22December2025
I awoke to the clatter of the old radiator and the familiar scent of fresh coffee wafting from the kitchen. Victor Roman, thats me, pulled the crisp white shirt from the wardrobe and, as my wife Nadine handed me a freshly knotted tie, I snapped, Wheres the one I brought back from London? Ive a meeting with the board this afternoon. She found it without a word and passed it over, eyes as steady as ever.
Cant you even manage a simple knot? I muttered, lifting my chin as she threaded the silk around my neck in the exact pattern I favour. I stared at my reflection, smirked, and adjusted the knot with a patronising glance, as if to say, Youll never get it right, love.
In the kitchen I barked, Take the fried eggs away. I want coffee and toast. My tone was sharp; the coffee had gone cold, and my irritation seeped into every syllable.
Just then, Annie burst through the doorway. Shed arrived yesterday with her mother for a weeks stay, a bright fiveyearold with a keen eye for the absurdities of adult behaviour. She perched on the frame, taking me in from her lofty perch.
Come here, Annie, I coaxed, pulling her onto my knee. I tried to soften my voice, hoping shed cling to me, giggle, and hug her granddad. Instead she stared up at me, solemn, and said, Granddad, why are you speaking to me like that? Only kind people speak that way.
I was taken aback. Am I not kind? I asked, bewildered.
No, she replied, patting my chest where my heart beat fast. She then slipped from my lap, trotted over to Nadine, planted a kiss on her cheek and whispered, Good morning, Grandmum.
Her words lingered as a drivers horn sounded outside; my chauffeur was already waiting in the entrance. I shrugged on my coat, polished my shoesstill scuffed from the evenings dashand grabbed my briefcase. Dont expect me for lunch. I may be stuck late again tonight, I called over my shoulder.
Walking down the stairs I tried to feel the usual surge of power: the confidence that I could move mountains for my subordinates, that any directive from the top would be executed without fuss. I told myself the results mattered, not the means, and that the petty problems of the world beyond my office walls could not touch me.
Yet a sting tugged at my heart. It was Annies innocent rebuke that gnawed at me. Youre not kind, shed said. I muttered under my breath, Youll get what youre missing, little one. Im strict, not cruelmy job doesnt allow weakness.
Between the second and third floor, a tiny twomonthold kitten squeezed under a warm radiator, eyes wide with fear. Theres a pest in the hallway. Ill have the caretaker move it, I grumbled, though no caretaker was in sight, the fresh snow having blanketed the pavement overnight.
I paused at the lobby, waiting for Volodymyr, my driver, to pull up. Office! I instructed crisply, then allowed a rare flicker of thought: No one could ever say that to me. Why? Because theyre frightened. But Annie isnt. Shes brave. Perhaps shes right. I sank onto the seat, trying to convince myself that beneath this hard shell there was still a good man, that life had merely forced this façade upon me.
The icy roads made Volodymyrs breath fog in the wind. Its slick out there, he said, surprised by my sudden, unusually warm tone. Well be careful. I nodded, feeling the tension ease a touch.
From the passenger seat, I spotted a young woman in the bus shelterLizzie from the support team, barely older than my daughter. Lets give her a lift, I said. She smiled, climbed into the backseat, and, with a sparkle in her eyes, produced a trembling kitten from under her coat. I found her shivering at the stop. Shes cold, and no one seemed to care. I wrapped her up so shed stay warm. Ill take her home after work; my son will love her.
She told me her son was seven, just starting secondary school, already handling his own meals and homework. I remembered how Id pressed the support department into overtime this month, even though it wasnt strictly necessary. Youve done enough for the cat, Lizzie, I said, granting her a halfday off for her sons birthday and the rescue. Make it a special day. Ill explain to your manager myself.
Volodymyr chuckled. Two cats, I have, he replied. Two mischievous heads.
The day slipped by in the usual corporate rhythm, punctuated only by a brief lunch with my deputy, James. Got any grandchildren? I asked.
Two, he answered with a grin, little bandits.
We get along? I teased.
Like peas in a pod, he replied, eyes twinkling.
So youve got a cat at home?
The cat is the queen of the house, he said, surprised.
I raised an eyebrow, amused.
When the workday finally ended, I headed back up to my flat. Between the second and third floor, by the radiator, the same kittennow named Tappywas curled on a quilt with a bowl of food and a tidy litter box beside it.
What a world, I sighed, cradling the tiny creature. No one seems to mind you, yet here you are, shivering.
Annie burst in, eyes wide. Granddad, I asked Grandma to take the kitten, but she said you wouldnt let us.
Why not? I asked, smiling despite myself. Of course Ill let you keep her. I kissed Nadine on the cheek, then turned to the kitten. Well give you a proper wash and a name.
An hour later, Tappy sat contentedly on Annies lap while she snuggled close to my side, her cheek pressed against my chest. Granddad, its not cold here any more, she whispered, her fingers tracing a warm line across my shirt. Its warm. Let it stay this way, okay?
It will, I promised, feeling a warmth I hadnt known in years. Now that we have a cat, therell always be a bit of sunshine in this house.
The night settled in, the wind howling outside, but inside the flat was bright with the soft purrs of Tappy and the gentle breathing of my granddaughter. Perhaps, after all, theres still a kind man hidden beneath the stern exterior.
