The Midwife's Christmas Miracle (10 page)

It was all very unsettling. When the choir began to sing the first carol, Lucy found it hard to concentrate. However, the familiar strains of ‘Away in a Manger’ soon had her singing along. They went into the wards where Max handed out fluffy white teddy bears to all the babies. He had a word with each of the mums and she couldn’t help noticing how they all responded to him. It wasn’t just the fact that Max was a very attractive man but that he obviously cared about people, and they responded to that. Once again she found herself thinking how at odds his attitude was to the way he lived his life.

They left the wards and made their way to the special care baby unit where Max placed a teddy on every incubator. When the choir began to sing ‘Silent Night’, Lucy wasn’t the only one with tears in her eyes. There was something incredibly moving about hearing the beautiful old carol sung in a place where the most vulnerable babies were cared for.

‘That was really lovely,’ she said sincerely as they left SCBU.

‘It always leaves a lump in my throat,’ Max admitted as he followed her along the corridor.

‘Me too. So where are you off to next?’ she asked, pausing when they came to the stairs.

‘There’s just Women’s Surgical left to do and that’s it. I can hang up my robe and beard. I must say that I won’t be sorry to part with the latter. It’s incredibly hot and itchy!’

Lucy laughed when he began to scratch his chin. ‘Good job you won’t have to wear it for very much longer. Do you usually play Father Christmas?’

‘No, this is a first for me. Sam Kearney was supposed to be doing it this year but he got held up in Resus. He phoned me to ask if I’d take over for him and I couldn’t think of a way to refuse.’

‘Well, I’m sure everyone appreciated your efforts.’

‘Let’s hope so.’ He gave her a quick smile then went to catch up with the rest of the party.

Lucy went back to the office, wishing that she could have thought of something to keep him there a bit longer. She sighed because it was dangerous to think like that. She needed to stay away from Max instead of concocting reasons to be with him. She found the laundry list and went to put away the fresh supplies that had been delivered. Tina helped her and they had just finished when the phone rang.

‘I’ll get it,’ Lucy said, hurrying to the desk. ‘Maternity. Lucy Harris speaking.’

It was Helen Roberts’s husband, phoning to tell them that Helen had gone into labour. He sounded frantic with worry and Lucy understood why when he explained that he had phoned for an ambulance only to be told that it could be some time before one reached them.
Apparently, there’d been a serious accident on the motorway and every available ambulance had been deployed there. With his leg still in a cast, Martin was unable to drive Helen to the hospital himself.

‘Is there anyone else who could drive her here?’ Lucy asked.

‘No, nobody. Mum and Dad are away on a cruise and they won’t be back for another week,’ Martin told her anxiously.

‘How about a neighbour, perhaps?’

‘Jack Walsh is our nearest neighbour—he lives about ten miles away,’ Martin informed her. ‘I know it doesn’t sound very far, but we’ve had a lot of snow in the past few days and the roads are virtually impassable in places. It could take an hour or more for Jack to get here.’

‘That’s probably as long as it would take an ambulance to get to you,’ Lucy said, trying not to show how concerned she felt. She knew how dangerous it would be for Helen to give birth without the necessary precautions being taken. Poor glycaemic control during labour and birth could affect the baby, causing respiratory distress and hypoglycaemia amongst other things. Helen would need either insulin injections or intravenous dextrose plus insulin to keep her stable. She realised that she needed to discuss the situation with someone else.

‘I need to speak to one of the doctors about this, Martin, so I’m going to have to phone you back.’

‘You won’t be long, will you? We really need help here asap.’

‘I’ll be as quick as I can,’ she assured him. She hung up then contacted the switchboard and asked them to
page Diane, quickly explaining what had happened as soon as the registrar phoned her back.

‘I don’t know what to suggest,’ Diane admitted worriedly. ‘Obviously, the situation is extremely urgent but without an ambulance to ferry Helen here, I don’t know what we can do. I’ll give Max a call and see what he says.’

Lucy hung up, checking her watch to see how much time had elapsed. Although the conversation had taken only a few minutes, every second counted. When the phone rang, she snatched up the receiver. ‘What did Max say?’

There was a tiny pause before Max’s voice came down the line. ‘Diane just told me what’s happened. I’ve spoken to Ambulance Control and they’re trying to organise an ambulance, but it could take some time to get one out to the farm.’

‘What about the neighbouring authorities?’ she suggested, trying to still the thunderous beating of her heart, but hearing his voice so unexpectedly had thrown her off balance. ‘Can they help?’

