by Joanna Neil
'You've cut yourself,' Taylor said. 'Here, let me help you with that.'
'This was Connor's,' she told him in a thready voice, holding out the remains of the ceramic mug. 'What am I going to say to him? How can I tell him that someone broke it? He won't be able to understand that.'
'Don't worry about it now.' Gently, but with a firm grasp on her arms, he drew her to her feet. 'Is the bathroom upstairs? Show me where you keep your first-aid box.'
She must have gone with him up the stairs, but she had no recollection of doing that. He sat her down by the side of the washbasin and bathed her palm, checking to see if there were any shards of pottery or glass embedded in the gash.
'It's quite a deep cut,' he said, 'but I think we can get away without putting a stitch in there. Perhaps I'll try a butterfly plaster. I'll dress it for you and that should make you feel more comfortable.'
She was silent while he tended to her, and perhaps that was because she was shocked by what had happened and too upset to take it all in. His hands were soothing, though, as he put the dressing in place, and every move he made was calm, confident and assured, so that she felt she could sit back for a moment and allow him to take over.
'Does that feel better?' he asked, when he had finished.
She nodded. 'Thanks.' Then she frowned, looking up at him. 'Connor should have been home by now,' she said, her throat strained. 'It must be getting late. Why isn't he here? And where's Rhea?' A sudden thought struck her and fear shivered along her spine. 'They were going to her house to collect some of her belongings.' Her eyes widened and she reached out and tugged on his shirtsleeve. 'I have to go. I have to go and see what's happened to them.'
.'I'm way ahead of you.' His expression was serious. 'Are you sure that you're up to this? I could drop you off at my sister's house so that she can look after you. I'll go in your place to try and sort out any problem, if you want.'
'No. I need to be there. I need to know what's going on.' She was adamant. There was no way she was going to stay behind.
He seemed a little disturbed by her insistence on making the journey to the house, and she started to wonder what it was that was exercising his mind. Did he know more than he was letting on?
He stayed close-lipped, though, as he drove them to the house in Maida Vale, where Rhea lived, except to say as they drew close, 'I should tell you, Allison.. .1 think Steve is at the house, but you must try not to worry. The police have been called and I'm sure they'll soon get the situation under control.'
Her eyes widened. 'How long has this been going on?'
He glanced down at his watch. 'A few hours.'
'A few hours?' She stared at him. All this time he had known that something was wrong, and yet he had kept it to himself. She was too alarmed right now to berate him about that. So many questions flooded into her mind. What was this situation that he had talked about? Was her little boy in danger? What about Rhea?
Even though he had told her something of what to expect, Allison wasn't prepared for the sight that met them when he eventually parked the car in Rhea's street. Rhea's house was cordoned off, and there were police everywhere. She saw, with a shudder, that they were armed with guns.
She looked out of the window, trying to take it all in. Neither of them made any attempt to get out of the car. She glanced at Taylor. 'How long have you known about this?' she asked.
'I heard something on the news when I left the hospital, so I made a few phone calls. I was hoping that it would all be over by the time we arrived here.'
'Have they said that it's Steve? How do they know that he's in the house?'
He nodded. 'A neighbour saw what was happening, and called the police. He said that Rhea was coming out of the house when Steve arrived, and he made her go back inside. He was worried because Rhea was clearly unhappy about going with him.'
'And Connor?' Her voice dropped to a cracked whisper. 'Is he with them?'
'Yes, he is. They managed to talk to officers briefly on the phone, so we know they're both safe, but no one can get to them at the moment. When the police arrived they discovered that Steve had barricaded the doors. I think they're taking things slowly. They don't want to rush in...' He broke off.
'Because they're afraid he might do something foolish... that's what you were going to say, weren't you?'
'I don't want you to be upset.'
'It's too late for that,' Allison said, tight-lipped. 'How else would I be, knowing that my son and my friend are locked inside a house with a madman?' Another, more worrying thought came into her mind. 'Why are the police carrying guns? Does Steve have a weapon?'
'I believe so.'
She looked at him, reading the darkness in his eyes. 'You're not telling me the full story, are you? Stop trying to protect me. What was it that he had—was it a knife? That seems to be about his calibre.'
Taylor nodded and moved to put an arm about her shoulders. 'Yes, it was. The neighbour said he saw him threatening her with it. The police have set up a support team with people specially trained to deal with this sort of thing. They were talking about bringing someone in to negotiate with him.'
'I can't imagine who would be able to do that. Rhea has been trying to talk to him for years without any result.'
'I know that. I spoke to the officer in charge, and tried to tell him what I knew of Steve's character. They'll use any scrap of information that they have in order to calm him down.'
'What kind of thing has he been saying?'
Taylor grimaced. 'Just the usual kind of thing. He wants Rhea to himself. He's obsessed with her. He's not going to let anyone near.'
Allison pushed open the door of the car and climbed out. 'We'll see about that. I'm going to try to find out what's happening,' she said. 'I need to know that Connor is safe. If he isn't, I'm going in there myself.'
Taylor went with her to find the policeman who was running the operation. In fact, she had the feeling that he wasn't going to let her out of his sight for an instant.
