Corvus-395

Prévia do material em texto

‘Is	this	a	new	way	of	trying	to	get	me	to	stay	together	with	Owen?’	Laura	took	a
step	backwards.	‘Because	if	it	is,	you’d	better	forget	it.	It’s	over,	and	it’s	none	of
your	business	anyway.’
Her	mother	brushed	back	her	hair	wearily,	then	gestured	towards	the	tabletop.
‘I’ve	kept	them	for	you.	I	was	waiting	for	you	to	be	old	enough	to	understand,
but	maybe	I’ve	left	it	too	late.’
‘Too	late	for	what?	I	still	don’t	get	it.’
‘I	never	gave	him	the	chance	to	get	near	you	again.’	A	light	came	into	her	mum’s
eyes	that	Laura	had	never	seen	before.	‘But	do	you	think	I	wouldn’t	make	sure
he	was	punished	for	what	he	did?’	How	even	her	teeth	were,	how	white.	‘It	took
a	while	for	the	right	opportunity,	that’s	all.	The	viola	has	taught	me	a	great	deal
about	patience,	and	timing,	and	careful	preparation.	Something	I	imagine	your
Zach	would	understand.’
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Laura	was	frowning	at	the	list	of	unsolved	differential	equations	on	her	screen
when	she	heard	the	door	to	the	flat	open.	With	a	small	sigh	of	relief	she	pushed
back	the	chair	from	Zach’s	desk	and	went	to	meet	him.	The	wintry	light	was
fading,	and	with	it	her	desire	to	attend	his	meeting.	Still,	he	was	late,	which
wasn’t	like	him,	and	he	hadn’t	responded	to	her	text.
‘There’s	a	lasagne	in	the	oven,’	she	said	as	he	hung	up	his	jacket.	Over	dinner
she’d	tell	him	about	her	uncle.	Or	maybe	after	the	meeting.
He	was	very	tired;	she	could	see	it	in	the	line	of	his	shoulders,	the	pallor	of	his
face.	He	smiled	at	her,	but	it	was	an	effort.	And	his	kiss	was	perfunctory-like	an
old	married	couple,	she	thought	with	some	amusement	before	remembering	her
mother’s	‘play	housekeeping’.
‘OK,	I’ll	just	wash	my	hands.’
He	was	silent	at	the	meal.	It	was	surprising,	and	a	bit	hurtful,	that	he	didn’t	ask
about	her	morning	at	school.	After	a	first,	then	a	second	attempt	to	start	a
conversation,	she	was	half	relieved	by	his	withdrawal	and	kept	her	eyes	on	her
plate	till,	unable	to	resist,	she	looked	up	to	find	he’d	cast	his	fork	aside	and	was
staring	at	his	glass,	most	of	his	food	still	untouched.