This is a nightmare. It’s a nightmare. I’ll wake up covered in sweat, again, and everything is going to be just fine.
No matter how hard Osian tried, the image of finding his friend lifeless on the floor wouldn’t get out of his head. He rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand, trying to force the tears back.
Why can’t I ever save anyone?
The police had arrived not long after the paramedics. They’d cleared away the gawkers but insisted Osian and Dannel stay behind. After Gemma had been taken away, the two had been separated by constables.
“Mr Garey?”
“Osian.” He peered up at the detective who’d introduced himself as Haider Khan. “Just Osian.”
“Mr Garey. Can you walk me through what happened?” Detective Inspector Khan appeared to prefer a measure of professionalism. He sat in one of the fold-out chairs across from Osian. “Take your time. I know this is hard.”
“Do you?” Osian reeled back in his sarcasm. It wasn’t the detective’s fault his friend had died. “Sorry, sorry. I came back to the first aid table, but Ethan said Gemma had gone off with the defibrillator. I went to find her to see if I could help. She was just… there on the ground. Not moving. It was dark in the room. I flipped on the lights, rushed over, felt for a pulse, called 999, and then began trying to resuscitate her.”
The detective jotted a few notes into his notebook. Osian tried to read them upside down. Haider Khan had worse handwriting than any doctor he’d ever seen.
Osian found himself staring at the spot on the floor where Gemma had been. He blinked when the detective called his name. “Pardon?”
“Did you touch the defibrillator?” Detective Inspector Khan repeated his question.
“No.” Osian considered the question. “This morning, I did. I helped Gemma get it set up, but not later. It was across the room when I came to check on her.”
“You remember that?”
Osian paused in his recollection to stare pointedly at the detective inspector. “I worked as a paramedic for a long time. We’re trained to quickly assess situations. When I found Gemma, I thought I might need to use the defibrillator. It didn’t take more than a second to realise someone had broken it.”
“Any thoughts on who?”
He bristled at the detective’s tone. “Not a clue. As I said, she was alone when I got here. She certainly wouldn’t have broken the defibrillator herself. It cost us too much to get.”
Detective Inspector Khan leaned forward toward him. “Did you kill her?”
“Have you lost your sodding mind? Did I kill her?” Osian went from shocked and irritated straight into incandescent rage. “She was already—” Clenching his fists, Osian pounded a hand against his chest. The room felt smaller, tightening around him. He couldn’t breathe.
“Mr Garey? Mr Garey?” Detective Khan reached out hesitantly to touch his arm. “Should I call for paramedics?”
“I’ll be fine.” Osian shook his head rapidly. He forced himself to count to ten and then backwards to zero, breathing shakily with each second. “Sorry. Gemma was one of my best mates. I’d sooner have jumped into the Thames than hurt her.”
The detective waited until Osian’s breathing sounded better to continue. “Is there anything else you remember?”
“No, not really.” He slowly relaxed his hands and settled into his seat again. “I don’t understand what happened. Why would someone hurt Gemma?”
“You were a paramedic? Familiar with the equipment in the room?”
“Yes. Familiar enough to save a life.” Osian didn’t want to think about any of it. He wished he could walk out of the room. “Why?”
“Could you kill with it?”
“Me, personally?” Osian reared back, offended by the suggestion. “I may not be a paramedic anymore, but I always considered my job was to save lives.”
“Humour me?” Detective Inspector Khan prompted.
“The machines have fail-safes. They’re not supposed to discharge without analysis of a need.” He tilted his head to the side, considering all he’d learned over the years. “Unless the wiring had been messed with, I don’t see how it could’ve killed. It shouldn’t shock without the presence of a particular type of heart rhythm. Gemma’s was fine, I assume. She didn’t have any issues I’m aware of. Ethan might know better.”
“There’s no manual override?”
“Not on this model.” Osian had checked it over himself earlier when they’d been setting up for the day at the first aid table. “I don’t know enough about the mechanics of the machine itself to tell you how tampering would affect its ability to function.”
“Where were you before the incident?”
“With my boyfriend. We’d gone to one of the show panels. I decided to check in at the first aid table while he went to find food. I told you this already.” He scrubbed his fingers across his eyes. He wanted to nap for a million years until the pain in his chest went away. “Am I a suspect?”
“Not at the moment. We’re pulling the CCTV footage. Timing will be everything.” Detective Inspector Khan stood up and handed over a card. “Call me if you think of anything. We’ll be in touch. Don’t leave the city, will you?”
Blinking in confusion at the card in his hand, Osian walked woodenly toward the door. He was struggling to process. Dannel waited for him outside, leaning against the wall across from the room.
Dannel rushed forward, wrapped an arm around him, and walked purposefully down the hall. “I’m calling Roland.”
“What’s he going to do?”
Dannel kept a firm hold on him. “Calling Roland.”
“Why? He’s not a detective. He can’t do anything.”
“Yes, but calling Roland means getting to Wayne more quickly.” Dannel practically dragged him through the convention crowds toward the line of taxis. He shoved Osian into the back of one and muttered the address to the driver. “You’re getting a solicitor.”
“I haven’t done anything wrong. I don’t need a solicitor.” Osian wasn’t overly concerned about the detective inspector’s questions. They’d been standard, in his opinion. He had been the one found in a room with a body. “It’s going to work. They have CCTV footage. They’ll be able to see when I went into the room.”
“I’m calling Roland.” Dannel crossed his arms and stared stubbornly out the window. “How many cases have we seen of an innocent person getting convicted? No. Wayne will help.”
“Dannel.”
“Ossie.”
He knew that tone of voice intimately. Dannel could dig his feet in and refuse to be moved when he wanted. There was no point of arguing with him when his mind was made up.
“Why don’t you text your brother? He’s not on shift tonight. Invite him and Wayne over. I’m sure they’d love to have an excuse to get together.” Osian had watched with amusement as Roland and his closest friend from university danced around each other. He’d dated men and women over the years, but Wayne was his storybook true love. Their timing had never been right. At least, that’s how it appeared from the outside. “We’ll grab a takeaway.”
“It’s the bottomless pit of a stomach that masquerades as my brother.”
“We’ll get a lot of takeaways.”
Dannel shifted until they were leaning against one another. He grabbed Osian’s hand tightly. “You’ll have a solicitor.”
“Not arguing.” Osian rested his head against Dannel’s broad shoulder. “Didn’t even ask about Ethan. He must be gutted.”
“I didn’t see him.”
Osian sat up and glanced over at him. “What do you mean?”
“He vanished before I went to find you.” Dannel shifted beside him. “Didn’t see him anywhere, not even when the detectives were rounding everyone up to ask questions.”
“Weird.”
Incredibly weird. Why would he vanish? He knew I was going to find Gemma.