The Consultant's Surprise Child

by Joanna Neil

  Perhaps he had misgivings about Ben and was doubtful about his role in her life. He had always rubbed along reasonably well with Nick and his colleague, but had something happened to change his opinion about them, or about the way they were running the business, and after a disagreement with both of the men, he had started to distance himself from them.

  Or was his reaction to her simply governed by the fact that he felt it was wrong for her to bring up a child on her own without the father being around? In that case, it was all the more confusing that it hadn't occurred to him that Connor might be his son.

  'Will you take a look at a patient for me?' Sarah asked, putting her head around the door of the side room where Allison was doing some simple lab tests. 'He's a young man, around sixteen years old, and I think he's been taking drugs of some sort. I've put him on a heart monitor and I'm giving him oxygen. He's not making much sense, and he's very agitated. He's grinding his teeth and clenching his jaw quite a lot and complaining of blurred vision.'

  Sarah gave a slight shudder and winced. 'His name's Harry. His friends conveniently disappeared after they dropped him off here, but before he ran off, one of them gave some information about his family and said he'd taken ecstasy. They'd all been hanging around together in the City. Apparently there's a protest march about something or other supposed to be going off somewhere near Parliament Square this afternoon, and it looks as though a few people are getting into a party spirit ahead of time.' She frowned. 'I thought marches were banned around there, so I'm sure there'll be trouble.'

  'You're probably right.' Allison went to take a look at the boy. She was thankful to be able to immerse herself in her work. It was far better for her to do that than to dwell on what might be going on in Taylor's head.

  'Some party,' she murmured, shaking her head in sad disbelief when she saw the teenager. 'He looks as though he's barely more than a child, and he's all skin and bones.' She glanced at Sarah. 'Do we have an address or a phone number for his family?'

  'According to the friend, he lives with his mother. He gave me a contact number, and I've been trying to get in touch with her, but she's not answering her phone.'

  The boy was becoming feverish and was very agitated. His heart was racing and his body was showing signs of tremor.

  'Harry, I'm Dr Matthews,' Allison said gently, 'and I'm going to look after you. I'm going to put something into your arm so that we can give you medication through a tube. It should help to make you feel a little better.'

  Harry moved restlessly, waving his arms about in a wild fashion, and Allison grimaced.

  'I'm not going to be able to get a needle in anywhere unless someone can come and help us to hold him still for a while.'

  'I'll help out with that,' Taylor said, coming into the treatment room, and Allison glanced up at him, taken unawares by his sudden appearance.

  'Thanks. I didn't realise you were free just yet.' She tried to collect her thoughts, disturbed by this sudden vision of him looking fresh and energetic in beautifully fitted dark trousers and a pale linen shirt.

  'We need to do a full range of tests,' she told Sarah in a quiet tone, 'but we'll start him on supportive therapy straight away, because he looks as though he's going downhill fast. Unfortunately, there's no specific antidote to ecstasy. We'll get some activated charcoal inside him as soon as possible and I'll give him an injection of diazepam to control the agitation. I'm also worried about the cardiac arrhythmia, and the hypertension, because there's always a danger of an intracerebral haemorrhage, so I'll treat that with a beta blocker and hope that it calms things down. If we don't act quickly, he could go into full cardiac arrest.'

  'You might still have to intubate him to protect the airway.' Taylor's expression reflected her own bleak thoughts.

  'Yes.'

  'What about seizures?' Sarah wanted to know. 'He's been showing signs of pre-convulsive movements. Will the diazepam be sufficient to prevent those?'

  Allison nodded. 'I'm hoping so. It may be necessary to set up an infusion if his condition worsens. Whatever happens, you'll need to monitor him very closely, and let me know if there's any change.'

  'I will.'

  Some time later, she moved out of the treatment room and into the general area of A and E. Taylor went with her, stopping by the desk to pick up another chart.

  'You're worried about him, aren't you?' he said, flicking her sideways glance.

