“Thank you.” Rosa smiled and turned, but Imogen had already wandered down the plane to find her seat. She was in the middle of the plane, Rosa was closer to the front. They were the last but two to board.
Before she had her bag stowed, the same steward reappeared. “Hi. I’ve had a look. I can’t get you two together, but I can do two aisle seats. You’ll be able to talk to each other.”
“Perfect. Thank you.”
He pointed to a seat three rows back from her original. She waved at Imogen, who frowned and feigned not knowing her until Rosa curled her finger and mouthed, “Come here.”
Chapter seventy-two
Billy parked her parents’ car and yawned. The sensor lights came on, washing the drive in a harsh white glow and catching the frost on the hedges.
“It’s been a long day, hasn’t it?” Meredith said.
Billy nodded. “Yes. Could do with a cup of tea and some toast.”
“Are you hungry? You should have said.”
“I think we had more important things to do.” She pulled the keys out and clutched them in her palm. “Shall we go in?”
Before Billy could fully open the door and get out, Meredith touched her arm. “Thanks for today.”
“Nothing to thank me for, Mum,” Billy said, as the lights timed out, and the world vanished, leaving only the sounds of their breathing and the tick of the cooling engine.
“You dropped everything…you flew over and came straight to the hospital.”
“What else was I going to do?” Billy asked, adding, “Schultz is more of a father to me than my own dad has ever been.”
“He’d be happy to hear that.”
“Maybe I should be telling him more often.” Billy looked away and out of the window at the dark night. “He’s going to be okay.” Billy stared back at the windscreen, refusing to let the thought go anywhere else.
“Yes, I hope so.”
Meredith sighed and turned away from Billy as they both stared out into the darkness.
Billy reached out and squeezed Meredith’s hand. “Do you want to get inside then, before we freeze out here?”
It was colder than last time she visited, but the sky was clear and the ground was snowless. She was grateful for that. Her thoughts drifted to Rosa and the cabin. Whatever happened next, she didn’t regret finding her way back to Rosa.
Following Meredith, they got inside and shook off coats and boots, transferring cold feet into waiting slippers. Warmth met them in the hallway, soft and immediate.
“I’ll put the kettle on,” Meredith said, yawning.
“Why don’t you go up and I’ll bring you a cup?” Billy said, taking the kettle from her. “You must be exhausted.”
Meredith’s eyes glistened.
“I should have stayed with him.”
“No, you need to rest.” Billy guided her by the shoulders towards the stairs. “Go on up, get into bed, and I’ll bring a cup of cocoa.”
“I won’t sleep without him there,” Meredith said as she took the first step.
“Maybe not, but you need sleep,” Billy insisted. “He’s going to need you to be in the best shape you can be when he comes home.”
“You’re right. Maybe I’ll take one of my tablets.” She kissed Billy’s cheek. “You’ll make sure I’m up in the morning, won’t you?”
“I will. Go on, up you go, and I’ll be up in a minute with the cocoa.”
