Chapter 14

Margaret knocked stoutly on the door to the flat and Abigail let her in. "Just checkin' you're all right," Margaret told her, putting a bag down on the floor, as Abigail looked alarmed. Margaret looked the young girl up and down, dressed in just a long T-Shirt and Abigail nodded.

"Fine," muttered the teenage girl.

"What ya up to?"

Abigail held out a book. "Readin',"

"Most of them are my old books," Margaret muttered. "This used to be my flat and..." She stopped when she saw Abigail hold up a book and gasped. "That isn't mine. That's a filthy book!"

"Ah found it on the bottom shelf." Abigail turned to the inside front cover. "Who's Annabel Spott?"

"Sprott," Margaret muttered. "She was ... umm ... a tenant," she said quietly.

"Oh ... not want her books?"

Margaret took a deep breath. "When you were a baby. She'd um..." Margaret gulped. "She was murdered."

"Here?" Abigail asked, and Margaret shook her head. "In the flat?"

"Nah. Outside. But um ... well it affected a lot of people. We dain't talk about it. And you won't go mentioning it."

Abigail hummed and flicked the book back to the page she was reading. "It's a good book. She had good taste. Ah haven't read too much 'fore but this is good." Margaret looked at her, and Abigail looked into the corner of the room. "Ah'd want a telly really, but..."

Margaret smiled at her and asked if she could sit down. Abigail offered her a cup of tea, but the older woman declined. "It's a big jump movin' out," she told her. "Ah promised your ma ah'd keep an eye on ya."

"I'm not a child," Abigail cried, and Margaret smiled.

"Nah, that yer not, Abigail. But..." The solicitor rubbed her hands and gave a feint smile, before touching her thumbs to her lips as she thought. "We're here to help."

"I'm fine," Abigail moaned. "Just fine." Margaret smiled and reached into her bag, pulling a pot plant. "Make an 'ouse an 'ome," she told her. "An I got my Eddie comin' up from Birmingham next weekend with his fiancée. Angela her name is. You want Sunday lunch?"

Abigail smiled. "That'll be good," she told her. "Thanks."

"Show him," Abigail told her partner who rubbed his hands through her crotch. Alistair fidgeted, and she looked at Lisa. "I thought I told you..."

"I did!" Lisa cried. "We had two ... umm ... well, he's not going to spunk by seeing you naked. Now now anyway." Alistair blushed as everyone knew what they were talking about and Simon turned back to Alistair. "Actually we found a particular brand of condom is really good. We had sex for about a minute last night."

"Ahh wow!" Abigail said, genuinely happy that her friend may have found something that helped but Lisa scowled and Abigail guessed her glee was misinterpreted as sarcasm.

"Take a close look, Lisa's the same. See this point here, it's her 'on button'" Abigail laughed as Alistair squirmed and she groaned.