Page 6 of Prognosis Bad Timing

Nope. Not really. Clearly. ‘She’s fine,’ he assured the fireman.

The ambulance would be here soon and she could be relieved, but in the meantime she was doing a great job with the arterial bleed.

‘OK?’ he asked his voice low as he crouched down beside Carrie, squeezing her shoulder. She looked very pale. ‘You’re doing really well. I couldn’t have done this without your help. You’ve been a Godsend.’

Carrie glanced at him, stunned by his genuine praise. She was a mess and she shouldn’t have been. She should have been a professional. She could have been really useful. Formed a dynamic partnership to save the man’s life.

Been an asset instead of a liability.

But he was complimenting her nonetheless and in this nightmare it really meant something.

Two ambulances arrived five minutes later, one carrying an intensive-care paramedic, and a chopper thundered overhead minutes after that, landing on the road nearby.

Carrie was relieved of her duty, her fingers numb from applying constant pressure. Someone took over and she felt several arms lifting her up to her feet and out of the way. A paramedic shepherded her towards his rig but she refused to be looked at until she’d checked on Dana.

Surely she wasn’t still asleep? But she was. Soundly. Her cherubic pout slack, her blonde locks in disarray.

Carrie allowed the paramedic to give her a once-over by her car. Someone thrust a warm drink at her and someone else draped a blanket around her shoulders. She was grateful to be away from it all, her heart rate settling but the feeling of unreality persisted.

Her neck ached and she rubbed each side absently. Her knees ached also. She looked down at her ruined trousers, torn and frayed at the knees.

She watched Charlie work in tandem with the paramedics to help stabilise the patient, admiring his confidence, his self-assuredness. She’d practically fallen apart, almost vomited all over the patient.

But not him.

He had saved the man’s life. His insistence that she help, while difficult beyond words for her, had been the right call. Not that she’d been capable of much.

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Thirty minutes laterthe patient was gone. Dana finally woke up as the chopper lifted noisily from the road. Carrie got her out of her car seat and snuggled her against her chest, wrapping the blanket around both of them.

‘What happened, Mummy?’

‘There was a car accident, sweetie.’

Dana yawned. ‘It looks like a disco. Can I dance?’

Carrie smiled. Dana was right. The scene did look like a roadside discotheque. Flashing lights from the multiple emergency vehicles strobed across the scene, reflecting the pieces of broken glass scattered like diamonds across the road surface. ‘No, sweetie, no dancing tonight.’

Dana gave her a cute sleepy smile and snuggled her face into Carrie’s neck. Carrie hugged her closer, inhaling the sweet smell of her daughter.

Charlie approached, surprised to see a mop of blonde hair peeking out of the top of the blanket. Carrie had a kid? No wonder she’d been reluctant to get out the car.

‘Is this your daughter?’ When she nodded he continued. ‘I’m sorry, I had no idea...’ Maybe that’s why she’d been so shaky? She’d probably still been reacting to the potential consequences had the red car hit hers head on.

‘It doesn’t matter.’ She shook her head. ‘Dana slept through it all.’

‘Who are you?’ Dana’s high voice broke into their conversation.

Charlie was captivated by a pair of big blue eyes fluttering behind heavy lids. ‘I’m Charlie.’

‘Were you in the accident?’ Dana asked sleepily.

‘No, Sleeping Beauty, I just helped out.’

Dana giggled. ‘Mummy, Charlie thinks I’m Sleeping Beauty.’

Carrie smiled down at her daughter. ‘Go to sleep, then, Sleeping Beauty.’ She dropped a kiss on Dana’s forehead. They both watched as Dana shut her eyes.

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