Page 81 of The Summer That Changed Us

Katie checked the time. Her dad was sleeping, there was nothing to stop her going now. It was the right thing to do and she had to admit, she was interested to see what Rose looked like these days. They weren’t kids any more, it was time to let go of the past. The Sea Glass Sisterhood had come along just when Katie had needed a shoulder to cry on, so perhaps now she could pay it forward and be there for her old friend.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Rose’s family home was on the other of the city, eight miles from Brian and Josie’s house. Katie’s school had been a Catholic secondary, which meant that the catchment area was much bigger than usual, taking children from primary feeder schools from all four corners of the city. Long bus journeys into school, and to visit each other, had been the norm. Katie took the bus, just as she had when she was a teenager. It was bizarre being back; so much had changed. Huge modern buildings had sprung up and lots of the old ones demolished to make room for new trams and roads. As the bus trundled across Nottingham, she was flooded with memories, mostly good. She and Rose had had great fun together. Right up until suddenly they hadn’t. One studious, one scraping through school by the seat of her pants … Katie had been the wholesome sunshine to Rose’s seductive darkness. Katie had felt humiliated and alone when Rose cut her out of her life; she’d been caught in a downward spiral which eventually led to depression. If it had been the other way around, Katie would have been there for Rose. It broke her heart that Rose didn’t do that for her.

She found Rose’s Victorian mid-terraced house easily; it was just as she remembered it: stained-glass panel in the door, racing-green paintwork and small square of gravelled front garden with a sundial in the centre.

Her whole body tingled with nerves as she pushed open the gate; she wasn’t sure what to expect. Would Rose be pleased to see her? Unlikely, thought Katie. But the fact that she’d come to pay her respects would soften Rose’s reaction. Before she could give herself time to change her mind, her finger rang the doorbell.

At first, there was silence. She rang again and this time, she could make out a thumping noise. There was someone in there and they were heading her way. Instinctively, Katie took a step back as muffled footsteps grew louder, and a dark shape came into view through the patterned glass.

A woman with flushed cheeks and a sheen of sweat on her forehead opened the door and glared at her. ‘Yes?’

Her black hair was tied up in a messy bun, a T-shirt hung off one shoulder and there were dusty streaks on her leggings and her face had lost the softness of youth, but Katie would recognise her anywhere. ‘Rose?’ Katie’s voice came out as a croak and she curled her fingers tightly into fists to stop her hands from shaking. ‘It’s me, Katie Small. Catherine.’

‘What the hell … ?’ Rose’s body tensed, she looked over Katie’s shoulder towards the street and then shrank back behind the door. Behind her, boxes and bags lined both sides of the tiled hallway all the way to the kitchen. Even the staircase was cluttered with objects. It looked like she was in the middle of clearing the house.

Katie forced herself to remember that Rose was grieving for her mum, and she’d turned up unannounced, it was perfectly understandable that she wasn’t being very welcoming.

‘It’s been a long time, but I wanted to come to—’ Katie began.

‘I know why you’ve come.’ Rose gave a harsh laugh. Her fingers gripped the edge of the door, eyes narrowed.

‘How did you know? Oh, of course, you were always the smart one, always the golden girl, doing the right thing.’ Her voice dripped with sarcasm.

‘I don’t understand,’ Katie tried again, bewildered at Rose’s reaction.

Rose stepped back inside and began to shut the door in her face. But her foot got caught on a plastic bag and she slipped sideways. Arms flailing, she lost her balance and fell against the wall, screaming as she pitched backwards. The crack of her skull on the tiled floor turned Katie’s stomach.

‘Oh my God!’ Katie cried. The door was only half open and Rose’s legs were blocking her path, but she managed to push her way inside and dropped to her knees beside Rose’s prone body. ‘Rose! Rose!’

She shook her shoulders gently, but there was no response. It looked as if she was out cold. Katie was trembling properly now, her hands clammy. Panic gushed through her as she tried to remember what you were supposed to do when someone was unconscious. Check for breathing, put in them in the recovery position, call for help. Instructions from her school first-aid training came flooding back. She bent over Rose’s face. She didn’t appear to be breathing at all.

‘HELP!’ she shouted through the open door towards the street, hoping to attract the attention of a neighbour. ‘Somebody please HELP ME!’

But the street was deserted.

‘I’m putting you in the recovery position,’ Katie said loudly, hoping to bring her round with the sound of her voice.

There was hardly any room to manoeuvre in the narrow hallway and the line of black bags wasn’t helping, but she grabbed hold of Rose’s T-shirt and the leg furthest away from her and tugged with all her strength. It was when she knelt back on her heels, panting from exertion that she noticed the blood in Rose’s hair. There was a cut on the back of her head, and it was bleeding fast.

Oh God. She felt her stomach lurch; she’d never been very good with blood. Three closed doors led from the hallway. Katie vaguely remembered the layout, a living room at the front, dining room in the middle and a long thin kitchen at the far end leading straight out into the back yard. She scrambled to her feet and ran into the kitchen. The sink was just inside the door. She scooped up a towel lying on the draining board and ran straight back to Rose, pulling her phone from the back pocket of her jeans and dialling 999.

‘Wake up, Rose, wake up,’ Katie pleaded, pressing the towel to the wound as she waited for the line to connect.

‘Which emergency service do you require?’

Her throat was so dry she could barely speak. ‘Ambulance please.’

The minutes ticked slowly by. At the point when her arms and her legs had gone numb from being cramped in the same position over Rose’s prone body, Katie heard an approaching siren. Tears of relief pricked at her eyes.

‘The ambulance is coming,’ she said. ‘It’s going to be OK.’

Rose’s arm twitched and she gave a low moan.

Thank heavens. Katie let out a shaky sob; she must be coming round at last. Blood was still oozing from the wound and she refolded the towel and tucked it under Rose’s head. The sound of the ambulance was really loud now. Katie clambered to her feet and dashed outside to flag it down. Her head spun from getting up too quickly and she had to lean against the gate to steady herself.

She raised a hand as the ambulance pulled up, blue lights flashing, siren wailing.