‘Well, nothing can happen to Mags today. I’m staying with her throughout, and I’m not leaving without her.’

‘I hope I see you again, lass. But by, I wish you all the luck in the world.’

‘I wish I had time to take tea with you, Iris. I have so much to thank you for. But once this is done, we are taking Dr Jenkins’s discharge and report straight to my solicitor, and then I am leaving for—’

‘Don’t tell me where, lass. If I don’t knaw, I can’t let it out. But be happy, that’s all I ask. And maybe one day in the future we can meet again.’

Iris left them then, and Mags had a moment of feeling so grateful to her that she wanted to run after Iris and hug her, but she had to be careful. She didn’t know who might be watching.

‘I fear for Iris, David. If Michael informs Harold of her part in everything. Oh, I know she didn’t take part in my escape in the end, but—’

Cut off mid-sentence, Mags was silenced by the gateman opening the gate. She waited while he checked their credentials. With this over, they were free to pass through. It didn’t take more than ten seconds until Mags’s nerves overwhelmed her.

‘Mags, please try to be strong. If you show any sign of illness, Jenkins may not discharge you, and I may not be able to save you.’

‘What? Is that a possibility, David?’

‘Everything is possible. Now, straighten your back and think of this as a business meeting. You must have conducted dozens of them. You did it then, and you can do it now. Don’t let Harold win – he is just a business rival, and nothing more.’

Thinking of it all like that helped Mags. She did straighten her back and began to think of her forthcoming ordeal in terms of a business strategy. She would be in command. She would run this show.

Although she didn’t feel quite so confident when face-to-face with Dr Jenkins, she didn’t show it. She answered his questions and even asked some of him. ‘I want to know why you sectioned me, Dr Jenkins?’

‘My diagnosis was that you were having a mental breakdown and were delusional. I stand by that.’

‘I was deeply distressed, that’s true. But I knew what was happening, and a period of rest and maybe some medication were all I needed. You should have recognized that. But you listened to my husband and took his version, concerning how I was.’

‘I am not on trial here, madam. I did what I thought was best for you.’

David coughed. Mags knew the implications, but she was so incensed with this man, who could have saved her of all she had gone through within these walls.

‘Do you realize how patients are treated here, Doctor?’

‘I believe, madam, that they receive the very best care we can give. The job the nurses have here is extremely difficult. They are not dealing with rational people who can be reasoned with. If you can’t see that, then perhaps you are still delusional.’