Page 49 of Beyond Repair
By the time Katie started consulting that afternoon, she was feeling crossed-eyed from the sheer volume of paperwork she’d waded through, and more than a little guilty when a severely put-out Dafydd had scowled at her on his return from the visits: he’d had to disimpact Mr Isaacs’s bowel (a job Katie had done many times in the past but not one that Dafydd relished at all). She was halfway through her patient list when she called in the first really ‘sick’ person of the day.
Now, obviously in general practice the variety is huge. One of the skills is being able to wade through the irrelevant stuff, treat the regular stuff, but above all recognise when someone is ‘sick’. It could be a case of picking out of the ten dizzy old ladies you see that day the one who has actually had a cerebellar stroke, recognising when a simple urine infection has tipped a patient over into sepsis, or knowing when the brittle asthmatic with frequent exacerbations needs to be admitted to hospital. But ‘sick’ doesn’t just cover physical health, there are serious mental health problems too, and watching out for the signs of these is sometimes equally important.
Katie’s next patient was a six-foot, stocky man in his early twenties. He was wearing earphones, avoiding all eye contact, and had a hunted look in his red-rimmed eyes. Trailing him was a harassed-looking middle-aged lady, who flashed Katie a nervous smile as she went to sit down. The large man hesitated before taking a seat. His eyes darting around the room like he was checking for something. Katie got a faint whiff as he went past, which suggested he was several days past needing a shower.
‘So,’ Katie began, ‘um … Callum, is it? How can I help today?’ Callum continued to avoid her eyes and shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
‘Callum,’ the lady prompted, putting her hand on his arm. He started in his chair and flinched away from her touch. Katie was beginning to feel a little uneasy. The woman, not put off by Callum’s reaction, reached up and pulled his earphones out, and for a moment his eyes flashed with such naked fear that Katie tensed, almost rising out of her seat when it seemed as though he might be about to strike the woman. But after a few beats he merely pulled away from her and settled back in his chair.
‘I’m Callum’s mum,’ the woman said in a shaky voice, ‘and he’s not been right, he’s been acting … he’s not himself.’ Callum was staring intently out of the window, muttering under his breath things Katie couldn’t quite make out. He flicked his eyes up to hers briefly and away again, continuing to mutter.
‘I’m Dr Kendrick, Callum,’ Katie said in a soft tone, leaning forward in her chair. ‘Do you know why your mum’s worried?’
He shrugged, still avoiding her eyes. She tried changing tack slightly. ‘Have you noticed anything odd happening recently, Callum? Anything you’ve been concerned about? People acting strangely?’
Callum’s body suddenly went alert and his eyes jerked to hers, wild and frightened; but still he kept his mouth clamped shut.
Katie sighed. ‘Can you see why your mum’s worried?’ He looked back down at his hands, muttering again under his breath. ‘It seems like she loves you a great deal, Callum, to be so worried. Have you tried to explain to her what’s going on?’
‘Mum doesn’t understand,’ he said in a low, urgent tone, his words tripping over each other. ‘They’re watching all the time; they can hear us now. They know everything, they’re everywhere.’ His voice dropped to a whisper. ‘I can hear them now.’ He looked terrified, his body shaking slightly with pent-up energy.
‘How long have you been hearing them, Callum?’
‘Dunno, few days.’
‘And these people, do you think they mean you harm? Are they a threat to you?’
His eyes darted around as if checking the room for some unknown horror, and then he looked straight at Katie for the first time. She tried not to flinch at the terror in his eyes, and watched as he nodded his head, his lips pressed together in a grim line.
‘That’s horrible, Callum. I can see why you’re so scared. Will you let me help you?’
He shrugged and shrank into his seat, avoiding her eyes again. ‘You can try,’ he told her, his voice devoid of all hope.
‘Callum, do you do any drugs?’
He shook his head.
‘Smoke any marijuana?’
He shook his head again but a movement from his mum caught Katie’s eye. When Katie looked over at her she was twisting her hands in her lap and she had unshed tears in her eyes. ‘Callum,’ she said slowly, ‘you’ve been lighting up every day for the last month.’
‘Any history of mental illness?’
‘No,’ she replied.
Suddenly Callum became more agitated and jumped to his feet, staring out of the window.
‘Why are you wasting your time talking about skunk? That’s the only thing that calms me down for fuck’s sake.’ His voice was rising as he started pacing the room like a caged animal. He ran his hands through his hair and came right up into Katie’s personal space, leaning over her. ‘I can’t get away from them; they’re everywhere. Why don’t you stop focusing on irrelevant shit and fucking help me.’ He was shouting now, and for a moment Katie thought about her newly installed panic button, but the pain and fear in Callum’s eyes stopped her. He was scared, but somehow she knew he wouldn’t hurt her.
‘Callum,’ she said, her tone still soft but firm. ‘Callum, look at me.’
His wild eyes swung to hers and his body stilled; she had his attention.
And then she didn’t.
The door of her room swung open and Sam’s massive frame filled it. Katie groaned and Callum’s eyes practically bugged out of his head.
‘You … you see?’ he demanded, pointing a shaky finger at Sam.
