Reading my words back, the gravity of this situation presses me back into the chair. I might feel a shade of confidence in my decisions, but it doesn’t take away from the facts: I have a patient who, it appears, wished to kill herself. I have a patient who is quite possibly the mother of an abandoned child. And I have an innocent visitor embroiled in it all, throwing up a whole host of new concerns. I check my fob watch; there’s half an hour before the meeting.

Before I get a chance to send the report to Gail, Emma comes squealing into my office like one of those screechy balloons let loose to flip around the room. She pulls the arms of my chair towards her and leans in to squeeze me too tight. ‘This is brilliant, you are brilliant, I am so proud of you!’ she says, squeezing me tight again before standing back to read my face. ‘Ahh, look at you, all grown up and important. We need to celebrate! A night out! Leave this with me, I am on it like a car bonnet,’ she says, apparently missing the small print all over my face.

‘Emma, I can’t. I’ve got to sort—’

‘Nonsense, you HAVE to celebrate promotions. God, I am so proud of you. You’ve done an amazing job! I was saying that to—’

‘Emma, please, really.’ I raise my voice. ‘I’ve got quite a bit on my plate now.’

‘What’s the matter?’

‘Susan! Rhys!’ I stare back at my screen, rapping my keyboard with a pen. ‘It’s just a bit overwhelming. All of this, you know?’

‘Don’t you be silly.’ She takes hold of my hands. ‘Kat, I have admired you since we first met in college, since that first day when you pulled me in close when you saw I needed it. You instinctively know what a patient needs and you always find a way to deliver it, over and above general medical care. You can lead a team. You can inspire others. You inspire me with your determination every single day. And I know,’ she says, interrupting me as I try to stop her again, ‘I know this has been a rough couple of months and I know the life you planned is not the one that you seem to be heading towards, but the one I can see panning out is so much brighter. Your career is going to flourish, and you have the chance to meet someone when you’re ready, someone who appreciates how brilliant you are and who lets you be you.’ She takes a breath. ‘I never told you before because your life is none of my business, but I always felt Daniel wanted to keep you in a world he felt comfortable in, no matter if it was the right one for you. Nobody can do that to you now, you’re free.’ She pulls me in for another hug and her words spin around my mind. ‘You’re gonna nail this, Sister Kat,’ she whispers into my ear. ‘And I’m right behind you every step of the way.’ I blink up at her, not sure what to say. ‘I’ll text you when and where as soon as I’ve got it sorted,’ she says. ‘We’re going to celebrate!’ She goes for the door and then pauses. I look through some papers, desperate to bury how overwhelmed I feel within the sheets of files and reports. ‘Oh, I nearly forgot, Mark called. He’s sending Susan down for physio while you have your meeting. One of the porters will be up for her in a minute.’ She skips out of the office, whooping.