She turns and looks over at Romy, and my chest feels as though it’s been crushed by a heavy weight. What if she snatches her, right here, right now? What will I tell George… that I lured her out and had a chat to her?
His voicemail from earlier today replays in my mind. His voice was buoyant when he told me about the interview. His lifelong career dream is about to be realised; he’ll never forgive me if I mess this up.
‘Romy?’ She spins around when I call her name, dark blonde curls bouncing, cheeks like shiny red apples in the cold. ‘If you put on your gloves, you can have a little climb too. Stay on the lower bars, though.’
‘Ha! You’ve got to use the baby’s bars!’ Kane calls unkindly.
I scold him and turn back to Opal, relieved now that Romy is further away on the climbing apparatus.
‘I know what you have on George.’ I lower my voice. ‘He’s told me everything.’
‘Oh, I doubt that.’ Opal laughs, and her eyes gain a manic gleam. ‘I doubt he’s told you everything.’
But he has told me. He may not be dealing with this in the way I’d prefer, but he has been honest and open and I do see his dilemma even if I disagree with it in principle. If he goes to the police about Opal, she could cause a lot of trouble for him.
I look at her, look through her aggressive manner and I see that she is scraggy and pale, with dark circles under her eyes. For a second, I can see myself, just months after Joel died, when I felt at my lowest ebb. Desperate. Alone.
‘You and I, we have more in common than you think.’ I soften my voice slightly.
‘I’m sure that’s not the case,’ she says snappily.
She doubts everything. Just like I did for so long.
I don’t feel any warmth towards this woman who is making our lives so difficult, but I’m trying really hard to empathise. It’s in all of our interests if I can somehow solve the problem that is Opal Vardy. The boys and I are trying to build a new family with George and Romy, and so I regard this approach of mine as a sort of investment for the future.
I’m sure George wouldn’t see it that way, but to date, he hasn’t had much success in getting Opal off his back and I’ve issued a genuine threat that I’ll be moving out with the boys if he doesn’t resolve the situation soon.
She’s getting antsy now, looking around, her eyes darting here and there. She’s a bag of nerves, and unchecked bags of nerves can be dangerous things to have around.
‘How much?’ I say without thinking.
She looks at me and frowns.
‘How much for you to just walk away and leave us alone?’
She shakes her head incredulously. ‘Has he put you up to this?’
‘Of course he hasn’t. He doesn’t even know I’m speaking to you.’ I’m taking a risk here. If she wants to cause trouble, she could easily make sure George knows about our conversation but I’m willing to take the risk.
The malice suddenly leaves her face and she seems to relax a touch.
I turn and check on the kids. They’ve stopped bickering now, and Harrison is helping Kane and Romy with their climbing.
‘I suppose what I’m asking,’ I continue, ‘is exactly what is it that’s going to get you to move on with your life?’
‘Something he will never provide me with,’ she says spitefully, turning on her heel. ‘I’m here to stay. So you might as well get used to it.’
On the way home, I speak to the kids.
‘That lady I’ve just been talking to… have any of you seen her before?’ I keep my tone light, feigning mild interest.
‘I think I have,’ Harrison says. ‘I might have seen her around at the end of school. Is she your friend now, Mum?’
My heart rate speeds up and I think about the stuff he’s already told Joel’s family. The last thing I want is him logging more fuel for their attempt to discredit my abilities as a mother.
‘It’s best not to mention anything about her to anyone.’ It’s hard to find the right words, so in the end I just come out and say it. ‘People can get the wrong idea. Like your grandparents, for instance. They worry about things, so we’ll just keep this between us, OK?’
‘OK,’ the boys chime together.
I don’t know when they’ll be seeing Joel’s family again but it’s best to talk to them about keeping things private, just in case.
I look at Romy in the rear-view mirror. She’s staring out of the window, seemingly in her own little world.
I think about the twin she should have with her, and my heart squeezes in on itself. It’s imperative we protect all our children; they’ve all been through so much already.
George texts to say he’ll be home early, so we can eat together. I assume this is his way of showing he wants to work at our relationship and doesn’t want me to leave. But I made it crystal clear what I expected from him. What I want is for him to take some official action, not just pussyfoot around the issue.
I decide to say nothing yet about what happened outside school, to wait until he’s back. I don’t want him to know I’ve offered Opal money, but I have to tell him she’s made contact yet again and, more importantly, reinforced her intention to carry on with her intrusive and disturbing behaviour.
