by Lucy Clark
He knew it wasn’t Harriette’s fault the door hadn’t been locked. She was right. How was she to know that Chloe had a tendency to run off? Felix closed his eyes for a brief second and rubbed a hand across his temples. He was exhausted, jet-lagged, running on the last shred of his energy reserves and he honestly didn’t know how much longer he’d last.
‘You’ll continue until you find her,’ he told himself sternly. Chloe was his responsibility and he knew—or at least he hoped—that within the next few months they’d be able to find a footing where they could both appreciate the situation they were in and make the best of it. He did care for the child. He had a familial love for her and it was that that had spurred him forward to become her legal guardian. His heart ached for the pain and confusion she must be feeling.
‘Chloe?’ He called her name as he checked behind a native shrub. He didn’t call too loudly as he didn’t want to wake people up, nor scare the child.
‘Chloe?’ Harriette yelled as she came out of the house, her voice booming in the dark.
‘Shh. She can’t have gone far,’ Felix said, feeling self-conscious and worried and confused and completely out of his depth.
‘She won’t hear me if I don’t yell and you’re wrong that she couldn’t have gone far. When a three-year-old decides to run, their little legs can be pretty fast.’
‘Even if she does hear you,’ Felix hissed, keeping his curt words low, ‘she still might not answer.’
Harriette ignored him and shone her torch around the area, looking down the path that led to the clinic and the hospital. ‘There’s no point in arguing semantics, Felix. Where do you think she might have gone? Maybe she went back to the hospital? After all, there are lights to pave the way and she might have just followed them, still unsure where they led.’
‘I don’t know.’
‘Chloe!’ she yelled again and listened for a response but nothing came. ‘You don’t have a clue what she might do?’
‘No.’
‘How often has she run away like this before?’
‘Twice.’
She gritted her teeth, knowing he should have taken better precautions to ensure Chloe’s safety, but what mattered now was finding Chloe before something else did. There were plenty of four legged predators out at night as well as snakes. True, they usually didn’t come this close to the town but there were always exceptions. Harriette hoped tonight wasn’t one of them.
‘I’ll check the hospital. You check down the path that leads to the retirement village and community centre.’ Harriette shone her torch in the direction he should go. ‘Have you got your mobile phone with you?’
‘No. It’s inside. I’ll do a double-check in there again in case we missed a hiding spot and pick it up. Then I’ll head to the retirement village.’ He spoke the words as though he was getting things clear in his head, as though he really wasn’t capable of coherent thought right now and was happy she was making the plans.
‘Good. Call me if you find her.’ Harriette headed off down the path towards the clinic and the hospital.
‘Wait. I don’t know your number.’
‘Ask anyone you meet. They all have it,’ she called, before disappearing around the side of the house and out of his view. Felix frowned as he headed back into the house, grumbling to himself.
‘What if I don’t meet anyone? They’re all asleep so what am I supposed to do—?’ A sound stopped him and he paused, then said clearly and firmly, ‘Chloe, if you’re hiding in here, you need to come out immediately. You’re starting to worry me...and soon, there will be lots of people trying to find you and really, well, we all just want to know you’re safe.’ And he did. He wanted to know he hadn’t failed his brother by not being a good enough guardian.
Nothing else seemed to matter now. The past was the past and even though he and David had managed to patch things up a few years ago, they still hadn’t spoken much. The best thing he could do for his brother now was to care for Chloe. That was how he would make peace with the pain piercing his heart. Chloe had to come first.
‘Chloe?’ He called her name everywhere he went as he rechecked every nook and cranny in the house, including Harriette’s side. The little girl really wasn’t anywhere to be found. He picked up his phone, slipped on his Italian loafers, then headed on the path towards the Meeraji Lake retirement village and community hall.
Surprisingly, as he drew nearer to the community hall, he was astonished to find quite a few people coming out, many of them retirees, laughing and joking together.
‘What are you all doing out so late?’ he asked, switching off his torch, the light outside the community centre casting enough light for him to see their faces.
‘Who are you?’ one of them asked.
‘Dr McLaren. Oscar Price’s friend.’
‘And what might you be doing up so late and dressed as such?’ one of the ladies asked, waggling an arthritic finger at him and giggling. Felix looked down at his attire of T-shirt, boxer shorts and loafers. Clearly this wasn’t how he’d wanted to meet the townsfolk but there was nothing he could do about that now.
‘My...er...child—Chloe. She’s three, nearly four. She’s run away.’
‘Why didn’t you say so first off?’
‘Has Henry been called?’
‘Where’s Harriette? Does she know?’
‘How long ago? Are we talking hours or minutes?’
‘Er...’ He tried to compute all the questions that were spoken in unison. ‘Only a few minutes ago.Five. Maybe five minutes by now. Harriette’s checking the clinic and hospital. Henry’s been called.’
‘Good thing the council meeting ran rather late tonight,’ one of the men said. ‘What did you say her name was?’
