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He’s asleep again, his chest rising softly under the hospital sheet. I watch him for a moment, and tears pool in my eyes.What have you done?
Dabbing my eyes with my jacket sleeve, I leave him to sleep.
Sarah opens her front door within seconds and pulls me inside. She’s dressed in black joggers and a loose pink T-shirt, her hair tied back in a messy bun, her face free of make-up. She already knows about Max – as I’d sat in the Uber on the way home last night, I’d messaged her to tell her what happened to him; writing it was easier than making a phone call.
‘My God, Hannah. I can’t believe this.’ She hugs me so tightly I feel as though I’ll suffocate. ‘I’m so sorry this happened. Is he okay? And areyouokay?’ She barely pauses for breath.
I nod. And when I pull back and look at her, I notice her eyes glisten with tears. ‘Max is stable. And I’m…doing all right, I think. I just need to tell Poppy what’s happened.’ I peer past her.
‘The girls are playing upstairs. They’re still in their pyjamas.’
‘I know it’s early. I just needed to see Poppy. Give her a hug.’
Sarah glances towards the stairs, lowering her voice. ‘I haven’t said anything. Thought it might be better coming from you.’ She takes my arm. ‘Come and sit down before you tell her. Take a moment. The girls can play for a bit more.’
We sit on Sarah’s sofa, and I try to gather my thoughts.
‘What exactly happened?’ she asks. The information I gave her in my message was brief and vague, so it’s only natural she’ll have questions.
‘Max was attacked when he was leaving work. He was found in an alleyway. If someone hadn’t noticed him, he could have…’ I trail off, drowning in sadness as I picture Max, caught unawares as he made his way to the station. Something he’s done a thousand times before. He would have been preoccupied, and not noticed anyone coming up behind him. Until it was too late.
‘What do the police think happened?’
‘Apparently, they’ve got CCTV images but they’re not great quality. It was a male. That’s about the only lead they’ve got so far.’
Without a word, Sarah moves next to me and hugs me, and I let myself be comforted by her silent gesture.
‘And what have the doctors said?’ Sarah sucks in her breath. She and Max have always got along. They might have bonded through me initially, but I’ve often thought that even if I wasn’t in the picture, they would have been friends. I wonder if she knows about him shouting at Ivy the other night.
I recount every detail I can remember them telling me, comforted that Sarah will understand the medical terminology.
‘I’ve dealt with a lot of head trauma like Max’s. He’s going to be okay. It won’t be easy, but it could have been so much worse.’
‘He woke up and spoke to me. He thinks it’s May. He can’t remember the last six months.’
Sarah nods. ‘That’s common after this kind of injury. It’s awful for Max, and all of you, but he’s alive. Try to focus on that.’
I lower my voice. ‘I need to ask you something.’
Sarah leans forward and places her hand on my arm. ‘Of course. I’ll watch Poppy as much as I can. I owe you for all the times you’ve helped me by having Ivy. You don’t want to be dragging her to the hospital every day. And it’s not exactly close by. Mum will have her when I’m at work?—’
‘No, it’s not that.’ I hesitate, unsure whether to bring this up now. ‘When Ivy slept at our house the other night, she told me she saw Max the day that Carol took her to Brent Cross.’
‘Mum’s always dragging her there. They went a couple of weeks ago.’ Sarah rolls her eyes. ‘She loves shopping. My daughter will turn into a shopaholic one day. All because of Mum.’
Carol has never met Max so there’s no point asking Sarah if I can speak to her.
‘Does Ivy know anything about Alice Hughes?’
Sarah’s nose crinkles, and a deep crease appears on her forehead. ‘The woman in the hotel? Why on earth would she? What’s that got to do with anything?’ She pauses. ‘Oh, hang on…I was on the sofa reading about it on my phone the night it happened and didn’t realise Ivy was standing right behind me. She insisted she’d seen her before. I didn’t pay it much attention. Ivy might have just thought she recognised her from somewhere. Maybe one of the school mums looks like her. I’d forgotten all about it until now. Why do you ask?’
I study Sarah’s face, wondering how much I should tell her about this. If it was anything else then I would have filled her in on every detail. But Max is my husband. This is my marriage. And I need to work it out for myself first. It wasn’t my intention to drag Sarah into this, and I don’t plan to say anything about the hotel key card, but I need to know if Ivy really did see them together. Carol might be able to verify if Ivy mentioned recognising anyone at Brent Cross.
‘It’s a bit weird,’ I begin. ‘But the other evening, Max shouted at Ivy for accidentally smashing the office window and?—’
‘I know all about that. Which reminds me – I’m paying for it.’
I shake my head. ‘When I put the girls to bed, Ivy told me she’d seen Max with Alice Hughes at Brent Cross. She said he might be sad now because his friend is dead.’
