Outback Sisters

by Rachael Johns

  Frankie squeezed her eyelids together, trying to fight her tears. She’d die if anything happened to Grace. And Simone had already suffered so much loss—she didn’t deserve any more.

  ‘I’ll call Angus,’ Logan said, his phone already at his ear. ‘You try Simone again.’

  Ten seconds later, he shook his head. ‘He’s not answering.’

  ‘Neither is she.’ Frankie couldn’t keep the anguish out of her voice.

  ‘Let’s go to her house—see if she’s there.’ He turned to Monique. ‘Are you and Stacey okay to man the café?’

  Monique nodded and made shooing movements with her hands. ‘Go. And I hope Grace is okay. Don’t worry about anything here.’

  Frankie, unable to think straight, was grateful as Logan ushered her outside and over to his ute.

  The short journey to Simone’s house seemed to take forever. ‘What if …?’ She couldn’t bring herself to finish her sentence.

  ‘Relax.’ Logan reached across the gearbox and squeezed her thigh. ‘There could be a number of reasons why Grace had a seizure and there’s no point getting all worked up until we know the facts. Right now, we need to find Simone and then get to Geraldton as soon as we can.’

  Frankie nodded.

  Despite knowing that Angus had been visiting Simone, it was still weird to see his dirty ute parked outside her house. It crossed Frankie’s mind, as she and Logan rushed out of the car and up the front steps, that they might not be answering their phones for a reason.

  ‘What if they’re … you know … busy,’ she said as she unlocked Simone’s front door and pushed it open.

  Logan’s brows shot up his forehead. ‘I think Simone will still want to know about Grace.’

  Frankie nodded and charged down the short hallway towards Simone’s bedroom, preparing herself for the worst. The door was open and there were noises coming from inside. She felt the few mouthfuls of pie she’d eaten churning in her stomach. She paused before she could see inside, cleared her throat and called out, ‘Simmo?’

  The noises ceased. She heard the squeaking of a mattress and hurried whispers, then, ‘Is that you, Frank?’

  ‘Yep—cover yourselves because I’m coming in.’

  She counted to five and then barged into the bedroom. Although she’d suspected, it still shocked her to see Angus shirtless (probably trouserless as well) in her sister’s bed. She didn’t know where to look.

  ‘What the hell?’ Simone shouted, her cheeks a deep red colour.

  ‘Hi,’ Angus said, with a sheepish wave as Logan came up behind Frankie.

  ‘It’s Grace,’ Frankie said, not wanting to waste time. ‘The school just called me. She’s had some kind of seizure and been rushed to hospital.’

  ‘Oh my God. The phone. It was ringing and we …’ Simone clutched the sheet tightly against her chest. ‘Did they say anything else?’ Before Frankie could reply, she continued. ‘I need to go to her. Now. I need to get dressed.’ She leaped out of bed, completely naked, and started opening and closing drawers looking for clothes. Her actions were manic and she didn’t seem to care that Logan bore witness to her nakedness.

  ‘I’ll wait in the lounge room,’ he whispered to Frankie and then retreated in a hurry.

  ‘I’ll drive you,’ Angus announced, also climbing out of bed and reaching for a pair of jeans lying on the floor next to the bed.

  Frankie averted her gaze and went over to Simone. She’d felt like a basket case until she’d delivered the news to Simone, but now she realised she needed to keep a level head. It was Simone’s right to fall apart and Frankie’s job to take control. Her sister’s hands were shaking and as she struggled into a pair of shorts, Frankie found a T-shirt in her drawer and then helped her pull it over her head. Angus joined them, still buttoning up his navy chambray shirt, his boots already on his feet.

  ‘Will Grace need a change of clothes, do you think?’ he asked and Frankie was impressed by his forethought.

  Simone looked as if she couldn’t even comprehend the question.

  ‘Good idea.’ Frankie smiled at Angus. ‘You take Simone to Gero. I’ll get a bag together for Grace and we’ll follow as soon as we can.’

