‘Adam! Can you hear me?’ she demanded, her fingers fumbling in her rush to speak. ‘I’m so sorry, but I forgot to switch this thing back on when I got to the bottom.’
‘You forgot?’ he repeated, the disbelief so clear in his voice that she felt a guilty blush flood her cheeks.
‘Jem was waiting for me and he’s helped me to shift rocks, splint Tel’s legs together and get him strapped to the backboard. Everything’s ready down here, so as soon as the team can get in, we’re ready to go.’
‘That’s good, because we’re just about ready now,’ he said. ‘They’ll be bringing down the stretcher with them. Is there anything else you need? Anything for Jem?’
‘Just to get him out of here as soon as possible and let him tuck into his tea,’ she suggested, and Jem nodded furiously.
‘OK. See you soon,’ Adam said. ‘And, Maggie, this time don’t switch the radio off completely, so we can contact you if we need to.’
She heard the little click that told her he’d cut the call and missed him immediately…wished there was a good reason to speak to him again, just to hear his voice. Instead, she retrieved another couple of energy bars and sat down beside Jem while they ate them in companionable silence.
‘What sort of cast will Tel have?’ Jem asked after a while. ‘Mine was a green one. It was made of fibreglass, but one of the girls in the top class had a big hard white one.’
‘That will depend on exactly what damage they find when they take the X-rays. He might just have broken the two bones in his lower leg, but if he’s injured his knee as well, he might have to have a cast right up his leg.’
‘Wow! Mine was only part way up my arm, like a long glove, and my thumb and fingers were sticking out at this end.’
‘How did you break your arm?’ she asked, and there was a brief pause before he answered.
‘I fell,’ he said briefly, hurrying on to add, ‘And they said I’d broken a bone that sounded like a dog. A spaniel or a collie or something?’
She chuckled. ‘You mean a Colles’ fracture—in this bone right here?’ She touched his radius, just above the wrist.
‘A Colles’ fracture,’ he repeated with a nod, and she was certain that this time he wouldn’t forget the term. ‘And I had to keep the cast on for ages and ages. Weeks!’
‘Well, your friend will have to keep his on even longer because the leg is weight-bearing, so we have to be certain that it’s properly mended before he can use it again.’
‘How long will that take?’ he asked.
‘Well, it varies a bit from person to person because some heal faster than others, but it’s usually anywhere from about six weeks.’
‘Six weeks!’ He was wide-eyed at the thought and added with dawning delight, ‘Does that mean he won’t be able to go to school?’
‘Oh, I doubt he’ll miss much school.’ She laughed. ‘As soon as the doctors are sure that he’s on the mend, he’ll be back in class with you again.’
She’d been watching his face while she’d been speaking or she’d probably have missed the look of misery that replaced his former delight. As it was, she was forced to make a rapid reassessment of the relationship between the two lads sharing the cramped tunnel with her.
‘Jem?’ she began, then didn’t know how to continue. She had absolutely no experience of dealing with children of any age, except those she was called to care for in the line of duty. What if she made a complete mess of the next couple of minutes? ‘How long have you and Tel been friends?’ she asked in the end, settling for something non-confrontational.
There was a pause that only gave her suspicions time to grow and it was obvious that there was a fierce inner debate going on. Would he tell her what he was worried about or would he put her off with vague half-truths?
‘Tel’s not my friend.’ Jem interrupted her thoughts in a low voice, glancing across at him as though afraid that the unconscious boy might hear what he was saying.
‘He’s not?’ It was what she’d been expecting after his reactions during their recent conversation, but it certainly went against what she’d assumed, especially as Jem had been so insistent about staying down the mine while she’d taken the other three boys out.
‘He’s been bullying me…him and his friends,’ Jem admitted, then looked as if he wished he hadn’t said anything.
As an adult, Maggie knew that any form of bullying was unacceptable, but she could still remember how strong the code of ‘don’t tell’ could be in the playground. She’d been a teenager when she’d been a victim, rather than Jem’s eight years, and the girls who had targeted her had used far subtler means of torture than physical violence, but the scars had probably been every bit as long-lasting.
She wrapped an arm around his shoulders to give him a swift hug and the space blanket she’d tucked around him made its familiar rustling sound. ‘Well, I think they’re idiots because you’ve been absolutely brilliant today. In fact, as soon as we’re out of here, I’m going to find out how to put your name forward for a bravery award.’
‘You can’t do that,’ he said miserably.
‘Why not? I think you deserve it. I don’t think many grown-ups would be brave enough to stay down here with one of their friends and they certainly wouldn’t want to be here for someone who was bullying them.’
‘No…you don’t understand. I don’t deserve an award because it was my idea to come down here in the first place. It’s my fault that all this has happened…Tel getting unconscious and bleeding and Chris getting hurt and everybody having to do the rescue.’
This wasn’t making any sense.
‘If Tel and his gang were bullying you, why would you come down here with them? Did they force you to take them?’
Now that she thought about it, the other four boys were at least a year older than Jem. He was obviously a bright lad, so was that why the others had picked on him? Or was it something to do with the fact that he didn’t have a father around to fight his corner for him?
