‘What about it?’
‘It’s too small.’
‘Maybe you could upgrade that, too.’
‘It’s you.’
She looked at him askance. ‘You want to upgrade me as well?’
‘This room is too small for the two of us to be in it together.’ David said the words slowly and clearly, and Eden’s smile widened as he did so. ‘Stop looking at me like that.’
‘Like what?’ She fluttered her eyelashes at him again.
‘You know exactly what I’m talking about.’
‘Fancy a quick kiss and cuddle? No one will know. They think we’re working.’ Eden reached out a hand and touched his arm, sliding her fingers down his crisp cotton shirt until her fingers laced with his. ‘I dreamt about you last night and this morning. In fact, I think I’m dreaming right now.’
David swallowed. ‘Eden.’ Her name was a breathless whisper, and she could feel him beginning to capitulate as his gaze fixated on her mouth. She parted her lips and slipped her tongue out, running it along her upper lip, hoping to make him crack.
He leaned in closer, about to give in completely, ready to give her the kiss he’d been longing to give her from the instant she’d walked onto the ward this morning, when the tape machine clicked noisily, making them jerk back.
‘Right. Here we go.’ He sat up straighter in his chair, but was sort of pleased when Eden didn’t let go of his hand. ‘Hopefully we’ll discover some answers.’
The tape started playing, the picture coming up on the screen showing the inside of Room 2. Dart’s bed was well in focus, and Mrs Wilman’s camp bed set up beside it. Nothing much happened, and David flicked a switch, putting the tape into fast-forward mode.
‘It’s easier to watch like this, otherwise we’ll be here all day.’
Eden nodded, looking intently at the pictures playing out before them. Nurses came in, doing observations, ensuring Dart was settled. Everything looked fine. Normal. She frowned, trying to see if they were missing anything, and then it happened.
‘Stop the—’ She didn’t have to say anything more.
David had already pressed the button to slow the tape down to normal speed. Both of them stared open-mouthed at what they saw, Eden’s heart breaking for the four-year-old.
The screen showed Mrs Wilman fiddling with Dart’s drip. It looked as though she was slowing it down, or stopping it completely. Then she handed him his drinking cup, urging him to drink. Without complaint, without emotion, the child took the cup and drank. His eyes were bleak and lifeless, as though he knew it was pointless to refuse.
‘What’s in that cup?’ Eden was out of her chair in an instant, David not far behind her. ‘You distract her. I’ll get the cup.’
‘What? Eden! Wait.’
‘Just call her out of the room. Show her Dart’s MRI scans. I want that cup and I want it now.’
Eden marched into Room 2, pasting an over-bright smile on her face. ‘Good morning. I’ve just come to check on Dart.’
‘The nurse has just been round,’ Mrs Wilman ventured.
There it was. The drinking cup was beside the bed, in full view of all and sundry. It was innocuous, normal, didn’t look at all out of place. Eden was seething inside as she looked at the sick little boy. Sodium. David had said his sodium levels were up. Too much sodium could cause dehydration, stomach pains, elevated blood pressure and a lot of the other symptoms Dart had been admitted with.
She had to get that cup!
CHAPTER EIGHT
‘SALT water.’ Eden had the cup in the small kitchenette. She’d tipped some of the contents out onto a spoon and tasted it as David walked in. ‘It’s salt. That’s why he has excess sodium.’
‘You shouldn’t taste it!’ David removed the cup. ‘Anything could be in there. It could be a poisonous substance. We need to wait for Pathology. It’ll only take an hour or so.’
‘Where I come from pathology takes weeks on end to come back. I knew the contents couldn’t be too bad, and besides, Dart’s been drinking it non-stop. One tiny teaspoonful wasn’t going to hurt me. And now we know. It’s salt water.’
‘But why? Why would any mother do this to her child?’
‘Munchausen’s Syndrome by proxy.’
‘Attention? Mrs Wilman wants attention?’
‘Usually it’s a parent who is alone who needs attention—likes the company of the nursing staff, the hospital environment. They’ll go to extreme lengths—even allowing their child to have unnecessary surgery—in order to get the attention they crave, for people to listen to them, to respect them.’
