Outback Sisters (45 page)

Simone guessed she should have many but she couldn't think of them right now. All she wanted to do was see her little girl. ‘Can I see her?'

Dr Lacey smiled. ‘Of course. We'll talk more later.'

‘Thank you. And thanks to you too,' Simone said, looking to the assistant principal.

‘You're welcome,' Tracey said. ‘I'll head back to school now you're here, but do let us know if there's anything else we can do to help.'

‘I will.' Simone turned away from the other women and slipped back into the cubicle. There was only one nurse left in the room now and Harriet was perched up on the bed, snuggling with Grace. The sight had Simone's heart turning in her chest—she couldn't remember the last time her girls had been so close.

‘Room for one more?' she asked, crossing over to the bed and squeezing up on the other side of Grace, mindful of the tube attached to her hand.

Grace turned to look at her and promptly burst into tears. ‘I'm so sorry, Mum.'

Simone could only just make out the words through the sobs.

‘There, there, it'll be okay.' She held Grace close and stroked her hair until her crying subsided.

‘I didn't know I could have a seizure,' Grace said, her lower lip quivering. ‘Now everyone at school has seen me. How embarrassing.'

‘Don't worry about the kids at school; if anyone gives you any trouble, they'll have me to deal with,' Harriet assured her.

Simone gave Harriet a thankful smile. ‘Why did you feel you needed to—to do this?'

‘Oh Mum, I just wanted to be beautiful like you and Aunty Eff and Harriet. I just wanted to be thin.'

‘You are thin. And beautiful!' Harriet sounded outraged.

‘You're always telling me I'll get fat if I'm not careful,' Grace said.

Harriet's face fell. ‘I'm so sorry.' She sounded as if she too were close to tears. ‘I didn't mean it. This is all my fault.'

If it's anyone's fault, it's mine
, thought Simone, but she kept this to herself. ‘It's no-one's fault,' she said, ‘and we're going to get through this together, okay?'

Both her daughters nodded and she drew them close again. This was the way Frankie found them when she appeared around the corner.

‘Aunty Eff!' Harriet and Grace said. Her daughters' delight at seeing her sister confirmed that Simone needed to mend the rift that had formed between them. They all loved and needed Frankie. She smiled, hoping that Frankie could read in her eyes how sorry she was for everything she'd said in the heat of the moment on Monday.

‘What's this I hear about you getting to ride in an ambulance?' Frankie asked as she approached the bed. Simone slipped off so that Frankie could give Grace a hug. ‘Did they put the siren and the flashing lights on?'

Grace giggled.

‘All right,' said the nurse who'd been keeping out of the way in the corner of the room, ‘we've got a room ready for you. If I can ask everyone to give us a few moments while we transfer Grace.' She mentioned a ward and room number. ‘Grace will be ready for visitors in about fifteen minutes, but not for too long. She needs her rest.'

Simone, Harriet and Frankie bid Grace farewell and told her they'd see her soon and then they left the emergency department.

Frankie pulled her purse out of her handbag and handed a twenty-dollar note to Harriet. ‘Go get us some refreshments, kiddo.'

The fact Harriet took the money and walked away without protest showed just how shaken up she was by Grace's hospitalisation. They'd all had some major life lessons over the last few weeks.

When Harriet was out of earshot, the two sisters turned to face each other. ‘I'm sorry,' they blurted at the same moment. And then before either of them said any more, they rushed into each other's arms. Simone had thought she was all cried out after the last few days, but happy tears trickled down her cheeks.

‘I'm so sorry I said all those horrible things,' she gushed. ‘I really didn't mean any of them.'

Frankie pulled back and raised one eyebrow at her. ‘Yes, you did, but that's okay. We're sisters—we're allowed to fling the odd cutting word, but if anyone else ever dares say a bad word about you, I'll—'

Exactly what Frankie would do was lost in Simone's laughter. ‘I missed you so much.'

‘Me too. Let's never go that long without talking to each other ever again.'

‘Deal.'

‘We can talk more later about everything else,' Frankie said, ‘but right now I want to know what's the matter with Grace. Do they think it's serious?'

