INT. 118 Newbury Road- HALLWAY/BATHROOM - SAME TIME
The bathroom door is closed. From inside comes the sound of running water and muffled sobbing. BARBARA CHESTERFIELD stands outside, her hand resting gently against the door frame. She's been there for several minutes, speaking softly through the wood.
BARBARA: (calling through the door) Isobel, darling, please come out. I've spoken to Bart. I've spoken to his father. Everything's going to be all right.
No response except another choked sob. Barbara sighs and leans her forehead against the door.
BARBARA: (continuing) Your dress is hanging in the bedroom. It's beautiful, Isobel. Your mother would be so proud if she could see you in it. I know she wanted to be here. I know she tried.
ISOBEL: (voice muffled, bitter) Did she? Did she really try, Barbara?
There's the sound of movement, water being turned off. After a moment, the lock clicks and the door opens slowly. ISOBEL stands there, still in her dressing gown, face blotchy from crying, mascara streaked down her cheeks. Her hair is pinned up haphazardly, half-done and already falling loose.
ISOBEL: (voice raw) My mother hasn't tried anything since I called off the wedding to Robert. She's been waiting for me to fail ever since. Waiting to say "I told you so."
BARBARA: (gently taking Isobel's arm) That's not true and you know it. Come on, out of the bathroom. Let's get you cleaned up properly.
She guides Isobel into the bedroom, sitting her down at the dressing table. Isobel stares at her reflection, not seeming to recognize herself.
ISOBEL: (quietly) Look at me. I'm a mess. How can I get married looking like this?
BARBARA: (reaching for a flannel and cold water) We'll fix your face. Redo your makeup. You'll be beautiful, just like you're supposed to be on your wedding day.
She begins gently wiping away the mascara streaks. Isobel sits motionless, letting herself be tended to like a child.
BARBARA: (while working) I spoke to Bart. He asked me to tell you he loves you. That nothing matters except being together at the end of this.
ISOBEL: (fresh tears starting) He's too good for me, Barbara. He deserves someone without all this… this baggage. Someone whose parents actually want to be at her wedding.
BARBARA: (firmly) Stop that. Bart knows exactly who you are and he loves you anyway. That's what matters.
ISOBEL: Does he though? Does he know who I really am?
BARBARA: (pausing in her work) What do you mean?
Isobel is silent for a long moment, staring at her reflection.
ISOBEL: (finally) I never told him about Robert. Not properly. Not the whole truth.
BARBARA: (carefully) He knows you were engaged before. Jed mentioned it to him this morning, actually. Said you called it off because you didn't love Robert.
ISOBEL: (laughing bitterly) Is that what Jed said? That I didn't love him? That's… that's one way of putting it, I suppose.
BARBARA: (setting down the flannel, giving Isobel her full attention) What's another way of putting it?
Isobel stands abruptly, moving away from the mirror, wrapping her arms around herself.
ISOBEL: Robert Hendricks was a monster, Barbara. A charming, respectable, well-educated monster. And I was stupid enough to say yes when he asked me to marry him.
BARBARA: (softly) Isobel, what happened?
ISOBEL: (voice shaking) We met in Maidstone. I was working at the hospital there, he was a doctor. Everyone said we were perfect together—the doctor and the nurse, like something out of a romance novel. My parents adored him. He had money, status, a beautiful house. Everything they'd ever wanted for me.
BARBARA: (quietly) But?
ISOBEL: (turning to face her) But he was cruel. Not at first. At first he was wonderful—attentive, generous, sweet. But after we got engaged, things changed. Little things at first. He'd criticize my clothes, my hair, the way I spoke. Said he was helping me improve myself, making me worthy of being a doctor's wife.
She moves to the window, looking out at the rain.
ISOBEL: (continuing) Then the criticism got harsher. I was too stupid to understand his work, too common to fit in with his colleagues' wives, too… too everything. I tried to change, Barbara. I really tried. I bought new dresses, changed my hair, read medical journals so I could talk intelligently about his work. But nothing was ever enough.
BARBARA: (standing) Did he… Isobel, did he hurt you?
Isobel doesn't answer immediately. When she does, her voice is barely audible.
