Her Mistletoe Wish

by Lucy Clark

  ‘Good. That’s all fine.’ Reggie reached into her medical kit for the syringe that had already been drawn up with the medication and clearly labelled. ‘Check ten milligrams of morphine,’ she said.

  Flynn glanced over, checked and confirmed the medication she was about to give Kev, before replying, ‘Check.’

  ‘There you go, Kev,’ she told him as she administered the medication via the butterfly cannula. A few moments later Kev’s features began to relax.

  Now that Kev was out of pain, Flynn was able to increase his investigation of the abdomen. ‘Not sure if the patient has voided, given the wetsuit, but possible bladder and kidney rupture, large and small intestinal damage but both lungs appear fine. Suspected fracture to left neck of femur and probable pelvic bone damage.’

  ‘And the arm?’ Reggie asked, after she’d rechecked Kev’s heart rate. She took the stethoscope out of her ears and met Flynn’s gaze. He didn’t need to say anything—the look in his eyes told her that the arm didn’t look at all good and the chances of Kev keeping it were minimal.

  ‘Took the brunt of the attack.’ Kev’s words were barely audible. She nodded, indicating she understood exactly what he was not saying. The salty sea wind was whipping around them and she was glad of the screens the paramedics had erected. The lifeguards on the beach were keeping the onlookers at bay as best they could. When a shark alarm was raised, it tended to send a thread of panic through everyone who was around, whether they’d been in the water nor not.

  ‘The boat? The boat?’ Kev asked, still concerned, even though the morphine was definitely working. ‘Is it in? Where’s the girl?’

  ‘The sea’s a bit choppy,’ one of the paramedics reported. ‘They’ve got her in the boat. They’re on their way,’ he reassured their patient. Still, Kev seemed slightly agitated again. Something was clearly bothering him.

  ‘Wasn’t supposed to…turn out like this,’ he mumbled, and Flynn frowned.

  ‘Let’s get him back to the hospital so he can be prepared for surgery. With the sounds of sirens in the distance, it appears the cavalry is on the way so we can leave the girl to Bergan and her team.’

  ‘Good thinking.’ Reggie pulled her walkie-talkie from the medical kit and contacted the helicopter pilot. ‘You ready to head back?’

  ‘Got a patient for me?’ he asked.

  ‘Copy that. Name is Kev—that’s all I have at the moment. We’ll stretcher him now. ETA six minutes.’

  Now that the transfer was organised, Reggie did a final check of Kev’s vitals, pleased to see he was responding well to the fluids and pain medication, and yet he still seemed uneasy. Then again, he’d just been bitten by a shark but her intuition told her it was more than that.

  ‘Good news, Kev,’ she said brightly. ‘We’re getting you off the beach.’ She checked the bandages they’d applied, pleased with his situation. They’d managed to get to Kev as quickly as possible and even though he was in his late fifties, it was clear that he was the type of man who looked after his health.

  ‘Wait. Wait.’ Kev’s eyes snapped open, the look in them as wild as the sea. ‘The girl. Is she OK? I need to know. Please? Please?’

  ‘They’re still coming in, Kev, but the other staff from Sunshine General have arrived. They’re brilliant and know what they’re doing. They’ll take good care of her.’

  ‘We need to get you back, Kev. Your abdominal injuries need further treatment and surgical interven—’ Flynn started.

  ‘I need to give you…a message,’ Kev interrupted, his tone forceful.

  ‘For whom?’ Reggie asked, trying to use her calming voice to placate him a little. They needed him transferred as soon as possible but she didn’t want to risk agitating him further by not giving him the respect he deserved.

  ‘Write it down.’

  ‘It’s all right. We can do this back at the hospital. You’re nice and stable now and we’d like to keep it that way,’ she told him.

  ‘Please? I need to give you a message…for my wife.’

  ‘You’re going to be fine, Kev. You can tell her yourself when you see her.’

  ‘No. No. She hates me.’ He closed his eyes at the words. ‘Write it down.’

  Reggie looked across at Flynn, who shrugged one shoulder. ‘He’s the patient. It’s his call.’ She nodded and pulled off her bloodied gloves before reaching into the medical kit, finding a pen but no paper.

  ‘Wait a moment,’ one of the paramedics said, unzipping his overalls and digging into his trouser pocket before pulling out a clean napkin. ‘Use this.’

