Page 16 of A Poisonous Plot

“Are you okay?” Lily asked. “You look exhausted.”

“I haven’t slept much the last couple of nights.” Her fingers worried at the pendant – a gold crucifix. “At least if she’s in hospital, I’ll know she’s well cared for and I’ll be able to catch up on some rest.”

“Yes,” Lily said, distracted by the paramedics bringing Glynis out on a stretcher.

“Not that I want her to be in hospital,” Maria said in a rush.

“Of course not.” Lily stepped off the path to give the paramedics room. Her jaw tightened as her eyes landed on Glynis. With her pale skin and dark rings under her eyes, she looked as though she’d aged about twenty years since Lily had last seen her.

“Lily,” she murmured, her wrinkled arm creeping out from under the blanket.

Automatically, Lily took her hand and walked beside the stretcher. “I got worried when you didn’t visit. I came to check on you.”

“That’s sweet,” she said, through cracked lips. “I’m sure I’ll be up to tasting your ice cream again soon.”

Lily nodded. “They’ll take good care of you at the hospital. You’ll be up and about again in no time.”

“Save me some ice cream,” she murmured as her eyes fluttered closed.

“I will.” Lily squeezed her hand and stepped away so the paramedics could get her into the ambulance. “Is there anything I can do?” she asked Maria, who was locking the door.

She shook her head and hurried past Lily. “I don’t think so.”

Lily wanted to ask her to keep her updated, but Maria had hopped up into the ambulance with Glynis and the doors had closed before she could get a word out.

Watching the ambulance go, Lily remained rooted to the spot. When she eventually snapped out of her trance and got her legs moving, she pulled out her phone to call Flynn.

“Glynis is ill,” she said, bypassing greetings.

“What’s wrong with her?”

“Apparently a stomach bug, but it must be pretty bad since she’s just been taken to the hospital in an ambulance.”

“Poor Glynis.”

“Yeah. Where are you?”

“At home. Getting ready for work.”

Lily stepped off the pavement to avoid a woman and her dog. “It’s weird that we were both ill,” she mused quietly.

“What?” Flynn asked.

“I was ill too, remember? Not as bad as Glynis, but also a stomach thing.”

“Maybe there’s something going round.”

“We shared a drink at the garden centre.” She grimaced, hoping Flynn would tell her she was being neurotic, and that she wasn’t to blame for Glynis being in hospital. “Maybe I passed on my germs.”

“Possibly,” he said, making Lily’s stomach lurch. “It’s hardly your fault, though. You didn’t know you were going to get ill. And that could just be a coincidence.”

Taking a deep breath, Lily felt a little better. “She looked terrible.”

“I’m sure she’ll be okay.”

“I hope so. I don’t even know how to check up on her.”

“If I have time later, I can call at the hospital and see if I can get an update.”

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