Nick raised his eyebrows.
He crossed the room to Duncan’s body. He dropped to his knees, pressing his fingers to first one wound and then the other. Then to Duncan’s neck. Then he rolled him onto his back and – oh Jesus! – brought his lips down on Duncan’s mouth.
He placed his palm on the bloody chest and pushed, like he was performing compressions.
‘Oh, dear. A hopeless case.’ He stood and looked down at Maggie’s phone. He wasn’t wearing the gloves any more. ‘Right, time to make that call.’ He put the phone to his ear, and his face suddenly changed as he put on a look of shock and tears came into his eyes. ‘Ambulance!’ he yelled. ‘Please, ambulance!’ And then he was giving it, ‘My dad’s been stabbed! My stepmother – she’s killed him! Please, I need an ambulance. I’ve tried to bring him back, but – but . . . No, I don’t think he’s breathing. I tried doing first aid on him. Yes. Okay. But his chest – he’s been stabbed in the chest . . . No, I think there’s blood in his airway –’
And suddenly there was someone else in the room.
Maggie had forgotten her name.
The airhead lassie that was married to Nick. She must have stepped through the smashed door, and now she was taking in the scene, her eyes flicking from Maggie to Duncan to Nick.
‘Oh God!’ The lassie pushed past Nick; dropped to her knees at Duncan’s side; put a hand, without flinching, to his neck.
‘Lulu!’ Nick’s eyes widened, now, in real shock. And then he was speaking into the phone again: ‘And we need the police too. I forgot to say, we need the police. I’ve tied her up, but . . . Yes. Okay, yes, I’ll do that. My wife is here. Can I hand you over to her?’
He shoved the phone at Lulu and dropped to Duncan’s side.
‘He killed him!’ Maggie got out. ‘He killed Duncan!’
But the lassie, Lulu, was speaking into the phone. ‘I’m trained in first aid. I’ll do it. I’m going to hand you back to my husband. Nick . . .’ She put her fingers into Duncan’s mouth. ‘Nick, take the phone. Tell me what they’re saying.’
‘You can help him?’ Maggie got out.
Oh, please, let her not be an airhead.
Let her be able to save him.
Nick’s hand was trembling convincingly as he took the phone from Lulu. ‘Right,’ he said after listening to the person on the other end. ‘She’s doing that. You’re trying to clear the obstruction?’
Lulu nodded.
‘Now you have to tip his head back . . . Oh God, oh God. Dad!’ And now into the phone: ‘I’ve already tried that!’ And to Lulu: ‘Chest compressions. Thirty compressions and then two rescue breaths. Do you know how to do that?’
But Lulu was already doing it, deftly, her eyes focused on Duncan’s face.
‘She’s doing it,’ he said into the phone. ‘My wife knows how to do it. But please – they need to hurry! He’s not responding! Is he, Lu? Is he responding?’
‘No,’ she said shortly, not looking away from Duncan.
‘This is all my fault, Lulu!’ Nick choked. ‘Dad sent me a text message saying he’d locked himself in the loo and she’d gone haywire. I didn’t think, I just came straight here. I should have replied, I should have told him to stay in the loo! By the time I got here, she had the knife and she was threatening him with it, but when I – when I smashed the door to get in, she stabbed him! She just – she pushed the knife into his stomach, and before I could get to them, she’d done it again. Look, there, in his chest! Oh God, Lulu, she’s killed him for real this time!’
33
Lulu - June 2019
‘I knew he was in danger!’ Nick sobbed, as Lulu continued with the compressions. ‘I could see how angry she was! I could see she was furious that we were being reconciled. I should never have left him alone with her! Oh God, Lu, is he dead?’
Lulu said nothing.
She couldn’t think straight. After that frantic cycle through the dark landscape, to be confronted by this, this scene of horror –
All she could focus on was this man under her, this man whose life could depend on her keeping a cool head. She had learned first aid as a teenager and taken refresher courses regularly, but she’d never had to do it for real.
She knew he was dead.
She knew he wasn’t responding.
But still, she had to try.
By the time the paramedics arrived, two big, capable men, Lulu was close to collapse. She let Nick put an arm round her and guide her to a chair. ‘I’ll get you a glass of water.’