Page 125 of Love Letters on Hazel Lane

‘And Razz?’ said Kate, as if she could read Jo’s mind.

‘I’m hoping that tonight’s the night.’

‘It’s bound to be. There’s nothing stopping you from getting together, is there?’

‘I still don’t know if he likes me. Not in that way. I think he does, but then I keep coming back to the fact that he didn’t ask me for a second date when we first met. Although he did say that he assumed I wouldn’t want to see him again. But I dunno… I wonder if he just likes me as a friend. And that’s good too. Because a few weeks ago, I didn’t feel that I had any friends. Not local ones, anyway. And now I have you and Razz and all the people at the Scrabble group. Wow, look at the view.’

They stopped and stared for a moment. They’d wound their way high above the river. The path was narrow now – too narrow for them to walk side by side – and the edge fell away sharply, down to the river below, and the ruins of an old mill, complete with a water wheel.

‘We should get a selfie of the two of us together,’ said Jo suddenly, keen to preserve this perfect moment for ever. This moment of friendship and new beginnings and the unaccustomed feeling that she was right where she belonged.

‘It’s called an “usie”,’ said Kate.

‘An usie?’

‘If it’s two or more people together.’

An usie. Jo liked the sound of that. She wanted to be part of an usie.

They turned, their backs to the river and Kate slung her arm around Jo. Jo lifted her phone high above them, trying to position it in the perfect place to capture both their faces and the water below. It was a good shot, but not quite the right angle. Kate looked smaller than her – well, Kate was smaller than her, but not that much smaller – and the old mill wasn’t in the frame.

‘Careful,’ said Kate. ‘We’re quite near the edge.’

Jo moved the phone slightly. She could see the river on the screen now, but not all of her face. She moved a little, edged nearer to Kate, then leaned back slightly trying to squeeze herself into the shot. And then she took a step backwards.

It was the tiniest of steps, only an inch or two, but her heel didn’t meet earth. It met air.

She felt Kate’s arm grip her shoulders but it wasn’t enough to stop her falling.

The river was a long way below, but Jo didn’t tumble straight to the bottom. Luckily, the rocky slope broke her fall, and she part tumbled, part rolled down, banging her head on a tree stump as she reached the edge of the river. And then she passed out.

47

Jo could feel the cold, wet ground beneath her. She opened her eyes and moved her hand in front of her face. It was covered in mud. Her head ached, but other than that, she couldn’t feel any pain anywhere. No, wait; her ankle was beginning to throb now too. Jo tried to wriggle her toes and they all seemed to work perfectly well. That was a good sign, wasn’t it? She wasn’t seriously injured. Just stuck. Getting back up to the path was going to be a bit of a challenge.

She could hear the sound of the river, babbling happily away to itself as it rolled down the valley. And from above, she could hear a familiar voice. Kate. She seemed to be on the phone, but Jo could only make out snatches of the conversation.

‘…an accident… rung for an ambulance… mountain rescue… on another call… she’s come round now… yes, she was unconscious but only for a minute or so. Could Ludek…?’

Jo tried to sit up but her head was spinning.

‘Hang on, I think she’s trying to get up,’ she heard Kate say. ‘I’d better go.’

She lifted her arm and waved.

‘Jo?’ Kate called. Can you hear me?’

She tried to speak, but her mouth was dry. ‘Kate,’ she croaked.

‘Jo? Can you hear me?’

‘I’m down here.’ She managed to speak a little louder this time.

‘Yes, I know. I watched you fall. I can see you, but I don’t think I can reach you. Are you hurt? Yeah, well, obviously you are. But are you in pain?’

‘A bit. Head hurts.’

‘You hit a tree stump – it broke your fall. Do you think you’ve broken anything?’