Chapter 13
BERNADETTE
Bernadette had thought there was absolutely no chance of getting a tea break today, but Caleb had persuaded a couple of the nurses on the late shift to come in early.
It helped that there was also a slight lull in the number of admissions, now that the Saturday morning rush was over, the Saturday night madness was yet to start, and the worst of the ice had thawed.
Freezing-cold days could go two ways – there would usually be a rise in the number of injuries from falls and road traffic accidents, but that was often balanced by a drop in the general accidents, because people were wrapped up under a blanket on their couch because it was too blooming cold to go out.
Whatever the reasons, she had made it to the cafe and she was sitting across from Stevie with a much-needed mug of soup. What. A. Day.
‘Results of Murray Atkins scan in yet?’ she’d asked Stevie, as soon as they sat down.
‘Nope, but he was furious that we weren’t strictly honest about putting him to the front of the queue.
’ It had been a slightly mendacious plan, but giving him preferential treatment went against every scruple Bernadette possessed.
Living with a volatile narcissist for thirty years had taught her a thing or two about handling and defusing them with very subtle manipulation, so that’s exactly what she’d done.
She knew if she got him round to the X-ray department and stalled him there, then he couldn’t leave, because he’d be on his own, and would feel that he could be taken in for X-ray at any second.
Bernadette had been very clear on the plan with Stevie – only bring him in from the X-ray waiting area when it was legitimately his turn to be seen, and her friend had wholeheartedly agreed.
‘He’s an obnoxious git, though,’ Stevie went on.
‘And he needs a crash course in manners. While he was still waiting, he bollocked my junior radiographer, and then he snapped at George the porter, who absolutely slayed him and told him to get a grip of his attitude. I thought Atkins’ head was going to explode, which wouldn’t have been great given the reason he’s in here.
Anyway, the scans are done and everything looks normal, but I’m just waiting for the consultant radiographer on call to check them as a secondary precaution.
He’ll be in at 4 p.m., so Mr Atkins should have his results and be out by 5 p.m. Not bad service, considering how short-staffed we are and how insanely busy it’s been today. ’
Bernadette nodded thoughtfully as she held her soup with both hands, grateful for the heat. ‘Agreed. I’m not sure he’ll see it that way though.’
‘Who won’t see what a certain way?’ Caleb asked as he joined them and put his quinoa salad and bottle of green juice on the table. He was fond of saying his body was a temple and he wasn’t wrong.
Bernadette moved her four-finger KitKat out of the way to make room for the banana he was now pulling out of his pocket. ‘Our friend Mr Atkins in bay 11.’
‘Give me the scoop – what’s the deal with him?’
Bernadette shrugged. Today had been exhausting and she didn’t want to go into all the details in the valuable twenty minutes of her break.
Besides, she hated gossip, and as much as Caleb and Stevie were friends as well as colleagues, her professionalism stopped her from sharing the details or her thoughts, especially in a public place like this.
The staff canteen in the hospital had been closed thanks to cutbacks a few years ago, so now the staff shared a cafe with the general public.
Thankfully, it was deserted right now, because they were right in the middle of visiting hours, so any family and friends would already be up on the wards.
‘All I’ll say is that he was a good friend of my ex-husband, so I know that the woman who is with him isn’t his wife.
I wonder if that has exacerbated his agitation because he’s clearly been difficult with everyone today.
Although, from what I’ve heard, he doesn’t have the sunniest disposition at the best of times. ’
‘Honestly Bernie, you’re such a dark horse. So do you know his wife? Should we be making an anonymous call?’ Caleb was teasing, but just the thought of that scenario made her squirm.
She chose her words carefully. ‘I’ve met her once. Or, actually, twice. But the second time we didn’t speak – it was at Kenneth’s funeral, and I saw her across the room with Murray.’
She didn’t add that she knew Murray’s ex-wife, Diana, better. Again, the details of her friendship with Diana would open a whole can of worms that she didn’t need to share right now. Not the time or the place. And she didn’t want Caleb to splutter his green juice across the table.
There was a huge part of her that was wishing she’d stayed at home today.
She could have read a book. Watched an old movie.
Or – and this would have been the favoured option had she been given all the facts this morning – gone to the hairdressers with Val and undoubtedly had an absolute whale of a time.
Another huge part of her was glad of all this drama, because at least it was a distraction from the fact that she’d checked her phone not long before she left the ward and Jack still hadn’t returned her calls or messages.