‘Serious enough.' Simone sighed. ‘She has an eating disorder. Bulimia.'

‘Shit.' Frankie screwed up her face. ‘But she loves my cake.'

Simone nodded. ‘So much that she eats more of it than anyone else and still doesn't gain weight. I can't believe I didn't notice. What kind of crap mother am I?' She'd managed to maintain a sense of calm in front of the girls, but with Frankie she couldn't keep up the act. ‘My oldest daughter tries to run away from home and I don't even notice my youngest daughter is fading away? What hope does this little one inside me have?'

Frankie put her hand on Simone's stomach. ‘You are not a bad mother. You're the best mother I know and your girls are lucky to have you. It's not your fault you didn't know what Grace was doing. I'm around her almost as much as you and I had no idea either. But the important thing is that we know now and together, we'll help her through it. You're not alone, sis. I've been by your side every moment of those girls' lives and I'll be there for you and for number three as well.'

‘And you've got me now too,' said a deep voice behind them.

They spun around to see Angus and Logan only a few metres away. The women had been so engrossed in conversation that they hadn't even noticed the brothers approaching.

‘And,' Angus added, smiling in the way that always melted her heart, ‘I'm not going anywhere. You're stuck with me.'

‘And me,' Logan added. ‘I'm ready and willing to step up to my uncle duties, and that goes for Harriet and Grace as well as for the little munchkin. We're family.'

Frankie squeezed Simone's hand. ‘I couldn't think of two better blokes to be stuck with. What do ya reckon?'

Simone smiled through the tears that had started up again.
Damn hormones
. ‘I reckon you're right.'

Angus moved towards her and she could already feel the comfort of his arms wrapped around her. How had she gone so long without him in her life?

‘What are you guys doing here?'

At the sound of Harriet's voice, Angus dropped his hands to his side like a schoolboy caught with a girl behind the sports shed.

Her arms laden with soft drink cans and bars of chocolate, Harriet raised an eyebrow and looked from Logan to Angus and back again. ‘I thought you and Mum broke up,' she asked, her tone almost accusatory.

Simone smiled. ‘We did,' she told her, ‘but then … things got a little complicated. It's a long story, but one I'll happily tell you and Grace together, very soon.'

‘Any news yet?'

At the sound of Grace's voice, Logan roused from an uncomfortable, restless sleep, in which he'd sat upright on his future mother-in-law's couch, with Frankie's head in his lap. He yawned and looked down at his watch, blinking at the sun coming in through the still-open curtains. They'd been in vigil here since yesterday morning, waiting for news of a new niece, cousin and granddaughter. Certain there'd be news during the night, he and Frankie had decided not to go to bed, promising Grace, Harriet, Ruth and Graham they'd wake them the moment Angus called.

‘No, not yet.' He shook his head as he tried to work out how to stand to go to the bathroom without waking Frankie.

Grace sighed and slumped down in the armchair across the room. ‘Mum's been in labour for hours. Is that normal? What if something's wrong with her? Or the baby?'

She sounded close to tears and her panicked voice woke Frankie.

‘Has he called?' Frankie asked as she shot upright into a sitting position, flinging off the heavy blanket that had been keeping them warm. She ran a hand through her hair and Logan smiled, still amazed that she looked so gorgeous first thing in the morning.

‘No.' He squeezed her hand and looked to Grace with a smile. ‘I wouldn't pretend to be an expert on giving birth but I'm sure if there was a problem, Angus would call us. The way I've heard it, long labours are not unusual.'

‘Except this is Simone's third baby,' Frankie said, sounding uncertain, ‘and her other labours were relatively easy and quick.'

Logan turned to see her forehead furrowed in concern. Great, now he had two panicked women on his hands.

‘See?' Grace glared at him and then looked to Frankie. ‘Oh, Aunty Eff. I'm scared.'

‘Look, ladies,' Logan said, trying to sound confident, ‘stressing is not going to help anything. Let's get dressed, eat something and then we'll go and wait at the hospital.'

The commotion had awoken the rest of the household. Harriet, Ruth and Graham all appeared, wearing dressing gowns and slippers. Logan couldn't help thinking how much easier it would have been if it was the middle of summer, rather than a particularly cool autumn.

