‘This is a lot to take in.’
‘I know.’
‘I don’t know where to begin.’
‘Well,’ says Pete, retaking his seat beside her, ‘we’re in no hurry. We’re here until dusk.’ The next statement, a few minutes later, is Anna saying that she isn’t sure they could work through all this stuff; Pete agrees, but says that at least they are talking about it, and trying to identify the problem.
‘In engineering, they say that ninety per cent of the work is trying to find the problem. The solution then just flows naturally from that.’
‘You really do love that engineering hat, don’t you?’
He doffs his imaginary cap at her and says he might keep it on forever.
‘It does suit you. So then … do you think we’ve identified the problem?’
More people get up and leave the park, and she can see the green keeper has worked his way across the lawn and is almost at their bench. In a few moments he will reach them, and in this time she thinks about meeting the Guardian journalist. And she thinks about Zahra and Pete. And she thinks about Andre the suitcase man. And she thinks about her articles on Kismet. The park warden is just a few metres away now, and he looks at her and they make eye contact, and he smiles, as if to say ‘Sorry to be a spoilsport, but the party’s over.’ And she smiles back and tries to decide what to say when he tells her it’s dusk, and this question mingles with all the others hanging over her, and she realises this business of making decisions is only just beginning.
Acknowledgements
I am incredibly grateful for the support and encouragement of Georgia Garrett, Louisa Joyner, and Julia Bell. Thanks also to everyone at Birkbeck and Splinter that read all or part of the book, especially Michael Button and Victoria Richards. More generally, thanks to Nathan Small, Robert Logan, Roisin Feeny, Gagan Rehill, Finn Smith, Rachel Brown, and everyone else that collaborated on random projects over the years.
Extra special thanks to Anne and the rest of my family for their interest and support. Most of all thanks to Sheena, for everything.
About the Author
Luke Tredget works in international development, primarily for the Red Cross. His journalism has been published in the Guardian, and he completed the Birkbeck Creative Writing MA in 2015. He lives in London.
Copyright
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This ebook edition first published in 2018
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© Luke Tredget, 2018
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ISBN 978–0–571–33489–6