on going because there was nothing that mattered more to her in the world than her daughter.
Suddenly, Emily felt terrible about not having phoned home yet. Juliet would be losing her shit.
As soon as all the tears had subsided, Emily jogged over. “Hey, Nina?” she said. “Could I possibly use your phone?”
* * *
Nina took Aurelia inside to watch a movie and returned a few minutes later with a slim cordless landline phone in her hand.
“What a drama, hey?” she said, with a tight smile. “You okay?”
“Yeah, fine.” Emily pressed her fingers against her forehead and felt a gritty sheen of dirt and ash. She needed a shower—a cold one. Possibly it was the effect of standing near a raging bonfire for so long, but it seemed to her as though the heat of the sun had intensified since lunch. Maybe this was the start of the dreaded humidity. “How’s Aurelia?”
“She’s fine. No harm done, thank god.”
They stood facing each other for a moment, Nina tapping the phone thoughtfully against her chin. Behind them, Yves poked at the scorched earth with a shovel, scraping up what was left of the playhouse.
“Look,” said Nina, her voice lowered. “About what just happened. I should’ve said something when you first arrived but, I don’t know, I guess I was hoping I wouldn’t have to. The thing is, Aurelia can be…” She stopped. Took a breath. Started again. “Remember I told you she got sick as a baby?”
Emily nodded.
“Well, there were some … aftereffects. Besides her medical condition, I mean.” Nina closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them again they were bright with tears. “Sometimes she does things that don’t make sense. Things that seem…” She trailed off.
Emily waited, unsure of what to say.
Wiping a finger under her eye, Nina smiled. “She makes me so mad, but then she looks up at me with those dark eyes of hers. Her father’s eyes, really. She looks so much like him, don’t you think?”
“The spitting image,” Emily said.
“Yeah.” Nina’s expression was hard to read. “Anyway, she’s a good kid. A wonderful kid. You see that, don’t you?”
Emily nodded, touched by the depth of Nina’s emotion. At the center of her sudden homesickness, she noticed a prickle of resentment: if only her parents’ love for her could be this strong. Was it a biological thing? Would Emily’s birth mother have felt this innate pride, this unqualified adoration? No, of course not. Her birth mother was a violent drunk who’d passed her on like a disease.
Nina took a breath and seemed to change gear. “Look, I hope this isn’t too rude of me,” she said, “but can I ask who you want to call?”
Emily shrugged. “Just my mum.”
“Your mum.” Nina smiled and shook her head slightly, as if to dismiss a foolish thought. She held the phone out to Emily. “Of course. Can I ask a favor, though? I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention the fire. I don’t want her thinking that you’re living with a bunch of derros.”
“Derros?”
“Aussieism. You know, unsavory types.”
“Oh. Sure, I won’t mention it.” Emily took the phone.
“Thanks.” Nina turned to go back inside. “Oh, and by the way, the phone only works within a certain distance from the base unit, so if you move too far away from the house you might find that the line breaks up a bit.”
“Okay. No worries,” Emily said in her best Australian accent.
Nina chuckled. “Ah, we’ll make an Aussie of you yet, young sheila.”
Emily grinned and turned away, dialing her parents’ number as she walked. Would they even be home? What day was it, anyway? It was so easy to lose track of time at Querencia; every day felt like the weekend. She lifted the phone to her ear and waited for the ringing, but the phone was silent. She pressed the green call button and listened again. Nothing. Walking back to the house, she tried dialing one more time, but still the phone remained dead.
Nina was over near the front door, hunched over a potted rose bush.
“Uh, Nina?”
“Not home, huh?” Nina asked, fingering a leaf speckled with dark, moldy spots.
“No—well, I don’t know. I don’t think the phone’s working.”
Nina stood up, plucking off the spotted leaf as she did so. “Really? That’s weird. Can I see?” Emily offered the phone and Nina took it, pressing it to her ear. She pushed a few buttons and listened again. “Bloody hell.” She sighed. “Looks like the line’s gone again. We’ve had some problems,