‘Her husband does work abroad a lot. He’s rarely home.’
‘Didn’t you or someone else mention that she’d only spent one night away from Dart?’
David’s eyes widened as everything seemed to fall into place. ‘That was the night he picked up.’
‘And what happened when she returned?’
‘I told her Dart was doing so well we’d be able to discharge him.’
‘That meant taking her son home to an empty house where she’d have sole responsibility for him.’
‘And then he went downhill again.’ David rubbed his fingers across his brow. ‘She’s a sick woman.’
‘She needs help, David.’
He slowly shook his head. ‘Not the day I had planned, but…’ He straightened his shoulders. ‘Duty calls, and that little boy needs rescuing.’
‘Let’s go save our little musketeer.’
Quite a few hours had passed before Eden was able to get time to see Sasha, and when she walked into her friend’s room she was met with a beaming smile.
‘I stood!’
‘What?’ Eden was by Sasha’s side in an instant.
‘I stood. All by myself. Well, I was holding onto the parallel bars for dear life, but I still stood.’
‘Parallel bars, eh? Practising for the Olympics?’
Sasha laughed with glee. ‘Who knows?’ They both laughed. ‘I stood.’
‘Does Robert know?’
‘He was there. He said he was going out to buy me a new outfit to wear tonight.’
‘And so he should. Good man. Wow! This is just the good news I needed.’
‘Tough day?’
‘And then some. I won’t bore you with the details.’
‘I’ve tried calling David, but I’ve only been able to leave messages for him to call me back.’
‘He’s still in meetings.’
‘It does sound like a tough day.’
‘But when you do tell him it’ll bring the smile back to his face. We both knew you had it in you to kick those statistics which said you’d never walk again right out of the park. Literally.’ Tears of happiness pricked behind Eden’s eyes. ‘It’s fantastic. I’m so proud of you.’ The two friends hugged.
‘And what about you? David told me this morning when he stopped by that you went to see your family yesterday.’
‘Yes.’ Eden sighed. ‘Not as exciting as what you’ve accomplished.’
‘It’s still a big deal, Ede. David said it went well?’
She shrugged. ‘Todd’s still mad, but for the most part it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. David was incredibly supportive. I wouldn’t have managed without him there to hold my hand.’
‘Literally?’
Sasha raised her eyebrows and Eden decided not to answer that question…just yet. Although she was excited about the kisses she and David had shared, for some reason, she wasn’t ready to blurt it all out to Sasha. Her friend had enough to deal with, and at this stage Eden wasn’t even sure what was happening between herself and David. She didn’t want to give Sasha false hope.
‘I’m just so sorry I couldn’t have been there for you.’
‘Well, you had a good excuse.’
‘So…did anything else happen?’
‘With my family? Not really.’
‘No, with David, you ninny.’
‘Why do you ask?’ Eden perched hersel
f on a chair next to the bed and tried to look nonchalant.
‘Because David looked happy and exhausted and confused this morning, and the last time I saw him look that way was the morning after you two first got together.’
‘Oh? So you think because he looked like that this morning we might have…kissed?’
‘Yes.’ Sasha was immediately on edge, and when Eden didn’t say anything straight away, her impatience won out. ‘Well? Did you?’
Eden couldn’t contain her repressed excitement any longer, and a grin split her face as she sighed romantically. ‘Yes.’
‘Yay!’ Sasha clapped her hands. ‘This is good. This is brilliant. My brother and my best friend! Ooh, you can finally marry him and we’ll be sisters for real.’
‘Whoa. Slow down there, Tex. We just kissed. There are still hurdles to jump.’
‘Why didn’t you tell me this morning when we spoke? You’ve had a crush on him, like, for ever, so why the tight lips?’
Eden grimaced. ‘I don’t know. You’ve got your whole rehab thing going on, and he’s your brother, and—’
‘And you didn’t want me getting my hopes up and getting all excited and saying that we could finally be real sisters and stuff like that? Right?’
Eden smiled at her friend and squeezed her hand. ‘Something like that. Gee, I’ve missed you.’
