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Since there was no arguing with that, Jenna said, “How’s the prep for the presentation going?”

“Just fine, thanks. We’re on target, so I’m hopeful we’ll get it through. How are the children?”

“Up and down. It doesn’t help that their father’s breaking promises all over the place.”

“You should keep a note of it; you never know when it might be useful.”

“You mean if we end up in a custody battle?”

“I’m sorry—I know it’s not what you want to hear.”

“But it’s practical advice, so I’ll take it.”

“Good. What time are you seeing Richard on Friday?”

“Five o’clock. I can’t get into Swansea because I have to collect the children from school—Mum’s got bell-ringing practice and she’s giving up enough of her time already. So he suggested coming here on his way home.”

“That’s kind of him. Does he live nearby?”

“Not really. Bena says he’s in Caswell.”

“That’s the posh part, isn’t it, close to Mumbles?”

“You could see it that way.”

“If he’s a successful lawyer, and we know he is, he’ll be in one of the big houses overlooking the bay. Did Bena also tell you he’s a widower?”

“Yes, she did. Hanna, I know you’ve never been overly fond of Jack, but if you’re—”

“Don’t worry, I’m not trying to suggest anything—obviously it’s far too early days for that. But whatever happens over the coming weeks and months, you can’t deny Richard could be a good friend to have.”

Too tired to think how to respond to that, Jenna was about to change the subject when Josh appeared in the doorway. “What’s up?” she asked, noting his stricken face. “You don’t have to keep worrying about being put on the black bench. I’m sure it was a mistake. We’ll sort it out with the teacher tomorrow.”

“Dad says he can’t make it for our special time on Saturday,” he told her brokenly.

Jenna’s anger immediately flared. “Hanna, I’ll call you back,” she said into the phone, and after ringing off she dialed Jack’s mobile.

“You,”
she said to the voicemail, “are the one who told them nothing would change, that you’d still be picking them up from school and doing all the same things with them you always have. Now, after letting them down three times already this week, Josh tells me you can’t make his special time on Saturday. I don’t know what’s going on with you, and frankly I don’t care, but I’m not going to have you treating the children this way. So as of now you can consider yourself banned from this family.” Slamming down the phone, she went to pull Josh into her arms.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, already regretting exploding in front of him, “but I had to say something to make him realize that his behavior is wrong. We can’t have him messing around with us, letting us down, and making us upset all the time, can we?”

“No,” Josh murmured.

Hugging him tight, she said, “We’ll find something else to do.”

He nodded.

“Where’s Paige?”

“In her room.”

Feeling a sudden intense anger with her daughter for having abandoned the young ones to their nits and misery to go and indulge in her chat rooms or self-pity or whatever the hell she was doing, Jenna grabbed the omelette pan, emptied it into the bin, and sent a text to Paige letting her know that if she wanted to eat she could damned well make it herself.

“This is monstrous behavior,” Miss Kendrick declared, her steely gray eyes fixed harshly on Kelly Durham, her slim, ringless fingers resting on the computer printouts in front of her. It was the end of the school day and almost everyone else had gone home—even the buses had left—but Miss Kendrick wasn’t allowing Kelly Durham or Paige Moore to go anywhere until she’d sorted this out. “I’m appalled that you could even think anything like this,” she continued, directing her wrath at Kelly, “never mind write it in a public forum. And please don’t tell me it wasn’t you.”

“It wasn’t, miss,” Kelly protested, her large oval face flushed with innocence. “Where’s my name? There’s nothing there to say—”

“It’s been traced back to you,” Miss Kendrick interrupted forcefully. “You wouldn’t be sitting here if it hadn’t, and you have to admit, Kelly, this isn’t the first time we’ve had this sort of trouble with you.”

“Because people keep hacking into my account,” Kelly cried. “It’s not my fault if they know how to do it and I don’t know how to stop them.”

Miss Kendrick’s eyes flitted to Paige.

