Chapter Twenty
Luke
We made it to work in under fifteen minutes thanks to me and my lead foot on the accelerator. I ditched my car in the drop-off zone, but a parking fine is the least of my worries right now. The three of us rush through to the back, all checking the board for any of the names we might recognise.
“There,” Will points up at a name. “Maya Houghton? That’s her, isn’t it?”
With a nod, I turn and head straight to the room she’s been allocated. The thirty-second walk feels like a lifetime. Never have I ever felt this way before, but surely it’s a good thing that Fallon's name wasn’t up on that wall.
The moment we turn the corner, I see her. She is pacing up and down the corridor, with a girl I recognise sitting on one of the waiting chairs near her.
“Fallon?” I call gently, not wanting to frighten her whilst she’s so lost in thought.
“Luke!” She cries out, her head spinning towards me.
Her tanned face is streaked with dry tears; her hair is dishevelled and pulled up half-heartedly on top of her head.
Her clothes don’t look like they’ve been changed in days.
What the hell has she been through? I open my arms wide as she rushes into me, her own arms curling around my middle, and her head tucks into my chest. It takes a minute before her laboured breathing starts to ease.
“You're okay. I’ve got you,” I whisper with my lips against the top of her head.
When she finally pulls back, her glassy eyes burn into mine.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know what else to do. I basically harassed the lady at the reception desk to call you. Did she say a deranged woman accosted her until she gave in? Because if she did, it was all me,” she admits, her cheeks flushing the cutest shade of pink.
With a small smile and my arms still encasing her, I say, “Never apologise for trying to get to me. I always want to be the one you call.”
The shuffling of feet behind me alerts me to the fact that I’ve abandoned my two friends in my quest to get to Fallon.
“Fallon. This is Dom and Will, they were with me when you called,” I say, “now fill us in, where's Maya? Is anyone else hurt? Are you hurt?”
I don’t think she is from my initial once-over, but I've been dying to ask since the moment my eyes fell on hers.
“No, I’m fine, we’re all fine. Apart from Maya,” she adds glumly. “Will you go to her? You’re the only person she and Tommy can trust.”
“We’ll come too,” Dom says.
“Anything they need, we will sort. Don’t you worry, lovey,” Will adds in the flirty way he is known for.
I don’t say it often, but I bloody love these two. Not that they wouldn’t go above and beyond for any other patient, but I know this is all for me. For Fallon.
Releasing my hold on Fallon, I give her hand a slight squeeze and follow her towards the room where Maya is.
The moment I step inside the room, it’s almost as though the temperature drops a good ten degrees.
It takes less than a second to find the reason why.
Doctor Lowe is standing at the end of the bed, his screwed-up face buried in her chart, and a livid Tommy hovering close to her side.
So, it’s not just my day he likes to wreck. He is doing it to patients and their families too.
“Lowe,” I command from the door. “Thank you for seeing Maya whilst I was on my way, but I’ll take over from here.”
His beady eyes peer over his tiny metal glasses, squinting in disapproval at the sight of me.
“You are not needed, boy. You can go back home to bed,” he huffs, a smugness in his voice as though he got the last word.
“No, I think you’ll find you’re not needed.
Maya is my patient and is under my care.
Now, if you would be so kind as to pass me her chart.
I’m sure there will be another emergency coming in shortly for you to busy yourself with,” I say with a professional calmness I didn’t know I could maintain around him.
“But…” Lowe starts to complain.
“Maya is only to be seen by Doctor Smyth,” Tommy’s deep, steady voice says from across the bed. “He is the only one we have full confidence in. Please leave so he can do his job.”
I know I shouldn’t be so happy, but all I want to do is fist pump to the air and scream ‘fuck you’ in Lowe's face.
I try to fight my victory from showing on my face and just raise a brow whilst I wait for a very angry, and very red-faced Lowe to leave the room.
He slams the notes down on the table before storming out of the door without muttering another word.
“What a dick,” Tommy murmurs.
“You have no idea,” Will says as he strolls over to my side. “I’m Will, one of Luke's best friends and the best nurse you could ask for,” he winks. Trust him to try to lighten the mood at every opportunity.
“We were out when I got a call to say Maya was here,” I explain, rolling my eyes.
“And I’m Dom,” he leans to shake his hand.
“We’ve met before, haven’t we? You helped Maya the first time we came in?” Tommy asks, his head tilting slightly.
“Yep, that would be me,” he smiles.
“Since we’re all introduced, let's take a look at what's going on,” I say.
Before I look to check what's happened so far, my eyes track the room for Fallon. Worry fills me until I find her. She’s sat at the back of the room on a plastic chair.
Her eyes look so heavy. When did she last manage to get some sleep?
This won't do at all. First things first, Maya, then I’m getting Fallon back to my place for some much-needed sleep.