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bag from her hand as she stumbled to the nearest chair and squeezed her eyes shut. Don’t lose it now, Liv. Hold it together a bit longer.When she opened them again, Daniel had placed the bag at her feet and was beside her in the next seat, elbows on the knees of his black trousers as though he was simply marking time. What was he doing here?
    â€˜I’m sorry you had to get involved in that.’
    He turned his head, looked at her over his shoulder. ‘You’ve got nothing to be sorry for.’
    â€˜Ten years wasted on him is plenty to be sorry for.’
    Daniel sat back in his chair and she moved over a little to make room for the width of his shoulders. ‘Is he a doctor?’ he asked.
    â€˜Financial director for the hospital. I figured someone would tell him I was here. Wouldn’t look good if his wife – even his almost ex-wife – was in Emergency and no one phoned. My bad luck he was still in his office.’ Although it’s what she’d expected. Monday was his favourite night to work back, that hadn’t changed with his new life.
    â€˜Is he often aggressive towards you?’
    Egotistical, arrogant, intolerant, yes, but not physical. ‘No. It’s not like that. It’s just . . .’ Was Daniel thinking domestic violence? ‘No, look, why are you here? Were you hurt?’
    He said nothing for a moment, maybe deciding whether to press further. ‘You didn’t call anyone and your car’s still at the office. I thought you might need a ride somewhere.’
    A sudden wariness made her lift fingers to her bloodied lip. Had he come all the way to the hospital to take her home? It was well beyond the call of duty for someone he’d only met in the corridor a few times. She leaned slowlyaway, the solid body that’d made her feel safe in the car park seemed intimidating now. She wasn’t about to get in a car with him – at night when no one else knew, when she could still feel the pressure of a gloved hand against her mouth.
    â€˜I’m sorry. I know I said I’d take the lift but I was just saying that to get rid of Thomas. I have to wait for a script to be filled. I’ll be fine with a cab.’
    â€˜Yeah, sorry.’ He ran a hand across the dark stubble of his hair. ‘It probably looks a bit strange, me turning up. But I wanted to make sure you got home all right.’ He glanced over at the elevator. ‘I can just keep you company until you’re ready to go, if you like.’ When she didn’t answer, he said, ‘Or I can go, if you’d prefer.’
    She wasn’t in a hurry to be left alone and offering to sit and wait didn’t seem so suspicious. ‘No, company is good. Thanks.’
    â€˜You should call someone, Livia. It’s your business if you want to handle this alone but someone should know. A friend or a family member, a neighbour even. Things like this can come back at you when you get home, upset you more than you think. I’m guessing you’re waiting on some strong drugs. You should tell someone who can check on you tomorrow.’
    She remembered then – his office was across the hall and one door down from hers and the lettering on the door said something about security. ‘Are you an ex-cop?’
    He raised an amused eyebrow. ‘No. Ex-Fire Rescue. We don’t chase bad guys, we just save people. Is there someone you can call before you go home?’
    The townhouse wasn’t any kind of home. She wouldn’t take an overdose if she stayed there alone, if that’s what he was worried about, but he’d just reminded her that ‘home’ wasn’t going to make her feel any better. She found her phone in the garbage bag, held the smashed screen up for Daniel to see. It should have bothered her but it seemed the obvious outcome of the night. He handed her his mobile and moved away to give her some