ISOBEL: The first time was six months before the wedding. We were at a dinner party with his colleagues. I said something—I don't even remember what—and he thought I'd embarrassed him. When we got home, he… he grabbed my arm so hard he left bruises. Told me I needed to learn to keep my mouth shut in public.
BARBARA: (horrified) Oh, Isobel.
ISOBEL: (still not turning around) I told myself it was my fault. That I'd been careless with my words, that I'd provoked him. He apologized the next day, brought me flowers, said it would never happen again. And I believed him. God help me, I believed him.
BARBARA: How many times?
ISOBEL: (voice breaking) I stopped counting after a while. It was never where anyone could see the marks. Always my arms, my back, places I could hide with long sleeves and high collars. He was very careful about that. Very controlled. Even when he was angry enough to hit me, he was controlled.
She turns finally, and her face is wet with tears but her expression is fierce.
ISOBEL: The last time was three weeks before the wedding. I'd been working late at the hospital—there was an emergency, a child with appendicitis, I couldn't leave. Robert came to collect me and I wasn't ready. He was furious. Said I cared more about my patients than about him, that I was neglecting my duties as his fiancée.
BARBARA: What did he do?
ISOBEL: He hit me. In the hospital car park, where anyone could have seen. Backhanded me across the face hard enough that I fell. And as I was lying there on the ground, he looked down at me and said, "This is what happens when you disobey me. You'd better learn that before we're married, or things will be much worse for you."
Barbara moves to Isobel, pulling her into an embrace. Isobel resists for a moment, then crumples, sobbing into Barbara's shoulder.
BARBARA: (stroking her hair) Why didn't you tell anyone? Why didn't you go to the police?
ISOBEL: (pulling back) And say what? That Dr. Robert Hendricks, pillar of the community, respected physician, hit his fiancée? Who would have believed me? He was charming, Barbara. Everyone loved him. My own parents loved him. When I finally found the courage to call off the wedding, they were devastated.
BARBARA: They didn't know about the abuse?
ISOBEL: (shaking her head) I tried to tell my mother. Once. She said I was being dramatic, that all couples had disagreements, that I needed to learn to be more accommodating. That Robert was a good man and I was lucky to have him.
BARBARA: (angrily) She said that? After you told her he hit you?
ISOBEL: I didn't tell her he hit me. I just said… I said we fought sometimes. That he had a temper. She waved it away, said all men have tempers, that it was a woman's job to keep the peace. So I stopped trying to make her understand.
She moves back to the dressing table, sitting down heavily.
ISOBEL: When I called off the wedding, I didn't give them the real reason. I just said I couldn't go through with it, that I didn't love him enough. My mother was furious. She said I was throwing away my future, that I'd never find another man like Robert, that I was being selfish and childish.
BARBARA: What about your father?
ISOBEL: (voice hollow) My father said I'd embarrassed the family. That Robert's family would never forgive us for the public humiliation. That I'd made him look like a fool in front of the entire town. He didn't speak to me for six months after that.
BARBARA: (sitting beside her) Is that why you moved to Carlisle?
ISOBEL: (nodding) I couldn't stay in Maidstone. Everywhere I went, people whispered. "There's the girl who jilted Dr. Hendricks." "Poor Robert, left at the altar by that ungrateful nurse." Never mind that we called it off weeks before the wedding, never mind that he'd spent months systematically breaking me down. All anyone saw was that I'd rejected a good man.
BARBARA: And Robert? What did he say when you ended it?
Isobel's hands clench in her lap.
ISOBEL: He laughed. Can you believe that? I told him I was calling off the wedding and he laughed. Said I'd be back, that I'd realize I had nothing without him. That no other man would want damaged goods. Those were his exact words—damaged goods.
BARBARA: (fiercely) He was wrong. Bart wants you. Bart loves you.
ISOBEL: (looking up) Does he? Or does he just love the idea of me? The version I've shown him—the capable nurse, the woman who knows her own mind, the person who isn't terrified of making a mistake?
BARBARA: (taking Isobel's hands) That IS who you are. Robert tried to destroy that person, but he didn't succeed. You're still here. You're still strong.
