Free Hidden by Derick Parsons, John Amy Page B

unexpected venom , her face contorted with anger and loathing.  ‘They should be horse-whipped!’
    Kate felt herself warming to her even more than she had the night before, when Lucy had earned her eternal gratitude by unhesitatingly welcoming her into her home, and she replied feelingly, ‘You can say that again.  I’d like to throttle the rotten shits who did it.’  She shook her head and said weakly, ‘I mean, all my stuff...’
    Lucy’s sympathy was instant and genuine, ‘Oh, I know.  The thought of those animals rummaging through your private things, pawing at stuff that might not be valuable but which means something to you, is enough to make you sick.  To say nothing of rummaging through your knicker drawer.  Smashing your furniture and bits and pieces, and messing the whole place up.  Somehow that’s even worse than the stealing.  Though that’s bad enough.  The cheek of them, just taking your possessions as if they had a right to them, as if they weren’t yours.  As if they didn’t mean anything to you.  They could be presents from your family or…well, anything.  And those scumbags think they can just smash their way in and ruin your home, take anything of yours they want.  They should be flogged, they really should!’ She grimaced, ‘I’d never feel safe again...’
    She trailed off and looked guiltily at Kate, who gave a short laugh and replied, ‘Don’t worry, you won’t upset me.  I’ve already thought of all that, believe me.  It probably will take a while before I feel safe on my own again, but I’ve got nowhere else to go.’
    ‘You can stay here,’ said Lucy instantly and firmly, nodding her head and evidently meaning every word, ‘And don’t give me any nonsense about imposing on us, either!  We have no children and you can stay here as long as you want without disturbing anyone.’  Surprisingly, she winked, ‘Between you and me , I get a bit sick of looking at just Brendan’s face every night; the change will do me good.  Him too, no doubt.  A pretty girl about the place might make him smarten himself up a bit.  When it’s just the two of you living together men become can such pigs, my dear.  Lazy slobs, the lot of them, given half a chance.’
    Pretty girl?  God, she wished !  Octogenarian, more like!  Kate burst into a laugh that made her feel at least one hundred times better.  Only a few minutes ago she would have believed laughter impossible, yet there she was braying like a donkey, and feeling very much the better for it.  The tight, clenched fist in the pit of her stomach relaxed as she was confronted once again with the great truth that earlier traumas had forced upon her; that life goes on.  No matter what.  That could have been her life’s motto from childhood on, and it was just as true now as... as when other misfortunes had befallen her.  Bad things happened all the time but there was good in the world too, and in people.  But that was the story of her life too; no matter how bad things were, sooner or later something -or some one- would crop up to restore the little flicker of hope that made continued existence endurable.  Possible, in fact.
    ‘Would you like some more tea, dear?’
    Lucy was looking at her with motherly concern on her pale, lined face and Kate wondered suddenly if she was childless by choice.  It would be a shame if she had wanted kids but been unable to have them; she seemed perfect for the role.  Not like Kate’s own mother.  Her mother had been a wonderful person in many ways, and dearly loved, but she had been a professional, a lawyer, and had brought a sharp, focused approach to problems that had sometimes seemed a little clinical to a distraught little girl in need of a hug.  Kate would have given anything to have her mother there with her right then, but she had to admit that Lucy’s more overtly sympathetic approach had a certain comforting appeal.
    Lucy repeated the question and, with a slight