Before I Saw You(5)
She won’t last long.
How could she? He knew how adamant Nurse Angles was about this, but Alfie couldn’t help his sneaking suspicion that the moment this mystery patient got sucked into the goings on here, she wouldn’t be able to resist joining in. That was the beauty of the Moira Gladstone ward. It wasn’t like the ICU or A&E. People weren’t in and out through a revolving door. They stayed. They recuperated. They became family. It was only a matter of time before his new neighbour would follow suit.
5
Alice
One thing Alice had managed to achieve during her time in the ICU was to piece together an idea of what on earth had happened to her. It had taken a while for her to sieve through the haze of her memory, move aside the broken debris of heat, smoke and screaming, and remember her movements that day.
She’d worked late the night before so hadn’t made her Pilates class first thing. She remembered that had annoyed her; missing even one was the start of a downward spiral of complacency. Two double espressos and a quick shower later, she was out of the door and on her way just before 6 a.m.
Alice had worked long enough and hard enough to have earned herself a very comfortable salary and a very senior role in financial consultancy. She’d been fortunate enough, therefore, to have a choice when it came to buying her flat. She’d forced herself to look in the suburbs first, at the beautiful homes people had poured their creativity and love into. She went through the motions of requesting properties with manicured gardens that drank in the sunshine and provided a green sanctuary in the concrete jungle of London. She insisted on extra bedrooms for future guests and potential offspring. And then she caught herself using the word ‘offspring’ instead of ‘children’ and dropped the pretence. Alice prided herself on being one very independent, very single and very cynical human being. She was never one to believe in something she couldn’t see with her own eyes, measure with a stick, or at the very least read in a textbook. Alice was not the person to engage in a deep spiritual conversation; she quite frankly didn’t give a shit about your hopes and dreams, and she certainly didn’t rely on anyone for anything. All Alice Gunnersley needed was convenience and solitude. And so came the purchase of a penthouse flat in Greenwich. She didn’t have neighbours; she had views of the river and just enough of the park to convince herself she was surrounded by nature. Best of all, she could see her office from her flat, which always brought her a perverse sense of calm.
The day of the accident had been an especially stressful one at work. There was a big report that needed to be finalized before the end of the week, a report that if successful would cement Alice in the minds of the board when it came to identifying future partner talent. Unfortunately, standing between her and writing the extremely important report were endless meetings, project reviews and financial budgeting tasks, plus an hour-long catch-up with her boss. Alice often wondered why Henry insisted on having these meetings every month, considering they had the exact same conversation every time.
‘Alice, you are no doubt a phenomenal asset to this company. I’ve never met anyone with a work ethic and ability to deliver like yours. But you know that’s not all we value here at the firm. If you want to make it all the way to the top seat, you have to start taking people with you.’
Taking people with you.
Another stupid HR phrase, she thought. What does that even really mean, Henry? She wanted to bite back, but instead she took a deep breath and smiled.
‘I do take people with me, Henry. Look at the stats. I’ve promoted five members of my team this year alone and have the highest staff retention of anyone on the floor.’
‘I know.’ He shook his head in exasperation.
Alice knew she wasn’t exactly easy to manage, but she also knew you couldn’t argue with facts. So facts she always gave him.
‘But that’s not the point.’
‘Well, Henry, I don’t mean to be rude, but I’ve got a hell of a lot to do today, so I’d be grateful if you could get to your point quite quickly …’
She knew her comments wouldn’t surprise him. They’d worked together for over ten years now, and Alice’s ruthless commitment to her job had remained very much the same.
‘The point is, there’s more to life than this office. I just worry sometimes that you don’t see that. You’re here all hours of the day and night, and I’m not sure it’s particularly healthy. Plus, you rarely attend social events here, and I hardly ever see you interact with anyone other than to talk about deadlines.’
Alice frowned. Was he having some sort of emotional breakdown on her? She began to laugh.
‘I see what this is. It’s some new HR policy about employee health and wellbeing, isn’t it? Look, you don’t have to worry about me at all. I sleep, I eat, and I have some friends I see from time to time. Plus, I do talk to people here.’
His eyebrow shot up. ‘Oh, really?’
‘I talk to Lyla.’
‘She’s your PA. You have to talk to her.’
‘Fine. I talk to Arnold.’
Ha. She’d got him with this one.
‘Arnold? Who the hell is Arnold?’ His eyes narrowed. He always squinted when he was thinking. It was a habit Alice couldn’t stand.
Suddenly the penny dropped. ‘Oh Jesus, Alice. Not the old guy on reception?’