by Lucy Clark
CHAPTER NINE
AT THE HOSPITAL they met up with the burns registrar, who was able to give them an update on Trev.
‘They’re taking him to Theatre now, to debride and clean his wounds as best as possible, but the full extent of his injuries won’t really be known for a few more days.’
Pierce nodded. ‘Thanks for the information. We’ll let his wife know.’
‘Is Nell back from Radiology?’ Stacey asked as they walked out of the Emergency Surgical Suite back towards the Emergency Department.
‘No. The orthopaedic registrar told me they’d page me when she was done.’
His walk was brisk, but his shoulders seemed to be drawn further back than before and there was a constant furrow to his brow. They headed to the cranio-facial unit, where Rowena had been taken after admission. Thankfully her neighbour had come and collected her boys, so at least she didn’t have to worry too much about them and could concentrate on what was happening to her.
‘What about your children?’ Rowena asked Stacey and Pierce after they’d passed on the news about Trev’s condition.
‘Sorry?’ Stacey frowned, looking at the other woman blankly.
‘Well, it must be difficult for the two of you to look after your own children when both of you end up here at the hospital all the time.’
‘Oh. Those children.’ Stacey nodded, belatedly realising what Rowena was talking about.
Before she could say another word, Pierce indicated the physical space existing between himself and Stacey.
‘We’re not married and those aren’t our children,’ he stated matter-of-factly.
Stacey’s brow was once more creased in a frown, but this time it was because she didn’t understand his tone. Yes, what he’d said was accurate and true—but it had been the way he’d said it…as though there was no possibility of the two of them ever being anything more than they were right now… Which was what? Boyfriend and girlfriend? Forever dating but never moving forward?
She remembered the first day she’d met Pierce. When she’d asked him if he was married, his answer had been an emphatic no. Was that how he felt? Did he still think like that? That matrimony wasn’t for him?
She pushed the thoughts aside, knowing she was probably overthinking things again. And besides, Pierce was no doubt still very worried about Nell. She quickly informed Rowena that the children they’d been with at the park were her siblings, and that their friend Samantha had taken them home. There was no need to add that Molly had been at home and had called Stacey to say that both George and Lydia were safe with her. Jasmine, however, had refused to leave Nell’s side.
‘Oh.’ Rowena settled back onto the pillows and closed her eyes. ‘That makes sense, I guess. Still, you two make a good couple.’ And then she closed her eyes, the medication she’d been given causing her to doze off.
Pierce’s pager sounded, and when he’d checked the number he stated, ‘It’s Radiology. Nell’s X-rays are ready.’
Stacey nodded and together they spoke with the cranio-facial registrar before heading back to Radiology. As they headed down one of the hospital’s long corridors she looked at him with concern.
‘Pierce?’
‘Hmm?’
He didn’t slow his pace, and when Stacey put her hand on his arm, indicating he should slow down for a moment, he glanced over at her with a hint of impatience.
‘Pierce, what’s wrong?’ When he simply stared at her, looking at her as though she’d just grown an extra head, she tried again. ‘Are you worried about Nell?’
‘When am I not worried about Nell?’ The words were wrenched from him, and he turned and started walking again. ‘Even when Mum and Dad were alive I was always there for Nell. Always.’
‘And that’s what makes you such a good brother,’ she added as she caught up with him.
Pierce exhaled slowly, adjusting his pace a little so he wasn’t hurtling along the corridor like an out-of-control freight train. ‘At the end of the day it’s all about family.’
‘And Nell’s OK. Yes, she’s hurt her ankle, and that’s going to upset her routine, but she’ll adjust. You’ll help her. We all will.’
‘I know.’ Pierce raked a hand through his hair, then stopped, looking down at Stacey. ‘You’re right, of course. The main point is that she’s fine. No point in thinking what might have been, or how much worse the situation could have—’ He stopped and shook his head. ‘If a broken or—fingers crossed—badly sprained ankle is the worst thing that happens to her today, I’ll take that.’
Stacey put her hands on his shoulders, wanting to reassure him, to help him. ‘And you’re not alone. You have me and Molly, and Jasmine and George and Lydia to help, and no doubt Samantha’s going to be there to support Nell, too.’
