Page 64 of The Love of Our Lives
Adam finally turns, takes a breath in as he says the words I was dreading, ‘Charlie had a fall on the mountain this afternoon and she’s been airlifted to the hospital.’
He pauses.
‘I think we should go quickly.’
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
It takes us longer than it should to get to the hospital because of the ice, but at least Adam’s driving this time. I was just too jittery, my legs shaking from a combination of skiing and shock, but I was still able to direct him before he’d even turned the satnav on. I knew how confused he must have been at how well I knew the route, how I could even tell him which back roads to take.
This isn’t the first time I’ve raced to the hospital here.
This isn’t the first time I’ve been at risk of losing someone I love. But it’s simply not the time to be concealing my old self from him.
Because Charlie has to be OK.
The baby has to be OK.
The words go over and over in my head as we approach the bright lights of the hospital. Parking up as quickly as possible, the two of us jump out and run across the grey car park to the tall beige buildings at the centre. Inside, Adam goes up to the reception desk, as I stand back a little, trying to process what is happening.
A million thoughts are running through my head. How did Charlie fall if she wasn’t skiing? Did I cause this to happen by suggesting we all come up here? By keeping everyone up like that. If Charlie hadn’t have come here, would she and the baby still be OK?
William’s family were not OK.
Cat was not OK.
Before I can process it any further, however, Adam is telling me which ward we need to go to. I follow dumbly, heart pounding in my chest.
‘They’ve been given a private room apparently,’ Adam says, but I can only nod, panic surging up inside me.
‘You all right?’ Adam says, turning briefly to me with worried eyes, and it’s enough to snap me out of it. Because this isn’t about me right now. It’s about Charlie and the baby.
Arriving outside the room, we pause briefly at the sight inside. Sven is sitting with his back to us on a hospital chair, beside Charlie on a hospital bed, seemingly asleep. She’s lying on her side, a slight bump still protruding out from the covers, thank God, but her usually active body is now hooked up to all sorts of wires and monitors. It’s an experience I know only too well, though seeing it on Charlie seems different somehow. She’s supposed to be up dancing and laughing and moving. And now one mistake – just one – might have destroyed everything.
As though sensing our presence, Sven turns sharply. His usually calm-looking eyes are red and swollen and he’s still wearing his black salopettes and skins from the mountain. He gets up and walks over to the door. Immediately Adam pulls him into a hug and Sven shuts his eyes. A small noise comes out.
‘Thanks for coming, guys,’ he says eventually, stepping back before hugging me too, and as he does, I think about how much I truly love Sven and Charlie. I can’t bear the thought of them suffering.
They’re like family to me.
‘How is she?’ I ask, just as Adam says, ‘What happened?’
Sven shakes his head. ‘She was just so excited to be close to the mountains; you know how she gets sometimes . . .’
I nod. I really do.
‘She convinced me to take her up in the end, just for a quick ski on a green slope. But then she fell out of nowhere . . . she was so tired.’
‘But how is she?’ I repeat, heart beating fast. ‘How is the baby?’
Sven’s face darkens and he looks back in through the glass at Charlie. ‘It’s too early to tell at the moment, apparently . . . the way she fell caused some internal bleeding,’ he says, tailing off.
He covers his face with his hands and I immediately go to put my arm about him.
He takes a few breathes in.
‘You guys should get home and get some sleep,’ he says after a few moments.
Adam and I shake our heads at the same time. ‘No way,’ Adam says. ‘We’ll hang out here tonight, see it through with you.’
