Page 62 of A Christmas Wish for the Village Midwife

Zoe’s hunch was proved right a moment later as Santa went to sit with the first family and began to talk to the children, while others gathered around trying to listen in, despite their grown-ups telling them that their turn would come soon enough. He was flanked by his elves, who each held a glittery sack stuffed with presents. Louisa, on the other hand, was far more interested in the plaits of the little girl sitting next to her.

‘Ow!’

The girl squealed as Louisa took one in a chubby fist and yanked at it. Zoe rushed to loosen her grip, apologising to the girl’s mum as she managed to pull Louisa away.

‘It’s all right,’ the woman said as she stroked her daughter’s hair to soothe her. ‘They’ll reach for anything at that age, won’t they?’

Billie now seemed to clock something had happened and looked annoyed as she worked it out. Probably at herself rather than anyone else, for not keeping her eye on Louisa.

‘No harm done,’ Zoe said to her.

Billie seemed unconvinced and turned her energy to watching Louisa instead of where Santa was.

Eventually, Santa reached them.

Billie pointed to him. ‘Louisa! Look, it’s Santa!’

Louisa stared at the looming figure, who bent to speak to her and seemed even bigger and more imposing still. It was no wonder that, as he smiled, she stared for another second before screwing up her face and beginning to wail.

‘Oh dear!’ Santa said, nodding at the elves to hand over the present and get him out. ‘It was good to meet you, Louisa. Perhaps I’ll see you again next year.’

‘Not if I can help it,’ Billie said savagely as she tried to comfort Louisa, and despite the situation, Zoe had to laugh. The response was so typically Billie that she only wished Alex could have been here to see it because he would have found it funny too.

‘If that’s the worst that ever happens to him, he’ll be lucky,’ the mother of the plaited girl said to them. ‘Last year, this one here yanked his beard clean off. I didn’t know where to put my face.’

‘I didn’t!’ the little girl said, causing an eye-roll from her mother.

‘You did, and your dad took the photo to prove it.’

Zoe’s laughter grew as Santa moved on to them and began to make polite conversation. Louisa had stopped crying, but she eyed him with the deepest suspicion as she watched, Billie’s arms wrapped protectively around her. But it was stopped abruptly at the sight of the pregnant woman she’d noticed earlier suck in a sharp breath as she looked at the floor. Zoe stood up and immediately spotted the trickle pooling at the woman’s feet. She pushed her way through the families towards her, leaving Billie to stare as she watched her go.

‘Are you all right?’ she asked, glancing down at the small puddle and then up at the woman’s face. ‘Have your waters just broken?’

‘I’m not sure… yes…’

‘It’s all right, I’m a midwife. Do you feel OK?’

‘Yes. I feel fine, actually. Apart from the obvious, of course. I don’t want to be a nuisance… Will it wait?’

‘I’d like to say yes, but I don’t know. Sometimes you’ve got a while. Is this your first?’ Zoe suspected not, given the older child with her, but didn’t want to assume.

‘No. But my waters didn’t go last time like this. Do you think this labour will be faster?’

‘It might. We should ask them to turn the boat around and take you to shore so you can get to hospital. You might have plenty of time, but I’d be worried about infection now that your waters have gone. Best to be safe. Have you got anyone with you?’

The woman shook her head. ‘I didn’t think I’d need anyone just for this. I mean, Mikey’s with me, of course…’ She pointed to her son.

‘Can you phone someone to come and meet you?’

‘I can drive myself to the hospital.’

‘You don’t have anyone?’

‘Nobody who’s free right now. My partner is away for work, out of the country. My parents live in Scotland. I could ask my in-laws, but I don’t know how quickly they’d be able to get here. My mother-in-law is disabled, and it takes them a while to get out of the house…’

‘Right…’ Zoe cast around for someone who looked as if they might be in charge, but all she could see was Santa and his elves. By now, other people had started to notice their urgent conversation and had joined in, offering help or opinions, and not all of it useful.

‘It was days before I had my second even though my water had broken,’ one woman said.