Pierce nodded and drew her into his arms, but before he did Stacey looked into his eyes and saw such doubt as she’d never seen in him before. Doubt? Was he still doubting that Nell’s ankle was only sprained? Did he think it was indeed broken? Or was there something else going on in his head that she simply wasn’t privy to?
His arms around her, however, felt as warm and as strong and as comforting as always, and she quickly dismissed her thoughts. He was her strong, dependable Pierce once more. But he was also a man who was very concerned for his sister, and that made her love him all the more.
‘Thank you, Stace.’
He pulled back and brushed a kiss across her lips, right there in the middle of the hospital corridor. She still wasn’t used to such public displays of affection, but she was learning not to care what everyone else might think. She knew in her heart that the way she felt about Pierce was like nothing she’d ever felt before. And if she wanted to experience the full scope of what those emotions might be she couldn’t be concerned with what other people might think of her relationship with him. It was no one else’s business but their own.
‘That’s what friends are for,’ she murmured as he kissed her again. When he smiled at her, the doubt she thought she’d seen had vanished and he was back to being his usual jovial and optimistic self.
‘You,’ he murmured, kissing her mouth once more before pulling back and taking her hand in his, ‘are a very good friend, Dr Wilton.’
‘I try my best, Dr Brolin,’ she returned, and they headed to Radiology for the verdict on Nell’s ankle.
When they arrived it was to find Jasmine sitting on Nell’s hospital bed, teaching Nell a hand-clap game.
Nell seemed enthralled, determined to figure out the movements and then laughing along with Jasmine when she made a mistake.
‘It’s so good to see her laughing again,’ Pierce murmured as he let go of Stacey’s hand.
‘I made a mistake.’ Nell grinned widely when she saw Pierce and Stacey walking towards her.
Stacey smiled back at Nell, her heart warming to see Jasmine interacting with others again, but as soon as Jasmine realised Stacey was in the room she clammed up tight, the laughter disappearing, the smile slipping from her face.
Stacey frowned, completely perplexed by her sister’s behaviour. Thankfully Pierce didn’t seem to notice as he walked over and kissed the top of Nell’s head.
‘How are things going here?’ he asked.
‘I made a mistake,’ Nell said again, laughing a little, before encouraging Jasmine to do the hand-clap routine again. Jasmine acquiesced and Stacey and Pierce watched as the two girls did the routine. When Nell managed it faultlessly, she cheered and wriggled in bed with delight. ‘I solved the puzzle!’ It was only after she moved that she winced in pain, having temporarily forgotten that she’d hurt her ankle.
‘Steady, Nellie.’ Pierce put a hand on her shoulders. ‘Nice and still, remember?’
‘Oh. Yes.’ She nodded earnestly, but still wanted to do the hand-clap routine again and again.
‘Let’s see how slowly we can do it, Nell,’ Jasmine suggested, and Stacey could have kissed her sister.
She had no idea what was really going on insi
de Jasmine’s head, but she was a good girl at heart. Of that there was no doubt.
‘Pierce. There you are,’ said the radiographer as she came back into the room. ‘Did you want to have a look at the X-rays? I’ve got them up on the screen.’
‘Thanks.’ Pierce and Stacey headed over to the computer monitor and stared at the X-rays. ‘She has broken it.’ His tone was a little despondent.
‘But it’s a clean break,’ Stacey pointed out.
‘Six weeks in a plaster cast. Crutches. Protective medical boot after that.’ Pierce raked a hand through his hair again and that look of doubt returned to his eyes. What could it mean?
‘Her recovery should be uneventful, and at your house ramps have been installed for Loris’s wheelchair, so that will make it easier for her to manoeuvre about with her crutches.’
‘I’ll have to call her work and let them know what’s happened. Once she’s OK to go back I’ll organise taxis to take her to and from the office. Then—’
‘Pierce.’ Stacey interrupted, taking his hand in hers and giving it a gentle squeeze. ‘Breathe. It’s OK. You don’t have to figure out all the logistics right this second. Just be with Nell, reassure her. She’ll be fine because she has you.’
