One Last Chance

by Hollowed, Beverley

“Nan is worried sick,” Ally admitted sadly. “She is living on her nerves. That’s the hardest part of all this.”

  “If I ever get my hands on that lowlife fucker,” Caitlin growled angrily. “I will kill him myself.”

  “I need to try and put him out of my head,” Ally said. Then in the hope of changing the subject she added. “Besides I have a charity dinner to get ready for and I have no idea what I am gonna wear. Short of a tent that is.”

  “You are not that big,” Caitlin argued, rolling her eyes.

  “Well, I feel that big,” Ally grumbled.

  “When’s the dinner?” Hannah asked delighted to be talking about something girlie.

  “It’s on this Saturday night,” Ally sighed. “So I have five days to get my ass sorted out, find the perfect dress and look halfway presentable.”

  “We can go shopping Friday,” Hannah said excitedly. “I love shopping.”

  “Yeah, but this is shopping with Ally,” Caitlin groaned. “She is a nightmare at the best of times. Lord help us now she is pregnant.”

  “I am not that bad,” Ally protested and the other two doubled up laughing. “I’m not.”

  “Ally,” Caitlin managed to say through her laughter. “You once made a shop assistant cry and all you were buying was a tracksuit for the gym.”

  “Okay, so that one time,” Ally protested.

  “You want me to remind you of others?” Hannah laughed.

  “No,” Ally sighed. “Fine, okay I’ll admit it. I don’t like shopping. But I need to do this. I need to look halfway decent.”

  “Don’t you worry Ally,” Hannah said with a big grin. “By the time we are done with you, you will be the bell of the ball.”

  The girls kissed Ally goodbye an hour later and promised to meet her on Friday to help her find the perfect dress for the dinner.

  When Friday came, Ally really wasn’t in the mood for shopping. She wasn’t sleeping too well and she felt fat and awkward. She was now twenty one weeks pregnant, just over the halfway mark and her bump was really starting to show now.

  When she met Hannah and Caitlin on Grafton Street, she felt tired and miserable. Hannah was full of beans as always and Ally was struggling to keep up.

  They hit Brown Thomas first, Ally said she wanted something black and simple. However Hannah was picking everything but what Ally had asked for.

  Caitlin was keeping an eye on Ally. She knew her friend seemed a little bit under the weather and she was a little concerned.

  They tried a couple more boutiques but nothing grabbed Ally’s eye.

  “Maybe I should just let Cole go alone,” Ally sighed, feeling tired and in no mood to keep going.

  “We can go back to Brown Thomas,” Caitlin suggested knowing Ally was struggling hard. “There was one black dress you liked in there. Maybe that is the way to go.”

  “I really don’t care,” Ally replied, suddenly feeling a little light headed. She leaned against the wall to steady herself.

  “Ally what’s wrong?” Caitlin asked the minute she saw her friend slump against the wall. The urgent tone in her voice caught Nick’s attention and he was beside Ally immediately. He was walking behind the girls, giving the three friends a little space and privacy.

  “Ally,” his tone was calm but firm. “Look at me, tell me what the problem is?”

  Ally looked up at Nick and tried to focus but her vision was a little blurry. She could feel her legs give way, then two strong arms wrapping around her and lifting her up. Then there was just blackness.

  *******************************

  Cole was in a meeting with three very loud German men. They were arguing among themselves and seemed oblivious that Cole was even sitting there.

  He glanced down at his laptop as his screen saver popped up. He had it set as a picture of Ally on their wedding day. He instantly smiled when he saw her smiling face beaming up at him.

  He wondered how her shopping trip was going. He knew how much she hated shopping and that she really hadn’t been in the mood to go that morning.

  Suddenly the intercom in the center of the conference desk sounded and Cole’s heart immediately began to race. He had left instructions not to be interrupted unless it was something to do with Ally or Ben.

  “Yes, Sally,” Cole said as he pressed down on the answer button.

  “I am sorry for disturbing you, Mr. Thomas,” Sally’s gentle voice came through the intercom. “But I have Nick on the line. He says it’s urgent.”

