St Piran's: Daredevil, Doctor...Dad!

She had to walk rapidly to keep up with Mac’s long strides. He glanced down and checked his pace so it matched hers.

‘How are Jenny and the baby doing? ‘ she asked. As promised, Mac had taken Tim back to the hospital where his father had been waiting for him.

Mac frowned. ‘Last I knew, mother and baby were doing fine. Why, did you hear something? ‘ There was no mistaking the concern in his eyes.

‘No, I haven’t heard anything.’ Abby said. ‘I just thought you might have popped in to see her when you were at the hospital.’

Mac looked puzzled. ‘Why would I do that?’

‘Don’t you follow up on your patients? Aren’t you curious to know how everything turned out?’

He shook his head. ‘I treat them, look after them as best I can, then let the hospital staff do their bit. All I care about is giving the best treatment I am capable of. I don’t see the point in getting too involved with patients. We have to know when to let go, so we can move on to the next one.’

Abby was dismayed. Once again it seemed she had got this man wrong. Could he really be as disinterested in his patients as he seemed? Abby couldn’t imagine not following up on her patients. Most of the time, out there on a rescue, she formed a strong bond with the people whose lives depended on her. It was part of who she was.

‘So tell me, what brings you here, to Cornwall and Penhally Bay in particular?’ Mac changed the subject. ‘Someone mentioned you’d been working with the London ambulance service for the last eleven years. What happened? Did you get tired of the big city?’

Anxiety raced along her spine. It was the perfect moment to tell him about Emma, but she wasn’t ready. Not yet. Not until she knew more about him. Once she told him there would be no going back.

‘My daughter needed a change of air,’ Abby said evasively. ‘And I needed a change of scenery.’

‘You have a daughter? I didn’t know.’ He sounded surprised … and regretful.

Abby suspected he wouldn’t have been so keen to ask her out if he’d known she had a child. Most of the men she had dated in the past had reacted the same way. They all backed off when she told them and if they didn’t, her refusal to put them before Emma usually made them give up on her sooner or later. And that was fine. She didn’t need or want a man in her life who couldn’t accept Emma. Not even this one. Particularly not this one.

He flicked his eyes to her left hand again. ‘You don’t wear a ring so I’m guessing you’re not married.’

‘I’m a single mum.’ Let him make of that what he would. He would know the truth soon enough. First she had some questions of her own.

‘What about you? I assume you’re not married?’

‘Nope. Not the marrying kind, I guess.’

‘Children? ‘ Abby held her breath as she waited for his reply.

‘No, none of them either. Not the father kind.’

Little did he know.

‘How long have you worked for the air ambulance? ‘ Abby asked.

‘Two years. I completed my specialist training in anaesthesia, then I did a course in medical emergency retrieval in Glasgow. But unfortunately the surfing conditions aren’t great there, so when I found they were looking for a rescue medic here, I jumped at the chance. It means I can kite board when I’m not working.’

So his sport was as important as his job. Maybe more so. Abby was disappointed. Minute by minute she was having to revise her opinion of the man who was Emma’s father.

‘Although I can tell you’re Scottish from your accent, it doesn’t sound very Glaswegian,’ Abby probed. The more she knew about this man, the better.

‘I was brought up on Tiree. It’s an island off the west coast of Scotland. I lived there until I went to medical school in Glasgow when I was eighteen. I don’t go back to Tiree very often.’ His mouth tightened and as Abby glanced at him she could have sworn she saw anger behind his eyes, but it disappeared so quickly she couldn’t be sure. Did Mac have secrets of his own?

She was about to question him further when he stopped in his tracks. She followed his gaze to see what had caught his attention. To their left, close to the edge, a man was pacing frantically up and down, shouting a boy’s name.

‘Something’s wrong,’ Mac said. ‘I’m going to take a look-see.’

As Mac called out, the man turned to them, relief evident under his panic.

‘It’s my son,’ he said. ‘I can’t find him! One minute he was here, and then the next he was gone. I only meant to close my eyes for a minute, but I must have dropped off. You’ve got to help me find him. He’s only eight.’ The man’s eyes were darting around while he was speaking.

Mac placed a hand on his shoulder. ‘Stay calm and tell me everything. What’s your name?’

‘Dave. My son’s called Luke.’

‘Where did you last see Luke?’

‘He was over there.’ The man pointed behind him. ‘He wanted to go down to the beach but I told him there was no path. I said I’d take him there tomorrow. Oh, my God. What if he tried to go down by himself and fell?’

‘Have you phoned for help?’

‘No, I haven’t had time. I’ve been too busy looking for him.’

Mac’s eyes raked the side of the cliff. Something caught his attention and he stopped and sucked in a breath. Abby followed his gaze. Near the edge, a piece of the cliff had broken away. From the look of it, it had only happened very recently. Seeing the troubled look in Mac’s eyes, she knew he was thinking the same thing. There was a good chance the boy had got too close to the edge and slipped over. If they were right and the boy had fallen, he could be badly hurt, or worse.

‘Abby. Phone 999 and get them to alert the coastguard and the rescue services. Dave, I’m just going to have a look over this cliff and see if I can see him. You stay back, okay?’

Abby touched Dave’s shoulder reassuringly as she used her mobile. It was still possible the boy had wandered off and was nowhere near the cliff but they couldn’t take the chance.

Mac walked close to the cliff then dropped to his stomach to peer over the edge. ‘I think I can see him,’ he called. ‘Is he wearing a red jacket?’

Luke’s father rushed forward. Mac jumped to his feet and barred his way.

‘You have to stay back,’ Mac warned. ‘The edge here is already unstable. If you come any closer you could slip or a bit of the cliff could crumble and fall on your son.

‘I’m going to climb down there and see how he is, okay?’ Mac added quietly.

‘Shouldn’t we wait for the rescue services?’ Abby said. ‘The operator said they shouldn’t be more than ten minutes. If you go down there, you could fall, too.’

Mac dug in his pocket and pulled out his car keys. He tossed them to Dave. ‘Dave, go back to the car park. My car is the Jeep. In the boot you’ll find a red medical case, a rope and a yellow jacket. Could you fetch them? ‘

Dave hesitated and Mac gave him a gentle push. ‘Go! It’s the best way to help Luke. Be as quick as you can.’

As soon as Dave had set off at a run, Mac turned back to Abby. ‘We don’t have time to wait for help.’ While he was talking he had removed his jacket. ‘I’m going to go down. When Dave returns I might need you to lower my medical bag on the end of the rope. Okay?’ He moved towards the cliff.

‘Shouldn’t you at least wait for the rope?’ If Mac fell they would have two victims to rescue. Even in her anxiety, the irony wasn’t completely lost on her. She had just found Emma’s father. If he fell now, Emma might never get to know him.

Mac turned around and grinned. ‘Hey, I was brought up near cliffs. Never met one yet I couldn’t beat. I’ll be okay. As soon as you hear the rescue ‘copter, let off a flare. Keep Dave occupied by telling him to search for a good place for the helicopter to land.’

Before she could protest further, he disappeared over the edge.

Abby’s heart banged against her ribs. What was Mac thinking? Although if it had been Emma down there, she would have gone herself. Fear of heights or not.