As Anna approached King’s College Hospital, her mind was fogged by fatigue and adrenalin. She had a pulsing ache in her head, and the feeling of dread sat like a brick in her stomach.
Her fears for Chloe’s safety had spiralled during the drive from Bromley because of the sheer amount of damage that had been inflicted on London by the rioters. Virtually every district she’d passed through had suffered in some way. Buildings had burned down, shops were boarded up, and wrecked cars, vans and even lorries and buses were everywhere.
Last night had been the worst so far and the thought that her twelve-year-old daughter might have been in the thick of it chilled her to the bone.
The streets around the hospital were crammed with parked vehicles, including ambulances and police cars.
King’s was one of the busiest hospitals in the capital, and many of those injured in the riots would have been brought here.
She found a space to park a couple of hundred yards away and hurried on foot towards the entrance. The sun that had shone first thing had now disappeared behind clouds that were low and heavy. It would be good if it rained for the rest of the day and into the night, she thought. Perhaps it would deter a lot of people from taking to the streets again.
There were several police officers on duty outside the main entrance, and Anna assumed their job was to spot anyone who looked as though they were up to no good. They paid her no attention as she rushed inside.
Because it was so busy, it took her a while to find out where Tom was. She made her way along corridors that were filled with patients because there was not enough space for them on the wards.
Anna discovered that Tom had a recovery room to himself. Before going in there, she spoke to the doctor who had treated him in the emergency department when he was brought in.
He explained that Tom had mild concussion, a broken arm, two fractured ribs, and a mass of cuts and bruises. But no damage had been done to any of his vital organs.
‘Thank God for that,’ Anna said. ‘At least his injuries aren’t life-threatening. I’ve been so worried.’
‘He took a severe beating,’ the doctor told her. ‘It seems to have been a racist attack carried out by a group of white men, or youths. After attacking him, they threw him onto the bonnet of his own car and drove along the road before crashing into a wall. Mr Bannerman rolled onto the pavement where he stayed for quite a while before an ambulance got to him. He’s very lucky in that his injuries aren’t as serious as they might have been considering what happened to him. And at least he wasn’t stabbed like many of the other people who turned up here during the night.’
The doctor’s words sent an icy shiver down Anna’s spine. She hadn’t realised that the attack on him had been so vicious. Sure, he was lucky to be alive, but it was going to take him a long time to recover, both physically and mentally.
‘I gather he’s been asking about Chloe,’ she said.
The doctor nodded. ‘That’s right. He says the girl, who’s twelve, was with him when the assault took place, but he doesn’t know what happened to her.’
‘Oh God. Chloe is my daughter and I haven’t been able to get in touch with her. Tom was taking care of her for me.’
The doctor grimaced. ‘Well I hope he can be of help, Miss Tate. But be warned, he’s still feeling quite dizzy and disoriented, and the drugs we’ve given him are making it hard for him to concentrate.’
‘Is he awake?’
‘He was about five minutes ago when I last saw him.’
Anna’s nerves were jangling as she walked into the recovery room. When she saw Tom, a hard lump expanded in her throat and her heart took a leap.
Her boyfriend was propped up against raised pillows, and even from a distance she could see several lumps on his forehead, and a graze on his left cheek.
There were more marks on his bare chest and his right arm was in plaster. He was also linked up to a saline drip and what looked like a blood pressure monitor.
His eyes were closed, but he opened them as Anna stepped up to the bed.
‘I got here as soon as I could, Tom,’ she said, fighting back tears. ‘I should have suspected that something was wrong when you didn’t respond to my last text message.’
She leaned over the bed and kissed him gently on the mouth, noting his bloodshot eyes and smoky breath.
‘I do hope you’re not in too much pain,’ she said, her voice cracking like splintered wood.
He swallowed, which seemed to cause him some discomfort. ‘Not any more,’ he said, his voice low and croaky. ‘The medication they gave me has kicked in. I’ll be fine … it’s Chloe I’m worried about. Have you heard from her?’
Anna straightened up, shook her head. ‘No I haven’t. I was hoping that you’d be able to tell me where she is. She’s not answering her mobile, and the landline at your flat is also ringing out.’
‘We didn’t make it to my flat,’ he said. ‘I was attacked outside your house.’
Anna tried to still the fear that was gathering inside her. She reached for one of his hands and gently squeezed it.
‘Tell me what happened.’
He shut his eyes, no doubt thinking back. ‘The street was filled with rioters heading for the estate and a group of men pulled us both out of the car,’ he said. ‘Just before I was set upon I saw that they’d let Chloe go. I shouted for her to go back indoors, and when they were laying into me in the road, I heard her screaming at them to leave me alone. But then I was picked up and thrown onto the car … I think that’s when I lost consciousness. The next thing I was aware of was waking up in the back of the ambulance.’
‘Chloe probably went back into the house then,’ Anna said.
Tom opened his eyes. ‘I don’t think so, Anna. You see, I was the one who locked the front door and then I put the spare key in my jacket pocket.’
A look of horror swept across Anna’s face. ‘Oh Christ. That means she could be anywhere … Or maybe those men didn’t let her go after all.’
‘No, I really can’t imagine that they would have hurt her. They were baying for black blood. I’m hoping that a neighbour took her in.’
‘But if that is what happened then surely I would have heard from them by now,’ Anna said, her voice a thin wheeze. ‘Chloe would have got them to contact me.’
Anna didn’t know what to think, which encouraged dark thoughts to swirl around inside her mind. It wasn’t as though she could raise the alarm and spark a citywide search for her daughter. In the chaos caused by the riots there were probably dozens of people unaccounted for. And that, combined with everything else the force had to deal with, meant that Chloe would be low down on any list of priorities.
‘You have to go and find her,’ Tom said. ‘She’s been missing now for over fifteen hours.’
‘I will,’ Anna said. ‘Are you going to be all right?’
‘Of course. I’m really sorry about this, Anna. If I hadn’t suddenly decided to take her to my place this wouldn’t have happened. I just thought she’d be safer there. I didn’t know that …’ He lost it then and began to weep.
‘And she would have been, Tom,’ Anna said, stroking his face. ‘You did what you thought was best and you’ve got nothing to apologise for. So don’t even go there.’
She kissed him again on the mouth and told him that she loved him.
‘Go and find her, Anna,’ he said between sobs. ‘She needs you now more than ever.’
‘I’ll be in touch as soon as I have news,’ she said.
Then she hurried out of the recovery room.