Where There's Smoke

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Thanks to Dr Sheila Cooke and the team at the University of Sheffield’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Jessop Hospital; Dr Gwilym Hayes, Consultant Forensic Psychiatrist at Wathwood Hospital Regional Secure Unit; and Judy Winter, Head of Student Services at the University of Derby.

The article on pages 234–239 refers to two works which are: Faulk, M (1988) Basic Forensic Psychiatry, London, Blackwell Scientific Publications; and Jackson, H F (1994) Assessment of Fire-setters in The Assessment of Criminal Behaviours of Clients in Secure Settings, Eds McMurran M, Hodge J.

Some moments burn in the mind for ever. The landing is dark. Light comes from a window at the far end, enough to run by. Breath comes hard. From the stairs sound heavy footfalls of pursuit. The landing ends in a last doorway. There is no more running, only the need to hide. Inside the room it is even darker. It is like walking in ink. Blind, she feels her way through the half-familiar landmarks of beds and bookshelves. And then there is the wall. She presses against it, trying to stifle the breaths that tear at her throat. Her heart thuds. Blood from the wound is sticky, and at her touch there is a white leap of pain that lightens the darkness. She hears the footsteps now, drawing closer. Along the corridor doors are opened, one at a time, until there is only hers left. The smell of petrol is sweet and heavy in its threat. She hugs her stomach, feeling the small pulse of new life inside, curled and vulnerable. The footsteps stop. A whisper of the door opening. Her name. “Kate.”

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