leonie doubted if her friend would go ahead with the adoption. Heather wanted toforget she had ever been to Miri, and Millie would be a perpetual reminder of Roger’s infidelity.
‘You better take her back to Dr Kong’s clinic until matters can be arranged with the adoption agency,’ she said, washing her hands of any further responsibility. ‘The packers will be here on Thursday at nine o’clock. Make sure you’re both gone.’ She looked at the messy house with distaste. I’ll have to get Noor to come over and clean up before I give the keys back to the landlord.’
‘You know a missus needs an amah?’ Rubiah asked.
Leonie looked at her and laughed. ‘After what you’ve done you’ll get no work from any of the ex-pats. Roger wants you to have this.’ She held out a thick envelope. She’d steamed it open earlier and knew it contained two thousand ringgit. The wages of sin, she thought disapprovingly. She’d wanted to donate the money to a charity but Steve wouldn’t let her.
‘Give her a break. She’s little more than a kid. We all make mistakes,’ Steve had said, avoiding his wife’s eye. Latifah, his secretary, was a fetching little thing too, but after what had happened to Roger he resolved to keep his pecker in his pants.
After Leonie left, Rubiah phoned the drycleaners and asked to speak to Dedan. He told her he’d be round when he finished work but it wouldn’t be until after seven. He picked her up and drove her straight to the clinic. It was closed and there was a sign on the door. Neither Rubiah nor Dedan could read – nobody in their village could – but a passing Chinese woman told them that Dr Kong had relocated to a practice in Kuching, the state capital.
‘What am I going to do?’ Rubiah wailed. With the twothousand ringgit from Roger she could rent a place, buy some pretty clothes and find a rich man to set her up in business, but not if she was stuck with a baby.
‘Leave her with me. I’ll sell her for you. It’s a pity she’s not older. She’d be worth more.’ Dedan knew that many poor parents sold their children to brothels when they were five or six. Having to look after her until she was old enough to turn a trick would bring
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