Even though Nurse Clara had called Fin later that afternoon to reassure him that his mother was fine and much calmer, he still couldn’t quite shake the unease he felt every time he thought about going back to see her. The sound of her voice would haunt him, and the skin on his wrist still bore the half-moon indents from where her nails had dug in so deep. Seeing her so distraught brought back too many unwanted memories that were getting harder and harder to ignore.
‘Now, why in the world do you look so nervous?’ Nurse Clara remarked, as Fin walked through into reception on the Wednesday morning.
‘I don’t, do I?’ He tried to rearrange his face hastily into some sort of smile.
‘Heidi won’t bite, you know. The woman is eighty-five years old!’ The nurse laughed.
‘I know that.’ Fin hoisted his camera bag over his shoulder. ‘I just want her to be happy with the pictures. That’s all.’
‘And I’m sure she will be. You are a beautiful photographer, Fin.’ Nurse Clara tilted her head and smiled at himsweetly, her sharp eagle eyes softening for a moment. ‘Eleanor is already here, by the way.’
Fin scoffed. ‘Of course she is.’ He followed Nurse Clara through towards Heidi’s room.
‘Are you planning to use the garden again?’
‘I think so. It looks like it might rain, but I reckon it will hold off until we finish. Bloody English weather.’ He rolled his eyes.
‘Enjoy it while you can. I reckon you’ll be surprised at how much you miss it when you go back.’
‘Not likely.’ He adjusted his bag over his shoulder once again and hovered outside Heidi’s door.
‘You know where I am if you need anything, all right?’ Nurse Clara placed a hand on his shoulder before continuing down the corridor.
‘Right.’ He gripped the door handle and turned it slowly. ‘Heidi? Eleanor? It’s Fin. Am I OK to come in?’ he asked tentatively.
‘Considering you are the photographer, Fin, and therefore pretty essential to this whole set-up, I’d imagine coming in would be a rather good idea,’ Heidi replied bluntly.
Fin took a sharp inhale and pushed the door open. If he hadn’t heard the sarcastic snipe of her voice, he’d be hard pushed to believe it was the same woman sitting in front of him that he’d met previously. She was sitting proud and tall in the chair. Her grey hair was smooth and sleek, curled ever so slightly under at the edges and dotted with pearls. Her eyes were closed as Eleanor reached across and continued to lightly dust her skin with a pink shimmering powder. The dress she wore was spilling into pools of dark red silk around her feet. Fin stood there silently, trying to take it all in.
‘You look beautiful, Heidi.’
She simply opened one eye, stared at him, then closed it again. Fin placed his bag down and waited whilst Eleanor completed her finishing touches.
‘There!’ Eleanor announced proudly. ‘All good to go, I think.’ She turned to look at Fin with a huge grin on her face. ‘Happy, Mr Photographer?’
‘Very. Thank you.’ He nodded in approval.
‘Who cares what he thinks,’ Heidi said dismissively. ‘I’m the one having their photo taken. Maybe it would be a good idea if I could see what you’ve done with me?’
Fin saw Eleanor visibly tense as she passed over a large hand-held mirror to Heidi. Nobody breathed as it was lifted to her face. The silence was excruciating.
Eleanor went to speak but Heidi held up her hand to stop her. Fin was just about to launch into a rant about manners and how Heidi needed to find some very quickly, when he heard a tiny little gasp. Eleanor and Fin locked eyes in panic.
‘If you don’t like it, I can take it off and we can start again,’ Eleanor gushed, fumbling around in her bag.
‘No.’ Heidi’s voice wavered.
Fin made to step forward when she spoke again, this time her voice firm and steady. ‘It’s fine. Thank you.’
Fin was still looking at Eleanor in confusion. He didn’t have a clue what was going on. Then Heidi dropped the mirror to her lap; her eyes were misty and brimming with tears.
Fin smiled at Eleanor, who seemed to deflate a little with relief. ‘It’s all right to be happy, you know, Heidi?’ He edged closer, hoping to reach inside the small gap in her armour she’d exposed.
The old lady stood so quickly that Fin nearly tripped over himself in surprise. ‘Thank you for the inspirational talk, Mr Taylor, very moving indeed.’ She bristled, smoothing down the creases in the front of her dress. ‘But your advice is not needed, nor is it wanted. Shall we get on with it?’
He nodded mutely, stepping aside to let her walk past. Eleanor hovered by her side gingerly, uncertain whether to offer her support or not. ‘I am fine, dear,’ Heidi quipped. ‘No need to fuss.’
Eleanor still lingered close behind as the old lady made her way down the corridor and out into the garden. Fin took up the rear with the equipment, his resentment growing with each step taken.
