‘Talking of PTSD,’ she went on, ‘I’ve been looking at the virtual reality therapy that’s being developed at the Psychiatry department, where we’re going next, and they’ve been having very positive results, not just with schizophrenia, which I know you have your doubts about as a profitable market, but also with PTSD, depression, attention deficit, obsessive compulsive disorder, social anxiety, certain kinds of autism …’

‘Sounds great,’ said Hunter. ‘I don’t know a single parent whose kids don’t have one or more of those problems – or a single kid who doesn’t have parents with one or more of those problems!’

To Lucy’s amazement, Hunter was enthralled by the virtual reality demonstration. He watched various paranoid, phobic and anxious volunteers have fake encounters on fake trains with neutral or vaguely amicable avatars, and listened with interest to their reports on the benefits of the simulation. He also tried on a virtual reality headset himself and wandered around in front of a screen in a concrete basement enchanted, as anyone might be, to have his actual surroundings replaced.

‘That was a hell of a meeting, Lucy,’ said Hunter afterwards. ‘Thanks for setting it up. I see a lot of potential there.’

‘Awesome,’ said Lucy, wondering whether she could make it through the rest of their schedule without passing out. ‘I can’t believe this is really happening.’

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