‘No problem,’ she said without thinking, always ready to step in, just like the other nurses would do for her, and because Carol was a great boss. One of those quietly efficient women who mothered everyone and was generally unflappable. ‘I’ll ring the childminder and check and then get back to you, okay?’
Mia loved her childminder, Ruth, who took the three children in her care out for walks and to the playground whatever the weather. She was a real earth mother, a genuinely peaceful soul who kept her house free of anything artificial if she possibly could. She fed her charges fruit and chopped-up vegetables, made bread with them, did crafts, took them to the library and the beach. The whole day was a learning experience, and she’d been graded as outstanding by Ofsted. She’d been such a support to Becca now she had no mother to call on for advice, and she thought of her as a friend as much as someone she paid to look after her child.
Ruth answered on the first ring.
‘Hi, Becca, funny you ringing. I was just about to call.’ Her voice sounded different; weak and distant. ‘I’m really sorry but I’m going to have to let you down this week.’ She sighed down the phone. ‘Well, it’s not just this week actually. I’ve had some bad news.’
‘Oh, dear, I’m sorry to hear that. Are you okay?’
Ruth gave a little laugh. Or was she actually crying? ‘Apparently not. I had my first mammogram a couple of weeks ago, since I’ve just turned fifty, and they found… well…’ Her voice turned into a whisper, as if she hardly dared say the words. ‘It’s cancer.’
‘Oh, no,’ Becca gasped, feeling like she’d just had a bucket of icy water thrown over her. Ruth was never ill – not even a seasonal cold managed to get past her immune system, so the idea she had something seriously wrong was almost unthinkable.
‘Oh, yes, unfortunately. But they’re rushing things through, so that’s good.’ She was trying to sound practical and positive, but there was a tremor in her voice. ‘I’ve got to go and see the specialist and sort out what they’re going to do with me. Chop off my boobs, I expect. Whip out a few lymph nodes and then…’ Her voice cracked, and Becca could hear her sobbing down the phone.
‘I’m coming round, Ruth. I’ll be with you in twenty minutes.’ She ended the call, her mind busy rearranging her life now she had no childcare. She knew the local nursery was full and there was a waiting list because one of her colleagues had been lamenting the shortage of places. Now she’d have to trawl round and see if any spaces had opened up with other childcare providers. She pushed all the practicalities to one side. What matters is Ruth; everything else can wait.
Once she’d gathered Mia and had her settled in the buggy, she rang her sister, Kate, talking as she started the walk to Ruth’s house, which was only ten minutes away on foot. Kate was self-employed as a bookkeeper, her hours flexible as she worked from home. She used to work for a large accountancy firm in Manchester but had moved back to the family home to keep an eye on their dad three years ago. After he’d had his heart attack, Becca had popped in on a daily basis, but when she and Dean moved from their apartment in Bangor to a rented house in Llandudno, and she couldn’t call in so often, it was clear he wasn’t coping on his own. Kate had stepped up to take on caring duties. Maybe she’d look after Mia for a couple of days until Becca could get something else sorted out. It was only half-days after all, and Kate could work in the evenings to make up the time.
‘Hi, Becs,’ Kate said, sounding preoccupied. ‘Can I call you back? I’m just in the middle of something.’
‘This won’t take a minute,’ Becca said, glad to have caught her sister, who was in the habit of letting her phone go to voicemail. ‘I just need to know if you could look after Mia for a couple of mornings this week. Ruth’s not well.’
Silence. Becca stopped walking and listened, frowning. ‘Kate? Are you there?’
‘Yes, I bloody well am,’ she snapped. ‘Tell me, why is my job less important than yours?’
‘It isn’t… I wasn’t…’ Becca stuttered to a halt, thrown by the tone of Kate’s voice. Christ, she’s in one of her moods, she thought.
After a moment, Kate sighed, sending a crackle of white noise down the line. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to snap, I’m just trying to finish some accounts and they won’t balance and I really can’t stand this guy I’m doing the work for. He makes me so bloody angry the way he treats his staff and he’s a creep and he won’t listen, so…’ She stopped her rant and was quiet for a few seconds. ‘Anyway… I’m sorry to hear about Ruth.’ Her voice softened. ‘I hope it’s nothing serious?’
‘That’s just it, she’s been diagnosed with breast cancer.’ Becca could feel her throat tighten, fully aware of the implications for Ruth and the struggle that lay ahead for her. Becca had nursed several breast cancer patients, and the outcomes had been a mixture of triumph and tragedy. She caught her train of thought, told herself to be positive. You don’t know all the facts. Maybe they’ve caught it early. She took a deep breath, steadied herself.
Kate tutted. ‘Oh my God, that’s awful.’
‘I know. I can’t imagine how she’s feeling. Such a shock, and she’s got nobody close to her. No kids, no family. I’m just going over to see her now.’
Kate sighed. ‘Okay, I can have Mia tomorrow if I get these accounts sorted today. Then maybe Dad would keep an eye on her the other day? I’m sure he could entertain her for a few hours while I get some work done, and I’ll be in the house, so I can make sure they don’t get up to any mischief. Honestly, he’s like a kid himself when he’s with Mia. Do you remember last time he decided to do some drawing with her, borrowed my marker pens and they drew a mural on the kitchen wall?’
Becca laughed. ‘God, yeah, took us hours to get that off, didn’t it?’
‘It might be good for him to have something to keep him busy though. Stop him bothering me when I’m trying to work.’
‘Hmm. I did wonder about asking Dad, but I worry about Mia wearing him out. She’s just non-stop these days, and after his heart attack… well, I suppose I don’t want him getting over-tired or too stressed. But if you’re there as well, that’ll be perfect. I’ll pop over after I’ve seen Ruth and we can have a chat.’
‘Right, I’ll let Dad know you’re coming. That should cheer him up. He’s been on a downer recently. Feels like you’ve forgotten he exists.’ The little dig didn’t go unnoticed, Kate always keen to emphasise that she’d changed her whole life to care for their father, whereas Becca’s efforts to share the responsibility were increasingly lame.
Becca was about to reply, say it hadn’t been that long since they’d been over, when she stopped, remembering she’d cancelled both of her usual visits the week before and was ashamed to admit it had been at least a couple of weeks. She cringed and vowed to do better.
Her sister’s voice broke into her thoughts. ‘Amazing how you can manage to make it over here when you need something, isn’t it?’ Her words were dipped in a heavy coating of sarcasm and Becca rolled her eyes but didn’t respond.