I keyed in the number and waited. Two rings. Three.
‘Hello?’ A woman’s voice, hectically cheerful.
I checked the name on my screen. ‘Hello,’ I said. ‘Can I speak to Nicole Younan?’
She gasped. Usually the shock came later, once I’d broken the news. Maybe she was expecting another call. ‘Who is this?’ she demanded.
‘I’m Jane, from New South Wales Health. Are you Nicole?’
‘Yes.’
Bullseye. ‘Hi, Nicole. Is it a good time to talk?’
‘If you’re quick.’ She was strung so tight I could almost hear the twang. ‘He’ll be ringing back in a minute…’
‘Who will?’
‘My fiancé. He’ll hate it if he can’t get through.’
A faint alarm went off in my head. But I stayed calm.
‘Okay—well, I just want to make sure I’m speaking to the right person.’ I consulted my screen. ‘Can I ask if you live at twelve Argyle Road—’
‘—Kurrajong Heights, yes. What’s this all about?’ She wanted me off the line. ‘Please hurry!’
‘The thing is, Nicole…’ I’d said it before, dozens of times, but it never got any easier. ‘You’ve been identified as a close contact of someone who’s tested positive for COVID-19.’
Bang. The news hit her like a punch. No matter how gently I spoke, or how careful I tried to be, I was lobbing a grenade into her life.
Back then, I had no idea her life was already a war zone…
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