‘How d’you know that his Lazarus suit didn’t save him?’ Bullet fumed. ‘How d’you know that he wouldn’t be dead now if it wasn’t for his Lazarus suit?’
‘I was only saying, Bullet. Don’t bite my head off,’ Angela replied.
‘Don’t open your mouth and talk rubbish then,’ Bullet said in no uncertain terms.
Theo watched as Angela’s face went as stiff as a board.
‘Calm down, Bullet,’ Ricky soothed. ‘Angela didn’t mean anything by it.’
‘I’m going to see if I can visit my … visit Darius Marriott in hospital,’ Bullet announced.
‘What on earth for?’ asked Theo.
‘To make sure he’s all right,’ Bullet replied, with angry defiance. ‘Darius Marriott has been my hero for I don’t know how long. I want to make sure he’s OK.’
‘Why don’t you just send him a card or something?’
‘No, I want to see him. I can’t wait any more. I have to tell him …’
Angela, Ricky and Theo waited expectantly for Bullet to finish his sentence.
‘Tell him what?’ Ricky prompted.
‘It doesn’t matter.’
‘Bleep! That’s a lie for a start,’ Theo said drily.
‘Come on, Bullet,’ Ricky urged. ‘If you can’t tell us, who can you tell?’
Bullet took a deep breath. He looked around uncertainly, blinking rapidly the way he always did when he was trying to make up his mind. ‘It’s just that … Never mind. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.’
‘Try us,’ said Ricky.
‘It’s just that … that’s my dad they’re taking to hospital,’ whispered Bullet.
Theo’s jaw hit the floor. It was a toss up as to whose eyes were the widest open. Angela, Ricky and Theo looked at each other, then quickly back at Bullet as if they couldn’t bear or didn’t dare to let him out of their sight.
‘Come again?’ said Theo.
‘Darius Marriott is my father,’ Bullet said, his voice firmer this time.
‘Since when?’ asked Theo.
‘What d’you mean “since when”? That’s a funny question. He’s been my dad all my life,’ Bullet said, a hint of impatience in his voice.
‘Glad to see I’m not the only one who can ask stupid questions,’ Angela sniffed.
‘No, I meant …’ Theo shut up. He wasn’t quite sure what he meant. He was in shock – complete, total and absolute!
‘So will you help me see him?’ Bullet asked.
‘Hang on!’ Ricky frowned. ‘When you answered his question in the assembly hall, Darius Marriott didn’t seem to treat you any different to anyone else. He didn’t act like you were his son.’
‘That’s ’cos he doesn’t know that I’m his son,’ said Bullet.
‘Whoa! Whoa! You’re doing another Heathrow job on me.’ Theo shook his head. ‘He’s your dad and he doesn’t know it?’
‘That’s right. He and my mum broke up before I was born,’ Bullet explained. ‘They used to work for a software house and Darius was my mum’s boss.’
‘Your mum was married to Darius Marriott?’ asked Theo.
‘No. They used to go out together. Mum was his secretary years and years ago. Then Mum became pregnant with me and she left the company,’ said Bullet.
‘Why?’ asked Angela.
‘She didn’t want him to feel that he had to marry her just ’cos she was having me,’ Bullet replied.
‘Did she tell him he was going to be a father?’ asked Angela.
‘No. I just said that.’
‘And your mum told you all this?’ Ricky’s frown was deepening.
‘Not in so many words, but yes.’
‘What does that mean – not in so many words?’ asked Ricky.
‘Mum told me about it. She didn’t actually come right out and say that Darius Marriott is my father but I put two and two together.’
‘Are you sure you didn’t put two and two together and come up with seventeen and three-quarters?’ asked Ricky.
‘I’m telling you, Darius Marriott is my dad. We even look alike,’ Bullet insisted.
Theo had always reckoned that Bullet was the spitting image of his mum but now that he’d seen Darius Marriott up close, he and Bullet did look a little bit alike. A teensy-tiny little bit.
‘Are you saying that in all these years he’s never been to see you? Not once?’ asked Ricky.
‘No, he hasn’t. But how could he? He didn’t know about me. Mum never told him.’ Bullet shrugged. ‘But that doesn’t matter. Because I’m going to visit him in the hospital and I’ll tell him who I am and then we’ll be like a real family.’
