by L M Krier
'Of course. Just let me ring up to ICU and tell them. That information could be very helpful in how they treat Mr McAlpine.'
He made a brief phone call then turned back to Ted.
'Is there anything else at all I can help you with?'
'I don't suppose by any chance you would know if Mr McAlpine had any visitors today, or yesterday? Did he have any food brought in from outside?'
The man spread his hands in apology.
'Sorry, but it can get manic in here. We're often short-staffed, we really don't have the time to monitor that sort of thing. There are notices up requesting visitors not to give food to patients without asking but we simply don't have the staff numbers to enforce it.
'I don't know if he had any regular visitors, although I think someone from the home dropped in to check on him. If it's helpful, I could look in the locker, next to his bed, just in case there's any food in there?'
'That would be brilliant, thank you,' Ted told him. 'I don't suppose by any chance there are any stomach contents available?'
The man laughed.
'We tend to dispose of those fairly promptly,' he smiled. 'Or rather the HCAs do.' He saw Ted's questioning expression and said, 'Health Care Assistants.'
'Speaking of those, would you happen to remember one who used to work here, by the name of Mandy Griffiths?'
The nurse frowned.
'Gobby? Built like a brick shit-house?' he asked.
'Well, I wouldn't have put it quite like that,' Ted said, 'but now you come to mention it …'
They had reached a bed, the screens still pulled partially round it, empty and in a state of disarray. The nurse bent over the locker at the bedside and pulled out the drawer first.
'Bingo!' he said, as his hand went to remove the contents.
'Please don't touch!' Ted said hastily. 'Evidence. What is it?'
He pulled the drawer wider open and Ted could see a partly eaten piece of cake on a paper plate inside.
'I'll need to take it with me but funnily enough,' Ted indicated his best suit, 'I don't have any evidence bags with me. I've just come from a wedding. Do you have anything I could use?'
The nurse laughed. 'I thought it was a bit formal for your line of work. No worries, I'll sort something out for you. And about that Mandy woman you asked about? We had to let her go. Too many question marks about her and her behaviour. She wasn't good with the patients, especially the elderly ones.'
Ted went next to the police station, clutching the piece of cake in the bag the nurse had supplied for him. He would send that off for immediate forensic testing to see what, if any, poison it contained.
Sal came back into the office not long after him.
'Really sorry to drag you in from a wedding, boss,' he said apologetically. 'There's still no word from Jezza, but this other case has dissolved a bit. It seems to have been something of a drunken episode, with a lot of accusations and fists flying on both sides. The two main parties have changed their stories a bit, so it's looking like one I can easily wrap up on my own.
'Why don't you get off back to the wedding? You look great, boss, I guess Trev took you shopping?' Sal added, with a grin.
Ted made a face at him and asked, 'Are you sure, Sal? I don't like to leave you in the lurch.'
'Honestly, boss, it'll be fine. Virgil's gone off shopping for baby stuff so I don't want to bother him but Rob says he could come in if I need him to. Why not go back to enjoy the rest of your friends' wedding? That's a one-off, it would be a shame if you missed it. Especially all dressed up like that.'
Ted nodded. 'Thanks, Sal, I appreciate that. I might as well get my money's worth from the new suit. Not something I'll be wearing often. Let me know in the morning if Jezza shows up or not. If she doesn't, I'm happy to cover for her, save dragging anyone else in. Just phone me.'
He was pleased he would be able to get back for at least part of the reception. With any luck, he could wish Rupert and Willow well and see them leave for their honeymoon. He imagined it would be somewhere exotic.
He parked the Renault and went back into the hotel. He found his way to the room where the reception was in full swing. The meal was almost over, the speeches had clearly been made, and a few couples were up on the dance floor.
He glanced round but couldn't see Trev anywhere at the moment. Rupert and Willow were both still sitting at the top table. When Willow saw him, she got up immediately and came over to greet him. He thought she looked rather worried, and her kiss on his cheek was perfunctory.
'I'm so sorry, I got a call to go to the hospital,' he began.