  Angus nodded, then wrapped an arm around Simone and drew her into his side. He placed a kiss on the top of her head and spoke softly to her. ‘Come on, let’s go see Grace.’

  As he guided her out of the bedroom, Frankie couldn’t help noticing how tender he was with her sister. The way Angus looked at Simone was the look Frankie saw in Logan’s eyes when he looked at her, and it made her heart sing.

  It didn’t matter that they’d started out with the wrong people; what mattered was that now they were all with the right ones.

  Chapter Thirty-three

  Angus had to jog to keep up to Simone as she flew from his ute and charged into Geraldton Hospital. He hadn’t been here in years and it looked like they’d flashed it up a bit since he had, not that it mattered what the place looked like. All he cared about was that they had top-notch professionals who would know exactly how to treat Grace. He couldn’t bear the thought of Simone having to go through the loss of a child like he had.

  ‘I’m here to see my daughter, Grace McArthur. She’s just been brought here in an ambulance,’ Simone declared to the woman behind the reception desk. She sounded like she’d run a marathon.

  ‘Let me see …’ The woman tapped her fingers against her computer keyboard, taking her own sweet time to tell them anything.

  Angus gave Simone’s hand an encouraging squeeze. She looked like she was about to explode if she had to wait another ten seconds.

  ‘Ah, yes.’ The receptionist smiled victoriously. ‘She’s still in emergency being assessed, but family can see her.’ She turned to him. ‘Are you her father?’

  Angus opened his mouth, unsure of what to say. He wasn’t, but wanted to be there for Simone.

  But she got in first, turning to him and placing a hand on his chest. ‘The girls don’t know about us yet, so it might be best if you stay in the waiting room. Do you mind?’

  He shook his head. ‘Not at all. But I’ll be right here if you need me. Love you.’ His breathing hitched. He hadn’t known he was going to say those two words, hadn’t known how true they were until they were out.

  Simone smiled. ‘I love you, too. Thank you.’ Then she turned to the bemused-looking receptionist. ‘Which way to emergency?’

  Angus took a seat on the cold plastic chair in the waiting room and contemplated how dramatically his life had changed in the course of a few weeks. In hooking up with Simone, it wasn’t only her and their baby he was taking into his life, but also two teenage girls who hadn’t had a father figure for years. He wasn’t naive enough to think that it would be plain sailing, but he found himself looking forward to getting to know Harriet and Grace more than he’d ever have expected.

  Not long after Simone rushed off in the direction the receptionist had pointed, Frankie and Logan burst through the entrance doors. He stood as they headed over.

  ‘Where’s Simone? Do you have any news on Grace?’ Frankie asked, bypassing traditional greetings and seemingly unperturbed by the fact that she’d seen him naked less than an hour ago. This is what family is all about, he thought, as he nodded an acknowledgement to his brother.

  ‘Simone’s gone through to emergency—they’re still assessing Grace,’ he told Frankie. ‘As you’re family, they might let you in too.’

  That was all the encouragement she needed. Without a word to either of the men, she turned and hurried down the corridor in the same direction Simone had gone, leaving Angus and Logan alone. Angus shoved his hands in his pockets and they both stood there awkwardly, a metre apart. This wasn’t the place he’d imagined having the talk he needed to have with Logan, but he guessed there probably wasn’t any ideal place for this kind of conversation.

  ‘I’m sorry for punching you,’ Logan said eventually, the scowl on his face saying this apology didn’t come easily.


  Angus chuckled. ‘I’d say you had a pretty good reason for doing so.’ He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. ‘I’m sorry, bro. What I did was indefensible and I know I don’t deserve your forgiveness, but I’m really hoping that in time, you’ll come to offer it.’

  ‘So, you and Simone?’ Logan nodded in the direction of emergency. ‘Are you going to make a go of this parenthood thing together?’

  Angus hoped the truth wouldn’t upset Logan further, but he was through with lies. ‘Yes,’ he said firmly. ‘She’s the best thing that’s happened to me in a long while and I hope you’ll be able to give us your blessing. We want you and Frankie to be a big part of our baby’s life.’

