‘Um, the stove. An accident. That’s what she said. I wasn’t there when it happened.’

‘Hmm.’ Geraldine sat back for a moment, and then leaned forward again and spoke seriously to me. ‘So what’s it like there? In the house? Do you feel safe?’

I was thrown. ‘Um, yes? I guess. I’ve only been there a few days.’

‘How many?’

‘Five days – well, four and an extra night really.’

‘And it seems okay?’

‘Well, obviously I’m scared that something might fall on me too, or that a mouse might jump on my face in the night –’ Geraldine laughed with surprise. ‘The place is very . . . um, rustic. Have you seen it?’

Geraldine shook her head. ‘I haven’t done a home visit. Perhaps I should.’

She started typing into Bette’s file, asking questions as she did.

‘How old are you, Anna?’

‘Seventeen.’

‘Will you be staying with them for a while?’

‘I’m not sure yet, maybe just for the holidays, or maybe for a while longer.’

‘And they are Mum’s parents, yes?’

‘Yes.’

‘And she is coming soon?’

‘Um, no, not. Probably not – So, why are we . . . I’m just wondering about these questions about me – I don’t think I understand . . .’

Geraldine stopped typing and nodded. She looked up to the ceiling and then looked me in the eye. ‘I’m trying to get some background information because it seems to me that Bette has more injuries than she really should. I’m trying to rule some things out.’

‘Doing a differential diagnosis,’ I said.

‘Ah yes, of course, the budding doctor.’

‘So like, you’re thinking maybe it’s like an early sign of dementia or something. And that house . . .’

‘That’s how it works, yes, but it’s also important to remember social factors when trying to engage in diagnostics.’

‘Of course, okay, so . . .’

‘The recent X-rays of her hands revealed older finger breaks –’

‘– finger breaks?’

‘We were X-raying for her arthritis, but the images showed old breaks. Decades old. Your grandmother’s hands have been slowly debilitated by repeated breaks. We’ve asked her about it, and she doesn’t have an explanation that I feel satisfied with.’

Geraldine was looking at me steadily, and I frowned but before I had time to think about what that meant and what to say and what to ask, before I had time to process some deep and undefined sense of shock, Geraldine stood up abruptly. ‘Okay, so I’m on shifty privacy ground here and I should probably wrap this up, but I just think the more eyes on Bette the better, okay?’

‘Um, okay?’

‘It was very lovely to meet you, Anna,’ she said and held her arm out away from herself, that civil gesture of showing the door which cannot be argued with. ‘Can you make an appointment for Bette for two days’ time, please? And keep taking her temperature. If there’s any fever she needs to go straight to hospital.’