‘Yep.’ She looked away but felt the weight of his stare on her.
Gina glanced up and down to make sure they were alone and he followed her into a small waiting room off the corridor.
‘I’m lonely, Gina. I joined before what happened between us last week and I almost forgot about it. Believe it or not, I get lonely and I crave company. I want your company but look at us.’
‘And that’s my fault?’ She ground her teeth.
‘I didn’t say that. It’s just complicated but I’m not going to be meeting anyone on AppyDater. I’ve deleted it.’
She stared at the floor.
‘Please say something, Gina. You and I have a past. We know things about each other that no one else does. I just need you to be okay with me.’
‘I’ve been unfair with you. I know I have but the truth is, I don’t know where we’re going to end up. You should be free to meet someone else.’
‘I don’t want anyone else.’ He brushed his fingers across her cheek. ‘By the way, you should get out more. This weekend, drinks for the whole team are on me. Say you’ll join us.’
Wyre was calling Gina from the corridor.
‘I best go.’ It was time to call it a night at the station and head to the hospital. She hurried back to the incident room.
Wyre bit her bottom lip then turned to walk towards the door. ‘Right, guv. To the hospital?’
Gina nodded.
O’Connor bit into a chocolate bar as he swivelled on his chair. ‘Yes, Jhanvi just called again. She said to hurry. I asked if we could visit but she said her family were fussing like mad and she just wanted to get the statement out of the way. She said she needs to tell you about Hailey and that it’s urgent.’
Gina grabbed her thick coat from the end of the table. ‘Right, the night is still young.’
69
As Gina and Wyre trudged through the ward they left a trail of snow behind them. Slowly it would turn into puddles. Something that was once so beautiful would be nothing more than a dangerous smear on the floor.
‘I think we’ve found Kapoor.’ Gina pointed to the side room where Kapoor’s family were spilling out.
A nurse thundered past. ‘Excuse me. Visiting is over and only two at a time in future.’ The cracked veins on her nose looked more accentuated as she kept her angry expression.
‘Sorry and thank you for all that you’re doing for my sister.’ The tall young man left with the child in his arms and Jhanvi’s parents.
‘See you tomorrow, my love,’ her mother called, blowing a kiss through the window as she left. ‘I’ll be back first thing in the morning with some supplies.’ As Jhanvi’s mother passed the room, the woman burst into tears and fell into the arms of her husband.
The younger man carrying the whining child passed Gina and Wyre. ‘Dad, I’ll meet you both outside. She’s getting restless.’
‘Mr and Mrs Kapoor, I’m DI Harte – Gina – one of Jhanvi’s colleagues. How is she doing?’
Mrs Kapoor pulled away from her husband’s chest. ‘She looks so frail and all those tubes. I can’t believe it. My poor baby. Someone did that to her.’
‘I’m so sorry.’ Gina could only imagine how she felt. If she was in Mr and Mrs Kapoor’s position she didn’t know how she’d feel. If it were Hannah that had been through something so traumatic, would she be here now, feeling helpless and crying? Probably, and they weren’t even close. The Kapoor family were as close as they came.
‘She wants to speak to you. She said you were coming which is why we were saying our goodbyes until tomorrow morning.’ The woman pulled a crumpled tissue from her jeans pocket and wiped her tears away, snivelling a few times before finally stopping completely. ‘We have to be strong, for her.’ She paused. ‘She was getting tired. I think they gave her a sedative so you might want to hurry.’
‘Thank you.’ Gina smiled sympathetically as the Kapoors continued down the corridor and out of the main door.
The nurse came out of Kapoor’s room. ‘Not more visitors. Don’t you know what time it is? I have sick people trying to sleep on this ward.’
Wyre tilted her head a little. ‘We’re really sorry. PC Kapoor called us at the station and requested that we come to speak to her. We’re her colleagues, DC Wyre and DI Harte.’
‘Oh, I see. Make it snappy, she needs her rest.’ A buzzer went and the nurse hurried past. ‘Coming.’
