Chapter 22Walter was tidying the surgery and getting everything ready for Monday when he heard a sound in the hallway. The front door and the surgery door were both still open to let in the cooling evening air.
He looked up. Someone who hadn’t got here in time for surgery, perhaps, who would have to make do with him rather than Sylvia?
But it was Miss Royce. “Miss Royce?” he said. “How can I help you? I’m afraid Dr Marks isn’t here. She and Miss Hall-Bridges have gone out for a walk now surgery’s finished.”
The woman blinked at him slowly, with an almost dazed expression. She looked very peculiar, holding herself awkwardly at an angle. “Are you hurt?” Walter asked her gently. “Do you need assistance? You know that I’m a nurse.”
Miss Royce shook her head, like a horse trying to get rid
