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‘Adam, we wouldn’t dream of touching any of the machines,’ Johnny said calmly. ‘I think you know that.’

‘I know you’re not with me on this,’ Adam said. ‘How the hell do I know what you would or wouldn’t do? You can’t be in there.’

‘That is Mum’s sister,’ Riley said, her voice cracking. ‘What if Rob was lying in a hospital bed and we said you couldn’t visit him?’

Adam flinched, but then his face hardened again. ‘You’re just a kid, Riley. You don’t understand this situation.’

‘I understand enough,’ Riley said. ‘She’s not Sarah any more. It’s hard to be in there to see what’s happening to her. I couldn’t do that to someone I love.’

‘You don’t understand!’ Adam shouted, and Johnny quickly stepped forward to protect Riley.

The two men squared up, anger flashing in their eyes.

‘Stop that this minute,’ Angela said, in a voice Mia had never heard her use before. She marched straight up and put a hand on each man’s shoulder. ‘Back away this instant or I’m getting security to put you both out.’

Johnny took a step away but remained warily on guard.

‘They were just leaving,’ Adam said.

‘If they want to,’ Angela said evenly. ‘Mia is immediate family, so I’m not going to order her out.’

‘I’m next-of-kin,’ Adam said. ‘My rights supersede hers and I don’t want her in there.’

Mia took a deep breath. ‘Adam, I’d really like to sort this out,’ she said. ‘It makes everything worse if we’re fighting.’

Rob walked up to join them. ‘What’s going on?’ he asked, sounding worried.

‘I’m just explaining that they aren’t to visit Sarah,’ Adam said, staring hard at Mia.

‘I was suggesting we talk it through and try to resolve this,’ Mia said, forcing herself to stay calm and keep her voice low, non-threatening.

‘That’s a really good idea,’ Rob said, clearly relieved. ‘We really should talk as a family and work it out.’

Adam said nothing. He walked over to the nurses’ station and went behind the counter. They all watched him, puzzled. Even Angela didn’t say anything, just watched him in confusion. He rooted on the desk, then took up a pen and a blank sheet of paper. He wrote something on it in big letters, then pulled a piece of Sellotape off the dispenser and walked back towards them. He went straight into Sarah’s room. They all crowded at the door, looking to see what he was doing.

He stuck the page on the ventilator machine and stood back. In big heavy letters he’d written: DO NOT TURN OFF!!!

‘There,’ he said. ‘Now no one is going to do anything behind my back.’

‘He’s lost it,’ Riley muttered.

Mia couldn’t disagree. This was not the behaviour of a rational man. What was going on in his head?

‘There’s no need for that, Adam,’ Angela said. ‘Everyone knows the decision belongs to you, and that the doctors are the only ones with authority to handle the ventilator.’

‘What people know and what people do are often different things,’ Adam retorted. He pointed at Mia. ‘Sheis a control freak. She’d do it, I know she would.’

Mia gasped in shock.

‘That is crazy,’ Johnny said coldly. ‘You’ve no idea what you’re saying.’

‘I wouldn’t, Adam,’ Mia said helplessly.

‘You would,’ Adam hissed.

‘Outside,’ Angela ordered. ‘You’re not arguing in here. Out.’

They all stood about in the corridor. Mia looked at Rob, and motioned with her head towards Adam, meaning ‘Talk to him. Help us out here.’