Hidden by Derick Parsons, John Amy

start, Kate shook her head, ‘Oh!  Sorry, I was miles away.  Er, no, I’ve had enough, thanks.’
    ‘Right!’ said Lucy briskly, ‘Then we’ll put on some rubber gloves and go tackle that apartment of yours!  Together we’ll soon whip it back into shape.’
    Kate tried to protest that she wouldn’t dream of imposing on Lucy for help with the cleaning, but she was soon shushed into silence by the older woman insisting, ‘Don’t be silly, dear, you’ll feel awful if you do it alone and I’ve nothing on for this morning.  Come on, let’s get to work!’
    Suddenly reluctant to go back down there at all, even accompanied, Kate hesitated before saying feebly, ‘Perhaps in a little while.  I’m still pretty tired and really I should get in touch with the insurance people and...’
    She trailed off as Lucy looked at her kindly but firmly, her faded brown eyes shrewder and more perceptive than Kate might have expected.  ‘ Now would be best, dear,’ she said, gently but in a tone that brooked no argument, ‘The longer you leave something like this the harder it’ll be to face in the long run, you know.’
    ‘Okay.’ Kate, wondering just how she had become ‘dear’, submitted resignedly and not without gratitude.  Having Lucy affectionately bossing her around was exactly what she needed just then, and somehow made her feel warm and secure.  Silver linings, she thought as they made their way down to her devastated flat, perhaps, sometimes, some good really does come from evil.  At any rate it would be nice to think so.
    Almost two backbreaking hours later the two women were tired but satisfied; the flat looked almost as it had done before the robbery.  Almost, the way it had almost been her home.  Several framed pictures had been ruined and had had to be thrown out -including a prized photo of Kate’s graduation from UCD, showing her flanked by her aunt and uncle- but much of the destruction was cosmetic; a lot of pictures and vases, and several pieces of Waterford crystal that had been expensive but which had not possessed any great sentimental value.
    As she compiled her list for the Garda it became apparent that very little had actually been stolen; a DVD player, her laptop, her camcorder, and her briefcase.  And that seemed to be it.  The DVD player and camcorder mattered little, and even her MacBook -while expensive- contained only the original computer files of her books.  And although it was the oldest and least valuable of her missing possessions, it was the loss of her briefcase that hurt the most.  It had been her mother’s lucky case, for use in court, and was therefore a precious memento.  Stealing it was a bit like stealing a piece of Kate’s childhood, of one of her few positive associations of that time.  More prosaically, it had also contained the file Trevor had given her on Grainne Riordan, the file she should have spent the evening studying rather than merely skimming through before trotting off to meet Michael Riordan.  And, of course, sleeping with him.
    Kate quickly cut off that line of thought before it filled her mind enti rely; she had enough on her plate just then without adding to her problems.  However, thinking about Michael brought the realization that she was supposed to be seeing Grainne for the first time that afternoon, and with a stifled curse she looked at her watch; damn, it was almost one o’clock!  She wondered briefly if she should ring and cancel but then realized that getting away from the flat for a couple of hours might be exactly what she needed.
    She sought out Lucy and told her about the appointment, adding that she really should not miss it.  And although it might have been imagination she thought she saw a flicker of relief crossing her new friend’s face.  Kate cursed herself for a fool; Lucy was no spring chicken, and the sheer hard labor involved in straightening up so much mess must have taken a toll.  She should have stopped her