‘They didn’t force me but…’ He threw an agonised look in her direction. ‘Promise you won’t tell anyone…not even my mum. You can’t tell, or it’ll only get worse. That’s what happens when you tell on bullies.’
There was that unwritten code of silence that allowed bullying to continue, just as it had in her own childhood, and Maggie found herself reverting to the similarly childish ruse of crossing her fingers behind her back as she nodded, knowing that she had no intention of keeping her word.
At the same time as she was persuading the youngster to tell her what had happened and why, she was making a mental note to have a word with the headmaster to let him know what was going on…that was another note to go with all the others she’d been making, such as the talk she was going to volunteer to give the pupils about women’s changing roles in society.
‘Tel and the others were going to take my bike…and it’s nearly new because I only got it for Christmas. And I said I’d found this mine all shut up and empty and…and I told them it might have treasure in it and…and if I showed it to them, they couldn’t take my bike.’
‘And then Tel fell and got trapped and your torch broke and you couldn’t get out again,’ she finished for him.
He nodded, his misery obvious. ‘But you won’t tell, will you? You promised!’
Before she could compound her lie, the radio crackled to life.
‘Maggie?’ No matter how bad the reception was, she could tell it was Adam’s voice. ‘Can you hear me?’
‘Loud and clear, Adam,’ she replied, her heart doing the same crazy little jig it had when she’d been a teenager.
‘The entrance is clear enough for the team to come down. They’re bringing a stretcher down with them for Tel. Are you all OK?’
‘Looking forward to getting out of here and having something hot to eat,’ she said, sharing a grin with Jem. ‘Remind the team to take it slowly. We don’t want any more injuries.’
‘Will do. See you soon.’
For several seconds after the end of the call she and Jem sat there, straining their ears for the sound of their approaching rescuers, but all they could hear was the distant throb of the heavy generator and the closer sullen drip of seeping water, punctuated by the intermittent creaks and groans of the old mine workings.
Maggie didn’t say anything, but she would be absolutely delighted if she never heard any of those sounds again, and as for the sensation of being trapped in an enclosed space, she had a feeling that, after this experience, she wouldn’t even be wanting to put her head inside her kitchen cupboard.
‘I can hear them!’ Jem exclaimed, his head sticking out from their tunnel entrance. ‘And I can see light coming towards the top of the stope.’
Maggie could hear them, too, as she per formed a quick check of Tel’s vital signs. It looked as if the bleeding had stopped, externally at least. They wouldn’t know if he was bleeding internally until they had some proper diagnostic equipment available once he reached St Piran’s A and E. His pulse and respirations were still within normal ranges and his circulation was still patent beyond the broken bones in his leg, so there shouldn’t be any danger that he’d lose his foot.
‘They’re coming!’ Jem announced, almost hopping from foot to foot in one of the first displays of eight-year-old n she’d seen from him. ‘They’re coming down the stope much faster than we did, but that’s probably because their legs are longer than ours.’
‘As long as they can go up again just as fast, we’ll all be happy,’ Maggie said, but her thoughts weren’t really on what she was saying, not once she spotted Adam among the team members approaching the heap of rocks at the entrance to their tunnel.
‘Welcome to our humble abode,’ she said wryly, as she moved aside as far as she could so that there was room for both of them to kneel beside Tel’s unconscious figure.
It was strange to be working with him again. The only other time they’d been involved in caring for a patient together had been that awful afternoon under the train, and even though these circumstances were equally stressful, it was almost as if they could read each other’s minds.
She watched as Adam per formed his own survey of Tel’s situation while she passed on the details of his condition since she’d reached him and what treatment she’d given.
‘He hasn’t regained consciousness,’ she pointed out with a significant glance in Jem’s direction, and Adam took the hint, his concerned expression telling her that he was questioning the possibility of a bleed inside the youngster’s skull, too.
The next few minutes were busy as Tel’s backboard was loaded onto the high-sided stretcher and strapped firmly in position, the whole arrangement designed to provide virtually all-round protection for a patient while he was extricated from the mine.
The only thing that broke Maggie’s concentration was the fact that every time Adam touched her—even something as accidental and simple as the nudge of his shoulder against hers or the brush of his hand—it was like an electric current racing through her body that was able to recharge her batteries in spite of the hours of tension that had drained them.
She was almost giddy with relief that their ordeal was nearly over and desperately needed to think about something else or she might make a complete fool of herself.
A quick glance around reminded her that Jem was still there, silently watching everything that was going on and patiently waiting for his turn to leave the cramped confines and start his journey up to his waiting mother.
‘How’s Kate been coping?’ she asked Adam under cover of the instructions being fired back wards and forwards between the various members of the team.
Adam rolled his eyes. ‘I think she’d have coped far better if Nick hadn’t kept trying to throw his weight around. As soon as the entrance was cleared, he was trying to insist that he should be the one to come down to lead the rescue. He didn’t seem to realise that he would be far more use if he stayed up on top and took care of Kate.’
‘Until you pointed it out?’ she finished for him, and knew she was right when she caught sight of a brief flash of white teeth as he grinned at her briefly.
