Leesa had brought two large take-away iced coffees with her and they had taken them outside and sat down on the grass in Mimi’s garden. The heat was sweltering even with the shade of a large umbrella over them, but they’d wanted to make sure they could talk in private without the girls listening in. Mimi could hear the whipbirds calling to one another in the bush behind the back fence. The familiar sound along with the sensation of the grass beneath her feet was helping to alleviate some of her disquiet.

Leesa knew most of the news. The accident, the fact that Andrea was still in a coma. And about Mimi’s recent struggles with alcohol. But what she didn’t know about was Tony, what he’d done. Mimi had called and asked her to come around and keep her company today, while Pete went to the funeral.

‘Will you forgive me if I go?’ he’d asked her the night before.

‘Of course I will. He did something horrendous but you have a right to say goodbye to your brother. The question is, will you forgive me if I don’t go?’

‘I’d never expect you to be there in a million years. Honestly, I don’t know if I’m going to say goodbye or to have some kind of last word with him, you know what I mean?’

‘Yeah, I get it.’

Callie and Tara had stayed home as well. Callie obviously knew why; Tara didn’t completely understand, but she accepted it. Mimi wasn’t sure if Tara had been listening when Callie had begun to tell her about Tony in the car that day. Tara had never asked about it. But perhaps she’d sensed the tension between her sister and Tony during the drive, or perhaps she simply trusted her mother when she said they wouldn’t be going.

Tara and Chloe were hanging out upstairs in her bedroom; Tara was excited to get Chloe to sign the cast on her arm. The twins were asleep and Callie was on the phone with Jordan. Callie had told Mimi all about Jordan. In fact, things had changed drastically between Mimi and Callie since the accident. They were maybe closer than they’d ever been. Callie had talked with her mum about everything from Jordan to singing to school friends. And of course, about Tony. She’d seen their GP and was scheduled for her first psychologist appointment on Monday. She’d told Mimi about the way she’d recoiled from Jordan’s attempt to kiss her and Mimi had encouraged her to talk to him.

‘You don’t have to tell him anything that you’re not ready to share,’ she’d said. ‘But if he’s as good a guy as you say he is, I think he’ll understand if you simply explain that you were scared.’