Coming Home to Katoomba

by Lucy Clark

  Troy was gritting his teeth and moaning but didn't answer her.

  'Quite a bit. Right. Do you play any sport?'

  'Rugby.'

  'Have you ever injured your knee before?' As she spoke she opened her medical kit and pulled out the sphygmo-manometer and shifted up to wind the cuff around Troy's arm.

  'About two months ago.'

  'Have any work done on it?'

  'Just physio.'

  'You may need some work done now. Nothing feels broken but we'll get you stabilised and off to the hospital for X-rays and a consultation with one of our orthopaedic surgeons.'

  'What do you think it is?'

  'At a guess I'd say your medial ligament's been torn. The fact that you damaged your knee not so long ago means the ligament was weakening. You would have put a lot of stress on your legs, trying to stop yourself from falling, when the crash happened.' She listened for a second before pulling the stethoscope from her ears. 'Blood pressure's good, considering the trauma you've been through. Are you allergic to anything?'

  'No.'

  'OK. I'm going to give you something for the pain, put a couple of bandages around your knee and then hopefully we can get you out.'

  'Has...?' Troy stopped and cleared his throat. 'Has anyone died?' He asked the question quietly and Stephanie merely nodded. 'I think I'm gonna be sick.'

  'No. You'll be fine.' Stephanie administered the injection. 'This will help. Just close your eyes and concentrate on your breathing. Tell me what the physio said about your knee.'

  She kept Troy talking as she stabilised his knee, splinting it with his other leg and ending with a figure of eight bandage around his feet. 'There you go. How are you feeling now?'

  'More relaxed.'

  'Good. Close your eyes and we'll get you out of here as soon as we can.' Stephanie moved to look up the bus and winced as the cutting equipment David and his team were using was switched on and a squealing sound filled the air. She checked Troy, who'd opened his eyes wide.

  'It's all right,' she soothed him. 'They need to cut through some of the seats to get some of the passengers out. Try and block it out, Troy.' She put her hand on his shoulder and squeezed reassuringly.

  She looked around for Oliver and found him at the front, looking up, waiting for something to come down on the winch. When the cutting equipment stopped, she headed towards him and then realised he was carrying a small oxygen cylinder with a non-rebreather mask. David and Billy waited while Oliver performed obs on Michelle and fitted the mask over her nose and mouth, adjusting the cylinder to give her the required dose.

  'How's she doing?' Stephanie called. David was pulling hard on the metal they'd just cut through, bending it back.

  'Same,' Oliver replied.

  'OK,' David said. 'Stand back, we're ready to go again.' A second later, the cutting machine started up again, its high-pitched squeal filling the air once more. Stephanie crawled back and checked on Troy and Oliver's patient. Krystal appeared at the rear emergency-escape window.

  'Hey, Steph. Have you got someone else ready to come out?'

  'Two here. Both need stretchers.'

  'It'll be easier getting them out this exit rather than taking them to the front. I'll get it organised.'

  'Thanks.'

  Krystal disappeared and at the same time the cutter stopped its whining. The instant it did, Stephanie's phone rang. She glanced down the bus and, amazingly, through all the dust and debris, she could still make out Oliver's scowl.

  She. answered the call, knowing it was Stephen. 'Hi. Your patient stable?' she asked. She was conscious of her new boss's disapproval but she couldn't figure out why he felt that way.

  'For now. Where do you need us?'

  'Oliver and I are in the bus. The driver has been taken out and is hopefully being airlifted to Sydney as we speak. Three people are dead and another is trapped—between two of the deceased. She's stable for now and the emergency crews are in the process of cutting her out.' She heard him telling Nicolette the information.

  'Head to the health resort?' he asked.

  'Yes. I'll catch up with you soon.'

  When she disconnected the call she found Oliver had climbed over the seats to check on his patient. He glared at her. 'What?'

  'Got your life organised now?' he growled.

  'What are you talking about? I'm just getting an update from staff.'

  'You mean from Stephen. You are way too preoccupied with that man if you want my opinion.'

