by Leah Martyn
When Riley pulled up outside, she went out to meet him. ‘They’re hardly going to miss you in this,’ she joked, climbing into his bright yellow Land Rover.
He lifted a shoulder. ‘I felt like being cheerful. And I figured that when there are calls to be made to outlying farms, at least the patients will see me coming.’
‘There is that.’
‘I’m glad you suggested doing this.’ Riley slung her a lopsided grin. ‘Like old times.’
They’d been travelling for about twenty minutes through the Mt Pryde countryside which was quietly sleeping in the sunshine of mid-September.
‘Mmm.’ Jane twisted the ring on her middle finger. She and Riley had always enjoyed the weekend trips they’d made from Brisbane to the nearby Sunshine Coast hinterland, visiting the antique markets, the little galleries and quaint cafés at Montville and Maleney.
The memories came back to her in a rush, their poignancy tinged with anguish. How had they lost their way so terribly? Agitatedly, she lifted a hand and scooped the ends of her hair away from her collar. ‘Was your time in Africa what you hoped for?’ Her tone was brittle.
‘Do you really want to know?’
She turned sharply. His profile seemed frozen, shutting her out. ‘You chose it over me and our marriage, Riley. Of course I want to know.’
‘You should have come with me.’
Jane closed her eyes and sighed. If they couldn’t get past that old bone of contention, they didn’t have a hope. ‘Let it go, Riley.’
Their gazes locked for a moment and something flickered in his eyes. ‘I’ll try.’
They travelled on, past fence lines of wattle trees, bare of flowers now, having bloomed in winter. Now the bright green-tipped leaves formed a soft replacement for the vivid golden balls of blossom.
‘Working for Doctors Without Borders was the most rewarding experience of my professional life so far,’ Riley began slowly. ‘I worked in Nigeria first, helping an international team fight a cholera epidemic. But you know that—I wrote to you. Sorry,’ he tacked on gruffly, ‘that wasn’t meant as a criticism.’
Jane sighed, her thoughts turning inward. ‘Are there many Australians working for MSF?’
‘I believe forty or thereabouts from this part of the world, but that includes New Zealanders as well. I was quite staggered at how little any of us were able to do. There’s still so much suffering. And so little human and material resources available.’
‘There are poor and underprivileged in every country, Riley—if you care to look for them.’
‘But not on such a scale.’
‘No, I guess not. Where else did you go?’
‘Here and there. I ended up in East Timor.’ After a long interval of silence, he asked, ‘What have I said now?’
‘You were so close to home,’ she accused with barely concealed disbelief. ‘And I never knew!’
There was a beat of significant silence.
‘Would you have come to me if you’d known?’
‘I don’t know. Perhaps…’ She averted her eyes quickly, but not before he’d seen the pain in them.
‘Are we heading for somewhere in particular?’ Riley sent her a sideways glance.
Jane blinked, trying to concentrate. They’d been silent for some time, the rolling hills dipping between the green and brown gullies their constant companions as they drove. ‘If we take a left turn at the top of the hill, that will reconnect us to the main road. There’s a nice little pub a couple of kilometres further on.’
‘Sounds good—hell’s bells!’ He swerved onto the rough shoulder of the road to miss a stray cow which had trundled across in front of them, and that’s when they saw it—the small red utility in the paddock below, rammed nose-first against the bulk of a giant eucalypt.
‘Oh, lord!’ Jane’s hand went to her throat. ‘That’s Leanne Cawley’s vehicle!’
‘Friend of yours?’ Riley had already done a U-turn so that the Land Rover was facing towards the site of the crashed utility.
‘And a patient. She manages the garden centre in town.’ Jane bit her lips together. She had an uneasy feeling about this. ‘She has a son as well—James. He’s three. She usually takes him everywhere with her. Do you have your medical bag? OK, sorry.’ Jane grimaced as Riley shot her a pained look. ‘Silly question.’
They were out of the Land Rover in seconds.
‘This is an odd place for her to be isn’t it?’ Riley held the strands of fencing apart so Jane could squeeze through. ‘Does she own the farm or what?’
