Ben cried harder.
‘Right, that’s it. We’re going,’ the mother said, her temper flaring. She shoved her phone into her back pocket and stormed over to the slide. ‘Come down here right now.’
Maddie’s heart broke for Ben, who was now distraught and only cried harder. Everyone had turned to stare, apart from Batman who resolutely played on with the pilfered car.
Maddie got to her feet and approached Ben’s mother. ‘Um, excuse me?’
She turned towards Maddie, her eyes flaring. ‘Look, he’s not having a good day, ok? No need to butt in.’
Maddie held her hands up in surrender. ‘I know. It’s just… um… that boy over there took his car. That’s why he’s crying.’
The woman looked over at Batman, then back to Ben, before marching straight over to Batman and demanding that he hand over the car. Batman’s dad was standing to the side of the playground, scrolling through something on his phone, but upon seeing Batman being told off by a stranger, he weighed in too.
Sensing that the situation was getting uncomfortable, Maddie threw her now empty cup in the bin and headed back to her car.
*
The handles of the plastic bags cut into her hands as Maddie struggled into the flat. One of the bags snagged on the handle and the plastic tore open, spilling apples, ginger and shampoo onto the floor.
Muttering under her breath, she put the other bags down, then went to retrieve the produce rolling around. As she stooped to pick everything up, she heard the entrance door open over her shoulder.
Maddie looked up and immediately recognised the woman from the playground, now reversing into the foyer with the pushchair.
‘Oh!’ Maddie said. The woman turned sharply.
An apple rolled next to her foot and she bent to pick it up before handing it to Maddie.
‘Thanks,’ Maddie said and smiled. She looked down into the pushchair and saw that Ben had both cars clutched in his tiny fists again. ‘So, you managed to get Ben’s car back then?’
‘What?’ The woman narrowed her eyes at Maddie.
‘The car? I’m sorry, I was in the playground this morning. I was the one who told you that Batman had stolen his car?’ Maddie realised what she must sound like.
The woman stared at her like she was an exhibit in a zoo, then smiled cautiously. ‘Oh, right, yeah.’
‘Hi, Ben,’ Maddie said, crouching down. ‘Cars are your favourite, I guess? Say, I don’t suppose you’ve lost a little fluffy kitten, have you? I found one on the stairs this morning. It was…’ She looked over at the stairwell, but the soft toy was gone.
The woman followed her eyes, then turned back to her with a frown before slowly backing away with the pushchair.
Maddie got back to her feet and followed her, saying enthusiastically, ‘Can I help you up the stairs with the pushchair?’ She could hear the desperation in her voice and hated herself for it.
‘No, thanks, we’ll be fine. I manage all the time on my own. Fucking lift never works.’
Maddie flinched at the expletive. ‘I don’t mind. In fact, I insist.’
The woman glanced around her, as if hoping for back-up. Before she could object, Maddie put her hand on the bottom of the pushchair between Ben’s tiny feet and lifted it from the floor. The woman had no choice but to lift the handles before Ben was tipped out of his seat.
Maddie could hear herself jabbering away as they climbed the stairs to the first floor. ‘My name is Maddie Lowe. I moved in yesterday. Just me… on my own… long story. Anyway, if you ever need help or a babysitter for Ben, just knock. I’m in Flat 2. Happy to help. I love kids. Of course, I know you don’t know me, but I’m very reliable.’
They’d reached the top of the stairs, but the woman made no move to head towards either of the doors in front of them. Maddie realised with embarrassment that she probably didn’t want to let on which flat she lived in, considering the rambling mad woman standing in front of her.
‘Anyway, nice to meet you. Bye,’ Maddie said and quickly headed back down the stairs.
Just before she reached the bottom, she heard the woman say above her head, ‘Maddie, was it?’ Maddie looked up the stairwell to see her leaning over.
‘Yes, it is,’ she replied, pathetically pleased.
‘Nice to meet you. I’m Jade Tingly.’ She smiled briefly, then disappeared.
*
Jade sat on the floor, tidying away the toys that Ben had flung around the room earlier during his tantrum. So someone had moved in downstairs. Not a total surprise. She’d seen the decorators coming and going for the last few weeks.
Jade thought about the woman she’d met. Maddie Lowe. She seemed a bit highly strung, nervous maybe, and desperate to make a good first impression. Actually, when she had spoken to Jade in the playground, Jade had thought her a bit of a nosy cow. The kind of woman who would feel nothing about telling you exactly where you were going wrong with your child.
But thinking about it now, perhaps this was fortuitous.
Time would tell, though.
Her phone buzzed on the coffee table. She reached over and grabbed it. The message was brief. She didn’t reply straight away. She needed to think up an appropriate response, come up with a viable excuse. Enough to put him off but also keep him keen.
She got to her feet and headed towards the kitchen. She could do with a cigarette. Ben had been annoying all day and she was glad of the peace and quiet now. She had a bottle of cold wine in the fridge that had her name on it for tonight. She planned to sit on the couch, find something to watch on Netflix and finish the bottle. Maybe see if Deon wanted to come over. He’d have forgiven her for last night by now.
The middle of her foot landed on something sharp
