Page 15 of The Missus

‘I absolutelywasat a conference. The theme of the conference was… pyjama party,’ Alanna stuttered.

Keira rolled her eyes. ‘Christ,’ she muttered under her breath.

Kim turned to Keira. ‘This doesn’t make sense. What kind of stunt is this?’

Keira looked at Alanna. She was now in deer-in-the-headlights mode, no use at all. ‘It’s my cousin,’ Keira eventually managed to tell Kim. ‘She’s… not been well. Fell off a roof.’

Kim looked suspicious. ‘How did that happen?’

‘She’s a roofer?’ Keira claimed wildly, her voice high.

Kim looked at Alanna. ‘A roofer?’

‘Look, she’s having a moment. I need to get her to the hospital. You can let yourself out, can’t you?’ Keira said and pulled Alanna by the arm, dragging her out of the flat, grabbing her keys off the hook.

On the other side of the door, Keira shook her head at Alanna. Alanna gave a silent expression of pleading, and they frogmarched down the hall—Alanna in pyjamas, Keira in a robe, both of them barefoot—and jumped into the elevator.

As soon as the doors closed, Keira cried, ‘What the fuck was that?!’

Alanna was repentance itself. ‘I’m so sorry. I slept terribly. I appreciate the sofa, but I’m too long for it. I only fell asleep a few hours ago. When I got your text, I was pretty out of it. I tripped over the fricking coffee table. I didn’t know what the hell I was doing. By the way, where are we going?’

‘To sit in my car.Again,’ Keira sighed, livid.

The elevator doors opened, and they walked out to the underground car park.

‘Again, really, truly sorry. I swear, I’ll be much more on my game once I can get a proper bed,’ Alanna promised pitifully.

Keira couldn’t stay mad at her. She looked too forlorn. Not to mention exhausted. ‘Well, that’s today’s task then. Once Kim’s buggered off, we’re going to get a bed,’ Keira said, taking her anger down to a mild simmer.

‘How will we know she’s gone?’ Alanna asked.

‘We won’t. We’re gonna have to steer clear for at least half an hour to make sure she’s done one.’ She unlocked the car with the key fob.

‘We’re just gonna sit in your car for half an hour?’ Alanna said, bug-eyed, climbing into the passenger side.

‘We’re shoeless. Where the hell else are we gonna go?!’ Keira asked as she slipped into the driver’s side.

They slammed their doors shut and sat in silence for a moment. Keira remembered that she’d put her phone in her robe pocket and she got it out for something to occupy herself. She opened Scrabble, taking a look at her latest game.

Alanna had been looking out of the window at a brick wall. But she glanced across. ‘What you playing?’

‘Scrabble.’

‘You playing someone?’

‘Bot.’

‘Is there a two-player mode?’

Keira sighed and began a new game. She handed the phone over. ‘You better be good. Because I am.’

Alanna took the phone. ‘I’m not bad.’

Nine

Alanna handed the phone back. ‘Done.’

Keira looked satisfyingly shocked. ‘How the hell did you do that? I never lose. You beat me by seventy-three points.’