Bree looked up and met her gaze then, after weighing up the situation, she cautiously began to take off her boots.
There were lots of questions that Molly wanted to ask – why was Bree on the street? where were her parents? – but she knew if she started bombarding her with questions that Bree would bolt. But it didn’t stop her wondering.
‘What do you want from me?’ asked Bree, looking at Molly.
‘Absolutely nothing. I just want to make sure you are warm, dry and fed before you go back out there.’ Molly took a swift glance towards the window. ‘How old are you, Bree?’ The question had been on the tip of Molly’s tongue from the moment she’d met her.
‘Sixteen,’ came the reply. Bree wasn’t making eye contact; she was staring at the orange glow that crackled and hissed from the open fire.
Molly moved Bree’s boots closer towards the fire, helping them to dry out, whilst she disappeared into the kitchen, taking Bree’s coat with her. The stench from the dampened coat was piercing, causing Molly to rub her nose. Without thinking too much about it she stuffed it into the washing machine and put it on a quick cycle before making Bree a hot chocolate that was laden with cream and marshmallows.
‘It’s a lovely place you have here,’ said Bree a few minutes later, taking the hot chocolate from Molly and grinning widely. ‘Wow,’ she enthused. ‘This is some hot chocolate. The last time I had one covered in cream was when…’ She stopped in her tracks, then tried to hand it back to Molly.
‘I’m sorry, I can’t afford to pay for this.’
‘Pay? You don’t need to pay for it,’ reassured Molly with a warm smile. ‘Would you like a bacon and sausage sandwich? And you don’t have to pay for that either.’
Bree looked astounded. ‘You don’t get anything for free in this world.’
‘Kindness is free.’
‘I don’t come across that much.’
‘Well, you have today. Brown sauce or ketchup on your sandwich … or both?’
‘Both!’ answered Bree. ‘One on each half of the bread … if that’s okay,’ she quickly added.
Molly noticed that Bree’s mood had lifted. She was smiling down at her drink and scooping up the cream and marshmallows with her spoon just like George did.
‘Best of both worlds. You make yourself comfy,’ replied Molly, disappearing into the kitchen. Taking a swift glance over her shoulder she noticed Bree tucking her feet underneath her, then resting her head against the back of the chair.
By the time Molly had returned, Bree’s eyes were closed and she was sleeping.
Quietly, Molly placed the sandwich on the table before taking the throw from the wicker basket at the side of the chair and gently laying it over Bree.
Molly couldn’t help but think she looked so young. Her heart sank as she noticed the holes in Bree’s socks, and the broken laces on boots that had seen better days. The poor girl looked shattered, her face gaunt and her fingernails black. This was no way for a sixteen-year-old girl to be living. At that age, Molly wasn’t particularly streetwise – she barely went out in the dark and preferred staying close to her family – but it seemed that Bree didn’t have that luxury.
For a moment she watched Bree sleep, then she went to check on the shop. There were still no customers in sight but Molly unlocked the front door as anyone walking into the shop would make the old-fashioned bell above the door tinkle, alerting her to their arrival. Wandering back into the living room she tiptoed past Bree, opened the drawer of the dresser then quickly rummaged through the multicoloured buttons that had been abandoned in the old biscuit tin for years. The tin had once belonged to her mother and Molly used to play with the buttons inside when she was a small child. She usually played shop and pretended the buttons were money, or sometimes she just sorted them into pretty piles. She knew it was daft, but that small tin held so many happy memories for her. She finally found exactly what she was looking for – three large buttons that she could sew onto Bree’s coat. Grabbing a needle and thread from her sewing box she placed them on the coffee table. Knowing the washing machine would soon finish its cycle, she had just enough time to go and find Bree a pair of thick boot socks. Molly knew she had many pairs and she wasn’t going to miss a few so the next five minutes were spent piling some warm items of clothing on to the coffee table, including a brand-new hat and scarf set Molly had been given for Christmas last year. She knew Bree could make better use of them.
With Bree still fast asleep in the chair, Molly heard the washing machine beep. When she opened the door and pulled out the coat, the smell was a refreshing change from the stale stench of earlier. Molly knew it would take her ten minutes max to sew on the buttons then she would drape the coat over the Aga and it would be dry in no time at all.
Ten minutes later, with the buttons sewn on and the coat drying, Molly heard the bell in the shop ring out. She stood up quietly, careful not to wake Bree, and tiptoed into the shop to see Cam standing by the counter pulling off his bobble hat and peeling off his gloves. ‘Oh my God, the weather is getting worse. The streets are silent but I’ve delivered all the orders and everything extra I took out has sold.’ He placed a bag of cash on the counter along with the portable card machine. ‘Everyone was surprised to see me but very grateful.’
‘That’s good to hear, I can’t imagine anyone wanting to venture out in this.’
‘I saw Drew. He’d had the same idea and was driving down the streets beeping his horn and selling sausages, eggs and cheese from the van. Have we had any customers?’ He looked towards the nearly full shelves.
‘Not one. I think it’s going to be a slow day with the weather like this, but the shelter will be happy for the leftovers later.’
Cam took a look over Molly’s shoulder. ‘Talking of the shelter … what’s happened to the girl? What did you say? I hope she’s on her way. It’s unacceptable, stealing.’
Molly’s heart began to beat faster. Cam was back quicker than she’d thought he would be. She screwed up her face. ‘Not exactly.’
Cam raised an eyebrow. ‘What do you mean, “Not exactly”?’
Molly took a breath. ‘Even you have just said the weather is getting worse, and where exactly would a homeless person go in this weather, with the shelter closed until later?’
‘What are you trying to tell me? Because I’m absolutely freezing. I need a hot drink and a warm by that fire. I hope it’s still burning.’ Cam started to walk to the back of the shop but Molly stepped in front of him.
