Breeze smiled warmly from behind the counter as he filled the gap between them. “We’ve missed you Bill, it’s great to see you. Coffee and food?”
“Yes, yes,” the man bobbed his head. “Still alive. I’m Bill!”
“I’ll bring it over shortly,” she smiled. That woman was sweetness incarnated I was sure of it.
I watched Bill find his way to a table and noticed the differing reactions from other people in the café. Some looked afraid or whispered to each other about him with rounded eyes and pity smiles. Others turned themselves toward him, welcoming his obviously limited conversation skills. Dave, on the other hand, seemed to curl further towards the table in an attempt to make himself invisible.
“He’s got Alzheimer’s,” Dave hissed at me.
I smirked at him. “Is it contagious?”
His eye roll said everything.
“Looks like he’s coming this way,” I whispered, leaning closer. Dave sank lower.
Bill limped over, grinning from ear to ear.
“It’s me, Bill!” he shouted.
Dave flinched. Then straightened.
“Bill! Good to see you, mate,” he said, offering a hand.
Bill blinked at it, then ignored it completely. Instead, he opened his worn wallet and took out his licence.
“There I am. That’s me—Bill. Still here!” he said, holding it out for Dave to inspect.
“Yes,” Dave replied awkwardly.
The moment stretched. I could see both men were uncomfortable. Bill seemed particularly drawn to people he recognised, although his vocabulary was limited. My chest panged, and it made me wonder how much of this man was trapped inside.
“Here you go, Bill,” Breeze called, placing a cappuccino and club sandwich on the middle table. Bill let out a joyful laugh and shuffled over.
“Dave,” I hissed.
“I don’t know what to say to him anymore,” he groaned. “I don’t know what he remembers.”
“So, avoiding him is the answer?”
He folded his arms like a cross teenager. “Well, no. But it’s easier.”
Honesty. I respected that, even if I didn’t agree with him. I had a loyalty to the underdog in any situation, so I’d immediately taken a shine to Bill. I thought back to Mr Van den Berg, the caretaker of my first school. Mr Vee, as he'd affectionately offered when I couldn't pronounce his surname. He’d done that for me, and I'd caught the bug. Thedowntrodden. The out of luck. The worriers. The survivors. Those were my people.
“Riley Walls,” Dax’s full-lipped smile made my heart jump. “Can I have a word?”
I looked up at him through my eyelashes. “Sure, Detective. Want to take me out back?”
Dave didn’t miss my breathless tone. Dax’s neck flushed crimson.
Rick was right.
People really were easy to wind up.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
No one was goingto break into my unwanted house again. That was exactly why I was camped out in the back of my caragainon a Saturday night. Teens and squatters beware—Bellamy Children’s Home was going to stay in the condition I’d received it. I didn’t want to feel like I owed anyone anything when I gave it back, and that time couldn’t come soon enough.
My defensive skills were zero, unless you counted my charm and wit. But my 999 dialling skills were expert. That’s exactly what I planned on doing, even if I had to stay up all night being the world’s cheapest security guard.
