‘A dolphin saved me,’ I said, the words coming uninvited, surprising me as much as Josephine. ‘I don’t know why I said that. It was the apple skin, it reminded me.’ I ran my thumb over the fruit. ‘Sometimes those terrifying moments come back so fiercely I want to cry. They are like . . . sobbing around my heart.’ I sighed. ‘That sounds awfully mad.’

‘Some doctors are talking about a thing called delayed shock. It’s a real condition,’ Josephine said. ‘When your brain tries to deal with something that is too awful, or too illogical for it to cope with. The anguish will fade with time.’

I looked into her eyes and saw she was talking about herself as much as me. ‘How much time?’

Josephine shrugged. ‘It’s different for everyone.’

Perkins interrupted. ‘Can we try the crutches yet?’

Josephine gathered herself with a stretch of her neck. ‘It’s early days, Corporal. We’ll adjust them for you after lunch. They have to fit perfectly, and we have to check your arm too, then we’ll move on to your mobility.’

‘Blimey, talk about the walking wounded, eh, nurse.’ The joke on his lips wasn’t reflected in his eyes.

The door banged open. The hall was full of people peering into our room. Pavlo rushed in with no regard for the quarantine sign. ‘Nurse Gertie, a pigeon has come! There is a message for you in English. The mayor, is coming to read it. A ship comes for you.’

‘Thank God. At last,’ Josephine muttered.

‘Let’s hope they’re taking us back to civilisation,’ Perkins said. ‘I’ll go crazy if I have to stay in this damn room much longer.’

‘No point speculating,’ Josephine said. ‘I’m hoping to get to Lemnos, my sister’s nursing there. There’s been no news for months. Every day I wonder how she is. I don’t even know if she’s heard our parents have died.’

She sighed so deeply I wanted to put my arms around her.

Poor Josephine, I’d been so wrapped up in myself, I hadn’t considered her.

‘They’ll probably want us back home,’ Perkins insisted. ‘There’s bound to be an inquiry.’

I sensed a hint of malice about him and with a jolt of fear, I turned and rushed out of the room, straight into the mayor. Panicked – I feared they had discovered the truth and were about to handcuff me. I tried to sidestep him but the teacher caught my arm. ‘Wait, we have news for you,’ he said, keeping a firm grip. Pointing at the QUARANTINE sign, he asked, ‘Is it safe to go in there?’