Page 11 of A Helpin g Hand for the Village Nurse

‘Oh, don’t ask me – Manchester’s all the same as far as I can tell.’

‘You don’t go to visit?’

‘I’ve been a couple of times, but he mostly comes here to see me. I don’t care for big cities and I’m too old to get into the habit of visiting them.’

‘Was he born here like you?’

‘Born, but his parents moved away from the village when he was five or six. Can’t exactly remember.’

‘They left the village? You must have been gutted.’

‘’Tis what it is. His mother said there were no prospects, and I suppose she might have been right.’

‘Do they visit a lot?’

‘From time to time. Heath’s thirty-five, so he mostly pops over for the odd hour by himself. Haven’t seen much of him the last year or so…messy divorce. I could see that coming – the girl was a nightmare. I tried to warn him, but…Not that anyone listens to me. You’d think over eighty years of life experience would count for something, but apparently not.’

‘I suppose when you’re in love with someone you don’t want to see trouble ahead, even when people are warning you.’

‘True enough. I suppose you must think a divorce is a terrible waste.’

‘Why do you say that?’

‘Your husband was taken from you; didn’t get a choice. He was a good one?’

‘The best.’

‘That’s like me. We had fifty happy years but it was all over in an instant. I’m used to being alone now, but that doesn’t mean I don’t miss him still.’

‘I don’t think I’ll ever stop missing Josh.’

‘I don’t suppose I can tell you much you don’t already know about it, but if you ever want to talk, I’d be all ears.’

‘Thank you. I really just want to get stuck into my work here and fill my days, you know? It helps to be busy.’

‘That’s what I did. I wasn’t working – I’d already retired by then – but I kept myself occupied as much as I could. It’s too easy to wither away and follow them sooner than you’d like, especially at my age.’

Ottilie could understand that better than Flo could ever imagine. She was much younger, but the temptation to simply give up had been there for her too, only she’d been determined not to go down that path. Her being in Thimblebury was a huge step towards that aim. ‘Sadly I’ve seen a lot of that during my time nursing; people so affected by their loss that they simply give up. I’m glad you didn’t do that.’

‘I had my family to think of, didn’t I?’

‘You did, and I’m sure they’re glad too.’

Flo sniffed hard. ‘You’d think, wouldn’t you? Not that my feckless son and his wife have ever shown any gratitude. I hardly see them these days.’

‘At least your grandson visits.’

Flo broke into a slow smile. ‘Bless him.’ She threw a sideways look at Ottilie. ‘But not enough these days. How old are you?’

‘Thirty-five. Why do you ask?’

‘No reason…’

Ottilie held back a frown but then gave a mental shrug. It was probably best to leave it at that, because she had a suspicion that Flo had a reason she wasn’t ready to divulge as yet, and it probably involved cooking up some kind of match with her grandson. She was sure Flo’s grandson was a perfectly nice man, but she had no desire to get involved. She didn’t want to get involved with any man, certainly not now, and perhaps not ever. As far as she was concerned, Josh was the love of her life and she didn’t see how she could ever love anyone like that again. She didn’t want to love anyone like that again, because the risk of losing them was too terrifying to contemplate. What she’d gone through these past months was something she didn’t have the strength to ever go through again. This time she’d come through it and was moving on, but there wasn’t going to be a next time. This was it, a one-time deal.

As these thoughts went through her head, they continued to walk, but after a few moments, Ottilie realised that Flo had stopped and reached out for a nearby gatepost to steady herself. She suddenly looked pale and clammy. Ottilie dashed over.

‘Blasted blood pressure…’ Flo rasped. ‘Be all right…give me a…’

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