‘Leases the farmhouse.’ Jane followed closely behind him, down the steep cattle track towards the wrecked vehicle. ‘But she has use of the paddocks to collect rocks to sell at the shop.’
‘If she was gathering rocks, she could have overloaded the ute.’ Riley’s tone was grim. ‘This is steep country around here. Perhaps her brakes malfunctioned when she started off down the hill and she lost control.’
And perhaps Leanne hadn’t been gathering rocks at all. Perhaps she’d been running from something else entirely…Jane pushed the distressing thought away, shading her eyes against the noon sun. ‘Riley, call the ambulance!’ She could just make out the silhouette of the driver slumped at the wheel. ‘Tell them it’s the Bennett farm—north paddock. And they’ll need wire-cutters to get through the fence.’
Riley whipped out his mobile phone, dialled the emergency number and began streaming instructions to the base. ‘We’re in luck.’ He closed off the mobile and shoved it into his back pocket. ‘They’ve one on standby. Any sign of the child?’ He began to increase his pace down the steep incline.
‘No…’
‘Possibly with his dad?’
‘Let’s hope not.’ Jane’s unease was replaced by sharp fear. ‘He doesn’t have unsupervised access. They’re separated,’ she added in response to Riley’s querying frown.
‘Messy situation by the sound of it, then.’
‘At best.’ Jane took a shaken breath, grabbing Riley’s waist for support as they took the last few metres of rutted track.
The sturdy bull-bars across the front had saved the utility’s cabin from more severe damage but the impact against the tree had obviously been enough to render the driver unconscious.
Thank heaven that, for whatever reason, Leanne hadn’t locked the doors. Jane’s relief was heartfelt as she scrambled in from the passenger side to the slumped form of her patient.
‘Leanne, can you hear me? It’s Dr Rossiter—Jane. You’ll be OK. Help’s coming.’
Leanne Cawley moaned.
‘Looks like her nose is broken.’ Riley had his bag open and had begun checking the woman’s blood pressure and pulse. ‘She’s taken a heck of a whack to her face.’
Jane felt the nerves in her stomach screw tight. That’s if the injury was from the crash, she thought grimly. She smoothed Leanne’s mane of auburn hair back from her face. ‘What do you have, Riley?’
‘BP a hundred and ten over sixty, pulse a hundred.’ His mouth drew in. ‘Doesn’t indicate bleeding anywhere.’ Frowning, he ran his stethoscope over Leanne’s chest. ‘Not bad,’ he reported. ‘But she’s got to be suffering from shock.’
Jane brought her gaze up. ‘Do you have normal saline with you?’
‘Mmm. But I’m a bit pushed for space here. Think you could get an IV in from your side?’
They began working together, as seamlessly as they always had. ‘IV’s in and holding,’ Jane said crisply. ‘And that’s the ambulance by the sound of it.’
Turning their heads, they watched as the emergency vehicle, pausing only to let the officer cut through the fence wires, was soon carefully making its way towards them down the hilly paddock.
When the two officers alighted, Jane made the introductions quickly. ‘Chloe Dean and Bruce Taylor, meet Riley Brennan. Riley’s our new MO at the surgery.’
Riley nodded a greeting and began to fill them in on Leanne’s condition. ‘We don’t know how long she’s been out and,
judging by the state of the bull-bars, she’s hit the tree pretty hard. I’d suggest we treat her as a potential spinal injury.’
‘Right, Doc.’ Bruce moved to assemble the special spinal stretcher, peering into the back of the utility as he went. ‘Looks like Leanne’s got quite a load of rocks on board.’
Which made the reason for her being in this steep part of the farm legitimate. Jane breathed a little easier. ‘Chloe, we’ll need a hard collar as well, please,’ she called to the female officer.
‘Any sign of her coming round?’ Riley’s face appeared at the other side of the ute.
‘She’s floating in and out.’ Jane began talking to her patient again, her tone soothing, reassuring. Please, heaven, Leanne would come round soon. Jane bit her lip. They’d have to find out who was looking after her little boy.
Trained hands were soon lifting Leanne gently onto the stretcher.
‘She’s very pale.’ Riley lent his expertise to help ease the stretcher into the waiting ambulance.
