Escape for Christmas

Chapter Twenty-Two

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

An hour later Sophie had forgotten that anything bad – or good – had ever passed between her and Brody. The only thing she cared about was Anna, and her baby, who had decided not to wait for the professionals to arrive after all. The little one was ready to make her entrance imminently.

Sophie had propped the phone up on the bedside table and put it on speaker. Every tea light in the house had been deployed in the ‘delivery room’, and the floor and bed were covered in bin bags.

The kids were sleeping in the guest lounge, after finally nodding off to stories read to them by Amber and Suzanne by the light of a torch. Nico and the Hartley-Brewers had gone to find clean towels.

Pete was holding Anna’s hand and mopping her brow.

All dignity had gone out of the window, because Brody and Agatha now had no choice but to deliver the baby. Thank goodness the birth pack had been to hand, so Brody at least had the right equipment to make it easier.

‘Right, I need a hand,’ he said.

‘Me?’ Sophie squeaked.

‘Yup. You and Agatha. Baby’s on the way. There’s a sterile gown in the pack. Someone needs to tie me into it. And get plenty of towels in here, please!’

After a moment of feeling frozen with fear, Sophie got to work, helping Brody into the gown and slipping the sterile sheets from the pack underneath Anna, who was panting and grunting. More towels had arrived. She had to look away while Brody declared to the emergency operator that the baby’s head was emerging, suddenly feeling a little faint herself.

Anna was grunting and squeezing Pete’s hand tightly.

‘Can you pant for us, Anna?’ Agatha asked. ‘Just while we check the cord?’

‘It’s OK,’ Brody said, ‘I think we’re ready. You can push the baby out now, Anna. Big, big push!’ He needed his brow mopping too, his forehead glistening with perspiration.

Pete kept saying, ‘You’re doing brilliantly,’ over and over again, and Anna kept swearing at him for putting her through this.

‘One more push,’ Brody urged.

Then suddenly Anna let out a huge groan and the baby was born, a writhing pink bundle.

‘One little girl, as ordered!’ Brody declared, wrapping the baby in a waiting towel. She didn’t yell, and Sophie’s skin went cold. Why wasn’t she crying? Weren’t newborns supposed to scream the house down?

‘What’s wrong?’ Pete panicked.

‘Is she OK?’ Anna asked anxiously.

Sophie heard the operator asking for an Apgar score, which seemed to be some way of assessing the baby’s condition. She heard Brody give the baby an eight and mention that she was a bit blue and slow to respond.

The baby sputtered and coughed. Sophie held her breath. Then the baby let out a huge yell and Sophie said a silent prayer of thanks, tears pouring down her cheeks. Mostly they were tears of relief, but seeing new human life being brought into the world in front of her eyes had reminded her of Ben and Naomi. They were going to be parents too, and she couldn’t help but think of what might have been: of what she’d lost.

Immediately she checked herself. Having a baby was the greatest commitment anyone could make, and when she did do it – if she did – she wanted it to be with a man she could rely on and respect … and love.

‘I’ll cut and clamp the cord, then you can hold her properly,’ Brody said, taking the sterile scissors from the pack and then handing the wrapped baby to Anna. ‘There you go! Congratulations!’

Pete burst into tears as he and Anna cuddled their newborn daughter.

The emergency controller was talking about placentas, and things Sophie didn’t want to know about. All she cared about was that baby Nowak had arrived safe and well and that miraculously Anna – so far –was OK.

Someone banged on the bedroom door and Sophie opened it a crack.

It was Nico. ‘Don’t worry, I’m not coming in. But the mountain-rescue team is here.’

‘Thank God for that!’ said Sophie.

Brody heaved a sigh of relief. ‘They can deliver the placenta and take care of you now, Anna.’

‘Well done,’ Sophie said. ‘To you all. I’ll go and show the rescue team in.

‘Is it a girl or a boy?’ Nico asked as she hurried through the sitting room. ‘We’re all on tenterhooks!’

‘A lovely, gorgeous little girl,’ Sophie replied, feeling elated now that the baby was safely here.

Nico flung his arms around her and kissed her on the lips. ‘Well done! Congratulations!’

Sophie blushed, taken aback by what had just happened. ‘Thanks, but I didn’t actually do the work.’

The hall was suddenly filled with people in red jackets and boots, brushing snow off their faces and shining powerful torches, whose light hurt her eyes.

‘Hi, I’m Dr Kumar. Can you update me on the situation?’

Sophie almost fainted with relief. ‘Oh yes, the baby girl seems fine, and I think we’re all about to have a total meltdown.’

The doctor patted her shoulder. ‘It sounds like you’ve done an amazing job. Where are they then?’

Sophie showed them through to the bedroom, where Brody, Agatha and Pete were looking after Anna and the little one.

‘Boy, am I glad to see you!’ Brody murmured.

‘Are you trying to take over my job?’ the doctor asked, jokingly. ‘Not content with foals and lambs.’

