Cruel to Be Kind: Part 3 of 3: Saying no can save a child’s life

Chapter Seventeen

Their front door was opened unusually by Caz. Leaning heavily on her crutches, her mobility apparently no better than the last time I’d seen her, she was clearly in a lot of discomfort. ‘Hi, Mum,’ Max said, offering up the box of fruit.

‘Put them in the kitchen, will you?’ she said. ‘I haven’t got any hands free.’

‘How are you?’ I asked. Max disappeared into the darkness of the hall.

‘Not good,’ Caz said, grimacing.

‘Oh dear. What’s the matter?’

‘Everything,’ she sighed. ‘But I won’t keep you. You’ve got your kids waiting.’

‘Actually, I haven’t,’ I said. ‘They’re spending a few days with their grandparents.’

‘Do you want to come in then?’ she asked in the same despondent tone.

‘Yes.’ I smiled, pleased that I was being asked in and Caz appeared to be making an effort to get along with me. I waited on the doorstep as she awkwardly turned, easing her crutches around in little jolts until she was facing down the hall.

‘Shut the door behind you, will you?’ she said. I did as she asked and with no natural light the hall became darker still. ‘Light bulb’s gone,’ she said. ‘I can’t get up there to change it.’

‘Is no one else in?’ I asked.

‘They’re all out. Could have done with resting myself. My feet are killing me.’

‘Oh dear,’ I sympathized. ‘You should have phoned me – we could have cancelled contact tonight.’

‘Not likely! And let that social worker think I’m not coping? Quickest way to lose your kids, I’d say.’

We were now in their open-plan living room, which smelt of cigarette smoke despite the window being wide open. A large plasma-screen television stood against one wall with a sofa and two armchairs grouped in front of it. A kitchen area at the other end of the room was separated by a Formica-topped breakfast bar. I could now understand why Max went to his room to read; it was impossible to have privacy or escape from the television in this room. The television was on now, its bright lights and constantly moving images and loud dialogue dominating the room. Max had made a space for the box of fruit on the work surface and was waiting, uncertain of what to do next, presumably because his usual routine had been disrupted by me coming in. Caz noticed and said, ‘You can go to your room. Cathy can make me a drink if I want one.’

With a brief smile he turned and plodded off upstairs and a few moments later I heard his bedroom door close. Caz eased herself down into one of the armchairs, then lifted her feet onto the footstool. ‘They told me at the hospital I should keep my feet elevated when sitting,’ she said. Both her feet were bandaged now and her slippers had been cut to fit.

‘Is there anything I can do?’ I asked. ‘I could change the light bulb in the hall.’

‘No. One of them can do it when they get back. It’s always going. It gets left on all night. Sit yourself down.’

The other armchair was occupied by one of their cats, so I sat on the sofa where I was at right angles to Caz. She picked up the remote and lowered the volume on the television until it was just a hum in the background. In front of me was a glass-topped coffee table littered with teenage magazines. A bright-red glass fruit bowl stood in the centre, but instead of containing fruit it held an attractive display of sweets – small packets of Smarties and Jelly Tots, lollipops and sherbet dips and so on. Very tempting indeed. I could picture Caz and her daughters in the evening watching television or flicking through the magazines while popping sweets, as they had done at the hospital. Jo had said it was what they did – a little family ritual. The rest of the room contained the detritus of six people living in a relatively small house where the main caregiver was incapacitated. Pans were in the sink, the draining board was stacked with cutlery and crockery, while the work surface was littered with takeaway pizza boxes and half-empty bottles of fizzy drinks. A number of beer cans had been stacked beside the overflowing bin. ‘Sorry about the state of the place,’ Caz said, nodding towards the kitchen ‘They just eat and leave me with their mess.’