Don't Turn Around Read Online Free PDF Page B

mate. I like your … beard.’
    ‘Like I said, I’m hungry.’ Will slammed the car door and clicked his seatbelt into place.

    J ennifer helped Will finish one of his files in the hope that he would stop sulking. It wasn’t her fault he had let himself go since his wife left him. Sensitivity wasn’t her forte and if he wasn’t up for a piss-take then he was in the wrong job.
    Five o’clock came, and she grabbed her coat from the rack and slid it on. It was rare to escape work on time, and she didn’t feel like staying late. ‘See you then,’ she said. A chorus of goodbyes rang from her colleagues, all except Will, his eyes fixed on his computer screen.
    ‘Bye then, grumpy drawers,’ Jennifer shouted over. A two-fingered salute flew up as a response and Jennifer grinned. All was forgiven.

    T esco metro was Jennifer’s usual haunt when it came to picking up chocolate for her nephew, Joshua. The very thought of seeing him warmed her, and a few minutes with Josh could chase away the stresses of the day. She aimlessly wandered around the small supermarket, throwing bottles of cleaning fluids and random food items into her basket. Avocado, chicken slices, rice, and pasta. Cooking for one was boring, but she couldn’t bring herself to eat a ‘ping’ meal every night of the week. She picked up a bag of apples from the shelf. The days when she had scraped around for leftovers to feed her and her little sister while her father disappeared on one of his three-day benders were long gone. While most ten-year-old girls played with make-up and secret diaries, Jennifer had spent her time concealing her neglected home life from children’s social care. Displaying enough food in the cupboards in case they came around was one of the methods she employed, and on the nights when Amy cried for more food, she would ration out bowls of cornflakes, shaking the box as she wondered if she could spare a few more. If they hadn’t been taken in by their Aunt Laura ... it did not bear thinking about.
    Not that her sister remembered any of that now. Jennifer scanned her food at the self-service till. It was doubtful she would be asked to stay for dinner – Amy had a thirty-minute tolerance, after that she began checking the clock on the kitchen wall.
    Jennifer drove into the small housing estate just as the street lamps flickered on.
    The blue glow of the television shone through the nets of the front bay window of her sister’s house. She knocked loudly to overcome the sound of a crying baby inside. A very harassed-looking Amy opened the door. Splodges of food painted her sweatshirt and something sticky matted her hair.
    ‘Come in,’ Amy said in a flat tone.
    Jennifer followed her in, observing the sag in her sister’s shoulders. She had offered to babysit numerous times to give her some respite, but Amy seemed determined to go it alone.
    ‘Jenny!’ Her four-year-old nephew grabbed her legs tightly in a hug. He looked positively angelic, his light blond hair complimented by his cobalt blue eyes. The magic was broken as she realised hugs did not come for free. ‘Auntie Jenny, did you bring me anything?’
    She knelt down, breathing in his little boy smell.
    Jennifer handed him the bag of giant chocolate buttons, and his eyes twinkled as he peeped inside. ‘Oh, Mummy doesn’t let me have these!’
    ‘Thanks Aunty Jenny, yes, Josh has eaten his supper.’ Amy scowled as she looked into the bag. ‘Josh, you can have half now and half later.’ Sighing, she waved them into the living room. ‘Now why don’t you show Aunty Jenny the picture you drew for her?’ Amy turned to Jennifer. ‘It’s like he knew you were coming. He always draws a picture just before you turn up.’
    Jennifer found a clean spot on the couch and sat down. Her niece was laid in a moses basket under the television, which was playing reruns of Teletubbies . Her tiny fingers grasped at the air as she cooed at the sounds.
    ‘She’s a bit young to be