Page 33 of Prognosis So Done

a lot of their patients had done terrible things. It wasn’t his job to pick and choose who they operated on and the backgrounds of the people needing treatment didn’t matter — everyone got the same surgical options.

But Peter’s death and the unfairness of it all still weighed on everyone’s minds and Gill knew that Katya’s statement wouldn’t be far from their thoughts as they operated tonight.

The phone rang again and Gill snatched it up before it had

a chance to ring again. ‘Yes?’ He listened for a moment not quite believing what he was hearing. ‘Female with a pneumothorax, needing a Caesar,’ he repeated. ‘She’s 35 weeks and the baby’s in foetal distress.’

The team didn’t move for a second, no doubt all as stunned as he. Gill hadn’t ever performed a C-section in the middle of a war zone before. He couldn’t even look at Harriet.

‘Well, come on, guys,’ he said, a sharp edge to his voice. ‘We have to get this baby out.’

They moved then, spurred by the urgency of Gill’s tone. Harriet was the last one out. ‘A baby, Gill?’ She shook her head, her expression inscrutable. ‘How ironic.’ And then she was gone, too.

Gill shut his eyes momentarily, pressing his forehead to the wall. What a day. The divorce, his grandfather. Nimuk and Peter. And now...a baby!

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