Page 29 of After the Accident
Claire:He chucked a right tantrum.
Emma:He started shouting, pointing and stamping his feet. Some of it was aimed at Claire but most of it came my way. He didn’t know who he was angry at. He goes: ‘What are you trying to say? Are you saying I pushed your dad?’
Claire:Emma shot right back with: ‘You’re the only one who said that.’
Emma:Obviously, the gluttonous turnip had to chip in at that moment. God forbid a conversation happens in his vicinity that doesn’t need his input.
Claire:Daniel piped up and said something like, ‘I’m sure Emma’s not accusing you of anything.’ That went down about as well as a stripper at a funeral.
Daniel:I was trying to calm the situation. It was obviously a misunderstanding – but guess who had to try to blow it out of all proportion? When it comes to Emma, you only need to know one thing: everything has to be about her.
Emma:If you’re in trouble with the law, you have a solicitor speak for you because they’re the expert and they know what they’re talking about. If I had some sort of issue with gelatinous crustaceans, rampant heart disease, or I wanted to be a massive racist, then I’d invite Daniel Dorsey to speak on my behalf.
Other than that, I’m perfectly capable of stringing together a sentence by myself.
Claire:Emma glared at Daniel, ignored him and then turned back to Vic.
Emma:I asked him where he got the ring.
Victor:I’d already told her that I found it. How many times did she want me to say it?
Emma:Vic’s not the sort of person who hears ‘no’ a lot. If he gives an answer, that’s the end of it. Asking him a question for a second time tipped him over the edge.
Claire:I saw what he was going to do about half a second before he did it. He picked up a coffee cup from next to the lounger and threw it across the patio, where it smashed into a wall.
Victor:It slipped.
Claire:He goes: ‘Made up your mind already, have you, you mad witch?’
Victor:I said: ‘I can’t believe you’re accusing me of this. I respect your father and would never steal from him.’
Emma:He called me a witch. Claire shook her head and said that’s why she was leaving. She actually did walk away that time. Victor shouted something after her, but she carried on walking. Then he threw up his hands and said he was going to the bar.
Claire:I never should have gone on that holiday – but I suppose it cemented what I already knew about marrying into that family. When you’re in love – or think you are – you can only see the person in front of you. What you should really do is look at that person’s parents. That’s what you’re going to get in the end. That’s what I got.
Emma:I left the gluttonous turnip and his wife on their loungers and finally made my way back to the cottage. It was difficult to reconcile Daniel snooping behind the cottage – and then his son having Dad’s ring. I didn’t believe either of their explanations but there didn’t seem much point in pushing it with them.
It had been such a busy morning – and I hadn’t slept well because of the storm – so I had a bit of a nap when I got in. I’d not really planned it, but I’d settled on the bed and then it was suddenly hours later. I only woke up because Mum was struggling to get her key to work in the cottage next door. The metal was scratching the lock in my dreams and then I realised it wasn’t a dream at all.
I don’t know if it was symptoms of her condition, or that she’d barely slept since we got to the island. Either way, I went outside and she was struggling to get the key to fit. I opened her door for her, then asked about Dad. She shrugged and said they were going to try to bring him out of the coma the following day. I thought that was good news, but she yawned it away.
I remember looking at her and thinking about how I’d never seen anyone look more tired. Her eyelids were drooped and it was as if her entire body was sagging. I had to stop myself from saying all the usual things about looking after herself because it wasn’t going to do any good. You can’t force someone to eat or sleep.
I think…
…
Maybe I’m wrong, but I think there was a big part of her that had given up. It had been one thing after another, year after year. I know I started it, but it wasn’t only me. Her diagnosis and Dad’s fall were the final straws.
That’s why I almost didn’t tell her about Victor having Dad’s ring.
Almost.
I handed it back to her and said that Claire found it in their room safe. I also told her Victor’s story about finding it on that first night.
I don’t know what I expected, but I got… nothing. At most, she blinked. Then she said: ‘Maybe your dad took it off?’ That would have been fine, except the day before, at the hospital, she’d said: ‘He never takes it off.’
I thought about pushing it, wanting her to be as curious as me – but there was no point. In the end, I helped her into the cottage. She insisted I keep the second key so that I could let myself in and out – and then I left her to catch up on some sleep.
