Chapter 52
“Was I a good wise man, Mummy? You didn’t fall over because I was rubbish or anyfink?”
“No, baby. You were wonderful. I think maybe I got a bit overexcited.” Emma ruffled Nicky’s blonde hair and tried not to think about the stitches in the side of her head. They pulled taut and painful, her pregnancy denying her the usual welcome brand of pain relief.
“Why did Kaylee’s daddy take the nasty lady off in a police car?” Nicky asked, looking backwards at his wide-eyed friend, who nodded in confirmation. “Is it because she hurt you? Did she make you fall down?” Nicky’s words came in short gasps as he panicked. “She said she’d hurt you. Is it my fault? I should’ve told Daddy she said that.” Hysteria picked at the sides of the child’s composure and Emma swaddled him in to her breast.
“None of this is your fault, Nick. Forget about it now. Go and see if there’s a TV somewhere but don’t talk to strangers. Ok? Promise?”
Nicky nodded and Allaine stepped forward to point the way to a room at the end of the hospital ward. She reiterated Emma’s warning and watched the children walk away. She turned to Emma with a sigh. “Felicity threatened you?”
“Apparently so.” Emma lay back against the pillows and closed her eyes. “I really should have seen that coming. It threw me because she’s right handed and she hit me with her left.” Emma thumped the sheets in frustration and shook her head, wincing when it hurt.
Allaine sat in the visitor’s chair next to the bed, her pretty face paled by the nightmare. “I wasn’t quick enough. I saw her follow you out of the hall but Kaylee delayed me. I checked every classroom and then realised you’d probably gone to the toilet. I got there as she hit you and was just in time to stop you falling on the floor and hitting your head again. There was so much blood.”
“Nothing you haven’t seen before,” Emma smiled. “I thought lab technicians were great with bodily fluids.”
Allaine nodded. “We don’t usually collect it from the scene. Or from people we love.” She rubbed a hand across her eyes.
“Thank you.” Emma reached out a shaky hand and Allaine took it, holding on firmly.
“How do you feel?” She indicated Emma’s stomach with a nod of her head.
Emma shrugged. “I honestly feel fine. It’s just my head really. I’ve asked for a scan, even though the baby won’t be much bigger than a walnut yet. I’m just waiting for Rohan.” Her face creased in anxiety.
“He’s not far now. He’s talking to Will.” Allaine stroked Emma’s fingers, listening to the sound of childish voices from the end of the ward. Nicky and Kaylee sang the theme tune to a popular children’s cartoon with sweet clear voices. Emma smiled.
Rohan swung into the room with purpose, his crutches squeaking on the linoleum floor. Will followed him in, telling an eager, uniformed police constable to wait outside. Allaine rose quickly and went to her husband, putting her hands against his strong chest. “Felicity threatened Emma. That makes it different now, doesn’t it? She told him she’d hurt her if he didn’t do what she wanted. It’s why he got so upset in McDonald’s that lunchtime when we bumped into her. Don’t you remember? Nicky wanted to go home once she arrived.”
Will nodded. “Yeah. I do.” He looked at Emma in apology. “I thought you’d just muscled in on her boyfriend and the boy was caught in the crossfire. I’m so sorry.”
“I kinda did and he kinda was.” Emma sounded tired, waving Will’s apology away with a flap of her hand. Rohan perched a butt cheek on the side of the bed and held Emma, infusing her with love and strength. “What about getting your prosthetic.” She looked up at him, squinting through her tearful left eye. “They close for Christmas today.”
“Nothing matters except you and my baby. We’re going for a scan soon.”
“But what about your leg?” Emma began again and Rohan shook his head.
“It doesn’t matter, Em. Believe me, suddenly it just doesn’t.” Rohan dipped his head but shied off kissing her on the face. Both sides looked pretty messed up. “Just rest.”
Will cleared his throat. “It would be good if the officer and I were able to ask Nicky some questions, just preliminary ones. We need to stop this woman just being bailed for giving you a slap and hold her on more serious charges. Would it be ok if Allaine sits in or...what do you want me to do?”
“Allaine can stand in for me,” Emma nodded. “If it gives you what you need. But you’d better bring Nicky here first.” She sighed, sounding exhausted.
Nicky’s feet pattered down the hallway, slapping on the linoleum loudly. “Ssh, Nick. There’s sick people here trying to sleep,” Emma said calmly. Will sauntered into the room after the child, waiting with interest while Nicky clambered onto the bed.
“Yeah, Mum?” he said, putting his best listening face on.
“Right, baby. Will needs to ask you some quick questions about the lady at school, Miss Robinson. I need you to tell him the truth.”
“But he’s police!” Nicky said the word as though it tasted foul and rolled his eyes at Emma. “Our kind never talks to police.”
Emma exhaled. “Nicky, our kind is good, decent, law abiding people. Ok? And we do talk to police, we just haven’t needed to.”
“But Fat Brian says they take you in a cell and break your arms!” He looked back at Will in the doorway, trying to reconcile Kaylee’s fun daddy with his warped image of the police force, courtesy of Fat Brian and Big Jason.
“They don’t, Nicky. And this is real important, son. I need you to tell Kaylee’s lovely daddy exactly what the lady said to you. I need them to keep her locked up for now. She could have hurt me bad, Nick, so it’s important.”
“We’re ready for you now, Mrs Andreyev.” A nurse appeared in the doorway with a porter and Nicky’s head swivelled round and back again.
“Where you goin’, Mum? Why can’t you or Dad be wiv me when Kaylee’s daddy talks to me.”
Emma looked her son in the eyes, holding him either side of his beautiful face. She couldn’t bear to have him in the scan with her, in case it was bad news. “Nicky, I have a baby in my tummy and the nurse needs to make sure the lady didn’t hurt it. Please tell Will everything you know and pray to your God for me, Nick.” Emma’s voice broke as fear trampled across her heart and Rohan rubbed her back. He smiled at Nicky, not knowing who needed him most, his face a mask of agony.
“We’ll be fine,” Allaine said, standing up and nodding to her husband. Will scooped the small boy up into his capable arms and held him as Nick wept a river of tears.
“I love you, Mummy,” he wailed as Emma was wheeled away down the corridor, to find out the fate of her unborn child.