by Jake Uniacke
Georgia collected the equipment from the cupboard and set it up. The ultrasound machine made a small beep as it turned on and then Georgia checked around the dog’s womb, making sure that all the puppies were okay. But it was strange. There were no heartbeats.
“Could you excuse me for a moment?” said Georgia. “I just need to get my colleague in to give a second opinion.”
The lady nodded and stayed in Room 3 while Georgia left. She came back a couple of minutes later with Sue and asked her to give a second opinion on the ultrasound.
“I’m so sorry Mrs. Fisher,” said Georgia. “I’m afraid it appears that Lula has miscarried. Has she been in a state of depression recently? Has she gone off her food, refusing to drink?
“Come to think of it, yes she has,” said Mrs. Fisher. “She hasn’t really eaten much for a couple of weeks now.”
“That is often what happens with dogs when they miscarry. They can go into a state of depression and refuse to eat.”
A tear ran down Mrs. Fisher’s face and she stroked Lula’s head. “I’m sorry, Sweetheart. It looks like you can’t be a mummy just yet.”
She left the clinic, leaving Georgia feeling extremely emotional. Georgia had hoped so much that she wouldn’t have to deal with death during her early days back at work. But here she was, on her first day back, dealing with death.
***
It came to one o’clock, and it was Georgia’s lunch break. She sat down in the staff room and tucked into her tuna and mayonnaise sandwich. And that’s when it started. The noises. The voices. She looked around the room, fear rushing through her. Her eyes darted left to right, trying to figure out where it was coming from.
Mummy.
Georgia gasped.
Mummy, help me!
Georgia let out an almighty scream.
Sue rushed into the staff room. Tears streamed down Georgia’s face, her body shuddering uncontrollably. Sue walked over and tightly hugged Georgia, not letting go. Georgia knew Sue could feel the stress radiating through her body; could sense she was not ready to come back to work. Not yet anyway.
“Take some more time off,” said Sue. “You’re not ready to be here. Gather your things, I’ll speak to Patricia and get her to call you later. Go home, Georgia. You need more time.”
Chapter 4
Georgia slouched on the sofa. It was four o’clock, and Mick was due back home soon. He had been at work all day. In fact, he had been back at work since before Emma’s funeral. After all, someone had to bring the income in, and they both decided that Mick should be the one to do it. Well, Mick decided that he would be the one to do it. He had to be strong for his wife. Georgia didn’t care about Alex being sat in the chair next to her. Instead, she gave her attention to baby Connie instead.
“Say mama,” Georgia cooed. “Say it. Say mama.”
Connie giggled and waved her arms around, excitedly. She loved the tone of her mother’s voice. It seemed so calming and nurturing. But to Alex, it was harsh and brutal. Ever since Emma’s death, Georgia had been nothing but horrible to her eldest daughter. Alex never understood why. Emma’s death was a complete accident—she never meant to kill her sister. But her mother was being so cruel when she was only nine years old!
“Mum,” said Alex.
“Not now, I’m busy,” Georgia said. “Your father will be in soon. Whatever you want to ask me, you can ask him instead.”
“Why are you being so horrible to me?”
“Because you’re an evil little bitch!”
Mick came into the room at that moment. “Don’t talk to our daughter like that!”
“Why not? It’s true,” Georgia groaned.
“She’s nine years old for Christ’s sake! What kind of mother calls her daughter that?”
“What kind of girl kills her sister?”
Alex jumped from her seat and ran to her bedroom in tears. Mick shook his head at his wife and walked off in a huff. He couldn’t believe the way Georgia was acting towards Alex. It was horrible, and it was abusive. There wasn’t much he could do about it—unless he threatened Georgia with an ultimatum. Either she starts acting like a mother, or their marriage is over. Could he do that? No, surely not. But it could work.
Mick rushed back into the living room. “If you don’t start—”
Georgia interrupted him. “I need more time off work. I spoke to my boss earlier, and she’s giving me an extra two weeks.”
