Pat’s voice came through their headsets.
‘Yes, Pat.’
‘Our fuel’s pretty tight. We’re going to have to refuel in Cooktown and then head home. Are our patients okay for that?’
‘Yes, all three are stable,’ Georgie replied with a smile.
It took a long time to get home. Their shift had well and truly ended by then, but fortunately there were no further emergencies. When Pat landed at the hospital Georgie saw an opportunity to get Josh to the radiology department.
‘Do you want to go into the hospital? Get your fingers X-rayed before we head to The Sandbar for today’s post-mortem?’
He shook his head and made no move to follow the hospital gurneys. ‘I’ll come back after we knock off.’
‘I’ll take you, then,’ Georgie offered. She wanted to make sure he got seen to. She hadn’t been able to prevent the injury but she was going to ensure that he was properly taken care of now. ‘I’m going to see Dad before I head to the bar. Mum was going to pick me up but if I drive your car it’ll save her the trip.’ Georgie knew that if she made it sound as though Josh would be doing someone else a favour he’d be more likely to acquiesce.
Her argument worked and she drove Josh from the QMERT base back to the hospital and delivered him to the radiology department before heading to the cardiology wing.
‘Is everything all right, Georgina? You looked exhausted,’ Sofia asked her as she entered her father’s room.
‘Yes, I’m fine,’ she told her parents as she kissed them both. ‘We just had a rather dramatic day at work,’ she said, and proceeded to fill them in on the day’s events.
‘Do you think this is the right job for you, darling? It sounds terribly dangerous,’ Sofia asked once Georgie had finished.
Her parents hadn’t loved the idea when she’d told them she was going to retrain as a paramedic and quit nursing, although they had eventually got used to it, but Georgie knew they still had concerns. But ninety per cent of the time the job was routine and risk-free and Georgie loved it. She had no plans to give it up, not even once she was married with kids. But today she’d been frightened, not for herself but watching Josh and being unable to help him had been terrifying. But she didn’t tell her parents of her fears neither did she tell them about running low on fuel. The worst hadn’t happened, they’d made it home safely, and there was no reason to scare them with hypothetical situations. She was tempted to cross her fingers as she told them, ‘I wasn’t in any danger today.’
‘Well, I’m relieved to hear that,’ Sofia said.
Georgie kept her visit brief. She wanted to get to The Sandbar, and she was eager to check on Josh.
Sofia was staying at the hospital to keep George company in Josh’s absence but she walked with Georgie to the exit. ‘The surgeon had some good news today, darling. He’s hoping to discharge your father the day after tomorrow. Dad would like to get home to Melbourne as soon as possible to recuperate there and the surgeon expects to give him medical clearance to fly a day after discharge. Which brings me to a favour I want to ask of you?’
Georgie listened, knowing she was going to agree, but there was one thing she needed to do before she granted her mother’s request. And she’d have to do it quickly, as soon as an opportunity presented itself, or perhaps she’d have to create the opportunity. She ran through the possibilities in her head as she walked along the esplanade to The Sandbar.
Josh had beaten her there. He was talking to Isaac and laughing, looking like he didn’t have a care in the world. As Georgie watched them, Isaac finished his drink and headed to the bar. Josh was alone.
She went to him. ‘How’s your hand?’
‘Your diagnosis was one hundred per cent correct. Two broken fingers.’
‘Are they sore?’
‘Not now. I’ve taken something for that.’
‘Are you able to work or do you need some time off?’
‘I’m fine. I’m going to go into the physio department tomorrow and get a proper splint made. That should take care of things while they heal. It’s no big deal.’
No big deal. He had been lucky to escape with just two broken fingers. Georgie remembered how she’d felt as the yacht had tipped on its side. She’d been terrified it was going to go over. Terrified it was