Alison Roberts - The Recovery Assignment

Charlotte grinned. ‘We’ll sort it out. I think we’re due for a showdown of some sort before the day’s out and I might have just the thing to set it off.’

‘What’s that?’

‘My paramedic kit. I’m about to lug it upstairs and let him know we need to find room for it in an already over-stuffed squad car. It should open that can of worms fairly effectively.’

It did.

Hawk eyed the large modified backpack that Charlotte carried into the office as though it were an unexploded bomb.

‘What the hell is that?’

‘My paramedic kit,’ Charlotte replied calmly. ‘Lance Currie told me he’d let you know that I was authorised to carry it in our squad car.’

‘You could go camping for a week with a pack that size.’

‘I carry full intubation gear, cervical collars, IV supplies and fluid. Also a range of drugs, a Hare traction splint and a small oxygen cylinder. Basis equipment for resuscitation and stabilisation of a severely injured accident victim.’

‘Even I know that splinting something isn’t a priority in a life-threatening situation.’ Hawk’s resolve not to show his ignorance in medical matters had deserted him. ‘Whatever that rabbity thing is, it’s probably taking up unnecessary space.’

Charlotte tried to control the twitch of her lips but wasn’t entirely successful. ‘A Hare traction splint is used for a broken femur. It helps control bleeding. Blood loss from a long bone fracture can be as much as a litre. If that’s added to blood loss from other injuries, it can stack up to fatal hypovolaemic shock in a short space of time. Any blood loss needs to be addressed as quickly as possible.’

Hawk hated being in no position to argue. ‘We share a squad car, not an ambulance. If carrying all your luggage interferes with me being able to do my job then it’s gone.’

‘What’s your problem here, Owen? Finding room for my “luggage” or me being a paramedic as well as a crash investigator?’

‘Trying to do two jobs at the same time,’ Hawk snapped. ‘What’s probably going to happen is that I’ll end up doing the job you’ve been employed for while you’re fluffing around on scene, sticking needles into people.’

‘Like I did this morning?’ Charlotte made an incredulous huffing sound that filled Hawk’s silence. She wasn’t about to be intimidated by his aggressively prolonged eye contact either. She stared right back at him. ‘And did you really say fluffing?’

Hawk broke the eye contact and glared at the offending kit instead. ‘We have enough to do on scene without distractions. OK, you didn’t get so involved this morning because there was already an ambulance on scene. What happens if we get somewhere first? How can you possibly give this job the concentration it has to have if you’re dealing with patients?’ He was being unfair, he knew that, but this was the opportunity. Or he’d thought it was. Now he wasn’t so sure but he couldn’t afford to back down.

‘I “deal” with patients only if there’s no other medical assistance available or when my qualifications allow me to assist a crew that might not include someone with my level of qualifications. My input is limited to the point where victims are transported to hospital.’ Charlotte was clearly making an effort to maintain a tone of reason. ‘The preservation of life and the safety of everybody on scene is the first priority for any emergency service personnel arriving at any incident. Or would you disagree?’

Hawk was losing here, he could sense it. The sensible thing to do would be to retreat with as much dignity as possible.

‘I can hardly disagree with a blanket statement that all emergency services embrace. What I’m talking about is interference with a specific set of protocols that apply to the SCS. To me.’

‘Look, I understand your concern.’ Maybe Charlotte had the grace to allow a dignified retreat now that she had won yet another unspoken challenge on their private agendas. ‘Being involved for any length of time with patient care is not a situation that is going to arise very frequently, and when it does it can actually aid an investigation.’

‘Oh?’

‘Patients say things. Injuries can tell their own stories. You can notice a lot of small details coming at a scene from a slightly different perspective. The time that might be lost on scene is made up for later when we don’t have to interview the ambulance crew or try and extract patient details from hospital staff. The contacts I have with the hospital can also be useful.’

Dammit. What she said made perfect sense but Hawk wasn’t about to make her feel appreciated for the extra dimension she could bring to the SCS.

‘Let’s just see how it goes,’ Charlotte continued. ‘I’m happy to discuss any issues at any time. If you have any problems with the way I do this job, I would like to hear about them. From you,’ she added. ‘Not through some staff grapevine.’

‘Don’t worry,’ Hawk responded curtly. ‘You will.’ He turned abruptly back to his computer screen, where producing the scene map for a fatal crash from the previous week awaited him.

Charlotte busied herself sorting out her desk, thankful for the respite turning her back on her new colleague provided. She was still very aware of him sitting less than six feet away from her, however. Laura was right. He could be sitting at the end of a football field and his presence would still be noticeable. His aura crowded the small area and the empty surface of her own desk was a tiny space to claim as her own. How long would it take before she stopped feeling like an unwelcome intruder?

At least other people were willing to make her feel welcome. Officers from other departments who had known Charlotte from her early career in the police force dropped in to say hello during the course of the afternoon.

‘It’s so good to see you again, Charlie. I hope you’re here to stay this time.’

‘Sure am.’ Charlotte ignored the vibes concerning the temporary nature of her appointment that were coming from the other side of the room. ‘I love this job.’

The fact that Charlotte had placed a small picture in a heart-shaped frame on her desk made it inevitable that one of her visitors would mention Jamie.

‘I’m sorry I never made it to the funeral.’

‘It’s OK. It was a long way for you and it’s a long time ago now.’

‘I was really sorry to hear about it. Did you get my letter?’

‘Yes, I did. Thanks.’

‘You guys were so perfect for each other.’

‘Yeah.’ The vibes coming from Hawk were different now. And he had turned his head just far enough to demonstrate the fact that he was eavesdropping.

Charlotte said nothing more. There was no way they were going to cover any personal ground until they had sorted out some professional boundaries. Especially any related to her gender. The assessing glances her body was receiving from male officers, including Owen Hawkins, were far more unwelcome than Hawk found her paramedic qualifications to be. And he’d had his chance to air his resentment. Charlotte was waiting for her turn.

It came, in the final minutes of her first day on the job, when she was about to pack up and go home. Other staff members were also heading home and one poked his head into the office.

‘Hey, Hawk. Fancy a beer after work?’

‘I’m on call tonight, Murphy. Another night would be great.’

‘You’re always on call, mate.’

‘I’ll get some time off for good behaviour soon. My new colleague and I will be sharing the on-call duties as soon as she’s settled in a bit.’

Murphy’s eyes widened as Charlotte turned. He grinned at Hawk and lowered his voice. ‘This is your new colleague? You lucky, lucky guy.’