The man she spoke to was in his late fifties, an experienced officer, and he did what he could to soothe Allison's nerves, but she was very distressed and her mind kept going back to Connor. In the end, someone took her to one side so that she could give them a profile of Rhea's ex. Allison was reluctant to leave the vicinity of the house, but they persuaded her to go into a nearby community hall that had been commandeered for a short time as a temporary headquarters.
'It'll be better in here,' the officer told her. 'We can talk more easily and obtain a fuller picture of what it is we're dealing with.'
Allison told them all that she knew. Taylor seemed to have disappeared somewhere along the way, and that was making her nervous on top of everything else. Why wasn't he there with her? She needed him by her side. If he wasn't there, she didn't seem to be able to function properly.
'I want to go outside and see if there's any way I can talk to my little boy and my friend,' she said, after a while, getting to her feet and walking over to the door. 'I need to hear his voice. I need to know that he's all right.'
'I don't know how close we can get,' the sergeant said, following her as she went outside. 'Your doctor friend has gone in to talk to the man, and we don't want to tip the balance and cause any sudden upsets.'
'Are you saying that he's actually inside the house?' Allison was horrified. 'How could you let him do that? He doesn't know Steve as well as Rhea and I do. The man has a knife. Anything could happen to him.'
'We made sure that he's wearing a protective jacket, and our people seem to think that the doctor can make a difference. Our profiler has talked to him and advised him how to handle the situation. With any luck, he'll be able to bring him out before too long.'
'How did he manage to get in there?'
'He spoke to Steve for a while by phone, and told him he was worried about the boy. He kept things very calm. We think he was allowed in so that he could check up on the child. The lad wasn't really crying, but he was sort of hiccuping a littl
e bit every now and again, and it seemed to be distracting the man.'
Connor was obviously upset, and that knowledge made Allison more on edge than ever. Would Steve do anything to harm him? She was desperately worried about Taylor, too, but if there was any chance that he could bring Rhea and Connor out safely, perhaps his being in there was worth a try. But what if he was injured? It didn't bear thinking about.
Her mind was going round in circles, turning over each eventuality.
'Something's happening,' the sergeant said. 'The door's opening.'
Allison held her breath as the front door edged open. The police marksmen took aim and she wanted to shout out to them, Don't shoot.. .that might be my son who's coming out. Please, don't shoot.
Connor stood on the doorstep, a forlorn little figure, a bewildered four-year-old who had found himself caught up in a nightmare. Allison started forward and was held back in an iron grip by the police sergeant.
'Let our people go to him. You'll be able to see him in a little while, I promise.'
A woman officer hurried over to Connor and wrapped him in a blanket. Then she picked him up and moved away swiftly, heading towards the community hall. Allison went to follow, and this time the sergeant let her go. She glanced back at the house, seeing that the door was now firmly shut. What was going on in there? Was Rhea safe? And Taylor... What would become of him?
Connor needed her right now, though, and he had to be her main priority. She ran over to the hall where he was still in the arms of the policewoman, who was trying to comfort him. He looked up as Allison hurried into the room and he put out his arms to her, his lower lip starting to tremble.
'It was the bad man, Mummy. He pushed Rhea and he made me stay in the house. He wouldn't let me come out and I was scared.' The trembling worsened. 'I tried not to cry.'
'I know, sweetheart, I know. It must have been horrible for you, but you're safe now. I'm here. I have you safe.' He was shaking, and Allison wrapped her arms around him, lifting him and carrying him over to a chair. She sat down and held him on her lap, stroking his hair and whispering words of comfort until the tremors stopped and only an occasional sob sounded in the back of his throat.
She was terrified that something might have happened to Rhea or Taylor. 'Is there any news?' she asked the policewoman. 'Please, tell me what's happening.'
'It's not very clear. I think the doctor is trying to talk the man into giving himself up.'
'But what about Rhea? Is she hurt?'
Connor stirred in her arms. 'She hurted her wrist when the bad man pushed her over. She told him she thinks he broked it, but he didn't care. He just keeped on shouting. Then the doctor man came and said something to him and made him be quiet. He put a bandage on her wrist and tried to make it better.'
Allison wrapped her arms more firmly around her little boy. She wasn't going to let him out of her sight now that she had him back with her. All she could do was to keep watch on the house through the window by her chair, and hope that Taylor could use his powers of persuasion to coax Steve into letting Rhea go free.
There was a sudden noise from outside, lots of shouting starting up and the sound of men running. She stiffened, looking at the policewoman in alarm. 'What is it? What's going on?' She could see the officers changing position outside, moving in closer to the house.
'Some of our men have gone in around the back of the house. They must have gained access through a roof space shared with the house next door. There was some covering noise set up to allow them to slip through, and the plan was to go from there through the loft and take him by surprise in the downstairs reception room.'
'Did the doctor know about the plan?'
The policewoman nodded. 'Once we had the child safe, that was the next stage of the operation. We couldn't leave him in there indefinitely because of the knife.'
It was all over in the next few minutes. Rhea came out first, a blanket around her shoulders, and Allison stood up, still holding on to her son, ready to go to her friend.
'May I go and see her?'
