She felt a rare burst of anger – at Thea and the doctor, at the other Judith, but most of all at herself.

‘She’s not called Judith. I’m not called Judith. And neither are you. It’s so they don’t have to remember our bloody names.’ Hannah could feel her voice rising. ‘My name’s Hannah. Don’t call me Judith again.’

She felt so ill, and she knew why. She had pretended not to understand that everything was laced with drugs, even when Callie had refused to eat or drink anything that Thea gave her. But Hannah had known. She had become too dependent, but what did it matter? For the last few months Thea’s potions had stopped her from falling apart, and now she missed them badly.

The other woman was still looking at her. Her eyes were bloodshot, but perhaps they had always been like that and Hannah hadn’t noticed.

‘My name is Rosa,’ the woman said quietly. ‘I’m a nurse. I know what’s happening to you – to both of us. It’s dangerous.’

Hannah frowned. ‘What is?’

Rosa gave a deep sigh, as if the act of speaking took too much effort. ‘I think Thea has been giving us some kind of tranquilliser. Coming off any drug in one go can be nasty – that’s why you’re feeling so dreadful. We haven’t had our morning dose, or last night’s.’

Hannah’s eyes filled with tears. ‘Will it get better soon?’

‘Not for a while,’ Rosa said. ‘At worst, one of us could have a seizure. At best, we’ll feel increasingly ghastly. You’ll probably be sick – I already have been, twice. You’ll feel agitated and may start to shake unless she brings us something soon. We’re going to have to help each other, Hannah.’

Hannah folded her arms on the table and dropped her head to rest on them. She already felt like death, and it was going to get worse. They were stuck down here, and they didn’t know when they would next get food or the drugs they had come to depend on.

A small voice in her head was telling her that she knew the code to get into the main part of the house. But she was confused. She wasn’t sure she could remember it. Her head was swimming, and all she wanted was to curl up in a ball and die. Is this how the last woman felt before she took the doctor’s alternative way out? The one who had left them just before Callie arrived? Because if he came down here now and offered her the same solution, she would take it without hesitation.

CHAPTER 52

52