  ‘Thanks.’ Reggie accepted it from him then looked at Kev. ‘What do you want me write?’

  ‘I hope saving this girl…makes up for not saving ours.’ Kev closed his eyes as he spoke and for a moment Reggie’s throat closed over, an immediate lump forming there, which was difficult to swallow over. Kev had lost his daughter? ‘Did you get that?’

  ‘Uh…’ She quickly scribbled down his words. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Also, tell her to remember…remember Coffs Harbour at New Year’s…and the dingo dance.’

  ‘Dingo dance?’ Reggie raised her eyebrows as she looked at Kev. ‘Sounds interesting.’

  ‘You got that?’ he asked again, and she nodded.

  ‘All written down,’ Reggie reassured him, before tucking the pen and paper into a pocket in her retrieval suit. ‘What’s your wife’s name?’ she asked.

  ‘Michaela.’

  ‘OK. That’s all done. Now, I really think it’s time we get you onto that chopper and back to the hospital.’ Reggie smiled down at him.

  Once again Kev seemed to relax a bit more but he looked determinedly at her and asked, ‘You’ll let me know about the girl?’

  ‘As soon as we know anything, we’ll let you know,’ she told him. With the assistance of the paramedics they transferred Kev to a stretcher. ‘Take him over to the chopper. I’ll just quickly debrief Bergan and Mackenzie,’ she told Flynn, who nodded. She watched for a moment as the screens were lowered and the lifeguards did their best to stop onlookers from taking photographs on their cellphones. The police were there as well, a few of them clearing the way for Kev to be carried to the helicopter.

  As she started to walk away, a police officer came running up to her.

  ‘Is it all right to talk to the patient now? We need to try and piece together what happened.’

  ‘He’s been given morphine and Penthrane so he might be a little vague on details but give it a go,’ she encouraged. ‘We need to have wheels up in five minutes.’

  ‘Understood,’ the police officer said, and headed off after Flynn and the paramedics who were carrying Kev’s stretcher towards the chopper.

  Reggie quickly trudged her way through the sand towards Bergan, the wind still whipping at her hair. It was at times like these she was glad she’d cut her hair short. Reggie looked around at all the beachgoers, some packing their things up and leaving, others standing behind the area the police had cordoned off, teenagers taking photographs with their cameras and cellphones.

  Emergency personnel were doing their jobs, working together like a well-oiled machine. Reggie hadn’t even been aware of the police arriving but without them who knew how many people would have tried to sneak a look around those screens while she and Flynn had been treating Kev.

  ‘We are a curious species,’ she murmured to herself as Bergan walked over to her, the two meeting out of earshot of onlookers. ‘Hey, there.’

  ‘Your patient all ready for transfer?’ Bergan asked.

  ‘Yes. Left arm almost completely torn off. Amputation is a definite consideration but I’ll get John to consult when we get back to the hospital.’ Reggie pointed to where the surf lifesaving boat, after battling high waves brought on by an oncoming storm, was finally reaching the beach. ‘You and Mackenzie OK to take care of the girl?’

  ‘Yes. You’ll probably be in Theatres by the time we return but I’ll keep you informed.’

  ‘Kev—my patient—was r
eally concerned about the girl so I’d appreciate that.’

  ‘No problem.’

  Reggie turned and jogged towards the chopper, looking back to see them lifting the young girl from the boat and carrying her to a second screened-off area, away from prying eyes. She certainly hoped the girl was strong enough to make it through.

  ‘Excuse me!’ a woman called from behind the police tape, and when Reggie looked at her, the woman quickly ducked beneath the tape and ran towards her. ‘I’m looking for Kev.’

  ‘I’m sorry,’ Reggie said, her tone filled with apology. ‘You’ll need to wait behind the tape.’

  ‘I’m his…er…wife. Michaela.’

  Reggie nodded. ‘Yes. He’s told me about you. Come with me. You can ride in the chopper with us.’

  Michaela face turned pale. ‘So he really has been attacked. I thought it was a bad joke.’

  ‘We need to go now,’ Reggie urged, breaking into a jog and urging Michaela along. ‘Kev needs immediate surgery.’

  Michaela shook her head. ‘I never come to the beach. I can’t stand it but he loves it.’

