“Nappy off, Wi-na! Catch me! Catch me!” Irina panicked in case he might slip on the marble floor. She caught him and lifted him into the bath and wound up his bath toys as he splashed around in the soap bubbles, putting them on his nose, on the top of his head and laughing as Irina blew them off. She tipped his head back and washed his hair. When she was putting on his pyjamas, her mobile rang.
“Hi, Irina, it’s me. I’ve decided to meet Justin in town for a quick dinner. He’s just had a big win at work, so we’re going out to celebrate. I know you normally phone your son in the evenings, but I’m sure you can call tomorrow morning, can’t you?”
Irina felt a sharp twinge in the pit of her stomach. By the time Mrs. Gold came home, Irina’s mother would have already put him to bed. The London-Bucharest phone calls cost so much more on the weekends. She thought of her little boy waiting for his phone lullaby, of how her mother would shout at her for letting her son down the next time she phoned home. She told Mrs. Gold that it didn’t matter.
“Irina, you’re an angel. Kiss Max for me. Tell him that mummy and daddy love him very much, and we’ll see him when he wakes up in the morning.”
Irina settled Max into his freshly made-up cot, watching him with a smile as he snuggled against his blue bunny. He was fast asleep by the time she went back down to clean the rest of the ground floor. When she was finished, Irina started the washing machine and sat in the quiet kitchen, nursing a thick sweet coffee, her hands sore from using cleaning fluids without bothering to wear rubber gloves. It was nearly 11 p.m.
Her husband rang her, demanding to know why she was so late. He told her that she was being exploited. That she should stand up to them. Irina put the coffee cup in the dishwasher and walked into the hallway to look in the mirror. She stared at her reflection, trying to imagine that it was Mrs. Gold looking back at her. She stopped herself from blinking, trembling as she said the words out loud, over and over again.
“If you don’t pay more to me, I will go.” And then she thought of Max.
The sound of the front door opening made Irina jump. She went back into the kitchen and pretended to busy herself, cleaning the already spotless surfaces. She felt her mouth go dry. Sweat crept into the palms of her hands. Mr. and Mrs. Gold walked into the kitchen.
“Irina, thanks so much for staying so late. I really do appreciate it.”
Irina looked at her. “I need more to be paid. My son is sick, and I must pay to hospital for operation.”
Mrs. Gold exhaled and put her handbag down.
“If you say no pay more, I don’t work for you.” Mr. Gold stood by the door with his arms folded. He made a sucking sound with his teeth. Irina looked at him. Just his patronising sneer was enough.
She shouted at them. She said that they were selfish and lazy. That Mr. Gold was rude and treated her like a slave. They had a beautiful boy who loved them so much, and his mother didn’t even notice. Why did she not want to be with her son when she didn’t work? Irina missed her boy and had to leave him behind just to be able to send money home to take care of him. Doctors in her country were so expensive. Only rich people could afford to go to them. She didn’t want to be here.
“Go back home, then,” said Mr. Gold and left the room.
“My son has sick heart! If I go home, he die!” Irina shouted.
She shook when she picked up her keys. They slipped from her hands onto the floor. The plastic Madonna key ring filled with holy water cracked against the floor tiles, and blue-dyed water ran out. Irina had been given the key ring outside her church, the day before she left for London. The old lady handing them out had told her that it would keep her safe in her new home. “For luck,” she’d said, closing Irina’s hand softy over the Madonna.
Irina bent down to pick up the pieces of broken plastic.
Mrs. Gold took a deep breath. “Irina, I’m sorry things are so tough for you at the moment. I just can’t increase your wages now. We’re paying you more than most people pay for their nannies. Friends of mine have told me I’m being way too generous. But I can give you more hours. I could do with some extra help on weekends. I’m sure that would make things easier for you, wouldn’t it?”
Irina nodded, slowly.
Max cried from upstairs. Mrs. Gold stood up as if to go to him. Irina looked at her. She put her hand on Mrs Gold’s arm. “No, I will go to Max.”
She went upstairs to the nursery and turned Max over in his cot. His fat little arms reached up for her.
“Wi-na…” he murmured.
“Did you have bad dream, little boy?”
Irina rocked him on her lap until he was nearly asleep, feeling the comforting warmth of his little arm around her neck. She laid him back down and sat on the floor next to his cot, watching his eyelids slowly close. She looked at his black lashes lying on his cheeks, long and curly like her son’s. She sang to Max, very softly until he slept. “Nani, nani, puiul mamii, Nani, nani, puiul mamii, Puişorul mamii mic, Facete-ai, maică, voinic…..”
About Madeline Ioannidis
One Comment
Such a moving, well told story. The craftsmanship is evidenced by the fact that I kept reading, wanting more, wanting a strong ending. Beautifully done!