Theo shifted position uncomfortably. Did Bullet really think it would be that simple? Did he really believe that all he had to do was go up to Darius Marriott, say, ‘Hi Dad, I’m your son!’ and Darius would hold out his arms, cry out, ‘My son! The child I never knew I had!’ and that would be that? Chewing on his bottom lip, Theo wondered if maybe he was being too cynical. Maybe he’d been around Angela for too long. Maybe Darius Marriott would welcome Bullet with wide open arms.
‘I think you should take this one step at a time,’ Ricky said carefully. ‘Are you sure you’ve got the whole, full story from your mum?’
‘Of course,’ Bullet frowned. ‘As I said, she told me some things and I worked out the rest.’
‘But are you sure you’re right?’ asked Ricky.
‘What’re you trying to say?’ Bullet suddenly went very still.
Ricky backed off immediately. ‘Nothing. I just think you should be very careful of your facts, that’s all.’
‘I am. I wouldn’t have told you that Darius Marriott was my father unless I was absolutely sure.’ Bullet’s voice was frosty.
‘You’ve seen it on your birth certificate?’ asked Angela.
‘Mum says she’s lost it.’
‘Why don’t you send off for a copy, then?’ Angela suggested.
Bullet stared at her. ‘I never thought of that.’
‘When are you hoping to visit your dad then?’ asked Ricky.
‘If not tonight, then definitely tomorrow. It’s Saturday tomorrow so Mum shouldn’t mind.’
‘Are you going to tell her what you’re up to?’ asked Angela.
‘No. I’ll visit my dad first and make sure everything is all right and then I’ll tell her,’ Bullet replied.
‘Wait till tomorrow afternoon and then we’ll all come with you,’ Ricky stated.
Bullet wasn’t the only one who was surprised. Theo stared, then glared at Ricky. Weren’t they supposed to be going to the cinema tomorrow afternoon?
‘You want to come with me?’ Bullet couldn’t believe it.
‘If that’s OK? We won’t get in the way – honest.’
Bullet shrugged. ‘If you want to come along, that’s fine.’
‘Am I coming too?’ Angela asked, puzzled.
‘Of course,’ Ricky replied before Bullet had a chance.
Theo forced the frown from his face. Ricky was up to something. That much was obvious. But what? Why was it suddenly so all-fired important that they go with Bullet when he visited his dad?
‘OK. I’ll try and find out from one of the teachers which hospital my dad’s been taken to,’ said Bullet.
‘And if you can’t?’ Theo couldn’t help asking.
‘Then I’ll phone around tonight when I get home. I’ll phone every hospital in the country if I have to,’ Bullet replied. ‘Once I find out, I’ll give you a call and you three can meet me outside the appropriate hospital tomorrow afternoon at two.’
‘That’s fine.’
Their attention was called back to the window as the ambulance sped away from the school. A number of teachers stood by the school gate, talking to Mr Unbar. Soon, they turned and headed back into the school. Theo walked back to his desk with everyone else. He didn’t want to be caught gawking by Mrs Daltry. Theo searched in his bag for his workbook. Then he remembered that he’d left it on Mrs
Daltry’s table the night before. With a sigh of impatience, he got up and went to the front of the class. Yes, he was right. There it was. Theo picked it up and turned to head back to his desk. He saw that Bullet was the only one still standing at the window. And the look on Bullet’s face stopped Theo cold in his tracks. No one else could see Bullet’s face, only Theo – and Theo wished at once that he hadn’t.
Never before had Theo seen such a look of complete and utter longing. In fact, the look on Bullet’s face went far beyond longing. It was yearning and loneliness. And intense, white-hot hope. And it was directed not at anyone in the class but out of the room and out of the school. It was for the man being rushed to hospital in the ambulance. Theo felt as if he had just spied on something very personal. He just hoped that Bullet wouldn’t be too disappointed if things didn’t go the way he was obviously imagining they would.