‘What's going on?' Harriet asked, rubbing her eyes. ‘Has Mum had the baby yet?'

‘No!' Grace shrieked and rushed at her grandmother. ‘Do you think something bad has happened, Granny?'

‘Now, now,' Ruth said, smoothing her hand over Grace's hair. ‘Don't work yourself into a state. I'll make us all some breakfast and maybe they'll have called by the time we've eaten it.'

Breakfast was a subdued occasion. Everyone's mobile phones were on the table and nobody spoke for staring at them, willing them to make a sound. Logan had tried to call Angus but it had gone straight to voicemail and even he was starting to get a little sick in the gut. Nobody ate much and eventually they all decided to go with his plan and head to the hospital.

The weather was terrible—thunder roaring above them, lightning flashing across the sky and rain so heavy that even a person without his vision issues would find it hard to see the road ahead.

‘I'll drive,' Frankie announced, smiling knowingly at him.

‘You sure?' he asked. He knew she was stressed but he wouldn't be confident driving in these conditions.

‘Of course.'

They all piled into her hatchback, the girls deciding to go with him and Frankie because she drove faster than Graham. After trying to make small talk with them to no avail, Logan tried to relax into the seat for the rest of the journey. He thought about how much had changed in the past whirlwind of a year. He was well on the way to learning Braille and adapting his life in preparation for future hurdles. He'd taken the job in Geraldton and Frankie was talking about moving there with him and opening a second café. It didn't seem five minutes since he'd found out about his deteriorating vision, but at the same time it felt like he'd been part of this crazy family for much longer than he had.

Frankie had given him hope of a good future, no matter how bad his eyesight got, and Simone had breathed life back into Angus. Olivia, who he'd texted to meet them at the hospital, already loved Frankie, Simone, Harriet and Grace like sisters and was so excited about the prospect of having a niece that she'd taken up knitting. Her first project was a pair of pink booties that Logan swore were far too small to fit an actual human.

‘Are we there yet?' Grace asked, bouncing in the back seat.

‘Almost,' he and Frankie said in unison. He smiled—they often said the same thing at the same time. Sometimes he honestly wondered if she could read his mind, but he didn't care if she could.

Just as they were turning into the car park at St John of God Hospital, all four mobile phones in the car beeped, signalling a message. After waiting for news forever, everyone jumped.

‘Is it them?' Frankie asked and Logan could see her grip tighten on the steering wheel. ‘What does it say?'

Harriet—her phone permanently in her hand anyway—was the first to open the message. ‘She's here,' she squealed, sounding more like an excited child than he'd ever heard her before. ‘Apparently labour didn't progress as it should but they got her out and she's perfect. Mum's good too,' she added. ‘There's a spot over there, Aunty Eff. Hurry.'

Grace's earlier anxiety was forgotten. ‘I'm a big sister! I'm a big sister! I'm a big sister!'

Logan laughed, glancing over at Frankie as she parked the car.

She sighed as she pulled the key out of the ignition and looked over to him. ‘Congratulations, Uncle Logan,' she said, her grin stretching from ear to ear.

‘Congratulations yourself, Aunty Eff,' he replied, leaning over and putting his hand behind her head to draw her lips to his. Who cared about the weather? This had to be pretty much the most perfect day ever.

‘Will you two lovebirds quit that?' Harriet was already out the car and rapping on the windscreen with her black talons. ‘We have a little sister to meet!'

* * *

‘She's magic.' Angus leaned over and kissed his new wife on the forehead as he stroked his newborn daughter's silky, soft head. Wrapped in pink muslin, her skin the same pale shade as her mother's, she looked like a porcelain doll. ‘You did well, darling.'

Even though Simone was still lying on the operating table, all sweaty, red and exhausted from a twenty-hour labour followed by an emergency caesarean, she beamed in the way only a woman who had just brought a new life into the world could. And he, dressed head to toe in navy blue theatre scrubs, felt like the luckiest guy alive. They stayed like that, simply gazing at their little miracle, for about two minutes, before Simone said, ‘I don't think she looks like a Charlotte, do you?'