‘Chloe. She’s almost four years old.’ And just like that, they all started helping. No other questions, no forms of censure. Nothing. Some of them switched on their mobile phones, using them to light the way, others started calling more people to come and join the search. They were a community. They cared. They had no idea who he was, they hadn’t even met Chloe and yet here they were, immediately offering assistance. Felix was...humbled as well as appreciative.
‘Chloe? Chloe?’ They all started calling and spread out, helping him to look for her. Felix hoped the child wasn’t in any danger. She couldn’t be, could she? The poor thing had already been through enough in her short life. She didn’t need more. The concern he’d felt earlier doubled as five minutes turned into ten.
Henry was now on the scene and Harriette had checked the clinic and the hospital, alerting the night staff of the situation.
‘It’s all right, Felix. We’ll find her,’ Harriette reassured him after she’d spoken to the people who were awake and helping them search. He’d also lost count of the number of times people had asked him where he thought Chloe might have gone and his helplessness increased when he simply had to shrug and say he had no idea.
‘The next step is to raise the alarm and wake the volunteer firefighters so we can get some big lamps set up and cars heading up and down the main roads with their spotlights,’ Henry said.
Felix sat down in the gutter outside the hospital and put his head in his hands. How had this happened? He clearly wasn’t fit to be a parent to the child. Surely tonight proved that.
‘We’ll find her,’ Harriette said again as she sat down next to him and put her hand on his shoulder.
‘I can’t do this. I can’t.’
‘If you need to go back to the house, that’s fine. We all understand. We’ll get the search party organised and—’
‘I meant I’m not cut out to be a parent.’
Harriette processed his words for a moment before asking softly, ‘Who’s David?’
‘My brother.’
‘So... Chloe’s your niece?’
‘Yes, and until my brother and his wife were killed in a car accident four months ago I had no idea I was listed as her guardian.’
‘Chloe’s parents have passed away?’ Harriette’s words were filled with sadness and compassion.
‘Yes.’
‘And you’re her guardian?’
‘Yes, but I—’ He stopped and shook his head. Around them people were talking and organising and planning. He felt incredibly helpless. ‘I don’t know how to be a parent.’ He hung his head after speaking the words out loud. ‘Clearly I’m no good. I didn’t even realise she was upset and then I didn’t check the doors were locked and she hates me and she cried almost the entire time on the plane—and it’s a long flight from England to Australia and—’ He buried his face in his hands, his tone filled with anguish. ‘I have no idea what to do. I don’t know. I just don’t know. And now she’s lost. Lost in a strange place. Not knowing anything or anyone and...oh, Harriette...she must be so frightened.’
Harriette listened to him, her heart going out to him and the little girl who had been orphaned. She had many questions but now was not the time. What Felix needed right now was reassurance. Time was ticking by and although it felt as though hours had passed since they’d started to search, that wasn’t the case at all.
Harriette sniffed and cleared her throat and when Felix turned to glance at her, he could see a tear sliding down her cheek, the light from the street light above making it glint in the darkness. ‘We’ll find her, Felix.’ She took a deep, cleansing breath, her words now filled with determination. ‘We’re a strong community and when something like this happens, we all band together, leaving no stone unturned. We support and—’
‘Found her!’ came a loud female call from the very far end of the street.
‘What?’ Felix was on his feet like a shot and Harriette wasn’t far behind him. They sprinted towards where the woman’s voice had come from and, in the dim lights from around them, they saw a woman coming towards them, carrying a small child in her arms.
‘Oh, Erica.You absolute legend.’
When Erica reached Felix, he immediately took Chloe from her and hugged the child close.
‘Where was she?’ Harriette asked.
‘At the bus stop. Waiting.’
‘Oh, the poor love. The bus stop is quite a way from the house but clearly she was determined to get out of here.’
‘Chloe. Chloe, you had me scared out of my wits.’ Felix’s words were soft and filled with emotion. He tried to ease her head back but she’d buried it in his neck, her little arms holding him tight. ‘I was so worried about you.’ He sniffed, exhaustion, stress and relief all mixing together.
Chloe pulled back a little and looked at his cheek, lifting her chubby hand to wipe at the tears. ‘You’re crying?’
‘Because I’m so relieved you’re OK. I need you to be safe, Chloe. I need to know where you are. I need to keep you safe,’ he reiterated.
‘Why?’ the child asked softly and Harriette found herself holding her breath.
‘Because we’re family,’ he returned and the answer seemed to settle the child somewhat. ‘Let’s get you home,’ he said.
‘To England?’ she asked with hope.
‘Just back to our new house.’
‘With Harriette?’ Chloe asked.
And it was as though Felix had even forgotten his new colleague was there because he shifted the child in his arms so he could look at his housemate. ‘Yes, Harriette lives there, too.’
‘I want to sleep with Harriette,’ the child declared and held out her hands towards Harriette, lunging so quickly, Felix had no option but to let her go. ‘I want to sleep with you. I used to sleep with Mummy when I had bad dreams.’
‘I think you need to get used to sleeping in your own bed,’ Felix started, but before he could say another word, Harriette interjected.
