“Fair point. But it’s hard to get her to tell me, because she knows I’ll be paying, and she’s not comfortable with that.”
“She’s used to being skint. She’s not used to being rich.”
“I’ve noticed. So I’ll ask another way. Anywhere she’s mentioned in particular?”
“Yeh,” Finlay said. “She said the Coromandel. That’s her favorite, and Hahei’s her favorite town. We went there sometimes when I was little, I think, though I don’t remember very well. And she was talking about it before. Before you were around, I mean. She said that if we saved money the rest of the year, we could do a week before Christmas at the holiday park there, the way we used to. That’s why Olive and George and Mum and I all take our lunch every day, and have a plan of things to eat when we’re at our house, too. Things that aren’t very expensive, I mean. And she said she doesn’t need new clothes, even though she bought new clothes to go on a date with you. Or wine, either, even though she likes wine. We have a budget. That’s when you write down the money you can spend. We have that anyway, but especially to save for the holiday park.”
“Ah,” Zane said. “Thanks, mate. That’s helpful. I could probably arrange that, and we could do some fishing there, too. Ever fished from a kayak?”
“No. Only from the dock, or sometimes from the rocks. Granddad says getting in and out of boats is too hard now. Fishing’s a bit dull, really, because you’re just standing there hoping the fish will come. I’m not sure why I even like it.”
“That’s where the kayak comes in,” Zane said. “You can trail a line.”
“Kayaking looks fun on TV,” Finlay said, “but I’ve never done it. Or ziplining or riding a horse, either. I guess it’s nice to be rich.”
“It can be,” Zane said. “And why not enjoy those things, if you have the chance to do them? But I grew up with heaps of brothers and sisters myself, and we definitely weren’t rich. My two brothers and I shared a room, though as I was the eldest, I didn’t have to sleep in a bunk bed. Lucky, eh. We hadonly one bath and two toilets, like you, and there were heaps of times when we boys would have to take a wee in the garden in the morning when we couldn’t get in there. We fished for the fish, not the fun, and we ate what we caught. Probably ate more fish than I wanted to, to tell the truth. For fun, we played rugby. But it was a brilliant childhood all the same, chores and shared bedrooms and all. Being outside. Playing rugby with my brothers, wrestling with them, being a bit of a fool. Being with my whanau. All the things I like.”
“Olive’s favorite thing is to read in her cupboard,” Finlay said, “and that doesn’t cost anything.”
“There you are, then,” Zane said.
“And you still get to play rugby with your brothers,” Finlay said. “Is it still fun?”
“Yeh, mate. It still is. I’m lucky. I get to do my favorite thing as my job, I get to do it with some of my whanau, and I get paid well for it. I have to spend too much time away from home and ask too much of my kids and my partner, but every job has a downside, eh. But right now, we’d better rattle our dags and get back to the house to get ready for that ziplining date.”
“This has been a very nice holiday,” Finlay said, climbing out of his lounge chair.
“For me too. You lot have made it more fun, so thanks for that.”
“Even when Scarlett and I fight?”
“Not my favorite part,” Zane said, “but nothing I’m not used to. My brothers still take the piss, no worries, and so does Jade, every chance she gets. But they’re still my brothers, and she’s still my sister. That’s just how whanau is.”
48
NIGHT TERRORS
Zane was dreaming, and then he wasn’t. At first, he thought,Stiff, that’s all.He was a pretty fit bloke, but his inner thighs weren’t used to riding horses. He’d gone to bed early, but only because everyone else had. Nobody earlier than Skylar, though, because she’d well and truly worn herself out. He should’ve thought of that. Zipliningandhorseback riding was a pretty full day. The kids had liked it, though, and it hadn’t been one bit bad to put the little kids to bed himself. There was something satisfying about caring for your kids when they were small. Bathing them, reading to them, all that. Something you missed when they got older.
He was thinking about it in a sort of dozing half-awake way, and then he woke up, because something was wrong. What was it? Kids? Something at the resort? Earthquake? Fire? All he heard was the gentle lap of the sea against the sand and the rhythmic sound of the fan turning overhead, but his heartbeat was telling a different story.
A stifled moan from beside him. Not the right kind of moan. More of a whimper. Was that what had woken him?
“Skylar?” he asked, reaching for her. He got her shoulder,because she was turned away from him. That shoulder was rigid. “Skylar,” he said, a bit more loudly. “What is it? Nightmare?”
“N-no.” She was still stiff as a board, and suddenly, she cried out. “Something’s … wrong. Belly.”
He hauled himself up to sit and switched on the light, and she cried out again. “Bright,” she said. “Too … bright.”
He didn’t listen to that. He pulled the blankets back instead. She was curled into the fetal position, her hand pressing against her right side. “How bad?” he asked.
“It was just …” The words came out in jerks. “Like cramping. But now it’s worse. Oh. Oh, no. My … my shoulder blade. My … my …” Not in the fetal position anymore, because she was rolling back and forth, from her side to her back, as if she couldn’t stay still. Like a player on the field with an injury that hurt so much, it took him all the way past stoicism.
He said, “I’ll get help.”
“N-no. Kids.Kids.”She was biting her lip, and he saw blood. Then he saw blood somewhere else. Just a few spots, underneath her. Not red spots. Dark. Nearly brown. That blood was all wrong. “Going to be … sick.” It was another moan. “Please. Sick.”
He grabbed the little rubbish bin and handed it to her, and shewassick. Crying along with the retching, her other hand still on her belly.