“Okay. But anyway—”
“Maybe I should have had a longer maternity leave. I only stayed off for six weeks.”
“Right, but listen—”
“I think I went back to work too soon after Connie’s birth. And now I’ve gone back too soon after Emma’s death.”
“If you don’t start acting like a proper mother towards Alex, then our marriage is over!” Mick spat. “I am fed up with you speaking to her like she’s something you’ve just stepped in. She is our child. We have to protect her.”
Georgia huffed. “Are you serious? After what she did? Did you even listen to a word I just said?”
“You know what? I don’t even care anymore! If you’re going to treat our daughter like this, if you aren’t going to give a damn about what she’s going through, then why should I care about your feelings? My children will come before anyone else!”
Mick grabbed his coat and car keys.
Georgia rushed out to follow him. “Where are you going?”
“Out! I’ll be home later.”
***
Mick returned home an hour later, and Georgia shot up from the sofa watching him enter the living room. They both stared at each other for a couple of seconds before Mick walked straight past her and headed through the double sliding doors into the kitchen.
“Please don’t ignore me,” pleaded Georgia, following her husband into the kitchen.
“You called our daughter a bitch. I’m not going to just pretend nothing happened!” snapped Mick.
“I didn’t mean it.”
“Have you apologised to her?”
“Not yet, but—”
“There we go then. It’s all well and good telling me you didn’t mean it, but Alex doesn’t know that. End of conversation, I’m going to bed.”
Mick pushed past his wife, and she followed him again.
“Just listen to me!” Georgia cried. “I’m telling you that something isn’t right. I have an idea of what is happening, but I just can’t say for certain.”
Mick laughed and ignored her, carrying on walking upstairs towards the bedroom. Georgia checked that Alex’s bedroom door was shut properly before following Mick into the bedroom. She closed the door behind her and sat down on the bed.
“I am ninety-nine percent sure that Emma is haunting me,” said Georgia. “I don’t know how, it’s hard to explain. But everything that’s happened to me recently has to link back to her.”
“You’re mad,” Mick said. “Our daughter is dead. She isn’t coming back.”
“You don’t need to keep reminding me! I know she’s dead, and we both know why! But something is going on and it isn’t normal!”
“Emma isn’t haunting you! Why are you trying to tear us apart by making up this shit?”
Georgia scowled and slapped him across the face. She felt instant guilt. Mick held his face and glared at his wife. The impact had left a bright red patch on his stubbled face, the pain stinging through his skin.
“I’ve tried telling you what has been going on, yet you have ignored me every single time! How can I possibly make this up?” Georgia said.
Mick shrugged, not really sure how Georgia could make up all these scenarios. But for some reason, he just didn’t believe her. The things that were happening were just not realistic, and he was convinced that they’re all lies.
“Maybe you should speak to someone about this,” he said.
“You what?!” Georgia hissed.
“I think you should speak to a psychiatrist. Something isn’t right in your head. I
t’s making you see and hear things, and you’re trying to make me believe it.”
“I don’t need to speak to a psychiatrist. I’m not a headcase.”
“I never said you were. I’m just saying that you need to get some help.” Mick lifted his shirt over his head and threw it on the chair in the corner of the room. He pulled his pyjama trousers up to his waist and then climbed into bed, pulling the duvet up to his neck.
Georgia rolled her eyes. There was no way she was going to see a doctor or a psychiatrist or anything like that. She didn’t need it. She knew what was happening and nobody could tell her otherwise. Sitting back on the bed, Georgia huffed, and a tear rolled down her face. She so desperately wanted her husband to believe her. All these things were happening, she knew they were. If her own husband didn’t believe her, why would anyone else? Mick rolled over and rubbed her back.
“It’s going to be okay,” he said. “We’ll get you some help, and I’ll be by your side every step of the way.”
“I don’t need help! Our dead daughter is haunting me, and I am going to try everything I possibly can to prove it to you!” Georgia screamed.