'Yes, of course. How is he?' Willow asked anxiously.
Adrenaline suddenly flooded Ted's body as panic hit him. His mouth went dry and his heart started to race alarmingly.
'How's who?' he asked.
'Trev, of course,' Willow sounded puzzled.
'What happened?' Ted said. 'I got called in on a case. What's happened to Trev?'
'He was suddenly taken ill, not long after the meal began. He was vomiting violently and his heart was racing,' she told him. 'One of Rupert's friends took him straight to hospital. We thought that would be quicker than calling an ambulance. I thought someone had called you. Ted, I'm so sorry.'
But Ted was gone, sprinting as fast as he could for the Renault. As he backed out of the parking space and floored the accelerator, gravel flew up from the spinning wheels and pebble-dashed the line of sports cars and Bentleys parked nearby.
Chapter Thirty-one
Ted slammed the Renault to a halt in the first empty parking place he found, threw his official Police sign on to the dashboard and raced to the entrance of the Accident and Emergency Department. He pulled out his warrant card and thrust it in the face of the first member of staff he saw, demanding, 'Where's Trevor Armstrong?'
The nurse looked him up and down, barely acknowledging the warrant card and said patiently, 'If you'll just take a seat for a minute, I'll find out for you.'
'I need to see him, as soon as possible,' Ted persisted.
This time the nurse did look at his warrant card before saying, 'Inspector, everyone who comes in here is in a hurry to see someone. Please just wait a moment and I promise you, I will find out.'
Ted took a deep breath and tried to calm down. It was not often that his good manners deserted him, but he was panic-stricken.
'Sorry,' he said contritely. 'You're right. I apologise.'
He couldn't contemplate sitting down. He knew he would not be able to keep still long enough. Instead he paced up and down in front of the desk where the nurse was checking information for him.
'Right, Inspector, if you'd like to follow me, I'll take you to him.'
She led him to a curtained cubicle and stood aside so he could go in. Trev was sitting propped up against the pillows, a drip in his arm, his shirt open, a heart monitor connected to his chest. He looked pale and wan and had a kidney dish on the bed in front of him.
'Hey,' he smiled, as soon as he saw Ted. 'I didn't want to bother you.'
Ted went over to him and kissed him on the forehead, which felt damp.
'How are you? What happened? How are you feeling?'
Trev gave a weak laugh.
'Typical policeman. So many questions. I'm fine, now. I've no idea what happened. One minute I was happily munching my way through a delicious meal. Next thing I was in the gents, being as sick as a dog. I went all clammy and my pulse was all over the place. And no, I hadn't been drinking too much.
'One of Rupe's friends, who was on the same table, very kindly came looking for me when I was a long time. He brought me straight here. Luckily, I managed not to puke up inside his brand new Audi, but it was a close thing.'
'What have they said? What caused it?'
'Not a lot, and I have no idea,' Trev said, looking tired.
At that moment, the curtains parted and a doctor came in.
'Sorry, Mr Armstrong, I didn't know you had company.'
'This is my pa
rtner, Ted. You can speak in front of him, it's fine.'
'What caused this? Is he going to be all right?' Ted began.
'He's a policeman. He asks a lot of questions,' Trev told the doctor apologetically.
'I see. Well, I'm Dr Hamilton, the registrar who has been looking after Mr Armstrong. I'm pleased to say he is doing very well and his condition is giving no cause for alarm,' the doctor told them.
'Have you told him about the blood tests?' Ted asked Trev.
'Yes, mother,' Trev smiled, with a wink at the registrar. 'He also fusses rather a lot.'
'Yes, Mr Armstrong has explained about the possibility of a genetic heart condition. I'm pleased to say that I don't think this is anything more sinister than a nasty allergic reaction to something.
'Sometimes, violent vomiting can cause dehydration, which can in turn lead to the heart going flippity-flop. That's a technical term,' he added as an ironic aside. He clearly had a sense of humour, despite appearances to the contrary.
