Dr Rayner was just getting out of his car when she hurtled up to him. ‘You must come, please.’ She bent over, trying to catch her breath. ‘Ma Adams is bad. I can afford to pay you.’

‘Forest Road?’ he asked, opening the car door for her to get in when she nodded. ‘I know her house.’

They arrived in no time, and the doctor hurried up the stairs, having a quick word with Glad before examining Ma.

It was an anxious wait and Jenny thought her heart was going to break when Ma woke up and gave everyone a bewildered look. But she never said anything. Ma had always been tough and determined, but how was she going to recover from this? She would hate being completely helpless.

Dr Rayner straightened up after replacing the covers and patted Ma’s hand. Then he signalled that they should go downstairs.

‘It’s bad, isn’t it?’ Jenny thought what a daft question that was, when any fool could see that Ma was very ill.

‘I’m afraid so. Mrs Adams has had a stroke.’ He had a sympathetic look in his eyes. ‘She is very frail, and you must prepare yourself for the worst.’

Those words cut through Jenny, but she gulped back the emotion threatening to engulf her and straightened up. She had to know the truth. ‘You mean she’s going to die?’

‘Would she stand more chance in a hospital?’ Glad asked. ‘If so, we’ll get the money somehow.’

The doctor shook his head. ‘There isn’t anything we can do for her. She would probably be happier in her own home. She will take a lot of looking after, though.’

‘That’s all right.’ Jenny was determined that Ma should stay here. ‘I’ll look after her.’

‘And we’ll all help.’ Glad shook hands with the doctor. ‘Thank you for coming.’

‘Yes, thank you.’ Jenny took the few shillings she earned today out of her pocket. ‘How much do I owe you?’

The doctor glanced around the shabby room, giving a quiet, weary sigh. ‘I wasn’t able to do anything, and there isn’t any medicine that will help, so I won’t charge you.’

‘But we must pay for your visit,’ Jenny insisted.

He picked up his bag, ignoring the money she was holding out to him. ‘Use that to buy some nourishing food. You look as if you can both do with it.’

‘Would you like me to stay?’ Glad asked when the doctor had gone.

‘No, I’ll be fine. I’ll get us something to eat and then I expect Ma will sleep for a while.’

‘You call if you need us, Jen. I’ll come round in the morning with Fred and Stan so we can turn Ma. She’ll get sores if we don’t move her a couple of times a day.’

‘Thanks, Glad.’