‘She’s certainly easy to talk to,’ Rob says. ‘I feel a bit bad though – I was shattered and just wanted to crash out. In their spare room, of course.’ He winks. ‘I see Greg’s already gone.’

‘He needed to get to the hospital early.’

Abby always gets dressed in front of Rob, never hiding any part of her body from him, but right now she can’t seem to manage it. Instead, she wraps the towel tighter around her, conscious suddenly of her body, of her whole self.

Rob pulls on a clean T-shirt and jeans. ‘I’d better get straight to Mum and Dad’s.’

Lillian and Eric. She’s forgotten he promised them he’d help them sort out their garden this weekend. Now she won’t have to explain where she’s going. The fewer lies the better. ‘Okay, do you mind if I stay here? I’ve got a few things I need to do.’ This much, at least, is the truth.

‘’Course not. I’ll probably have lunch there, though.’

This gives her more time. Still in her towel, she begins applying her make-up, even though she always gets dressed first, while Rob says goodbye.

As soon as the front door shuts, she lets the towel drop to the floor and hunts through her underwear drawer, pulling out the first thing she finds. Another sweltering day is forecast for today, so she grabs a white summer dress and pulls it over her head. She usually feels good in this dress, confident; right now, though, she doesn’t feel a thing. It doesn’t matter – she has to find Greg before he goes home to Sienna.

St Thomas’ Hospital looms before her, large and imposing. On the other side of those walls is death and life, and she’s powerless to prevent images of her mother playing through her head. It’s a different hospital, yes, but she knows stepping inside will be reliving the pain. There is too much at stake to turn back, though, so she continues. She has no choice.

If she had Greg’s mobile number, she would have called him instead, but she only has Sienna’s; until now there’s been no reason for her to have Greg’s. Still, what she needs to say is better done in person.

Inside, she realises she has no idea where to begin looking for him. She knows he is a gynaecologist, but this place is so vast that she’s afraid she’ll never track him down. And surely there are rules about the public wandering around hospitals when they have no reason to be there? She has no choice but to ask someone at the front desk.

‘I’m a friend,’ she explains. ‘I’ve lost all the numbers on my phone so I couldn’t call his mobile. I really need to speak to him, though. Is there any chance you could contact him for me?’