“I think that’s it,” Dad said. “Mum can message you if she thinks of anymore.”
“Speaking of Mum,” I said, acknowledging the fact that she was unusually quiet. After making it her mission to prevent me from going anywhere over Christmas, I’d expected at least some fighting talk from her corner. “Is she there?”
“She’s not, no.”
“Really?”
“She had to go out.”
That was a surprise. “You told her I was ringing from the airport hotel, though, didn’t you? When I mentioned it the other day?”
“I did.”
I grimaced, wondering what could be so important that she wouldn’t be around to take my call. Mum had created such a fuss over my holiday and for her to miss out on a last-ditch attempt at getting me to stay seemed odd.
“There’s been some sort of emergency,” Dad said.
“What kind of an emergency?”
“Something to do with Joyce.”
“Joyce from Zumba.”
“How should I know where the woman hails from.”
I felt too slighted to explain to Dad that Zumba was a form of exercise, not the name of a town. How could Mum let Joyce take priority over me, her daughter?
“Or it could have been Wendy,” Dad continued.
“Wendy from the dominoes group?” I asked, not that it mattered, Mum had still put someone else first.
“To be honest, I haven’t a clue who it is. Your Mum’s in touch with so many people it’s hard to keep up.”
My anxiety grew as I wondered if Dad hadn’t listened or if something else was at play. Although to be fair, Mum did have a wide circle of friends and she was always mentioning someone or other.
I thought back to previous conversations I’d had with Mum, unable to recall her highlighting any issues amongst anyone she knew, and Mum did like to keep me up-to-date with local comings and goings. Mum wasn’t salacious or gossipy like some, she was simply a typical Yorkshire Dales woman who assumed everyone knew everyone and would, therefore, care about what was happening in their lives. Although in my case, she couldn’t have been more wrong. I had no interest.
“You know me,” Dad said. “I just let your Mum do what she needs to do. Anyway, I should let you go.” He suddenly seemed in a rush to get rid of me. “You’ll be wanting to get some sleep before that long flight tomorrow.”
“Everything is all right, isn’t it, Dad?” I asked, concerned.
“What do you mean?”
“I’m just surprised Mum isn’t around after all the noise she made.”
Dad sighed.
“Dad, what’s going on?”
“If I’m honest, Holly, I don’t think there’s any emergency at all.”
“But a second ago you said there was.”
“I think your Mum made it up as an excuse to go out.”
“But why would she do that?” I asked, becoming more perplexed by the minute. “Doesn’t she want to talk to me?”
“It’s not that, Holly. I think it’s her way of holding on to her belief that you’ll be around for Christmas.”
