For one night only Chapter 1
"I'm so sorry, Peter," Assumpta cried. "I never meant it to be like this. Please God, let me make it up. I want them both here with me."
"Now shhh, come on love, it's going to be fine." Niamh held her friend close. She had been trying to calm her down for an hour now and didn't know how much longer she could bare hearing and seeing Assumpta delirious like this.
"She's raving. Her temperature is very high. I've just given her an injection and it should calm her down a bit in a few minutes. Her body really needs to rest," Doctor Ryan said.
"Do you think we should try and contact him," Niamh asked looking worried, still holding Assumpta.
He gestured for her to follow him out of the room.
"Please Niamh, don't go," Assumpta pleaded. "It's okay, I'm not leaving you, I just need a drink, I'll only be a moment," Niamh reassured her. She softly released her and left the room. But the crying went on and it chilled her to the bone.
"Look Niamh, I'm going to be honest with you. I don't know if she's going to make it. She's got pneumonia on top of a bad case of flu. I'm surprised of all the energy still left in her. Let's hope the antibiotics will start working soon. We need to get her temperature down within the next 24 hours. If not, then I don't know what'll happen. It could be fatal. So, yes I think it would be wise to get Peter here, before it's too late."
Niamh tried to hold back from crying, but it was no good. "Do you have his number," she asked through her tears.
"I do, I just hope he hasn't moved in the mean time. A lot can happen in nine months. I'll give him a call right away. You can go back in now. I suggest once she's asleep, you go home. You've been here long enough. Get some sleep too. We don't want you getting ill as well. I'll call you if there's any change."
Niamh nodded. "Do you think it would be a good idea to tell her you're contacting Peter," she asked.
"Hmm, maybe it's worth a try," Michael said patting Niamh's shoulder. A faint smile appeared on her worn out face. Even the tiniest straw to hang on to was better than nothing at all, she thought.
When Niamh re-entered Assumpta's room, she noticed her friend had started to calm down. She went upto her bed and sat down beside her again. She took her friend's hand and looked into her almost lifeless dark eyes. "Michael's calling Peter as we speak. He'll persuade him to come over."
"Really," a weak voice asked.
"Yes, so you've got to hang in there, get your strength back," Niamh said.
"But what if he won't? He'll hate me for not telling him and who could blame him." Niamh could see the panic and fear rise in Assumpta's eyes. She needed to reassure her quickly. "He'll come, believe me, he will. You need to focus on that. At the moment that's all that matters. Now, please get some sleep." It seemed to do the trick.
"Father Randall speaking," said the voice on the other end of the line.
"Hello, my name is Michael Ryan, I'm a friend of Peter's from Ballykissangel. I need to talk to him urgently. A good friend of him is very ill and is asking for him."
"Oh I see, I'll put him through right away."
"Peter Clifford."
"Hi Peter, it's Michael. I'm afraid I've got some bad news. Assumpta's very ill and she keeps asking for you. Could you come over please?"
"Look Michael, I'm not sure that's such a good idea. I'm afraid Leo won't like it if I suddenly turn up again."
"Leo's left, just 2 weeks after you did. So please Peter, she might not make it. It really is serious."
Peter panicked. She might die. "Of course, I'll come. As soon as possible," he just managed to say before he burst into tears and put the phone down.
A few hours later he was on the plane to Dublin. He looked out the window, tears still running over his cheeks. Why had he left her all those months ago? Did he have a choice back then? On retreat he had made up his mind to leave the church for Assumpta, but when he got back he soon learned, she had married Leo. He had been so angry and hurt and felt he had lost her for good. Soon after that, his mum fell ill and he went back home. She died 8 months ago now. But instead of returning to Ballykissangel he chose to take up his old position in Manchester. He was now living in his mum's house. He felt there was nothing left for him in Ballykissangel and it was best to leave the past behind him. Until that damn phone call he thought he was doing rather well, but obviously he wasn't.
Michael was picking him up at the airport to drive him straight to the hospital.
"How is she," Peter asked on the way over.
"Not well, I'm afraid. She has had a very rough time over the past few months. Last week, she caught the flu. Although I advised her to take things easy for at least a week, she kept on working and would hardly accept any help. It only got worse and a few days ago she got pneumonia as well. Brendan found her on the floor in her room. delirious and totally exhausted. He immediately called an ambulance. She's been in a bad way over the past few days. This morning she kept on calling for you, saying she was sorry. That's why we decided to try and get you here."
"You said she went through a rough time. What happened after I left?"
"Well, as I told you before, Leo left soon after you. They had a massive row and he never came back. The marriage was annulled fairly quickly, so there must've been a very good reason, for it to go so smoothly. A few weeks later, she came to see me in my surgery saying she was pregnant. I asked her if she had told Leo. She said she was happy about the baby, but she was determined to do it all on her own. Leo would not be part of this. The pregnancy didn't exactly turn out to be smooth sailing. When she was about four months she developed pelvic instability."
"What's that," Peter asked.
"It's a condition that's not harmful to the baby, but it can leave a mum-to-be pretty disabled. Most only get it in a mild way, but she had it really bad. It basically hinders you to walk and move properly. It's also very painful and if not treated properly by a physiotherapist, it can become chronic. She initially attended her apointments. However she was so busy running the pub, she eventually didn't have the energy for anything else. After a while she started to skip them. Then one night she just couldn't go on anymore. All I could do was prescribe complete rest. Niamh, Brendan and Padraig took over as best as they could, but as you know they've also got their own families to take care of. Niamh eventually got fed up and decided to give Leo a call. She thought it was time he was informed so he could face up to his responsibilities. But she only got told, he knew about the pregnancy, he wasn't the father and she should mind her own business."
They pulled up at the hospital car park. There was a silence. Peter broke it by asking what he knew was an unnecessary question. "Did Leo mention who the father is?" Michael just looked Peter in the eye and nodded. He knew. They both did.