  Stephanie bristled but spoke quietly. 'Well, I don't want your opinion and Stephen is nothing to do with you. I don't know what your problem is.'

  'My problem, as you call it, is that my most senior member of staff isn't concentrating on her job.'

  'How dare you?' She made sure her tone was low, not wanting everyone to know they were arguing. 'There's nothing either of us can do right at this moment until the crews have finished removing those seats.'

  'I'm not talking about physically but mentally.'

  'Are you saying my work isn't up to scratch?'

  Oliver frowned. That wasn't what he was saying at all. No, he was annoyed with the way Stephanie was so concerned for her boyfriend. He knew all about suffocating relationships—his ex-wife had been highly demanding. Now she took great pleasure in changing her mind over and over just to bug him. Would he ever be free of the clinging woman? Not while she had custody of their daughter, came the answer. On that score, he was still prepared to fight her tooth and nail to get custody of Kasey.

  'Well?' Stephanie demanded when she didn't receive a reply. 'Because if you have a problem with my work performance then I'd prefer you to say it outright. How else am I supposed to adapt and improve, if not with guidance from my peers?'

  Oliver swallowed and raked a hand through his hair. Once more he'd managed to annoy her and she had every right to be peeved with him. He shouldn't have jumped down her throat, or tarred her with the same brush as his ex-wife. For all he knew, her Stephen liked being suffocated. Either way, it was nothing to him. She was nothing to him except a colleague. 'I'm sorry.' He met her gaze. 'I spoke out of turn. From what I've seen, you're an excellent doctor, Stephanie.'

  His soft tone, the slight spark of appreciation behind his eyes gave her a brief glimpse of the man she'd met earlier that evening. It was nice to find he was still lurking beneath the surface. Stephanie was usually pretty good at reading people and for a while there she'd thought she'd read Oliver incorrectly. Now her initial impression returned.

  'Thank you.' Her words were a whisper and she sighed with relief. Their gazes held and a small, shy smile touched her lips. Neither of them moved for a moment and it was as though they had been transported to a world that was just their own.

  Feeling an increase in her own self-awareness, she reluctantly lowered her gaze, the smile slowly sliding from her lips as she realised that Oliver's opinion of her really mattered to her. She was glad it was favourable but her stomach began to churn with nervous anticipation. The only other man's opinion she valued was her brother's.

  Why was it suddenly so imperative that she continue to create such a positive one with Oliver?

  That thought scared her more than anything. She glanced back at him and the churning in her stomach increased. His gaze was so intense and this time she was powerless to look away.

  CHAPTER THREE

  'OK, folks.' David's words intruded into the haze that surrounded them and Stephanie immediately broke her gaze in case she got caught staring into her new boss's gorgeous blue eyes. 'We're ready for you now.'

  Back to reality with a thud, she listened to David's briefing.

  'The seats have been cut away and Michelle's unconscious again so let's get her out.'

  'What's the status on a stretcher for Michelle?' Oliver asked.

  'Billy, check with Krystal what's happening,' David ordered. 'All we need to do is pull on each of the seats we've cut and we'll get the leverage we need.'

  'We'll need all hands o
n deck. Stephanie and I need to be able to get to Michelle the instant she's free.'

  'Billy?' David asked impatiently.

  'Krystal's got the stretcher on the winch and is ready to bring it in through the front windscreen. She's also organising for the two patients down the back to be taken out through the rear window.'

  'Good. Once that stretcher's here, we'll begin.'

  'How do you want to play this?' Stephanie asked Oliver.

  'I think the easiest way is to get the stretcher as close as possible, you support her shoulders, I'll take her legs and we'll transfer her straight to the stretcher.'

  'She's really jammed in there. What about internal fractures?'

  'Nothing we can do until she's on that stretcher.'

  'Good. I concur.'

  'Were you just testing me?'

  'No. Just making sure we were on the same page. I'll give her a quick check while we're waiting.' Stephanie did what observations she could and soon the stretcher was being hauled down as close to Michelle as possible.

  'Stephanie and I will lift her out but we'll need help manoeuvring her so as soon as you're able, lend a hand.' Oliver nodded to both Billy and David. 'Everyone ready?'

