Chapter Nine – 22 years and 10 months before the collapse
Annabel sat on the sofa, waiting for Jim to come home. She’d been working out a budget and would get him to promise to stick to it.
When he arrived, he was in a foul mood.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“They’re linking our jobs to students’ performance.”
“But it’s not your fault if the students are too lazy.”
“Yes, but they argue that they pay me to motivate the students.”
“The staff won’t put up with it, will they?”
“Half of them have already joined National Unity.”
“Did you see Beggum about the rent?”
“All paid up.”
He pulled out his phone and opened the banking app to check his balance.
“It’s all gone,” he said. “How did that happen?”
“We have to budget, so you are not using your credit cards.”
“How do you propose we d
