Most of the time, of course, they will be correct with their diagnosis. They have to be; it is, after all, what they go through seven years plus of training for. But sometimes, just sometimes, they’re not. And it’s not out of malice. They don’t personally want to see you hurt or dying. But they’re human, like you, and humans make mistakes. Cancer symptoms can mimic symptoms of other health issues. After all, how many of us are tired most of the time? And does anyone really have perfect bowel movements every day?

Don’t be fobbed off if you are unhappy with the outcome. Seek a second opinion, a third if necessary. If that offends them, they are not the right doctor for you. (Or anyone, for that matter.) Push to see a specialist; pay for the tests yourself if it comes to it. Don’t be afraid to have a voice. Not all people who get ill fall into a generalized age group, or a particular gender. You’re not “too young” to have cancer. No one is.

You will never regret standing up for yourself.

But you will regret it if you don’t.

Chapter Sixteen

What the hell is that smell?”

Amanda’s nose crinkles up with disgust as she steps out of the back seat of my mother’s car. Even though I was in the slightly roomier front passenger seat, my legs are cramping, and as I stretch them I tell myself it’s from the car journey, not the cancer.

My mother gets out of the driver’s side and inhales deeply.

“Ah,” she says, “that, my dear, is the smell of the country. A combination of cow shit and silage hay.”

“It’s disgusting.” Amanda turns to me. “You can’t seriously consider having your wedding here. Not with that smell.”

“I don’t know,” I say, looking around. “I think it’s charming. Anyway, I’m sure you’d get used to it.”

“I wouldn’t count on it,” she mutters.

A car crunches on the gravel driveway as it pulls in behind us. Nadia gingerly climbs out of the back seat, keeping one hand firmly on the door and looking around as if she has just been transported into another dimension.

“Are you sure this is the right place?” she asks.

Despite the fact that she herself formed the same first impression, Amanda rolls her eyes at me. She doesn’t like Nadia; I know this because she told me in no uncertain terms after our first meeting. With Amanda you get one chance to make her like you. Screw it up and that’s it.

“Looks like it.” I point to a sign on the wooden gate in front of us. MARMALADE FARM.

She gives a stiff little smile. “How quaint.”

I’m surprised when two other cars pull into the car park and lift one hand to shield my eyes from the sun so I can see them clearer. One I recognize but can’t place, until Kelly clambers out and I realize it was at Kate’s house when they did the first interview.