‘What exactly happens next with the search for your mother?’ asked Irene.
‘From what I read on their website, the Salvation Army will contact me if they manage to trace her, so it’s just a waiting game now.’
‘It’s scary, but exciting at the same time.’
‘And it might be that the search never uncovers anything.’
‘Whatever the outcome, I’ll be here waiting with you every step of the way,’ Irene said, leaning over and clinking her glass with Elle’s. ‘Happy birthday, Elle.’
‘Thank you. I’ve got a feeling this one will be a birthday to remember.’
They smiled affectionately at each other. Elle didn’t know what she would do if she didn’t have Irene in her life. She was her rock, and she loved her dearly.
‘And the day I took my first step on the path to possibly discovering who I am,’ Elle said hopefully as she chinked her glass against Irene’s for a second time.
ChapterNine
‘Steady,’ Elle shouted as she saw the ladder wobble.
‘Whoa, this looks easier than it actually is!’ Pippa was clinging desperately to the top of the ladder.
‘Why do you think I’m not up there?’ Elle added, laughing, trying to steady Pippa’s balance.
‘What we need is a man,’ Pippa grumbled, fighting with a piece of wallpaper that seemed to have a mind of its own.
‘Ha, we don’t need a man. Just think: girl power!’
‘I am, but it’s not doing it for me right now,’ declared Pippa, ripping the air-bubbled piece of paper from the wall and dropping it to the ground before climbing down the ladder in a huff.
They’d spent the whole of Saturday morning dragging every piece of furniture out of the spare bedroom and the rest of the day stripping off the old wallpaper. Not only had they found what looked like a mouse’s tail behind the old chest of drawers, but they’d also discovered layer after layer of woodchip wallpaper. The idea had been to decorate the room before Pippa moved in, but now the pair of them wished they hadn’t started it. It would have been easier just to apply a fresh lick of paint, and gloss over the skirting boards.
‘Urghh, I’m losing the will to live,’ Pippa declared, slumping to the floor and putting her head in her hands.
‘You and me both,’ Elle replied, sliding down next to her.
‘It looks so easy! How can it be so difficult to hang a piece of wallpaper straight?’
‘Maybe that’s why we work in a library and we aren’t decorators.’
‘I wouldn’t mind, but papering the walls is meant to be the easy part! Imagine us trying to cut and measure around the windows.’
‘Oh God. I don’t even want to think about it.’
‘Well, we have two options. The first is that we could give up … and the second is that we could give upanddrown our sorrows in alcohol.’
Elle looked at Pippa. ‘The second option sounds the best one. Shall I nip to the corner shop?’
‘Come on, let’s both go. We can get cleaned up and grab a bag of chips from the chippy too.’
‘Sounds like a plan.’
Pippa stood up and kicked the screwed-up wallpaper just as the doorbell sounded. She smiled at Elle. ‘Maybe that’s our knights in shining armour coming to help us out.’
‘Knights? We should be so lucky! It’s more likely to be next door, asking if I’ll feed their cat while they’re away this weekend.’
Pippa looked disappointed.
The doorbell rang again.
