Feeling a little calmer now that she was home, Holly said, ‘You don’t have to stay. Go and meet Sam, see if he can help you out.’
‘I’ve already arranged to see him next week,’ Suzie said, slipping her jacket off. ‘And I don’t want to leave you on your own while you’re upset, so I’ll stay until you hear from your mum. OK?’
Nodding, Holly went to her room and took off the dress. As she was pulling her jeans on the doorbell rang, and she pressed her ear against her door when she heard Suzie answer it.
‘Is this Josie Evans’s flat?’ a man asked.
Unable to hear Suzie’s reply, Holly pulled her jumper on and went out into the hall just as two uniformed police officers stepped inside.
‘Oh, God,’ she croaked. ‘It was my mum, wasn’t it?’
‘Let’s go and sit down,’ Suzie said softly, taking her arm and leading her into the living room.
‘Just tell me,’ Holly pleaded, tears stinging her eyes as she sank onto the sofa. ‘Was it her?’
‘It looks like it,’ Suzie said, sitting beside her and taking hold of her hand. ‘But don’t panic. They’ve taken her to the MRI and she’s being well looked after.’
The officers were in the room by then, and one of them took a seat facing Holly while the other looked around before walking over to the window and gazing out at the police cars that were still parked at the far end of the road.
‘I’m PC Dan Spencer, and this is my colleague, PC Jack Bennett,’ the seated man introduced them. ‘We’ve spoken to your aunt, so we know you’re aware of the incident earlier tonight.’
‘Aunt?’ Holly repeated.
‘I told them we’d seen the ambulance and wondered what was going on,’ Suzie said, squeezing Holly’s hand and giving her a pointed look.
Holly nodded mutely. She recognized the look, because it was the same one her mum always gave her whenever she wanted Holly to go along with something she’d said without questioning her.
‘You aunt tells us it’s just you and your mum living here,’ Spencer went on. ‘Can I ask how old you are?’
‘Fifteen,’ Holly murmured.
‘Does your dad live locally?’
Holly shook her head, and Suzie said, ‘He took off before she was born. Josie hasn’t seen him since, and Holly’s never met him.’
‘I see,’ Spencer said, narrowing his eyes thoughtfully as he peered at Suzie. ‘You look familiar,’ he said after a moment.
‘Do I?’ She gazed innocently back at him.
‘Ah, that’s it.’ He clicked his fingers. ‘You live across the road, don’t you? We attended an incident a couple of weeks back.’ He flicked a hooded glance at Holly, before adding, ‘Altercation with your partner?’
‘Ex partner,’ Suzie corrected him. ‘And I’m still waiting to hear back from you on that.’
‘He was up in court last week,’ PC Bennett said from his position at the window. ‘Two years suspended.’
‘You’re kidding me?’ Suzie spluttered. ‘Why wasn’t I told about this?’
‘The charges weren’t related to you, so you wouldn’t have been marked down for notification,’ said Bennett.
‘Of course they were related to me,’ Suzie argued. ‘I’m the one he attacked, and it was me who called you to tell you he was in my house while you were out there looking for him.’
‘There wasn’t enough evidence to proceed with your case,’ Spencer interjected, sounding as uncomfortable as he was beginning to look. ‘But he kicked off after we removed him from the house, so he was charged with assaulting an officer and damaging police property.’
Suzie was outraged. ‘So he half kills me and then breaks into my house to finish the job, but that’s all right as long as he doesn’t damage anything belonging to you lot?’
‘I want to see my mum,’ Holly blurted out.
Visibly relieved by the interruption, Spencer said, ‘I’m afraid that won’t be possible right now.’
‘She – she’s not going to die, is she?’ Holly swiped at a tear that was slithering down her cheek.
‘No, of course not.’ Spencer gave her a reassuring smile. ‘But they need to do a thorough assessment of her condition before anyone can see her.’
At the window, Bennett was talking quietly into his radio. Turning to Spencer when he’d finished, he said, ‘We need to get going, mate.’
Spencer rose to his feet and, looking down at Suzie, jerked his head towards the door, saying, ‘Could I have a quick word?’
Suzie squeezed Holly’s hand, and said, ‘Won’t be a sec,’ before following him out into the hall.
‘I need to know your real relationship to Holly,’ Spencer said quietly when she’d closed the door.
‘I’ve already told you, I’m her aunt.’ Suzie folded her arms.
‘I’m not calling you a liar, but I know how these things work,’ Spencer said. ‘Everyone called their mum’s mates auntie or uncle when I was a kid, and if that’s what’s going on here I need to know so we can contact an actual relative.’
Sensing that he would ask for proof if she persisted with the lie, Suzie said, ‘All right, I’m only a friend. But she hasn’t got any family apart from her mum, so what happens now?’
‘Because she’s a minor and we don’t know how long her mum’s going to be in hospital, we’ll need to place a protection order on her,’ Spencer said. ‘Social services will take over from there.’
‘Is that really necessary?’ Suzie asked. ‘She’s nearly sixteen. Can’t she stay with me?’
‘That’s the procedure in these cases, I’m afraid,’ Spencer said. ‘And, to be honest, I’m not sure you’d be given clearance to take her even if you were her aunt, given the history of violence with your ex.’
‘That was him, not me,’ Suzie replied sharply, annoyed that she was being judged because of Rob’s actions. Then, swallowing the irritation, she said, ‘Look, you just said you don’t know how long her mum’s going to be away, so can’t you wait for one night before
