‘Then you can have the flat back to yourself again.’
He punches me playfully in the arm. ‘Hey, are you saying I’m trying to get rid of you?’
I force a laugh. ‘No!’
It used to be so easy between Arlo and me when we were growing up, but now our banter is off. I feel as though I don’t know the man sitting beside me. I don’t know how to tell him Kathryn is on her way here. I don’t know how to broach the subject of the phone. For the first time ever I feel a little … scared of Arlo.
I open my mouth to say something, anything, to dispel the awkwardness but I’m interrupted by a knock on the door.
There is a flicker of alarm in Arlo’s eyes.
‘That will be Kathryn,’ I say, getting up.
‘Kathryn?’ He sits upright, panic on his face. ‘As in Elspeth’s daughter? She can’t come here.’
I frown. ‘Why not? You wanted me to get my job back, didn’t you?’
He stands up too. He looks as though he’s about to bolt. ‘What’s going on?’ There is fear in his voice. It must be the drugs making him paranoid.
‘It’s Kathryn.’ I laugh. ‘You look like you’re about to get arrested by the police.’ I reach for the door but he throws his body in front of it to prevent me from opening it.
‘Arlo? What the fuck?’
‘I don’t want visitors.’
‘Get out of the way.’ I try pushing him off me but he’s so strong he won’t budge. ‘Don’t be stupid!’
I don’t understand. Why doesn’t he want me to see Kathryn? We wrestle for a bit and then, reluctantly, he stands aside to allow me to open the door. He sighs almost resignedly.
I let Kathryn into the flat. She’s alone. She doesn’t smile or say anything but she follows me into the living room where Arlo is sitting with his head in his hands. When he senses us standing in the middle of the room he looks up, and I see shock register on Kathryn’s face.
They just stare at each other for a few moments and Kathryn nods imperceptibly. ‘Of course.’ She shakes her head, as though she should always have known it. ‘I thought there was something familiar about you. Hello, Lewis.’
44
Kathryn
As Kathryn surveys Lewis, everything falls into place. He stares back at her with Viola’s defiant eyes. No wonder her mother fawned over Willow. She was the most like Viola because she’s made up of her DNA.
‘Why are you calling him Lewis?’ asks Willow, her eyebrow raised.
‘Because that’s what he told me he was called. When he worked for us.’
‘What?’ Willow spins around to glare at her brother. ‘You worked for Elspeth?’
‘Earlier this year,’ continues Kathryn. ‘As our gardener. Until Elspeth sacked him for smoking pot.’
Lewis stares at her for a few seconds. ‘When did you find out?’ he says.
‘Find out what?’ interjects Willow, her cheeks flushed. ‘Will someone tell me what the fuck is going on? Arlo, why did you tell them you were called Lewis?’
He shrugs. ‘I didn’t want them to know.’
‘Know what?’ cries Willow, throwing up her hands.
Kathryn turns to Willow. Does she really not know? ‘That Viola – Elspeth’s daughter – is your mother?’
Willow gawps at Kathryn, shock written all over her face. It’s clear to Kathryn that she had no clue. ‘W-what? But that can’t be. My mother was called Lily.’
‘She changed it.’
‘B-but …’ Willow’s mouth hangs open.
‘And Arlo here pretended to be a gardener called Lewis so he could work for my mother.’ She turns to him. ‘I don’t know what you were hoping to achieve.’
He folds his arms across his broad chest. He still has his coat on. ‘I wanted to see the old bag. She’s my grandmother, after all.’
Willow sits heavily beside Arlo. ‘But why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t you tell Elspeth?’
‘It was obvious as soon as I started working there that she didn’t like men. She was smitten with the girls. The pretty little blonde girls. I thought it was because they reminded her of Mum, so I thought you’d be perfect for the job. It was supposed to be so easy. You’d work for her, she’d fall in love with you and then –’
‘And then your money worries would be over. Isn’t that right, Arlo?’ says Kathryn.
Arlo stands up, his fists clenched at his sides. Kathryn’s tall but he’s over a head taller. ‘It’s rightfully mine. Rightfully Willow’s. Not yours,’ he spits. ‘You’re adopted. You’re not flesh and blood.’