What was going on with him? Was his affection waning just as hers was ramping up to potentially make this a more permanent arrangement?
When they’d met four years ago, she was the first woman he’d had a relationship with after the death of his much-loved wife a few years before.
Her divorce was not far in the rear-view mirror, and she’d sworn off men for life, so their romance had been a delightful surprise for them both.
Yes, it had always been long distance, but there had always been a vague notion that it wouldn’t be that way forever, that one of them would move to be with the other when the time was right.
Now that she thought about it though, Jack hadn’t mentioned that in a while.
Had their relationship fizzled out and she hadn’t been perceptive enough to notice?
Or was she just worrying herself for nothing and he was waiting for her to be ready to suggest taking the next step to be together?
‘What’s up, Bernie? You’re frowning,’ Caleb observed.
‘Ah, nothing.’ She wasn’t going to burden them with her problems, because as she’d pondered earlier, shouldn’t she have this stuff figured out by now?
‘Right, time to get back,’ she announced, changing the subject.
‘I don’t want to be leaving the others stretched already.
And I’d better make sure Murray Atkins hasn’t started a riot yet, demanding attention. ’
‘No worries, Bernie. I’ll send the final scan report round just as soon as I’ve got it,’ Stevie promised.
‘Ah, thank you – you’re a wonderful woman. Caleb, I’ll see you back there. Just want to nip to the loo first.’
Bernadette got up from the table and put her soup mug on the tray of dishes in the corner, then left the others to finish their lunches.
After a quick pitstop at the ladies’, she ended up getting back to the ED nursing station at exactly the same time as Caleb.
She quickly opened the drawer to check her phone again and frowned.
Only one missed call, but it was from lovely Marge.
Kenneth’s former secretary was one of the people she met up with on the anniversary of his funeral every year, and Bernadette just hoped she wasn’t calling to cancel, because she always looked forward to seeing her.
They’d never been close friends – Kenneth had always kept them apart, for what she later learned were very good reasons – but they’d had some very honest, heartbreaking conversations since he’d passed away, and Bernadette felt Marge was someone she could count on. Hopefully Marge felt the same.
‘Okay, let’s get cracking here,’ Caleb said, focusing on the whiteboard again, catching up with what he’d missed while they were in the canteen.
Bernie popped her phone back in the drawer.
Two of the other nurses were going off on their break, so she didn’t have time to call Marge back right now, but she’d buzz her as soon as her shift was over.
If it were anything urgent, she was sure Marge would have left a message or texted.
‘Okay, I’ll take bays six and fourteen. They’ve been waiting longest,’ Caleb offered, grabbing the respective charts that had been left on the admissions rack by the triage nurse.
‘Okay, I’ll take…’ Bernadette was just checking the times on the board, when a click click click and a loud woman’s voice interrupted her focus.
Without thinking, she turned to see the cause of the distraction and spotted a visitor to the ward, over at the entrance, having what looked like a very serious conversation with the triage nurse.
Bernadette couldn’t hear, but she could guess exactly what was going on there and it involved demands to see one of the patients.
‘Oh Jesus. Jesus. Jesus.’ Bernadette exhaled, suddenly rediscovering the power of verbalising prayers, because only some kind of heavenly intervention was going to sort this one out.
Caleb had stopped what he was doing and was staring at her, perplexed. ‘What is it? Don’t tell me the drug dealers are back, because I haven’t got the legs to chase them today.’
Bernadette shook her head. ‘No, son, it’s much worse than that.’ She popped the charts she was holding back onto the rack, her priorities suddenly changed. ‘Caleb, see that woman over there, I need you to stall her, distract her, do whatever you need to do to buy me a couple of minutes.’
‘Why do I feel like I’m in an episode of Grey’s Anatomy? I have always wanted someone to say something like that to me.’
‘Well, this is your moment,’ Bernadette told him, her gaze never leaving the door, where the woman was still remonstrating with the triage nurse.
Despite his enthusiasm, Caleb needed more information before accepting the task. ‘Why, who is she, and is she dangerous?’
There was no way out of this. Bernadette didn’t have a clue if there really was a potential problem on the horizon.
Perhaps her take on this situation was completely wrong and it was all a harmless misunderstanding.
Although going by the furious expression on the woman’s face, Bernadette had her doubts.
She also had no idea how the woman had got past security and the receptionist outside in the waiting area.
But if there was anyone who could do that, Bernadette had absolutely no doubt it would be…
‘That,’ she said, with a long, slow sigh, ‘is Murray Atkins’ wife.’