ran into the kitchen and hastily grabbed her mobile from the counter, dialling Megan’s number and walking quickly back into the hallway. Kate’s heart sank as the call immediately went to voicemail. Glancing at the time on her phone display she knew it was highly likely that Megan was on the tube. It would be at least twenty minutes before Kate could reach her.
‘What the hell? Mate? Are you okay?’ she heard a male voice outside the door. Marcus. Her heart sank a notch further. This was not how she’d envisioned her evening in the slightest. Goodness knows what Marcus would think – not to mention that he’d undoubtedly tell Alf. Kate rushed to the door, dreading a showdown if Jonnie chose that moment to regain his senses. Forgetting pleasantries, she jumped to Jonnie’s defence.
‘Marcus, it’s okay. I know him’ she said hurriedly, immediately noticing the shocked expression on his face. She also noticed that he looked exhausted, his olive skin pasty and his normally sparkling green eyes lacklustre.
‘What’s happened? Are you okay?’ he asked in concern, reaching out for her arm.
She waved him away gently and kindly, feeling a strange relief that at least she wouldn’t have to deal with the situation alone. ‘I’m fine. Nothing untoward has happened.’ She gestured to Jonnie and tried to explain quickly, aware of the ticking clock and Alf’s imminent arrival home. ‘He’s my friend’s brother and he has a problem with drink. I thought it was you, so I opened the door and he passed out on the doorstep.’
‘Shall we get him inside?’ Marcus asked, putting down his overnight holdall and pushing the street door open as wide as it would allow. He bent down to hoist up the guy, who looked to be slightly younger than himself.
Kate considered this for a split second, before shaking her head. ‘Actually, I think it’s better if we get him to his own home.’ She wondered if he had a key somewhere. ‘You check his pockets for a door key, I’ll quickly lock up here – if you don’t mind helping me?’
Marcus looked slightly surprised, but quickly nodded his reassurance. ‘If that’s what you think is best’ he said, noticing that she sounded harassed. He quietly wondered what Alf was going to make of the situation.
Kate had already rushed back into the kitchen to turn off the steak she’d been braising for the pie. Between switching off the hob and grabbing her handbag from the dining chair, she locked the back door and tried Megan’s mobile once again. Voicemail.
As she reached the door again, she saw that Marcus had put his holdall in the hallway and was attempting to stand up a drunken and ever-so-quietly-slurring Jonnie. A set of keys dangled from his left hand. ‘Ready?’
‘Oh, that’s a relief, he’s got his keys on him,’ she said, really meaning it. Taking her car fob from the hallway bureau she unlocked her car, thankfully only metres away, and proceeded to help Marcus practically drag Jonnie to the rear of the small Renault. Positioning him on the back seat took some manoeuvring, but they eventually managed it.
‘Don’t worry, it’s not too far a drive. About ten minutes from here and hopefully my friend Megan will be home by the time we get there. She works in the City,’ Kate explained, grateful that Marcus had automatically opened the front passenger door and settled himself in the seat. She hadn’t taken it for granted that he would accompany her, but she gave silent thanks, wondering how she’d have managed to get Jonnie out of the car alone otherwise.
She got into the driver’s side and started the engine.
‘Is this a regular thing, then?’ Marcus asked, looking sideways at Kate and noticing a small patch of dried flour on her cheek. Her skin was flushed and he considered her slightly shaking hands gripping the steering wheel as a sign of her unease.
‘Well, for as long as I can remember he’s had a problem with the drink. But he’s never turned up at ours before. I can’t think why he would either, to be honest.’ It was true. Why ever would he knock at her door?
They heard a groan from the back seat and Marcus looked over his shoulder at the fully grown man, head flopping onto his chest and dribbling from the mouth. Instead of disgust, he felt pity.
‘Drink destroys people,’ he said at the same moment as Kate briefly glanced in his direction. She couldn’t be sure but she thought she caught a shadow of sadness pass across his face.
Feeling responsible for the unexpected drama that had welcomed Marcus home – not to mention the change in his mood – and eager to change the subject, aware that Jonnie could awaken at any moment and overhear their conversation, she forced a smile.
‘So how was your business trip? Alf told me you went to do an interview up North.’
Marcus nodded his head tiredly. ‘Yes, I happen to know the editor and they’d been let down by another journalist at the last moment. So he called me in instead.’ He glanced out of the window, thinking about the irony of the trip and how he’d almost been tempted to stay up North.
‘Will you be doing the same work here, then?’ Kate asked, curious. Alf, never one to elaborate, had only filled her in briefly on Marcus’s situation – that he’d split with his fiancée in Leeds and returned to his roots to start afresh. Usually she would have pressed for more details, but knowing that Marcus was coming back to stay with them, she’d thought it wiser to get the story from the horse’s mouth.
‘Yes, hopefully – well, I have a few things already in the pipeline and then there’s my book….’ he tailed off, shrugging his shoulders. ‘I’ve almost finished the final draft – I’m hoping something will come of it.’
Kate indicated left, turning into the side road that led directly to Megan’s end of terrace that she shared with her brother. ‘You’ve written a book?’ She was impressed. ‘What’s it about?’
Marcus smiled at the sudden enthusiasm in her voice. He liked the way she glanced at him with genuine and pleasant surprise. ‘Well, it’s fiction but the main character is loosely based on my grandfather. He’s had an extraordinary amount of adventure in his years. I thought it’d make for interesting reading.’
He noticed they were slowing to a stop and Kate reached for the hand brake, pulling it up gently. ‘That’s doubly impressive. Not only have you have written a book, you’ve based it on your granddad. He must be rather proud.’
Marcus grinned, wondering silently how his grandfather would react when he revealed that he’d chosen him as the main subject of his newest ‘project’.
‘He doesn’t know yet.’
Kate raised her eyebrows in surprise. ‘Well, I’m sure he’ll be ecstatic – provided you’ve not included too many of his personal secrets.’
A splutter, followed by a loud sneeze came from the back seat. Jonnie groaned loudly and Kate and Marcus both reacted quickly, their conversation instantly dismissed as she turned off the engine and Marcus undid his seatbelt.
‘Let’s get him inside as fast as possible. It will be better than if he wakes up – in case he starts being abusive.’ Kate began getting out of the car, grabbing her mobile and dialling Megan’s number one last time. She could tell from the lack of lights in the half brick and rendered property that Megan wasn’t yet home. The call went straight to voicemail.
Marcus was already pulling an incoherent but now semi-awake Jonnie from the back seat.
‘Come on, mate, let’s get you inside.’
Thankfully, Jonnie seemed to have gained the use of his legs and stumbled out of the car, eyeing Marcus through squinting eyes with an aggressive look on his face.
Kate took control of the situation, sensing that Jonnie would react badly to a stranger giving him orders once he became more aware. She gestured with her eyes from Marcus to the passenger door, nodding her head and hoping he’d understand that it’d be better for him to wait in the car. He did. Except he refused to get into the car, choosing instead to stand beside it, just in case Kate needed assistance.
Kate