Mick shook his head and sighed. “Please, just speak to someone. If not for your sake, then do it for me. And for our children. I need my wife and the girls need their mum.” He rolled over and closed his eyes, desperate to get some sleep.
Georgia stared at the wall, not saying a word. The tears kept falling down her face. She didn’t want to do this. But she knew that Mick wouldn’t stop going on about it until she agreed. So instead, she just agreed to it.
“Fine,” she said. “I’ll do it. But only to shut you up.”
***
It was the following Monday when Georgia had her first appointment with a psychiatrist. She spoke to her doctor the day after her argument with Mick, and she referred her to Doctor Tucker, the psychiatrist. Georgia was reluctant to go to the session, but she decided that she would go just to keep Mick quiet, and to be the best possible mother to her children.
Doctor Tucker was dressed smartly in a suit, his tie a shade of blue. Georgia didn’t understand why he was so smart; it wasn’t as if he was visiting someone important. She was just in a t-shirt and tracksuit bottoms—nothing special. He invited her to sit down, before sitting in his own seat and opening his notebook.
“Tell me about the day Emma passed away,” said Doctor Tucker. “What was the family dynamic like?”
Georgia sat quietly for a few minutes. “We were absolutely fine. Everyone was happy, we were all laughing and smiling. Just like a normal family. Then Alex, my other daughter, pushed Emma into the lake and everything changed.”
“How did things change?”
“I cannot forgive Alex for what she did. She killed her own sister. My husband and I are constantly arguing, I’m constantly yelling at Alex. My husband won’t believe that I’m experiencing strange things, but I promise you that these things are happening!”
Doctor Tucker wrote on his notepad, taking notes from the session. Georgia thought that maybe Emma was talking to him and telling him to write things down so that she can plan her next haunting. The doctor looked back at Georgia and smiled.
“What things are happening? Give me all the details,” Doctor Tucker asked.
“Where do I even start?” said Georgia. “After the wake, I drove off to get some space. I then saw a girl walk out in front of the car and I hit her. But when I got out, she was gone. Not a single trace of her left. Then, I heard voices. Voices saying things like ‘Mummy’ and singing Ring Around the Roses. Don’t even get me started on the blood.”
“Blood?”
Georgia’s hands shook as she picked up a plastic cup of water and took huge gulps from it. “I was in the bathroom. And then out of nowhere, all this blood just shot up through the plughole, covering me in it. Everything else in the bathroom was covered in it too. But my husband couldn’t see it for some reason.”
Doctor Tucker wrote this down and then looked back at Georgia. “Do you not think that maybe you’re imagining these things? The grief is having a deep effect on you?”
“I’m not lying, I’m telling the truth.”
Doctor Tucker knew he needed to remain professional and not brutally tell Georgia that this was all in her head. But he didn’t believe her. It was just not possible for her to be haunted by her dead daughter.
“I think you might be suffering from depression and some form of PTSD following Emma’s passing. I’m going to refer you back to your GP. She will be able to advise you on medication, support groups, and she will also set you up with a therapy session once a week,” Doctor Tucker explained.
“I don’t need any of that,” Georgia pleaded. “I just need people to believe me. I need my daughter to stop hurting me like this.”
He went onto his computer and referred Georgia back to her doctor and then allowed her to leave. Georgia turned back towards him and stared at him. She knew that he didn’t believe her. And she had to convince him otherwise.
“I promise,” she said. “I promise I’m not lying.”
Chapter 5
“I’m so proud of you.”
Georgia looked up and smiled, his words making her emotional. It was exceedingly rare that someone told her that they were proud of her. For the first time in a year, Mick had finally told his wife he was proud of her. He kissed her forehead as they cuddled on the sofa, watching When Harry Met Sally. Alex and Connie were both tucked up in their beds, so they saw it as a perfect opportunity to have a movie night, just the two of them.
