MIDNIGHT - HarperCollins NZ

MIDNIGHT
Libby had small recollection of her father, who had
gone away when she was still a little girl. Like a fastfading
picture in her mind, she saw a big man with
blue eyes, dark hair and quiet manner; a man with a
beguiling Irish accent who came home from work and
went upstairs to change before the evening meal. Most
times when the meal was over, he would go out –
returning much later when she and her mother were
in bed. Occasionally she recalled the odd, brief cuddle,
but that was all. There was no memory of closeness or
laughter. There were no night time prayers or bedtime
stories from Ian Harrow. There was a quiet sadness
about her mother then, and in the years following his
desertion of them, that made Libby feel guilty, even
when she had not misbehaved.
At school she was a bit of a loner. She did have one
good friend, though. Kit Saunders was in the same
class as her. They laughed and played, and their
friendship lifted her spirit, but when the bell rang for
home-time, a great loneliness came over her. Kit’s dad
worked shifts and was always waiting at the gates for
his beloved daughter. Kit and her parents did fun things
together. Sometimes they took their daughter to the
summer fair and one year, they invited Libby to go with
them. Kit’s father won his daughter a big teddy-bear
on the coconut-shy. The kind girl asked him to win
one for Libby, and he did his best. It was a much smaller
one, but the little bear had the funniest face, and Libby
was thrilled. Oh, how she loved him!
During the day, George the bear (named after Boy
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