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Thea took Gracie’s advice and phoned her sister.
‘Hello.’
Thea was surprised to hear her brother-in-law answer her sister’s mobile phone. ‘Mark, is Jenna there? She left me a message to get in touch.’ Thea didn’t mention that she’d left several messages over the last couple of days, before everything had suddenly gone quiet.
‘She’s in hospital.’
‘Oh, god. Are the twins okay?’
‘Yes. Why do you ask?’
‘Well, you said she’s in hospital. I thought something might have happened to—’
‘Jenna had an accident.’
Thea swallowed. ‘Is she okay?’
‘She broke her leg.’
‘Oh, no!’
‘She needs surgery. I think they’re going to insert some pins.’
Thea breathed a sigh of relief. When he’d said the wordaccident, all sorts of things had gone through her mind. ‘How did it happen?’
‘Hold on, she’s waking up.’
‘You’re in the hospital with her right now?’
‘Yeah.’
‘Are the twins with you?’
‘The neighbours are keeping an eye on them. It’s not ideal. I imagine that was what she was phoning you about. I know we can’t expect you to just drop everything and come and help out. I told her not to phone you. You’ve got your own life.’
‘I’ve got a lot of leave, and I’m not in work today.’ Thea knew she wouldn’t tell him what had happened with Miles. They had bigger issues to deal with. ‘Look, I’m taking annual leave for a few days, and I’m at a loose end. I can come down straight away and help out.’
‘Would you? Oh, Thea, you’re a lifesaver. I’ve got to work and the kids need taking to school – and stuff.’
He still hadn’t told her how it had happened. ‘Can I speak to her?’
‘Afraid not. She’s still drowsy from the pain relief, so now’s not a good time.’
‘All right.’ Thea intended to pop in and see her sister in hospital when she was feeling up to more visitors. She had a thought. ‘You have still got a spare bedroom, haven’t you?’ She’d need to stay at their house, but she thought the spare room might have been turned into a home office. Wasn’t Mark working from home part of the week?
They’d moved out of London recently, in time for the kids to start secondary school, and bought a detached cottage in an idyllic little village not far from the coastal town of Aldeburgh. The idea was that Mark would continue with his job in the city, commuting two days a week and spending the remaining time working from home. Her sister’s life had turned out just perfectly. Now, she could see the problem; he was still commuting for those two days each week, which meant that someone had to look after the twins.
‘Oh, yeah, sure. We’ve still got a spare bedroom. Look, can you come today?’
‘As soon as I’ve packed.’Thea knew it was lucky she had a very understanding boss who’d let her take leave without notice. It probably helped that her boss was also a family friend, but then again he was such a lovely man that she imagined he’d treat all his staff the same.
‘Will you pick me up from the station?’ she said. Thea didn’t have a car. She had no need for one in London.
‘Yes, I’ll pick you up from the station. Thanks, Thea. Really, I just can’t thank you enough.’
Thea got off the phone. She walked straight into her bedroom and found her suitcase, packing what she needed for a few days. ‘A week, tops,’ said Thea out loud, wondering what she was going to do there in between school pickups. She looked at her phone, and although she knew she really ought to phone Edward, she phoned Gracie instead.
‘Everything all right?’ Gracie asked.