‘Her complexion is naturally fair…’ Jane’s voice faltered. ‘Are you still worried there may be bleeding?’
Riley rubbed a finger across his forehead. ‘I’m reasonably certain not. Her tummy’s soft, which would seem to indicate no spleen damage. Still…’
‘Let’s be doubly cautious, then,’ Jane said practically. ‘Put her on a heart monitor. That way Chloe can keep an eye on her until they get to the hospital.’
‘You don’t want to go with your patient?’
Jane shook her head. ‘We’ve done all we can and she’s in very good hands with Chloe and Bruce. Besides, it’s barely fifteen minutes back to town from here.’
‘That close.’ Riley looked surprised. His head bent, he began tossing stuff back into his medical bag. ‘Obviously I’ve yet to get my bearings.’
‘For someone like you—piece of cake.’ Jane’s arm brushed his as they stood together, their eyes following the progress of the ambulance up the hill and through the broken fence to the main road.
‘Let’s hope so.’ Riley stifled a sigh.
Jane met his eyes with a frown. ‘You’re not having doubts about joining a rural practice, are you?’
‘No—of course not.’ Lifting a hand, he rubbed the back of his neck. ‘Felt kind of good working together again, didn’t it, Janey?’
Good? Her heart thumped. It had felt wonderful! ‘Yes, it did,’ she downplayed huskily, and dipped her head. Her husband’s eyes were too searching, seeing far too much for her comfort.
As if he’d found the moment too confrontational as well, Riley turned abruptly to clamp his bag shut. ‘OK, Dr Rossiter. You’re the expert on rural medicine. Take pity on the new chum. What’s our next priority?’
As if he didn’t know. ‘You don’t have to try so hard to build up my ego, Riley. Those days are gone.’ Jane knew she’d overreacted the moment the words were said. In a second their compatibility evaporated like soap bubbles in the sun.
Riley straightened slowly. His eyes narrowed, he took a purposeful step towards her, his hands going to her upper arms. ‘How are we going to attempt to solve anything if you keep being so damned prickly?’
Jane drew in her breath. ‘I can’t stand all this emotional wrestling,’ she bit out.
‘Then let me in…’ Like a bird of prey taking a smooth dive from a tower, his dark head swooped. On a grunt of male satisfaction he took her mouth, savouring it, grazing her lips, a salutary, simmering reminder of what could flare between them if they allowed it.
Jane’s eyes had flickered shut and then she opened them with a snap. Raising her hands, she pressed them against her mouth, shaking her head. A combination of confusion and anger bubbled in her chest. ‘Don’t play games, Riley.’
‘I wasn’t,’ he challenged, his dark look sultry. ‘And why are you making such a mountain out of a molehill?’
Did he mean the kiss? Her fingers curled into tight clubs of resentment. ‘You infuriate me sometimes, Riley Brennan!’
He cocked a dark brow. ‘Only sometimes? But at least I make you feel alive,’ he added silkily. ‘Don’t I…?’
In silence, they made their way back up the hill to the Land Rover. When they had climbed back into the vehicle, Riley turned to her, his manner conciliatory. ‘I imagine there’s some follow-up work you need to do.’
She nodded, gnawing the inside of her lip. But where to start? She felt out of kilter, almost distanced from her responsibilities as a doctor. Was her confusion down to her husband’s presence and all it implied? She hauled in a controlling breath. ‘I guess we should go back around the road to the farmhouse and see if anyone’s there.’
‘OK. That sounds like a good move.’ Riley had already started the engine and turned the car back the way they’d come. ‘Should no one be there, then what? The police?’
‘Not yet. I’ll call at the surgery and check Leanne’s file. She’s left me some contact numbers in case anything…arose.’
‘What’s the situation with the husband?’ Riley eased the Land Rover over a small culvert and up the next incline. ‘Does he beat her?’
‘Only the once.’ Lifting her hands, Jane combed her fingers through her hair, letting the strands fall away. ‘He lost it and struck her. When she came to me, she had badly bruised ribs.’
Riley made a sound of disgust in his throat. ‘A real charmer. Did you get her to report it?’
‘I didn’t even have to try. She was quietly determined to do it herself. She got a restraining order put on Simon—her husband.’
