‘We need to get him to Resuscitation,’ the cardiologist said. He was breathless from running but helped to lift Dr Vermont onto the trolley that Clive had brought in. They sped Dr Vermont through the department and the resuscitation continued en route—Marnie kneeling on the trolley to continue the compressions as Abby pushed oxygen in with an Ambu bag.
The night supervisor came, as she often did when an emergency page had been put out, but she too had run just a little harder when she had heard the strange alert.
‘It’s Dr Vermont,’ Marnie said, stepping down as Eric took over the compressions, frantically trying to pump the medications through Dr Vermont’s system in the hope the next shock would have some effect.
It didn’t.
‘We need to let his wife know,’ the night supervisor said as the team grimly worked on.
Marnie’s hands were shaking as she went through the contact sheets, dreading the thought of calling Mrs Vermont in the middle of the night to tell her that her husband was critically ill.
‘Get Harry to call her,’ Eric shouted over. ‘Has he been told what’s going on?’
‘Harry no longer works here,’ Marnie said, and Eric shot her a wide-eyed look.
‘I can guarantee Harry would want to be the one to tell her,’ Eric said.
‘Even if he’s on leave, Harry needs to be informed,’ the night supervisor said. ‘Right now the emergency department doesn’t have a consultant.’
Harry didn’t deliberately not pick up the first time the phone rang. He was putting anti-itch cream on a miserable Adam, who had woken at one a.m. and couldn’t get back to sleep.
‘So much for a mild dose,’ Harry said to his son. Apparently you could get a mild dose after a child had been immunised. Harry had found all the immunisation records and had spent half an hour looking at Jill’s handwriting—she had recorded every milestone, every little detail of their little lives and, yes, bang on the suggested dates, Charlotte and Adam had received their immunisations.
Adam getting chickenpox was just another thing that had gone wrong on top of another thing that had gone wrong, Harry was thinking when the phone rang.
Would they not just let him leave? Harry sighed, letting it ring out, but then, worried it might be his parents, He tucked Adam in and went and checked the machine.
‘Harry, it’s Marnie, could you call me back at work please?’ He could hear the strain in her voice. ‘I’m sorry to call you but it is an emergency.’
What the hell was he supposed to do from here? Harry thought, picking up the phone when it rang again.
‘Harry, it’s Marnie.’
‘Marnie, I’ve got a child who’s sick—’
‘Harry, please,’ Marnie broke in. ‘I have some very difficult news to tell you.’ Harry heard she was struggling and the line went very quiet for a moment before he spoke.
‘Go on.’
‘Dr Vermont collapsed a short while ago,’ Marnie said, and she heard his sharp intake of breath as she spoke on. ‘He’s in full cardiac arrest.’
‘Oh, no.’
‘We’re doing everything we can but I have to tell you, Harry…’ She glanced over, they were still going but more and more it was looking hopeless. ‘It doesn’t look good at all.’
‘Is Marjorie there?’
‘It’s only just happened,’ Marnie said. ‘I was just away to inform her when Eric said that you’d want to know and perhaps be the one to tell her.’
Harry sat on the edge of his bed and he remembered the kindness the Vermonts had shown him; he remembered all they had done for him when Jill’s accident had happened, and, yes, it was right that he be the one to tell Marjorie.
‘I’ve got the twins…’ He didn’t want to wake them up and drag them out; he didn’t want that for them but sometimes, no matter how inconvenient, certain things just had to be done. There was no choice—the doctor in charge of the department was critically ill, no doubt the staff were distraught and, given Dr Vermont had given more than thirty years of his life to the place, certainly his wife deserved to hear it from him. ‘I’ll ring her now and then I’ll pick her up,’ Harry said. ‘Marnie, I’ll have to bring the twins in.’
There was no argument this time.
And no little barbs either.
It was all too sad.
‘Adam’s infectious, probably Charlotte is too,’ Harry said.
‘So were half the patients that came through tonight,’ Marnie said. ‘The observation ward is empty, I’ll make up two beds and close it off for further admissions.’ Her voice was back to practical and it helped because Harry felt as though the whole pack of cards was falling again, just as he’d almost rebuilt it.
‘Do you need Marjorie’s number?’ Marnie asked.
Of course, he already had it.
Harry rang off and he’d have loved to gather his thoughts for a moment but instead he dressed and then woke the twins and put them into their dressing gowns.
‘I’m sorry, guys,’ he said as he carried them down the stairs and out into the night, ‘but Dr Vermont is very sick and we need to go and get Marjorie so that she can be with him.’
Only when they were strapped in and already nearly back to sleep did Harry stand in the driveway and call Marjorie.
He told her what was happening as best he could, and of course he knew Marjorie well, knew she would be dressing as they spoke and about to get into her car and fly through the night to be beside the man she had been married to for forty years.
‘I’m on my way now, Marjorie,’ Harry said. ‘I’ll be there in a few minutes.’
He was—Marjorie was out on the street and she was trying not to cry as she climbed in
‘You shouldn’t have brought the children out,’ Marjorie told him. ‘I could have got there myself.’
Except her knees were bobbing up and down as she tried to sit still, the adrenaline coursing through her as the enormity of what was happening started to take hold. ‘Is he… .?’ She couldn’t even say it. ‘I’d rather know now.’
‘They were working on him when I last spoke to the hospital,’ Harry said.
Harry didn’t know if it was a good sign or bad when he saw Abby and Marnie waiting for them in the ambulance area.
‘There’s half the hospital in with Dr Vermont,’ Marnie said as Harry came around and briefly pulled her aside. ‘Abby said that twins would know her.’
‘How is he?’
‘We’re
