When we finally end the call, I put the phone down and look at the address book. For some reason, I find myself flicking through it until I get to C for Cane.
There are the twins’ names written in Otis’s neat handwriting: Dwayne and Nathaniel.
And below them is Amy’s number. I remember Otis saying that Amy has had more contact with her mom. She’s the right person to start with, I reckon.
I chew on my lip for long moments. And then I pick up the phone and dial her number. My heart is pounding as I wait… and wait.
As the phone keeps ringing, I sigh with a mix of disappointment and relief.
And then a voice says, “Hi, this is Amy.”
Is this her message bank? I pause, then the voice queries, “Hello, who’s this?”
Okay, not a message bank. “Hi,” I squeak.
“Hi—who is this please?” she repeats.
I take a deep breath and launch in. “You don’t know me, but… my name is Clem and I work for your brother, Otis.”
“In what capacity?”
“I’m his assistant, I guess, er, housekeeper. Sort of. Friend…” I finish, cringing furiously even though I know she can’t see me.
“Friend, orfriend?” She emphasizes the last word in a way that’s too obvious to misinterpret.
“Quite close friend, I guess.”
Amy laughs suddenly and it’s nice, kind of rumbly, like a female version of Otis.
“So my boffin brother has finally met someone. That’s fantastic. What’d you say your name is?”
“Clem.”
“And you’re calling me because…” Her tone is not unfriendly, she’s just prompting me to stop dithering, I suppose.
There’s really no point in hedging around, so I plunge in. “Otis is under the pump right now with work and all, and erm, I think, actually Iknowit would mean a lot to him if you came back to visit. And it would mean the world to your mom to see you.”
“You’ve met her?”
“Yes, yes, just yesterday in fact. She did ask after you and the twins, wondering if you’d be coming by.”
“How is she? It’s been a few weeks since I called her to be honest.”
“As well as can be expected. Missing you and your brothers.”
There’s a long, long silence. I chew on my lower lip. Maybe I shouldn’t have called.
But finally I hear a huff on the end of the line. “I know this sounds like I’m making up excuses, but I work long hours, y’know and… er, my brothers don’t want to see her like this… They got hit hard by Dad’s death, and then Mom going downhill was a real shock to them.”
“I understand. She’s not the way she was, from what Otis tells me.” I pause, then add softly, “I lost my mom when I was nine years old. I wish—” I gulp, “I wish I’d had more time with her.”
“What happened, to your mom?”
“She just disappeared one day, went to work and never came home.”
“Disappeared? From where?”
“Sparkle City.”
