‘Yeah. It kind of explained a lot. He and Mum are going through a bit of an adjustment.’
‘Is your mum okay?’
‘She will be. I think she’s relieved it all finally came out. Dad’s moved out of the big house and over to the other side of the property. I think Mum’s had enough of his crap.’
‘Oh, wow,’ she breathed. ‘What’ll happen with them?’
Ewan shrugged. ‘No idea. I think they’re both content at this stage to just live separate lives. It’s not like they haven’t been doing that for a long time already.’
‘That’s a lot to deal with.’
‘It has been,’ he agreed, his gaze on Poppy as she pulled up in front of them out of breath.
‘You’re a pro,’ Ewan said, sounding impressed.
‘Wanna see me on the monkey bars? I can do three now,’ she told him, already clambering off the bike and unclipping her helmet.
‘Sure,’ he said, taking the helmet she pushed into his hands, and watching her run towards the play equipment.
Kenzie went to pick up her discarded bike, but Ewan bent down and lifted it, and they followed the four-year-old slowly across the grass.
‘Kenzie,’ he said turning to face her abruptly. ‘I just wanted to apologise. I never meant to doubt you. I don’t think I honestlydiddoubt you. It just happened so quickly and caught me off guard. I believe you weren’t sleeping with anyone else and I’mreally sorry I questioned you about being drunk. Like I was one to talk,’ he added dryly.
She gave a small grimace. ‘It’s okay. It did look pretty damning.’
‘The thing is, Kenzie—’
‘Are you watching?’ Poppy called.
They both turned just in time to see Poppy jump … and completely miss the first bar. She landed on the ground with a sickening thud.
‘Poppy!’ Kenzie yelled, running to where the small child lay crumpled on her side.
‘Don’t move her,’ Ewan said, holding Kenzie back as she went to roll their daughter over. He slipped three fingers into the collar of Poppy’s shirt, feeling for a pulse against her neck. ‘She’s breathing, but she’s not responsive. Call an ambulance.’
Kenzie fumbled with her phone, her fingers too stiff.
‘It’s okay, I’m calling them now,’ a woman with two small children reassured her, crossing to her side of the playground from where she’d been sitting.
Kenzie kneeled beside Ewan and fought to keep herself together.
‘She’s just knocked herself out,’ Ewan said calmly. ‘We’ll keep an eye on her breathing until the ambulance gets here.’ ‘They’re on their way,’ the woman said, moving closer, still talking to the operator.
It was only minutes, but it felt like hours before she saw the two uniformed paramedics racing across from the carpark.Poppy was making little sounds and crying softly by the time they arrived. They carefully assessed her, checking vitals and soon realised there was a possible fracture to the arm she fell on and prepared to lift her onto the stretcher and take her in for X-rays and further tests.
‘You go with her. I’ll meet you at the hospital,’ Ewan said, helping Kenzie into the back of the ambulance.
Kenzie managed to nod, holding Poppy’s hand and trying for a reassuring smile while the paramedic sat beside her and placed an oxygen mask over her little face.
Don’t cry, don’t cry.Kenzie didn’t know if she was hoping for Poppy or willing it for herself.
When they finally reached the hospital, they were taken into a waiting room where a triage nurse went over Poppy again, before leaving them to wait for the doctor. Because of her age and some tenderness in her belly, they immediately took her for an X-ray before returning her to the waiting room. Then there was more waiting for the doctor and the results.
Kenzie’s heart ached as she watched her little girl cry. For all the rollercoaster of emotions of the past few weeks, there was no worse or more helpless feeling in the world than being unable to help your child in pain.
Forty-one
Ewan parked the car and jogged into Emergency, waiting with barely contained impatience behind a woman who was complaining about a sore throat. Finally, his turn came and he approached the tired-looking ward clerk with a polite hello.