‘Of course you can sleep in my bed,’ Harriette said as they started walking back, most of the searchers now having been told that the child had been found safe and well. Felix shook hands with everyone but the women were having none of this hand-shaking business and pulled Felix close for a hug. Harriette had to smile at the look of shock and confusion on his face. Confusion at what? At being so warmly and readily accepted by the community? This same community he’d previously been determined to keep at arm’s length? Soon he would realise that in a district this small, it was inevitable to make relationships with the people who were also your patients. There were no case-file numbers here. There were only people, people who needed a holistic approach to medicine and that involved having relationships with them.
Erica, the woman who had looked after Chloe while they’d been operating on Patrick, the woman who had eventually found Chloe at the bus stop, gave Felix a big, warm hug.
‘You bring her to see me at the day-care centre tomorrow. We need to get Chloe mixing with other children in the district, to let her know she has friends here so that she feels secure and loved,’ Erica told him, and Felix nodded in agreement.
‘I’m just so glad she was found and that she’s OK,’ he said quite a while later as he stood beside Harriette’s bed. Chloe was lying snuggled next to Harriette, sound asleep. ‘She is OK, isn’t she?’
‘She’s a little shaken but that’s to be expected. Psychologically, I think tonight pales in comparison with what she’s already been through.’
‘I’ll say.’ He walked over to pick her up.
‘What are you doing?’
‘I’m putting her into her own bed.’
‘Why?’
‘Because she’s asleep now and all the parenting books say that the children will only learn to sleep in their own beds if they sleep there every night, regardless of where they may have fallen asleep.’
‘Oh, hang the parenting books.’ Harriette shook her head and placed a protective arm over Chloe’s little body. ‘She’s fine where she is. You go and get some sleep. We’ll be fine.’
‘Hang the parenting books? How can you say that?’
‘Because I know more about parenting than any parenting book, mate.’
‘You do? Do you have kids?’
Harriette fixed the covers over Chloe before turning out the bedside light. ‘Make sure the doors are locked before you turn in. Thanks, Felix,’ she said, smothering a yawn.
And just like that, he was dismissed.
CHAPTER THREE
THREE DAYS. FELIX had been in Meeraji Lake for three days and it seemed as though Chloe preferred Harriette to him. In fact, Chloe seemed to prefer anyone to him. She’d willingly gone to the day care that was run by Erica; she’d willingly played with other children at day care; she’d gleefully told him in that posh little voice of hers that she liked all of them better than she liked him. Yesterday, after day care, he’d been running late in the ED and so Tori had taken Chloe around to the ward so she could visit with some of the patients. When Felix had finished his work, he’d headed to the ward to find Chloe sitting at the end of Patrick’s bed, chatting with him and laughing and entertaining all the other patients on the ward.
The child simply preferred anyone and everyone to him. It was as though she was trying to punish him in some way, showing him that she was more than capable of loving, of showing affection, but that she simply chose not to show any to him—the man who was her guardian. He knew logically that, deep down inside, she didn’t mean it. She was hurting and she was taking it out on him but, illogically, he couldn’t help but be hurt by the little girl’s actions.
Instead of doing the sensible thing and talking to someone about it, Felix quashed all the emotions he was feeling way down deep and focused on his job. He was getting to know the Meeraji Lake protocols, getting to know the patients who seemed to drive for miles just for a check-up. He realised Harriette, who seemed to al
ways be happy and jovial and willing to listen to anyone who was talking, might have had a point—that here in such a small and intimate community, patients were people, not just a diagnosis.
That morning, as he and Harriette sat at the table having cereal for breakfast, he discovered the reason why the hospital ED had been vacant when he’d arrived in the town three days ago. Apparently, Patrick had collapsed at the community centre and, rather than sending an ambulance, it had been easier to just take a barouche down to the community centre, treat Patrick and then wheel him back. The ward sister had been in charge of the hospital, but at the time he’d walked into the ED she’d been caring for a patient who had just been ill all over the ward floor.
‘It happens,’ Harriette said after explaining the situation to him. ‘When it doesn’t rain it pours. All the drugs are securely locked up as well as any patient information. Plus we’re fortunate that the nursing staff are happy to rotate through the different positions as well as using their specialist skills when needed.’
‘I don’t follow.’
‘Well Sarah is a trained midwife, Adonni is trained as in anaesthetics and Bill holds qualifications in geriatric nursing. Tori’s trained in emergency nursing and is also hospital administrator so she’s the one who does a lot of the paper work. They’re our full-time nurses and then they all rotate throughout the other positions of working in the ED or theatres or being ward sister or doing immunisation clinics. It’s a very different system to a large hospital but it seems to work.’
‘And what if there are emergencies? Four nurses and two doctors surely isn’t enough to handle a big emergency?’
‘There are quite a few trained part-time nurses in the district so they come in to cover leave and days off or when there’s a big emergency.’’
‘You sound as though you’ve been working here for quite a while yet I could have sworn when I met with Oscar he said you were covering for them while he and Daisy were looking after her mother.’
