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beds tucked into the eaves. A small dormer window cast a dim patch of wintry light on to the bare polished floorboards.
    A nurse sat on the bed at the far end of the room, her stockinged feet up. As Sister Sutton barged in, she shot to her feet so quickly she nearly hit her head on the sloping ceiling.
    ‘What are you doing here, Tremayne?’ Sister Sutton demanded.
    ‘Please, Sister. I’m off duty until five.’
    ‘So why are you skulking about up here?’ Sister Sutton sniffed the air. ‘You weren’t smoking, were you?’
    ‘No, Sister.’ The girl towered over Sister Sutton, as tall and slender as the Home Sister was short and wide. Her dark hair was coiled in a smooth bun at the nape of herlong, elegant neck. Dora tucked a frizzy curl behind her ear and wondered if she would ever get her hair to look that neat.
    ‘You know I do not allow smoking in the rooms. If you must smoke, do it downstairs in the library or outside like everyone else.’
    ‘Yes, Sister.’ Sparky jumped up at the girl’s legs, clawing at her black woollen stockings, but she didn’t flinch.
    Dora could feel her tension as Sister Sutton inspected the room through narrowed eyes. ‘And what’s this?’ She pointed to the far corner. ‘Why is this bed in such a mess?’
    Dora looked at the immaculately made bed with its perfectly turned down sheet and neat corners, and wondered if she was seeing things.
    ‘Where is Nurse Benedict?’ Sister Sutton asked.
    The tall girl cleared her throat. ‘It’s her day off, Sister.’
    ‘Disgraceful! You nurses get far too much time off.’ Sister Sutton went over to the bed, tore off the bedclothes and, with a great effort, upended the mattress on to the floor. Dora looked at the dark girl, but her gaze remained fixed on the worn rug at her feet.
    Sister Sutton stood back, breathing heavily. ‘Tell Benedict if I ever find her bed a mess again, I will send her straight to Matron. Is that clear?’ she said.
    ‘Yes, Sister.’
    ‘And you,’ Dora jumped as Sister Sutton swung her attention back to her. ‘Let this be a lesson to you. I will not tolerate slovenliness in nurses. If you can’t keep yourselves neat and tidy, how on earth do you expect to care for patients?’ Once again, Dora felt the full force of her gaze, raking up and down, looking for faults. ‘Well?’
    ‘I – I don’t know, Sister,’ Dora stammered.
    Sister Sutton tutted and shook her head. ‘This is Doyle,’she said to the other nurse. ‘Please help her settle in.’ She turned back to Dora. ‘Get changed and go down to supper at eight. Your training will begin at nine o’clock sharp tomorrow morning. Tremayne will show you where to go. Come, Sparky.’ She left, slamming the door behind her.
    Dora stared at it. ‘Blimey, is she always like that?’
    ‘Sometimes she’s worse.’ The girl picked her way across the room. ‘Here, help me sort out this bed.’
    ‘I’m Dora, by the way,’ she introduced herself as they hauled the heavy horse-hair mattress back on to the bed.
    ‘Helen. But we’re not supposed to use Christian names on the wards, only surnames.’ She pushed the mattress into place and stood back, smoothing down her blue-striped dress. ‘There, that’ll do. Benedict can do the rest when she gets in. You can put your things in that chest of drawers.’ She nodded towards the corner of the room.
    ‘I’ll unpack later.’ She didn’t want Helen Tremayne to see her few poor belongings. She sounded so posh, Dora was sure she would look down her nose at her.
    ‘Suit yourself, but you’ll have to have everything folded and put away before supper, or Sister Sutton won’t be pleased. And you’d best get changed, too.’
    Dora watched Helen as she rolled down the sleeves of her dress and deftly fastened them at the wrist with neat starched cuffs. She wondered if all nurses were as cool and brisk as her. If they were, Dora didn’t stand a chance.
    She warily eyed the neatly folded pile of clothes on