Genesis: the Beginning and the End | Band of Brothers

【Ｃｈａｐｔｅｒ ２９ － Ｍｏｔｈｅｒ】

Chapter 29 - Mother

Christ almighty!

Margaret felt like she'd been hit by a fucking tractor, after being trampled by all the cows in the fucking world.

Sunlight was stabbing her eyes before she'd even opened them and her head hurt like crazy, pounding away to the rhythm set by her heart.

But she was outside, and the cool breeze on her skin was refreshing. There was the sound of running water, a river, and of birds.

Opening her eyes was one of the worst pains she'd ever experienced and she felt absolutely awful, and very thirsty, and quite likely to vomit.

Getting up, Margaret stumbled to the nearest hedge, that was very near indeed, and heaved and wretched until there was nothing left. Then she turned back, and practically stuck half her head in the river, but moved too quickly and instantly felt very ill again. She drank in large gulps, before sitting up again – too quickly and had to steady herself.

As it turned out, she'd stumbled her way over to her Dad's tree in the night. His ashes were scattered about the tree and in the river so he could be with the nature he so loved.

She wasn't too far from the house and slowly made her way home.

Bull and Martin were sat in the kitchen when she wobbled in.

"Why the fuck would you let me do this to myself if you knew what came after?! I feel like I've fucking poisoned myself!"

She clutched at her head as she shouted, suddenly everything seeming all too loud and sore.

Martin handed her a glass of water, which she drank, and then she asked about Luz's whereabouts. He was upstairs, still asleep.

"If he so much as thinks about throwing up, he will be doing the laundry."

They chuckled, and Martin got her another glass of water.

"I've got a question," he said as he handed her the glass, "what did they mean last night when they had no pearls?"

"It's like a coming of age thing, only women wear pearls, so as an 18th birthday present, if you can afford them, you give them to the girl. My dad promised me he'd by me a string when I fell in love with my mother's. 'cept he's dead and she ain't coming back to buy me a set. Hang on, I'll show you my mother's."

Margaret wobbled up the stairs and into her room, where she'd hidden a few of her mother's things.

But the string of pearls was nowhere to be found, nor was the silver locket Dad had bought her. Into her parents' room she went. That was when she saw it.

The photograph.

Lying on the dresser.

She had no idea how she'd missed it when she cleaned- yes she did. She hadn't really dusted, nor spent much time in her parents room.

"That bitch!"

From nextdoor, a thud followed by I'm up! I'm up! and a groan could be heard through the walls. As she stormed out of her parents' room, Luz was emerging from her brother's.

Margaret thudded down the stairs, too angry to care about how that hurt her head.

"She fucking- She- Shit!" she scrubbed a hand over her face, trying to compose herself. "I'm too hungover and too sober to be dealing with this."

"I thought you said you never wanted to drink again."

Moving out of the way of the stairs so Luz could come down, Margaret moved to sit on the worktop.