‘I wouldn’t call it a threat. More you showing that things can’t carry on as they are and that he needs to take some positive steps so you feel safe to come home.’

Tom nodded a lot. ‘That’s it. Hang on I’ll tell him now.’ He scooted back inside and picked up the phone.

Maggie only heard one side of the conversation. Tom spoke confidently and without making it sound like the ultimatum it was. She assumed Paul wasn’t keen on the compromise because Tom’s replies got shorter and shorter until he eventually fell silent. Maggie could hear Paul’s raised voice.

At last Tom responded. ‘You almost decked, Maggie!’ There was a mumbled response.

‘What do you care? You can’t make me!’ Tom slammed the phone down and stormed past Maggie and out across the yard. Maggie let out a slow breath as she watched him go. The teenage years were turbulent enough without having to wrestle with the worry of an alcoholic parent.

*

Tom made a good job of shoring up Colin’s gate. He was a dab hand at hammering in nails now. Some of his temper had likely been released on the job. He was extra quiet and it pained her to see him troubled. She took the axe and showed him how to chop up the large sections of tree trunk into fire-sized pieces. Not that she needed any firewood this time of year but she’d put it away for winter and chopping wood was a wonderful stress reliever. She left him to it while she went to check on dinner.

They ate in relative silence until Tom put his cutlery down.

‘Why won’t he agree to stop drinking?’

Maggie took a sip of water. ‘He needs to recognise for himself that he has a problem.’

‘Nearly killing yourself is a problem. Nearly decking an old lady is a problem.’ Tom was getting animated.

‘But he probably can’t remember any of it.’

Tom looked surprised. ‘Really?’

‘I doubt it.’

Tom leaned back in his chair. ‘How do I make him see what he’s doing?’

Maggie pondered the question. She knew too well that right now Paul would be focused on all his other issues because for him drinking wasn’t the problem. The alcohol provided his escape. ‘I’m not sure you can.’ She hadn’t meant it to sound so final.

Tom gave her a brief nod before picking up his knife and fork and finishing his dinner in silence. ‘That was really nice. My mum used to make cottage pie.’

‘Shepherd’s pie,’ said Maggie. ‘It was made with lamb. Cottage pie is with beef.’

‘I didn’t know that,’ said Tom.

‘They’re easy to make.’ Tom gave her a doubtful look. ‘I can show you anytime.’

‘Yeah, okay,’ he said clearing the table.

*