  ‘Never mind about that now.’

  ‘But you don’t understand. I only came down so he could sign the divorce papers. I’ve been pressuring him to do it for months but he kept refusing.’

  They’d reached the chopper and Reggie’s heart went out to the woman as she read guilt and remorse in Michaela’s eyes. She placed her hand on Michaela’s shoulder, her words warm. ‘Focus on being brave for Kev. It doesn’t matter what’s happened in the past, he needs you now. Can you do that?’

  Michaela seemed to consider that for a moment before she nodded. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Good. Let’s get you into the chopper.’

  ‘Why does everything bad happen at Christmas?’ Michaela muttered as she climbed into the chopper, sitting down and allowing herself to be strapped in by the pilot. Reggie introduced her to Flynn, who had just finished doing Kev’s observations.

  ‘Can he hear me?’ Michaela asked, as the rotors of the helicopter started to whirr above them.

  ‘He’s been given pain relief to make transport easier,’ Reggie said apologetically as she strapped herself in and donned her headphones.

  ‘Six minutes and we’ll be at the hospital,’ the pilot announced, then the chopper lifted smoothly upwards.

  ‘Call through to the hospital and have John Watson standing by,’ Reggie instructed.

  ‘Copy that,’ the pilot returned.

  ‘Is that Mackenzie’s husband?’ Flynn asked, and Reggie nodded.

  ‘Excellent orthopaedic surgeon,’ she told him as both she and Flynn kept a close eye on Kev’s condition. Thankfully, the trip was non-eventful and John was there waiting for them when the pilot landed the helicopter safely on the roof above the A and E department. A short lift ride down and they were wheeling Kev’s bed through to the treatment room. After transferring him to a hospital bed, Reggie and Flynn performed observations again, Michaela standing in the corner out of the way, watching and listening in disbelief as Reggie spoke clearly, giving details of Kev’s condition to the A and E staff, as well as John.

  ‘I can’t believe it. I just can’t believe it,’ Michaela kept repeating. Kev was still drowsy from the analgesics and it was clear he needed to go to Theatre as soon as possible. Reggie took Michaela out of the treatment room, down the corridor to a small waiting room, where she started to explain the operation to her.

  ‘Michaela, we need you to sign the consent forms as you are his next of kin.’

  ‘But we’re supposed to be getting divorced. I have the papers here for him to sign and then that’s it.’

  ‘However…’ Reggie tried to remain calm, to get her point across in the most straightforward way because the longer they had to delay taking Kev to Theatre, the worse the outcome would be for him. ‘In the eyes of the law you are still listed as his next of kin.’ Reggie looked into Michaela’s eyes. ‘I know all of this has come as a shock but he really does need surgery and we can’t progress until—’

  ‘Dr Reggie Smith. Dr Reggie Smith,’ came the call over the A and E intercom. ‘Code Blue, TR One.’

  ‘What?’ Reggie was on her feet and racing back towards trauma room one, her mind going faster than her body as she thought through a thousand different scenarios in the thirty seconds it took her to return. ‘What happened?’ she asked as she pulled on a pair of gloves and a protective disposable gown.

  One of the A and E nurses was performing cardiac massage on Kev.

  ‘Blood pressure dropped. We lost output. He went into defib,’ Flynn announced, as he prepared to push fluids, John readying the crash cart. ‘Vitals dropped suddenly.’

  Reggie was checking Kev’s pupils. ‘Come on, Kev. Stay with me. You can do it.’ She shook her head. ‘Not reacting to light.’

  ‘Give me one of adrenaline,’ Flynn ordered, as the nurse continued cardiac massage, another of the nurses bagging Kev to pump air into his lungs.

  Reggie checked for a pulse and when she couldn’t find one Flynn put his stethoscope into his ears and listened for a heartbeat.

  ‘Nothing.’ Flynn shook his head and glanced at Reggie. She nodded encouragingly, her eyes eager. ‘Push fluids. Get ready to shock him.’ Flynn looked at John, who nodded.

  ‘Come on, Kev. Come on. You’ve come too far. You’re a hero, Kev. An absolute hero,’ she told him, as she watched Flynn administer the fluids. She closed her eyes for a second, wishing for a miracle, but even she knew the situation was bad. Kev had lost too much blood and even though they were continuing to do everything they possibly could to revive him, there was no guarantee he’d make it through surgery.

