Sunny and Moonbeam had arrived back at Home Meadow in double quick time.
"Look at this place! Mr Halliday “she said.”It's a complete tip and it's going to take us three days just to make it look tidy for your father when he comes home. Don't think for one minute that you can bunk off. I need help and I need it now." She looked around the site with eagle eyes and he could see some form of plan developing in her mind. It was like watching the wheels spin on a gambling machine. Slowly the wheels stopped spinning and clicked into place
"That caravan is a disgrace,” she announced.” We will start there. You will wash the outside and I will gut the inside and air it. I've had enough of living in a tent. Get your Father's tools and nail the edges closed again. See if you can repair the piping that covers the exposed edges. If you can't, we will have to buy some new ones from the site shop. Is there any gas left in the cylinder? I will need plenty of hot soapy water to scrub the walls and ceiling. That dried green sludge covering the outside will need lots of hard scrubbing young man. You will have to put your back into it." She caught sight of herself for the first time in the murky caravan window that they had now strolled close to.
"Oh my gosh! I look a sight! You make a start and I'll change into something more appropriate. Jump to it. There's a good lad."
Sunny was stunned. Whoever this woman was, it wasn't his Mother.
He needed to talk to Jen urgently.
"Don't just stand there gawping Sunshine, get it open and make a start whilst I'm changing."
This new tone of hers and the unheard of urgency, was already grating on Sunny's nerves. He had half a mind to leg it up the beach and away from this madness, but she was his Mum and he felt obliged. No it wasn't just obligation, it was guilt. He knew some where along the line he was somehow responsible for this. He climbed the tiny metal steps that led to the caravan door and tried to open it. It was stuck fast with years of weather beaten and hardened green grime. He went and fetched a small flat headed screw driver and scribed all along the seam. He pulled with all his might and the door finally gave up the fight and opened rather quickly. He fell backwards onto the grass. The heat escaping from the confined space was overpowering, as was the smell. It was a terrible stink of damp and must and heaven knows what else. He waited a few seconds for the first blast to disappear and stuck his head inside. It was a graveyard for dead insects. The floor was covered in dead black houseflies. In fact you could not see the carpet on the floor for them. The windows had spiders and moths glued to them when the condensation had wetted them and then the sun had re-dried them. He was sure that there were mouse droppings on top of the dead flies. Ugh! it was horrific.
Moonbeam, in what looked to him like winter clothes, had by now re appeared. She was clothed from head to foot in garments he had no recollection of ever seeing before. Her hair had all been pulled back severely and tucked into what Sunny could only describe as an emerald green turban. She looked like some shady character from a Sherlock Holmes novel. She actually looked quite comical to Sunny, but he decided it was not appropriate to laugh at this juncture.
"Get those windows open young man. We need air in this place and fetch me the besom. It'll take the rest of the day just to sweep the floor. When it's clean I want you to take all the carpets out and give them a good beating. We may have to buy new ones and by the looks of it we will probably have to replace all the cushion covers and definitely buy new curtains."
Sunny now knew for sure that this was not his true Mother. It couldn't be.
House proud was never one of her traits and any form of consumerism was alien to his real Mum.
End of Book 1
Continuing adventures for Sunny & Jen in Book 2
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