‘Apparently they’ve already deployed any spare ambulances to the RTA. Ambulance Control will have to try further afield, possibly Lancaster or Penrith.’

‘But they’re miles away from here!’

‘I know. I’m not happy about it either, but it’s the best they can do in the circumstances. In the meantime, I’m going to drive up to the farm myself. I was on my way home when Diane phoned me but it won’t take me long to get back to the unit and collect what I need.’

He paused and Lucy realised that she was holding her breath as she waited for him to continue. ‘The thing is that I need someone to go with me. I’ve had a word with
Carol Jackson, the nursing manager, and she’s agreed to find cover. A couple of the community midwives are on standby and I’m sure one of them will come in if it’s necessary. So will you come with me, Lucy? Please.’

‘How much further is it now?’

Max changed down a gear, keeping his gaze locked on the increasingly treacherous surface of the road. Thick snow blanketed the surrounding countryside, with drifts several feet deep in places. He couldn’t imagine how an ambulance would manage to negotiate these roads in such appalling conditions, which made it all the more imperative that they get through.

‘A couple of miles.’ Lucy angled the light from the torch so that she could see the map. ‘There should be a turning down here on the left any second now…There it is!’

Max slowed the car to a crawl before he turned into the lane. Even so, he felt the rear end slide sideways and held his breath as he steered into the skid. The last thing they needed was to end up in a ditch!

‘I’m glad I’m not driving.’ Lucy grimaced as the car righted itself and they set off down the lane. ‘It’s horrendously slippy.’

‘It is. I can’t see an ambulance making it up here, can you?’ Max observed, resisting the urge to look at her. He needed to keep his attention on the road, he reminded himself, then sighed. Just sitting next to Lucy was distracting enough.

‘No, I can’t. So what are we going to do if we can’t get Helen to the hospital before the baby arrives?’

She sounded worried and he hurried to reassure her. ‘Exactly what we would do if Helen was in the unit. We have everything we need, Lucy—insulin, dextrose, pain relief, the lot.’

‘And what if she needs a section? I mean, it could happen, Max. I know the recent scans of the baby seemed fine but…’

‘But nothing. We’ll deal with that if and when it happens.’ He reached over and squeezed her hand. ‘Don’t go borrowing trouble, as my granny used to say.’

She gave a shaky laugh as she withdrew her hand. ‘Your granny sounds like a very wise woman.’

She busied herself with the map, making it clear that she didn’t want any more reassurances. Max gripped the steering-wheel, feeling his fingers tingling from the brief contact they’d made with hers. Could Lucy feel it too, he wondered, feel those frissons of awareness flickering under her skin? He thought she did, and it only made him feel even more conscious of her sitting beside him. To know that Lucy shared these feelings he had was both a torment and a joy.

It was another ten minutes before they finally reached the farmhouse. Max heaved a sigh of relief as he switched off the engine. ‘I didn’t think we were going to make it down that last stretch. The snow was so thick that the tyres couldn’t get a grip.’

‘I’m glad it’s over,’ Lucy said thankfully, opening the car door. She hurried round to the back and opened the tailgate, reaching for the box of supplies they’d brought with them.

‘I’ll take that if you’ll carry my case,’ Max told her,
lifting the box out of the Land Rover. They headed to the house and Lucy knocked on the door. Martin opened it and it was obvious how relieved he was to see them.

‘Thanks heavens you made it!’ He ushered them into the kitchen, using one of his crutches to direct them along the hall. ‘Through there on your left. Helen’s in the sitting room. We’ve been sleeping downstairs—it’s easier than negotiating the stairs with these things.’

‘We’ll find her,’ Max assured him. He led the way to the sitting room and found Helen lying on the sofa. ‘How are you doing?’

‘Not too bad.’ She summoned a smile but Max could see the worry in her eyes. ‘It’s the baby I’m more concerned about. If my glucose levels aren’t right then it could cause problems when it’s born, couldn’t it?’

‘Yes, it could, but that isn’t going to happen, Helen. We’re going to keep a close watch on your blood glucose levels, aren’t we, Lucy?’ He turned to Lucy, trying to ignore the flood of emotions that filled him. He didn’t have time to worry about how he felt when he needed to concentrate on Helen and her baby.

‘We are. In fact, we shall do everything exactly the same as we would have done if you’d been in hospital,’ she confirmed, using his own words to reassure Helen. They obviously worked because Helen’s smile was less forced this time.

