‘It’s how I pay’ she told Peter, she still stood but now her skirt was around the ankles, she wore the same smile,

‘There’s no charge’ he told her and quickly picked up his tool bag to leave, Carol grew panicky and chased after him,

‘I have to pay, I have had 3 repairs and 3 equals a payment’ it should be on your worksheet’

Peter checked his work sheet, on it, it said ‘payment required, 3rd visit’ Peter marked it paid in full,

‘Please pull your dress up’ he told her as he left, Carol watched him leave, her skirt still around her ankles, disappointment etched on her face.

He stood at the top of the path of the house in Hawthorne still wondering what the hell just happened, he felt guilty for what he saw yet had no reason to be, he turned back around, walked down the path and knocked the door, Carol answered, he was pleased to see her dressed, and she seemed surprised to see him,

‘How would you usually pay’ he asked,

‘vouchers’ she told him, but I have none left, I don’t get many’ for the first time since he met her she stopped smiling, Peter tried to catch her eye’s but her gaze was set downwards,

‘Sex usually works’’ she said, Peter wondered what happens when she no longer became attractive, but didn’t ask the question,

‘So what happens if I wanted a voucher?’

‘you get one of mine when I get them next, I get 2 a week,’ they were still stood on the doorway, Peter was hoping she wouldn’t drop her skirt again, she held the door open wide as if to invite him back in,

Peter put his hand in his inside pocket, he had been given 25 vouchers, his first weeks wages, ‘that must make me rich in this place’ he thought.

He handed one to Karen, she hesitantly took it as her face lit up,

‘No catch’ he told her, ‘it’s for being a good neighbour’ her smile returned and she put her arms around his neck, her face gleaming.

‘Oh thank you’ she said, showing her gratitude, Peter smiled at her, Carol thought he looked twice as handsome when he smiled,

She pouted her lips’ you can still come in you know and examine my white bits’

‘It’s fine’ he told her’ and found himself smiling.

‘such a shame’ she said as they parted company, Peter looked up the street he could see his own house in the corner, he looked at his next and only other work sheet, ‘a blocked drain in Maple’ it said, and as he looked at the map, that’s where he walked, within in a couple of minutes he was at Maple.

Eileen and the children had walked so far with Peter and the rest of the way home on their own as he went into number 6 to fix the washing machine, they waved goodbye to each other as if it was the most natural thing in the world,

‘what are we going to do’ Lily asked her mum as soon as they said goodbye to Peter, it was the umpteenth time Eileen had heard it, ‘I haven’t a clue’ was her answer, but she didn’t want to tell Lily that, She couldn’t tell her that,

‘Your dad will sort it’ she told her, Lily huffed and puffed, Eileen was concerned about Nathan, he held her hand as they walked, he would never normally do that, he had become quiet and withdrawn, she couldn’t begin to understand what this was doing to her children. She knew what it was doing to herself and that was bad enough, she couldn’t understand herself, why wasn’t she shouting and screaming, demanding answers, calling the police, even resorting to violence if she had to, like she had done in the past in her younger years, but she knew she could do all that if she wanted to, she also knew it would make things worse, she would bide her time, play it safe, it was like Peter had told her ‘there will be an opportunity’.

They walked into the house, number 12 Hawthorne, Eileen put the keys on the table in the hallway, though she had slept there the previous night, it was only now she started to take things in, she noticed how clean the place was, and in a sense that made things worse, everywhere they had been since they got here was spotlessly clean, yet it had a sense of a dirty living hell, Lily and Nathan told her they were going to look at the garden as they left through the kitchen door, the house seemed empty and cold at that moment.

Eileen began opening the cupboards, indeed they were well stocked with food and utensils, the fridge was stocked with cheese, milk and fresh vegetables, the freezer was full, under the sink was a host of cleaning materials ‘if this was a holiday, it would be lovely’ she told herself, at that instant she wanted to pretend it was a holiday, have a good time until Peter thought of a way out, ‘will that be possible’ she asked herself, she was awoken from her trance by the sound of her children shouting for her, she grew concerned as she headed for the back garden, panicking as she feared the worse, she could not believe her eyes as she tried to take in what was in front of her.

At the side of the house was vast landscaped gardens, a summer house, a slide which Nathan was sliding down, climbing frames and swings, in the corner was a fish pond with a waterfall, a large barbecue with seating area and an assortment of outdoor furniture, it was probably the nicest outdoor space she had ever seen, and in a strange way she thought that this only made things worse,

‘It’s beautiful’ she said out loud, Lily had come over to stand by her, they both stood looking at the beautiful garden.

‘I’m still not staying here’ she told her mother, and as Lily stared at the garden, basked in sunshine, she really wanted to get her bikini on and get a suntan and forget  about this awful place such was the allure that stood before them.

‘Those recliners look comfortable’ she added and Eileen agreed.

They both stood and watched for a moment, transfixed by the colourful borders full of evergreens, watching Nathan make his way to the top of the climbing frame that stood twenty feet high, he was now at the top and making his way to the other side, Eileen wanted to tell him to be careful, but she didn’t, watching him do normal things was enough for her, the tranquillity was broken by a voice from the other side of the fence, and as Lily and Eileen looked in that direction, they saw the heads of their three neighbours.

‘Hi’ said Rebecca, a 38 year old red head with a face as pretty as an angel, peering over the fence beside her was 11 year old Samuel and 15 year old Ivy, both with the same red her and their mothers good looks,

‘Lovely garden isn’t it’ Rebecca added,

Eileen and Lily went over to greet their neighbours, ‘yes it is’ Eileen said, still trying to take in the surroundings.

‘Can I go and climb on the frame with him’ said Samuel, pointing to Nathan who was swinging from one of the bars, Rebecca shot him a look as if to tell him not to be cheeky,

‘Of course you can’ Eileen told him and he shot over the 5 foot fence in a flash and as Eileen laughed she had guessed he must have done that many times before. It was the first person Lily had seen around her age and as she studied Ivy’s face she could swear she could see the same fear on her face that swept through her own body,

‘Fancy some sunbathing’ Lily asked Ivy,

A smile broke out on her face,

‘Sure but I’m gonna get my cossie on first’ and off she went,

‘Me to’ shouted Lily and ran into the house to get changed, Eileen and Rebecca stood and laughed on the opposite side of the fence,

‘I think she’s glad to see someone her own age’ Rebecca said through the giggles and Eileen noticed her expression change to one of concern,

‘How old is she’ Eileen asked her,

Rebecca’s reply was instant

‘she’s 16 in 7 months and 23 days, and they both just stood quiet for a while, trying to take in what was said, the horror of it dawning on Eileen, and wondering just how long she had been counting down in days, she found herself doing the maths in her own head for Lily, but quickly blanked it out of her mind,