  'I am.' She jotted down a few notes in the boy's file, adding softly, 'It's heartbreaking to see anyone who is ruining their life through drug taking, but when it's a teenager who gets caught up in it, things seem even worse. If we manage to-get him over this episode, I suppose all we can do is refer him for rehabilitation.'

  He nodded. 'We'll do what we can for him. I've had a quick look at his file, and perhaps we can put the family in touch with a counsellor. The father isn't around, is he?'

  'Apparently not, according to his friend, but he has a mother and a couple of sisters, by all accounts.'

  Taylor's mouth made a straight line. 'Perhaps not having a father figure is part of the problem. Either way, drug taking isn't just an issue for the user. It affects everyone who cares about him.'

  'The lack of a father isn't necessarily a reason for children going off the rails. My own father wasn't around very much when Nick and I were teenagers, but neither of us went off track. Besides, it's probably better to have an absent father rather than one who is a bully or a tyrant.'

  'That's one way of looking at it.' He gave her a thoughtful glance. 'So you're not too concerned about your own child not being part of a two-parent family?'

  'I didn't say that. I just meant to say that these things happen, and it doesn't have to be a full-blown disaster. Many women bring up their children successfully without having a man around.'

  'Hmm. Maybe they do.' He glanced through the chart. 'I imagine your little boy is at school today? No matter what you say, it must be difficult for you, finding a balance between work and home life.'

  'The truth is, Connor will always come first.' She glanced at him, wondering if the boss part of him would dispute that. He didn't make any comment, though, and she carefully replaced the file in the tray. 'Actually, the school is closed for the day. The teachers are there, but they're having one of their special consultation days, where they deal with administration and so on.'

  He frowned. 'So who is looking after him? I expect you must have arrangements in place for all kinds of situations that might crop up like that.'

  'I do. It's mostly Rhea who looks after him. She doesn't live too far away from me, though a neighbour helps out occasionally. I drop him off at Rhea's house and she takes him to school if I'm on early shift, and she takes care of him at the end of the school day. Connor and her little girl usually get on well together, and they're company for one another.'

  'That must work out well for you. It must be fun for your boy to have someone around his own age to play with.'

  'It is, and they get to go on outings together. Like today, Rhea said she would take them to St James's Park this morning—after she had been to Covent Garden to deliver some costumes to one of the theatre companies there. She has a contract with them and lately she's been working on some specialist alterations that they needed urgently. I just hope they don't get caught up in this protest march that I keep hearing about.'

  Her brows drew together in a fine line. 'She sometimes calls in to see me at the hospital if she's in the area, especially if she has the children with her, so it's possible that she might stop by today. Apparently Connor is always asking if he can see his mum at work.' She sent him a quick glance. 'I hope that's all right with you. Obviously, I wouldn't let it interfere with my work.'

  'That's OK. As to the march, I wouldn't worry too much about it, if I were you. Rhea's always had a good head on her shoulders. She'll know how to keep out of the way, and St James's Park is tranquil enough. I expect they'll be feeding the geese and the pelicans around the lake, not to menti
on the ducks.'

  He gave her a quizzical look. 'It's hard for me to imagine you with a little boy.' He was thoughtful for a moment or two, and then he said, 'My sister's children are always agitating to go out and about, and I imagine Connor is the same. Working full time must cause a few problems for you in that respect.'

  'I take him out whenever I can...but you're right, it isn't always easy.'

  'Does his father help you out with any of it?'

  His question .startled her and took the wind out of her sails. 'I... No, actually, he doesn't.' It was a truthful enough answer, but he was frowning and she swallowed hard and hoped he would leave it at that for now. She simply wasn't ready to fill him in on the whole story just yet. 'Anyway, it doesn't matter,' she said. 'My brother is always ready to lend a hand. He loves Connor to bits and he often spends time with him, doing boy things, like making paper aeroplanes or flying kites and so on.'

  'I suppose you must get to see a lot more of him now that he's moved back into the City.'