‘Thank you. That’s good to hear.’

The next half-hour flew past. After he had checked Helen’s blood glucose levels, Lucy helped him set up the drip. The mixture of dextrose and insulin would help to maintain Helen’s glucose levels during the birth, although they would need to monitor the situation very closely. The sofa pulled out into a double bed, so once
Martin had told them where to find clean sheets and blankets, they got that ready as well.

Max had brought a portable foetal monitor with him and as soon as Helen was comfortably settled, he checked the baby’s heart rate and was relieved to find that it appeared perfectly normal. Although he knew they were doing everything possible to ensure both the mother’s and the child’s safety, he would feel a lot happier once they got Helen to hospital.

He excused himself and went into the hall to phone the ambulance control centre for an update. It wasn’t good news and it was hard to hide his concern when he went back to the sitting room. Lucy obviously realised something was amiss because she came hurrying over to him.

‘What’s happened?’ she said quietly so Helen and Martin couldn’t hear her.

‘Apparently, an ambulance was dispatched half an hour ago. Ambulance Control has just received a message to say that it’s stuck in the snow and the crew don’t think they’ll be able to go any further. They’ve been told to return to base once they’ve dug themselves out.’

‘So what’s going to happen now?’

‘I’ve asked them to get onto the air ambulance service and see if they can help. If we can get a helicopter out here, that will solve our problems.’

‘Will it be able to fly in these conditions, though?’

‘I really don’t know. All we can do is cross our fingers and hope we get a break. Anyway, how’s Helen doing?’ he asked, refusing to dwell on what they would do if the helicopter failed to reach them.

‘Her contractions are speeding up.’ Lucy took her cue from him. Her voice held no trace of the anxiety
he knew she must be feeling. Max couldn’t help feeling proud of the way she was responding to the challenge but deemed it wiser not to say anything. He couldn’t afford to let his emotions get in the way of him doing his job.

‘Is she fully dilated?’

‘Not yet. She’s about eight centimetres so we’ve a bit of time yet. Is there anything in particular that I need to look out for when the baby is born?’

‘We’ll start with the usual assessment and carry on from there. There’s been no indication that Helen’s baby is suffering from congenital heart problems, but obviously we need to be aware of that,’ Max explained. ‘Hypoglycaemia can be an issue, so a blood glucose test will need to be done two to four hours after the birth, which is another reason why we need to get the baby to hospital as soon as possible. Other tests will be carried out if there are any clinical signs to indicate that there’s a problem.’

‘It’s better if the baby feeds as soon as possible, isn’t it?’ Lucy clarified.

‘Yes. Within thirty minutes of the birth is recommended, then every two to three hours after that until feeding maintains pre-feed blood glucose levels at a minimum of 2.0 mmol/litre.’

‘And if it drops below that level?’

‘If it happens on two consecutive readings, the baby will need to be fed by tube or given intravenous dextrose. However, I’m hoping neither of those will be necessary and definitely not while we’re here.’

‘Amen to that,’ Lucy agreed fervently.

‘It’s going to be fine,’ Max assured her. ‘All we
have to do is hold the fort until the air ambulance gets here.’

‘As simple as that, eh?’ she said, rolling her eyes. ‘We sit tight until the cavalry arrives.’

Max laughed. ‘That’s it. Easy-peasy, as my niece Emily would say.’

Lucy looked at him curiously. ‘I didn’t have you down as a doting uncle.’

‘No?’ He shrugged. ‘My brothers have five children between them, so I’ve well earned my stripes.’

‘You like children, then?’

‘Of course I do. Why wouldn’t I?’

‘Oh, no reason.’

She gave him a quick smile and moved away. Max sighed as he watched her go over to Helen. Lucy obviously thought that his bachelor status was a sign that he wasn’t keen on children and that couldn’t be further from the truth. Just for a second he longed to explain the situation to her before he realised how pointless it was. Lucy wasn’t going to play any part in his future, so it wouldn’t make a scrap of difference to her if he couldn’t have kids.

Lucy made a note of Helen’s blood pressure then glanced at the clock. Twenty minutes had passed since Max had spoken to the ambulance control centre. Was the helicopter on its way, or had the crew decided that the weather conditions were too bad for them to risk flying? She had no idea what they were going to do if it failed to arrive. All they could do was sit tight and hope that help would arrive eventually.

