Consultant In Crisis

‘Why don’t you just come for the debrief and a drink and not stay for the meal? Or maybe you could ring your mum and get her to meet us there. Pizza restaurants are usually quite happy to have kids around.’

‘Oh, I couldn’t do that.’

‘Why not?’ Wendy spotted Kelly in the mirror. ‘Hey, Kelly! Do you reckon we passed?’

‘We’ll find out soon enough, I guess.’ Kelly was rummaging in her rucksack for a hairbrush. ‘That’s the only reason I’m going out for this meal.’ Today’s exercise had been more than putting theory into practice. It had also been an assessment of some of the skills they needed for qualification.

Jessica looked worried. ‘I suppose I’ll have to come.’

‘Dave and Tony will understand if you can’t,’ Kelly told her. ‘They know about Ricky.’

‘Maybe I shouldn’t have brought him with me.’ Jessica put her comb away. ‘But it seemed like such a great opportunity. He’s never been near a city before and I couldn’t have come if I hadn’t brought him. Mum couldn’t cope on her own for that long.’

‘How old is Ricky?’ Wendy was wielding a mascara wand.

‘Nearly six.’

‘He must be enjoying an extra holiday from school.’

‘He doesn’t go to school yet. He’s…not ready for that.’

Kelly and Wendy exchanged a glance. The undertones were obvious but the close friendship that was developing between the three women had not yet extended to confidences about the problems Jessica’s child clearly faced. Maybe a social occasion was a good idea for reasons other than finding out their test results.

‘Is Ricky’s father around?’ Wendy’s query seemed casual.

‘No.’ Jessica tried to match her tone. ‘I’m single.’

‘Me, too.’ Kelly dragged the brush through long strands of her thick, dark hair. ‘A permanent state, I suspect.’

‘Don’t be too sure. I thought it was for me, too.’ Wendy peered thoughtfully into the mirror. ‘You never know what—or who—might be waiting around the next corner in your life.’

‘Too true.’ The comment carried the weight of absolute sincerity. If Kelly had known that Fletch had been waiting, she would have been very careful to avoid this particular corner.

Jessica was smiling. ‘You’ve only known Ross for two weeks, Wendy. You must be pretty keen on each other if you’re so sure your single state is over.’

‘When you meet the right person you just know.’ Wendy’s smile was confident.

‘And does Ross feel the same way?’ Kelly tried not to sound sceptical. She had felt that way about Fletch once. The euphoria of being in love made you believe all sorts of things that had no basis in reality. She almost shook her head. How could she feel so old and wise at the age of only twenty-eight?

‘I think he did by the end of last weekend.’ Wendy’s confession was shy. ‘We’re going over to the Coast tomorrow. He wants to show me his house.’ Her expression was now dreamy. ‘He wants me to think about going to live with him and working at the Coast hospital.’

Kelly started braiding her hair into a single rope. She didn’t want to hear any more about Wendy’s dreams of a happy future. She didn’t need the reminder of how her own dreams had been crushed. One way and another, this Urban Search and Rescue training course was proving to be a growth experience that was not entirely welcome. She pushed the thought aside and smiled as she made an attempt to change the subject.

‘And if it doesn’t work out with Ross, we all know who’ll be only too keen to step into the breach.’

‘Oh, please!’ Wendy pushed her fingers through her hair to tousle the blonde spikes just a little more. ‘Kyle Dickson gives me the creeps. Every time I look up he’s staring at me.’

‘He fancies you.’ Jessica grinned.

Kelly had a momentary flashback to the stare she had received from Fletch during the teasing at the rubbish tip. Maybe unrequited passion would be a preferable emotion to deal with.

‘Well, it’s not mutual.’ Wendy pulled on a polar fleece jacket. ‘We’d better get going. They’ll be waiting for us in the bus by now.’ Her grin was impish. ‘Hey, it’s Friday night and we’re two-thirds of the way through this course. It’s definitely time to celebrate.’

Jessica checked her watch. ‘It’s nearly six,’ she said despairingly. ‘I can’t come—even for a drink.’

‘Then don’t,’ Kelly advised. ‘Come on. I’ll go with you while you explain things to Dave.’

Kelly was tempted to excuse herself from the outing at the same time but Wendy did have a point. It was Friday night. They had all worked hard throughout the week and it would be nice to relax. The class group of nearly twenty people was large enough to dilute the fact that she would be socialising in the same company as Neil Fletcher, and the likely alternative of spending another evening exercising her persuasive skills to deal with the situation at home found Kelly climbing into the bus quite happily.

