Five. Elly

Sitting at the kitchen table Elly watched through puffy eyes as Nan stirred cream into a large pot of porridge. Today was the last day of term and six and a half weeks of freedom stretched ahead; but Elly couldn’t sum up much enthusiasm.

“There you go, mind you eat it, I don’t want to find it dumped in the bin like yesterday.” Nan placed a steaming bowl of thick porridge in front of Elly.

“Nan, it’s July! It’s too hot to eat porridge.”

“A good breakfast sets you up, they’ve done surveys and the like, and porridge is healthy, builds strong bones,”

“Nan! How can porridge build strong bones?” Asked Elly picking up her spoon and pretending to eat, she licked the smallest dollop of porridge off her spoon and felt it stick to the roof of her dry mouth. “You know I hate porridge, why can’t I have cornflakes or toast?” She mumbled; her mouth felt like it was full of mud.

“Porridge is good for you, sets you up like I said, now be a good girl and eat it up, you’ll be late for school; as if I haven’t got enough to worry about – your mother’s still not home, out in that forest all night, I don’t know what’s got into her these days.”

Elly picked up a mug of tepid tea that had been sat on the table untouched for ten minutes and sipped it with a grimace trying to wash down the stodgy porridge.

Taking advantage of the fact that Nan had left the kitchen to see if there was any post; Elly poured the rest of the porridge into the sink and turning on the cold tap washed the evidence of her uneaten breakfast away.

Elly was just taking her packed lunch out of the fridge when the telephone began ringing shrilly in the hall way. She heard Nan answer the phone with her usual chirpy greeting, but then went suddenly quiet. Elly stepped into the hall to see Nan gripping the phone, white-faced and shaking.

“Are you all right? What have they said?” Nan listened to the reply tight lipped, “I’m coming straight over, don’t worry – and don’t say anything, we’ll sort this mess out.”

Nan put the phone down and looked at Elly; “You won’t be going to school today, that was your mum, she’s been arrested!”
                                                    *

The police station was small and smelt slightly musty, the yellow lino on the floor was curling up at the edges and the red plastic chairs that Elly and her Nan were sitting on were uncomfortable; the back of the chair was digging into Elly’s shoulder, it felt like they had been sitting there for hours.

Behind the desk a bored looking sergeant was stirring a cup of brown liquid with his pen, every so often he glanced over at Elly and Nan but since their arrival he had only spoken to tell them to sit down and wait. Nan’s frantic questions about what had happened to Elly’s mum had fallen on deaf ears.

“Just sit over there and wait for someone to come out to speak to you Madame.” He had kept repeating before returning to shuffling papers on the desk.

At last a door by the desk opened and another policeman came out, he spoke to the sergeant who pointed over at Nan and Elly. Both of them stood up and waited, Elly felt sick with nerves, all she wanted was to see her mum and get out of this horrible place.

“You here about Rita Barrett?” Asked the policeman walking towards them.

“Yes, she’s my daughter,” said Nan. “Is she alright? Can I see her?”

“She’s fine, but she is in a lot of trouble. She has been charged with assault, if found guilty she could be facing jail.”

Nan’s knees seemed to give way and she sank back down onto the horrible plastic chair.

“Nan, are you alright?” Elly wasn’t used to seeing Nan like this, she was usually so strong and dynamic; but right now she looked old and frightened.

At that moment the door by the desk opened again and a second man came through into the waiting room. He was tall and well built with a florid face that looked very familiar, Elly heard Nan gasp beside her and Elly remembered where she had seen that face before; it was on the news report yesterday.

“Morning ladies, and what a beautiful morning it is, eh?” Said Donald Clifford, a sarcastic smile spreading across his ugly face.