‘Found the culprit,’ he said, holding up a small nail. ‘I’ve loaded the wheel into the patrol car, I’ll drop it at the tyrejoint when I go to town this arvo, fit the new one back on tomorrow morning so you can back it into the garage before the rain hits.’
He spotted the plate before her, only the sticky shards of toffee remaining, and raised an eyebrow. ‘Girl troubles?’
Clem balled up her napkin, tossed it at him and headed for the kitchen. ‘Ugh, why do blokes always jump to that conclusion? But yes—girl troubles of the Harriet-slapping-another-student variety, to be precise.’
Jack raised both eyebrows this time. ‘Keep me posted, I’ll be interested to hear her side of the story.’
‘You and me both,’ Clem agreed, sending him off with a takeaway smoothie before walking the short distance between the cafe and her home.
That afternoon, as she made chocolate slice, Clem watched through the kitchen window as Harriet trudged down the driveway, pinballing from one side to the other, kicking rocks and dragging her feet. It was clear she was keen to delay coming inside.
Clem washed her hands, placed a tea towel over the crumbly mixture and went to meet her daughter. Harriet’s reluctant walk was a variation of the walk she’d done herself at that age, determined to avoid the house full of arguments, the caustic silences that were colder than the ice-skating rink at Magic Mountain, and then, after her dad was gone, the religious artefacts that seemed to multiply overnight until they covered every surface.
And while Mr Kerbridge had explained how the project on family trees was intended to be a fun exercise that students could start researching in the school holidays, and finish during the term, the subsequent lunch break had involved teasing and Harriet’s subsequent retaliation. Clem was glad she’d had the afternoon to regroup.
She smiled, opening the door. Harriet studied her, a wary expression on her face, before her shoulders slumped. ‘I think Miss Lyndall forgot to call you today. You’re not going to be happy when you hear from her.’
Clem held out her hand for Harriet’s schoolbag. Avoiding her eye, the young girl handed it over. ‘Where’s Indi? I’m going to look for the guinea pig.’
Clem took the last two steps and pulled Harriet into a hug. ‘I didn’t speak to Miss Lyndall, but I did have a call from your principal. It’s okay. I’m not angry, Harri, but I do want your help with some chocolate slice. Indi’s at daycare, I thought she could stay until five pm today.’
‘Really?’ Harriet looked as pleased as she did surprised, and Clem felt even worse. ‘She hardly ever stays late at daycare.’ She frowned. ‘Does this mean I’m in really big trouble?’
Clem shook her head. ‘I just want to find out what’s going on. Mr K said there was trouble in the playground.’
Harriet took the apron Clem passed her. ‘I didn’t mean to hurt anyone. I was just going to shove this mean boy, but he moved and my hand was there, and then he was crying and telling everyone I slapped him. I only bumped him in the face, but I was aiming for his chest, I promise.’
‘Which boy was this?’
Harriet took the wooden spoon, nearly sending the oats and coconut mixture flying with her rapid stirring. It took a bit of prompting from Clem before Harriet revealed the crux of the disagreement, and finally named a boy who had only recently moved to the district.
‘We were talking about our family trees and he said I mustn’t have a very good family if I didn’t even know my grandparents’ names. He said it was because you were divorced, and he said it really nastily, as if being divorced is like having chickenpox.’
‘You know that’s not true, don’t you?’
Harriet upended the cup of chocolate chips with gusto. ‘Yep. I think he just likes being mean. He thinks he can barge in and steal all the good Christmas concert roles too, because his mum’s a lawyer and he was sports class captain at his old school.’
‘Don’t let that stand in your way, Harri. You’re topping the class in heaps of your subjects and you’re not normally in trouble.’ She passed Harriet the lined baking tin.
Harriet pressed the slice mixture into the rectangular shape with a little more force than necessary, and Clem could tell the baking had helped her as much as the conversation. She spotted Harriet’s book lying on the benchtop.
‘We could read a chapter while it cooks. Remember when Anne lost her temper and cracked a chalkboard over Gilbert Blythe’s head? Everyone messes up every now and then.’
The air was steamy after a bout of thunderstorms, and the deluge that had fallen throughout the night made for a quiet Saturday afternoon at the cafe. Clem’s damp skirt clung to her legs as she upended the outdoor chairs on the cafe deck, so the rainwater didn’t pool on the seats. She was grateful both her barista and babysitter had offered to finish early. They’d left half an hour ago, along with the last of the customers, and the fleeting burst of sunshine.
Indi zoomed up to the cafe entrance on her scooter, rubbing her eyes. She yawned widely.
‘When’s Harri coming back from Pansy’s birthday party?’ Another yawn slipped out, bigger this time, and Clem noticed scratches on her daughter’s cheeks. Peering into the garden, searching for the elusive guinea pig, no doubt.
‘She’ll be out all afternoon, remember? Maybe after your nap, we could dig out the umbrellas and go to Beachport, see what’s washed up on the shore in this weird weather?’
The cafe didn’t strictly close for another five minutes, but with iffy weather, limited foot traffic and few cars on the road, it didn’t look like she’d be inundated with last-minute caffeine fiends. Clem glanced across at the paddock, with its freshly ploughed dirt and the mounds covering the sunflower seeds Kev had sowed that morning.
Perfect conditions for germination. Tiny green sprouts would be poking their heads out of the soil in a few short weeks.
Two little arms wrapped around her legs and Clem smiled as her daughter snuggled into the folds of her skirt. She ran her fingers along Indi’s loose braids. ‘Come on, let’s get you tucked in.’
‘Okay, Mummy.’ Indi followed Clem inside and settled into her bedroom with the mint-green walls and rainbow bedspread. She was asleep before Clem had finished reading the fairytale.
