After a while, red and blue lights flash around us, and I taste blood as it runs into the corner of my mouth.
“You’re alright,” Char murmurs, over and over. “You’re alright, babes. It’s gonna be alright.”
15
DOMINIC
The hallways of St.Mary’s are bright and confusing, and by the time I reach A&E, I’m shaking with worry.
“Mia Graves,” I say to the nurse, leaning on my fists. “My daughter-in-law, she was brought in by ambulance a while ago.”
The nurse checks her computer and nods. “Yes, she’s being seen right now. Bed 11. You can go in and see her if you like.”
“Yes, please.”
She points to a door to my right, and presses a button under her desk. I push through the door and hurry along the hall, looking for bed 11.
Please let her be alright.
I can’t think about that phone call I’d received, Charlotte telling me that Mia had been in an accident and taken away in an ambulance. She hadn’t given me details, just told me to come down immediately.
I reach a door that says Bed 11, and push it open. All eyes in the room turn to me.
Charlotte sighs with relief. Mia is sitting on the bed with a patch on her left temple, drinking water from a paper cup. She gives me a small smile.
“Hiya,” she says, her voice groggy and raspy.
The doctor raises an eyebrow. “Can we help you?”
“I’m Dominic Graves,” I say quickly, and the doctor gives me a nod of understanding.
“Ah, I see. Well, your wife doesn’t have a concussion,” he says, looking back at Mia’s head. “Just needed a few stitches.”
“She’s not my-”
“He’s my father-in-law,” Mia interjects quickly, and the young doctor smiles at me.
“Oh dear, sorry.” He picks up Mia’s chart and makes some notes. “Now, you’ll likely be a bit sore as the wound heals, take ibuprofen or paracetamol for the pain. Stay hydrated, and take it very easy for the next few days. Any sudden headaches, nausea, slurred speech, disturbances in vision, numbness in your hands or feet, you’re to be brought straight back.” He looks at Char and then at me. “Someone right to stay with her?”
“Yes,” Char and I answer at the same time, and we give each other a glance.
Mia chuckles from the bed, giving the doctor a smile. “As you can see, I am very well-looked after, doctor. Thank you.”
“Yes, I can see that.” The doctor gives Mia a friendly smile. “I’ll have the nurse bring your discharge papers and your scripts, and then you can be on your way.”
“Thank you,” I say as he leaves the room. I turn to Mia, determined to show restraint. But that fails after about 5 seconds of looking at her in that hospital bed, so small and vulnerable. I rush to her side, taking her hand gently in mine. “Are you sure you’re alright?”
“You heard the man,” she says softly. “I’m fine.”
“What happened?” I gently brush her cheek with my fingertips, just under the patch on her temple. “Who did this to you?”
“How do you know it wasn’t my own clumsiness?” She chuckles softly, then sighs. “Reporters were chasing us down Portobello Road. One of them got a bit too close.”
“It was Paulie Hardcastle,” Char says from the other side of the bed, her arms folded over her chest. Her eyes lift to meet mine. “He tripped her up when she refused to talk to him. Sent her flying face-first into her car door.”
Rage simmers in my chest, and I look back at Mia. “I see. And was he arrested?”
Mia sighs and shakes her head. “No. He ran off, cowardly little bastard.”
