Читать книгу Trust Me - Angela Clarke, Angela Clarke - Страница 27

Her eyelids fluttered. Her neck felt stiff. Her wine glass was still in her hand. She must have fallen asleep on her chair. She’d taken a sleeping pill and she probably shouldn’t have had alcohol. She was groggy. Thirsty. She shifted in her seat and then stopped. There was someone else here. Someone in the room with her. Had the man from the film found her? Kate opened her eyes a fraction. It was still dark outside. Night time. It felt cooler. It was the early hours of the morning. Should she pretend to still be asleep? Cry out? Years of teaching had taught her that a strong stance was best: no weakness. She sat up quickly. Her eyes open. ‘Can I help you?’

A tall black woman was standing in the corner of the room. She didn’t flinch or move when Kate spoke. Instead she smiled, her white teeth beautiful in the dark. Something caught at Kate. She didn’t feel scared. She felt calmer than she had for a while. It was the tablets, she told herself. The woman stepped forward into the strip of yellow streetlight that shone through the window. A silver charm bracelet jingled around her wrist. Kate had seen one like that before. Many years ago. She must be hallucinating: the pills.

‘Tegbee?’

When the young woman spoke, her voice was as familiar as her own. The voice she’d carried in her head every day for nineteen years. ‘Hello, mama.’

Kate held her breath, not wanting the mirage to fade.

‘I’ve missed you.’ Tegbee smiled and stepped towards her. Her baby girl. All grown up. Perfect. So perfect. She smiled at her, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.