Page 22 of Queenslander
“I remember. I will.”
“If you forget my number, you know my name. They can look it up.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t be scared. They’re not going to hurt you.”
“I think I killed Maude.”
The three officers in the doorway had been talking to each other but fell silent and looked at her when she said that.
Reg swore. “It was self-defense. Tell them it was self-defense.”
“I don’t know. I think I blacked out.”
“It was self-defense. Whatever happened.”
A female paramedic pushed between the three police officers to crouch in front of her. “Are you hurt?”
Ronnie nodded.
“Where?”
She pulled up her shirt to show the red mark on her stomach. The paramedic looked at it, then left.
One of the officers tapped his wrist. “Time’s up. We’re arresting you now.”
“Is she dead?”
“Stand up slowly with your hands above your head.”
Ronnie stood up but kept the phone pressed to her ear. Standing up hurt—cramp low in her belly. She steadied herself against the top of the doorframe. “I gotta go, Dad. They’re booking me or whatever.”
“That’s all right, baby. You’re safe, and that’s the important thing. Remember to call me. I will always answer your calls. I will never stop fighting for you. You are so smart. You are strong.”
“Thanks, Dad. I’ll call you, when I can.”
“We’ll fight this in court.”
In the kitchen of the old house, paramedics carrying a body on a stretcher out the front door pushed silverware out of the way with their boots. “I’m pleading guilty, Dad. They’re definitely charging me with something.”
She held the phone to her shoulder while a police officer patted her down. “Can I have my own ambulance? I think I might be going into labor.”
“We’ll take you to get checked out. Turn around.”
She tried to stand still while they patted down her back. “Sorry, Dad.”
“I love you, Brum. This was my fault. I knew it was bad, but I didn’t know how bad. If I had known, I would have been more proactive. I should have parented harder.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Now he was blaming himself. She didn’t deserve him. The wall in front of her blurred and disappeared. She pressed the phone to her shoulder and turned her head away as an ugly sound leaked out of her mouth. She needed a hug. Suddenly the loneliest she had ever been, sensing she wouldn’t see him again for a long time, she covered her mouth with the back of her forearm.
“Shh, baby, it’ll get easier. One day at a time. I’ll find you as soon as I can. I promise you’ll be all right without me. If you don’t see me, it’s because they physically stopped me at the door. I’m never giving up on you, so you can’t give up on yourself, right? You’re a good kid and you have a bright future. No one can take that away. Remember that. This is not who you are.”
A short, heavy-set officer with buzzed hair stepped forward. “State your name and address for me, please.”
“Ronnie Peterson.” She gave Reg’s address, the purple house on Pademelon Road. “My dad is Reg Madonna. I’m sixteen. I don’t have a legal guardian. If you need to call someone, call my dad. This is him.” She held out the phone. “Do you want to talk to him?”
The officer shook his head. “I’m arresting you for assault and attempted murder. Do you voluntarily surrender?”
