Chapter 27
JED
Park Rat News
Jed Murray fails again… is it time for him to find a new career?
Jed heard the shouts from where he was lying in the ambulance because Mairi had left the doors open a crack when she’d flown out.
He recognised the voices and eased himself upright as he heard Quinn yell, ‘Mairi!’ at the top of his voice.
He sounded terrified and Jed felt his stomach drop out of his body.
‘Easy,’ the paramedic said, coming to check on him. ‘You’re still under observation so don’t move.’ She waved a finger looking stern.
‘I need to know what’s happening.’ He ignored the pain as he swept his feet to the floor. He felt dizzy as he tried to stand, but that wasn’t going to stop him. Especially when he heard Kenna scream. ‘Is she badly hurt?’ At the top of her voice.
‘Feck, feck, feck.’ His heartbeat notched up a thousand beats and his blood pumped itself up to a sprint.
‘Something bad’s happened,’ he growled, shoving his suit back up his torso and fastening the front as the paramedic wagged her finger again.
‘I need my boots.’ He searched the ambulance. Where were they?
She shook her head. ‘I’m not giving them to you. You have to stay here for at least another—’ She checked her watch. ‘Ten minutes.’
‘Then I’m going out there in my socks.’ He made for the doors and tried to sidestep the paramedic when she stood in front of him. ‘I think my wife is hurt!’ he said, his voice cracking.
‘Fine.’ She held out his boots, which she’d somehow found while he’d been panicking.
‘It might be a bit late for the hero routine,’ she muttered as she handed them to him.
‘You’re an idiot by the way.’ She raised an eyebrow.
‘My first husband wouldn’t commit to me properly – led me on a merry dance for almost five years.
He was always looking for excuses for why the marriage wouldn’t work.
Best thing I ever did was divorcing him.
’ Her eyes went flinty as she moved out of his way.
‘You might be a bonnie lad – but you need to rethink your choices. That’s a free festive tip from me.
She deserves better. You should know that. ’
‘Aye well. I mean, that’s…’ He sighed, there was no point in explaining that he was trying to do the right thing. ‘You’re probably right.’ He tugged on his boots before sprinting outside.
Jed ignored the painful thump in his temples and the screams from his hip as he tramped through the snow, sweeping his gaze back and forth searching for Mairi.
It didn’t take long to spot Quinn kneeling beside someone in a pink snowsuit, the same colour as Mairi had been wearing, where a crowd was gathering. She was lying on the ground motionless and he almost stopped breathing.
‘No!’ He tried to run, ignoring the sharp pain in his leg and complaints from his hip. He was going to get to his wife even if he had to crawl. ‘What happened?’ he asked as he dropped to his knees beside her, and all the air in his lungs whooshed out when he saw she was unconscious.
This was bad. There was a smattering of blood in the snow beside her and a dark bruise marring the perfect skin on her temple.
‘Wh-what happened?’ He swallowed, clutching her hand as the dizzy feeling got stronger and fear and emotion clogged his throat.
He’d done everything he could to push Mairi away – but he’d never imagined, never let himself think about, how it might feel to lose her for good.
He’d been living in a fantasy world where he could somehow fix everything, win her back and be a hero – only somehow, he’d turned into the villain of his own story.
‘She ran into a skier,’ Kenna told him. ‘No thanks to you.’ She narrowed her eyes. ‘I saw where she ran from.’ She raised an eyebrow, indicating she’d guessed they’d argued. Probably knew exactly what had taken place.
‘I don’t think we can blame Jed for this.’ The fact that Quinn immediately jumped to Jed’s defence made him want to smash something. Mostly his own face.
He cleared his throat as a paramedic came sprinting towards them carrying a bag. ‘Sorry it took me so long; I was treating someone. It’s chaos today. What happened?’ He began to check Mairi over, working quickly.
‘She ran into a skier; he knocked her over, but he was fine. I told him to go. I think she hit her head because she’s been unconscious since it happened and she’s got a cut here.
’ Quinn pointed to her cheek. He sounded calm, but Jed could see from the shake of his hands that he was terrified.
Knew exactly how that felt because his hands were trembling too. Mairi still wasn’t moving. Why not?
‘I’m with mountain rescue,’ Quinn told the medic.
‘I’ve checked her over. She’s been unconscious for almost two minutes, but she’s breathing.
I don’t think anything’s broken, but I can’t say for sure.
’ He gulped. ‘We have to get her to the hospital in case she’s injured her back or neck and she could have a concussion.