There’s a clenching feeling in my stomach and it takes a while for it to give way to a calmer, more determined mood. I’ve decided that, no matter what George’s reaction is – and I suspect it will be more of the same ‘leave it to me to deal with’ – I will take action of my own.
Whether that’s moving out with the boys or going to the police when George’s promotion is out of the way, I will make sure that Opal Vardy is not allowed to continue running the show.
Back at the house, so far as I can see, Maria hasn’t been in today. I’d left the note about picking the kids up from school and another saying I’ll be cooking George and the children’s tea and both are on the kitchen top, exactly where I left them.
I make a quick veggie pasta bake and stick it in the oven, then take out some frozen garlic bread slices to help fill the boys up.
While the food is cooking and Kane and Romy are doing their spelling words and Harrison his science homework, I pop upstairs to freshen up and change my top.
I pull a brush through my hair and dust a little bronzer on my pasty cheeks. My face looks thinner than it did a few months ago, and it suits me. So many things are better now, since meeting George.
In the mirror I can see the reflection of the padded velvet headboard and the peaceful, stylish neutral shades of the walls and soft furnishings.
I love George and I love the life we all have together here. I feel a twist of anger at the thought that Opal will somehow win if we move out, but thanks to George’s stubbornness, I’m caught between a rock and a hard place: happiness versus my boys’ safety.
It’s a no-brainer, and I will carry my threat through, if George remains immovable in his attitude.
Back downstairs, I stick the garlic bread in the oven and chop a simple side salad before taking the pasta over to the table and serving the children first.
‘Well, this makes a nice change!’ George takes a sip of his red wine and beams around the table. ‘Daddy Bear is back in time for tea!’
Romy and Kane grin, but Harrison’s brow wrinkles as he pushes his pasta around his plate. He won’t like the fact that the ‘daddy’ reference has been applied to them all, although I know George won’t have meant it like that.
‘So, what have you lot been up to today at school?’ George takes a bite of the crisp garlic bread I place on the table and widens his eyes expectantly.
‘That funny woman was there again, wasn’t she, Mum?’ Kane says, loading his fork with food.
I swallow the food in my mouth and lay my fork down, reaching for my wine. I haven’t had a chance to tell George what happened after school. I wanted to have a nice family tea together before everything gets ruined.
‘Was she now?’ George looks at me and I nod.
‘I’ll tell you all about it later,’ I say quickly. ‘Romy got a sticker in her art lesson, didn’t you, sweetie?’
She beams, and George begins to prise the details from her, as we always have to do. I glance over at Harrison. He’s jabbing at pasta twirls with his fork and chopping them into tiny pieces, eating nothing.
Later, when the kids are watching their hour of television before bed, George pours us another glass of wine and I tell him what happened after school, and the things Opal said.
‘She reckons I don’t know the real George Mortimer,’ I say, raising an eyebrow.
George snorts. ‘I know one thing for sure – she certainly doesn’t! We were together such a short time, it can hardly be called dating, never mind a relationship.’ He takes a sip of wine and then frowns. ‘How come she knew you’d be picking the kids up today? It’s nearly always Maria.’
I shrug, pushing my status bait from my mind. ‘It’s obvious she’s following us more than we realise. I’ve decided I’m going to collect them myself from now on. Something has to be done, George. Have you had any thoughts on your choice?’
‘Please don’t call it that, Darcy,’ he sighs. ‘Far as I’m concerned, there is no choice. You and the boys are my future.’
I fall silent, sensing that nothing has changed in his attitude. Then he surprises me. He puts down his glass and scoots further across the seat cushion, sliding his arm around my shoulders.
‘Give me a week and the problem will be sorted,’ he says softly, nuzzling into my neck. ‘Can you do that? One week, and at the end of it, Opal Vardy will be history. Ask no questions and I’ll tell you how I did it once she’s gone. Deal?’
‘That sounds a pretty impossible undertaking to me.’ I frown.
‘Deal?’
‘I suppose so.’ I shrug, displeased at his somewhat cavalier attitude. ‘Oh, and there’s something else. Maria hasn’t been in today and it’s not her day off. Maybe she’s still smarting from her little outburst.’
‘I’ve spoken to Maria, like I said I would,’ George says smoothly, inspecting the clean, short nails on his right hand. ‘You won’t have any more trouble. I fired her.’