I Know Your Secret: a psychological thriller with a twist you won't see coming by J.M. O'Rourke

Author:J.M. O'Rourke [O'Rourke, J.M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Inkubator Books
Published: 2024-02-04T00:00:00+00:00

Fifteen minutes later she rushed through the doors of Galway University Hospital.

‘Ward B,’ the assistant behind the front desk told her, ‘that’s on the first floor. Lifts are right behind you; when you get out, you⁠—’

‘I know the way,’ Amanda said, cutting her off, turning. She knew a quicker route, from her time spent as a junior doctor here. She pushed open the door at the side of the desk. The assistant was about to say something. This led to a staff-only stairs, but Amanda had disappeared through it before she could speak and was taking the steps two at a time. She emerged onto the ward through the door at the top, right next to the nurses’ station. A couple of nurses were behind it, one filling in details on a form, the other, the older of the two, looking at CT scan results on a computer monitor. The older nurse looked up, recognition crossing her face as she smiled.

‘Dr Jackson,’ she said, standing. ‘Now, don’t worry, Ed… I mean Dr Jackson, your husband. Everything is fine with him, relatively speaking.’

‘Nurse Connor,’ Amanda said, ‘what happened? My daughter didn’t have all the details, just that he was in the hospital, and to come right away.’

The nurse opened the hatch in the nurses’ station and emerged from behind it, stood beside Amanda, resting a hand on her arm.

‘He drove himself here, presented at A&E. He was dishevelled and a little disorientated. His clothes were torn, and he was bleeding from a head wound. Our first concern was a brain injury. We’ve discounted that, however. We examined him, and he has lacerations to his head, hands and legs. Also bruising to his face where we believe he was struck with some kind of implement.’

‘My God,’ Amanda said. ‘He was mugged?’

The nurse shook her head. ‘Doesn’t appear to be the case, but we’ll leave that for the guards to decide. Nothing was taken; he said he was attacked, somewhere in the city, not quite sure where. But’ – the nurse paused – ‘his injuries are superficial. He’s fine, shook up of course, but he’s fine. We’re merely keeping him in for observation.’

‘Oh,’ Amanda said, ‘okay, that’s good.’

‘Now, my dear, let me take you to him.’

Nurse Connor began walking quickly along the corridor. Amanda hurried to catch up.

‘Like I say, Dr Jackson,’ the nurse said as Amanda reached her, ‘everything is fine. It could have been much worse; these things can turn out very ugly, as you well know.’

Yes, Amanda thought, they certainly can.

The nurse stopped outside a private room. ‘Remember,’ she said, pushing the door, ‘it looks worse than it is. Okay?’

Amanda nodded.

They went in. Edward was lying on his back, his forehead and one hand swathed in bandages, the hair along one side of his head matted to his scalp. The nurse hadn’t mentioned that, Amanda thought. His eyes shifted to her, staring. The nurse checked the monitor on the stand, took out the patient chart from its holder at the end of the bed, wrote in it, put it back again.

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