Laura was wearing jeans and a plain grey T-shirt, and carrying a battered old rucksack in one hand. She’d had a haircut. The short back and sides was crisp and tidy. She bent and picked up the biro from where it had rolled under the bed, dumped the rucksack next to the green plastic visitor’s chair, and gave an assessing glance to the chalked incursion wards. Walden could see that nothing had scuffed or faded. “I can see you’re busy. Should you really be doing that yet?”

“None of your business,” said Walden.

“Saffy.”

Walden cleared her throat. “Sorry. Unnecessarily aggressive, yes, I know, sorry. I—well, if I wasn’t doing something, I think I would just start screaming and not stop. I’m very bored.”

“And you’ve been through it,” Laura said. She sat down in the plastic chair. “I know.”

It was me and not me. I was there. I had to watch. I couldn’t move. “Sorry,” Walden said. “It’s lovely to see you. Thank you for stopping by.”

“Did you think I wouldn’t, when—”

“Sorry,” Walden said. There just didn’t seem to be anything else to say. She looked down at her scrawled page of R r R r and then decisively turned it over. Blank lined paper: much better. No evidence of anything.

Eventually she started counting in her head. Thirteen—fourteen—fifteen—

Laura had never stood at the front of a soundless classroom waiting implacably for someone to give in and put their hand up. She cracked first. “This has got to be the most awkward silence we’ve ever had.”

“Oh, I don’t know.”

“I told you to watch that fucking bird.”

“Thank you, Laura,” said Walden. “I do appreciate a good I told you so.”

Laura put her face in her hands. “I’m doing this wrong,” she said, muffled. “Sod it. I’ve got something for you.”

“Cards and flowers go on the table there.” Walden had mostly stopped looking at them.

“You want to read this one.”

“Really—”

Laura pulled an envelope out of her rucksack. The envelope was large and pink. Walden took it with some surprise. Large and pink didn’t seem very much like Laura.

DOCTOR WALDEN was written on the envelope, in looping silver pen, underlined. Walden looked at it for a few seconds. Then she opened the envelope and pulled out the card. It was an oversized GET WELL SOON card with colourful lettering. She had several similar already. When she opened it, a folded sheet of A5 notepaper and several photos fell out.