'We've treated Mr Armstrong conservatively, with an anti-emetic to control the vomiting, and put him on a drip for the dehydration. Now that both are under control, there is no sign of any heart irregularity. I'm inclined to say that he can probably go home as soon as the drip has finished going through, which won't be too much longer. As long as there is someone to keep an eye on him.'
'I'll be with him,' Ted assured him. 'What do you think caused this?'
'My first inclination was towards food poisoning, until Mr Armstrong mentioned where he had eaten. I think it would be unlikely in such a venue, unless he had been unlucky enough to get the one bad oyster in a batch.'
'No oysters. No R in the month,' Ted and Trev said, almost in unison. Neither of them really believed the old saying for a moment, but it was a long-standing joke between them.
'In that case, I would suspect a food allergy. Do you have one that you're aware of?' he asked Trev.
Trev shook his head.
'Never been allergic to anything, as far as I know. Except my mother.'
'Well, they can sometimes appear without warning. I would strongly recommend that you see your GP soon and ask for allergy tests. Explain what happened. You're probably aware than a severe allergy can sometimes lead to anaphylaxis, for which you may need to carry adrenaline.
'With an allergy, there is often some swelling of the mouth and throat, rather than just violent vomiting, as in your case. Perhaps your system is just very efficient at protecting itself, getting rid of whatever it didn't like as quickly as possible.'
Ted produced his warrant card again.
'At the risk of sounding paranoid, I'm currently investigating a series of poisonings of elderly victims, including two in this hospital. One fatal, one not yet so. This information is confidential, at this stage.'
'You don't need to remind a doctor about confidentiality, Inspector,' the registrar replied with a dry smile.
'The poisons used have all been plant extracts. The toxins are mostly cardiac glycosides. Trev's symptoms sound to me as if they were very similar. Could this episode be connected?'
The registrar looked carefully at all the notes he had on Trev's case. He then went across to check the trace on the heart monitor. After that, he put his stethoscope to Trev's chest and listened for a few moments.
'I can see nothing at all which would indicate poisoning of any sort, and certainly not with cardiac glycosides,' he said. 'Mr Armstrong, I can't comment at all on the possibility of any inherited heart condition. What I can tell you is that, at this moment, your heart is as strong as an ox. I would therefore have to stick to my original diagnosis of a food allergy. Or possibly an extreme gastroenteritis.
'Just to be sure, I will check with my consultant. If he is in agreement, and if your vital signs continue to return to normal as they are doing, I think we can consider releasing you shortly.'
He made to leave. Ted followed him, telling Trev he would be back in a few moments.
'While I'm here, I need to check on the elderly patient from this morning. He was in intensive care. Can anyone help me to find out how he's doing, please?'
The registrar nodded towards the main desk.
'Just ask a member of staff to phone ICU for you. Try not to worry about your partner. He should make a good recovery, at least from today's little episode,' he said. 'And try not to get fixated on the poisoning theory. Sometimes, coincidences happen in real life, as well as in soap operas. This might just be one of them.'
The same nurse he had seen earlier was at the desk, going through some files. Ted felt ashamed of his earlier behaviour, which was so out of character for him.
'Hello again,' he began awkwardly. 'I'm really sorry about before. I panicked a bit. I wondered if you could help me again, please?' He held out his warrant card once more so she could see it more clearly. 'I need to find out how someone on intensive care is doing, in connection with an ongoing enquiry.'
This time she studied his card more closely and looked at him.
'Inspector Darling?' she queried, her eyebrows going up.
Ted grinned. He was used to hearing remarks on his surname, although it was not all that uncommon. He had also heard all the jokes and all the references to the old Blackadder television series. He had a charming grin. The nurse was clearly not immune to it as she smiled back, her expression much more friendly. 'What's his name?'
'John McAlpine.'
She picked up the phone and made a short call, then told Ted, 'Still seriously ill but he is improving steadily. Is Mr Armstrong also connected to the enquiry?'
Ted shook his head. 'No, he's my partner. That's why I was unprofessionally anxious,' he said with another smile.