  'Yes,' they all answered.

  'On three. One...two...three.' David and Billy each pulled back as hard as they could on the seats. With this, the top body was released and they were able to remove it.

  Stephanie literally muscled her way in and hooked her arms under Michelle's armpits while Oliver used a similar tactic and managed to get a firm hold on Michelle's legs. 'Shift,' he yelled, and Stephanie called on all her inner strength.

  Michelle was the one they could help. Those were the words which kept echoing around her head as they finally shifted her free from her position. It was slow, hard work, especially when the entire area wasn't stable. Being able to do this on a flat floor would have been hard enough, but with the bus tipped on its side it was almost impossible... almost. Billy came around, ducking beneath them, and was able to help by supporting Michelle from underneath as they carried her to the waiting stretcher. David had unhooked the saline bag and was holding it up.

  'Strap her in and let's go.' Oliver's tone was brisk and Stephanie glanced at him. The strain on his face matched hers but at least they'd been able to get Michelle out. Billy crawled through the wreckage, positioning himself at the foot of the stretcher as Oliver listened to Michelle's chest. 'Possible pneumothorax.'

  'Michelle?' Stephanie called, and received a mild groan. 'We're getting you out. Hang in there.' She glanced up at David. 'Is there an ambulance standing by?'

  'There will be,' he said, and called it in on his radio.

  Eventually they had the stretcher ready to hook up to the winch and Krystal was ready to get the show on the road. Once Michelle was on her way down, Oliver turned to David. 'I'll climb out the front windscreen. I need to be there once she's down.'

  David nodded and soon Oliver was disappearing through the open windscreen. He turned to Stephanie. 'You're next. We can take it from here.'

  Stephanie glanced at Troy and the other patient down at the end but a member of the police rescue staff was there, monitoring both patients. She looked at David and then back at the two that had held Michelle captive.

  'You're turning as green as your hair, Steph. Control your thoughts and get out of here. We can take it and you're no help to those two.'

  'OK.' She allowed David and Billy to help her over the edge of the windscreen and soon she was out, breathing in the cool, evening air. Even the faint smell of fuel wasn't as bad as the stench in the bus. It was good to feel terra firma beneath her feet again and Stephanie rushed over to Oliver who was. once more listening closely to Michelle's chest.

  'Status?'

  'Fractured ribs with a penetrating chest wound.' Michelle's top had been cut away and now that she was flat, they could see the blood coming from the right side of her chest. 'Her lung may collapse.' He pulled off his stethoscope as he spoke and reached for the first-aid kit.

  Stephanie was there first, ripping a square gauze pad from its wrapper. She handed Oliver the wrapper and pulled out some tape. She broke off three pieces, handing them to Oliver. He stuck the plastic gauze wrapper over the wound, sealing in three sides but leaving the fourth open to allow fluid and air to escape. If they could avoid air getting into the space between the two layers of the pleura, her lung might not collapse.

  'Get me an oximeter so we can check her oxygen levels.'

  Stephanie found one and hooked it onto Michelle's finger. A moment later, she had her reading. 'Ninety per cent.'

  'Good. Michelle? It's Oliver. We're getting ready to transfer you to hospital.' He checked her pupils and smiled when Michelle tried to pull away from his touch. 'Good. You're out of the bus, Michelle, and the ambulance is waiting to take you to hospital.'

  Oliver turned and spoke to the paramedic. 'We're needed here so you take her. Call ahead because I want not only a general surgeon waiting for her but an orthopaedic surgeon as well. Once she's stabilised, get her off to Sydney. Priority one.'

  'Yes, Doctor.'

  Once Michelle was in the ambulance and being taken to hospital, Oliver turned and looked at Stephanie. 'Are you all right?'

  She nodded.

  Oliver placed both hands on her shoulders. 'Stephanie, I mean it. That wasn't the usual run-of-the-mill rescue.'

  'I know. I'll process. I'll filter.' She shrugged. 'Stephen will help me through it. He always does.' At the mention of Stephen's name, Oliver dropped his hands. 'How about you?'