‘Believe me, I never want to do this again,’ Brody declared, before the doctor spoke to Anna and checked the baby.

Pete slapped him on the back and hugged him. ‘But I’m glad you did. Thank you so much – you and Agatha and Sophie. Thank you.’

‘The priority now is to keep mum and baby warm, and once I’ve checked them over, we can get them to hospital,’ Dr Kumar declared.

‘Thank you,’ said Sophie, feeling tears welling up again. ‘I’m going to see how the guests are and make some tea, which we all need.’ She went out to the hallway, where a powerful light had been set up in the hall, and spotted a face she recognised: Kev, Vee’s husband. The adrenaline began to ebb away and she found she was shaking.

‘Hey, you OK?’ Kev asked, putting an arm around her.

‘I think so. Yes, but I’ve never been so terrified in my life.’

‘No wonder. You did amazingly well.’

‘Brody did the hard part, helped by one of the guests who used to be a nurse. We’re so lucky they were both here.’

‘You played a huge role, organising everyone. No wonder you’re in shock at what’s just happened.’

‘I need to make sure everyone’s alright.’

‘You sit down,’ Amber ordered with surprising firmness. ‘We’re going to a look after you, for a change. All of us.’

‘Good idea,’ Suzanne agreed. ‘I’ll help make drinks for everyone. The Mountain Rescue Team have brought some camping stoves for us to use.’

Una and Hugo appeared from the kitchen. ‘We’ve got tea and coffee here, and I hope it’s OK, but we all put our welcome biscuits and treats together.’

‘And we brought our Christmas presents for each other,’ Hugo said sheepishly.

Una gazed up at him. ‘Know we shouldn’t, but we did. Hugo loves a luxury biscuit, don’t you?’

‘I do, and Una can’t resist dark chocolate. I bought a giant box.’

‘You don’t have to give us your Christmas presents,’ Sophie said, touched by their thoughtfulness.

‘I can’t think of a better use for them.’

A short time later the guests were handing around steaming mugs of tea, snacks and hot chocolate for everyone. Never had Sophie seen the house more crowded, but it felt good to be surrounded by people.

She needed some fresh air to collect herself, so she grabbed her coat and went into the garden. Her hands had stopped shaking and it was bitterly cold, but she needed the jolt of fresh air and silence after the chaos that had unfolded. The snow had stopped and the night sky was clear. Torchlight and voices spilled out, along with laughter.

Sophie allowed her breathing to return to normal. Disaster had been averted, thanks to Brody’s help. And what a woman Anna Nowak was … And her guests had rallied together to help.

‘There you are, you star.’

Nico’s voice startled her. He held out a large mug, steaming madly in the crisp air. ‘I brought tea, with lots of sugar. You look like you need it.’

‘Thank you,’ Sophie said, taking it. She sipped and rested it on the stone wall. ‘I’m not a star. Anna is.’

‘Of course,’ agreed Nico. ‘But you organised us. I must admit, when I booked this, I’d no idea I was going to become part of a real-life nativity with a Christmas baby.’

‘Believe me, neither did I. If I’d known this was going to happen, I’d never have organised this weekend.’

Nico laughed and, once again, Sophie couldn’t help but wonder why he was really here, not buying the story he’d told them all earlier.

‘Can I be honest?’ she said, feeling that what they’d been through together had broken down the usual host–guest barriers.

‘Of course. I always think it’s best.’

‘I’ve been wondering why you booked in here at all? I mean, Agatha, Una and Hugo are lovely people but, like a lot of my guests, they are on the more mature side.’

‘OK, I’ll be honest. I couldn’t find anything else at the last minute.’

‘Anything better ?’ she said, watching him through the steam from her mug.

‘No, actually. It was the quirkiness of the offer that attracted me. There were a couple of options promising turkey, tinsel and carols, but they appealed about as much as a limp lettuce. Your escape, on the other hand, leapt out at me … For all kinds of reasons,’ he added cryptically and with a touch of sadness, Sophie thought.

She smiled. ‘It’s not turned out quite how I expected.’

‘On the contrary, it’s greatly exceeded my expectations.’

The moon came out. Was that a twinkle in Nico’s eyes?

‘Particularly the hostess,’ he added smoothly. ‘You’re a remarkable woman, Sophie.’

Even in the chilly air, she felt warmth rise to her cheeks at the compliment from this handsome man. Then she reminded herself that, so far, the previous two good-looking and charming men she’d allowed into her life had let her down badly. Of all her ‘escapees’, Nico struck her as the one with the biggest reason for running away and hiding from something.

‘I’m just an ordinary person trying to do my best,’ she replied firmly.

‘Sophie?’ Brody appeared on the terrace, still in shirt sleeves, with damp hair.

‘Ah, the hero of the evening,’ Nico murmured.

