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‘Eshcuse me, I am not drunk,’ Sadie’s mum slurred.

‘Paralytic more like,’ Mary muttered.

‘Embarrassing,’ Rebecca’s mum agreed. ‘She’s so tacky.’

Sarah would take Sadie’s mum’s drunkenness over these two witches judging everyone and everything. She got up to go to the toilet. It was time to leave before people got more confessional and judgemental. She didn’t want to know about their private lives and she had no intention of discussing hers. Nor did she want to see someone who’d drunk too much being judged by pious, disapproving women.

She wove her way through the overheated restaurant towards the sanctuary of the Ladies. It was empty and the window in the corner was open, which gave her some much-needed air. She splashed some water on her red cheeks, then went into a cubicle and locked the door. Even though she was only eleven weeks pregnant, her bladder was already causing havoc. She was just buttoning her trousers when she heard the door open and voices.

‘Oh, my God, she’s so drunk, it’s mortifying. She’s going to wake up tomorrow and die. Does she actually think we’re impressed by her shagging some Australian half her age?’

‘He’s bound to give her an STD.’

Sarah winced, feeling sorry for Sadie’s mum. That was why she never gave away any private information: it only gave people a reason to gossip about you.

‘How’s Rebecca getting on?’

‘To be honest, I’m not a bit happy about the class.’

Sarah recognized their voices. Mya’s and Rebecca’s mums. They were Tiger Mothers,über-ambitious for their kids. They had the girls so over-scheduled, they constantly looked exhausted.

‘Why?’

‘Because that girl Izzy is holding the class back.’

Sarah froze.

‘Do you think?’

‘Totally. She’s the youngest and the stupidest. She should be put into the class below. Rebecca said she’s always getting stuck on maths and holding up the lesson. It’s ridiculous.’

‘Now that you mention it, Mya did say that Izzy is reading theSecret Sevenbooks. Can you believe it? Mya read those two years ago. She’s clearly not very bright.’

Every hair on Sarah’s body was standing on end. Her breathing quickened and she felt nauseous.

‘She’s sucking up Miss Dixon’s time because she’s so slow to catch on. Rebecca said she’s quite babyish, too. She’s clearly immature. I wanted to speak to the headmistress, but then I realized that the deputy head is Izzy’s aunt, which means we have no hope of getting her moved down.’

‘Well, unless we get a few of the other mums to ask. If five or six of us complain, it might work. They’d have to listen to us then. We can’t have our kids being slowed down by a girl with a low IQ. I don’t care who she’s related to.’

‘You’re right. How about I set up a WhatsApp group and invite some of the other mums to join and see how they feel? I’ll have a word with –’

Sarah flung open the cubicle door, which banged against the wall. The two women spun around and stared at her, open-mouthed.

‘You should always make sure there is no one in the cubicle before you set about slating an innocent child,’ Sarah snapped at them. She was so angry, and their daft shocked faces made her even angrier. ‘How dare you speak about Izzy like that? She’s keeping up just fine, thank you very much. She’s a very happy, well-balanced child, which is more than I can say for your overworked, miserable kids. Then again, no wonder they look so unhappy. They’re being raised by malicious, spiteful bitches.’

Sarah pushed past them and walked back to the others, legs shaking. Trying to look composed, she told them she was heading off, left money on the table and made a swift, if slightly wobbly exit.

When she got to her car, she fell sideways into the seat. Her whole body was trembling. She tucked her legs in and closed the door. She’d never spoken to anyone like that in her life. She felt elated and proud of herself, sticking up for Izzy, but she was also worried about the repercussions. No doubt those two witches were panning her to the other mums. She could see them now, loving the drama, telling the others that Sarah had verbally abused them and playing down what they’d said about Izzy. Lovely, innocent Izzy. Sarah felt tears prick her eyes. She’d never let anyone hurt Izzy. She’d never, ever let Izzy be bullied or made to feel left out. Never.

She needed to talk to someone, to process what had just happened. She picked up her phone.

‘Hi.’ Her sister answered on the first ring.

‘You’re not going to believe what just happened.’

‘Aren’t you on a class mums night out?’

‘Yes. Things got a bit messy. I need to discuss it with you. Can I call in?’