  “Put him straight through,” Cole said and a wave of fear washed over him. “Thanks Sally,”

  Cole picked up the receiver of the phone and pressed the flashing button to accept the call.

  “What’s wrong Nick?” Cole asked the minute the call was connected.

  “It’s Ally,” Nick replied and the concern in his voice just made Cole worry more. “She took a bit of a turn. She blacked out. I am with her in the back of an ambulance. They are taking her to the nearest maternity hospital. The paramedic said Holles Street.”

  “I am on my way,” Cole said and hung up. Then he pressed the call button for Sally.

  “Have Liam meet me down stairs immediately,” Cole said, not even waiting for her to reply. Then he quickly made his apologises to the Germans and was out the door, running for the lift.

  The journey to the hospital seemed to take an eternity. By the time Cole reached the hospital, his heart was racing flat out.

  He ran to reception and they quickly gave instructions as to which way to go to find Ally.

  Without even stopping for a breath, he ran until he found the emergency room and a worried looking Nick sitting outside in the corridor.

  “What happened?” Cole said barely able to catch his breath.

  “The girls hadn’t been shopping that long,” Nick explained. “They had been to a couple of shops. Ally seemed a little quieter than usual and a bit tired. We were walking back to Brown Thomas, when she suddenly grabbed the wall and she went very pale. I asked her if she was she okay but she didn’t reply. She passed out.”

  “Where is she now?” Cole demanded.

  “The doctors are with her now,” Nick replied and then pointed. “They took her through there.”

  Cole headed straight for the door. He needed to find Ally. He needed to know how she was. All he could think about was getting to her.

  “Sir,” a nurse called from behind Cole. “You can’t be in here.”

  “I am looking for my wife, Ally Thomas,” Cole explained. “She was brought in by ambulance a short time ago.

  “Oh right,” the nurse said her angry demeanour completely gone. “If you just wait here a moment, I will go check what room she is in.”

  The nurse turned and headed into a small office and returned about two minutes later, she told Cole which room Ally was in.

  He hurried down the corridor but when he got to the door he stopped. The thought suddenly occurred to him. What if she lost the baby?

  What would he say to her if she had? He had been so worried about Ally, it never occurred to him it could be the baby. His heart pounded harder in his chest. What if the baby was gone?

  He stepped back for a moment and leaned against the wall. He needed to compose himself before he faced Ally. He knew no matter what had happened, he had to be strong for his gorgeous girl.

  “Okay Thomas,” he said to himself, giving himself a little pep talk. “You need to get your shit together. Your wife needs you.”

  He straightened himself up and headed for the door, knocking lightly before he walked in.

  The moment he saw Ally lying on the hospital bed a lump formed in his throat and nearly choked him. He swallowed hard and pushed his grief deep down inside him.

  Suddenly, she opened her eyes and relief instantly washed over him. No matter what else happened, she was okay.

  “Oh Cole,” she sobbed the moment she seen him standing in the room. He rushed to her bedside and she sat up and threw her arms around him, sobbing unco
ntrollably.

  “It’s okay gorgeous girl,” he cooed as he softly stroked her hair. “I am here, I’ve got you.”

  Chapter 22

  “Ally sweetheart,” Cole whispered. “Please don’t cry. Everything will be okay. I promise you.”

  “Mr. Thomas,” a middle aged man wearing scrubs and a white coat said from the far side of the bed. “I am Dr. Gibney, I am your wife’s doctor.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Cole said, taking the man’s out stretched hand and shaking it firmly.

  “There is no need for alarm,” he said to Cole. The moment Cole heard the words, relief washed over him like a tidal wave. “Ally was just a little dehydrated and her blood pressure is a little higher than we would like it to be.”

  “What does that mean?” Cole asked with concern.

  “Well at the moment we wouldn’t be overly concerned,” the doctor replied. “This happens from time to time to some women during pregnancy. At the moment we aren’t alarmed.”

  “At the moment?” Cole repeated the doctor’s words.

