Chapter 8

It hadn't taken long for Thomas to explain to Harry what they needed. If he really thought about it, Harry had actually offered to talk to her, before Thomas had even made the request. All Harry had said was "I need to see her," and arranged a face time call and reconnected.

"I need to see her," he repeated as Thomas held the phone above her. "Properly!" Harry insisted. It was Jack who had taken the phone from Thomas' grasp and slowly moved it across her face, neck, tracing the path with the phone that the eyes of a pathologist making a preliminary examination would take. Thomas was surprised he hadn't realised what Harry had wanted. It was the first thing he'd done, when Jack had brought her into the hospital.

"Fingernails," demanded Harry and Jack dutifully moved the phone. "Back a bit," shouted Harry on the speaker phone. "Stop, slower… Move on."

"Turn her hands face up," Harry commanded. It was Thomas' turn to lean in now and turn her hands palm up. "Left arm," continued Harry. "Not just the hand… up past the elbow…"

Jack moved the phone across to her right arm.

"I don't need to see that one," Harry called out as Jack moved the phone across her torso. Thomas looked, there was a marked difference between her arms; one bruised and scratched, the other just with a few expected grazes. Thomas swallowed. He'd not even noticed before. Had they even looked properly? He hated this fog in his brain. Why couldn't he think clearly?

"Feet!" Harry called and Jack moved again, whilst Thomas rearranged the covers. "OK done,"

Thomas pulled the sheet back up over her body, tucking it in tightly as Jack continued to hold the phone above. Almost immediately Nikki's head began to move, and her eyes moved behind her eyelids.

"Her blood pressure is going through the roof!" Jack exclaimed, looking at the monitor next to her bed.

"Untuck that sheet!" screamed Harry from the phone. "It's too tight, she's restricted." Thomas yanked at the sheet and left it lying lightly across her legs. Almost immediately Nikki stilled and Jack watched as the numbers on the monitor decreased. There was a static-y noise from the phone but it could have just been Harry exhaling.

"You two alright there?" Harry asked. Neither man responded.

"Turn her head on its side and put me on the pillow next to her," Harry instructed. Thomas lent forward, but lost his nerve and took the phone from Jack.

"You do it," he begged.

Even Jack hesitated. But gently moved her shoulders and tilted her head towards the phone.

Their jobs accomplished they both stepped back. What was Harry really going to achieve that the two of them had not already tried in the intervening hours. If Jack couldn't wake her, and he'd shouted loud enough to be heard two blocks away, what could Harry realistically achieve? But as both men looked at their colleague, with a phone resting next to her on the pillow, they both knew this was their last chance.

Thomas thought the connection had gone down. He'd not heard a thing, and then just barely audible. He heard the lightest whisper.

"Nikki."

And then a pause.

"Nikki!" a lighter whisper. What was Harry thinking? This would never work. Thomas inwardly kicked himself, they should have told him all the ways they had tried to get her to come round. Jack's shouts could have woken the dead, a light whisper would get them nowhere. Jack was right, they should have kept this between the two of them.

"Nikki, It's Harry." Still no response. Not even a twitch. Thomas felt the wry smile on Jack's lips without even looking for it. Harry was no magic man after all.

"Nikki! It's Harry…. Nikki. I need your help." Harry whispered.