The doorbell rang, but Sarah was halfway downstairs, pulling her robe around her. It was just after 4.30 a.m., and she had been lying awake, waiting anxiously for Bob to return, when she had heard the car pull up outside.
She threw the door open. Andy and Alex stood on the threshold, unkempt and speedily dressed.
`What is it?' she snapped urgently. Andy stepped into the hall and put his hands on her trembling shoulders.
It's Bob,' he said. 'He's in the Royal.
Sarah gasped and looked at Alex, noticing, for the first time, that she had been crying.
'A patrol car found him in Dairy Road. It was answering a call-out to investigate a shop alarm that had been reported ringing. The officers recognised him and had the presence of mind to get a message to me. They said that it looked as if he was attacked when he was out running. He's been stabbed.'
Sarah's hands flew to her face. 'Oh my God! How bad is it?'
`They don't know. I called the hospital. They told me that he was alive, but unconscious, when the ambulance got there. They rushed him straight into surgery. Apparently he has a single Wound in the back, penetrating the chest cavity.'
Do you know who did it?' she gasped.
Martin nodded. 'I think so. The patrol car stopped a girl in Dalry Road, running away from the scene. She had a broken wrist. There were three blokes at the scene, all of them hospital cases. The ambulance crew had to give one of them an emergency tracheotomy.
The Big Man went down fighting and no mistake.'
Upstairs, Jazz began to cry.
‘I’ll see to the baby,' said Alex `Sarah, you get dressed and Andy'll take you to the Royal.'
She nodded, and headed for the stairs.
`That's right,' said Martin, a meaningful look in his eye. And when we get there, I'm going to talk to those three guys, and the girl. I have friends in that hospital — and none of those characters will be having anything but the minimum treatment until they've told me the whole story!'