The nurse smiled. ‘He’s definitely stabilized. We have him back.’

Mike looked up and saw a dark-haired woman in her late thirties with tears in her eyes. For a moment, she reminded him of Zara. It was her narrow nose, the copper-coloured eyes, and that serene classy look about her. He smiled back.

‘Look! He’s opening his eyes,’ cried Gloria.

Ricky blinked a few more times, and then he looked straight at his father and grandmother. Gloria felt him grip her hand.

The doctor had hurried around to the other side of the bed, not wanting to intervene as the family’s presence was working wonders. He pulled out a pen light and shone it in Ricky’s eyes.

‘Ricky, I am Doctor Redwood. Can you hear me?’

Ricky gently nodded.

‘Good. Can you see how many fingers I’m holding up?’

Ricky whispered, ‘Two.’

Redwood looked over at Mike and winked. ‘We’ll need to do further tests, but, so far, so good. Please try to keep him calm.’

Mike nodded, and an unexpected tear fell down his cheek. ‘You get some rest, Ricky. You need to get better, so we can have you back home.’

‘I’m okay, Dad,’ said Ricky, with a dry, muffled voice.

***

Alastair tried to put his arms around his wife but was swiftly rebuffed. ‘Get off me,’ she yelled.

‘I’m only trying to help, Rebecca.’

‘Help? And how do you think you can help me, eh? My daughter’s dead. Nothing will ever take this pain away. She hated you, she left because of you, and now, I will never see her again.’

Alastair flared his nostrils in a raging temper. He was sick to death of the same words spewing from her mouth.

‘Now, look. I never did this to her. Stop blaming me. She never hated me.’

‘Yes, she did!’ she screamed. ‘She couldn’t stand you.’ With her face now bright red and a vein prominently pulsating in her temple, she went on, ‘I know how she felt. I am . . . I mean, I was her mother. I knew how she really felt, not you. You knew nothing about her!’

‘Stop it will you, just stop it!’ screamed Poppy, who had dashed downstairs to see what all the fuss was about. ‘I can’t stand this anymore,’ she yelled, her face red and blotchy. ‘My sister is dead and all you do, Mother, is place the blame on everyone else. It’s Dad, me, or Brooke. Well, you need to be told the truth!’

Rebecca was stunned that her quiet, studious daughter was spitting out words with so much venom.

‘Poppy!’

‘Oh, shut up, Mother. Don’t act so bloody self-righteous. We’ve all had a bloody skinful of your high-and-mighty ways. If I’d had the same father as Kendall, I’d have gone too.’

‘Poppy, stop it!’ shouted Rebecca.