176|Thorn In Her Side

Estelle, in all her regal glory, was already seated front and centre of Dark Roast, a quaint seaside coffee shop east of Pelican Surf, when Marybeth arrived. She'd asked Orlando if she wanted to join them, but her young charge had politely declined, choosing to stay in the car with Henry and Mirko.

As Marybeth weaved through the tables and approached the thorn in her side, she wished she'd been as brave as Orlando and refused to pitch up for what was bound to be a showdown of note.

She didn't even understand why they were meeting at a coffee shop when Estelle's place was a few blocks away. But still agitated over her confrontation with Carol, she wasn't in the mood to find out. In fact, she wasn't in the mood to talk, period, and the sooner the Hawthorne matriarch told her why she'd been blowing up her phone with text messages like a deranged stalker, the better. So after they exchanged curt greetings and placed their coffee orders, Marybeth cut to the chase.

"Why am I here?" she inqui