Chapters (48)
- Cover
- Praise
- About the Author
- Also by Tricia Stringer
- Title Page
- Dedication
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Author’s Note
- Acknowledgements
- Excerpt
- One
“Maybe Mum’s got that weird thing,” Laura said.
“What weird thing?” her sisters asked in unison.
“You know when people wish they had what someone else did to get the attention.”
Natalie put a hand to her head. Her daughters thought she was going crazy. Maybe she was. Nothing had seemed right in her life since the discovery of the anomaly. It was like she’d thought back in the coffee shop in Victor; there was some kind of dividing line across the path of her life and now she was living AA – After Anomaly.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Mum’s just Mum,” Bree scoffed then a chair scraped. “Bugger, look at the time. She’ll be here soon to organise food and Dad will be chomping. We’d better get out there, Kate.”
More chairs scraped across the kitchen floor and Natalie only had time to straighten herself up before Bree pulled open the door.
“Mum?” Bree glanced behind her and back again. “Hi…bye. Gotta go.” She brushed a kiss over Natalie’s cheek and dashed past.
“Morning, Mum.” Kate stopped to look at her more closely than her sister had. “Did you get a good sleep?”
Natalie twisted her lips up in a smile. “Yes thanks, love.”
“See you later.” Another kiss grazed her cheek.
Only Laura was left, framed in the doorway, her rainbow hair fluffed out in a wild halo and a puzzled expression on her face. “I didn’t know you were up. Dad said we should let you sleep.”
Natalie wondered if he’d said she was in Bree’s spare room.
“Would you like some breakfast?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll put the kettle on, then you can tell me what you want me to do for food today. I can give you a hand if you like.”
Natalie watched her youngest cross the kitchen. They all assumed she’d go on as usual but could she…would she? She was desperate for a cuppa and a piece of toast but she needed time to compose herself. “I’ll have my shower first. Don’t worry about me, I’ll get myself something once I’m dressed.”
By the time she’d showered and returned to her own bedroom Natalie was determined again to go to Brisbane to see Brenda, and she was going to go now before she changed her mind again.