Me Before You: A Novel

do?’
    ‘I don’t know yet. My sister is good at researching stuff. She’s trying to find out what’s possible for quadriplegics. But I really wanted to find out from you whether you would be willing to go with it.’
    We were in their drawing room. It was the same room I had been interviewed in, except this time Mrs Traynor and her daughter were perched on the sofa, their slobbery old dog between them. Mr Traynor was standing by the fire. I was wearing my French peasant’s jacket in indigo denim, a minidress and a pair of army boots. With hindsight, I realized, I could have picked a more professional-looking uniform in which to outline my plan.
    ‘Let me get this straight.’ Camilla Traynor leant forward. ‘You want to take Will away from this house.’
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘And take him on a series of “adventures”.’ She said itlike I was suggesting performing amateur keyhole surgery on him.
    ‘Yes. Like I said, I’m not sure what’s possible yet. But it’s about just getting him out and about, widening his horizons. There may be some local things we could do at first, and then hopefully something further afield before too long.’
    ‘Are you talking about going abroad?’
    ‘Abroad … ?’ I blinked. ‘I was thinking more about maybe getting him to the pub. Or to a show, just for starters.’
    ‘Will has barely left this house in two years, apart from hospital appointments.’
    ‘Well, yes … I thought I’d try and persuade him otherwise.’
    ‘And you would, of course, go on all these adventures with him,’ Georgina Traynor said.
    ‘Look. It’s nothing extraordinary. I’m really talking about just getting him out of the house, to start with. A walk around the castle, or a visit to the pub. If we end up swimming with dolphins in Florida, then that’s lovely. But really I just wanted to get him out of the house and thinking about something else.’ I didn’t add that the mere thought of driving to the hospital in sole charge of Will was still enough to bring me out in a cold sweat. The thought of taking him abroad felt as likely as me running a marathon.
    ‘I think it’s a splendid idea,’ Mr Traynor said. ‘I think it would be marvellous to get Will out and about. You know it can’t have been good for him staring at the four walls day in and day out.’
    ‘We have tried to get him out, Steven,’ Mrs Traynor said. ‘It’s not as if we’ve left him in there to rot. I’ve tried again and again.’
    ‘I know that, darling, but we haven’t been terribly successful, have we? If Louisa here can think up things that Will is prepared to try, then that can only be a good thing, surely?’
    ‘Yes, well, “prepared to try” being the operative phrase.’
    ‘It’s just an idea,’ I said. I felt suddenly irritated. I could see what she was thinking. ‘If you don’t want me to do it … ’
    ‘ … you’ll leave?’ She looked straight at me.
    I didn’t look away. She didn’t frighten me any more. Because I knew now she was no better than me. She was a woman who could sit back and let her son die right in front of her.
    ‘Yes, I probably will.’
    ‘So it’s blackmail.’
    ‘Georgina!’
    ‘Well, let’s not beat around the bush here, Daddy.’
    I sat up a little straighter. ‘No. Not blackmail. It’s about what I’m prepared to be part of. I can’t sit by and just quietly wait out the time until … Will … well … ’ My voice tailed off.
    We all stared at our cups of tea.
    ‘Like I said,’ Mr Traynor said firmly. ‘I think it’s a very good idea. If you can get Will to agree to it, I can’t see that there’s any harm at all. I’d love the idea of him going on holiday. Just … just let us know what you need us to do.’
    ‘I’ve got an idea.’ Mrs Traynor put a hand on her daughter’s shoulder. ‘Perhaps you could go on holiday with them, Georgina.’
    ‘Fine by me,’ I said. It was. Because my chances of getting Will away on holiday were about the same as me competing on
Mastermind
.
    Georgina Traynor shifted uncomfortably in her seat. ‘I can’t. You know I start my new job in two weeks. I won’t be able to come over to England again for a bit once I’ve started.’
    ‘You’re going back to Australia?’
    ‘Don’t sound so surprised. I did tell you this was just a visit.’
    ‘I just thought that … given … given recent events, you might want to stay here a bit longer.’ Camilla Traynor stared at her daughter in a