  “Well as I said,” the doctor continued. “This can happen, in fact most woman at some stage during their pregnancy can have a touch of high blood pressure. We would be a little more concerned if her blood pressure were to remain high for an extended period.”

  “What do we need to do?” Cole asked, the worry was very clear in his voice.

  “Well, rest,” The doctor replied. “No stress if at all possible. And a follow up appointment with her own obstetrician next week. Just to have them check that everything is back to how it should be.”

  “And the baby?” Cole asked, just needing to hear the words out loud.

  “The baby is just fine, Mr. Thomas,” the doctor replied with a big smile.

  “Can I take her home?” Cole asked hopefully.

  “Yes, you can,” the doctor replied as he wrote on Ally’s chart. “She is free to go. We will send a report to her doctor. Just to make sure they are kept up to speed.”

  “Thank you doctor,” Cole said, shaking the man’s hand once again. Then he turned back to Ally and kissed her on the forehead. “Come on gorgeous girl, let’s get you home.”

  Cole picked Ally’s shoes up from the floor and slipped them on her feet before he helped her down from the bed.

  When they reached the main corridor, where Cole had left Nick, a relieved looking Nick was on his feet the moment he saw them both coming through the door.

  “Is everything okay?” He asked cautiously.

  “Its fine,” Cole reassured him and smiled brightly. “Thank you for taking care of her like you did. You will never know how grateful I am to you for all you did.”

  “Was my pleasure, Mr. Thomas,” Nick nodded. “I will call Liam and have him bring the car around to the front of the hospital.”

  They made their way to the front door of the hospital where Liam was waiting for them. The whole drive back in the car, Ally held Cole’s hand tightly. He knew she was bottling something inside and it was just a matter of time before she let it go.

  When they reached the house, Rosie met them at the door with Ben in her arms. Ally slowly climbed up the steps to the house as Ben squealed with excitement the moment he spotted her. She took him from Rosie and held him close to her.

  Without saying a word to anyone, she walked straight into the living room and sat on the sofa, holding Ben close to her and began to sob.

  Ben instantly began wriggling and crying as both Rosie and Cole rushed over to them, Rosie taking a very upset Ben as Cole wrapped Ally in his arms.

  “Please don’t cry,” Cole said holding Ally close to him.

  “Cole,” she sobbed softly into his chest. “When I woke up in the ambulance, I really thought I was losing the baby, I was so scared.”

  “I know you were gorgeous girl,” Cole replied as he rubbed her back and softly kissed her forehead. “So was I, but you are okay and so is Little Bean, that’s all that matters.”

  “Cole, if anything happened to her,” Ally sobbed harder. “I don’t know what I would do.”

  “Nothing is going to happen to her,” Cole reassured Ally. “You have our little girl safe and sound inside there and nothing is going to happen to her.”

  “You promise,” Ally said looking up at Cole longing for reassurance.

  “I promise,” Cole said as he kissed her on the forehead once again. “Now, rest for you missy, doctors’ orders.”

  He led Ally up to their bedroom, helped her strip and dress into her fluffy pink pj’s then tucked her into bed.

  He sat beside her and softly brushed her hair until she finally drifted off into a deep sleep.

  Cole reluctantly left Ally and returned back downstairs to his office. Closing the door, he hurried to the phone and called Nathan.

  “How is she?” Nathan asked the minute he answered phone.

  “She is very upset,” Cole replied. “But thankfully, she and the baby are both fine. Nathan, I want this asshole out of our lives once and for all. Is it any wonder her blood pressure is up? She is stressed out of her mind over him. The doctor said no more stress. He needs to disappear.”

  “Everything is set for tomorrow night,” Nathan told Cole. “But I won’t give you details. The less you know the better.”

  “Nathan,” Cole said solemnly. “I don’t know how I am ever going to thank you for doing this.”

  “No thanks required,” Nathan said. “This is something that needs to be done, it’s that simple.”

  “Just be careful,” Cole warned. “This guy is capable of anything. I have a very bad feeling about him.”

  “I’ll be careful,” Nathan reassured Cole.