‘I reminded him that I’d lost my father in the same tragedy as Kate had lost her husband, and that having Jem in danger was probably bringing everything back for her. For heaven’s sake, Nick’s known the woman for years!’ he muttered impatiently, barely remembering to keep his voice low enough so that Jem couldn’t hear. ‘He was probably at school with her. Who better to lend her some support?’
‘Right, folks, we’re ready to move,’ announced a commanding voice at the mouth of the tunnel, and any chatter died away. ‘Let’s get that stretcher out of there.’
‘Excuse me,’ Maggie interrupted, and was hardly surprised at the long-suffering expression on the man’s face as he turned impatiently towards her. ‘I just wanted to ask that Jem be taken out first. He’s been down here virtually alone for some of the time, and needs to get up to reassure his mother that he’s well. I also think,’ she added as the man beckoned the youngster out of the tunnel, ‘that he’s one of the most courageous lads I’ve ever met and I’ll definitely be putting his name forward for a bravery award.’ She gave his shoulder a pat as he slid past her in the cramped space and he smiled back at her, his eyes suspiciously bright.
‘Hear, hear!’ said Adam as Jem sidled past him, climbing over his feet, and patted the embarrassed lad on the shoulder before he climbed out over the pile of loose rocks at the entrance.
‘Gwir kolonneckter, mebyon,’ said one of the older members of the team, obviously praising the eight-year-old as he emerged at the bottom of the stope. Seth Tregonning had been a tin miner in his youth and was one of the few people Maggie knew who could speak the Cornish language that sounded just right in this most Cornish of places.
‘What does that mean?’ Jem asked, beaming from ear to ear as a member of the team adjusted a safety helmet to fit him for the journey to the surface.
‘True courage, my boy,’ Seth translated in the slightly sing-song accent of the region, and there was a general murmur of heart felt agreement.
The team leader cleared his throat and Maggie was amazed to see that he’d been as affected by his team’s response to the youngster as any of them.
‘Right, then, Seth, I want you to go up first with Jem because you’ll be able to move faster than the two with the stretcher, and we don’t want any hold-ups,’ he said with a swift return to his former briskness, and Maggie dropped to her knees again to finish putting the last of her equipment away in her pack, determined that she wasn’t going to be the cause of any delay in the evacuation.
‘The rest of you,’ he continued, ‘follow the stretcher up and be ready to help to smooth the ride up that wretched stope. Remember that everything is rough and has the potential to crumble under your feet. Adam, I’ll leave you in charge of making sure that Maggie gets out safely as soon as she’s picked up her stuff. OK?’
Out of the corner of her eye Maggie saw Adam’s long legs make short work of climbing over the mound at the entrance to the tunnel as he moved out of the way for the appointed team members to take opposite ends of the stretcher to start the journey back up to the surface.
In just a few more minutes…a quarter of an hour at the most…they would all be safely up in the fresh air again, with the wide night sky spread over their heads and a sharp February breeze bringing the scent of the sea in from the bay.
Then…what?
Adam had said that they needed to talk once this was all over. Did he mean tonight? Her heart gave an extra thump at the idea that he might suggest that she go back to his home. She had absolutely no idea where he was living. The local grape vine hadn’t passed that piece of information around yet.
Unfortunately, everyone in the town knew where she lived—in the same cottage she’d shared with her mother—and most of them would know by break fast-time if his car was parked outside her place over night.
Except the whole idea
that the two of them would be spending any more time together tonight was complete nonsense. Adam was a married man and would obviously be going back to his wife. Any conversation between the two of them would have to wait until he found time in his busy life.
‘Ouch! Mind your knuckles, Pete,’ called the stretcher carrier at the front. ‘It’s bad enough that we have to hunch over so we don’t hit our heads, but this rough-hewn granite is evil stuff and your gloves won’t stop you making a mess of your hands if you hit the walls on the way through.’
Maggie glanced up with a wry smile, her own aching hands testament to that fact, and was just in time to see the last man out of the tunnel—was he the one called Pete?—step awkwardly on a rock that Jem had missed, twisting his ankle and throwing him off balance.
‘Careful, man!’ warned his colleague, as he fought to keep the stretcher stable. ‘Watch what you’re doing with those big feet of yours.’
The poor man muttered a curse and lurched forward a couple of ungainly steps before he got his balance back, but in those few seconds his shoulder had cannoned into the abandoned crowbar that she’d set up to support the bag of saline.
As if it was happening in slow motion she saw the moment when the length of hexagonal steel pivoted against the ancient timber bracing the roof of the tunnel, wrenching it out of the position it had held for more than a hundred years and sending it crashing to the floor with a hollow thud, narrowly missing the edge of the stretcher on its way down.
Somebody swore ripely into the brief silence after the echoes had died away, but what happened next was something out of Maggie’s worst nightmares as first one rock, barely the size of her fist, fell onto the dank floor, before tons of boulders followed it, cascading down in an avalanche that nearly deafened her in the enclosed space of the tunnel.
‘No-o-o!’ she shrieked, forced to scramble back into the depths of the tunnel as it began to fill with granite, shutting out the light of the torches at the bottom of the stope.
The Doctor's Bride by Sunrise Page 8