She frowned as she unfastened the cuff from around Helen’s arm because that thought had reminded her of what Max had told her. In her experience, men like him,
who enjoyed such a hedonistic lifestyle, weren’t usually interested in other people’s children. However, there’d been genuine affection in his voice when he had spoken about his niece and it was yet another factor that didn’t add up.

‘I’ll get onto Ambulance Control again and see what’s happening.’

Lucy glanced round when Max suddenly appeared at her side. ‘Good idea. We need to know if that helicopter is on its way,’ she agreed, hoping he couldn’t hear the uncertainty in her voice. She’d made one massive error of judgement with Richard and she would be a fool to make another one now. She should accept the situation for what it was and stop trying to justify Max’s behaviour all the time.

‘Fingers crossed,’ he murmured, heading for the door.

Lucy put the sphygmomanometer back in its case then checked the drip. Although Helen’s contractions were strong, she still wasn’t fully dilated. It would be a while yet before the baby was born, which meant there was still time to get her to hospital if the helicopter arrived soon.

‘No sign of that helicopter yet?’ Martin asked anxiously.

‘Max is phoning ambulance control for an update,’ Lucy explained as calmly as she could because it wouldn’t help if she appeared worried as well.

‘I should have insisted that you went to stay at your mother’s,’ Martin said, turning to glare at his wife. ‘There wouldn’t have been a problem if you’d been in town.’

‘And how would you have managed here on your own, with your leg in plaster?’ Helen retorted.

‘I’d have coped well enough,’ Martin said gruffly. ‘Anyway, Bert would have given me a hand if I’d needed it.’

Helen rolled her eyes as she turned to Lucy. ‘Bert’s our stockman and the most curmudgeonly old devil you can imagine. I don’t think he’s said more than a dozen words to either of us since Martin took over the farm after his father retired. Somehow, I can’t picture Bert playing nursemaid!’

She broke off when another contraction began. Lucy smiled to herself when she saw Martin lean over and rub Helen’s back. Despite their disagreement, it was obvious how they felt about each other. They had the kind of close and loving relationship she had always dreamed about, a relationship that grew stronger with time. With a sudden flash of insight she realised that her relationship with Richard would never have been like that, even if it had survived. It took selflessness to put the other person first, to find happiness by making them happy, and Richard wasn’t capable of that. He always put his needs before everyone else’s and was only truly happy if he was getting what
he
wanted.

In her heart, Lucy had known that but she had chosen to ignore her doubts. She had been as much at fault as Richard had in a way because she had deliberately deceived herself, and that was something she must never do again. She looked up when the door opened as Max came back, and felt her pulse begin to race. If she was to be truthful about her feelings from now on then she couldn’t lie about the way she felt about Max. It would be only too easy to fall in love with him, even if it would be a mistake.

‘The helicopter’s on its way. It was ferrying another
casualty to Penrith, which is why there’s been a delay, but it should be here in roughly ten minutes’ time.’ Max frowned when the information was met with silence. ‘Did you hear what I said, Lucy? The helicopter’s on its way.’

‘I…um…yes. That’s brilliant news.’

She gave him a bright smile but he could tell how forced it was. If he hadn’t needed to prepare for the helicopter’s arrival, he would have demanded to know what was wrong, but he simply didn’t have the time to spare.

‘We need to find a place where it can land,’ he explained, turning to Martin. ‘Obviously, it has to be flat and well away from any trees or overhead cables that could snag the rotors.’

‘The field behind the house is the best place,’ Martin said immediately.

‘Great. Can you show me where it is…? Oh, and have you got any torches or anything similar which we can use to guide them in?’

‘Sure. I’ve a stack of lanterns in the barn, we can use them.’

Martin grabbed his crutches and hurriedly left the room. Max followed him, leaving it to Lucy to get Helen ready for the transfer. He sighed as he followed Martin across the farmyard. Maybe it was a good thing that he hadn’t tried to find out what was troubling her. He was already in far deeper than he should have been and he needed to keep his distance, even if it was proving extremely difficult to do so. He just had to remember that he was doing this for her sake as well as his and hope that it would help.

The flight to the hospital was extremely bumpy. A strong wind had sprung up, threatening to blow them off course at one point. Lucy heaved a sigh of relief when the helicopter touched down safely on the landing pad on the hospital’s roof. As soon as the blades stopped spinning, Helen was lifted onto a trolley and rushed inside. Lucy hurried along beside her. Max had stopped to thank the crew but he soon caught up with them.

‘I want you to check her blood glucose levels as soon as we get her into the delivery room. The stress could have had an adverse effect.’