Free An Ordinary Epidemic by Amanda Hickie Page B

renovation, there were higher priorities. The kitchen functioned without it.
    The time she had now with Sean and Zac and Oscar had been paid for by putting one foot in front of the other when her feet were as far as she could see. She had done what was required of her, been through all the hard stuff. She should get to sit this one out, right here, with her family. Other peoplecould deal with this virus, other people could get sick—she had paid already.

    Sean offered to do bedtime but that meant giving up the last moments with Oscar before sleep claimed him. The day had worn Hannah out, so she chose a short book and by the time she kissed him goodnight, his eyes were nearly closed.
    She sneaked into their bedroom. Sean had already told her once tonight not to bother, but it was Wednesday and Zac hadn’t rung. Independence was important but all she had to do was press the dial button.
    â€˜Hi.’ He sounded bright and alert.
    â€˜Hi Zac, it’s me.’ She spoke softly, so as not to wake Oscar in the next room. ‘How’s Canberra?’
    â€˜Oh, hi Mum.’
    â€˜Were you expecting someone else?’ She was mortified to hear something that sounded so much like a mother slip out of her mouth.
    â€˜Well, we had to go into a room for four so Daniel and Ben ended up in a room with two other kids, and we’re not allowed to walk around the corridors unless we’re going to the activity room, and their room’s the other way, so we can’t go there and they can’t come here. And they want us to go to the activity room, but Jamie won’t go so they keep ringing us. They rang everybody else’s phone.’
    â€˜So are you having fun?’
    â€˜Sure.’
    â€˜Is Canberra interesting?’
    â€˜I guess.’
    â€˜Is everybody well?’
    â€˜Mum,’ she could hear the sigh, ‘no one is sick here, what do you think?’
    She waited for him to say something more. ‘Well, stay safe. Have a good time.’
    â€˜â€™Kay. Bye.’ And he was gone to more immediate things.
    She opened the living room door quietly, trying not to break Oscar’s sleep spell. Sean was halfway between standing and sitting on the edge of the sofa, his face screwed up and red. He started to speak but she put her finger to her lips. She softly closed the door behind her but he had already slipped out the other way. She followed his shadow though the unlit kitchen and found him silhouetted by the moon and the fairy lights from the garden.
    Hannah tried to read his face in the gloom. ‘Are you okay?’
    â€˜It’s an island. It’s an island. How hard can it be to keep something off an island. Germs can’t swim. Sick people can’t swim. You shut the fucking airport and we’re all okay.’
    â€˜So we shut our door, and we’re okay.’
    â€˜People are dead. There are people dead. That’s not okay. One or two dead people,’ his figure shrugged with contempt, ‘well, that just happens sometimes, doesn’t it. Nothing anyone can do about that. Ten people all at once, that’s a disaster. Enact a law, rebuild the highway.’ Sean punctuated his anger by pummelling the darkness in front of him. ‘But if you space them out, ten dead people just not all at once, that doesn’t require any new laws.’
    â€˜Ten. I didn’t know it was ten.’
    â€˜Not yet but it will be. Neatly spaced out, but each one sooner than the last until it explodes.’
    â€˜It’s not like this wasn’t coming. I said this was coming.’
    â€˜So are you happy about this, are you happy that you’re right?’ His raised arms shook slightly.
    â€˜Why would I be happy? My being right doesn’t change the way things are.’ Hannah took a deep breath to try to slow herself down. ‘I don’t want there to be an epidemic, but since there will be, and since we both should have seen it comingbut