The USAR course members made a sizeable group as they entered the popular pizza restaurant and bar housed in one of the more modern suburban shopping malls.

‘Does anybody know what time the pharmacy here shuts?’ Sandy was from a country town well north of Christchurch. Like several other people she was living in during the course at the school’s accommodation facilities. ‘I’ve run out of shampoo.’

‘The supermarket will be open,’ Wendy told her.

‘Does anyone else need anything?’

‘I’ll come with you,’ Kyle announced. ‘I need a new razor.’ At twenty-three, Kyle was the youngest member of the class. He stroked a chin that looked like it was struggling to produce anything more than fluff and then eyed Fletch and Joe, who were collecting orders to take to the bar. ‘Get a beer for me, will you, guys? We won’t be long.’

Kelly chose a single seat at the end of the long table. With no other chairs available, Fletch would be forced to sit at the other end of the table and the conversation there was loud enough to easily drown out the sound of his voice. Things would be far more manageable at this end as far as Kelly was concerned. Dave Stewart was already seated on her left and having an animated conversation with June, a lively woman in her mid-fifties who was probably the oldest of the class members.

‘I was a cop, originally,’ Dave was telling June as Kelly sat down. ‘I’m forty-six now and I’ve spent the last nineteen years with the fire service.’

‘How long have you been involved with USAR?’

On Kelly’s right, Wendy was sitting beside Ross and they, too, were quickly engrossed in their own conversation.

‘It’s true.’ Wendy was laughing. ‘It was because I was fat that I joined the tramping club at school. I wanted to lose weight. Next thing I knew I was hooked and running marathons!’

‘Ever tried the Coast to Coast?’

‘No, but I’d love to. A race across the south island in one day would be the ultimate. I’d need to brush up on my kayaking and cycling times, though.’

‘I did it last year.’

‘Oh, wow!’

Kelly was only half listening to the conversations around her as she kept an eye out for the return of Joe and Fletch. Her colleague and her ex-fiancé. It was kind of ironic that the two men had established such a good friendship over the space of the last two weeks but Kelly was confident that she had dismissed any curiosity on Joe’s part on the first day of the course. During the class introductions, in fact. That session had probably been the hardest of the course so far. Kelly stole a glance at Dave as she remembered how he’d started that first day.

‘You represent a wide group of expertise,’ he’d told them. ‘We have people here from the fire service and the Red Cross. We have paramedics, nurses and doctors. Some of you are from cities and some from rural areas.’ Dave’s smile had been welcoming. ‘I suggest the first thing we do is go around the group and introduce ourselves.’ He’d looked at Kelly. ‘Tell us something about yourself. What you do and how you ended up being on this course.’

‘Um…’ Kelly had swallowed hard. She hadn’t been at all sure she’d even wanted to be on the course any more. Three weeks of sitting in a room with Neil Fletcher? Being reminded of the overwhelming effects that being in love with him had had on both her mind and body? No, thanks.

The silence was loud. Everyone was listening, especially Fletch. Kelly wanted to escape, to run away. But she had never run from anything in her life and she wasn’t about to start.

‘I’m Kelly Drummond,’ she stated clearly. ‘I’m twenty-eight years old and I’ve been with the ambulance service for eight years now. I qualified as a paramedic while I was working in Australia and I just came back to a new job in Christchurch three weeks ago. I guess they decided it would be a good idea to throw me back in at the deep end and give me the challenge of learning about urban search and rescue.’

Joe introduced himself with his usual laid-back confidence. June offered her background of nearly thirty years with the Red Cross, and Owen, Roger and Gerry made it obvious that working together at an inner city fire station gave them a close bond. And then it was the introduction Kelly had been dreading.

‘I’m Neil Fletcher.’ The familiar deep tone was as disconcerting as the first sight of him had been. ‘But, please, call me Fletch because I’m not likely to respond to being called Neil by anyone other than my mother.’

The laughter was general and the ice was broken amongst the group. Even Kelly smiled. She hadn’t forgotten how he hated the name Neil.

Joe poked Kelly in the ribs with his elbow. ‘Didn’t you and Fletch get together for a while? Just before you took off across the ditch?’

‘Not so you’d notice,’ Kelly whispered back. ‘I doubt that he even remembers me.’

