Chapter 2
Dawn ushered the children towards home, glad that the school run was over until Monday. It was only a short walk to the village primary school but she was finding it tiring, especially in the heat. The heat that seemed incongruous when the remaining leaves still clinging to the trees were the rich reds, golds and browns of autumn.
“Mummy, can I have an ice cream, please?” Laura’s big smile revealed her pearly white teeth.
“I’m sure we can find something in the freezer,” Dawn replied, mentally scanning her last shop to check if she had bought some ice creams.
“Me too?” James asked. “Please?”
“Of course.”
Right now, Dawn felt so guilty she probably would have consented to two ice creams apiece. Anything to divert them from discovering Wallace’s demise.
As they turned onto the driveway, she was relieved to see Allie waiting by the front door.
“Auntie Allie!” Laura flew at her, wrapping her arms around her middle.
“Hello, Laura. Had a good day?”
“Yes! I wrote a story and I’m going to read it on a YouTube channel and make lots and lots of money.”
“I see…” Allie raised her eyebrows and Dawn discretely shook her head.
“It’s all about Lulu and Wallace and their adventures at the zoo and I’m going to post photos on Instagram to encourage people to view it.”
“Lovely. Well I’d really like it if you’d read it to me in person too.”
“Yes, come and have ice cream and I will read it to you right now.” Laura tugged at Allie’s hand.
“Hold on!” Dawn unlocked the door then stood back. “You two need to get changed out of your uniforms. Make sure you put them in the washing basket and put on the shorts and t-shirts that I’ve laid out on your beds.”
Laura nodded.
“Laura, no fancy dress this afternoon. It’s too hot.”
“But Mummy…”
Dawn shook her head.
“Oh all right then. Come on, James.”
Laura took James by the hand and led him into the house.
“Did you manage to find a… uh… a replacement?” Dawn asked Allie.
“I did. Well, Chris did. I hid it round the side behind the recycling bins so the children wouldn’t see it.”
“Brilliant. If we can just get it out to the back garden then they might never have to know.” Her stomach rolled. “I hate to deceive them but they love those animals and I just don’t think I can face seeing them upset right now.”
“Of course not.”
Five minutes later, Dawn and Allie were standing in the back garden gazing at the rabbit run.
“He looks right at home.” Allie smiled. “They’ll never guess.”
“I hope not. Come on, I’ll get you a drink.”
Dawn didn’t like to say anything, after Allie and Chris had gone to so much trouble to help, but although the guinea pig was white with brown paws, ears and nose, it was about twice the size of Wallace. Perhaps the children wouldn’t notice, and if they did, she could say that he’d put on weight. Although there was something else about him that was different too, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
Back inside, she opened the freezer and located two ice creams then she handed them to Laura and James when they entered the kitchen, thankfully wearing the clothes she’d put out for them.
“Thank you!” they chorused.
“Why don’t you go and eat your ice creams in the garden?” Dawn asked.
They ran outside so Dawn stood still and listened, wondering if they’d spot the difference in their guinea pig. There were no immediate cries of shock or horror, so she released the breath she’d been holding.
“Shall we sit out in the shade?”
She poured two glasses of lemonade.
“Yes, lovely. I can’t stay long though as Chris is covering for me.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Allie, I wasn’t thinking. You head back now, go on.”
Allie shook her head. “He’ll be fine for half an hour. I’ll keep you company for a bit.”
“Thank you.”
They sat on the wooden chairs on the decking just outside the French doors, and watched as Laura and James giggled together as they ate, sitting side by side on the root bench that Dawn had bought Rick for his last birthday. She’d looked online for weeks to find the perfect one. He’d hinted enough times when they’d visited garden centres and she’d finally found one that she thought he’d like. Her heart clenched. They’d been happy then hadn’t they? And that was only in the spring. Before they’d got pregnant again. Before Dawn’s hopes of returning to teaching had been replaced with thoughts of impending motherhood and how she’d manage with three children instead of two. Before Wallace had departed…
“Mummy!”
Laura was staring at the rabbit run.
Dawn pulled a face at Allie.
“Yes, love.”
“What’s happened to Wallace?”
“Uh… why?”
“He’s HUGE.”
“Is he?”
Dawn turned to Allie again and her friend pretended to stuff food into her mouth then waddled from side to side.
“Yes, Mummy, he’s so fat.” James was next to his sister now, peering at their pet.
“Well… he has been eating a lot recently.”
“But he wasn’t that big yesterday.”
Laura turned her intelligent gaze on her mother and a small frown furrowed her brow, then she put her hands on her hips. Dawn had to fight the urge to tell her not to get sticky hands on her clean clothes.
“No?” She asked her daughter.
“Perhaps he grew overnight.” Allie shrugged, as if guinea pigs doubled in size all the time.
“Hmmm.” Laura tapped a finger on her chin and Dawn held her breath. Her daughter was very bright and it was something that usually made Dawn’s heart swell with pride, but right now, she’d have been delighted if Laura had just accepted what she was told as the truth. “Perhaps.”
Dawn glanced at Allie who winked in return.
For now, it seemed that Wallace’s replacement had been accepted, although for how long, she had no idea.
And she couldn’t help wondering, and worrying, about what had happened to Wallace the first.
***
Dawn kissed James’s forehead then padded out of his room, making sure that she left the door ajar. She went into Laura’s room and found her daughter staring out of the window that overlooked the back garden.
“Laura? What’s wrong?”
