“Nothing. She’s calling your mother. I just…” I drag a hand through my hair. “There must be something more I can do.”
“More?Brandon, you’ve done more than enough. You’ve saved my little sister’s life.”
“She could be doing better,” I say in an undertone. “She’s distressed. We should help her recover faster.”
Ellenor’s lips curl. “We’ve got ourselves a broken ankle. What do you want to do, fix it withSkele-Gro?”
I don’t understand the reference, but I ignore it. “I’m not talking about physical injuries.”
Her smile falters, understanding flickering in her eyes. She carries her own kind of pain—the kind no radiograph could show.
Lily feels deeply. Just when she was starting to stand again, life knocked her back down.
I’m relieved she hasn’t asked about Jack Willoughby yet. I’m not ready to tell her that Daisy dropped by in scrubs to check on her. That Jack knows she’s here yet has failed to visit.
Or that videos keep going up of their performance.
Coward.
I dread the moment she finds out. It’s the faintest silver lining to her losing her phone.
“I can’t just sit here,” I tell Ellenor. “I’ll go mad.”
She bites her lip—something I’ve only seen Lily do. “I could bring some books for you to read to her?” she offers. “Maybe your guitar?”
“Just the books.” I decide. “I’m not sure Lily needs any reminders of the guitar she’s lost right now.”
“True.” Ellenor presses the button to call the lift.
“What about your mother?” I ask.
She frowns. “What about her?”
“It might bring Lily comfort to have her here.”
“It would,” Ellenor concedes. “But you know she doesn’t fly.”
“Do you think she could be persuaded?”
She scoffs as if what I’m suggesting is outrageous. “No. She’s a real worrywart. Trust me, I’ve tried. She won’t even fly with us—she says if anything happened, she wouldn’t want to lose us too. It’s not entirely rational…”
“Fear rarely is.”
“Hmm.” Her eyes drift to the wall, unfocused, and I know exactly whereher mind has gone.
The helicopter crash.
I don’t press, but a thought settles, quiet and immovable.
If Catherine won’t fly alone…perhaps she simply needs someone to fly with her. But not her daughters. Someone she doesn’t have to protect.
She wouldn’t need to be brave then. She’d just have to go.
“Is there anyone who could accompany her?” I ask hopefully. “A friend or relative in Sydney? I could cover the costs…”
Ellenor shakes her head. “Nope.”
I fall silent, ruminating, slowly piecing together an idea. It’s mildly insane, but not terribly so. And it would be worthwhile if it improved Lily’s spirits.
