But after Dad died, everything changed. All our superstitions got serious.
I don’t know. Maybe Mum really did foresee his death.
But you’d think if she truly believed Dad would be struck by lightning she might have suggested he avoid rock fishing on a day with the possibility of a summer storm heavy in the air.
A heads-up might have been helpful, Mum.
Chapter 56
“Have you done those tests yet?”
Sue has dumped her shopping basket on the floor and taken the call in the middle of the fruit and veg section of the supermarket, where she is squeezing rock-hard green avocadoes in the hope of finding one likely to ripen this century. It’s Caterina, sounding unusually tense.
“Not yet,” says Sue.
After their dinner, she’d felt a weight lift. Knowing she had the forms to do the tests somehow meant she didn’t need to actually do them. Her concerns about the lady had come to seem absurd.
Is Caterina annoyed with her for wasting her time writing out the referrals? Or, and this seems more likely, is she concerned she recommended unnecessary tests?
“I don’t need to do the tests if you’re worried—”
Caterina interrupts. “You haven’t seen this video that’s going around today?”
“What video?” Sue’s phone is beeping. She replaces the avocado and glances at her phone. Her youngest son is trying to call her.
She puts the phone back to her ear.
“It’s a girl. Seems like she was on your flight,” says Caterina. “It’s…distressing. I’m surprised it hasn’t been taken down yet.”
Now Sue’s phone is buzzing and vibrating like a child’s toy.
“It’s probably just a coincidence,” says Caterina. “Like Nostradamus getting lucky.”
Someone approaches the avocados with a determined expression, and Sue steps aside, kicking her plastic shopping basket across the floor.
“Sue?” says Caterina.
“Has someone died?” says Sue. “From the flight? Is that what you’re saying?”
A pause.
Sue hears someone in the background say, “Excuse me, Dr. Bonetti?”
“Just one moment,” says Caterina, her voice muffled.
“Look. It’s silly. It’s probably fake.” Her voice is loud and clear again. “But do the tests, Sue, you should do the tests.”
Chapter 57
This is the thing with a heads-up.
The person has to believe. The person has to change their actions.
What if my mother had actually said, with certainty, You will get hit by lightning, Arthur.
Would he still have gone rock fishing?
He might have looked up at that cloud-heavy sky and said to his friends: Let’s call it a day.
Mum might have saved Dad the way Grandma saved her from the red-bellied black snake.
Dad might have lived until he was one hundred.
Chapter 58
Paula’s sister texts: Passing this on from that weirdo cousin, haven’t watched, something you talked about at wedding? Feel free to ignore! x
The only potentially “weirdo” cousin that Paula spoke to at Lisa’s wedding was her new brother-in-law’s cousin, the one who never made a significant life decision without checking in with her clairvoyant.
Paula feels a sense of foreboding. Should she ignore it? It will be something about psychic predictions and she doesn’t want to tumble back down that anxiety rabbit hole.
She’s just about over it, or she hopes she is.
Both Timmy and Willow wear their evil eye bracelets every day. Willow loves hers and holds out her wrist for people to admire it. Matt looked quizzical when he saw the bracelets but didn’t object. Perhaps he even likes them. It turns out he and his brother both wore them when they were kids.
Paula can now make the same boast as that swim instructor did about her granddaughter: Timmy swam before he walked. He’s still not shown any interest in walking, crawling suits him fine, but he can float, seemingly forever, and dog-paddle the width of the pool, grinning and gurgling.
The power of the lady’s prediction, or curse, is steadily fading, the way the pain of a hurtful remark becomes muted, although never forgotten, the more time passes. She no longer thinks about it every day. It’s all a little embarrassing.
