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“So, you’re twenty-four today. No major health issues. No allergies. You haven’t listed a GP?”
“I don’t have one.” She clears her throat. “I moved from Auckland four months ago, and I haven’t gotten around to getting one.”
“Can you give me the name of your GP in Auckland?”
“Um, I can’t remember, sorry.”
“Okay.” If he doesn’t believe her, he doesn’t show it. “But you haven’t seen a GP or any other health professional since you got pregnant?”
“No.”
“You can’t remember when you had your last period?”
“No. It was in July, I think, but I can’t remember exactly when. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. We can work out when you’re due when we do the ultrasound scan. So, how have you been feeling? You’ve had some morning sickness?”
“In the beginning. Not lately.”
“Tender breasts?”
She blushes. “Yes.”
“Food cravings?”
“Not really.”
I glance at her. She’s obviously trained herself to deal with her hunger. I don’t think she’d know if she had any cravings.
“Fatigue?” Mathew continues.
“I get tired in the evenings.”
“Have you felt baby move yet?”
She shakes her head. “Is that bad news?”
“No, no.” He doesn’t say anything else, and he doesn’t look at me, but I know that if she’s over about twenty-two weeks, she probably should have felt it move by now. “Okay,” he continues, “so about your family history. Both your mother and father have passed away?”
I look at her then, shocked. She keeps her gaze on Mathew. “Yes.”
“How did your mother pass?”
“She died in the Christchurch earthquake.”
His brow creases. “Oh, I’m so sorry to hear that. So, February 22, 2011?” The date is etched in many Kiwis’ minds.
“Yes.”
She would have been twelve. I reach out a hand and hold hers tightly, and she doesn’t pull away.
“Did she have any medical conditions you know of?” Mathew continues.
“I don’t think so.”
“And your father… you say he had a heart attack in 2014?” Three years after her mother died. Catie would have been fifteen.
“Yes.”