Chapter Three
Visiting Hours
THEO STOOD OUTSIDE the main entrance to the local hospital, wondering for the umpteenth and three-quarters time what on earth he was doing there. It was a warm, clear, early spring afternoon. The wind wasn’t nearly as biting as it had been at the beginning of the month. In fact there was a pleasant breeze blowing. And where was Theo spending the rest of his day? Stuck in a hospital, that’s where! This was a wild goose chase and no mistake. And what’s more, it was embarrassing. Of course Darius Marriott wasn’t Bullet’s dad. The whole idea was just … silly! It was a crazy idea, mixed with more than a little wishful thinking. So what if Bullet’s mum had worked for Darius Marriott years and years ago? They might even have been an item for a while. But that didn’t make Darius Marriott Bullet’s father. At the tap on his shoulder, Theo spun around. Angela and Ricky stood behind him.
‘Where’s Bullet?’ asked Angela.
‘At home, if he’s got any sense,’ Theo sniffed, adding for good measure, ‘Which is where we should be.’
‘Why d’you say that?’ asked Ricky.
Theo looked at him, surprised. ‘Isn’t it obvious? This is just a waste of time.’
‘Darius Marriott might be Bullet’s dad. Stranger things have happened,’ Ricky said lightly.
‘D’you really believe that?’ Theo stared.
‘What? That stranger things have happened?’
‘No. That Bullet’s story is true,’ Theo said with impatience.
‘I don’t know. But …’
‘But Bullet believes it’s true and for now you’re prepared to go along with that.’ Theo sighed. ‘This is just like you, Ricky. When Jade said her dead dad was sending her e-mail messages you believed her, too.’
‘No, I believed that she believed it. And I didn’t think it was impossible,’ Ricky contradicted. ‘If I remember rightly, it was you two who said that it was a trick or Jade was lying or misguided. But what about Pascoe DeMille?’
‘Never mind about who or what Pascoe was,’ Theo interrupted. No way was he going to speculate about Pascoe DeMille again. It gave him the creeps just to think about the guy. ‘We’re talking about Bullet and his dad. What’re we going to do?’
‘We’re Bullet’s friends so we’re going to be here to help him if and when he needs us,’ said Ricky.
‘We’re nuts to get involved in the first place,’ Theo said.
‘For once, I agree with Theo.’ Angela stuck in her five pence worth. ‘This has nothing to do with us. This is between Bullet and his so-called dad.’
‘Hi, everyone.’ Bullet’s voice behind them had everyone turning around guiltily. Chewing his bottom lip, Theo wondered just how much of their conversation Bullet had heard. Bullet looked cool and collected, far calmer than the rest of them. But Theo wondered just how calm Bullet really felt inside. After all if Darius Marriott was Bullet’s father, then this would be the first time Bullet spoke to him. Bullet would introduce himself as Darius Marriott’s son and after that anything could happen.
‘Let’s go in,’ Bullet said.
‘Is Darius Marriott definitely in this hospital?’ asked Angela.
Bullet nodded. ‘He’s in the Wellington Ward on the third floor.’ At Ricky’s questioning look he added, ‘I phoned last night and again this morning just to make sure. My … my dad’s only going to be at this hospital until eight o’clock tonight. After that they’re moving him to a private hospital across town and then I won’t get a chance to see him. So it’s now or never.’
‘How d’you know all this?’ Angela queried.
‘I told you. I phoned and asked.’
‘But why would they tell you?’ Angela persisted. ‘I thought that sort of information was confidential.’
‘Not to family members and I’m his son,’ Bullet replied.
Was it Theo’s imagination or was there something in Bullet’s tone of voice which challenged them to contradict him?
‘So what’s wrong with him, then?’ asked Angela.
Theo had wanted to know that too, but he wasn’t sure how to frame the question. He might’ve guessed that Angela would come right out and ask.
‘They think he might have had a heart attack but he’s out of intensive care already and they reckon he’ll make a full recovery,’ said Bullet.
‘Does your mum know you’re here?’ Angela narrowed her eyes.
Theo shook his head. Angela got worse, she really did. Bullet glared at her. He just stared, not answering her question.
‘Only asking,’ Angela defended herself.
Theo wondered about Angela and Bullet. At one point Angela had been mad keen on Bullet. But if she was still keen on Bullet and he was keen on her, then they had a very strange way of showing it.