The nurse sighed audibly. 'There are going to be some disappointed nurses when I tell them,' she smiled. 'Me included. He's gorgeous!'
Trev was already looking brighter when Ted went back into the cubicle. They did not have long to wait for the consultant to come and give him a cursory once-over, before saying he was ready to be discharged, once the drip had been disconnected.
'Why didn't you get someone to call me?' Ted asked him, as they walked out to the car park shortly after. Ted was relieved to find his car was still where he had left it and had not been clamped or towed. He could see now that he had parked badly and it was actually straddling two spaces. 'I only found out because I managed to get away and go back to the reception.'
'I didn't want to worry you,' Trev said lightly, as he got into the car. 'You've got enough on your plate at the moment. I had a bit of panic at the, what did the doctor call it, the flippity-flops. But once that settled down, and my stomach had stopped turning itself inside out, I was fine. Well, almost fine.'
'Well, I'm going to keep a very close eye on you until we get the results of those blood tests. And until we know for sure what caused this,' Ted told him firmly. 'If Jezza is a no-show again tomorrow, I'll tell Sal to bring Rob in. And it's no use arguing,' he said, as Trev opened his mouth to speak.
Ted phoned the hospital first thing the following morning to check on John McAlpine. He was relieved to hear that, although he was still in intensive care, his condition was continuing to improve. A nurse on duty told him that they hoped to be able to send him back to the ward later in the day.
Trev was much better, too. He had eaten nothing on his return but, as instructed by the consultant, Ted had made sure he had drunk plenty of water and had taken it easy.
Ted phoned the office while he made Trev's breakfast, plain wholemeal toast and tea much weaker than he usually drank it. He thought that avoiding too many stimulants would be a good idea until his system had fully recovered.
'Sal? Any news from Jezza today?'
'I had a text first thing, boss,' Sal told him, then added, clearly quoting verbatim. 'Been ill. Still am. Can't come in. Soz.'
'Soz?' Ted asked in disgust. 'What does that even mean?'
'It's text-speak for sorry, boss,' Sal said helpfully.
'I know that,' Ted
said sharply, although he only knew because Trev constantly tried to educate him in how to write text-speak. 'What I mean is, what kind of a message is that from a serving police officer, to excuse their absence?'
Then he added hastily, 'Sorry, Sal, I'm being a bit tetchy. I had an anxious day yesterday. Trev had been carted off to hospital, when I got back to the reception. He had symptoms not dissimilar to some of our victims. Luckily, it seems to have been a food allergy or an attack of food poisoning or something, and he's much better. I'd still like to keep an eye on him today, if you can manage without me?'
'Sorry to hear that. Poor Trev!' Sal said. Trev was popular with all the team members, especially Sal, who shared his love of big bikes. 'Give him my best wishes, boss. And yes, unless anything big goes off, I should be fine. Sarge is back from his day out and Rob's free, so there are reinforcements I can call on if I need them.
'You keep an eye on Trev and I promise to call you if there's anything major. How's yesterday's victim, by the way? Have we got another death?'
'Luckily, he seems to be holding his own so far,' Ted told him. 'Seems like a tough old boy and he may not have eaten much of the cake, which is probably what saved his life.
'Right, I'd better feed the invalid. Remember to keep me in the loop at all times. My mobile will be switched on. I'll be in first thing tomorrow as usual, hopefully. I'm anxious to have a few words with Jezza so I can find out for myself exactly how soz she really is.'
Chapter Thirty-two
Jezza sauntered into work on Monday morning, seemingly without a care in the world. Sal in particular looked daggers at her, after being left in the lurch by her on Saturday. He was clearly about to say something but Ted caught his eye and shook his head. He would deal with it later.
Instead Sal asked, 'How's Trev now, boss?'
'He's a lot better thanks, Sal,' Ted told him. 'In fact, he's gone in to work today.'
He briefly explained to the team about Trev's sudden mystery illness. They all knew Trev, except for Jezza, and made sympathetic noises. Ted was just about to bring them up to date about the latest poison victim, John McAlpine, when Maurice stood up and took out his wallet.