Dark Waters(11)

Even the photographer laughed. ‘You’ve got a fan, Col.’

‘Yeah, how does it feel to be on the side of the good guys for once?’ Bobby Grant had the decency to blush as soon as he’d said it. ‘Sorry.’

So he did remember him.

Dominic jumped to Col’s defence. ‘Col couldn’t be anything else but a good guy. He’ll always be a good guy.’

They finished by taking a photograph. Col and Dominic sitting together on the bed. Col couldn’t bring himself to smile despite all their pleadings. He had a bad feeling inside that this would be another mistake. Mungo wouldn’t like it. But Dominic smiled enough for both of them, beaming like a rosy apple, tufts of his unruly caramel-coloured hair standing to attention on top of his head.

Suddenly, just before the camera flashed, Dominic gave the thumbs-up sign and beamed his smile at Col. ‘See, you, Col … you’re simply the best.’

That was the picture that appeared in the paper next day, and that was the headline: SIMPLY THE BEST.

And Mungo didn’t like it … In fact, Mungo was furious.





Chapter Seven


‘That’s all I need!’ Mungo roared when the story had first appeared. ‘My brother on the front pages. Cops’ll love that.’

His rage had flowed out of him like a tidal wave. Col couldn’t understand why, and told him so.

‘You don’t understand?’ Mungo had roared at him, and yet it seemed to Col he had to search around his brain for an answer. ‘You could have died in that loch,’ he said finally. ‘And for what? … Nothing!’

Col thought about bouncy little Dominic, and his tearful parents, and couldn’t agree. Though he didn’t say so. But he knew it hadn’t been for ‘nothing’.

‘You know I don’t like any kind of publicity – especially front-page stuff.’

But Mungo had been on the front pages before now. And this, surely, was good publicity.

In the end it didn’t matter why he was so angry. When Col left hospital two days later, Mungo didn’t come with Mam to collect him.

‘He’s waiting for you in the house,’ Mam assured him as she packed Col’s things into a case. ‘We’re going to have a nice family dinner. I’ve made your favourite. Steak pie.’

Steak pie! That was enough to make him almost forget about Mungo.

Nurse Cleo was there, too, fussing around him almost as much as his mother.

‘I’m going to miss my good-looking Col,’ she said, making him blush. ‘Everyone in this hospital is. It’s not every day we have a real-life hero in here.’

‘Real hero nothing,’ Col said, trying to hide his embarrassment. ‘I wish everybody would stop calling me that.’

‘I’m afraid you’ll just have to get used to it, Col. You’re a wonderful human being, and you’ve proved it.’ She laughed so heartily Col had to smile. So did Mam.

Would they have smiled if Mungo had been there? Would Nurse Cleo have been so talkative, or would Col have been embarrassed by his brother’s patronising attitude towards her?

‘You must be so proud of him, Mrs McCann.’

Mam beamed, but even now she refused to single out one son for her praise. ‘I’m proud of both my boys.’

The Sampsons came in to say goodbye. Dominic had been discharged the day before but had insisted his parents bring him back to see Col.

‘He didn’t have to coax us too hard,’ Mr Sampson pointed out. ‘We wanted to see you again to invite you –’ his eyes flicked across to Mam ‘– and your mother, of course, to our house for a celebration meal.’

‘It’s not to thank you, Col,’ Mrs Sampson said quickly. ‘Nothing we could ever do would be enough thanks.’

Mrs McCann accepted, but made no arrangements. Not then. It was better if any contact with the Sampsons ended now. Better for Col, better for them. But would it be possible? Not, it seemed, with Dominic around.

‘Next week, Col? At the weekend?’

His mother patted his shoulder. ‘We’ll make arrangements later, Dominic. Let Col get home to his family first.’

The hospital insisted on a wheelchair as he left. It made him feel stupid, being wheeled along when there was nothing wrong with him. He felt fine now. Even the dreams were fading, just as Nurse Cleo had said they would. It was everyone’s reaction to him that took him totally by surprise.

As he left, Col was congratulated, and cheered, and as he neared the exit some people even burst into spontaneous applause. He’d never been so embarrassed, or so surprised, in his life.

Dominic, who had insisted on accompanying him, was almost bursting with pride as he strutted along beside him. ‘He saved my life, you know,’ he’d tell everyone just in case there might be someone who had missed the story. ‘I’d be pushing up daisies now if it wasn’t for him.’