ISOBEL: (pulling her hands away) I don't feel strong, Barbara. I feel like I'm one step away from falling apart. What if Bart turns out to be like Robert? What if I've made the same mistake again?
BARBARA: (firmly) He's nothing like Robert. Nothing. Have you ever seen Bart lose his temper?
ISOBEL: (shaking her head) No, but—
BARBARA: Has he ever criticized you? Made you feel small? Tried to control what you wear or say or do?
ISOBEL: (quietly) No. He… he tells me I'm beautiful the way I am. Says he loves how independent I am. How strong.
BARBARA: Then he's the opposite of Robert Hendricks. And you know it. You're just frightened.
ISOBEL: (standing again, pacing) Of course I'm frightened! My parents aren't here because deep down they still think I should have married Robert. They think I'm making another mistake. And maybe I am! Maybe I'm rushing into this too quickly, maybe I don't really know Bart well enough, maybe—
BARBARA: (interrupting, standing) Stop. Stop right now and listen to me. I have news from Bart's family. His father, Constantine, has agreed to walk you down the aisle.
Isobel stops mid-pace, staring at Barbara.
ISOBEL: What?
BARBARA: Constantine Matthews will walk you down the aisle. Give you away. So you won't be alone. You'll have family there, Isobel. Bart's family.
Isobel's face crumples. She presses her hands to her mouth.
ISOBEL: (through her fingers) Constantine? But he barely knows me. We've only met once.
BARBARA: He knows you're important to his son. That's enough for him. That's what family does, Isobel. Real family. Not the kind that abandons you when you need them most.
ISOBEL: (sinking back into the chair) I can't believe… he'd do that for me?
BARBARA: (kneeling beside her) He would. He will. And Bart will be there waiting for you. And Jed and I will be there. And you'll say your vows and you'll become Mrs. Isobel Matthews and you'll start a new life with a good man who loves you.
Isobel is crying again, but differently now—softer, more hopeful.
ISOBEL: (wiping her eyes) I do love him, Barbara. I love him so much it terrifies me.
BARBARA: (smiling) Tell me. Tell me what you love about him. Make it real for yourself.
ISOBEL: (taking a shaky breath) I love… I love how he looks at me. Like I'm the most important person in the world. Like nothing else matters when we're together.
BARBARA: What else?
ISOBEL: (warming to the topic) I love how he listens when I talk about my work. Really listens, asks questions, remembers things I've told him. Robert never listened. He'd zone out the moment I started talking about patients or procedures. But Bart… Bart wants to know everything.
BARBARA: (encouraging) Keep going.
ISOBEL: I love how gentle he is. How patient. When we're walking and I get tired, he slows down without me having to ask. When I'm upset, he doesn't tell me I'm being emotional or dramatic—he just holds me until I feel better. And his hands, Barbara. He works with his hands all day, fixing cars, getting covered in grease and oil, but when he touches me he's so gentle. Like I'm something precious.
BARBARA: (softly) He sounds wonderful.
ISOBEL: (smiling through tears) He is. He really is. And I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop, for him to show his real face, but it's been three months and he's just… he's just Bart. Steady, kind, honest Bart.
BARBARA: How did you meet? You've never told me the whole story.
ISOBEL: (leaning back, eyes distant with memory) It was a Saturday. Three months ago. I was working in Accident and Emergency. It had been a long shift—we'd had two car accidents come in, a child with a broken leg, chaos everywhere. I was exhausted, ready to go home, when they brought him in.
BARBARA: Bart?
ISOBEL: (nodding) He was holding his wrist, trying very hard not to swear in front of the nurses. His father was with him, looking guilty. Apparently Bart had been fixing their garden shed and a beam had given way, crushed his wrist. I could see immediately it was broken from the way he was holding it.
BARBARA: Love at first sight?
ISOBEL: (laughing softly) Not quite. First thought was more like "another stubborn man who waited too long to come in for treatment." But then I sat him down to examine the wrist and he looked up at me and smiled—this sheepish, apologetic smile—and said, "I suppose you get a lot of idiots like me who don't listen when their fathers say a beam is rotten."
BARBARA: What did you say?