  ‘Charging,’ John said.

  ‘Clear!’ Flynn called, and everyone stepped back from the patient. ‘No output.’

  ‘Shock him again,’ Reggie instructed, and again John charged the machine.

  ‘Clear!’ Flynn called once more, and after the shock had been administered, Reggie pressed her fingers to Kev’s carotid pulse.

  ‘Again,’ she instructed.

  ‘Reggie—’ Flynn began.

  ‘Again!’ There was desperation in her words.

  ‘Charging,’ John called.

  ‘Clear!’ Flynn said, but after the third time there was still no output. ‘I’m calling it.’

  Flynn met Reggie’s gaze, holding it for what seemed an eternity. She knew it was the right thing to do, that Kev had already been through so much, that he simply hadn’t been able to fight any longer. He’d done his bit. He’d saved a twelve-year-old girl’s life and he was a hero.

  Flynn walked round to where she stood and put both hands on her shoulders, looking intently into her eyes. ‘I’m sorry, Reg.’

  ‘We did our job.’

  ‘Do you want me to talk to his wife?’

  ‘No.’ She patted the pockets of her retrieval suit, looking for the napkin on which she’d written Kev’s last words. ‘I’ll do it.’

  ‘I’ll go with you. Support is always good at a time like this.’

  Reggie nodded and walked on wooden legs down towards the small room where she’d left Michaela not that long ago. Flynn’s nearness really was comforting and she momentarily wondered whether he hadn’t been offering support for her rather than for Kev’s wife.

  With the bright and cheerful Christmas music playing softly through the hospital’s system, they entered the waiting room and just the forlorn look on Reggie’s face must have adequately conveyed the situation to Michaela as the other woman instantly burst into tears.

  ‘We did everything we could,’ Reggie said, the words sounding hollow and inadequate as Michaela crumpled into a chair. Reggie put her hand on the other woman’s shoulder, wanting to offer her support. ‘His heart couldn’t handle the stress of the attack. He passed away a few minutes ago.’

  ‘No. No. This isn’t the way it was supposed to happen.’

  Reggie swallowed and looked up at Flynn, who nodded encouragingly fo
r her to continue. She held the napkin between her fingers and looked down at the words she’d scribbled there not that long ago. ‘He did leave a message he wanted me to pass on to you.’ Reggie paused for a moment, not sure she could get the words past her lips but knowing she had to. ‘He said he hoped saving the little girl today made up for not saving yours.’

  At that, Michaela let loose with a fresh round of tears and Flynn quickly offered her some more tissues. It was incredibly difficult in these circumstances to know what to do or say and although they’d been trained in how to handle these sorts of situations, having the theoretical knowledge and watching someone’s heart break into pieces because a loved one had passed away were two very different things.

  ‘He said for you to remember Coffs Harbour at New Year’s and the dingo dance.’

  Michaela raised her head, hiccupping as she spoke. ‘Why on earth would he say that?’ she asked, blowing her nose amidst the tears.

  Reggie shrugged, unsure what the relevance was. She was about to say she didn’t know when Flynn spoke.

  ‘Perhaps he wanted your last memory of him to be a happy one,’ Flynn said, his voice deep and soft and filled with compassion.

  Surprise lit Michaela’s eyes. ‘Oh.’ Then she nodded. ‘The dingo dance.’ A small smile touched her quivering lips. ‘He was so funny that night.’

  ‘Is there someone we can call to come and be with you?’

  Michaela took her phone from her handbag and nodded. ‘I can do it.’

  ‘OK. I’ll get one of the nurses to come and bring you a drink. We’ll be back as soon as possible.’

  ‘Yes. Of course. You must be busy.’ Michaela nodded and dabbed at her eyes with a fresh tissue. ‘I don’t know how you do it, how you cope.’

  The lump was back in Reggie’s throat and after they exited the room she quickly walked down one of the side corridors of A and E, needing to have a moment or two to herself. Bergan’s office was down this secluded corridor and She quickly dug around in her pocket for her hospital pass card, but her fingers seemed to have turned into sausages. She needed the escape, to slip into Bergan’s room, to cry and let the pain out, but the tears were already beginning to flow.