Page 41 of Lessons in Love at the Cornish Country Hospital

‘No problem at all, Miss Adlington.’ Oliver looked almost disappointed that there wasn’t more drama, and that she hadn’tbeen found sprawled out on the floor, unconscious. ‘Can I do anything else for you?’

‘No, thank you.’ Chloe all but shoved the young man out of the room, and the second she closed the door behind him, she sank to the floor, covering her mouth with both hands for a second time, and swaying backwards and forwards as silent sobs wracked her body.

‘Where’s the baby? Chloe, where the hell is he?’ Wendy hadn’t been certain of what she’d say if they managed to get to Chloe before the police did, but her only priority was making sure the baby was okay.

‘In the bag.’ Wendy almost threw herself in the direction where Chloe had gestured, her heart thudding so hard it felt as if it was coming out of her chest. If something had happened to that little boy, if he was dead… Her legs were shaking as she reached the sofa, and she wasn’t sure they’d hold her up, but then she saw a little foot poking out beneath one of the towels and it was moving.

‘Oh, thank God.’ Snatching the baby up, she cradled him against her chest, sinking down on the sofa and gently rocking him to and fro, and repeating the same words over and over. ‘He’s okay, he’s okay, he’s okay.’

‘I didn’t mean to do it. I only wanted… I’m sorry, I’m so, so sorry.’ Chloe moved as if to stand, but then she slid straight back down again.

‘It’s okay.’ Gary stepped towards her, pulling her into a standing position and she collapsed against him as Wendy got to her feet too, with the baby still in her arms.

‘No, it isn’t, I’ve done something terrible and nothing is going to be okay ever again.’

‘You haven’t done anything that can’t be undone, and we’re going to be there with you every step of the way.’ Wendycrossed the room towards her. Now that she knew the baby was unharmed, she could focus on Chloe again.

‘I don’t deserve that. I’ve already lost Beau and the girls are going to hate me too.’ Chloe’s eyes were so bloodshot, they looked almost completely red, and the blotchiness of her cheeks could have been sunburn. It didn’t seem as if taking Danni’s baby had brought Chloe a single moment of joy. She looked broken and hopeless, and the fear at what she might do was building inside Wendy again, even before Chloe broke away from Gary and grabbed something from the dressing table. And as Wendy turned to look at her, she realised Chloe was holding a pair of scissors millimetres away from her neck. ‘I just want it to be over, I want to be with Mum and Beau.’

‘You can’t do that.’ Wendy fought to keep her voice steady, even though she felt as though the floor was moving beneath her feet.

‘Why not? The world would be a better place without me and no one would care.’ Chloe sounded so certain she was right, nothing she was saying was for the sake of being dramatic.

Gently handing the baby to Gary, Wendy inhaled slowly. She had to make Chloe believe what she said next, and not just because it was true. ‘Plenty of people would care very much, including me. I told you before, you’ve got family now. At this very moment, Alice and Zara are downstairs desperately waiting to hear that you’re okay.’

‘They’re here?’ Chloe’s tone was incredulous.

‘We didn’t want to let them come, but they insisted. They love you, and they want you to know that. So, if you think no one would care if you weren’t around, and that they’d be better off without you, then you’re very much mistaken. It would hurt the girls, and it would hurt me and Gary too. I’d also bet everything I own that it would even cause pain to the people you think you’ve hurt the most. Danni and Charlie wouldn’t want you todo something like that; all they want is to have their son home where he belongs.’

‘I don’t know why I did it.’ Chloe was crying again, which made it was almost impossible to make out what she was saying, and Wendy took the chance to inch closer to her. ‘I just thought if I could have another baby, even for a little while, it would be easier to let Beau go. But as soon as I was outside the hospital, I wanted to take the baby back, and to undo what I’d done. But then I heard the sirens and I couldn’t do it.’

‘You’ve been through so much, and people will understand that you never wanted to hurt anyone.’ Wendy could almost reach out and touch Chloe now, and suddenly the younger woman seemed to notice how close she was.

‘Don’t come any nearer.’ Her eyes widened and she frantically waved the scissors in the air.

‘You’re not going to hurt me either, are you?’ Wendy took another step forward, reaching out to try and take the scissors, but Chloe raised them higher and out of her grasp.

‘Wendy, don’t!’ Gary called out her name, making Chloe jump and then shoot forward, the scissors glancing Wendy’s arms as she did so. The pain made Wendy gasp and she felt the blood trickling down towards her elbow before she saw it.

‘No!’ Chloe dropped the scissors and screamed, as Wendy looked down at her arm. The pain seemed to have passed, but there was more blood than she’d ever seen in her life. For a second the room seemed to swim around her, and she was only vaguely aware of Gary running towards her before she passed out.

‘Don’t ever scare me like that again.’ When Gary came back into focus, he was leaning over Wendy, holding her arm in an elevated position, with a blood-streaked white towel pressed against it.

‘What happened?’ She blinked again, but everything still looked and felt fuzzy, like she was under water.

‘The scissors slashed an artery in your arm, and you fainted.’

‘Where’s the baby?’ Wendy tried to get up, as she spoke.

‘Don’t try and move, sweetheart. Alice has got him; Chloe ran down to get the girls as soon as it happened.’

‘Where is she now?’

‘Waiting for the police with the girls.’

‘She didn’t do it on purpose. I don’t want them to know about this.’ She tried to get up again, and Gary gently put a hand on the shoulder of her good arm.

‘I know it was an accident, but I’ve got a feeling she’ll tell them everything.’

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