That night, as she walked home, Annie’s mind was racing while her body was weary. She’d seen a record number of clients that day, including several last-minute emergencies that she simply couldn’t refuse. Why did people try to do their own hair when they’d never done it before?

She flopped onto her bed and once again stared up at the ceiling as she kicked her shoes off. Annie worked hard; she always did. She had to.

She was seventeen when she moved out and got her own place. Life with her mother had become unbearable, and after one of Eileen’s boyfriends made a pass at her, she knew that it was time to get out of there.

Her mother hadn’t protested and Annie believed she was happy to see her go. In fact, she was sure of it. She’d walked out the door and moved into a friend’s place for a while, then bounced from one couch to another until she finished secondary school, by which time she was already helping out Rose. Fifteen years later she was now her longest-serving (and oldest) staff member.

Annie rolled onto her side. Fifteen years. In one respect, it was such a short time; in another, it was forever.

She was still young, but in those years she’d felt like she’d lived a thousand lives. She’d been wilder than most. Lack of parental supervision and the misguided belief that she was living the high life had seen her make mistake after mistake. She gave a hollow laugh at her silliness. Did she really think that being parentless had served her well? At the time she had. Now she knew better.

Sleep crept up on her. Annie didn’t even realize when she’d started to drift off, but the sound of her mobile phone ringing had awakened her.

“What now...” she whined as she forced herself off the bed. She shuffled toward her coat pocket and took the phone out, answering grumpily. “Hello?”

“Hello, Annie.” The voice on the other end was the last she’d expected to hear.

“Felicity? How did you get my number?”

Her mind was whirring like an out-of-control mechanism as she listened to the older woman speak.

“Annie, I’ve been keeping an eye on you over the years and you have a wonderful heart. I see a lot of myself in you—the younger me, I mean—and like I said in the salon, it’s all too easy to stray off-path when you’re young and foolish.” She cleared her throat. “But I suspect you’ve already realized that yourself.”

Annie was confused. “I’m not sure what you mean...”

“I can’t say too much at the moment, and it’s hard to explain, but, love, I’d like to do something for you. Something small as a thank-you for being so good to me over the years.”