‘Then stay. You don’t have to miss me. You can work things out with David and live the happily-ever-after life I know you’ve always wanted. You can still travel, still work with PMA. But live here in Sydney. Spend time mending fences with your family.’ Sasha nodded enthusiastically. ‘You can do this, Eden. It would be great. Our kids can be friends and go to the same schools, create absolute havoc the way we used to.’
‘You make a convincing argument.’ Eden eased back into the chair as Sasha leaned back on her pillows and sighed again. ‘But how about we just focus on getting you rested up so we can celebrate your accomplishments this evening?’
‘There is much to celebrate.’
‘Yes, there is—which means it’s time for you to zip your lip and have a rest.’
‘I’m not that tired,’ sasha protested, trying to smother a yawn.
‘Like I’m really going to believe you. Shh, and do as the doctor says.’
‘You’re not my doctor.’
‘Then do as your best friend says.’
‘Oh. All right then, bossy britches.’
Eden picked up the book which was by the bed and started reading out loud from the novel. By the time she’d finished the end of the first page Sasha was asleep. She read on silently to herself, getting so drawn into the story she didn’t hear the door open.
‘Excuse me?’ a soft female voice said from the doorway.
Eden looked up to see a pretty blonde with blue eyes standing there. She was pregnant, and by Eden’s expert guess had about eight weeks to go. ‘Can I help you?’
The woman pointed to the bed, and Eden noticed the large wedding and engagement rings on her left hand. ‘I’ve come to see Sasha, but she’s obviously sleeping. I don’t want to wake her.’
Eden looked at her friend. ‘She’ll sleep for another half an hour at least.’
‘Oh.’ The blonde looked disappointed. ‘I knew I should have called first, but I thought visiting hours were all day on the spinal ward.’
‘They are, but patients sleep when they need to. I’m Eden, by the way,’ she said, standing up and putting the book down. ‘Come and have a seat.’
‘The Eden?’
‘Um…’ She was a little stunned at such a question. ‘I guess so.’
‘I’ve heard so much about you over the years. Both David and Sasha speak so highly of you.’
Eden raised her eyebrows at this news. So who was this woman?
‘I’m Jacquie.’ Jacquie held out her hand, but as she did so she grimaced and immediately felt her stomach. ‘I’m sorry. Alyce has decided to do aerobics all day long, it seems.’
So this was Jacqueline. The woman who had married David and later divorced him. Eden kept her smile in place, feeling a little awkward. After all, last night she’d realised she was in love with this woman’s ex-husband. Surely that was a good enough reason to feel uncomfortable?
‘Alyce?’
‘My daughter.’ Jacquie rubbed her stomach with pride and joy.
‘Come and sit down.’ Eden helped Jacquie over to the chair.
‘That’s right—you’re a doctor, too, aren’t you? I remember David telling me that. It was a shame you didn’t make it back for Sasha’s wedding. He was really looking forward to seeing you.’
‘I didn’t realise I’d be so badly missed,’ Eden replied, watching the woman closely, her professional instincts kicking in. ‘How long has Alyce been doing her aerobic routine?’
Jacquie shifted uncomfortably. ‘For at least the last five hours. I woke up to her doing this, and as I couldn’t sleep I thought I’d get up and make my way in here. Everything takes so long. To shower, to dress, and now I’ve had back pain to top it all off.’
‘Have you eaten anything?’
Jacquie laughed. ‘You doctors. You simply can’t resist. Yes, I’ve had some dry crackers and a cup of peppermint tea. Alyce likes it.’
‘And the back pain?’
‘It’s fine. I’m fine. Worry about Sasha. I’m not due for another eight weeks.’
‘Babies come when they’re ready, Jacquie, regardless of the schedules we like to impose on them. We only do that so we feel like we have some control over the situation—because if we admit that we don’t, we don’t usually cope very well.’
Jacquie tilted her head to the side. ‘What sort of doctor are you?’
Eden smiled. ‘I’m a paediatrician, like David, but I’ve delivered my fair share of babies.’ And something told her all was not well with Jacquie. ‘When did you last see your obstetrician?’
