She stared at the screen, keeping her face neutral. The man moved off, muttering to himself. There would be a complaint to management, she would be called in, again. She could have put her head down on the desk then and gone to sleep. Blake had a nightmare last night; something’s worrying him, he’s sensed her fear perhaps. She walks in a cloud of terror these days, hurrying the children to the car, lest at any moment one of the gang should appear. She daren’t put the rubbish out any more. Those thugs could be hiding, watching from a doorway or huddled in the disused garage by the gate, waiting to pounce.

A male guffaw came from the bar, her hands started to shake, her vision blurred. She pulled a sheet from the pad in front of her and scrawled a few sentences. She signed her name and then phoned the manager, explaining he would need to come to reception, she was leaving in the next few minutes.

‘How long will you be?’ He sounded irritated.

‘A while.’

The doorman tipped his hat at her. He came from Jamaica a long time ago; she would miss his stories. She put out her hand and he took it, smiling warmly. He’s seen staff come and go over the years, he could probably tell that she wouldn’t be back.

The rain stopped on the drive home, the puddles shone in the street lights. A sense of exhilaration began to grow. There was a job on offer in the Co-op round the corner from the flats, the card had been in their window for weeks; it would take just minutes to get to work, there would be far more time in the evenings. She would be able to talk to the kids, find out about their day, eat supper with her family, all those ordinary things that she never gets to do. They could go to the park at weekends. She accelerated through the junction. There’d be more time with Martin. She’d be paid less but perhaps he could find some tutoring to make up the shortfall, he’s talked about that before. He’s been writing well recently, whistling in the shower, shaving with care and ironing his shirts. It’s as if something had been unlocked. They could take the day off tomorrow, go somewhere, walk hand in hand as they used to. He can tell her about his writing, she’ll share hers. They’ll talk about books; they haven’t done that for years, not properly. She parked the car in the car park and phoned him, her heart beating fast with excitement.