spread a generous helping of preserve onto a slice of buttered toast and then bit into it, savouring the taste. It was strange that Jake didn’t appear to have to go out to work. He’d mentioned business meetings, but what kind of business was it where he never went to the office?
She knew he was home based, because from time to time she would hear banging coming from the barn, muffled nowadays because he invariably kept the door shut. How did he stand the tropical heat? It must be like an oven in there, unless he was using a portable air-conditioner.
On other days she would see him setting out in one of the boats, heading across the bay towards the ocean. That was the life, wasn’t it? Laid-back, lazy days, following whatever whim caught his fancy.
Straightening up, she sighed and quickly brushed crumbs from her fingers. Enough of thinking about her intriguing neighbour…she didn’t have time to sit around here any longer dwelling on what he might or might not be up to. Her shift was due to start at the Bay View Hospital very shortly, and if she was to make a good impression on her first day, she had better look lively and get herself into gear.
An hour later she was driving along the main highway that linked the islands to one another and continued on in a long ribbon towards mainland Florida. The hospital was just a twenty-minute drive away from where she lived, and travelling there was a refreshingly smooth experience after the congested roads she was used to back in the UK.
‘We’re really glad to have you on board, Lacey,’ Mike, the attending physician, greeted her as she walked through the doors of the emergency room. He ran a hand through his thick, dark hair and from the knot in his brow and by his general demeanour Lacey could see that he was harassed. ‘We’re rushed off our feet right now,’ he explained, ‘so after you’ve taken a few minutes to acclimatise yourself, we’d appreciate your help dealing with the walking wounded. Then later on in the day when Dr Mayfield, the intern, goes off duty, perhaps you could take over from him and look at the patients who’ve already been admitted for observation. I’ll show you around properly when the pace settles down a bit.’
She smiled at his harried welcome. Not much difference there, then. It was much the same story back in London.
‘Just point me in the direction of the locker room and I’ll grab a lab coat,’ she told him. ‘I’m sure I’ll find my way around. If not, I’ll ask.’
‘That’s great,’ he said, a look of relief crossing his face. ‘Welcome to Bay View. You’ll find we’re a friendly bunch here, and we all support one another come what may. Rick Mayfield’s a good young doctor…I’m sure you’ll find he’ll be a great help to you. Anyway, if you have any problems at all, just shout.’
‘I’ll do that.’ She went to the locker room to stow away her bag and jacket, and within minutes she was back on the main floor of the emergency room, checking through the list of patients waiting to be seen.
‘There’s a wrist fracture in treatment room one,’ the assisting nurse said, ‘and a shoulder dislocation in room two. You might find it easier to deal with the wrist first, while I find someone to help you with the shoulder.’
‘Thanks, Emma.’ The nurse was a pretty girl, with clear hazel eyes and long, chestnut-coloured hair tied back in a ponytail. She was good at her job, confident, and a fountain of knowledge about the set up in the busy emergency room. Lacey worked with her throughout what was left of the morning, and on into the afternoon.
Around teatime, when Dr Mayfield was preparing to go off duty, he came to find Lacey. He was a young man, fair haired, and, from what she had gathered, conscientious in the way he did his job.
He studied her, a wave of fair hair falling across his brow. ‘How’s it going today? Have you managed to find your way around our system?’
‘More or less.’ She smiled. ‘Everyone’s been great, pointing me in the right direction when I was lost, or, best of all, showing me where you stash the pasties and cakes.’
‘Well, we have to get our priorities right, don’t we?’ He chuckled and then turned his attention to business, outlining the details of patients he had admitted for observation that day. He handed over the files. ‘Anyway, best of luck with these,’ he told her. ‘They’re mostly respiratory problems or cardiac queries.’
He made brief comments as she checked each patient’s file, but Lacey hesitated at one in particular. The name and profile of the patient jumped out at her and alarm bells started to ring inside her head.
‘This man—Mr Callaghan,’ she murmured, scanning the text. ‘It says here that he was brought in suffering from dehydration and that he appeared to be in a confused state.’ She looked at the intern. ‘What happened to him?’
‘Apparently he was filming some alligators in the marshes and came unstuck. From what I can piece together, one of the alligators started to head towards him and he retreated, but twisted his ankle and then went off in the wrong direction instead of returning to his base. His ankle’s fine, just sprained, so I’ve applied a compress and put on a support bandage.’
Rick ran his gaze fleetingly over the file. ‘It’s his general condition that’s giving us cause for concern. He passed out a couple of times, and he’s suffering from palpitations. According to his notes, he’s been receiving treatment for cardiac arrhythmia over the past year, so that probably needs more investigation. Anyway, he has been given fluids, and he’s had a bath and generally been made to feel more comfortable, but his vital signs are not too good at the moment.’
‘I’ll go and take a look at him straight away,’ Lacey said. ‘I’m sure I know him—he’s a friend. He went out to the Everglades recently and didn’t return.’
‘Sounds as though he’s had a lucky escape, then.’
She nodded, and then glanced through her list of patients once more. There was no particular urgency to any of them that she could see, so went to seek out Rob Callaghan straight away.
It was exactly as she had suspected. Rob was lying in bed, his light brown hair tousled against his pillows. He appeared to be dozing, but as she approached the bedside his eyelids flickered and he blinked, acknowledging her presence with a few mumbled words.
‘Lacey,’ he said in a low, cracked voice, ‘it’s good to see you. You’re a sight for sore eyes.’
‘I think I’ll take that literally,’ she murmured, noting the grey circles round his eyes and the general sunken appearance of his skin. ‘What have you been doing to yourself?’ She could see from the monitors that his blood pressure was high, and his heart rate was a lot faster than it ought to be.
‘I got lost,’ he said. ‘There was no water, and my phone battery failed. I feel so stupid.’ There was a breathless, weary quality to his voice, and she knew that she shouldn’t tire him by asking too many questions.
‘Well, at least you’re safe now,’ she murmured. ‘I’m a little concerned about some of your symptoms, though. You told me some time ago that you had been having palpitations, and your ECG shows that your heart is going at full tilt right now, even after the medication Dr Mayfield gave you. I think we need to find out what’s going on, so I’d like to run some tests.’
After resting in bed for the last hour or so, his symptoms should have begun to subside by now, but that clearly wasn’t happening. She gave him a thoughtful, assessing glance. ‘Perhaps I ought to leave you to rest. You don’t look as though you’re in any fit state to