  ‘Wow.’ Logan puffed out a breath of air. ‘A baby, hey? You ready for that again?’

  ‘Truthfully?’ he said. ‘I’m terrified, but I don’t think anyone’s ever ready for a baby.’

  Silence reigned for a few more moments before Logan said, ‘Of course I forgive you. We can’t all be perfect like me.’ He smirked and Angus smiled too. ‘Frankie and I are happy for you. We were only talking an hour or so ago about what to get you guys as a gift.’

  ‘Really?’ Angus felt the last bit of tension that had been clenching his muscles since fighting with Logan and discovering he was going to be a dad slipping away.

  ‘Really.’ Logan nodded, smiled and offered his hand. ‘Congratulations, brother.’

  ‘Thanks, mate.’ Angus accepted the handshake. ‘And you and Frankie? Things good there?’

  ‘Better than I could ever have imagined,’ Logan told him, his grin stretching across his face. ‘She’s the best.’

  * * *

  When Simone stepped into the emergency room and saw her baby lying on the bed, her heart leaped into her throat. Grace looked so young, so vulnerable, and all Simone wanted to do was sweep her into her arms and hold her close. But there were medical people hovering over her, so she held back.

  ‘Mum?’

  She turned to see Harriet in the corner of the curtained cubicle and rushed to her instead. Her oldest daughter sniffed into her chest.

  ‘I was so scared when I heard about Grace,’ she said, ‘but they say she’s going to be okay.’

  ‘Of course she will be,’ Simone said, with a conviction she didn’t feel. People didn’t just have seizures for no reason, did they? She needed answers.

  Thankfully, one of the people stepped away from Grace and approached them. ‘Are you Grace’s mother?’ the woman asked.

  She nodded.

  ‘Hi, I’m Dr Lacey.’ The woman smiled briskly and offered her hand. ‘Can you step outside a moment? We need to talk.’

  Simone didn’t want to leave Grace but Harriet stepped out of her mother’s embrace and went over to her sister, so Simone followed the doctor to just outside the cubicle. There she recognised the assistant school principal, Tracey Palmer, waiting in a chair.

  ‘Oh, hello,’ she said. ‘I’m sorry I didn’t see you before. Thank you for coming.’

  Tracey smiled as she stood up. ‘Grace is a special girl.’

  ‘As you know, Grace convulsed at school,’ Dr Lacey said, talking to the both of them. ‘We have assessed her and I believe the seizure was caused by dehydration or ketoacidosis.’

  Simone had no idea what the latter was but she didn’t like the sound of it. ‘Is it serious? Will it happen again? What can we do?’

  ‘Mrs Palmer has informed me that one of the girls at school confessed to their teacher after Grace’s episode that she has been throwing up food in the bathroom after breaks for quite some time. Both dehydration and ketoacidosis can be related to eating disorders. Did you have any suspicions your daughter was bulimic?’

  ‘What? No! Grace loves her food.’ This was too much for Simone to take in. What more could life possibly throw at her?

  Dr Lacey’s expression softened. ‘Don’t be too hard on yourself. Girls with eating disorders are very good at hiding it from those closest to them, and bulimia is even harder to notice than anorexia. I’ll bet Grace has been eating all her meals. Her lunch box coming home empty?’

  Simone nodded, thinking about how Grace was the first to ask for seconds, but how she retreated to the bathroom immediately following almost every meal. How could she have missed something this big? She felt like the worst mother on the planet. ‘I had no idea.’

  ‘The good thing is we’ll be able to talk to her now, work out how long this has been going on and why she feels the need to go to such drastic measures. Our first step is to get her rehydrated and to treat her physically, so we’re going to transfer her to a ward in a moment, but I’ll also be referring Grace to a psychologist who specialises in dealing with teenagers who have eating disorders. She’s very good at her job and I know Grace will be in good hands. Do you have any questions?’

  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.�
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  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?’