“Frankly, miss,” Kelly continued, “anyone could have done this, so I don’t think you should pick on me.” She should have stopped there, but didn’t. “If I tell my granddad, he’ll be really upset, and that’s not a good way to treat someone who’s made so many donations to the school.”

Miss Kendrick’s eyes flashed. “Many of these remarks came from
your
school account,” she reminded Kelly, “and Mr. Thomas assures me there is no evidence of hacking.”

Kelly threw out her immaculately manicured hands. “So someone got my password! It’s happening all the time.”

Miss Kendrick’s expression showed how unimpressed she was.

Kelly’s face tightened. “I’m telling the truth,” she cried tearfully, “but I can see you’d rather believe her, because she’s your favorite and everyone knows it.”

Miss Kendrick still wasn’t regarding her kindly. “The comments about Paige’s father…”

“Had nothing to do with me. I don’t even know him. You need to ask the person who posted it.”

“Maybe you can tell me who it was.”

“I swear I would if I could, but I’ve got no idea.”

Miss Kendrick’s eyes moved to Paige.

Though Paige was in no doubt that Kelly was behind it, and that she could easily use all the other abuse she’d suffered at Kelly’s hands to back up her claim, she remained silent. It was bad enough that they were here at all without her doing anything to make it worse.

“I’m of two minds whether to take this to Mr. Charles,” Miss Kendrick stated.

“No, please,” Paige and Kelly said together.

Miss Kendrick regarded them worriedly.

Paige knew she should never have allowed Charlotte to talk to Miss Kendrick. She’d tried telling her a hundred times that it would only make things worse, but Charlotte had refused to listen, and now here they were with everything running out of control.

“I know you’ve got it in for me,” Kelly suddenly erupted. “You always have had, just because I don’t like your stupid lessons and can’t stand the way you—”

“Stop it, Kelly. Stop right now.”

“I will,” Kelly sobbed, “but my granddad—”

“You really don’t have to keep reminding me that he’s a generous benefactor,” Miss Kendrick interrupted. “I just need to know that you girls are friends before you leave here.”

Clenching her hands tightly, Paige said, “I probably jumped to conclusions, miss.”

Miss Kendrick was still staring at Kelly.

“Please, let’s just forget it,” Paige implored. “I didn’t want to come here….”

“You did the right thing.”

“No, honestly. I believe Kelly’s account was hacked, because it’s happened to mine too.”

Miss Kendrick’s eyes moved between them. “Kelly,” she said in the end, “do you understand that what’s written here isn’t only highly offensive, it could be very damaging?”

“Of course I do, miss, but I swear it wasn’t me.”

Miss Kendrick really didn’t look like she believed her, and for several heart-stopping moments Paige was sure Kelly was going to tell Miss Kendrick to eff off, or something equally terrible. In the end nothing at all was said.

Paige reached the door first but stood aside as Kelly trod on her foot to go through ahead of her. If Miss Kendrick saw, she didn’t comment, nor did Paige look back. She just wanted to get out of here and as far away from Kelly Durham as possible.

Charlotte was waiting at the end of the corridor, as were a couple of the Durmites. To Paige’s surprise Charlotte seemed to be talking to them, but broke away as soon as she spotted Paige coming.

“How did it go?” she whispered, linking her arm with Paige’s as they walked off toward the stairs.

“Oi, bitch,” Kelly Durham hissed after them.

Paige came to a stop, hunching her shoulders.

“Don’t think this is the end of it,” Kelly warned.

Paige turned round. “I told her I didn’t think you did it,” she reminded her.

“Yeah, right, and we all believe that, don’t we?”

“Why did you do it?” Charlotte demanded fiercely.

Kelly seemed about to retort when Bethany whispered something in her ear. Kelly’s eyebrows rose as she looked at Charlotte again. “You’ve got weird taste in friends,” she told her, and turning her back, she and the Durmites went off in the opposite direction.

“Why did you say you didn’t think she did it?” Charlotte asked crossly as they continued down the stairs.

