Page 146 of The Guilty Girl

Before she interviewed Hannah again, she had to get to the hospital.

At the emergency department, Lottie found Rose asleep in a wheelchair in the corridor. An IV ran to a stand attached to the back of the chair. She hijacked a nurse to fill her in because there was no sign of Chloe.

‘Your mother is dehydrated,’ the nurse said. ‘I’ve set up an IV to get fluids into her quickly. The doctor assessed her condition and wants to admit her.’

‘Is it the summer flu?’ Lottie asked helplessly.

‘Her temperature is high and she has a UTI. When the fluids are finished, we’ll do more tests. As soon as a bed is freed up, she’ll be admitted.’

‘My daughter was supposed to be here. I’ll wait.’

‘There’s nothing you can do at the moment. I’ll arrange for someone to give you a call once we get her settled on a ward. You might want to bring in nightclothes and toiletries.’

‘Certainly. Thank you.’ As Lottie turned away, she spied Chloe coming towards her, a coffee and sandwich in her hands.

‘I was only gone five minutes,’ she said defensively.

‘Just take care of Gran. Call me when she gets a bed. Okay?’

‘Sure.’ Chloe set the coffee on the ground, leaned over and kissed her granny on the forehead. Then she sat on the floor and opened the plastic wrapper on her sandwich.

She noticed Lottie staring at her. ‘Want half?’

‘You’re a life-saver,’ Lottie said, taking the sandwich. Before she left, she bent and kissed the top of Chloe’s head.

‘What’s that for?’

‘To show you I care.’

‘Go on, Mam. I’ll call you.’

A porter told her where to find Sharon Flood. She took the lift to level three and walked along the sterile hospital corridor. Liz Flood was sitting on a chair outside the ICU, nursing a takeout beverage.

Lottie sat beside her. ‘How is she?’

Liz bit her lip for a few seconds, then sipped her drink. The aroma reminded Lottie that she could do with a good shot of caffeine. She should have taken Chloe’s.

‘She said she was going to her friend’s house. I thought that was where she was. She’s seriously ill. She’s being operated on.’ Twisting on the chair, she looked at Lottie. ‘They say she was stabbed. Possibly ruptured her spleen. They don’t know what else was damaged, that’s why they have to operate. Please tell me she’ll be okay. I can’t lose Shaz like I lost Jake and their daddy. I wouldn’t survive it. Honestly, how could I go on?’

‘I’m so sorry. It’s a terribly worrying time for you. A colleague of mine was stabbed a few years ago and there’s not a bother on him. He’s out in Spain now, sunning himself. The doctors will do everything to help Sharon recover to full health.’

‘Did you find the bastard responsible for hurting my little girl?’

‘We have someone in for questioning.’

‘Is it the same bastard who killed my Jake?’

‘It’s early in our investigations. I’m sorry, Liz, I can’t tell you anything else at the moment.’

‘Don’t be bloody sorry, just do your job and charge him.’

‘I will, I promise.’

Liz turned away and stared at the wall in front of her.

Lottie swallowed her awkwardness and decided to be bold. ‘Can I ask you a question?’

‘Sure.’