My stomach twisted in a pang of jealousy as I imagined her snake-like arms wrapped around his neck, her hands in his hair, his hands on her tiny frame, holding her to him. My miserable and unreasonable thoughts were broken as he stood from his stool.
“I’m not here for more grog because unless it’s free flowing from the person running the show, which I’m pretty sure is you, I would never beg or expect it after hours.”
Sean pushed in his bar stool. “I was just doing a welfare check, but I see the tears are gone and you’re back to your old self. I’ll be off then.” He headed towards the door.
I just stammered, watching him go, trying to find the words to make him stay, to tell him I was an idiot, just being a jealous fool. No, I wouldn’t say that, I wasn’t jealous, why would I be? My head was all over the place tonight, why would I admit to a moment of insanity? I was tired and stressed; that was probably why I was being so snappy and unreasonable – had to be.
Sean unbolted the door and opened it to walk away and disappear out into the night.
“I have to fire Matt,” I blurted out, causing Sean to stop mid- step. He turned back, a silent question in his eyes.
I walked around the bar, my hands wringing a damp dishcloth.
“He’s stealing from the till.”
Sean closed the door and walked towards me with a guarded, unreadable expression on his face.
“Are you sure?”
I nodded. “I saw him slip a twenty in his pocket from the register.”
“Have you checked to see if the till balances?”
I blanched, unable to look at him. “I have been so flat out I didn’t even think to check what the float was before; I wouldn’t even be able to guess what it was, and I don’t want to ask Dad, he’ll just get suspicious. It’s something I shouldn’t really care about since I’m, you know, not ‘working here’ or anything.”
I was pretty certain the till had never added up, not even when Dad was running the place personally. Dad was always ripping out the odd note for ciggies, and shouting drinks to mates; on that alone I was pretty sure it had never balanced in its life.
Sean rubbed at the whiskers on his chin, something he tended to do when he was deep in thought.
How did I know that?
“The only staff member I have and he turns out to be a thief,” I added glumly. “Now do you still think I can do it?”
“Eternally pessimistic, aren’t you?” He smirked.
“Do you blame me?” I asked, lifting the stools up on top of the bar.
Sean started gathering glasses from the other end of the bar. “No business is smooth sailing; you just have to ride it out. Look at the bright side. You had a full bar tonight; people are looking for somewhere to go and this is the place.”
“Yeah, money’s flowing in and a chunk of it is probably going into Matt’s pockets.”
“Let him go and don’t pay him what’s owed; hopefully you will be able to make up some ground that way.”
“I guess.”
The phone rang behind the bar; we looked at each other, confused. Who was ringing at twelve-fifteen a.m.?
Sean’s brow arched. “Expecting someone?”
“Nobody rings that phone, except Matt.” I would never give him my own number.
“Where is he, anyway?”
“Sent him home. I kind of locked him out.”
“Maybe he’s about to do you a favour and quit?”
I quickly walked around the bar to the cream landline phone mounted to the wall. “Believe me, after the way I treated him tonight I wouldn’t be surprised. Hello?”
“Amy?” My mum’s voice sobbed through the receiver.
My smile instantly fell as my eyes fixed with Sean’s. “Mum?”
“Amy, it’s Dad … He’s had a heart attack.”
Chapter Fifteen
“He’ll be all right.”
Sean’s words were barely audible as I zoned in and out, listening to the whirrs of his Toyota Hilux’s engine. The vibration of the passenger glass window massaged my temple as I stared out at the dark. Our headlights illuminated the white stripes of the highway as we distanced ourselves from the winding Perry Ranges and headed towards the city. Two long hours away, the longest of my life.
As I had crumpled to the floor and dropped the receiver, Sean had rounded the bar in one fluid motion, breaking my fall. He’d held me in his arms as he picked up the phone to find out for himself what had made the colour drain from my face.
Sean had to convince me that my dad had not died, that he’d suffered a heart attack, and was being looked after in the hospital. I hadn’t even asked if Sean could take me to the city. He had just told me to grab my things while he scrawled a note and taped it on the front door.