The Nurse by J. Corrigan (list of ebook readers txt) 📕

suspected he was broken water – and it was that which was stoking my interest.

I had the overwhelming desire to fix Daniel Deane. Sitting next to him in the taxi, a warm feeling bloomed in the pit of my stomach.

I didn’t do crushes, but I was definitely doing one that night.

9

Theo

30 March 2016

The bell for the end of visit time rings sooner than Theo wanted as Rose talks about the end of her first date with Daniel Deane almost exactly twenty-five years before. She picks up the bottle of water sitting on the table, finishes it off and looks at him, nursing the plastic in slim fingers.

He crosses his legs. ‘So you knew Miles from Mussels?’

‘I did. I’d spoken with him lots of times because he always sat in my section. He asked me out once, but I said no. Told him he was too old for me. Then I went out with Daniel, who was the same age.’ She scrutinises Theo’s face. ‘There was just something about Daniel that pulled me in, but I did genuinely like Miles. He was different to Daniel.’ She places the bottle on the table and leans towards him. ‘So very different.’

Theo pushes his chair backwards a fraction and uncrosses his legs, stretches them out. ‘Maybe you should have mentioned to your barrister that you knew Abe Duncan’s dad?’

‘I didn’t want people delving into my past. And it was clear back then that Daniel had no wish for anyone to know about our relationship.’ She tilts her head sideways, keeping eye contact. ‘I want you to know that I regret what happened. Every day. Every night.’ She slumps into her chair.

Theo watches her intently. ‘I do think you should have made that more explicit at your hearing, Rose.’

‘There was no point. It was done. I admitted to Abe’s murder. And that is that.’

Theo holds up his hands, a little like he used to do with Sophie when he knew he was getting nowhere in an argument. ‘Thanks again for agreeing to talk to me,’ he says, catching the eye of the custody officer, who’s tapping his watch. ‘I really will be able to get going on your story now. I look forward to the next visit, and the next instalment.’

‘Thank you for listening to me.’ She smiles and her whole face lights up. ‘It’s good to talk.’ She unfolds those long legs and stands. ‘I hope your next meeting with my mother goes well.’ She hesitates. ‘I’m sure she’ll be a mine of information for you.’

He sighs and looks at her. ‘What do you want me to find out from her, Rose?’

She digs her nails violently into the palm of her hand. ‘Whether she’s in contact with Daniel Deane.’

‘Why would she be?’

‘Just ask her.’

‘How can I find out anything without knowing all the facts?’

She lifts her shoulders and begins walking away. Theo follows her with his eyes. There’s something about this scenario, and what Rose has alluded to regarding her mother, that isn’t sitting right. She turns again before disappearing through the security door, giving him a stilted wave and tucking that wild hair behind her ears.

He gets up and looks round at the other prisoners. None of them are like the woman he’s come to interview, and he admits to himself his growing captivation with Rose’s story. And with Rose herself. He’s finding it almost impossible to accept the hard truth – that she killed Abe Duncan. Why is that so difficult to believe?

For the entire journey home, he thinks about the answer.

And he’s not sure he likes what it might be.

10

Rose

I’m standing by the tiny window in my cell, thinking about Theo. He’s already full of questions, and this is good. I saw his creative mind filling in the gaps. Gaps that exist and gaps that don’t. It’s what I want, although my head is still pounding with talk of my mother. I need him to speak to her, to find out if what Bella told me is true.

Theo wants his story but I sense he wants to help me too. He isn’t stupid; if anyone can get answers, it will be him, and I know I’ve whetted his appetite. He’s confident and assured but with a hidden seam of vulnerability. He reminds me a little of my husband in that respect. But no. Theo isn’t like Miles. He’s stronger, although he doesn’t know it. I do, though, seeing it today in my first meeting with him. Theo Hazel is the sort of man I wish I’d met a long time ago.

I lie down on the bed and think about all these things. I think of Abe – I’m always thinking of Abe – and that terrible day.

The free association bell sounds and my door is unlocked and opened. I wait for Cathy. She’s only asked me once about Bella Bliss’s visit and I steered her away quickly, although this has only made her more inquisitive.

Now she sits on my bed. ‘C’mon. Tell me about Theo Hazel.’

I’m safe for now. It’s Theo who’s captured her interest.

‘Nothing to tell,’ I say.

‘I’ve signed up to his creative writing class,’ she says. ‘Is he as good-looking in the flesh as in his photo?’

‘I suppose so.’

‘Are you going to tell him? That’s why you’re seeing him, isn’t it?’

‘Tell him what?’

She swings her legs up onto the bed. ‘The truth.’

‘I tell you the truth, Cathy.’

She tilts her head back and her bottom lip drops a little, her eyes fixed on the cracked paint of the ceiling. ‘You haven’t told me about Bella Bliss.’

‘Nothing to tell. I helped her with her research.’

She jumps up. Cathy is full of untethered energy. She leans forward and kisses me on the forehead, like the sister I never had.

I love Cathy, despite her enormous faults. I love her because she sees the best in me. She doesn’t see me as the monster I know I am.

11

Theo

31 March 2016

Theo is sitting with his feet up on the study desk. He