Any suspicion that Kelly wasn’t being truthful would have been allayed by the way Fletch had later brushed her off and pretended they were strangers. Kelly was relieved. It would make things a lot easier—at least for the duration of this training course. She was unsurprised. If she’d been in Fletch’s position she wouldn’t want her reputation tarnished either. Dr Fletcher would be more than slightly embarrassed if the sordid details of their break-up ever became public.

‘Are you sure you only wanted an orange juice?’ Joe leaned past Wendy to place a tall glass in front of Kelly.

‘Thanks, Joe. That’s perfect.’

Fletch was right behind Joe. ‘Wine for you, June, and a nice cold beer for you, Wendy.’

‘Oh, excellent! Thanks, Fletch.’ Wendy looked around brightly. ‘Drag a chair over from that table. There’s plenty of room on either side of Kelly.’

‘Of course, she only wanted orange juice.’ Fletch nodded at Joe as he squeezed a chair in between Wendy and Kelly. ‘Does she ever drink anything else?’

‘How do you know that, Fletch?’ Wendy was now completely distracted from her conversation with Ross.

Kelly cringed as she realised she wasn’t the only person interested in the response to the question. She was grateful for Kyle’s intrusion as he and Sandy joined the group again.

‘So, what’s the news?’ Kyle demanded. ‘I hope I haven’t missed the debrief.’

‘Couldn’t start without you, Kyle.’ Dave tapped on his glass with a spoon to call for silence. Kyle edged rapidly down the side of the table and slid into an empty seat next to Owen. Dave cleared his throat.

‘OK, team. Let’s get this debriefing over with. Our pizzas are going to turn up in a minute. You all did a great job today and I’m happy to say you’ve all passed your first practical assessment. Hazard markings, rubble crawl, line and hail search and patient extrication.’

A pleased murmur ran around the group. The three-week USAR course was punctuated by both written and practical assessments and each success took the participants closer to their goal of becoming qualified as members of a very specialised emergency service.

Dave caught Kelly’s glance. ‘Maybe you can get hold of Jessica later and let her know.’

‘Sure.’

‘Where is Jessica?’ June queried. ‘Not sick, I hope?’

‘Family responsibilities,’ Dave said vaguely.

‘Oh…’ June nodded understandingly. ‘Her little boy is a special needs child, isn’t he?’

‘They’re all special needs,’ Joe muttered from Kelly’s side. ‘Kids get in the way of having any fun at all.’

Kelly wondered if Joe realised how evident his disappointment was, but maybe nobody else had noticed the spark of interest that Joe had extinguished the moment Jessica had mentioned having a child.

‘You’ll change your mind one of these days, mate.’ Fletch leaned slightly across Kelly to speak to Joe. ‘I can just see us all meeting for a ten-year class reunion. You’ll probably have six kids by then.’

‘No way.’

‘Grandchildren are great,’ June put in. ‘I’ve just got my second one.’ She chuckled. ‘I’ll probably be a great-grandmother in ten years’ time.’

The relief Kelly had experienced when the conversation had been diverted from her drinking habits was replaced by an inexplicable sadness. Where would she be in ten years’ time? Still focused on a career without any kind of real home or family? Her goals had been so clearly set but she had almost achieved them now. What could she aim for when she had succeeded in helping to sort out her mother’s current situation and cut her own ties to an unhappy past at the same time?

‘You got any children, Fletch?’ Wendy’s query came as Fletch turned his attention to his glass of beer with obvious relish.

‘Not yet, but I’m working on it.’

Kelly was jolted from her own thoughts. She had wondered repeatedly over the last two weeks whether Fletch was in another relationship. The thought of it being meaningful enough to produce children in the foreseeable future gave her a distinctly unpleasant sensation.

‘I intend to one of these days,’ Fletch continued. ‘Unlike Joe, I really enjoy the company of children.’

‘I had four,’ June told him. ‘In fact, it was my daughter that got me involved with Red Cross in the first place.’

Kelly didn’t want to listen to any plans Fletch had to start a family. Once again she was grateful for an interruption from Kyle, who called loudly from the other side of the group.

‘Is that it, Dave?’ He sounded disappointed. ‘For the debrief?’

Dave nodded. ‘We can pick over the details next week. I think we need some time out. And some food.’ He waved at the waitresses carrying huge wooden platters in their direction. ‘I hope you’re coming our way.’