“Because I could tell that just being there was making things worse,” Paige cried. “I told you it would.”

“You had to do something.”

“Well, I have now, and you heard what she just said—it’s still not over.”

“She only said it to save face. She won’t dare to do anything like it again. You wait and see.”

Not in any way convinced, Paige stopped at her locker and took out her bag and coat. “So what were you and the others talking about while we were in there?” she asked, trying to sound casual in spite of how worried she was feeling.

Charlotte merely shrugged. “Nothing, really,” she replied.

Sensing there was more, Paige insisted, “It must have been something.”

Charlotte turned to look at her. “Actually, I didn’t want to tell you this,” she said, making Paige’s heart turn over, “but you’ll find out soon enough anyway. Apparently they’re going to the party on Saturday. They were trying to find out if you were too.”

Paige’s eyes filled with misery as it spread all the way through her. “So everyone’s invited except me?”

“Not everyone, just them, and you wouldn’t want to go with them there anyway.”

It was true, she wouldn’t, but it was still a terrible feeling knowing she was excluded. “I might try and see if I can get Julie to meet up with me at the weekend,” she said, more to remind herself and Charlotte that she had another friend than because she actually meant it.

Though Charlotte didn’t seem to approve, all she said was, “If she will, at least you’ll know then who she really is.”

Paige was suddenly struggling with tears. “Actually, if she’s Owen or Kelly or Bethany, as you seem to think, she’ll be at the party with you,” she told Charlotte, walking away.

Charlotte hurried after her. “Don’t be upset,” she urged, trying to put an arm around her.

Pulling away, Paige said, “It’s all right for you—they never pick on you. You don’t know what it’s like always being made to feel small or horrible or like you’re nobody.”

“I know, but—”

“I don’t know how you can even speak to them when they’re being so mean to me.”

“All I said was that I’m going to the party on Saturday.”

“I bet it was more than that. I bet you know what they’re going to be wearing, and you told them you’re borrowing my blue dress, except no way would you tell them it’s mine.”

“Paige, that’s not—”

“Why don’t they ever have a go at you, Charlotte? You say whatever you like to them, but they never turn on you the way they turn on me, and I don’t even say anything.”

“Then maybe you should.”

“And what? Get myself beaten up for my trouble? They’re never going to leave me alone, and I can tell you’re going to be friends with them from now on, so you might as well go and be with them now.”

“Paige!” Charlotte called after her. “Paige, stop.”

Paige ran even faster, clutching her book bag to her chest, trying to catch her breath as she sobbed. She’d give anything in the world for her mum or dad to be waiting at the gates now, or her grandma, or Auntie Hanna, but the only person there was Lucy, Charlotte’s mum, who would just keep asking her about what was happening with her parents all the way home, and she really didn’t want to talk about them or anything else right now. So she just kept on running, along the street and down the side lane where no one could see her, and where she could hide until Charlotte and her mum had gone home.

—

The house was the tidiest Jenna had seen it in a long time, mostly thanks to her mother, who had spent the best part of the day clearing away toys, repacking DVDs, and turning up long-lost shoes, shirts, hairbands, and missing pieces of jigsaws. While all this was going on Jenna had been in town with Bena, picking up groceries, dry cleaning, and assorted presents for upcoming birthdays—and doing her best not to torment herself with what was really going on in her life. She’d also, because Bena had accompanied her to the door to make sure it happened, luxuriated in a neck and shoulder massage at a salon she hadn’t visited in too long, and ended up being talked into a manicure as well.

She’d known, of course, that Hanna was behind the double makeover of her and the house, not only to try to cheer her up a little but also to get them looking their best for Richard when he came at five.

No, I am
not
trying to do any matchmaking,
Hanna had hotly responded to Jenna’s exasperated text.
I just want you to feel good about yourself so you’re in the right mood to deal with whatever Richard has to say. Will call later when presentation is over. Remember you’re beautiful and I love you very much. Hxxx