‘Sorry?’ Brody said brusquely. ‘Sophie, the rescue team is preparing to move Anna and the baby to the helicopter. It’s almost here. I wondered if you might like to come to the sports field with me and see them off? They won’t be long, because the biggest danger now is the baby getting cold. The helicopter has the proper equipment to keep them warm.’

‘Oh yes!’ Sophie declared. ‘Would you mind making sure everything’s OK here?’ she asked Nico. ‘Especially Pete and the children, and Agatha. She was amazing, but she needs looking after now. I’ll be back soon, but I feel I want to see Anna and the baby safely onto the helicopter.’

‘Of course, I’ll hold the fort.’ Nico smiled ‘By the way, well done, mate,’ he said to Brody.

Brody grunted something vaguely resembling a ‘Thank you’ before striding off towards the front of the building. Sophie followed, drinking her tea on the move.

By the time she was inside the house, Brody was back in his coat, holding a torch. The mountain-rescue team was carrying Anna and the baby out in a stretcher chair, both swaddled like mummies against the cold. Pete saw her off to the gate. The Nowak children couldn’t all go on the helicopter and Pete didn’t want to leave them, so he had to stay behind.

The doctor comforted him just before they left the house. ‘I promise we’ll let you know how they are as soon as we can. Anna’s got her phone too.’

With that, Pete went back inside. Without the team, it was darker inside Sunnyside and the tea lights and phone batteries wouldn’t last for ever. It was going to be a very long night. Sophie grabbed a torch and hurried out after the team. Even in wellies, it was hard going, the snow coming almost to the top of her boots in places.

Felltop Farm had lights on downstairs, but the rest of the village was mostly in darkness. She and Brody walked past the fallen tree that had allowed a stretcher party, but not a vehicle, to pass.

‘We’ll get that cleared in the morning by one of the local farmers,’ Brody suggested.

‘The snow still has to thaw before anyone can leave, though,’ Sophie said. ‘So it’ll be Boxing Day before we can get out.’ Ironic, she thought, that her guests had come to escape and now they were trapped.

The roar of rotors grew louder as they trudged towards the sports field where the helicopter was waiting. The crew was hurrying towards the stretcher and, within a minute, both Anna and the baby were safely aboard. The mountain-rescue team moved away and the helicopter took off, snow spiralling into the air from the downdraught.

The thought of them soaring high in the sky to safety brought a lump to Sophie’s throat. The rotors died away and she felt herself choking back tears. She found Brody’s hand in the small of her back briefly – before it was hastily withdrawn, as if he’d suddenly remembered the tension between them.

She looked at him, his face uplit by torchlight. He looked completely shell-shocked.

‘They’ll be fine now,’ Brody said. ‘You did incredibly well.’

‘I only watched. Anyone would think you’d done it before.’

‘I was terrified of hurting the baby or Anna. I have never been so happy to see anyone as I was when the rescue doc turned up.’

‘Me too, but not because I didn’t have total faith in you,’ Sophie said, adding quickly, ‘in your abilities.’

‘I’m glad you did. Even though I’ve attended hundreds of animal births, that was something else.’

She stopped and listened. A distant clanging cut through the still night.

‘It’s the church bells up in the village,’ said Brody. ‘It’s Christmas Day.’

‘Christmas Day …’ She thought of all her plans to avoid it, and how they’d paled into insignificance compared to the situation they’d had to deal with. ‘I’d forgotten about that.’

‘Me too, but it’s here, and I have a suggestion for you. I’ll tell you on the way back to Sunnyside. I don’t know about you, but I’m freezing my bits off.’

When Sophie heard his plan, she was dumbfounded. ‘Move everyone into your house until the thaw? We couldn’t possibly do that – apart from Pete and the kids coming to yours. They can be cosy and have a proper bed, in their own room. We can’t all troop over to you, though. We can’t invade your home.’

‘I’m not suggesting you all sleep at the farm, only that you come over in the morning. You’ll need to charge your phones and torch batteries. Why don’t you all go back to bed for now, then come over for breakfast and stay until bedtime, so you’re not spending the day with no power.’

Everything he said made perfect sense. It would be so much more comfortable for her guests – and, Sophie had to admit, for her too. However, there was one big problem.

‘What about Tegan?’ she said.

‘She won’t mind.’

‘Have you asked her?’

‘No, it will be fine.’

‘She might not be fine when she finds ten strangers invading her space, when she’d planned a quiet Christmas Day.’

‘We were meant to go to her parents’, not stay at the farm. She’ll cope,’ he said. ‘Plans have had to change and we need to deal with it, same as we did tonight.’

They’d reached Sunnyside, which still looked strange, with its low lights and all the top floor in darkness.

‘I think …’ Sophie said, realising that she would be silly not to accept Brody’s invitation. Her guests came first, and not her pride. ‘You should take Pete and the children back with you, so they can have a proper night’s rest. I’ll tell the guests about the plan for tomorrow.’

They went inside to give everyone the news.

Sophie had to admit Brody was right about one thing: her guests would definitely not mind moving into his house. Tegan, however, might be a very different story.