Page 266 of The Storm Boys Series Collection

I didn’t miss the way his dad caught the word home and his understanding of what it meant.

This was Jeremiah’s home now.

This house. Darwin.

Me.

His dad joined him on the couch, and he smiled at the silly bird who was trying to steal more apple.

I decided now was a good time as any. And I knew Jeremiah would probably be mad but... “So I got you something,” I said.

Jeremiah watched me as I came around the couch, holding a white Apple bag and a brown paper bag.

I sat on the coffee table in front of him. “And you’re not allowed to be mad because of your blood pressure and heart rate, so...”

His gaze went from the Apple bag to my face. “What did you do?”

I handed it to him. “Technically, Ellis bought it. I mean, I asked him to and it was my card, but he did the buying, so you have to be mad at him and not me.”

He pulled out the first box. It was a new phone. And a new watch.

“Yours were fried,” I said, now giving him the brown paper bag. “The hospital gave these to me. And the clothes you were wearing. But I thought you might like to see these.”

Inside were his old phone and watch and the chest strap.

“None of them work anymore. And the guy at the Apple store said the phone was actually fried. As in, some of it was melted on the inside. He wanted to know if it’d been microwaved.” I shrugged. “Ellis said it was. Pretty much. Yeah.”

Jeremiah was quiet as he turned his old phone over in his hand, inspecting it.

“Even the sim card was fried,” I added. “I couldn’t get your number reissued on a new sim because you weren’t with me, so you’ll have a new number now.”

He nodded, then met my gaze. “Thank you.”

“At least those news reporters won’t be calling you now.”

He smiled ruefully. “True.”

Then he looked at the watch, at the dirty wristband, at the black screen. He tried to turn it on and sighed when nothing happened.

He took out the chest strap, and without even looking at it, he put it on the couch beside him. “Didn’t buy another one of these?” he asked. There was a spark of humour in his eyes.

I grinned at him. “It’s on back order.”

He gave me a tired smile until his dad picked up the old phone. “Must have been a hell of a zap to fry a phone. And a watch,” Mr Overton said quietly. “You were very lucky, huh?”

“Yeah,” Jeremiah whispered. His eyes cut to mine and he smiled. “Very lucky indeed.”

He could barely keep his eyes open, so I moved the tray of food and put the blanket over him. “Get some sleep.”

He nodded, his eyes already closed, and two seconds later, he was out.

I carried the tray into the kitchen and Mr Overton followed me. He was nervous and clearly had something to say. I gave him time to put his thoughts in order.

“I never thanked you,” he said, fidgeting his hands, then folding his arms, then uncrossing them again. “It would have been a very different story if not for you. You were there with him when it happened, and he told me you saved his life.”

“I was with him. I dunno if I saved his life, but I put in the call for medevac.” I shuddered at the memory. “It scared the hell outta me, not gonna lie.”

“You love him very much,” he said. It wasn’t a question. “I can see that.”

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