  'Yes, I do. In fact, I said that I would meet him later on today for a pizza at a place not too far from the hospital. He and Ben are in town this afternoon, looking for materials for a special project they're working on. I planned on taking my lunch-break later than usual, so that it would fit in with their timetable.'

  Taylor's expression was brooding. 'Ben must be glad that they were able to turn the business around after the way their first efforts dive-bombed.'

  'Yes, I'm sure he is.' She was wary of saying much to him where Ben was concerned, given his reaction when she had told him that she had a child. Ben had always been her friend, and it was true that they had dated at one time, but Taylor's view of him had always been somewhat reserved. His manner towards him might be even more strained now, and a feeling of guilt washed over her. She was doing Ben an injustice by letting Taylor go on thinking that he was Connor's father.

  Taylor looked as though he might have said something more, but at that moment paramedics brought a man into A and E, and Taylor hurried away to examine him.

  Allison went to look in on her drug user patient once more, and tried not to think about the part Taylor might have played in her brother's downfall, or about Connor's lack of a father.

  Sarah must have managed to get in touch with Harry's mother, because she finally arrived at the hospital some twenty minutes later in an agitated state.

  'What's happened to him? They said he had collapsed.' Her breath was coming in short bursts. 'Is he going to be all right?' She was shaking, her nerves in shreds.

  'Perhaps you would like to come with me into the relatives' room,' Allison suggested. 'We can be quiet in there, and I'll be able to talk to you about his condition and tell you what we're doing for him.'

  'Will I be able to see him?'

  'Yes, of course. I've just put a tube down his throat to help with his breathing, so I don't want you to be alarmed by that when you go to him. It's part of our normal procedure. The nurse is with him at the moment, trying to bring down his temperature. As soon as she's finished, I'll take you to him.'

  It was some time before Allison was able to go back to the central desk and catch up on her case notes, but no sooner had she started to write up the first file than Rhea walked into the unit with Poppy and Connor in tow.

  'Hi, Rhea.' Allison greeted her friend, before holding out her arms to Connor and giving him a kiss. Then she turned to Poppy and gave the little girl a hug. 'Have you had a good time?' she asked, looking from one to the other.

  Poppy nodded, looking pleased. 'Yes, we did. We went on the swings.'

  'And then we had sandwiches and pop,' Connor said, 'and we listened to the band playing music, and we went on the bridge over the water and we seed the London Eye.' He paused for breath and looked directly at Allison. 'I want to go on the London Eye, and I want to see the palace where the Queen lives. Can we, Mummy?'

  'One day, perhaps,' Allison said. 'We might go in the summer, when I have some time off work.'

  Connor frowned, unsure as to whether or not he liked that answer, and he opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again as he caught sight of Taylor walking towards them. He stared up at him, studying his features with curiosity.

  Allison held her breath, haunted by the knowledge that father and son were coming face to face for the first time. Would Taylor recognise the similarities between the two of them? Would he guess that this was his child? Her heart was in her mouth as she watched them.

  'Who are you?' Connor asked, his wide eyes a solemn reflection of his father's grey gaze.

  Taylor smiled and brought himself down to Connor's height, bending his knees in one fluid, easy motion. 'I'm Taylor,' he said. 'Dr Briscoe. I work here with your mother.'

  Connor was frowning again. 'I know 'bout you. Mummy telled me you said she was all dusty, but it wasn't her fault. It was 'cos she'd been in a hole in a building what fell down.'

  'Ah.. .yes, I did say that, didn't I?' A look of bemusement crossed Taylor's face, and Allison groaned inwardly. Connor's memory was as sharp as a needle, and she ought to have known that he would bring up something like that.

  Taylor tried to make amends. 'I'm sorry about that,' he murmured in a tentative fashion, studying Connor's expression. 'I really didn't mean it in a bad way.'

  'That's all right,' Connor said, airily dismissive. 'I said she was dusty, as well, 'cos she tells me off when I get mud on my clothes. She says I'm a urchin.'

