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Alice frowned, her mind focused on the job. ‘Why was Harriet in here?’
‘Picking up a repeat prescription for her husband.’ Mary’s mouth tightened and her eyes suddenly clouded with worry. ‘I knew that girl when she was in primary school. The smile never left her face. Look at her now and her face is grim. As if she’s holding it together by a thread. As if every moment is an effort. If you ask me, she’s close to the edge.’
‘She has three children under the age of six. Twin boys of five. It’s the summer holidays so she has them at home all day.’ Alice frowned slightly. Considered. ‘That’s hard work by anyone’s standards. Her husband is a fisherman so he works pretty long hours. Her mother died a month before the baby was born and there’s no other family on the scene that I’m aware of. On top of that her delivery was difficult and she had a significant post-partum haemorrhage. She had her postnatal check at the hospital with the consultant.’
She knew her patients well, Gio thought as he watched her sifting through the facts. She was making mental lists. Looking at the evidence in front of her.
‘Yes.’ Mary glanced at her. ‘It might be that.’
‘But you don’t think so?’
‘You want my opinion?’ Mary pressed her lips together as the telephone rang yet again. ‘I think she’s depressed. And Dr Moretti agrees with me.’
‘A new baby is hard work.’
‘That’s right. It is.’ Mary reached out and picked up the receiver. ‘Appointments line, good afternoon.’ She listened and consulted the computer for an appointment slot while Alice ran a hand through her hair and turned to Gio.
‘Did she seem depressed to you?’
‘Hard to be sure. She seemed stressed and tired,’ he conceded, wondering whether she gave all her patients this much thought and attention when they hadn’t even asked for help. If so, it was no wonder she was tired and overworked.
‘I’ll talk to the Gina, the health visitor, and maybe I’ll call round and see her at home.’
‘You haven’t got time to call and see everyone at home.’ Mary replaced the receiver and rejoined the conversation. ‘She was David’s patient, which means she’s now Dr Moretti’s responsibility. Let him deal with it. Chances are she’ll make an appointment with him in the next couple of days. If she doesn’t, well, I’ll just have to nudge her along.’
To Gio’s surprise, Alice nodded. ‘All right. But keep an eye on her, Mary.’
‘Of course.’
Alice put the cups down and lifted a journal that was lying on the desk.
She had slim hands, he noticed. Delicate. Like the rest of her. It seemed unbelievable that someone so fragile-looking could handle such a punishing workload. She glanced up and caught him looking at her. ‘If you want to know anything about this town or the people in it, ask Mary or Rita. They went to school together and they’ve lived here all their lives. They actually qualify as locals.’ She dropped the journal back on the desk and looked at Mary. ‘Did the letting agent drop off Dr Moretti’s keys?’
‘Ah—I was building up to that piece of news.’ Mary pulled a face and adjusted her glasses. ‘There’s a slight problem with the let that David arranged.’
‘What problem?’
Mary looked vague. ‘They’ve had a misunderstanding in the office. Some junior girl didn’t realise it was being reserved for Dr Moretti and gave it away to a bunch of holidaymakers.’ She frowned and waved a hand. ‘French, I think.’
Alice tapped her foot on the floor and her mouth tightened. ‘Then they’ll just have to find him something else. Fast.’ She cast an apologetic glance at Gio. ‘Sorry about this. You must be exhausted.’
Not as exhausted as she was, Gio mused, wondering whether she’d eaten at all during the day. Whether she ever stopped thinking about work. At some point, Rita had produced a sandwich and an excellent cup of coffee for him but that had been hours earlier and he was ready for something more substantial to eat. And a hot bath. His shoulder was aching again.
‘Not that easy.’ Mary checked the notes she’d made. ‘Nothing is free until September. Schools are back by then. Demand falls a bit.’
‘September?’ Alice stared. ‘But it’s still only July.’
Gio studied Mary carefully. Something didn’t feel quite right. She was clearly a caring, hospitable woman. Efficient, too. And yet she seemed totally unconcerned about his apparent lack of accommodation. ‘You have an alternative plan?’
‘Hotels,’ Alice said firmly. ‘We just need to ring round and see if—’
‘No hotels,’ Mary said immediately, sitting back in her chair and giving a helpless shrug. ‘Full to the brim. We’re having a good season, tourist-wise. Betty in the newsagent reckons it’s been the best July since she took over from her mother in 1970.’
‘Mary.’ Alice’s voice was exasperated. ‘I don’t care about the tourists and at the moment I don’t care about Betty’s sales figures, but I do care about Dr Moretti having somewhere to live while he’s working here! You have to do something. And you have to do it right now.’
‘I’m trying a few letting agents up the coast,’ Mary murmured, peering over the top of her glasses, ‘but I’m getting nowhere at the moment. Might need an interim plan. I know.’ Her face brightened with inspiration. ‘He can stay with you. Just until I find somewhere.’
There was a long silence and something flashed in Alice’s eyes. Something dangerous. ‘Mary.’ There was an unspoken threat in her voice but Mary waved a hand airily.
