Safe Harbour Read Online Free

her head. Obviously she hit it off something hard.’
    ‘The concrete path to our washing line,’ Sophie offered.
    ‘Possibly. With the impact, she fractured her skull. The brain, as you know, lies inside the skull, the shell that protects it –’
    ‘Like an egg,’ said Sophie.
    ‘Yes, and with a bad blow the brain can swell, fluid can leak, pressure can build up. We can relieve some of thepressure, and hope to stop internal bleeding, but after that it’s time and nature and a lot of good nursing. It’s too early to tell yet …’
    ‘Will she live?’ asked Sophie anxiously.
    ‘Oh, Sophie, we do hope so! We think so, but she is very ill. At present she’s in a state of coma. We can’t say how long that will continue.’
    ‘Is my mother in pain?’
    ‘As far as we can know, we don’t think so. And she’s having pain relief. The next few days will tell us a lot.’
    ‘How long will she be here?’
    ‘I can’t really say yet, but it may be a long time. The brain is a very delicate organ, it takes time to heal.’
    Sophie stared at the pile of charts on the desk. Libby Fitzpatrick, her mother’s name, was written on the top.
    ‘There’s a lot for you to take in today,’ Nurse Harvey added kindly. ‘I’ll talk to you when you’re in again. You know, new research is showing that hearing a familiar voice and familiar sounds are good sometimes for people in your mother’s condition. So you must come again – but I think, for the moment, it’s best not to bring your younger brother.’
    Sophie nodded.
    ‘Oh, before you go, I have a parcel here with some of your mother’s things. You might like to take them with you.’ She passed a small brown paper parcel across the desk to Sophie.
    Sophie thanked her, and left the office.
    She stopped on the first landing, and leant against the heavy leaded stained-glass window depicting some saint,probably Saint Martin, and peered into the bag. Not much: the check apron her mother wore when cleaning or cooking; a handwritten recipe for rabbit and potato pie; a ration-card holder – Sophie had embroidered it for her as a gift, with the initials L.F. surrounded by bluebells; her mother’s watch, its face cracked; and a gap-toothed comb, a few coins, the gold cross and chain her mother always wore, and, underneath everything, Hugh’s school-jumper. Mum had gone to endless trouble to get fine-quality grey wool for it, as the heavier wool made him itch. It had a v-neck with a pale blue line around it. It had been knitted last year, and already was almost outgrown and beginning to look small. It still felt damp, and had a clothes peg attached to it. Sophie shoved it back into the paper bag. She guessed that her mother had been trying to get that stupid jumper off the washing line when …
    Sophie scrunched her eyes shut. Then she glanced up at the window. The glass saint stared down at her.
    ‘You! You’d better take care of my mother! Do you hear me?’ she shouted as she ran off down the stairs.

CHAPTER 6
St Martin’s
    Sophie ate her breakfast, scrambled powdered eggs – ugh! – and a mugful of steaming tea that had been stewing in a big urn since early morning.
    The centre was crowded. She and Hugh had spent the night in the shelter again, and she was bleary-eyed from the lack of solid sleep. Hugh was still out for the count on the camp bed.
    About twenty children from the district were about to be evacuated to the country, far away from the dangers of London, and they were hopping around the place with excitement. Mrs Stokes, she knew, was hoping to get herself and Hugh evacuated too, but Sophie decided to avoid discussing it with her until her mother’s condition improved. She was staying put in London.
     
    ‘I’m off to the hospital,’ Sophie mouthed to Reverend Fry later that morning. He was reading Bible stories to some of the younger kids. Hugh was engrossed in the story of Noah’s Ark, and luckily didn’t whine to come with her.
    The weather was