He looked down at her as though he’d completely forgotten she was there. ‘She doesn’t take to change easily,’ he said softly, so Nell couldn’t hear him. ‘The slightest thing, if it isn’t handled correctly, can set her off. And once she’s unsettled it can take days, weeks, even months to bring her back around.’
‘I understand.’ She gave his hand what she hoped was another reassuring squeeze. ‘But you’re not alone any more. I’m here—along with my plethora of siblings.’ Stacey pointed to Jasmine. ‘Just look at the two of them connecting. Jasmine talks more to Nell than she does to anyone else at the moment. This is a good thing—for both of them. Jasmine will be able to help Nell adjust.’
‘Yeah. Yeah, you’re right.’
He returned the squeeze on her fingers before releasing her, but Stacey could tell he was still very upset. He thanked the radiologist and asked if he could take Nell round to the plaster room to get the cast sorted out.
‘The sooner I can take her home, the better,’ he rationalised.
‘Absolutely.’ The radiographer was fine with that, but as Stacey had been the one to admit Nell officially, given that Pierce was her brother, it was up to her to sign the necessary forms.
‘Can I stay with her?’ Jasmine’s sullen tones were directed at Stacey.
‘Sure. You’ll need to get off her bed when we wheel it, but that would be great, Jazzy. Thanks.’
‘Yes. Thanks for keeping Nell company,’ Pierce added, placing one hand on Stacey’s shoulder and smiling gratefully at Jasmine.
As they watched, Jasmine’s gaze seemed to hone in on Pierce’s hand before she glared at them both and carefully slid from Nell’s bed. She glanced towards the door, then back to Nell, as though she really wanted to bolt, to leave, to be anywhere except where she was right now. But she also knew that wasn’t at all fair to Nell. Instead, she gave Stacey one more glare before pointedly refusing to look at her any more.
‘I am completely perplexed by her behaviour,’ Stacey told Pierce quietly as they stood off to one side in the plaster room, watching as Nell had her ankle plastered into position. The young woman was delighted to have chosen a pink cast, but the decision had only come after a lot of debate and discussion with Jasmine.
‘I think I know what might be causing it,’ he remarked.
‘Really?’ Stacey turned to look at him.
‘It’s me.’ Pierce took his time, turning his head from what was happening to his sister to look at Stacey. ‘She resents my presence.’
‘No. She was like this before you and I…you know…’
That small, sexy smile twitched at the corner of his mouth and she was instantly swamped with a flood of tingles, which then set off a chain reaction of sparks igniting in every part of her being.
‘Before you and I…what?’ he asked, his tone deep and intimate.
‘Pierce.’ She playfully hit his arm, feeling highly self-conscious and trying to stop her cheeks from blushing.
His warm chuckle surrounded her and she couldn’t help but sigh at the sound. How was it he could make her feel so completely feminine with just one look, one sound, one touch? ‘It’s nice to see your smile,’ she whispered.
‘You didn’t answer my question,’ he continued, his deep drawl thrilling her so much that another wave of tingles surrounded her.
Stacey met and held his gaze, wanting to capture moments like this when he seemed less burdened, more playful, less troubled, more sexy.
‘Before you and I…?’ he proffered as a lead-in.
‘Became…involved,’ she finished, and smiled at him.
‘Involved, eh?’
Stacey giggled, but Pierce nodded towards Jasmine.
‘See? As soon as you laughed she glared across at us. She doesn’t like me.’
‘She doesn’t know you,’ Stacey remarked.
Still, it probably wouldn’t be a bad idea if she tried once more to talk to Jasmine, to try and get her to open up. Perhaps with everything that had happened today the pressure might have built up enough for the teenager to explode.
‘Jazzy’s a lot like me. Cora says that’s why we clash. We both store our stress in a bottle—shoving everything down, adding pressure to stop things from affecting us. But in the end those bottles become too full and the pressure gets too great, so that one tiny little innocuous event ends up having an over-dramatic and out-of-proportion response.’
