“If you don’t get your eyesight sorted out,” said Lissa gently, because what she was about to say was a complete lie, but she’d used it confidently many, many times before, “I’ll have to report you to the police and the DVLA, otherwise I’ll lose my license to practice.”

“Is that true?” said the woman, looking even more shocked. It had definitely not been her morning.

“It is,” said Lissa. “And I’ll be watching out for you.”

She stood up.

“The swelling should go down—keep this ice pack on it. And I highly recommend going to the bakery and having a cup of sweet tea and a long sit-down. Is there anyone who could drive the car home for you?”

“My son,” Margaret said quietly.

“Call him,” said Lissa. “Seriously. Nobody wants to get the police involved.”

Margaret nodded and left timidly. Lennox looked around the surgery, which appeared as if a bomb had hit it, although not necessarily hugely worse than how Joan normally left it.

“Right,” he said. “I’d better get back. Good work.”

Chapter 37

After that, although it wasn’t, of course, Lennox who’d told everyone about it, the story got out somehow—and, in fact, became rather inflated, till by the end Lissa had single-handedly brought a dead cat back to life while stopping Carrie from performing manslaughter, a fact about Carrie nobody seemed to have the slightest problem believing to be absolutely true. And just like that, it seemed, everyone said hello to her in the morning, and people were pleased to see her when she turned up and weren’t so quick to take offense if she looked sad or distracted, and she was amazed, truly, that she wasn’t anything like as lonely as she’d expected to be.

Plus, Cormac’s email made her smile.

I just want you and everyone else to get this straight, he had typed. That I saved a person and you saved a cat.

That’s a cat? Anyway, one, it’s entirely debatable that humans are better than cats, and two, whoever saves one life saves the world entire, Lissa had typed with a tongue-sticking-out emoji.

All anyone in Kirrinfief is talking about is you and that stupid cat, and everyone is ignoring my glamorous London heroics.

Sucking face with an overdosing scumbag.

Well, you brought Carrie’s cat back to life. You know that’s her familiar? You’ll bewitch half the town. You’re allowing her to continue her reign of terror. When the crops fail and the cows’ milk dries up, you’ll change your tune then.

I’ll be back in London long before then.

Aye, so you will. I’d forgotten. And I’ll be back there, seeing what’s left of my flowers.

There’s a lot of those yellow round ones.

Dandelions?

Yes!

You mean weeds??

I like them.

Weeds!!!!!

Also, I picked some bluebells, I hope that’s okay.