Page 62 of The Stranger in Room Six

Now

Back in her room at Sunnyside, Mabel has gone frighteningly pale and her hands are shaking. ‘I want to go home,’ she whispers to Belinda. ‘Take me back. Now. Before the bombs start again. We need to go to the shelter.’

Belinda rings the alarm. Around her, Mabel can hear voices panicking.

‘Her blood pressure is up.’

‘We need to calm her down.’

‘You and I, Belinda,’ whispers Mabel. ‘We both loved and lost, didn’t we?’

‘What’s she talking about?’

‘She must be rambling,’ says Belinda.

‘No I’m not …’

Then Mabel feels a small prick and drifts back into the past again.