‘So in order to deal with this it’s best to let her “explode”?’
‘It’s best to let her proverbial bottle explode, to release the pressure—because once the pressure’s released only then is there any room for the clean-out to begin.’
‘Your psychology professors would have been thrilled with such an explanation.’
‘Shh,’ she chided. ‘This is how I’ve explained it to Jasmine over the years, so she can hopefully begin to understand what’s happening to her and start to deal with the small things by herself.’
‘Will she see a psychologist?’
Stacey shook her head. ‘I’ve tried.’
‘Would you mind if I had a go?’ he asked as the plaster technician began tidying up, now Nell’s ankle was firmly secured in the pink plaster cast. ‘Why don’t I take Jasmine to the pharmacy to pick up a pair of crutches? You can organise the paperwork for Nell’s discharge. We’ll meet you back in the ED.’
‘OK. It’s just as well you’re here, because otherwise Nell would have needed to stay in overnight for observation.’
The words were nothing more than a throwaway comment as Stacey reluctantly left his side and headed towards Nell and Jasmine. As he’d presumed, Jasmine was a little reluctant to spend any time alone with him, but when Nell seemed eager to have her collect her crutches Jasmine agreed.
‘Thanks again for staying with Nell,’ Pierce started as they walked along the hospital corridor.
‘Yeah.’
‘She doesn’t have many close friends.’
‘But she goes to work. She has a job.’
‘A job that has been carefully structured in order to keep Nell’s world as smooth as possible. A lot of the people who work with her are nice and polite, but they’re not really her friends—or not what you and I might call friends.’
‘I don’t have any.’
Instead of contradicting her, telling her she had a lot of people who cared about her, who loved her, he didn’t say anything. Jasmine looked at him expectantly, a little puzzled as to why he hadn’t stated the obvious.
They walked on in silence until they reached the pharmacy. Pierce handed over the request for the crutches and when they had them they set off back the way they’d come.
‘Ever been on crutches?’ Pierce asked, a slight lift to his eyebrow.
‘No.’
He smiled. ‘Want to have a turn?’
Jasmine looked at him with stunned amazement. ‘But I can’t. They’re Nell’s.’
‘Not yet.’
‘Stacey will get mad.’
‘I don’t think so.’ Pierce shook his head. ‘Don’t be too hard on your sister. Her life isn’t all that easy.’
‘But she’s got everything she wants. She wanted to move back to Newcastle, so we did. She wanted to open up our dad’s old surgery, so she did. She wanted to find a husband, so she did.’ Jasmine gestured angrily to him.
Pierce’s eyes widened a bit at the last statement but he didn’t say anything. Instead he stopped walking and Jasmine followed suit, crossing her arms in front of her and adopting a stance that indicated she just didn’t care.
He adjusted the height of the crutches so they were right for Jasmine and held them out to her. ‘Here you go. They don’t sit directly under your armpits, just a little lower. There. That’s it.’ He gave her some basic instructions to follow and waited for her to accept the crutches.
Her wide eyes conveyed her scepticism but she did as he’d suggested, fitting the crutches into place and then starting off carefully, keeping both feet on the ground while she adjusted to the feel of these foreign objects.
‘Sometimes,’ he said as they started slowly along the corridor, ‘we all need a little help. Even Stacey.’
‘Stacey’s perfect. Always has been.’
‘Stacey’s heart is breaking.’
‘Why? What did you do?’ Jasmine’s snarl was instant and she nearly overbalanced on the crutches. She concentrated and righted herself.
‘I didn’t hurt her.’
‘Not yet.’ The angry words were out of Jasmine’s mouth before she could stop them. ‘You’ll hurt her. Robert hurt her.’ Jasmine swallowed, starting to choke up a little. ‘I heard her crying once. She thought everyone was asleep but I wasn’t. She was in pain.’ Jasmine angrily brushed a tear from her eyes. ‘I don’t want to be in pain like that. Ever. I’m going to be stronger than Stacey. I’m going to make sure that no one can make me cry. I’m going to make sure that I can stand on my own two feet and not need anyone else to prop me up. Like Nell, I’ll be independent.’