Page 119 of A Home Among the Snow Gums
‘You noticed his limp lately?’
‘No. Well, I guess I have, now you ask. And he was a bit off the other night when Buttercup had her foal, but I was trying not to, um … things got complicated.’
‘You were avoiding him for days before Buttercup had her foal.’
She bit her lip. ‘Yes. Wait—he told me a month or so ago he had a bad knee. Blamed it on footy or skiing or something. I wasn’t really paying attention.’
Josh picked up her hand and held it in his. His voice came out low. ‘Hannah, Tom has a piece of metal lodged in the muscles next to his spine from an injury which occurred some months ago. It has been immobile to now, but something has happened and if it causes any more swelling in his spinal sheath, he’ll lose function in his legs. Unfortunately, one of his legs has gone numb. This means they have to operate. Urgently.’
She drew in a ragged breath, ‘Oh my god. How did it get there? And where is he? In Cooma? Let’s drive there now.’
‘He’s not in Cooma. He was evacuated by helicopter to Wollongong.’
‘Wollongong! Wait …’ Her voice had a quaver in it that she couldn’t control. ‘How long have you known?’
‘About the injury? For a while, since I asked him why he couldn’t ride down the mountain himself to get Bruno’s oxygen. About the shrapnel moving and the high-risk surgery he’s having later today? Since just then, when he rang to ask me if I’d help Mrs LaBrooy with Bruno while he’s gone.’
‘When did all this happen?’
‘He was medevacced out the night Buttercup had her foal. That’s why I’ve only seen Lynette when I’ve been up at Ironbark. It seems he swore her to secrecy.’
Hannah leant forward until her head rested on her hands. How could Tom have kept this a secret?
‘He couldn’t ride,’ she said. ‘I called him a cop-out.’
‘Uh-huh.’
She frowned at her brother. ‘What else aren’t you telling me?’
He frowned right back. ‘You’ve really got to have this out with Tom.’
‘I made him help. With the foal.’
‘Help how?’
‘Well, you’ve seen how huge Buttercup is. I had to turn the foal, so I got Tom to help keep me up close so I could reach in.’
Josh pursed his lips. ‘I’m sure that wouldn’t have been—’
‘I made him lift me. I couldn’t get the foal to tumble forward, so I made him lift me and I didn’t ask him I just sort of shouted. You know what I’m like, Josh. I’m awful. I’mawful.’ The last few words didn’t really come out right because she was sobbing while she said them.
Her brother pulled her in for a hug. ‘Hannah, there’s no blame on you in this. And you’re not awful. You’re a wonderful vet and you put animals first. That makes you admirable, not awful.’
Josh was just being Josh. Kind. He always said kind things. But her? She remembered the times she’d pushed at Tom, sniped at him. Added to the burden he’d been carrying alone.
She faced her brother. ‘Did he tell you how he ended up with shrapnel in his back? I mean, he’s been out of the Navy for ages. And he told me he worked a desk job.’
‘He didn’t say, but does Tom seem like the guy who would work a desk job?’
No. He didn’t. Which maybe she’d have picked up on if she’d spent less time being a shouty, snappy person and more time being quiet and nice and thoughtful.
‘Now, Han, Bruno doesn’t know about any of this. Nobody knows but me and Lynette. And you.’
‘Some things,’ she said slowly, ‘are starting to make sense.’
‘Like what?’
‘Like when I was up at the homestead one evening, he wouldn’t sit on the floor. Maybe it was his back that was the problem.’ A thought struck her, a great, gnarly, monster of a thought. Was this why he’d kept turning her away? Was this why his eyes kept sayinglove me, but his words kept sayingleave? He didn’t want her to know his secret?
