Bonnie Sveen Fan, I hope Cal does regret giving Matilda up - she hasn't been mentioned for so long, but it seems impossible that he could have forgotten her when they loved each other so much. You're almost certainly right about Lofty. Thank you for your review.
X-Sammii-X, I'm sure everyone who's ever met Matilda loves her - she even melted Louise's heart! I think Zoe knows all her colleagues very well. Connie knows what they're like instinctively, but Zoe takes the trouble to get to know them and I love that. I hope Iain accepts Rita's help too. They belong together! Thank you for your review.
Guest, thank you for your review - I'm so glad you're enjoying this. Zoe and Max have a scene together in this chapter - it's not the time or the place for anything passionate, but I've tried to put in some little moments. I hope you enjoy them.
Tanith Panic, so, Matilda overshadowed Lofty? That's not something that happens every day! I'm so glad you like the Matilda storyline. I have to keep the hope alive for Lofty - that way, it'll hurt more when I kill him. I think Ethan is a sweet man too! Alicia doesn't deserve him. Thank you for your review.
20BlueRoses, thank you for your review. I'm glad you liked Jac - I've never written her before, so I'm glad I got her right. She's a brilliant character. There will definitely be at least one shock coming Cal's way! As if I haven't tortured him enough already.
As they walked, Rita looked around desperately for someone who might help her. She was concerned by the slight slurred quality of Iain's voice as well as his inability to recognise her. While PTSD could cause flashbacks, she'd never heard of it causing a flashback to a happy event. Iain seemed almost happy now and that worried her.
"Rita," said Iain. He was leaning on her heavily now.
"I'm here, Iain," said Rita. "I'm right here." To her relief, Lily and Louise were sitting on reception. She didn't know why they were doing that when there were so many patients needing their attention, but the important thing was that they were available to help Iain now. "Could I have some help here, please? He's a bit woozy."
"Yes, of course," said Lily, hurrying to assist her. "Has he had the scan?"
"Yes: we just need to wait for the results."
"That's good. I probably shouldn't give him anything for the pain till we've had the results of the scan, but I'll re-assess him to see if there are any changes," said Lily. She examined him carefully. "He is showing signs of reduced consciousness. We'd better get him to Resus."
Rita couldn't speak for a moment but managed to nod her agreement. She felt devastated to have her fears confirmed. She'd been so hoping she was wrong.
"We'd better sit him in the waiting room until we can get a trolley." Lily looked around. "Louise, I know we are waiting for the next of kin to call, but we need a trolley, please."
Louise was showing signs of reduced consciousness herself. She seemed stunned as she got to her feet and walked unseeingly out of reception.
"Is she okay?" asked Rita, concerned.
"We've now confirmed the baby we are treating is Matilda," said Lily. "She's up in paediatrics now. We fear she has congenital heart disease."
"Oh, that's so sad. Poor little girl!" Rita helped Lily to ease Iain down into one of the chairs. "It would be tragic to see it happen to any child, but when it's someone we know... Have you told Cal?"
"We would prefer not to tell him anything yet," said Lily. "I think we should get the heart disease confirmed and diagnosed first. It will be a shock for him, but it will spare him the agony of waiting."
"But she's his daughter," said Rita, with another glance at Iain. He was leaning heavily against her shoulder with his eyes closed. "Iain, can you open your eyes for me, darling?"
Iain opened his eyes for a moment.
"How are you feeling?" asked Rita.
"Tired."
Rita patted his hand. "That's understandable after everything that's happened, but try to stay awake for me, okay?"
"Actually, there is no relationship between the Cal and Matilda," said Lily. "And as Cal gave her up for adoption, he has no right to know anything about her."
Rita shook her head in disbelief. "Are you really that cold, Lily?"
She saw shock and hurt on Lily's face.
"No. I'm sorry. That wasn't fair," said Rita at once, touching Lily's arm gently. "I'm sorry, Lily."
"Considering my past behaviour, perhaps it is fair," said Lily sadly. She bent over Iain. "Iain, can you open your eyes, please? Good. How many fingers am I holding up?"
Iain was able to give the correct answer, but he was squinting.
"That's good, Iain," said Lily. "Well done. Rita, I want to reunite Cal and Matilda. She was very good for him and he was a good father to her. But I am also a doctor and if I am going to break the rules by informing Cal of Matilda's presence in the hospital, I will need to be very careful how I do it. For Cal's sake as well as mine."
Rita reached across Iain to touch Lily's hand. "I think you're right. I'm sorry for what I said and you will have my support from now on."
"Thank you," said Lily, as Louise and Amira appeared with a trolley. "And you will have mine, Rita. I know what it's like to be the pariah of the ED. I should have given you more support when it happened to you."
"Perhaps I didn't deserve the support," said Rita.
"We all work so hard to see what is wrong with our patients, mentally as well as physically," said Lily. "I think we sometimes forget to give the same care to each other." She paused. "I know I do."
Dylan heard Zoe's voice before he saw her.
"No, I'll be perfectly comfortable in these shoes, thank you. I've saved lives in these shoes. Or if not in these, I've saved lives in much higher ones. Please can I see the patient now? My colleague gave me the impression that a delay was inadvisable."
Dylan saw a slight smile cross Max's face and felt almost amused himself.