‘Well, we can’t stay out here all day. Let’s go in,’ Ricky said at last.
They trooped into the hospital in silence with Bullet leading the way, followed by Ricky and Angela. Theo hung behind the others. He was worried. Worried sick. He and Bullet hadn’t been friends very long but they were friends now and Theo didn’t want to see Bullet … disappointed. And this whole business had DISAPPOINTMENT written over it in great big flashing capitals!
‘How do we get to Wellington Ward, please?’ Bullet asked the receptionist.
‘Along there, turn left, take the lift up to the third floor and then along to the end of the corridor,’ the man behind the reception desk answered. He pointed the way, indicating the directions with his hand without once looking at them.
‘Thanks,’ Bullet mumbled.
Without another word they all followed the receptionist’s instructions. Apart from their trainers squeaking on the polished floor, no other sound from the group could be heard. As they entered the lift, Theo thought, ‘If someone doesn’t say something soon I’m going to … I’m going to … laugh or shout or bark at the top of my voice. Anything to break this silence!’
They stepped out of the lift and the strange quiet that surrounded them stepped out with them. In the distance the hospital sounds carried on as normal, but Bullet and the others walked in their own bubble of quiet concern. The corridor stretched out before them, with signs hanging down from the ceiling at regular intervals and doors and stairs leading off on both sides. They were all the way down the corridor before anyone spoke.
‘Bullet, when you go in to see your dad, we’ll wait outside,’ Ricky suggested.
‘Can’t we go in with him?’ Angela asked, surprised.
‘No, we can’t,’ Ricky replied, getting annoyed for once. ‘What Bullet and his dad have to say to each other is their own private business and nothing to do with us.’
Angela flushed red at Ricky’s rebuke but before she could answer, they’d reached the double doors which led to Wellington Ward. Bullet took a deep breath and pushed at the doors. A huge ward spread out before them but only the patients in the first bay were visible. Immediately to their right was the ward office. Bullet marched straight up to the office and tapped smartly at the door even though it was open.
‘Yes? Can I help you?’ The sister in the room looked up from th
e report she was reading.
‘I’m looking for Darius Marriott.’
The sister turned to glance up at the clock on the wall behind her. She frowned. ‘Visiting hours don’t start for another ten minutes.’
‘We don’t mind waiting,’ Bullet said.
Theo couldn’t understand how Bullet could be so calm. He was a nervous wreck and it wasn’t even his dad.
‘And you are?’ The sister looked at Bullet pointedly.
‘My name is Toby. Darius Marriott’s my dad.’
The sister glanced up at the clock again. ‘Oh. Well, I suppose I can make an exception just this once. But I mean just this once – d’you understand?’
‘Yes, sister.’ Bullet grinned gratefully. ‘So which bed is he in?’
‘Bed number fifteen. He’s in a side room straight up the corridor and to your right.’ The sister bent her head to continue reading her report.
‘Thanks.’ Bullet was already on his way when he spoke. Theo walked faster to catch up with Angela and Ricky. He risked a glance in their direction. It was hard to tell what they were thinking. Maybe it was just him. Maybe he was being unnecessarily anxious about what was about to happen.
All too soon they reached a door with the number fifteen on it. Bullet turned to look at them all, took a deep, deep breath and then pushed open the door. Darius Marriott was reading a newspaper. The doctor, a tall man as skinny as clock hands at six o’clock with a very tidy moustache and dark brown hair swept back off his face, stood over Darius. He held a hypodermic syringe in one hand and in his other he held the intravenous drip line which ran into a vein in Darius Marriott’s left arm. Both Darius and the doctor turned their heads at Bullet’s entrance. Bullet hovered uncertainly at the door. Darius Marriott had a query on his face – nothing more. The doctor frowned, let go of the drip and slowly replaced the plastic protective cap back on the hypodermic needle. Bullet stepped into the room, still holding the door open.
‘Yes? Can I help you?’ asked the doctor, placing the syringe on the cabinet next to the bed.
Bullet couldn’t tear his gaze away from the man in the bed. Theo’s heart felt like food processor whisks on the fast setting. He couldn’t have been more nervous, more apprehensive, if he was the one about to talk to his father for the first time.