No other words were spoken between the couple until it came to bedtime. They said their goodnights, expecting to go straight to sleep. But instead, Mick spoke.
“You know that I’m with you every step of the way,” said Mick. “I’m going to support you no matter what. I’ll always listen.”
“Really?” Georgia said. “Because whenever I’ve tried to tell you what’s happening, you’ve ignored me. Laughed at me. Told me I’m going crazy.”
“I never said you’re going crazy.”
“You don’t have to say the word ‘crazy’ to mean it. The way you said things was enough for me to know exactly what you were thinking.”
Mick sighed. “I’m sorry I made you feel that way. I didn’t mean to. But you can understand why I didn’t believe everything you were saying. This is real life. Things like that don’t happen in real life, only in films.”
Georgia shook her head and closed her eyes. She didn’t want to listen to her husband anymore. He was making her incredibly angry. She thought that husbands were meant to listen and support their wives. Not put them down and ignore their worries and concerns. Everything else Mick said after that just became white noise, before it eventually faded out as she fell asleep.
***
The sunlight pushed its way through the curtains, lighting the room up, spilling across the Michael Clark ‘Woods’ wallpaper. It was the first day of October and it was only a few days until Alex and Emma’s birthday. Of course, only Alex would be celebrating it. Georgia stared at the wall, squinting as the sunlight reflected from the wall to her eyes. She dreaded the day October began because she knew it was the month of her dead daughter’s birthday. Mick came into the bedroom and saw his wife yawning and stretching as she gradually woke up.
“Morning,” he said, kissing Georgia’s forehead.
“Morning,” Georgia replied.
“I think we should go shopping today. In four days, it's Alex’s birthday. We need to get her presents.”
Georgia froze. “Just Alex’s birthday? You’ve forgotten Emma already, clearly.”
“No. Of course I haven’t forgotten Emma. But we need to make the day extra special for Alex. This is her first birthday without her twin sister. We need to make it a great day.”
“She doesn’t deserve it. She’s a killer.”
“Georgia!”
Georgia groaned and rolled over. She wasn’t in the mood to put up with her husb
and’s complaining. Mick pulled the curtains open and Georgia instantly covered her eyes with her hand to block the sun.
“Get up,” said Mick. “I’m getting breakfast ready.”
***
The family sat around the dining table, eating breakfast together. Georgia kept looking over at Alex, scowling as she sat there happily eating her food like nothing had ever happened. Mick was busy feeding Connie her jar of carrot and potato baby food, pretending the little plastic spoon was an airplane. Georgia smiled at the interactions between father and daughter, ignoring Alex who was trying to get her attention about school.
“Mum,” said Alex.
Georgia ignored her daughter’s calls, and instead focused on her baby who was giggling as she knocked the jar over, causing the food to splatter all over the table and Mick’s hand. For the first time in weeks, Georgia was able to laugh. She found the ordeal hilarious. Once again, Alex tried to get Georgia’s attention.
“Mum!” Alex called, a little louder than before.
“What?!” screamed Georgia. “I’m busy!”
Alex slumped back in her chair, drawing back from her mother, her hands trembling. Mick scorned a look at his wife, furious with the way she was still treating their daughter. But Georgia didn’t care. She didn’t care about much these days. Mick was nervous about going to work; he didn’t want to leave Alex alone with Georgia just in case it ended up in injury. So, he said he would take Alex and Connie to his mum’s house for the day. He told Georgia it was so she could have a break and some time to herself; but really, he was doing it to protect his children.
“I’m sorry,” said Alex. “I didn’t mean for Emma to fall into the lake. It was an accident, I swear!”
Georgia began to grow fed up with her own daughter’s voice. The constant whining, the constant pleading, the constant apologising. It was all becoming too much for her to handle. She shot up from her chair and swung her hand around Alex’s face, the sound echoing around the room. Alex held her face as she screamed in tears. Mick watched in horror, not knowing what to do or what to say. All the noise startled Connie, causing her to burst into tears too.