Bone Song Read Free

The loopy laugh, the trembling, the sneaking of the extra pill.
    I toss the food back in the fridge and grab a jacket. Sometimes she picks a bar close to home. I hope that’s what she’s done. God, I hope so. If she gets arrested and her name goes into the computer, we’ll have to run again.
    I’m so tired…
    I shrug into my jacket as I head down the stairs. I’m dreading trawling the pubs. This is such a crap neighbourhood, and it’ll be dark soon. I stick close to the walls and start with
Jacko’s Place
, a real dive. I’ve had lots of practice at this – I slip in through the doorway, scan the crowd and listen for her high-pitched laugh, then I’m outta there.
    What was she wearing this morning? Blue striped shirt, I think, and black skirt. Four bars later, no luck. Sweat coats my face and trickles down my back. There’s only one more bar in this street; the next one is a couple of blocks away. It’s dark in the doorways and corners. Panic grabs at my throat. Two cars glide past, a horn toots. I hunch down and scurry along the street.
    The
Caledonia Club
looms in front of me. It’s a bit posh for this area, with a threadbare red carpet in front of the brass-handled oak door. I can hear jazz music coming from inside, along with laughter. Two men burst through the door, and arush of friendly warmth seems to reach out before the door swings back again.
    That’s when I hear her laugh.
    God, I want to kill her! I’m out here looking for her, dodging weirdos in cars, and she’s in there drinking and laughing. How could she do that? I want to go in there and drag her out by her hair! The red haze is back, like blood smeared across my eyes, and I half-sob, then take a deep breath.
    Cool it. Yelling at her isn’t going to help. She might even just refuse to come home. Depends how many drinks she’s had already. And who she’s with. If she’s with her new boss, I’d better not cause trouble.
    I take a few more breaths, then I pull the big door open and go in. The
Caledonia Club
is wide but not very deep. I’m facing the bar so I slip sideways around the doorway before the barman can spot me and order me out. The tall potted plant is handy for hiding behind, even if its plastic leaves are coated with dust. A million people have stubbedout their cigarettes in the pot. A quick scan to my right but no Mum, so I scuttle across the doorway to check the other side.
    There she is in a booth, leaning back, cheeks flushed, opposite a blond guy in a dark suit. I don’t like the way he’s looking at her, as if he knows it’ll only take one more drink and she’ll do whatever he suggests. Does he know about the pills she’s on? I do a quick shuffle to the booth, slide in next to her.
    ‘Hi, Mum, I’m ready now.’ I say it brightly like this is something we’ve arranged.
    She stares at me for a moment. I hold my breath. Is she going to play along? Then her face relaxes and her eyes grow warm.
    ‘Hi, sweetie.’
    She doesn’t ask how I found her, so I’ve caught her at just the right stage.
    ‘If we don’t go now, we’re going to be late.’ I grab her hand, tug gently. She resists and my heart takes a nosedive.
    ‘Melissa, I want you to meet Gordon. He’s the sales manager at my new place. He’s made me feel very welcome.’
    I’ll bet he has. ‘Hi, Gordon,’ I say nicely, then back to her. ‘Mum, you promised we’d be on time tonight. This school thing is really important.’
    ‘Oh.’ She looks puzzled.
    Of course you don’t remember any school thing, Mum, there isn’t one. For God’s sake, get up and come with me without arguing, please.
I tug her hand again. This time she starts to move.
    ‘I guess duty calls, Gordon. Sorry.’ She smiles at him. ‘See you at work tomorrow.’
    He looks sour but that’s his problem. He can go home to his wife now. I let Mum make her own way to the door – she gets snappy with me if I help her in public. Outside, I take her arm and she cuddles in close to