Kelly was hungry enough to enjoy the slice of Mexican pizza laden with hot peppers and sour cream. She had a slice of the vegetarian pizza that was offered next. The conversations around her were becoming increasingly difficult to hear as laughter from the other end of the table increased. Soon they were all listening to Gerry giving a convincing imitation of the kind of groaning they had heard the taped ‘victim’ uttering. Kyle was clearly more amused than anyone else as they rehashed their search for the groaning woman.

‘I was sure we were going to find two people trapped under there.’ Owen laughed.

‘Would have been a sin to disturb them.’ Roger chuckled and then winked at Kelly who smiled briefly before shifting her gaze.

Kyle took the opportunity to interrupt the last pocket of conversation left at the table. ‘That’s not the way we’d do it,’ he informed the fireman beside him.

‘You’re a volunteer firefighter, Kyle.’ The older man sounded tolerant. ‘In a small, rural district. How much experience of big blazes do you get?’

‘Enough,’ Kyle responded defensively. ‘We’ve had a serial arsonist at work for months now. The school got torched. And the church.’

‘I read about that.’ Roger looked interested. ‘Have they caught the arsonist yet?’

‘Probably kids,’ Joe muttered.

‘No.’ Kyle clearly still wanted to prove his credentials. He ignored the distraction. ‘Besides, I use the internet a lot. I’ve learned heaps about major fires. And USAR stuff.’ Green eyes brightened as he grinned at the audience he’d collected. ‘I’ve downloaded some great pictures of the Oklahoma bombing. I’ll bring them in next week and show you.’

Roger had lost interest. He collected his empty beer glass and stood up. ‘Can I get anybody another drink?’ Spotting Kelly’s empty glass, he moved down the length of the table. ‘What are you having, Kelly?’

‘I’m fine for now, thanks.’

But Roger was reaching for her glass. ‘What was it? Vodka and orange?’

Fletch’s raised eyebrow was uncalled for. His look of amusement was even more irritating.

‘I don’t want another drink, thanks, Roger.’

Fletch was still looking amused. ‘Very wise, Kelly. You don’t want to overindulge.’

Kelly forgot her intention to maintain the pretence they were strangers. She didn’t like being patronised.

‘You’re certainly experienced enough in that department to be in a position to give advice.’ Her tone was light-hearted enough to make Roger grin.

‘So…you’ve got a reputation, have you, Dr Fletcher? How come Kelly knows and we don’t?’

‘There’s nothing to know.’ Fletch managed to sound convincingly surprised.

‘Oh, come on.’ Roger was still grinning. ‘What was it, Kelly? A past filled with wine, women and wild parties?’

‘Something like that,’ Kelly agreed.

‘How do you know?’ Wendy looked curious. ‘You weren’t one of the women, were you?’

Joe was also looking at Kelly. His raised eyebrow expressed surprise that she’d got herself into this verbal corner. His shrug suggested that he couldn’t think of any way to help extricate his colleague.

‘I’m sure she was.’ Roger’s glance was appreciative. ‘If Fletch had any taste, that is.’

‘Taste was never one of my strongest points.’ Fletch’s grin made the comment a joke to everyone other than Kelly. ‘Except for beer,’ he added. ‘I’ll come with you if you’re heading for the bar, Rog.’ He stood up.

‘Sure.’ But Roger wasn’t ready to move quite yet. He was still looking at Kelly, his curiosity unsatisfied. Fletch noticed the unspoken question as he waited. He shrugged offhandedly.

‘Kelly and I knew each other,’ he said casually. ‘It was a long time ago. Before she went to Australia. And it was no big deal, was it, Kelly?’

‘No.’ Kelly’s smile felt tight but she held Fletch’s gaze as steadily as she could. ‘It was no big deal.’

But it had been. Kelly had to force herself to break the eye contact with Fletch. It felt like a physical connection and it was suddenly unbearable. Their time together had certainly been a long time ago and maybe it hadn’t been a big deal for Fletch, but it had been big for her. As big as it got. Kelly tried to shake off the dismay that threatened to overwhelm her as Fletch turned to walk away.

Maybe it still was.

CHAPTER TWO

SHE was late.

Neil found he was watching Kelly’s hurried entrance to the classroom with as much attention as everyone else. There was a flush of colour on her cheeks that suggested annoyance. That figured. Kelly set high standards for herself and attracting attention by being late would not be acceptable behaviour. The long, dark ponytail swung across her back as she turned to push the door shut.

