They landed a few minutes later, and Mr Blakesley was taking charge even before Abby had stepped down from the helicopter. While the paramedics were giving their report, Abby stood back and had time to observe the consultant momentarily.
Somehow, he wasn’t at all what she had expected. He was relatively young, for a start, in his mid-thirties, she guessed, long-limbed, and full of vital energy, his jet-black hair tousled by the wind from the whirling rotor blades of the helicopter. He was wearing an expensively tailored grey suit, the jacket open to reveal a dark blue shirt.
Within seconds Kieran had been transferred to a trolley and then he was being whisked off through the wide doors of the hospital and along a corridor towards A and E.
Abby hurried to keep up. ‘He’s losing too much blood,’ she said worriedly, coming alongside Mr Blakesley. ‘He must have lost two litres already.’
The consultant was giving instructions to his team as they went, ordering X-rays and tests and calling for a cardiothoracic surgeon, but he paused long enough to throw her a quick glance.
Close up, his features were even more impressive than she had at first noticed, and she was thrown completely off guard for a moment or two. He was incredibly good-looking, his face angular, strong-jawed, his compelling eyes a satisfying mixture of blue and grey. His mouth was firmly moulded…attractively masculine, she thought distractedly, and immediately berated herself. How could she allow such an irrelevant observation to creep into her thoughts at a time like this?
‘I know you must be concerned,’ he said briefly, ‘but I can assure you that we’ll take very good care of him.’ His voice was deep and resonant, his tone reassuring. His gaze shifted to take in Vicky, who had paused uncertainly alongside Abby and was looking anxious and tearful. ‘For the moment,’ he added, ‘it would probably be for the best if you let the nurse show you both to a waiting room while we look after him. We’ll let you know how he is as soon as we can.’
Unsure of herself and bewildered by events, Vicky allowed the nurse to gently lead her away, and Abby heard her asking what was happening to Kieran, and what his chances of recovery were. Abby stayed where she was, following Mr Blakesley into the emergency room. ‘You don’t understand,’ she began, and he lifted a querying brow.
‘Are you a relative?’ he asked, and she realised with a small frown of dismay that he must believe that the doctor who had treated Kieran had stayed behind at the beach. He went on, ‘I know that Miss Baxter is his girlfriend, but perhaps you would like to tell me who you are?’
He looked her over fleetingly, and she was suddenly conscious of the flimsy summer dress she was wearing, a sunny yellow cotton creation, splashed here and there with a pattern of tiny pale flowers. The bodice clung to her curves and emphasised her slender waist, leaving her shoulders bare except for two narrow straps, and the skirt draped itself around her legs, falling in gentle folds to her knees.
His glance flicked to the shimmering cloud of wayward curls that tumbled around her face and lightly brushed her shoulders. Abby’s cheeks flushed with hot colour. She must look like a dishevelled tourist when, more than anything else, she needed to appear calm and professional.
‘I…I’m Abby Curtis,’ she explained awkwardly. ‘Dr Curtis. I’m the one who treated him at the beach.’ Hesitantly, she added, ‘He was suffering from a tension pneumothorax and I had to act quickly. I’m…I’m just afraid I may have pushed the drain in a little too far.’
His blue-grey eyes widened a fraction and held her gaze for a second or two. ‘Abby Curtis,’ he echoed thoughtfully, adding in an enquiring undertone, ‘So…are you the one who’s about to become a new member of my team?’
Abby nodded in response. ‘That’s right. I am.’
His mouth made a faint, ironic twist. ‘And you think you could be responsible for the fact that our patient is bleeding to death? That’s quite an afternoon’s work, Dr Curtis.’
He paused momentarily, then flicked a glance at Kieran, adding, ‘I believe my patient needs me right now. As I said, perhaps you had better take some time out while we take a look at him and see what needs to be done. You’ve done your bit, and from the looks of him it will take some time to put right whatever has gone wrong. I need to find out what exactly is causing the bleeding, and I suggest that you leave me to get on with it.’
Abby felt the colour drain from her face. She was sure her mouth must have dropped open at his words, and her only consolation was that at least he was no longer there to witness her humiliation. He was striding purposefully across the room towards a treatment bay and she was left standing there, suffering from an acute attack of dismay.
One of the male doctors on his team threw her a quick glance and winced in sympathy, before turning to the patient.
Slowly, Abby pulled herself together. What was it that she had expected from the consultant—a few words of comfort, perhaps, for him to say that Kieran was safe now that they had him in hospital? And maybe an explanation of how these things came about and what could be done to avoid them happening again? A teaching insight, maybe…was that what she had been hoping for, among other things? After all, she was due to start her posting at this hospital tomorrow, under Mr Blakesley’s guidance, and surely, at the least, she could have looked forward to some measure of support from him.
It didn’t seem as though she was going to get any of that, though, did it? Unhappily, she absorbed that fact, and then slowly stiffened her back, cementing her resolve. She had acted in good faith when she had gone to help Kieran, had done everything she could to keep him alive. No one, not even the all-powerful consultant, Mr Blakesley, was going to put her down for long. She was here to learn, and she would do everything in her power to become a good doctor, in spite of his abrupt dismissal of her.
For the time being, she went to find Vicky in the waiting room.
‘Is there any news?’ Vicky asked, but Abby shook her head.
‘Not yet, I’m afraid. It will take a while. They’ll do scans to find out the extent of his injuries, and then the surgeon will most likely take over. I’m sure Mr Blakesley will do everything for him that can be done—he’s a very-well respected consultant.’
No matter what her immediate opinion of him was, she had to give him that. Abby had heard about Jordan Blakesley from a number of different sources, and though his manner might leave something to be desired, they had all spoken well of his medical expertise. That was why she had applied for this new posting.
In truth, she had ignored the fact that some people commented that he sometimes had an abrasive manner and that he could be difficult at times, because she had imagined that was just hearsay. She wanted to learn alongside the very best, and she was prepared to accept a few foibles.
She had interpreted their comments to mean that he probably didn’t suffer fools gladly, but she certainly hadn’t imagined that she might find herself in that awkward position from the outset. It was only now that she was beginning to have doubts about the wisdom of her choice.
Eventually a nurse came to tell them about Kieran’s condition. She spoke gently to Vicky, telling her that she could go and see him in the intensive care unit.
Abby didn’t want to intrude on their privacy. Instead, she decided to go and get herself a cup of coffee from the machine in the corridor. Perhaps she would get to hear what had happened to him if she hung around for a bit longer.
What