“I’m just checking that Wallace and Lulu are okay.”
“Of course they are. We tucked them in after you had dinner.”
Laura shook her head. “Lulu won’t have much room now because Wallace is so fat.”
“They’ll be fine, angel. Don’t worry now.”
Laura allowed herself to be led to her bed.
“Why didn’t you want to listen to the story with James tonight?”
Laura shrugged.
“I thought you liked the Big Book of Fairy-Tales.”
“I like it when Daddy reads to us.”
“I know you do and I like that too.”
Since the summer, Rick had made the effort to be home in time most nights to read to the children. But more recently, he seemed to be getting later and later each night.
“When will he be home?”
Dawn smoothed her daughter’s soft hair back from her face. Her heart ached for her children when they missed Rick.
“He sent me a text to say he’ll be back soon.”
“When is soon?”
Dawn sighed. “In about an hour. The trains were delayed.”
“Again?” Laura scowled. “I hate the train men.”
“Do you want to read your story to me again?” Dawn asked, hoping to distract her daughter.
“No, I want to go to sleep now.”
“Okay then. Goodnight sweetheart.”
She tucked the covers around Laura then got up and crossed the room, switching off the light at the doorway.
“Night Mummy. I love you.”
“I love you too.”
Dawn turned away, the lump in her throat threatening to choke her. Damn Rick and his delayed trains. No, damn the delayed trains. It wasn’t Rick’s fault, she was sure of it. He was trying to provide for his family and she knew he couldn’t rush out of the office before his colleagues. The world of investment banking that he worked in was a tough one and she knew that competition amongst employees was fierce.
But she did wish that he could try a bit harder to get home before nine, at least a few times a week. Surely that wouldn’t be too much to ask?
***
“Rick? What was that noise?”
Dawn reached out to pat her husband but his side of the bed was empty.
“Rick?”
Her heart raced as she tried to fight the sleep fog.
There it was again. A clinking sound coming from downstairs. She’d have to go and investigate, as it seemed that she was alone with the children. Rick hadn’t come home by ten and she was exhausted, so she’d gone up to bed, telling herself she’d read until he returned but she must have fallen asleep as soon as she lay down.
She pulled her dressing gown over her pyjamas then scanned the room, hoping to find a weapon. The only thing she could see was a coat hanger dangling over the door handle, so she grabbed it.
“Ready or not… death by Debenhams size 12-14 hanger.”
She padded down the stairs, her bare feet sinking into the plush fibres of the carpet, and made her way across the hallway and through to the kitchen and the source of the noise.
She raised the coat hanger above her head and took a deep breath, ready to scream if need be, then launched herself into the kitchen.
“Who the hell do you think you are?” she screeched, as she spotted the intruder in front of the fridge with the door open and his back to her.
“Wha…” He turned around and as he did, she realised that it was Rick.
“Shit, Rick, you scared the hell out of me.”
Her heart thudded and nausea flooded through her, filling her mouth with saliva and bringing her hand automatically to her mouth.
“Who were you expecting?”
She lowered her hand slowly. “I thought we’d had a break-in.”
He shook his head. “Don’t be daft. In this neighbourhood?”
In the blue light from the fridge, his lean physique was shown to advantage in his expensive shirt and suit trousers. His jacket had been slung onto the kitchen island, as if he’d been in a rush to get something to eat.
“It could happen,” she replied, feeling foolish at her sleep-fuddled reaction, then turned the light on.
“Hopefully not.”
He closed the fridge then opened his arms.
“Anyway, how’s my beautiful wife?”
“Tired. Sleepy. Recovering from the fright of thinking we had an intruder.”
“Got a hug for me?”
She nodded then walked into his embrace.
As he wrapped his arms around her, she sighed against his chest. She loved him so much but sometimes he irritated the hell out of her. Yes, she was pregnant and her hormones were all over the place, but that didn’t mean that she was an idiot. Not that Rick was suggesting that she was, but she felt that way when he came over all cool-headed and in control.
“Sorry I’m late. Between trying to get out of the office and the train being delayed again, I thought I’d never get home.”
“The children missed you.”
“It’s the weekend now, though. I’ll make it up to you all.”
He squeezed her tight.
“Are you hungry?”
“Starving.”
“There’s lasagne in the fridge.”
“You are the best wife, you know that?”
She slipped out of his arms and set about warming him some food.
When she placed his dinner and a large glass of red wine on the oak dining table in front of him, he caught her hand and kissed it.
“Sit with me?”
“I would, Rick, but I’m exhausted. I need to go back to bed.”
“Okay, well I’ll eat this then follow you up.”
She nodded.
“See you in a bit.”
She left the kitchen, her heart heavy and her stomach churning, because something just wasn’t adding up. Her husband had hugged her and seemed to be loving as ever, but she knew that years of competing in a high-pressured work environment had enabled him to perfect a cool, collected demeanour, even if inside his blood pressure was sky-high. Something about the way he’d felt when he held her close was off: he was too thin now, his body leaner than it used to be, as if the slight softening that had come with contentment and being a father had been eroded away. But by what? He had been working hard, putting in long hours, and when he was home, he was always doing something around the house or garden. So it was probably just that and her own insecurities rooted in her self-consciousness about her changing body, as it once again became rounder and softer.
She was probably finding problems where there were none.
But as she climbed the stairs, she heard a familiar sound; it was Rick’s mobile letting him know that he’d received a text message.
And she couldn’t help wondering who would be texting her husband so late at night.