The Shell House by Linda Newbery Read Free Book Online Page A

sister.’ Maddy’s friend Safia, who had been in Jordan’s form last year, was getting coffee from the machine. ‘She’s always in and out of hospital. There’s something wrong with her kidneys. He cleared off like that once before.’
    ‘How old is she?’ Maddy asked Greg.
    Greg shrugged. ‘Didn’t even know he had a sister.’
    ‘Honestly—blokes!’ Maddy huffed, looking round at Safia. ‘They go round together all the time and don’t even know about each other’s sisters!’
    ‘We don’t talk about that sort of thing,’ Greg said, defensive.
    ‘She’s Year Ten, I think, only not here,’ Safia said. ‘She goes to St Ursula’s.’
    ‘Must be serious then,’ said Maddy, ‘if Jordan’s gone haring off?’
    Safia shrugged. ‘I s’pose so. Don’t know any more about it than that, only what Suzanne told me.’
    ‘It must be so
bor
ing,’ Bonnie said, ‘going round with Jordan, after Gizzard. I wish Gizzard hadn’t left—he was always good for a laugh.’
    ‘Maddy doesn’t think Jordan’s boring, do you, Mads?’ said Safia, with a teasing glance. ‘She likes the silent type.’ Maddy coloured up. Greg looked at her in surprise; she saw him noticing, blushed even more furiously and turned away. ‘Oo-
oo
-ooh!’ Bonnie crowed. Jordan would hate this, Greg thought: being the subject of who-fancies-who gossip. But Madeleine . . . maybe she was the sort of girl Jordan might like—bright, unflashy, with a mind of her own.
    Jordan didn’t reappear that day. Greg wasn’t sure what to do, not knowing how drastic the situation was. It must have been more than a routine alarm: Jordan’s face, when he read the note, had registered first mild curiosity, then shock and dismay. In the evening, he got the McAuliffes’ number from Directory Enquiries, unsure whether to phone or not—he didn’t know Jordan well enough to probe into a family crisis. But, in the end, he did phone; there was no answer, so he left a message on the answering machine and Jordan rang back just as he was thinking of having an early night.
    ‘Greg? Got your message—sorry it’s late.’
    ‘Thought I’d better phone. I thought someone must have died or something.’
Stupid
thing to say!
    There was a small pause, then: ‘We’ve all been at the hospital.’ Jordan sounded quite calm.
    ‘Safia said it must be something to do with your sister.’
    ‘Yes. Michelle. She’s OK now, but she was taken ill at school—she was having trouble breathing, so they took her into hospital as an emergency. They’re keeping her in for a couple of days. We’ve just been back to take the things she needed, and my mum’s spending the night there.’
    ‘What’s wrong with her?’ Greg asked, uneasy with illness and disease.
    ‘It’s a long-term thing. Her kidneys don’t work,’ Jordan said. ‘She needs a transplant. But till that happens, she has to go into hospital three days a week for dialysis. That means being plugged into a machine that filters all her blood. It takes five hours each time, and leaves her feeling washed out.’
    ‘It’s serious, then?’ Greg managed.
    ‘Oh yes, it’s serious. She nearly died two years ago when she had acute kidney failure. And if she doesn’t get the transplant she’ll be stuck with this for ever. She’s on a list, waiting. But she’s not actually in danger now, if that’s what you mean.’
    ‘I didn’t even know you had a sister.’
    ‘Haven’t I said? Yes, Michelle’s great—imagine putting up with all that! But she does. I’ve got a little brother as well, Mark—he’s only eight. If I’m a bit late tomorrow it’s because I’ve got to get him ready for school and take him there—I’ll have to miss training. Look, thanks for phoning. See you tomorrow, OK?’
    Greg hung up and wandered into the kitchen, where Katy was arguing with their parents about getting her navel pierced.
    ‘Oh, you’re so
uncool
! Lorrie’s mum let her do it! It’s my body, isn’t it? I’m