’ He stroked a hand over his sister’s arm.
‘She needs an X-ray, and we have to keep her under observation.’ The words bubbled out of him, his voice wobbling.
‘I need her moved now. I can’t lose her. She’s all I’ve got.’
Jed’s stomach thumped and he felt himself go rigid. ‘Is she going to be okay?’ He couldn’t think, he could barely breathe. This was his fault – if he hadn’t told Mairi to go, this wouldn’t have happened. If he hadn’t married her, she’d be in Edinburgh in one perfect piece.
‘As your friend said, we’ll need to get her to a hospital so she can be monitored and checked over properly,’ the medic said calmly. ‘Are you the next of kin?’ He turned back to Quinn.
‘Aye, I’m her—’
‘Actually, I’m her next of kin – I’m her husband,’ Jed blurted.
‘W-what?’ Quinn grabbed Jed’s top and yanked him around roughly so he could glare into his face, his eyes bright with disbelief.
‘Tell me you didn’t just say what I think you did?
’ he said, gripping the ski suit in tight fists.
‘Because I knew Mairi was keeping something from me, and this would explain exactly what it was.’
It was obvious Quinn wanted to strangle him, and Jed couldn’t blame him. ‘I’m sorry.’ His whole body sagged; it was time to come clean. What did he have to lose? ‘We married eleven months ago.’ Quinn’s eyes widened and then went cold. ‘We were going to tell you.’
‘When?’ Quinn spat, letting go of his top.
All the air hissed from Jed’s body. If he’d completed the run today – if he hadn’t screwed up – they’d probably be doing it right now.
‘Were you really going tell anyone?’ Kenna asked fiercely. ‘Because from what I saw earlier, I don’t think that’s true. She looked upset, she was running from your ambulance.’
Quinn twisted to look at Kenna and his jaw dropped. ‘You knew?’ His voice was filled with surprise, but there was hurt there too. Hurt Jed’s lies had caused.
‘Mairi told me. I’m really sorry. I was sworn to secrecy.
’ Kenna reached out and awkwardly patted Quinn on the arm.
His gaze tracked to her face so he could search it and then clung on as if looking for reassurance.
‘You deserved better. You deserved the truth. I will say, Mairi hated lying to you,’ she said softly. ‘If it helps.’
‘I want to know why the hell she did.’ Quinn narrowed his eyes and his attention swept back to Jed as more medics sprinted across the slope carrying a stretcher.
‘But we can’t do this now,’ he said, shortly shaking his head.
‘Mairi needs me and at the moment, I’m not sure if either of us needs you.
’ He flicked his hand at Jed, effectively dismissing him. ‘You should go.’
‘Where?’ Jed asked, glancing around at the landscape of trees and snow.
‘Anywhere – just make sure it’s nowhere near me.’
‘But who’s going in the ambulance with her?’ Jed got to his feet, his heart racing as the paramedics finished bracing Mairi and picked up the stretcher.
‘I am.’ Quinn held up a palm. ‘I don’t want you there – and since Mairi was obviously trying to get away from you just now, I’m guessing she’d feel the same way.
Stay away from us, Jed.’ With that, he turned and joined the paramedics as they carried the stretcher towards a waiting ambulance with Kenna running alongside.
Jed watched, his heart in his throat. He’d spent eleven months staying away from the woman he loved because he’d wanted to protect her from his failures. He’d somehow believed he could put things right with one fast ski down a slope.
Instead, he’d messed up again and lost everything. And this time he wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to put it right.
‘She doesn’t want to see you,’ Kenna told Jed as he arrived at the hospital and frantically made his way to the waiting room where the flustered receptionist had directed him. ‘Quinn’s with her now.’
‘You don’t understand. I have to see her, to make sure she’s okay,’ Jed begged. ‘I know you don’t think much of me, but I’m desperate.’
Kenna’s glare turned less frosty, and she jerked her chin.
‘I can tell you that she’s doing fine, there’s no damage to her spine or neck.
I haven’t seen her yet, but I know she’s come round.
’ She tipped her head towards the door of the waiting room which led into the corridor and probably beyond that to wherever Mairi was now.
If Jed could just find her. Maybe he could explain.
Although he had no idea what he’d say. ‘I love you and I’m an idiot’ seemed like a good start.
He couldn’t tell her he’d changed his mind about being with her.
His da was still up to his eyes in debt because of him, and now it was even worse because he’d just lost more money.