Riley snorted. ‘Half the time they’re not worth the paper they’re written on.’
‘Well, this time it seems to have worked. He’s stayed away, and because his behaviour is unpredictable he has access to James only when Leanne is present. She told me they usually meet up at McDonald’s and then go to the park or something. Apparently, Simon’s never been harsh with the child, though.’
‘It’s only his wife he feels the need to beat up.’ Riley’s mouth thinned. ‘Are they going to divorce?’
Jane lifted a shoulder. ‘I don’t know. Leanne told me Simon is receiving counselling. Maybe they’ll work something out. That’s the farm entrance up ahead on the right.’
The big four-wheel drive rumbled over the cattle grid and they took the track to the green-roofed farmhouse.
‘Wait here in the car for a minute.’ Riley placed a detaining hand on Jane’s shoulder. ‘I’ll try the front door.’
‘No.’ Jane shrugged out of her seat belt. ‘I’m coming with you.’
He didn’t argue.
There was no answer when Riley knocked, and they made their way along the path at the side of the house to the back verandah. A small black and white kitten, sensing their approach, slid daintily off an old wicker lounge and arched in front of them.
‘Oh, aren’t you the cute one?’ Sidetracked, Riley bent and scooped up the tiny creature, stroking it until it purred contentedly against his chest.
Jane had allowed herself no such diversion. Shading her eyes against the glass, she peered through the kitchen window but there seemed no movement inside, nothing unusual.
So far, so good, she decided, descending the rear steps. Though the sun was shining and the day warm, she hugged her arms across her midriff as if feeling a momentary chill. A huge silky oak tree shaded the yard, the sun’s rays filtering through its leaves, creating a dappled pattern along the length of the crazed garden path. Jane was lost in thought for a moment, the sudden weight of Riley’s arm across her shoulders making her jump.
‘Relax, kid.’ His mouth crimped at the corners. ‘There are no bodies buried here.’
‘Don’t even joke about it, Riley.’
He frowned. ‘Did you seriously think we’d find, well, something untoward?’
‘It’s every doctor’s nightmare, isn’t it—when a case of abuse crosses your professional threshold?’
‘And more prevalent than it ever should be.’ Riley’s look was sober as th
ey made their way back along the path to the car. ‘We should probably alert the owners about that fence, shouldn’t we? Can’t have the cows straying out onto the road.’
‘I’m glad you reminded me.’ Jane’s shoulders were raised in a long sigh. The repercussions of Leanne’s accident were rebounding all over the place. ‘The Bennetts live in town. They’re quite elderly. I’d rather speak to them in person than risk the possible confusion that might result from a phone call.’
Riley put the Land Rover in gear. ‘I could do that while you do what you have to do at the surgery.’
‘Could you?’ Jane felt the instant relief of a burden shared. And then she felt guilty. ‘I didn’t mean for our drive to end up like this…’ She bit her lip. ‘You’re not even supposed to be on duty until Monday.’
‘Forget it.’ A fleeting smile crossed his face. ‘Besides, I’d rather be with you than doing anything else.’
Jane sent him a sharp look. Could she believe him?
Little James was safely with Leanne’s mother for the weekend. One problem solved, Jane decided, replacing the phone on its cradle.
Her next call was to the hospital. Her patient had come round but they were keeping her overnight for observation. Good, she’d pop across and see her now. There were still some loose ends to tie up—Leanne’s vehicle for starters. Perhaps they’d need to contact her regular mechanic. Her head turned at the muted rap on her surgery door.
It was Riley. ‘OK to come in?’
‘Hi.’ Her gaze wavered and her heart clattered against her ribs. It seemed so right for him to be here, and for a moment it was as though they’d been pitched back to happier times when they’d been in and out of each other’s consulting rooms on a daily basis. ‘You were quick,’ she said, striving to restore some normality to the situation.
His sardonic gaze shimmered across the space between them. ‘It wasn’t too difficult an assignment,’ he stated dryly, perching himself on the edge of her desk. ‘Mr Bennett is having someone see to the fence. They were very concerned about Leanne’s accident. I got the impression they value her highly as a tenant.’
‘I’m sure they do.’