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‘That you had to go away.’
Just that. So stark. No mention of the anguish and pain it had caused her to leave.
The car was slowing to a stop outside relatively inconspicuous-looking gates with lush greenery screening anything behind them from the road.
But Sadie could see the gates were tall and fortified. She also noticed the discreet security men just inside, as the gates swung open as if by magic to admit them.
The car proceeded up a long driveway, bordered on each side by thick vegetation, until suddenly they emerged into a vast open courtyard in front of a modern structure on different levels that somehow managed to blend in with the vegetation around it, as if it had been there for hundreds of years.
Lots of clean lines and glass—more glass than she’d ever seen on a building.
The car pulled to a stop, and before Sadie could prepare herself, the front door of the house opened and a blur of energy ran down the steps towards the car. Quin was out of the car, leaving the door open, and bending down with arms outstretched, ready to welcome his son.
His son. Their son. Her baby boy.
Sadie couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t move. She was frozen as she watched this tableau from inside the car.
Quin swung Sol up into his arms and she heard Sol saying ecstatically, ‘Papa, you’re home already! Lena said you wouldn’t be back till later!’
‘I wanted to surprise you.’
Shakily, Sadie somehow managed to get out of the car. The driver had opened her door. She stood up and could feel the sun beating down on her head. She looked across the roof of the car at her son and couldn’t believe it. He was leaning back in Quin’s arms now, grinning. He was all at once familiar and totally strange to her. Even though she could see he took after her with his strawberry blond colouring. He had her eyes. Light green-blue. But he had his father’s darker-toned skin. Golden. He had freckles. And an impish smile.
As if feeling her avid gaze on him he turned his head and looked at her. He said, very baldly, ‘Who are you?’
Who was she? She was a stranger. She was this little boy’s mother. She was lost. She was drowning in a sea of emotions.
She opened her mouth. ‘I—’
‘She’s a friend from work. She’s come to help me with a project,’ Quin interjected smoothly.
Sol seemed to take this with total equanimity. ‘What’s her name, Papa?’
Sadie didn’t look at Quin. She could hardly take her eyes off her son.
Quin said, ‘Her name is Sadie.’
Sol repeated it. ‘Sadie... I don’t know anyone with that name. That’s cool.’
The little boy scrambled down out of Quin’s arms and came to stand in front of Sadie. She wasn’t sure how she was still standing when she couldn’t feel her legs any more.
Sol looked up at her. She noticed he was wearing a T-shirt with a school logo and matching shorts. Scuffed sneakers. There was a scab on his knee. He was clearly active.
He said, ‘Hey, do you want to see my bedroom? It’s pretty cool. I’ve got posters of my favourite football players.’
Somehow Sadie found her voice through the blood rushing to her head at the enormity of this moment. ‘You like football?’
He nodded. ‘It’s the best ever. When I get older I’m going to play for Sao Paulo.’
‘You are? That’s—’
‘Come on, Sol, time to go to school. You’ll see Sadie later.’
His eyes widened, mirror images of his mother’s. ‘You’restayinghere?’
Sadie dragged her gaze from her son to look at Quin helplessly. She hadn’t even thought about what would happen when she got here. She had no money to pay for accommodation.
His expression was unreadable, and he just said to his son, ‘Perhaps.’