Free Beneath the Elder Tree by Hazel Black

naturally optimistic, but there is a sadness, or fear, smothering the hope that dwells inside her.’
       ‘Why is she the only one at home?’ Emily wondered. ‘Where is her mother?’
       ‘How should I know?’
       ‘Read her thoughts!’
       I turned to Laura and examined her face again. I found that I could actually peer into her mind and explore the thoughts that were active, and some that were subconscious. It was an incredible experience. Most of her active mind was taken up with what she was reading, and I read every word that she read. I channelled past these thoughts and tried to understand the other, deeper thought processes. They were difficult to interpret. I felt that the only other person that lived in the apartment was her mother, who had just gone-
       ‘This is going to be harder than I first thought,’ I admitted solemnly. ‘Much harder.’
       ‘Why?’
       ‘Her mother is at the liquor store. She goes at the same time every evening and she’ll be home soon to drink her purchase.’
       ‘Poverty is not all Laura has to deal with.’
       ‘Perhaps this is why she has to deal with poverty.’
       Emily placed her hand on mine. ‘Don’t get too disheartened, Lucy. That’s her mother’s life. You must guide Laura clear of all these troubles in the coming years. That’s what you’re here to do.’
       ‘It’ll be a long hard road, won’t it?’
       ‘It would appear so.’
       ‘You had an easy time compared to what I’ve been landed with.’
       ‘You weren’t all that easy.’
       That wonderful first moment with my chosen was ruined when we heard a key scratching at the front door of the apartment. Laura’s mother, Grace, had arrived home and was rummaging about the kitchen on the other side of the apartment. It wasn’t long before she came to the room, and I didn’t like the look of her at all. She was thirty one years old, but looked older, and she had an unpleasant way about her. I didn’t have to read her mind to know she was consumed by her addiction to alcohol. All I had to do was look at her bloodshot eyes.
       ‘Why aren’t you out playing? School’s finished for the summer. No need to be reading books when there’s no school.’
       ‘It’s not a school book, Grace,’ Laura replied, overstating her mother’s name. Grace was in fact an entire sentence: “I don’t consider you as my mother.”
       ‘Doesn’t matter what type of book it is. You shouldn’t be home all day. You should be out playing.’
       ‘Out there with the junkies and the dealers, the drunken homeless men, and the scumbags on their stolen motorbikes? I’d rather stay indoors, thank you very much.’
       ‘Don’t be like that.’
       ‘I’m not being like anything.’
       ‘I hate having to deal with this attitude all the time. I’m tired, you know. You could cut me some slack now and again.’
       ‘You’re tired because you get drunk every night.’
       ‘A drink helps me with my nerves, okay! It’s none of your damned business anyway.’
       ‘Unfortunately, your life is my business because we live together.’ Laura took hold of her cell phone and lit the screen, checking the time. ‘You’re home later than usual…’
       ‘What are you trying to say?’
       ‘Are you seeing someone again?’
       ‘That’s none of your business either. Maybe you should get a life and stop poking your nose into mine.’
       ‘I’d have a life if I didn’t have to live in this dump. I would even venture outdoors if we lived somewhere better.’
       ‘That’s your excuse for living like a hermit?’
       ‘I’d rather be sitting here reading a book. I don’t like being out there after dark.’
       ‘Tough. I just realised I forgot to buy cigarettes. Go down to the store and pick me up a pack.’ She flung a rolled up note onto the bed and headed for the door. ‘And make sure you bring back my change this time. You