‘Then put me on loudspeaker.’
They heard a click, then a change in the acoustics. When Todd spoke again, he sounded fainter, further away and there was an audible, steady slow beep in the background.
‘Okay my love, the phone is next to her ear. She can hear you,’ he told her.
A few seconds passed before she spoke. Cammy wasn’t sure what to do. Pull over and respect the moment, or carry on driving, hoping that he could get her there? He put his foot down. If there was even a slim chance, he wasn’t giving up.
‘Mum, it’s Caro. I’m so sorry I’m not there. I told you to hang on and wait until I got back and now I’m not going to get to you in time…’ A sad laugh. ‘I’m thinking maybe you did that deliberately. You never did like to make a fuss. I’m so sad I’m not there with you though, Mum. My whole life you’ve been there for me and I want you to know I’m so grateful. I love you Mum. I love you so much and I know how much you loved me. I know, Mum.’ Her voice broke and, once again, Cammy put his hand on hers and she squeezed it, before carrying on. ‘Every time I think of you, I’ll see you smiling, in the garden. That’s how I’ll remember you. Todd’s with you now, Mum, and he’s going to stay with you until I get there. If you can hang on, please wait for me, but if you can’t… Know I love you. And Mum, I just saw Dad… he wanted me to tell you that he loves you too. He’s sorry he’s not there with you. He really is, Mum. He loved you so much and he wanted me to tell you that he always will. So Mum…’
She didn’t get any further.
The faint, regular beeping sound in the background turned to one long steady tone.
‘Caro, she’s gone,’ Todd said, choking on the words. ‘I’m so sorry. She’s gone.’
‘I know,’ she whispered. ‘I’ll be there soon. Stay with her?’
‘You don’t have to ask. I’ll be here,’ Todd promised.
There was a layby a few yards ahead, and Cammy swerved straight into it, pushing the brake pedal at the same time. He pulled to a stop, leaned over and wrapped her in his arms and let her sob, just for a few moments, until her shoulders stopped shaking and she sat up.
‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘That doesn’t seem anywhere even close to adequate for what you’ve done for me tonight, but I want you to know I’m so grateful. I’ll never forget how kind you’ve been.’
Cammy’s only thought was admiration for her strength and selflessness. ‘I’m glad I was here.’ It was an odd thing to say, but it was so true. A few hours ago, he didn’t know this woman at all, and yet now he couldn’t bear the thought of her having to deal with this in a stranger’s taxi or in the cold, lonely carriage of a train. ‘Let’s get you home,’ he said, gently, releasing her.
He put the car into gear, pulled out of the layby, and drove, his hand still on hers. It stayed there for the next hundred miles, as Caro talked about her mum and Cammy listened, glad he was there for her. There was nowhere else he would rather be.
31
Bernadette
Bernadette was sure she’d heard wrong.
‘Sorry, dear – you’re what?’
‘I’m Ken’s girlfriend.’
‘Ken who?’ Bernadette had a horrible feeling that she was on one of those game shows where everyone was shouting the answer but she was the hapless contestant whose mind had just gone completely blank.
‘This has to be a wind-up,’ Stuart said, taking the words right out of her mouth.
One of those prank hidden camera shows, maybe? Dear Lord, not tonight. Not when she was almost out of the damned door and freedom was so, so close.
Well, she wasn’t going to get caught on one of those cameras being rude to a stranger. If the girl was deranged and deluded, then she wasn’t going to turn her back and refuse to help. Nor was she going to let a girl in a barely there, strappy dress die of hypothermia on her doorstep. For God’s sake, had she never heard of a coat?
Her professional training kicked in and she stepped back from the door, forcing Stuart and an absolutely dumbstruck Nina to edge backwards too. This hall had never been so crowded. ‘Come in before frostbite sets in.’
The woman – probably about the same age as Nina – looked at her warily.
Bernadette’s detachment, undoubtedly the result of thirty years dealing with chaos and unexpected shocks in A & E, continued to take charge of proceedings. ‘I’m not going to bite. Clearly there’s a reason you’re here and it’s not going to help if you faint from the cold before you can share it with us, is it?’
That did it. Shivering, the blonde visitor took two steps into the hall, allowing Bernadette to take one of Kenneth’s cardigans off the coat hooks behind the door and wrap it around her shoulders. The woman – what did she say her name was? – didn’t resist.
‘Right, I’m less worried about you collapsing now. Tell me again why you’re…’
‘Lila?’
Kenneth’s voice came from behind her, in the kitchen doorway, sounding about as shocked as she’d ever heard him.
