Page 9 of Loving Netta Wilde
Guilt pricked at Netta’s conscience. Yes, she’d agreed to let Colin stay here until things were fixed but what else had she done to support her daughter? Nothing. She’d let Liza carry the burden all on her own. ‘Listen, I have to go to work now but I’ll talk to him when I get back. I’m not sure he’ll listen to me but I’ll try.’
‘Would you?’
‘Only if you promise to go to classes today.’
Liza sniffed and nodded. ‘I promise. Thanks, Mum.’
Netta closed the van door. They’d just finished loading it up for the weekly delivery. ‘Can you manage without me for an extra hour? There’s something I need to do after I’ve dropped these off.’
‘Sure,’ said Neil. ‘Nothing to worry about is it?’
‘I’m going to talk to Colin. He’s gone downhill since last week. It’s upsetting Liza, otherwise I’d just leave him to stew.’
‘Do you think he might be depressed?’
She shrugged. ‘I don’t know. It’s a possibility. Then again, he might just be playing us. You can’t tell with Colin.’
‘You know who you should ask? Geraldine. She understands that stuff.’
‘She went to a therapist, Neil. That doesn’t make her a psychiatrist. Anyway, she hates Colin. She’ll probably be glad he’s wallowing in his own filth.’
Neil held out his hands. ‘Just saying. Might be worth asking her advice.’
Netta pulled up outside her house and let herself in. Maud and Betty came down from the landing to greet her, then followed her back up after she’d checked downstairs for signs of Colin.
The bathroom door was closed, and she could hear the shower running. Liza must have got through to him after all. The door to Will’s bedroom was ajar. She stepped in and breathed in the sour air, body odour, stale food, and dog, if she wasn’t mistaken. Given that he’d shut himself in here for the last six days, she’d been expecting the body odour. Even the stale food. Less so the dog smells. She didn’t remember Colin being a fan of dogs. More to the point, she hadn’t realised the dogs were fans of Colin.
She opened the curtains and windows and proceeded to strip the bed. Fresh air was needed, along with clean bed linen. It might not cure Colin of whatever was wrong with him, but it was a start. Next, she bundled up the sheet, quilt cover and pillowcases into her arms, keeping them as far away from her nose as possible. Straight into the washing machine with them, before they contaminated her and the rest of the house. Like some school matron on a dorm cleaning mission, she marched back onto the landing with her arms full and bumped straight into him.
Colin pulled the towel that was wrapped around his lower half a little tighter but Netta was still shocked by his appearance. The last time she’d seen him semi-naked in a towel was when she’d surprised him by wrecking his studio after finding out he’d been shafting her. This recent sight of him confirmed what she’d suspected since seeing him in his baggy nightclothes. He’d lost weight. A lot of it. There was a new scar just below his left collarbone. New to her anyway. Presumably, he still had that tattoo on his back though.London Calling,the Clash album cover. God only knows who he was trying to impress with that.
‘What are you doing?’ he said, interrupting her thoughts.
‘The bed needs changing. You took Liza’s suggestion on board, I see.’
He looked at his feet. He used to do that a lot when he was younger if he was embarrassed. It was something he had in common with Will. Possibly the only thing they had in common. ‘I wasn’t expecting you back yet.’
‘I came back to talk to you. Liza’s worried about you.’
‘She doesn’t need to be.’
‘I told her that, but it seems my reassurance isn’t enough to stop her caring about you. So here I am.’
‘I don’t deserve her.’ He looked at his feet again. She remembered how she used to find the habit quite endearing.
‘No, you don’t.’
He swallowed. She noticed his Adam’s apple moving up and down and again realised how much sharper his jawline had become. Not in the smooth sharpness of youth sort of way. More like someone who’d been on a drastic diet. For the first time, she considered that there might actually be something physically wrong with him.
‘Can I at least get dressed?’
‘Yes please.’ She’d meant it to come out as sarcastically as it did, but she hadn’t been prepared for his reaction. He blinkedseveral times over and she thought for a minute he was going to cry. The frailty of him was shocking and had been so unexpected that she felt a sharp stab of remorse.
He kept his back to the wall and his eyes on the ground as he edged along. The only thing between them was the bundle of dirty bed linen. When he was past her, she took a step towards the stairs, but something made her look at him as he turned to go through the bedroom door. Perhaps it was to check if he still had that tattoo on his back. She didn’t know if that was why she looked but whatever it was, she looked. Yes, it was still there, but it was more difficult to see than before because it was covered in bruises of all shapes, sizes, and colours. Netta gasped.
He spun round. ‘I had a fall. Not here. Last Thursday night. I’ll be down in a minute.’
It was ten minutes before he came down. He looked better. Not just because he was cleaner but because he looked more like the old Colin, fully dressed. No bruises, scars or skinny ribs to feel sorry for. It was easier for her that way.