  “Call me the moment it’s done,” Cole replied. “Talk soon.”

  When he hung up the phone, he sat in silence and stared at the photo of Ally on his desk. Her beautiful smile always made him smile too.

  All he had ever wanted from the moment he saw her was to make her happy. But it seemed like it was an impossible dream. He just wished for one day she could be happy and not have a care in the world.

  He went in search of Rosie and found her up in the main bathroom, bathing Ben.

  “Here you are buddy,” Cole said as he kneeled down on the floor next to Rosie. “You having fun in the bubbles?”

  “He was a little upset,” Rosie said keeping her voice up beat and cheerful. “And he loves his bath, so I thought it would help calm him down.”

  “Good thinking,” Cole replied as he smiled down at Ben while the little boy gurgled up to him.

  “Is Ally okay, Mr. Thomas?” Rosie asked glancing up at Cole briefly.

  “Well, she is asleep,” Cole sighed as he reached down and softly touched Ben’s foot.

  “She has been through quite a lot,” Rosie said with a worried tone. “I do worry about how much more she can cope with.”

  “Rosie, you should have seen her in the hospital today.” Cole said sadly. “She looked so scared and like she had just reached the end. She has had enough. And it scares me Rosie. For the first time, I am really scared she will fall apart completely and I might lose her.”

  “She loves you Cole,” Rosie said reaching over and taking his hand. “She loves you both so much. She is just worn out. She needs to rest and learn how to take it easy.”

  “I know,” Cole nodded his head in agreement.

  “Can I say something?” Rosie said nervously.

  “Okay, of course you can Rosie,” Cole said looking up at the older woman. “You know you can say anything to me.”

  “Don’t you think it’s time you contacted the police about this Jason person?” Rosie said. “This worry that is hanging over her head. It’s not good for her and not good for the baby.”

  “It’s complicated Rosie,” Cole sighed once again. “Ally doesn’t want to tell the police about the attack. She is worried I will be in trouble because I beat the crap out of him.”

  “I can see why she would be worried,” Rosie nodded. “Wasn�
�t your brightest idea.”

  Before Cole could reply, a blood curdling scream echoed through house. Before Cole had time to take a breath, he was on his feet and running to the bedroom to where he found Ally thrashing about in the bed, crying and fighting someone in her sleep.

  “ALLY!” He cried out loudly, as he rushed to the bed. “Ally, I’m here. It’s okay. It’s just a dream.”

  She thrashed and fought until her eyes snapped open and she stared up into Cole’s eyes, fear etched across her face.

  “Ally,” he said firmly. “It’s me.”

  Her eyes began to focus as she realised where she was. She looked at Cole like she was noticing him for the first time.

  Tears danced in her eyes as she focused on Cole.

  “It’s okay Ally,” Cole said brushing her hair back from her face. “It was just a dream. I’ve got you.”

  “Oh Cole,” she exclaimed as she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him tightly and sobbed.

  “Shhhh,” Cole whispered softly against the top of her head. He wrapped her in his arm and held her close to him as she continued to sob softly.

  “Cole, I could feel his breath on me,” Ally sobbed. “I could smell his aftershave. Why can’t I put him out of my head?”

  “Ally, he will never get near you again,” Cole reassured her. “I promise you. I will take care of it.”

  “Maybe we should go back to London?” Ally said much to Cole’s surprise. “I can’t live like this anymore. I am so stressed out, I am putting the baby at risk.”

  “Ally, if you want to go to London,” Cole said looking her straight in the face. “I can have the jet ready in a couple of hours. If that is what you really want.”

  “It’s not what I want,” Ally said sadly. “I don’t want him to win. This is our home. Our life is here. But I am so scared, I don’t see what else we can do.”

  “Okay,” Cole said as he kissed her softly on the head. “I will sort everything straight away.”

  “We can’t go tonight,” Ally said as the thought occurred to her. “You are speaking at that dinner tomorrow night.”

  “We are not going to the dinner tomorrow night,” Cole replied adamantly. “You need to rest and take care of yourself. I am cancelling tomorrow night.”