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‘Are you her kids?’ the paramedic asked.

‘No. We’re friends. Close friends,’ Zennor said and then turned to Sybil. ‘You’re a heroine. You risked everything for me.’

Sybil pulled the mask off her mouth again and grasped Zennor’s wrist with surprising strength. ‘I’m not. I’m n-not.’ She grasped Zennor’s hand. ‘I’m not a heroine. I’ve done something bad. Really bad.’

Sybil started coughing violently. Zennor was horrified. The effects of the smoke had clearly made Sybil delirious.

‘That’s enough,’ the paramedic said firmly. ‘We need to get you to hospital now.’

Ushering Matt and Zennor out, the paramedic closed the doors of the ambulance and it drove off up the beach ramp.

Tears poured down Zennor’s face but Matt’s arm was around her, soothing her. ‘You really ought to get checked out too,’ he said firmly. ‘You got pretty close to the flames.’

‘No, I’ll be fine. Please, let’s just get to the hospital. Sybil’s in a bad way. She wasn’t making any sense. I hope the smoke hasn’t done any permanent damage.’

Half an hour later, Matt and Zennor were again back at Penzance Hospital and Zennor gave their names to the receptionist.

‘Oh yes, Ms Brandon is in A & E. She actually gave you as her next of kin.’

‘Me?’ Zennor said.

‘Both of you. That’s what it says on the form.’

Zennor exchanged a look with Matt. ‘I’d no idea.’ The news made her want to cry.

‘She cares about you,’ Matt said. ‘And you are very close.’

‘You too.’

A nurse showed her and Matt in, saying Sybil was stable but weak so they could only stay for a short time. She explained that Sybil had had a chest X-ray and some blood tests to check carbon monoxide levels.

‘What about her heart?’

‘Everything seems OK, as is her blood pressure. She’s one fit and lucky lady to come out of that fire relatively unscathed but we’re still concerned about smoke inhalation damage so we’re keeping her in for observation. She’s also very shaken up, as you’d imagine.’

Sybil was in a room on her own and with a pulse oximeter attached to her finger and an oxygen mask over her nose and mouth. She looked grey and defeated, like an empty sack.

‘Oh, Sybil …’ Zennor said, holding Sybil’s hand. It was all Zennor could do not to cry.

She felt Matt’s hand on her own back, reassuring her, before he pulled up a chair for Zennor and himself.

‘This hospital thing is getting to be a habit,’ he joked gently.

Sybil pulled her mask away. ‘I should get a l-loyalty discount.’ She broke out into another coughing fit.

‘Don’t talk,’ Zennor begged. ‘Please, just listen. I am incredibly grateful that you tried to save us. Horrified, too. I don’t know what I’d do without you.’

‘No … you need to know what kind of a friend I am. My lovely, you’re not going to like any of it.’

‘Sybil. Don’t.’ Matt rested his hand on Sybil’s.

‘No. Let’s have no more delay, Matt. Zennor deserves to know what happened.’

‘It can’t be that bad,’ Zennor soothed even as she grew cold with apprehension. Sybil didn’t seem delirious now and she was clearly desperate to get something off her chest. ‘But why don’t you wait until you’re out of hospital? Don’t make yourself worse by upsetting yourself. She shouldn’t, should she, Matt?’

‘I—’

The machine started beeping like mad as Sybil’s heart rate rose and she dissolved into coughs again.