Chapter 34
34
Frankie
Frankie leaned up against her sink and contemplated what to have for breakfast. It was a little after nine and the lack of sleep over the last few days was catching up with her. She felt overwhelmingly weary, yet her head was still buzzing with all that she needed to do. She and William had woken with a start yesterday evening, surprised to find they had both slept for several hours, but both of them feeling the effects of falling asleep on the sofa – he with a dead arm, where Frankie had been lying on it, and she with a painful crick in her neck. She smiled at the memory, at the slight shyness that still existed between them, fuelled by worries that they might have snored, or worse, dribbled, in their sleep. But any potential embarrassment had soon turned to laughter and last night’s shift at the bakery had flown by.
It was one of the things which had made her more determined than ever to act on her decisions of the day before. Even in the short time William had been helping her, the thought that he would no longer be doing so wasn’t something she wanted to contemplate. Having him there felt so right. And there was nowhere else she’d rather be. She had to make this work, one way or another. William had gone back to his flat, needing to run a few errands and catch up on some sleep of his own, so it was perfect timing. It wasn’t that she was keeping things from him, more that she needed certain confirmations first before she spoke to him.
She glanced at the clock on the kitchen wall. There were a couple of things she had to take care of before she called Vivienne, and with any luck she just had time to catch Beth before she went to bed.
Not surprisingly, Beth’s voice sounded flat and lifeless. After rushing home in tears yesterday morning, Frankie suspected that whatever sleep she had managed hadn’t come easily.
‘How are things?’ she asked, fervently hoping for some good news.
‘As you might expect,’ replied Beth. ‘It’s all a bit rubbish, actually. Jack is alternating between feeling everything is hopeless, burning with anger that the hospital could have done what they have, and a brittle optimism that somehow I’ll get another job with far more money and the roses will start coming up again.’ She sighed. ‘And I guess that’s where I am too. I spoke to Lisa at the hospital last night – she’s my line manager – and she’s furious too. She’s done everything she can to get them to change my shifts, but they won’t budge. The whole workforce has been completely restructured, and if I don’t like it then I know what to do. One of the nurses who has been made redundant would no doubt jump at the chance of my job…It’s not that I’m not grateful, but I kind of stopped listening after that. Nothing changes.’
‘Oh, Beth…’ It was about as bad as Frankie feared. ‘What will you do?’
‘I still have no idea. I can’t even think straight right now. Get some sleep, I guess, and then attempt to work out some way for us to manage. At the moment I can’t see how on earth I can work during the day and look after Jack. We simply can’t afford any help.’
Frankie nodded, feeling her stomach tightening a little. Now that the time had come to say what she needed to say, the doubts were beginning to creep in. Was she doing the right thing? Or was she just plain meddling? ‘About that,’ she said. ‘I’ve had a bit of an idea…’
Tam was busy when she rang him, slightly out of puff from sawing up planks of wood, but sounding remarkably chipper. Frankie had already written her questions down beforehand so she wouldn’t forget anything, and although Tam was surprised by them, he was more than happy to give his advice. He still made light of any experience he had on the subject, just as she knew he would, but she also knew she could trust what he said. It would stand her in good stead.
‘There’s just one more thing, Tam,’ she said. ‘Before I let you go, I wondered if I could talk to you about William.’
‘William?’ Tam sounded bemused. ‘Is everything okay?’
‘More than,’ replied Frankie, knowing he would hear the smile in her voice. ‘It’s just that I’ve had a bit of an idea…’
Frankie’s stomach growled. She still hadn’t made any breakfast and she should probably eat before calling Vivienne. It might help settle her stomach. Then again, it might make her feel even more queasy…And besides, she needed to get this over and done with. She had to know whether it was even a possibility.
Vivienne answered on the third ring.
‘Frankie, hello. I was just on my way out. Is everything okay?’
Frankie bit her lip. ‘Yes, it’s fine. But I wondered if I might have a chat about something. I can call later though, if you’re busy?’
‘No, no, now’s good. I was only popping next door to take some magazines to my neighbour. I read them first and then pass them on, but I can do that any time. What can I do for you? I’m afraid I don’t have any more news about the sale, I’m still waiting to hear back from the people I spoke to you about.’
‘Yes, that’s why I’m ringing, really,’ Frankie replied, winding a curl of hair around her finger. ‘It’s just that I’ve had a bit of an idea…’