  Taylor tried in vain to suppress a grin. 'That's what mothers do, don't they? They sometimes tell you things you don't want to hear. But you got your own back. You told her, didn't you?'

  Connor nodded, clearly captivated by his new confidant, and he watched with interest as Taylor turned his attention to Poppy.

  Allison dragged her gaze away from father and son and glanced at Rhea. Her friend looked harassed, and when Allison looked at her more closely, she suspected that she was troubled, too.

  'Is something wrong?' she asked. 'Have the children been hassling you?'

  'No, it's nothing like that,' Rhea said in a low voice, glancing at the children as they chatted with Taylor. 'They've been just perfect today...taking in everything and running about, getting rid of their energy on the grass in the park.'

  'But something's bothering you, isn't it? I recognise that haunted look from way back. I remember how you were when Steve was causing problems for you.' Allison looked at Rhea searchingly and saw that she had hit a nerve. 'Is that it? Is he following you again? I thought you had finally managed to give him the slip last year.'

  Rhea's face had paled. 'So did I, but I think he's back again.' She grimaced. 'I was going to take the children to my place because we were running late, but just as I turned the car into the street, I thought I saw him walking towards my house. Everything about him looked familiar...the way his hair fell below his ears in waves, his stocky build. He stopped at my door and seemed to be looking in at the windows.'

  'Do you think there's any chance that you could be mistaken?'

  'I don't think so. I caught a glimpse of his face as I drove past him. There was no way I was going to stop the car with him stalking the neighbourhood.' Her mouth made an odd shape. 'Anyway, there have been other things...things that didn't quite add up at the time. Someone tried to break into the house, but the man who lives next door came to see what was going on and he must have scared him away. Then, another day, a man rang the theatre, asking for me. He wouldn't leave a name.'

  Allison felt a tugging at her skirt. She looked down to see that Connor was waiting to be heard, and immediately she began to worry about how long he had been listening in.

  'I seed the man,' he said. 'I 'membered him from before, a long time ago. His name's Steve. I don't like him.'

  Allison's lungs contracted. 'When was this?'

  He shrugged. 'Dunno. It was the other day. We was playing in the garden at Poppy's house and he was coming down the street.'

  'What did you do? Did you speak to hi
m?'

  'No. I don't like him 'cos he shouts, so I telled Poppy to come in the house and play. She didn't want to, so I chased her.'

  Allison hugged him close and ruffled his hair, and when she looked up, she saw that Taylor was watching her. He must have picked up on her alarm at the situation, because he moved towards her and said softly, 'The boy did the right thing, and it's good that no harm came to either of them.'

  He looked down at Connor. 'There's a box of toys in the corner of the waiting room over there, and there's a table full of construction bricks, so you could make a truck or a house. Would you and Poppy like to go and play with them for a while?'

  Connor nodded eagerly, and both children slid their hands into his and let him lead them to the play area.

  When Taylor came back a moment later, he said, 'I think it's fairly obvious that Rhea guessed right, and Steve is back in the area.'

  He sent Rhea a quick look. 'It must be worrying for you,' he said, his brows drawing together. 'Have you thought about what you're going to do? Will you talk to the police about it?'

  'I suppose I'll have to.' Rhea's face took on an anguished look. 'I don't feel safe going back home. He's been violent in the past, and I don't want to go through all that again.' She seemed to be thinking aloud. 'I suppose I could go and stay at my parents' house for a while, but they live some distance away and I need to be close at hand for my work.. .and there's Poppy's school, of course.'

  Allison collected her thoughts. 'Do you want to come and stay at my place for a while? He won't be able to find you there, will he?'

  'Would you mind if I did that?' Rhea looked relieved. 'It would give me a bit of breathing space.'

  'Of course I don't mind. It'll be a bit cramped, but we'll make the best of it.'

  'Thank you.' Rhea put a hand to her chest as though she was nursing a pain deep down. 'I don't think I'd sleep easily in my own house, knowing that he's around.'