‘Last week. He said I was fine. He said Alyce was fine.’
‘And you’re due to see him again when?’
‘Not until the end of next week.’
‘This is your first pregnancy, right?’
Jacquie’s gaze dropped, but she answered softly, with a hint of pride. ‘Yes. She’s been a long time coming, has my beautiful baby.’
‘Well, in that case, and for my peace of mind, would you mind seeing your doctor today? Please?’
‘You’re making a mountain out of molehill.’
Jacquie was starting to get agitated, and Eden didn’t blame her. However, Eden’s intuition—both as a woman and as a medical professional—was telling her there was something wrong with this situation. Alyce’s ‘aerobics’ might be a symptom of something else…something else like the onset of early labour.
‘Stay there. I’ll just get you a glass of water.’ Eden walked out of the room and quickly went to the staff kitchenette. One of the nurses was sitting in there, eating her lunch. ‘Sorry to disturb. Sasha has a pregnant visitor who looks a little hot to me.’ She poured a glass of iced water from the water-cooler and then glanced across at the nurse. ‘You don’t mind if I borrow a sphygmomanometer and possibly a thermometer?’
‘Is Sasha all right?’
‘She’s fine. It’s her visitor. Just being an over-protective doctor, that’s all.’
‘OK. The equipment you need will be at the nurses’ station. It’ll give you her vitals. Let me know if you need any help.’
‘Thanks.’ Eden returned to Sasha’s room, wheeling in the electronic sphygmo machine. It was one of the new ones, with all the bells and whistles. ‘Here you are,’ she said, and handed the glass to Jacquie. ‘Sip it slowly.’
‘What’s that for?’ Jacquie asked. ‘Does Sasha need some tests?’
‘It’s not for Sasha. I’m sorry if I’m being forward and pushy, Jacquie, especially as we’ve only just met, but do you mind if I take your blood pressure? Just to check it. You look rather flushed to me.’
Jacquie dabbed at her forehead with a handke
rchief. ‘I’ll be fine. The water is doing the trick.’
Eden shrugged. ‘Humour me.’
‘You are a real doctor, aren’t you? You’re not just making it up?’
‘I’m a trained doctor.’ Eden held out the blood pressure cuff. ‘Please?’
‘Oh, all right, then,’ she reluctantly agreed, and allowed Eden to wind the cuff around her arm. The machine did its job and Eden frowned.
‘Your blood pressure is definitely elevated, Jacquie.’ Before there was any room for protest, she clipped the oximeter onto Jacquie’s index finger. When that reading came back, Eden’s frown intensified. ‘Who’s your obstetrician? You should call him or her straight away.’
‘Why? There’s nothing wrong with me.’
‘I beg to differ. Do you have the name and number? I’ll call.’
Jacquie frowned. ‘He’s probably busy. He and his family are highly respected, I’ll have you know. His father delivered me, and so it’s only right that I have his son deliver my child.’
‘That’s just fine and dandy, but it’s his job to be interrupted when one of his patients needs him. His name?’
Jacquie reluctantly told Eden the information. Eden crossed to the phone by Sasha’s bedside and asked the ladies on the switchboard to have the obstetrician call her immediately. Once that was done, she called the paediatric ward and spoke to Francie.
‘I know David’s busy, but hopefully by now he can leave Mrs Wilman with the social workers,’ she stated to the nurse. ‘I need him up here in Sasha’s room.’
‘Yes,’ Jacquie interjected haughtily. ‘Ask David to come here. He’ll sort this out. You’re being highly unreasonable, Eden—especially as we’ve just met.’
Eden ignored the pregnant woman and focused on what Francie was saying.
‘Is Sasha all right?’ There was concern in the nurse’s tone.
‘Sash is fine. Either ask David to call me or to come if he can—’
‘Wait, Eden. He’s just come out of Room 2.’
Eden waited, and a second later David’s voice came down the line. She ignored the way his smooth tones affected her.
‘Eden?’
‘David. I’m in Sasha’s room. Would you mind coming here and bringing a foetal heart monitor with you?’
Bride on the Children's Ward / Marriage Reunited: Baby on the Way Page 13