ISOBEL: I told him he was in good company, that we'd had three idiots that week alone. And he laughed. Not a polite laugh, a real laugh. And then he said, "Well, at least I'm in capable hands. You look like you know what you're doing, which is more than I can say for myself."
She's smiling now, the earlier tears forgotten.
ISOBEL: I had to manipulate the wrist to check the extent of the break. I warned him it would hurt. He just nodded and said, "Do what you need to do. I trust you." And Barbara, the way he said it… like he really did trust me, completely, without question. It was such a change from Robert, who questioned everything I did, doubted every decision I made.
BARBARA: What happened after you treated the wrist?
ISOBEL: I fitted him with a cast. It took a while—there was a lot of swelling, I had to be careful. And the whole time we talked. About everything and nothing. His work at the garage, my work at the hospital, his family, Carlisle, the weather. Easy conversation, the kind where you don't have to think about what to say next, it just flows.
BARBARA: And then he asked you out?
ISOBEL: (shaking her head) Not then. He said, "When this cast comes off, when my wrist is healed, I'm going to ask you to have tea with me. But I'm going to wait, so you'll know I'm serious. So you'll know I'm not just some patient making a pass at his nurse because he's in pain and vulnerable."
BARBARA: (delighted) He said that?
ISOBEL: (nodding) Those exact words. I thought he'd forget. Six weeks is a long time. But he came back every week, pretending he was worried about the cast, asking questions about healing times and rehabilitation. The other nurses started teasing me about him. They'd say, "Your boyfriend's here for his weekly check-up."
BARBARA: But he wasn't your boyfriend yet?
ISOBEL: Not yet. The day the cast came off, he sat there while I cut through it, unwrapping his wrist, checking the bone had healed properly. His father had driven him but stayed in the waiting room. And when I told Bart everything looked good, that he was healed, he took my hand—the one that had just been checking his wrist—and said, "Now will you have tea with me? Or dinner? Or just walk around town talking? I don't care what we do, I just want to spend time with you."
BARBARA: (sighing contentedly) That's lovely, Isobel. Really lovely.
ISOBEL: (smiling) We went for tea that afternoon. I had the evening off, and we went to that little place on Castle Street, the one with the good scones. We talked for three hours. When he walked me home, he asked if he could see me again. I said yes. And we've been together ever since.
BARBARA: Three months. That's quite quick to decide to marry.
ISOBEL: (sobering slightly) I know. That's what my mother said when I told her. But Barbara, when you've been in the dark for so long, you recognize light when you see it. Bart is light. He's warmth and safety and everything Robert wasn't. And I don't want to waste time being careful and cautious. I wasted two years with Robert, trying to make something work that was destroying me. I won't waste another minute of my life being afraid of being happy.
BARBARA: (standing, pulling Isobel to her feet) Then let's get you ready to be happy. Let's get you into that dress and fix your hair and your makeup, and get you to the registry office where Bart is waiting for you.
ISOBEL: (suddenly afraid again) Barbara, what if Robert is there?
BARBARA: (firmly) He won't be there. He's in Maidstone, miles away from here. He has no reason to come to Carlisle.
ISOBEL: But what if he heard? What if someone told him I'm getting married? What if he comes to—
BARBARA: (gripping Isobel's shoulders) Listen to me. Robert Hendricks is not going to be at your wedding. And even if he were, you have Bart. You have Constantine. You have Jed. You have me. You have people who love you and will protect you. Robert has no power over you anymore.
ISOBEL: (voice shaking) You don't know him, Barbara. You don't know what he's capable of. He said I'd never escape him. He said he'd always be watching, waiting for me to fail.
BARBARA: He lied. Men like Robert lie. They try to make you think you're weak so they can feel strong. But you're not weak, Isobel. You left him. You started over. You found someone worthy of you. That takes more strength than Robert Hendricks has in his entire body.
ISOBEL: (taking a deep breath) You're right. You're right, I know you're right.
BARBARA: (guiding her toward the bathroom) Now, let's get you washed and ready. We've got—
She checks her watch.
BARBARA: (continuing) We've got an hour and a half before the ceremony. That's plenty of time to make you beautiful.
ISOBEL: (pausing) Barbara? Thank you. For everything. For being here, for listening, for… for being the friend my own mother couldn't be.