‘That’ll kill you,’ Ben said, but he said it almost automatically, with no passion behind it, and Sam took a couple of drags on his cigarette and ground it out under his heel.

‘Don’t I know it. But seeing I only smoke when I lose a patient, I’m not likely to die any time soon. Damn, the kid had been left too long.’

‘Another kid?’ Ben said, and his heart missed a beat. ‘Who…?’ It was suddenly hard to ask the question but it had to be asked. ‘Not a six-year-old boy called Benjy?’

When Sam shook his head his heart started again but only just.

‘A ten-year-old girl called Sophia,’ Sam said. ‘Head injury. She was hit with shrapnel. We drilled a burrhole to try and alleviate pressure but she died under our hands.’ He shifted his foot and stared at his stubbed-out cigarette as if he regretted extinguishing it. ‘What were these bastards thinking?’ he exploded. ‘This isn’t like any sort of military coup I’ve ever seen. They shot anything that moved. Kids, women… I’ve even seen a couple of shot dogs.’

‘They’re mad,’ Ben agreed.

‘I don’t like our chances of negotiating,’ Sam said morosely. ‘God help the hostages.’

‘No.’ Ben hesitated and then sat down on the step beside Sam. Sam cast him a look that was suddenly concerned and moved aside to give him room.

‘Do we know how many are being held hostage?’ Sam asked, and Ben shook his head. He was trying to think straight and it wasn’t working.

I called him after his father.

‘I need to get a search party together,’ he said and rose.

Sam rose with him. ‘There are search parties from one end of the island to the other,’ Sam reminded him. ‘Looking for injured islanders and rounding up anyone remotely connected to a gun. Why do you need another? Are you still looking for Lily?’

‘I found her,’ he said. ‘Her son’s missing. She’s just passed out on me-she’s been operating for thirty-six hours straight and she’s closer to being unconscious than asleep. I promised I’d look for the kid.’