Free Construct a Couple by Talli Roland Page B

transfers the call, praying this will be it. God knows where I can go from ‘vulva’.  
    “Hello, Ryan Johnson here.”
    “Oh, hello, I’m calling from Seven Days magazine. We’re doing an article on Top Class Construction. Have they completed any work for you recently?”
    Ryan snorts. “I’m not sure I’d call it ‘work’. Whatever it was, it was absolute rubbish.”
    Score! I almost do my Rocky punch in the air before remembering I’m a serious journalist now. Serious journalists don’t do victory punches. And it’s not like I want old people to be at risk, of course. It’s just such a great story.
    “Can you elaborate a bit?” I ask.
    “Can I ever!” Ryan responds fiercely. “I’m sure that company thinks they can get away with it because we’re a little old care home out in Surrey. Top Class was fairly new at the time, looking for a way to expand their business. They promised personal attention.” His voice is bitter. “Anyway, they gave us a great estimate for our building refurbishment, so we went with them.”
    “And?” I scribble his comments in my notebook, making sure to get them word for word.
    “Well, things started off fine. But one day all the workmen left when they were only about half-way through the job. Windows not put in, wires hanging out everywhere – I tell you, it was a mess.”
    “Where were the residents at this time?”
    “We’d moved them into another part of the home not being worked on,” Ryan says. “They were comfortable enough, but it wasn’t meant to be long-term. Unfortunately, it was longer than we’d planned.”
    “How long?”
    “I called Top Class every day, trying to find out when they’d return to finish the job. Turned out they’d been awarded a major contract, working on a new development somewhere near Brighton. A development that obviously had a lot more profitability than our care home,” he spits out. “Anyway, after a month of me pestering them to come back, they finally did. Threw in the windows, did a shoddy job with the plumbing and electrics, and disappeared again.”
    “You weren’t happy with their work?”
    Ryan laughs. “Happy? Would you be happy if you had to move residents from an area that’s supposed to be newly refurbished because of damp issues? These are elderly people – we even had one woman suffering from pneumonia before we knew what was happening.”
    Shit.
    “And it wasn’t just the damp. We’ve had chipped tiles in bathrooms, carpets not fitted properly, flammable materials . . . the list goes on.”
    “You complained to Top Class about all this?”
    “You could say that.” Ryan’s tone is grim. “Every day, over and over again. Emails. Faxes. Phone calls. The thing is, it’s affecting our business. When people come to see the facilities, they’re never going to let their loved ones stay in a place like this. And to think, we were trying to improve.”
    “Can’t you pursue legal action?” I’d love Julia to be dragged into court.
    “I could, but I made the mistake of paying up front.” Ryan sighs. “It was stupid, I know. They seemed so trustworthy. There’s something in our contract about arbitration, but I can’t reach anyone at Top Class beyond the receptionist, let alone get them to meet us. And I don’t have the money to hire a lawyer – or to pay other builders to fix anything. I’ve been living day to day, hoping a solution will come from somewhere.”
    “That’s terrible.” As excited as I am at this new angle on Top Class (and a not-so-complimentary one, to say the least!), I feel for the poor man and all those residents living in unsafe conditions. I straighten my spine as determination sweeps over me. This is why I wanted to be a journalist! Setting the world to rights, one story at a time. Shaking my head, I think how ironic it is that my first big break also means Julia will finally get what she deserves. The universe definitely has a sense of humour!
    We talk for a few more