‘I’m so sorry, Bram.’ It’s Peggy’s voice now, a little further away. ‘I should have known. You know how bad he is with messages.’
Lucy’s eyes flick to mine, biting down on her lip to suppress a smile. Even with her human hearing, she probably caught every word.
‘Don’t worry about it,’ I say, my breath coming more easily than it has for a while. ‘We’re here now. Angela’s actually just in front of me; I’ll go and find out what’s happening.’
Peggy hums her approval. ‘Let us know how she is. And I’m sorry about this fool.’
‘English is my second language, you know.’ I can hear the harumph in Wladek’s voice, and it makes me smile. I mean, he’s not wrong. But he has been speaking English for the better part of a century now.
‘I know. I’ll keep you posted, ok?’
And then I pocket my phone, grab Lucy’s hand, and go to find out what the hell is going on.
Chapter Seventeen
LUCY
Ialmost feel the sigh of relief that slips out of Bram as we walk out of the hospital doors. He turns his face to the sky, his breath billowing out of him like mist into the night.
‘She’s ok,’ I hear him whisper, and it strikes a bolt straight into my chest. Relief, empathy, I’m not sure which. His mum had a minor fall, Angela explained, and fractured one of the bones in her forearm. She’d already been discharged.
‘She’s back in her own bed already,’ Angela said with an easy smile. ‘I’m actually here with another resident now.’
I noted her use of the word resident, but I didn’t say anything. I was sure Bram would explain when he was ready. Instead I simply stood with him as he took in the news, wanting to go see her immediately.
But it turned out that, though his mother only had a simple fracture, she’d become upset during the casting process and ended up needing to be given medicine to help her relax.
‘She’ll be fast asleep by now,’ Angela said, her Leeds accent thick and comfortingly familiar. ‘You’re best letting her rest. Come by in the morning.’
I sensed his hesitancy, but Angela dealt with it like a pro.
‘I promise that she’s ok,’ she said, gently but without any room for argument. And then, with a smile and a reassuring pat on the arm, she rushed off to deal with adifferent family’s crisis. I don’t know what the bigger picture is with Mrs Bramwell, but I know that, whatever it is, if I were Bram, I’d want someone like Angela in the frame.
‘Let’s get the hell out of here,’ Bram says now, adjusting his jacket beside me.
‘Not a fan of hospitals?’ I ask gently, and when he turns to look at me, his smile is barely there.
‘Something like that.’
I nod. It’s not the whole story, but I’ll take it. ‘So,’ I say, suddenly awkward. ‘What do we do now?’
He reaches for my hand, his fingers shielding mine against the nip of the night air.
‘You hungry?’
I actually didn’t think I was hungry, but I’ve just inhaled a full plate of summer rolls, and my stomach’s still growling, so I think it’s safe to say that I definitely am. I’ve dragged Bram to my favourite Vietnamese place on Vicar Lane, and he’s delighted by the decor here: bright red walls with colourful travel posters plastered here and there, and dozens of paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling. The lighting is dim and atmospheric, and it reminds me a little of Bitten.
‘This is super-goth,’ he whispered to me as we walked to our table, and it was so far from true that I burst out laughing right there in the middle of the restaurant.
He’s still entranced by it now.
‘Which is your favourite lantern?’ he asks, pulling his gaze back to me.
I don’t even have to look.
‘Lime-green with the pink blossoms. Over by the kitchen door.’
He raises an eyebrow, clearly impressed. ‘You come here a lot.’