Tree Palace by Craig Sherborne

Author:Craig Sherborne
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: FIC019000, FIC045000
ISBN: 9781922148353
Publisher: The Text Publishing Company
Published: 2014-03-26T00:00:00+00:00

17

Big Tuesday.

The motel’s TV reception was poor but Rory didn’t care. He had a bed to lie on and watch. Moira told him to turn down the sound or he could get out and go bother Shane and Midge who were in the wag waiting their turn for showering. Zara was taking forever and probably using up the water but Moira let her go on and get herself smelling pure and gleaming. When the girl did finally finish she dreamily dried her hair with the drier attached to the bathroom wall by a thin chain.

Moira had a bottle to feed Mathew, but there was no privacy to do it. She let him make his spluttering hunger cries. She placed him on the pillow end of the bed while she ironed Zara’s jeans. The motel iron had a burning odour so she used a wet handkerchief to dampen the denim and prevent scorch marks. She made a cup of tea and ate the complimentary biscuit, saying to Mathew, ‘This is the life.’

When Zara was ready to dress, Moira sent Rory outside. She took Mathew into the bathroom and stripped naked and got under the water. It was a bath-style shower, which made the process easy. She sat and let the water rain on her back. She put the plug in and washed Mathew in the puddle between her knees. When the puddle was hip high she turned off the taps and leaned back and fed him using her nipple-to-bottle system. Such a drugging feeling to be reclined in wet warmth that she had to rouse herself with a shot of cold water—one blast of it across her shoulders with Mathew held at arm’s length to escape the spray.

She let herself stay naked and damp to get the most benefit from the air-conditioning. Mathew was already asleep from his feeding. She put him on the bed and dressed him in a nappy and light cotton top. She ironed her best flower frock and painted her cracked toes red. Zara was at the mirror behind the front door, leaning close to it and painting her eyes and lips into shape. She kissed her lips back in on themselves to get the sheen right. She put the Salvos jewellery on. The necklace was a touch long but Moira adjusted it by putting a knot in the length, close to the clasps where it wouldn’t be noticed. With that done the last task was the hair. Moira sat the girl down on the edge of the bed and brushed her cropped scalp into a neat part.

All ready to go. It was a three-minute walk to the supermarket. No decision was made about taking Mathew until the final minute. Midge maintained his view that having a baby accompany them helped their purpose: it bespoke maturity and a solid anchor. So Zara and Moira set off, baby in tow, and the boys took over the room for their showers.

The interview was held in the storeroom to the side of the meat and dairy section, amid cardboard boxes crushed and tied with tape for recycling.

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