‘Oh, apart from Sylvie. Sylvie, do you mind if we have a quick word before you go?’
‘Of course, no problem.’ Sylvie smiled, using up every last professional bit of her.
Suddenly they heard a door bang and the huffing of someone running along the corridor, the staff’s low-level mumbles paused as they heard thethud-thud-thudpound urgently along the corridor.
The door swung open and there was Marion Marksharp, slightly dishevelled, panting heavily and looking as if she’d been crying.
‘I’m so… so…’ She seemed unable to formulate words into a coherent sentence. ‘I’ve been… been…’
‘Marion, for goodness’ sake, sit down, breathe. Now what on earth has happened?’ Rosy took immediate control of the situation but Sylvie felt an awful sense of foreboding creeping up her neck, crawling into her head and making her brain fuzzy.
‘Marion, what is it? Just tell us what on earth has happened,’ she barked sharply, the words staccato, and the head of every member of staff turned around in response to the unflappable Sylvie being so curt. ‘Marion? I’m serious.’
‘Sylvie, I’m sorry, all my fault…’
Marion’s boys burst into the staffroom.
‘Don’t be cross with her. It wasn’t Mum’s fault, honest, it wasn’t. It was just an accident.’
‘Rafe,whathas happened?’
‘It’s Sam, Miss Winter. I’m sorry, Miss Williams, it was an accident, Mum’s been trying to get hold of you for ages. But your mobile kept going to voicemail and no one was answering the school phone.’
Sylvie gulped, trying to get some air into her lungs as the room began to spin. An accident, Sam? Breathe in and out. Calm, she tried to tell herself, calm, you need to get to Sam, you need to be calm and get to Sam. She felt her legs wobble and the next thing she knew she was grabbing the side of the table. Grasping so hard that the wood almost felt soft in her hand.
‘What hospital, Marion?’
‘Roscarrock, minor injuries. We called the ambulance but by the time…’
Sylvie didn’t hear the rest of what was being said as she grabbed her bag and raced out of the school. Her car was at home. OK, someone would have a car. Who would have a car?
‘Sylvie, Sylvie.’ Rosy came running down the granite steps in front of the school. ‘Wait, let me drive you, it’s not sensible for you to drive.’
‘OK, where…’
‘It’s just here, come on, we’ll be there in a flash.’ The two women zoomed away from Penmenna School watched by the staff, each and every one of them praying that everything would be all right.
Chapter Forty-one
Alex raced to Sam and hurled himself onto the ground next to him. He knew not to move the boy and shouted at Marion who was standing paralysed to the spot, phone in her hand and mouth wide open.
‘Ambulance, Marion, now!’
‘Of course, of course.’
‘Ellie, go get me some cold water.’
He didn’t know why he said it but it felt right, plus he needed to examine Sam and he didn’t want Ellie getting distressed and distracting his focus. He tentatively laid his hand on the boy’s cheek before preparing to check his pulse.
As his hand touched Sam, the boy batted his eyelids a little and emitted a small groan.
‘Sam, Sam, it’s Alex. Sam!’
‘Umhmmm.’
‘OK, good boy, don’t move. Don’t try to speak. Brilliant, well done.’ Phew, he didn’t think his heart could have gone any faster. Sam was conscious, that was huge. He tried talking to himself, stating the facts, keeping himself calm so he could be effective. When he had seen Sam lying there, so still, he had immediately thought the worst had happened. ‘OK, I think you’re going to be OK, but we’ve got an ambulance coming just in case.’
‘An ambulance? Awesome.’ The boy managed to form words but they were a little slurred. His usually pale face so white it was almost green.
