The House of Women by Alison Taylor

I imagine.’ He turned the chair again, his back to McKenna, and reached for another cigarette. ‘Edith can let us know, when the time comes. Goodbye.’

 
    4
     
    Janet’s car was outside the Harris house when McKenna turned into Glamorgan Place. He parked behind, and walked to the wide-open front door. Phoebe materialized in the hall, the cat by her feet. ‘Mama’s talking to your detective. I’m not supposed to disturb them.’
    She led him towards a door at the rear of the hall, the cat padding behind, and when they reached the kitchen, it leaped on to a chair between a green, unlit Aga, and a gleaming enamel gas cooker, staring at McKenna. As he reached out to stroke its ears, Phoebe snatched his hand away. Her flesh was cool, and felt immensely clean. ‘He might scratch! He’ll come to you when he’s ready.’
    ‘ It’s a pity they can’t be trained like guard dogs, isn’t it?’
    She grinned, the bruise on her face rosy and shiny. ‘Clyde’s got a guard dog, or so he says.’
    ‘ Is he really called Clyde?’
    ‘ He’s called Jason Lloyd. She might end up as Minnie Lloyd.’ Opening the refrigerator, she said: ‘There’s some fresh lemonade, half a bottle of wine left over from last night, or you can have tea. Or coffee.’
    ‘ Tea’s nice on a hot day.’
    She filled the kettle, took mugs from a cupboard, dropped four tea-bags into a pot, and leaned against the worktop while the kettle boiled, arms folded across her chest. She was dressed today in a long white man ’s shirt and khaki cotton trousers, her feet in laced sandals. Her hair curled damply around her face. ‘D’you know why Uncle Ned died yet?’
    ‘ No.’
    ‘ So you don’t know about his funeral?’
    ‘ No.’
    ‘ Auntie Gladys phoned last night, but she won’t come here.’
    ‘ Why not?’
    The kettle boiled, and Phoebe made the tea. ‘She can’t drive. Uncle Ned couldn’t, either.’
    ‘ She could get a bus.’
    ‘ She’s old, and, more to the point, she doesn’t get on with Mama.’ Stirring the brew, she added: ‘Anyway, Annie’s going again later in the week. She’s always kept an eye on them, so Uncle Ned wouldn’t worry too much.’
    ‘ I take it she does drive?’
    ‘ She learned as soon as she was old enough,’ Phoebe said admiringly. ‘She had a new car not long ago. Jason got it off a mate at trade price.’
    ‘ What does he do for a living? Is he at college?’
    ‘ Don’t be funny! He’s thicker than Minnie. He does security work. Any moron can do that, can’t they?’
    He took the tea she poured for him. ‘How old is Annie?’
    ‘ Old enough to be my mother! Nearly thirty-one.’
    ‘ And is she dark, like you? Mina’s blonde, isn’t she?’
    ‘ Darkish.’ Phoebe picked up her mug. ‘Minnie’s dark, too. Her blonde comes out of a bottle, as I expect Jason’s found out.’
    ‘ How could he?’
    ‘ You know what I mean.’ She grinned at his confusion. ‘Mama says I’m in danger of being obsessed with you-know-what, and she went ballistic when I asked her if old people get grey pubic hair, or if it just falls out.’
    ‘ It’s a sign of your age.’
    ‘ Mama says it’s sheer nosiness, but Uncle Ned said I should always find things out for myself instead of relying on second hand stuff.’ She sighed. ‘I miss him an awful lot. It hurts more every day.’ She looked at the cat, now asleep on its chair. ‘I couldn’t bear it if Tom died, too.’
    ‘ There’s no reason why he should.’ McKenna put his cigarettes and lighter on the table. ‘And I know you can’t help grieving for Ned, but don’t let his death make you forget all the happiness you had with him.’
    ‘ I won’t, but it’s awfully hard.’ She stood up to take an ashtray from the cupboard. ‘I loved talking to him, you know. We talked about almost everything, and he even told me about being in Denbigh Hospital. Me and George are the only ones who know what he went through in that place. He called it a