Everything She Forgot by Ballantyne Lisa

Author:Ballantyne, Lisa [Ballantyne, Lisa]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2015-08-12T07:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 18

Big George

Thursday, October 3, 1985

IN THE MORNING, THEY SET OFF AGAIN. THERE WAS ONLY AN inch of Irn-Bru left in the bottle, and George let Moll finish it. He looked down at her as they left the Cheviot Hills. With her newly cut hair, there was a chance that she might not be recognized, but she was still a little girl in a crumpled school uniform with spots of blood on her collar and skinned knees scabbed over.

They left Northumberland National Park and headed south. There were farms on either side of the road and signs for deer and cattle. The car was running low on fuel, but George thought he could make it to Newcastle, which was only an hour away. They drove through towns like Longframlington and as they neared residential areas, an idea came to George.

At Morpeth, he veered off the road and drove into the town, rolling his window down and weaving through the housing developments.

“Where are we?” said Moll. “Are we going to visit someone?” He didn’t answer her. It was a quiet group of redbrick council houses with small fenced gardens. George hunched over the steering wheel as he peered out on either side, scanning the yards. It was another clear day—dry and bright, although there was a chill in the air. He turned into another street and sure enough there were three different yards strung with washing. He crawled along the curb inspecting the clothes on offer until he saw what looked like a boy’s green tracksuit.

“Wait here,” said George.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m gonna borrow something.”

He narrowed his eyes and scanned the street but there was no one around. It was after nine and people would be at work and at school. He vaulted over a wall into the garden and was startled by the sound of a dog barking inside the house. He yanked the tracksuit off the line, sending the pegs flying, jumped the wall again, and slipped back into the car, throwing the tracksuit into the back seat. He drove out of Morpeth slowly, looking into the rearview mirror until he was sure that they had not been seen.

“I’m hungry,” said Moll, as he turned on the radio.

“As soon as I see a shop, we’ll stop and we’ll go and get something hot for lunch, I promise. Can you hold on?”

He turned to her, and she nodded, and he winked at her.

It was late morning when they arrived in Newcastle and George parked in a multistory parking garage near the main street.

“Take your shoes off,” he said.

“Why?”

“Because we need to get this on you.”

“Why? I don’t like it.”

“We’ll get you something you like. It’s just . . . so you’ll be warm when we’re walking on the street. It’ll do for now.” He bit his lip, watching her, but she kicked off her shoes and so he leaned over and fed one foot and then the other into the tracksuit bottoms.

“Pull them up and take off your skirt.”

She did as he asked.

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