Dead Tomorrow

something.’
    He pulled his mobile phone out of his pocket. ‘Lynn, I’m going to call an ambulance.’
    ‘NO!’
    Her sudden vehemence startled him. For some moments they both just stared at each other, in a kind of Mexican stand-off.
    Then he gave her a strange look.
    ‘Is something going on, Lynn? That I don’t know about? Are you planning to take her abroad, is that it? To get a transplant in China?’
    She stared back at him without responding, wondering whether she dared to take him into her trust, caught Luke’s eye, willing him to keep silent.
    ‘No,’ she said.
    ‘She wouldn’t survive the journey, Lynn.’
    ‘I–I’m not taking her abroad.’
    ‘So why do you want to delay her goinginto hospital?’
    ‘Just don’t ask me, Ross, OK?’
    He frowned deeply. ‘I think you’d better tell me what’s going on. Are you seeing some alternative practitioner? A faith healer?’
    ‘Yes,’ she said, suddenly short of breath with nerves, the word jetting out. ‘Yes. I–I have someone—’
    ‘They could see her in hospital, surely?’
    Lynn shook her head vigorously.
    ‘Do you understand how much you are endangering Caitlin’s life, doing this?’
    ‘And what the hell has your damn system done for her so far?’ Luke suddenly said, simmering with rage. ‘What’s your bloody National Health done for her? Drag her in and out of hospital for years, putting her on the transplant list and getting all her hopes up, finding her a liver, then deciding instead to give it to some fuck-wit alcoholic so he can have a couple more years in the boozer? What do you want to do–send her back up to that hell-hole so more people can promise her a liver she’s never going to bloody well get?’
    He turned away, dabbing his eyes with the backs of his fists.
    In the silence that followed, Lynn and the doctor stared bleakly at each other.
    Sniffing, she said, ‘He’s right.’
    ‘Lynn,’ Ross Hunter said gravely, ‘I’ll give her a strong shot of antibiotics and I’ll leave you some tablets to give her every four hours. They’ll help reduce the infection which is causing her the pain. If I give her an enema, that will help too by reducing the protein build-up in the bowel. She should really be on a fluid drip–you need to get a lot of liquid down her.’
    ‘What sort?’
    ‘Glucose. She needs a lot. And you haveto get her to eat, as much food as she can get down her.’
    ‘This will work, will it, Ross?’
    He looked at her sternly. ‘If you do all those things, hopefully she will rally for a while. But what you are doing is dangerous and you’re only buying a short amount of time. Do you understand?’
    She nodded.
    ‘I’ll come back tomorrow afternoon. Unless there’s a dramatic improvement, which I don’t think we’re going to see, then I’m sending her straight to hospital. All right?’
    She threw her arms around him and hugged him.
    ‘Thank you,’ she whispered, tearfully. ‘Thank you.’

100
    Pulling his coat on, Glenn Bransonleft Bella Moy sitting in the warmth of the unmarked police car, crossed the narrow street behind the Metropole Hotel and once more rang the bell marked 1202, J. Baker . Then he stood outside the tower block in the icy wind, waiting for any sound to come down the speaker system.
    Yet again, silence.
    It was now just after four in the morning. In his pocket was the search warrant that had been signed at eleven last night by Juliet Smith, a senior magistrate he had always found helpful. Since then they had maintained a vigil here through the long night, only driving off for two brief periods.
    The first had been to visit one of Cosmescu’s known haunts, the Rendezvous Casino in the Marina, but the manager told them, with some regret in his voice, that unusually Mr Baker had not been there for a few days. The second had been to get bacon sandwiches and coffee from the Market Diner, one of the city’s few all-night cafés.
    He got back into the car shivering, slamming the door gratefully against the elements. The smell of greasy bacon lingered.
    Bella looked at him wearily. ‘I think it’s time to wake up the caretaker,’ she said.
    ‘Yup, seems very selfish to be the only ones appreciating this beautiful night,’ he said.
    ‘Very selfish,’ she agreed.
    They climbed out, locked thedoors, then walked back across to the front door. Glenn pressed the button marked Concierge.
    There was no response. After a few moments he tried again. About thirty seconds