The Locked Room (Ruth Galloway #14)(54)

‘I’ll pray to St Carlo,’ he says. ‘My mum says that he’s good on Covid.’

‘I’m praying too,’ says Judy. ‘I just wish he’d get better.’

‘Me too,’ says Nelson. ‘Tell him get well soon from me.’

‘I will. Bye, boss.’

‘Bye, Judy.’

‘Who’s ill?’ says Laura, coming into the room.

‘Cathbad. He’s got Covid.’

‘Oh no!’ Nelson had forgotten that Laura, too, has a connection with Cathbad. He’d been kind to her after Tim died and Laura had attended Cathbad’s meditation classes for a while.

‘Let’s hope it’s not serious,’ he says, although something in Judy’s tone tells him that this is a faint hope. ‘Most people recover quickly.’

‘Cathbad isn’t most people,’ says Laura. ‘I’ve made stew for supper, but shall we FaceTime Rebecca and Mum first?’

‘Where’s Bruno?’ is the first thing Rebecca says when she pops up on his laptop screen.

‘He’s staying with Jan for a bit,’ says Nelson. ‘I’ve got a lot on at work.’

‘Why?’ says Rebecca. ‘Aren’t all the criminals locked up in their houses?’

‘Sadly not,’ says Nelson. ‘What’s going on with you?’

Rebecca tells him about going for walks on Brighton seafront with Asif. ‘It’s so strange to have the whole town to ourselves. We walked around the Pavilion yesterday.’

‘Take care,’ says Nelson. ‘Wear masks.’

‘We’ve got matching masks,’ says Rebecca. ‘It’s very cute.’

Michelle, speaking from her mother’s immaculate sitting room, seems delighted to see Laura and Nelson side by side on the sofa.

‘I’m so glad you’ve got company, Harry.’

It’s really only Michelle and his mum who call him Harry these days. The name sparks an almost physical response, a twinge in his gut that’s somewhere between love and guilt.

Georgie appears and the twinge becomes a wrench.

‘Daddy! Laura!’

Georgie looks really well, tanned from all those trips along the Blackpool sands. Michelle, on the other hand, looks pale and rather drawn. Nelson asks if she’s OK.

‘I’m fine,’ says Michelle. ‘It’s just hard being so far from home.’

‘Surely you can leave Grandma soon,’ says Laura.

‘I don’t know. I’m really worried about her with this awful Covid.’ Michelle says it as if the virus were an unpleasant neighbour.

But, when Michelle’s mother appears on screen, she seems in better shape than her daughter, immaculately dressed as ever, talking about online fitness classes and someone called Joe Wicks.

‘Mum will be home soon,’ says Laura when they ring off. ‘Grandma looks very healthy to me.’

‘She does to me too,’ says Nelson.

‘Don’t worry,’ Laura gives him a quick hug, ‘Mum will soon be back and Cathbad will get better. Are you ready for some vegetarian stew?’

The word ‘vegetarian’ always makes Nelson feel depressed.



Judy sleeps on the sofa. Thing is delighted and fetches his favourite squeaky toy so they can make a night of it. Judy manages to banish the toy but she can’t do anything about the solid bulk of the bull terrier, who takes up most of the space and snores loudly in her ear. Not that Judy sleeps much. She can hear Cathbad coughing and twice goes upstairs to see if he needs anything. ‘I’m OK,’ comes the reply, ‘don’t come in.’

Judy lies awake, with Thing across her legs, wondering what to do. She wants to go into the bedroom but she can’t afford to get Covid. She has to stay well for her children. It’s as if the virus is lying in wait upstairs, as monsters of childhood are said to do. All she can do is hope that Cathbad’s strong constitution will defeat the ogre. He’s the fittest person she knows, honed by walking and yoga. Tanya says obesity is a contributory factor but Cathbad doesn’t have an ounce of spare flesh on him. ‘Irish peasant’s physique,’ he’s fond of saying. He eats well and has never smoked, unless it’s for hallucinatory reasons in his past life. ‘As tough as old boots’, that’s what Nelson said. Surely Cathbad will defeat corona?

She must have fallen asleep because Thing wakes her at six a.m. by licking her face. She lets him out into the garden. The sun is coming up and the birds are singing in the trees. Judy puts on her mask and goes upstairs.

‘Cathbad?’

There’s no answer. Judy pushes open the door. Cathbad is lying on his back and, for a heart-stopping moment, Judy thinks he’s dead. Then she hears a faint rattle of breath. She puts a hand on Cathbad’s forehead and snatches it away again. The dry heat tells its own story.

Judy runs downstairs and phones for an ambulance. The operator is reassuring and says they are on their way. Judy looks up from her phone to see Maddie in the doorway, wearing only an oversized T-shirt saying, ‘Grey Sloan ­Memorial Hospital’.

‘Is he really ill?’ she says.

‘His temperature is very high,’ says Judy. ‘And I think he might need oxygen.’

Maddie puts her arms round her. ‘He’ll be OK. He’s tough.’