‘Sorry I’m late.’ Clearly embarrassed by disrupting a session that had already started, Kelly sat down beside Joe, flashing a rueful smile at her colleague before opening her rucksack to extract writing materials. Fletch wondered if the smile meant that Joe was privy to personal circumstances that had provided an unwelcome obstacle to her arriving on time. Unaccountably, the thought provoked a feeling of irritation.

‘No problem, Kelly.’ Dave wasn’t feeling irritated. He was smiling at Kelly. ‘Except that you’re going to be running the first session this morning.’

‘What?’ Kelly’s jaw dropped and Fletch suppressed the twinge of sympathy that replaced the irritation. Why should he care that her composure was now thoroughly ruffled? Why had she been running late, anyway? Had she slept in? Had someone been sharing her bed? Fletch settled back in his chair with an uncharacteristic frown. He wasn’t going to help her out. No way.

Neither was her friend, Joe. ‘We took a vote,’ he told her cheerfully. ‘And you’re it.’

Kelly looked frankly worried now. Already dark blue eyes looked almost brown and a vertical crease appeared between them. Lord, had he forgotten what those glimpses of vulnerability had done to him? He had to fight the temptation to step in, to say something encouraging or comforting. She could cope. The Kelly Drummond Fletch had known had never backed away from a challenge. She didn’t need anyone’s support and she certainly wasn’t about to get his.

‘Cool.’ The tiny head shake confirmed that Kelly was ready to handle whatever was about to be thrown in her direction. ‘What is it? Hide and seek in the rubbish tip again?’

The groan was general. Some class members were still feeling the effects of that full-scale scenario.

Dave shook his head as he smiled. ‘Today’s session, as Kelly is about to find out, is medical. We’re going to focus on developing basic skills in patient assessment, resuscitation and trauma management.’

Dave’s attention shifted away from Kelly. It had only taken a few days for the class to divide itself into two distinct groups and Dave was directing his next words towards the less medically qualified course members who had come from the ranks of the fire service and civil defence.

‘As USAR team members you may well be the first to reach an injured person. You may, in fact, be their only contact for some time. The team you are part of may not be fortunate enough to have the kind of medical expertise that we have represented here.’

Dave’s glance returned to Fletch’s side of the room. ‘Today’s course module will be redundant for some of you—Fletch and Ross as doctors, Joe and Kelly as paramedics and Wendy, Jessica and Sandy as nurses. It’s not just because Tony and I feel like a day off that we’re turning these sessions over to you guys. I expect we’re going to learn something, too. We intend to take full advantage of your skills and knowledge.’

‘Especially Kelly’s.’ Joe sounded smug.

‘Your turn is coming, Joe.’ Dave smiled at Kelly. ‘Your name just came out of the hat first. I hope you’ll all keep in mind that we’re going for a strong emphasis on practical skills today. We’re learning what we need to use in the field.’

‘I’m hardly the most qualified person to start,’ Kelly reminded Dave. ‘You’ve got an emergency department consultant here, you know.’

The emphasis rankled. Was it so hard for her to use his name? To make him a person instead of a profession? Or had Kelly been surprised to discover that Fletch had gone from a registrar position to a consultancy in the space of only two years? Maybe thirty-two was young to have achieved such a senior position but it hadn’t been easy. He’d worked extremely hard and he deserved his success. Everyone was looking at him now. Except Kelly.

‘I disagree,’ Fletch said calmly. ‘By and large the trauma patients that turn up in Emergency have already been assessed and neatly packaged by the ambulance service. We work under controlled conditions with plenty of equipment and staff available. Hardly what we’re going to encounter in a USAR call-out.’

Dave nodded his agreement. ‘Don’t worry, Kelly. You won’t have to do it all by yourself. Your task is to take us through a primary survey. Ross is going to do vital signs and CPR. Joe’s going to cover immobilisation techniques. Fletch is going to talk about shock and Wendy and Jessica are going to cover treatment of soft tissue injuries. This afternoon we’ll try and pull it all together with some scenario work in small groups.’ Dave gestured towards the space he had left at the front of the class. ‘Over to you, Kelly. Let’s get stuck in.’

Kelly looked quite relaxed as she moved to lean against the table at the front of the room, but that was because most people wouldn’t know that the habit of tucking a tendril of dark hair behind her right ear only surfaced when she was nervous. Fletch knew. He also knew what she looked like when that magnificent mane of hair was unleashed from its restraint…when it fell like the softest curtain imaginable to screen a slim, naked back.