  'Just like you, I'll be fine.' He stalked off, leaving her frowning after him.

  Stephanie saw Troy being lifted from the bus and went over to check on him, glad he was finally out. She did his obs and smiled. 'You're doing just fine. How's the pain?'

  'Not really there. Whatever you gave me has worked wonders.'

  'I'm glad to hear it. It may be a while before you're transferred to the hospital so stay warm.' To add credence to her words, she tucked the blankets around him more tightly.

  'Um...that girl you were with. Did she get out OK?'

  'Yes. She's on her way to hospital. You rest.'

  'Good advice.' Troy closed his eyes and sighed.

  Stephanie checked in with the paramedic who was running the station platform triage. He directed her to more patients who needed her help.

  When everything was finally under control at the platform, Oliver walked over to Stephanie's side. 'You all done?'

  'Yes. What's next?'

  'I think we'll head to the triage centre set-up at the health resort and leave the emergency crews to the clean up.'

  'OK. I'll let David know.' Stephanie headed over to where the police rescue chief was having a much-needed cup of coffee and gave him the information. 'You've got my cellphone number if you need me. Just keep an eye on your crews. We have enough casualties at the moment and make sure they all get checked as well before they leave.'

  'Will do. Go and check up on that brother of yours and make sure he's not getting into any trouble.' David grinned and then snapped his fingers. 'Oh, no. Wait a minute. You're the twin who gets into trouble, not him.'

  'Funny.' She grinned as she handed over her hard hat and Oliver walked over. David peered inside the hat Stephanie had just taken off.

  'Left, any green bits behind?'

  'Oh, you're a regular comedian tonight.'

  David laughed and Stephanie joined in. She waited while Oliver handed over his own hat, noticing the frown was back on his face. Looked like Dr Jekyll was back, and she felt her own humour disappear. 'OK. We'll catch up with you later,' she said when Oliver was ready to go.

  As they walked away from the accident site towards the health resort, they both remained silent. Stephanie's thoughts were jumbled as she tried to figure him out, and after a few minutes she threw her hands up in the air, deciding to just give up. If he wanted to be moody, then so be it.

  'What?' Oliver asked.
<
br />   'What, what?' she countered.

  'You threw your hands up in the air.'

  'So?'

  He shrugged. 'OK. Forget it.'

  'Forget what?' Stephanie was puzzled.

  'Nothing.'

  Stephanie shook her head, more confused than she'd been a few seconds ago. Before she could speak, however, he continued.

  'Do you flirt with every man you come across?'

  'I beg your pardon?' Stephanie was definitely affronted.

  'Well, you were just flirting with David, you've been all over Stephen all night, and when we met a few hours ago, you were flirting with me.'

  Stephanie stopped walking for a second and stared at him in disbelief. 'Oh, the ego,' she groaned. 'Here I thought you might be different from other doctors.'

  Oliver stopped as well. 'What's that supposed to mean?'

  She started walking faster than she had before, eager now to get to the health resort. 'Who says I was flirting? David and I have already dated and come to the conclusion we're better off as friends.'

  Oliver scoffed with derision.

  'What? What's the problem?' He opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off. 'I wasn't flirting with him, I was being friendly, and as for you...well...just because I think you're good-looking, that I initially found you funny and charming, it doesn't mean I'm ready to jump into bed with you!'

  'What? I didn't think that at all.' She found him funny and charming? That was a start. Perhaps she wasn't as attached to her Stephen as he'd initially thought. Oliver shook his head as they walked up the front steps of the health resort. 'All I'm saying is that usually, once you're in a relationship, you shouldn't flirt with other men—even though you are very good at it,' he added with a groan.

  Stephanie paused outside the door which lead to the triage centre. 'What are you talking about?'

  'You and Stephen. How do you think he'd like it if he knew you'd been flirting with me or David?'

  Stephanie felt warmth and excitement at his words. Did this mean Oliver found her attractive? It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him Stephen was her brother when anger hit. How dared he assume she'd act that way if she was in a relationship! That certainly summed up his impression of her and already he was acting as judge and jury in a situation he knew nothing about.