Amy opened her mouth, appeared to think better of it, and closed it again. She pushed open the car door and disappeared through the internal access and into the house.
Damien appeared in the garage. ‘You okay?’
Hannah loved her husband for those two little words. He knew her better than anyone, and could probably tell from her face that she was tired and not in the mood for anything else tonight.
She mustered a smile. ‘Big day, and Amy’s not too happy with me.’
They walked through to the warm wood tones of the country-style kitchen, and after putting her bag in the nook she’d had specially designed to ensure clutter was contained, Hannah pulled out a stool from the island bench and sank on to it.
Damien picked up Amy’s school bag from the kitchen table where she’d left it. He unzipped the bag and removed her lunchbox and drink bottle. ‘What was with your phone tonight? Martin doesn’t normally contact you after hours.’
‘Problem with a client.’ Hannah avoided her husband’s gaze.
‘Really? It’s unusual that they’d expect so much after-hours attention.’
Nausea swirled in her belly. ‘They’re worth a lot, and if we want to keep them then Martin needs to be available. He’s been keeping me up to date, that’s all. I’ll sort it out tomorrow.’
Damien raised an eyebrow. ‘Martin’s your boss, can’t he deal with a problem client himself?’
Hannah hesitated; she hated lying to her husband. ‘Usually, but as it’s one of my clients he’s keeping me in the loop. I’d prefer not to talk about it, if that’s okay. It’s been a hard day and I’m done in.’
‘I assume Amy added to that on the way home by badgering you about the horse riding?’
‘That and after-school care. She wants to be allowed to come home by herself.’
‘Fair enough.’
‘What?’
Damien looked up from the lunchbox he was removing empty packaging from. ‘It’s pretty normal for kids to walk home and look after themselves in the afternoon.’
‘But things are different now. There are so many more dangers and predators. Kids aren’t safe like they used to be.’
He smiled.
‘What? Are you saying I’m wrong?’
He put Amy’s lunchbox in the drying rack and came around and sat on a stool next to Hannah. He took her hands in his. ‘Yes, I am.’
She pulled her hands away from him. ‘And what do you base your finding on?’
Damien pushed his fingers through his thick black hair. ‘I don’t think much has changed at all. Predators were around when we were kids and accidents happened. Social media is the difference. Back then, you only heard about those things if it was your school or near your home. Now you hear about everything from every part of the world. It’s surprising anyone goes out at all with the dangers we’re supposedly all facing.’
‘Not supposedly, Damien – they’re real dangers.’
‘With very low percentages actually affecting you. You need to live life, not be scared to venture out of your comfort zone. That’s what we should be teaching Amy, not that she needs to be scared of everything.’
‘So, you want her to come home to an empty house?’
‘I didn’t say I want her to; I’m saying I don’t have an issue with it.’
Hannah shook her head. ‘I imagine you’re also going to say she should go horse riding too?’
Damien smiled. ‘Yes, that’s exactly what I’m going to say.’
‘But my mother died from riding. That proves it’s dangerous.’
‘That proves she was unlucky and, to be honest, irresponsible. If she’d been wearing a helmet, things could have ended up very different. She hit her unprotected head on a rock. That’s the lesson we need to drill into Amy. To wear protective clothing and helmets when riding horses or bikes. To think about risk and minimise it.’
‘Not doing it eliminates it.’
‘You can’t continue to wrap her in cotton wool. I know you’re doing it because you love her, but you’ll end up pushing her away and causing her to rebel. What are you going to do when she’s old enough to drive? Refuse to let her get her learner’s permit? Ban her from getting her licence? And what about when her friends have their licences, are you going to stop her going in their cars?’
Hannah didn’t respond. Yes, yes and yes was what she wanted to say but she also knew he had a point. She might only be eleven now, but she was growing up and was going to push beyond Hannah’s comfort level.
‘You can’t control everything, Han. It’s just not possible. Sometimes you need to relax and allow situations to unfold as they’re supposed to. Without interference.’ He hesitated for a moment.
‘What? You were about to say something else.’
‘Just that I think you need to be a bit careful with Nat too. The way you spoke to her tonight wasn’t very kind, under the circumstances.’
Hannah felt like she’d been slapped. Damien rarely criticised her, he usually had her back. She folded her arms across her chest. ‘Did you happen to notice the way she spoke to me? Deliberately undermining me at every possible chance with Amy?’
He nodded. ‘I did, but I think it was retaliation. She needed comfort and support tonight, not a reminder that she’s been in these circumstances many times before due to her reckless decision-making. She has to live with the consequences, not us.’
Hannah sighed. Damien was saying exactly what Nat herself had said. ‘I didn’t mean for it to come out like that.’ And she hadn’t. When she was stressed Hannah was at her worst. She knew that but found it hard to control. Zane Fox’s reappearance coupled with the anniversary dinner had been a lethal combination. It was no wonder she’d been on edge. On a normal night she’d have a longer fuse with both Amy and Nat, but tonight had been anything but normal. Usually she could tell Damien this, and enjoy his comfort, but with Zane back in the picture it just wasn’t possible. She took a deep breath, realising he was waiting for her to explain.
‘I just worry about her. She’s thirty-three, about to be homeless and unable to hold down a job for more than a few months. It’s not a good position to be in at her age.’
‘No, but again, it’s not our life to live. She’ll move in with Phyllie next week, so that’s one problem sorted already. She does so much volunteer work that I’m sure something will lead from that. She puts everyone else first, babe, and karma has to repay that at some stage.’
Hannah nodded. Karma. Her gut twisted at the word. She had a nasty feeling karma, in the form of Zane Fox, was about to come back to bite her.
Hannah waited until Damien headed upstairs to have a shower before switching her phone back on. Twelve text messages and two missed calls. The last three text messages said the same thing.
Don’t ever hang up on me again. Call me immediately or there will be consequences.
A shiver ran down Hannah’s spine. She wasn’t going to ring him. Instead, she started keying a message into her phone.
What do you want? Our business was finalised twelve years ago.
The response was almost immediate.