慖 saw him,?says Joe. 慣he man who locked you in. I hit him over the head with my torch. Burly, dark man.?
慣hat wasn抰 . . .?begins Ruth. Zoe had described her captor as an old man. A burly, dark man can only mean one person. Is that why Nelson hasn抰 arrived? Because Joe has knocked him out, maybe even injuring him badly?
慔ow did you get the key??says Zoe.
慖t was in the safe,?says Joe. 慖 wasted a bit of time trying to get in by the cellars. I knew this room was here. I saw it on the old plan of the house.?
慥ery interesting,?says Ruth, in her lecturer voice. 慛ow, if you抎 just let us past . . .?
But, before they can go further, there are thunderous footsteps on the stairs and Nelson bursts in. He抯 at Ruth抯 side in seconds.
慉re you OK??
慪es. Fine. Zoe抯 here. She was locked in by a man called Hugh Baxter . . .?
慔ugh??says Janet from the doorway. 態ut he抯 one of the volunteers. A nice old thing.?
慖 saved you, Dr Galloway,?says Joe, sounding rather plaintive. 慖 saved you from him.?He points at Nelson.
慏id you??growls Nelson. 慦ell, you抮e under arrest for assaulting a police officer for a start. Come on, Ruth, let抯 get out of here.?He steers Ruth towards the door. Eileen is standing there looking rather lost. Ruth hears her say, 慦here were you, Joe? I was scared.?
They emerge into the shop where the flashing lights of the emergency vehicles are reflecting on the glories of Norfolk.
And, in a King抯 Lynn hospital, Cathbad opens his eyes and says, 慛elson??
Chapter 42
After that, it抯 all rather chaotic. Tanya appears, leading Hugh by the arm. He keeps asking what抯 going on, in a plaintive voice, but Tanya tells Nelson not to be fooled. 慗udy抯 got evidence of him at Avril Flowers?house on the day she died.?
It抯 quite a shock to see the paramedics wearing masks. For the last few hours, Ruth has managed to forget the pandemic altogether. They want Nelson to go in the ambulance with them, but he refuses. 慣he hospital抯 full of Covid patients. They don抰 need more work.?In the end, he agrees to go with Zoe and promises to drive her home afterwards. Zoe抯 car is presumably parked around here somewhere. One of the uniformed police officers takes Nelson抯 Mercedes. Hugh is in the back of the police van. Despite his threat, Nelson doesn抰 seem to have charged Joe McMahon with anything and Ruth hears Janet offering him and Eileen a bed for the night. Ruth and Tanya walk back to the cathedral close.
慔ow did you know about Hugh??Ruth asks Tanya.
慗udy sent me a photo of him. I don抰 know how she got it. It was a bit blurred, but I recognised the white hair.?Tanya is silent for a few minutes as she starts the car and performs a sharp three-point turn to exit through the gateway. Then she says, 慠uth . . . Judy said Cathbad was dying.?
慦hat??Ruth realises with horror that she has forgotten Cathbad too in the excitement of rescuing Zoe. 慦hy didn抰 you say??she whispers.
慖 suppose I put it to the back of my mind,?says Tanya, sounding rather defensive. 慖 had a job to do, remember.?
慖抣l text Judy,?says Ruth, although she抎 rather throw her phone out of the window. Tanya had recovered it from Hugh Baxter and Ruth has already texted Kate to say she抯 on her way.
But, when she activates the screen, there抯 already a message there.
Good news! Cathbad has come round. Docs say a miracle.
Ruth relays this, tears running down her face. Tanya, too, is wiping her eyes as they take the road for King抯 Lynn.
It抯 ten thirty by the time they reach the police station. Kate is asleep on a sofa in the custody suite, Tony is watching Brooklyn 99 on his phone.
慡he抯 only just gone to sleep,?he tells Ruth. 慡he抯 seriously good at battleships.?