and as they walked out into the corridor Brodie commented briefly, ‘He seems to be very withdrawn. No one’s been able to get a natural response from him.’
‘How did he come to break his leg?’
‘His parents said he fell from a climbing frame in the back garden. He’ll be in plaster for a few weeks.’ He frowned. ‘The worry is, there was evidence of earlier fractures when we did X-rays. He was treated at another hospital for those, but the consultant there brought in a social worker.’
She looked at him in shock. ‘Do you think it might be child abuse?’
‘It’s a possibility, and the fact that he’s so quiet and withdrawn doesn’t help. I’d prefer to make some more checks, though, before involving the police.’
She shook her head. ‘I just can’t imagine why anyone would hurt a child. It’s unbearable.’
‘Yes, it is. But Sammy’s parents do seem caring, if a little naive, and at least he’ll be safe here in the meantime.’
They went back to the main reception area and she tried to push the boy’s plight to the back of her mind as Brodie began showing her around the unit. Each ward was set out in a series of small bays that clustered around a central point housing the nursing station. He stopped to check up on various patients as they went along.
‘It’s a beautifully designed children’s unit,’ she remarked some time later as they stopped off at the cafeteria to take a break for coffee.
‘That’s true,’ he agreed, ‘But I think there are things we can do to make it even better for the patients and their families. There are some children—like Sammy, perhaps—who need more than medicine and good nursing care to help them to get well. I want to do what I can to help them feel good about themselves.’
She sent him an oblique glance. ‘That’s a tall order,’ she murmured, but perhaps if anyone could do it he could. He certainly seemed to have the determination to set things in motion. But then, he’d always had boundless energy and drive, even though he might have used it to the wrong ends years ago when he was a teenager.
‘Well, if I’m to be any good at my job, I need to feel I’m making a difference,’ he said. ‘It’s important to me.’
She studied him thoughtfully. He was an enigma—so focused, so different from the restless, cynical young man she had known before. ‘That must be why you’ve come so far in such a short time. Your career obviously means a lot to you.’
‘Yes, it does … very much so. I’ve always aimed at getting as far as I can up the ladder. I try to make all the improvements I can to a place where I work and then move on—at least, that’s how it’s been up to now.’
So he probably wouldn’t be staying around here once he’d made his mark. She frowned. But this time he’d bought a house and he planned to do it up—would that make a difference to his plans? Probably not. Houses could be sold just as easily as they’d been bought.
He finished his coffee and then glanced at the watch on his wrist. ‘I must go and look in on another young patient,’ he murmured in a faintly apologetic tone.
‘That’s okay. I’ve enjoyed shadowing you, seeing how you work.’
He looked at her steadily. ‘So, do you think you might want to work with us?’
She nodded. ‘Yes—but only on a part-time basis to begin with, if that’s possible. I’ll need to be close at hand for my mother when she’s back at home.’
He smiled. ‘I can arrange that.’
‘Good.’ Her phone rang just then, and after listening for a while, she told him, ‘My mother’s in the recovery ward. I need to go and see how she’s doing.’
‘Of course.’ He sent her a concerned glance. ‘I hope she’s all right. I know how worried you must be about her.’ He went with her to the door of the recovery ward. ‘Perhaps I’ll see you later on, back at home?’
‘I expect so.’ She wasn’t planning ahead, just taking one step at a time. It seemed like the best way to proceed at the moment. ‘Thanks for showing me around, Brodie,’ she said. ‘Your children’s unit is a really wonderful place and everyone involved with it is so dedicated. If children have to be in hospital, I think they’re lucky to be here rather than in any other unit.’
‘I’m glad you think so.’ He smiled at her, pressing the buzzer to alert a nurse to release the door lock. ‘It’s been good meeting up with you again, Caitlin.’ Somehow they had ended up standing close together, his arm brushing hers, and her whole body began to tingle in response. She didn’t know how to cope with the strange feelings that suddenly overwhelmed her. It was bewildering, this effect he had on her. She loved Matt. How could she be experiencing these sensations around another man?
As soon as the door swung open she moved away from him, going into the ward. ‘Thanks for coming with me and showing me the way,’ she murmured, sending him a last, quick glance.
At last she could breathe more easily … But she hadn’t been the only one to be affected by their momentary closeness to one another; she was sure of it. His awareness was heightened too. She’d seen it in his slight hesitation, the way his glance had lingered on her, and now she felt his gaze burning into her as she walked away from him.
How was it going to be, having Brodie living nearby? Part of her was apprehensive, worried about how things might turn out. After all, it was one thing to contemplate working with him, but having him as a neighbour could end up being much more than she’d bargained for.
She couldn’t quite get a handle on what it was that bothered her about the situation, exactly. Over the last few weeks her world had been shaken to its foundations by the way Matt had behaved. She was unsettled, off-balance, totally out of sync. In her experience having Brodie close by could only add to her feelings of uncertainty. He was a spanner in the works, an unknown quantity.
She frowned. Perhaps the neighbour dilemma would only last for a short time, while her mother recovered from surgery. After that she could find a place of her own, away from Brodie, but near enough so that she could keep an eye on her mother and at the same time maintain her independence.
The nurse in charge of the recovery ward showed her to her mother’s bedside. ‘She’s very drowsy, and unfortunately she’s feeling nauseous, so it might be best for you to keep the visit short. She’ll probably be more up to talking to you in the morning.’
Caitlin nodded. ‘Okay.’ She asked cautiously, ‘Did the operation go well?’
‘It did. The surgeon placed screws across the site of the fracture to hold everything in place and that all went quite satisfactorily. Your mother will need to stay in hospital for a few days, as you probably know, but we’ll try to get her walking a few steps tomorrow. It seems very soon to get her on her feet, I know, but it’s the best thing to do to get her on the mend.’
‘All right. Thanks.’ It was a relief to know that the major hurdle was over. Now the hard work of rehabilitation would begin.
Caitlin went to sit by her mother’s bedside for a while but, as the nurse had said, she was very sleepy, feeling sick and wasn’t up to saying very much. ‘I’ll leave you to get some rest, Mum,’ Caitlin said after a while.