A moment later, Zoe appeared. She gave Max a warm smile which he instantly returned. A moment later, she was professional again, kneeling down beside Lofty and saying: "Okay, Dylan. What have we got?"
"He's unconscious," said Dylan. "Resps 16. Carotid pulse is around 100, but it's weaker than I'd like. He's rather pale as you can see, though not cyanotic, and his skin is clammy."
Zoe looked at Lofty. "I don't suppose you've been able to ascertain whether there's a pulse in the arms and legs?"
"I tried, but I wasn't able to reach," admitted Dylan.
"Okay: we have possible signs of hypovolaemia, which could increase when the trapped limbs are freed," said Zoe. "Does Lofty have any cardiac or renal problems you're aware of?"
"No… I have no idea," admitted Dylan. "I don't think we've ever discussed Ben's kidneys."
"Max?"
"He's never said anything to me about it," said Max. He looked upset.
Zoe looked at him reassuringly. "It's fine. I wouldn't expect you to. And I know it sounds scary, but Dylan and I can deal with this." She smiled at the gratitude on Max's face and reached inside her bag. "Okay, I'll give him 1500 ml of saline and high-concentration oxygen." She called to the emergency services personnel. "Excuse me! We're going to need to get him out of here as soon as he's freed, so if you could clear more of a path so we can carry the stretcher more easily, please?"
"We'll do our best, doctor."
"Thank you."
Zoe set to work briskly, putting a line in for the saline and attaching a non-rebreather mask to Lofty's face.
Dylan felt fear rippling through his body at the sight. When he'd been the only doctor and Lofty had only looked as though he was asleep, it had been all right. Now the mask was on, the cannula was inserted and Zoe was in charge, Lofty was indisputably unwell and injured.
He was actually grateful when Max said (although probably not to Dylan): "It's going to be okay. We can do this."
"Dylan?" Zoe was looking up at him, concern on her face. "Can you get another line in, please?"
Dylan could tell from the tone of her voice that this wasn't the first time she'd asked.
Zoe's voice softened. "Should I get another doctor?"
"No. No, I'm fine," said Dylan, and set to work.
"He has a very good chance," said Zoe, as she tried to reach Lofty's wrists. "It's when they've been trapped for four hours that it becomes really dangerous."
"Even fifteen minutes is a cause for concern," Dylan reminded her as he prepared to insert a large-bore cannula. He knew it was unlikely the bookcase could have caused that much damage, but they couldn't take the chance. "But I can handle it, Zoe."
David put the phone down and turned to Cal and Ethan. Ethan felt his heartbeat speed up and he felt glad Cal was hugging him. He reached for Cal's other hand and held on tightly.
"Any news?" said Cal. His tone was casual, as though he didn't much care.
Ethan wasn't fooled. He heard the very slight tremor in Cal's voice and felt his hand gripping his shoulder more tightly.
"Alicia is stable," said David. "She's still in ICU, of course, but she's being carefully-monitored. Her prognosis is fair."
Ethan put his hands over his face and started to cry again. "I'm so sorry! I'm just so relieved."
Cal held Ethan's head against his shoulder. "It's okay, buddy. You cry if you want to. I'm here."
"David, Cal wants to go and see Alicia," said Ethan tearfully.
"I'm sure I can go and see her later," said Cal soothingly.
"Can he go, David?" sniffed Ethan. "He has to go. He was going to ask her on a date."
David gave Ethan a tissue. "I'm afraid Cal needs to rest, but you could go and see her if your scan results come back clear, Ethan."
Ethan wasn't sure why he'd even had a scan, but he accepted he probably wasn't himself at the moment. "Yes, I'd like to go and see her if Cal can't."
"We'll arrange that for you," promised David.
Ethan took his glasses off so he could wipe his eyes. "Can I tell her, Cal? That you're going to take her out on a date?"
"I… um… I'm not sure," said Cal slowly. "You obviously like her a lot, Ethan. If you just wanted to get her in the sack, it wouldn't be a problem. But it seems like you really care about her."
"No, I don't," said Ethan, trying to control his tears. "And if I do, it doesn't matter. You're the one she likes."
Cal moved his head closer to Ethan's. "But you're the one she deserves, Ethan."
The phone didn't ring. Louise didn't expect it to. She couldn't have said how she knew, but she was certain Matilda's parents wouldn't phone her back.
If they were among the people outside, they would find out soon enough. Anyone who would provide ID and medical details for their baby daughter was very likely to be without any form of identification themselves. From that, a tentative identification could be made. Louise had a feeling someone who knew Matilda's parents would have to make the official identification and she couldn't help hoping it would be a friend rather than a family member.
A family member might feel obliged to look after Matilda and in any other circumstances, Louise would have felt this was the only correct course of action. But a friend could quite easily decided they weren't in any position to care for a baby. Especially not one with congenital heart disease.
Matilda would need someone to look after her who understood her condition and would be ready and willing to do whatever was necessary to keep her safe and healthy. And who would be better-suited to that than a nurse?
But there was an answer to that question and it weighed heavily on Louise's mind.
A doctor would probably be better-suited than Louise to taking care of Matilda. And although Cal wasn't a cardiologist, he was undeniably a doctor.