Doctor Archie, as he introduced himself, was the total opposite of the bustling sister. He spoke in a softer, less hurried way, with a well-spoken English accent that had a slight hint of the West Country. His haystack of sandy-blonde hair fell into his eyes and he had a slightly crooked smile which made his green eyes shine. Dorothy thought him younger than the matronly sister, perhaps in his late thirties. His gentle, easy-going manner reminded her of her brother Thomas and she instantly found herself warming to him.
Instead of firing more questions at her, he asked her about herself; her hobbies, her interests, her life. He explained that he was purely there in a supervisory capacity, that the nursing school was very much the domain of Sister Jamieson and her equally capable colleagues – cue a proud smile from Sister Jamieson – but it was important for him to get a sense of whether or not she would be a good fit. Dorothy found herself hoping that she would.
After the interview, she sat on a wooden bench in the entrance lobby, waiting for Clara. Her stomach fluttered with a combination of nerves and excitement. They would write to her in the next few days, Nurse Jamieson had said, informing her whether or not she had been accepted. The coward in her hoped that they wouldn’t want her, that they had beendisappointed by her interview answers and felt she wouldn’t make a good nurse after all. But she also felt a growing sense of nervous anticipation. To have a role in this place, to be part of a team and to help others was an exciting, if a little daunting, prospect.
Dorothy was jolted out of her reverie by the sharp tap of high heels ricocheting around the lobby like gunfire. She looked up and instantly recognised the owner.
‘Mummy!’ She smiled and jumped up from her seat, crossing the hallway to embrace her mother. But she stopped short. Her mother had been crying; something was wrong. Fear gripped her stomach like a vice.
‘What is it, Mummy? Whatever’s happened?’ She grasped her mother’s hands and ushered her over to sit down on the bench. Dorothy put her arm around her, she was trembling. Olivia Templeton took a handkerchief from her skirt pocket and wiped her moist eyes. Just then, Anthony Templeton appeared, rushing to catch up with his wife. He gave Dorothy the ghost of a smile then sat next to Olivia and wrapped her in his arms.
‘Daddy, what’s happened? What did the doctor say?’ Dorothy whispered, choked with emotion.
‘Darling, there’s no easy way to say this, I’m afraid,’ her father began, his voice cracking as he tried to get the words out. ‘Your mother has a tumour.’
CHAPTER 20
Singapore
Wednesday 3rd April, 2019
The drive back to the apartment was a quiet one. As if to match the sombre mood, the late afternoon sky had turned black and the monsoon-like rain had transformed the highway into a sea of blurry red tail lights. The soothing strains of Debussy’s ‘Clair de Lune’ played on the radio, but Annabel was agitated. Next to her, James looked deep in thought, keeping his focus on the road ahead, alert to the unpredictable drivers around them.
She gave a sigh of frustration. ‘I just don’t get it,’ she began. ‘Why did Mei get so upset? And why so angry? What on earth was that about?’
‘Yes, you’re right,’ James said. ‘Julia was putting a calm front on, but they were clearly disagreeing about something. There’s more to this, I’m sure. I guess we’ll just have to wait till we can see her again.’
‘It all seems to add up, what they were saying, I mean,’ Annabel said. ‘The last time I saw Dotty, in the hospital, she told me that she couldn’t have children. I had no idea she’d suffered recurrent miscarriages, though. She was going to explain everything to me the next time I saw her, but . . . ’ Annabel’s voice broke and she welled up.
She suddenly felt so tired and so confused, and her grief, still raw, threatened to overwhelm her. She closed her eyes, blinking away hot tears, and was surprised to feel James’s warm hand on hers. She turned to look at him but his appearance had not changed; his eyes were still fixed on the road ahead. But his hand was solid and comforting, offering her silent, rock-solid support. It was just what she needed right now.
A moment later, the spell was broken by the buzz of Annabel’s phone. She reached down into her handbag and checked it for the first time in several hours. There were four text messages and two missed calls.
‘All OK?’ James asked.
‘Messages from my dad and my brother, checking that I’m still alive and . . . ’ She paused as she tapped on the call history, then continued more quietly, ‘A couple of missed calls from Luke.’
James looked across at her. ‘Your ex?’
Annabel nodded and felt that uncomfortable knot in her stomach again. Seeing his name pop up on her phone felt so normal, so natural, and it had always made her smile. But her heart sank as the pain of his deceit stabbed at her again. Why was he calling her? She could feel her heart start to race as all the anguish of the break-up started to creep over her. She closed her eyes and focused on taking five long, slow breaths, in and out, just as she’d read in some Sunday supplement article.
‘Are you alright?’ James asked as she finished number five.
Annabel sighed and forced a smile. ‘Yes, thanks. I have no idea what he wants. I’ll text him back later.’
James slowed the car as they approached a set of traffic lights. The rain had stopped and he turned off the windscreen wipers.
‘Have you told your dad what you’ve found out?’ James asked, changing the subject. ‘Do you think he had any idea about Dotty’s life out here?’
She shook her head. ‘No, I haven’t told him. And I really don’t think he could have known anything; Dotty seems to have done a very good job of keeping all of this top secret. Dad knows I’m here in Singapore, but I guess I was a little economical with the truth. I just said I needed a change of scenery after the break-up and that my friend Jenny had set me up to stay with her cousin out here. It’s not exactly a lie.’ She shrugged. ‘Well, only by omission, I suppose.’
Annabel felt a pang of guilt as she thought of her father and suddenly missed him very much. She wanted to call him, to hear his voice, but was worried she might let something slip about her research. So she tapped a quick reply instead, reassuring him that all was well, that she loved and missed him, then pressed send.
‘I don’t like keeping secrets from him.’ She sighed. ‘But he’s only just come out of hospital after major surgery and I don’t want to bother him with any of this yet. He’s got enough on his plate with his recovery and I want to make sure I’ve done my research and got my facts right before I share any of this with him.’
‘Spoken like a true historian!’ James turned to her and waggled his eyebrows comically. Annabel rolled her eyes but couldn’t mask her smile.
The lights changed to green and James put the car into drive and moved off. ‘How do you think he’ll react when he findsout? It’s pretty amazing that Dotty had a whole other life out here before she married his father.’