'Just for a moment, perhaps. They'll be taking her to the ambulance.'
As Allison walked outside, keeping Connor safe in her arms, she saw that an ambulance had been driven into the street, and its doors were open, ready to receive anyone who was injured.
Connor buried his head in the hollow of her shoulder, and she cradled him to her, stroking his silky black hair with her free hand.
'Rhea,' she said. 'I'm so sorry. I wish I could have done something to keep you safe. How badly are you hurt? Is Taylor all right?' She could see that Rhea's hand and forearm were supported by a makeshift sling.
Rhea was pale, and Allison could see that she was shaken by her ordeal, but she managed to say, 'I'm OK. I'm just glad to be out of there.' She looked back at the house. 'I don't think I ever want to go back to that place. Perhaps I might go and visit with my parents for a while. They're always asking me to go and see them for longer than just a few hours.'
She gave a small shudder. 'I ought to have known Steve would catch up with me.' Her eyes closed briefly, as though she was trying to shut out the memory. 'I think Taylor will be out in a moment. I was so relieved when he persuaded Steve to let Connor go free. He seems to be fine, except for a bang on the head where Steve thumped him when the police rushed in. I just can't believe how cool he was in there, how he handled the situation. I was so glad to have him there with me.'
She paused, gathering her breath, as though she needed to get herself under control. 'As to all this, there was nothing you could do. It's all my fault. Nick rang and said he would come with me if I waited till later in the afternoon, but I was too impatient to do that. I thought I would be all right.'
Allison pressed her lips together. 'Is your wrist broken?' Despite what Rhea had said to the contrary, she was riddled with guilt about the whole episode. She ought to have done something to stop her from going to the house that day but, by keeping quiet, she had allowed Rhea and her own son to be endangered.
'Taylor says it is, most likely. He said it looked like a scaphoid fracture, whatever that is, but it doesn't feel too bad at the moment. He's given me something for the pain, and he says I'll need to go to the hospital to have a cast put on it.'
The paramedic came to help Rhea into the ambulance, and Allison debated whether she should go with her. Taylor was just coming out of the house, and she said quickly, 'I'll follow you to the hospital. I just need to make sure that Taylor is all right.'
'That's OK. Don't worry.'
Taylor glanced around, and Allison wondered if he was looking for Rhea. She hurried over to him. 'Are you all right? I was so worried when they told me what you were doing.'
'I'm fine.' He looked at Connor, who was clinging on to her and keeping his face buried in her cotton top. 'How's this little fellow?'
'He's upset and baffled by everything that's been going on.
Thank you for helping to get him out of there.' She looked at Taylor closely. 'Are you sure you're all right? Rhea said that Steve hit you.'
'He thought that I had tricked him when the police rushed in, and he lashed out when my guard was down. I was trying to be on the level with him, but he was very worked up. Luckily, I managed to grab hold of him and stop him from doing any more damage, and then the police took over.'
Allison was thoughtful. 'Do you think he went to my place first?'
Taylor nodded. 'I think he must have discovered where Rhea was staying. It can't have done much to calm his temper when he found that she wasn't there. That perhaps accounts for the mess. He must have gone straight round to her house after that.'
She winced. 'He's never acted in such an extreme way before. I can't imagine what possessed him to barricade himself in the house that way.'
Taylor grimaced. 'He seemed to have the idea that Rhea had a son.' His gaze met hers over the top of Connor's head, and she knew that he was trying to be careful in what he said. 'He was in a rage, but somehow Rhea managed to calm h
im down. I think she was doing her best to protect Connor as much as anything else.'
He kept his voice low. 'She sent Connor to go and play in the utility room so that he wouldn't see too much of what was going on. She probably thought it would be less challenging if he was out of sight.' Again, he glanced at Connor. 'I don't think he did very much in the way of playing. He's a bright boy, and he seemed to have been listening the whole time and taking everything in.'
'He does that. I'm going to have to be extra-careful with him over the next few weeks. He won't forget this in a hurry.'
'Have you decided what you're going to do now? I wouldn't have thought it would be a good idea for you to go back to the house. That might be another shock for him. Besides, the police will want to investigate to see if there's any evidence that Steve was the one who broke in.'
'I suppose you're right.' She made a face. 'I'll have to give it some thought, because there's Rhea to think of, too. I doubt she'll want to be on her own in her house after what's happened. Right now, I think I'll go and see how she's doing at the hospital. I feel that I need to go and give her some support.' She glanced at him. 'What about you—what are you planning to do?'
'I have to go and talk to the police. I'll probably go to the station to make a statement, but after that I'll come and pick you up from the hospital, if you like. It might be better if you were to come and stay at my place for a few days. That way, you can get your house back to normal before you take Connor home.'
'Are you sure about that?' Alison couldn't think what to do. There was no way she wanted Connor to go back to their house and see the broken window and all the devastation. It would take her some time to clear it all up and get the window fixed.
'I'm sure. As you say, we'll have to find out what Rhea wants to do, but one way or another I'll sort it all out.'
Connor stirred in Allison's arms. He lifted his head a fraction and cast a quick look in Taylor's direction. 'Are we going to your house?' he asked.
