It had worked because Laura hated tomato soup, so she never whined again. Whenever she felt ill after that, she told no one and simply made herself tea and honey to drink in her room. But even her grandmother would be forced to agree, childbirth needed more help than a hot drink.
Adam must have finished his call because she could hear him back inside talking to Rovena. It was hard to make out what he was saying above the sound of electric kettle, but it sounded reassuring so no doubt help was on the way.
Whoever was sent to help would probably appreciate a hot cup of tea too. She found mugs in the tidy kitchen and popped teabags into each then opened the fridge looking for milk.
When she took the first two hot mugs into the sitting-room she found them walking Tirana to her room.
Adam asked Rovena to pull back the bedcovers and lay towels down before helping the girl on and piling pillows behind her to keep her back upright. Very gently, he covered her with a sheet.
“Excellent.” He smiled at Laura as he took one of the tea mugs from her hand and gave it to Tirana. “This will help. Keep drinking.”
He took the other mug and gave it to Rovena who shook her head. “No, you have it, I can make my own.”
But he pressed it into her hand. “You are of more use here sitting with your daughter. Make sure she keeps drinking and stays warm. I need to go and wash my hands and organize a few things.”
His eyes found Laura briefly then flicked to the door. She understood and went ahead to the kitchen to wait for him.
“Thank you,” he said with feeling as she handed him a cup. “Who’s that for?” he glanced at the three additional mugs on the counter.
“For whoever comes.”
He didn’t answer right away, just blew on the surface of the hot tea before taking a gulp.
“What?”
He sighed. “No wonder Lord M didn’t want to be treated by Doctor Wright. The bastard treats this job as a chance to make money and go on holiday. I can’t believe the criminal negligence. He should be struck off.”
“Are there any other doctors here?”
“Oh no,” he said with a bitter laugh. “He’s made sure he has no competition. Everyone pays him.”
Laura raked through her brain for a solution. “Let’s contact Nurse Ann at the house. She’ll be better than nothing.”
“I tried. I texted to say we were attending one of the workers who’d gone into labour. But your phone gave up the ghost and died before I could send any more. I doubt they could guess who the woman was; I didn’t know the name.”
“So how can we get help?”
“Laura.” He looked her straight in the eye. “We, you and I,arethe help. There is no one else.”
There had to be something else. Someone else. He might be a doctor but she knew nothing. Less than nothing. How could he stand in front of her drinking his tea as if nothing were wrong?
“Now,” he said, putting the cup in the sink. “I need to wash my hands. Come with me.”
She followed him.
In Rovena’s exceptionally clean bathroom, he looked around. “Perfect,” he said as if it was a team of nurses ready to help. “Anti-bacterial soap.”
She had an idea. “I can walk to the house. I’ll ask Rovena for directions to the main road and make my way home. Once there, they’ll bring Nurse Ann in the cart.”
Adam shook his head. “It’s a good idea but we don’t have time.” He turned on the warm tap and rolled up his sleeves before squeezing a liberal amount of the liquid and lathering his hands.
“Childbirth is not something I can hold back.” His eyes met hers in the mirror. “We’ll have to do our best and our best will have to do because the baby will come regardless.”
So…
So…they were alone? Here? She stared back at him in the mirror but he was looking down, scrubbing his hands as if preparing each finger for an audience with the Queen. He didn’t even look worried, and the anger she’d seen before when he talked of the other doctor, that too had vanished. He was all focus now.
Despite feeling completely out of her depth, she tried to be strong. Or at least pretend to be strong. “Okay. What can I do?”
