The Family Across the Street by Nicole Trope

26

Gladys

She marches out of her house and into the street, where a white van with the words ‘Pack and Go’ is pulling up. As she watches, the door opens and a tall man, covered head to toe in tattoos, gets out. Gladys feels like she might just faint away. She opens her mouth as a flock of cockatoos takes flight from the tree in front of Katherine’s house, startling her and disturbing the still air, creating a tiny gust of wind, and then everything is quiet again. She squares her shoulders and takes a deep breath. ‘Excuse me,’ she says, holding her chin high. ‘Excuse me!’