‘Nine months! But what about her new job?’
‘I’ll contact them and let them know what’s happened. I can ask them to keep the post open for her but... To be honest with you, I think they’ll be needing to fill the post before she’s well enough to go back to work.’
Charlie shook his head, puffing out a breath. ‘She so wanted that job.’
‘Look, Charlie. At the moment, the best thing we can do is to take each day at a time. Looking ahead is just going to be overwhelming. She was treated promptly, she’s being well cared for and her condition is stable. That counts for a lot.’
‘Yeah, I understand.’ Charlie reached forward, gripping Rafe’s hand tightly. ‘Thanks. When will they let us see her?’
‘Soon. I’ll go with you, and ask.’ Rafe still knew enough people here and his word might carry some weight. At the very least, he could stay and explain what was happening to Charlie.
‘Thanks. I appreciate that.’
It was the least that Rafe could do. If he hadn’t gone back for the medical bag. If they hadn’t been arguing about it... Overwhelming guilt gripped at his chest, leaving him breathless with remorse, and he tried to shake it off. That was for later. Right now he had to give Charlie as much support as he could.
‘We’ll go up there now and see what’s happening, and then we’ll go to the canteen for something to eat.’
‘I can’t eat, Rafe...’
‘We’ll do it anyway. The next couple of weeks are going to be hard, and you need to pace yourself.’
Charlie nodded. ‘Just don’t bring me chocolate.’
‘You remember that?’ Suddenly the years fell away and he was walking up to the ICU, a sandwich and a bar of chocolate in his pocket for the pretty ambulance driver who spent every waking hour sitting by her brother’s bedside.
‘I remember thinking it was just as well that someone was feeding her up. I had this idea that I’d sneak out when the nurses weren’t looking, get to a phone and order up a pizza for her.’
Rafe nodded. ‘Happens a lot. I’ve seen people who are seriously injured, and who think they just need a minute before they can get up and walk away.’
‘I guess we all think we’re indestructible.’ Charlie’s eyes were suddenly full of tears. ‘Mimi always has...’
‘She’s going to come back to us, Charlie.’ Rafe felt himself choke, and in a sudden terror wondered whether this was a response to the fact that Mimi too was choking. Maybe intubated. Frightened and unable to speak. He hoped that someone was holding her hand.
He had to stay calm.
‘When you see her, I want you to remember this. She’s going to look pretty bad. But I want you to remember that they’re looking after her well, and that she’s going to mend.’
Charlie took a deep breath. ‘Thanks, mate. Got it.’
* * *
Visiting hours were over, but the ICU doctor had allowed them in for ten minutes. Mimi’s body seemed very small in the bed, overwhelmed by the paraphernalia around her that was monitoring her and keeping her stable. Rafe breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that she was breathing on her own.
‘Why is she in this room?’ Charlie’s brow creased.
‘It’s nothing to worry about. They’ll put patients where they can best manage them; a separate room doesn’t mean that she’s any better or worse than anyone else.’
‘Okay.’ Charlie looked at the cannula in her arm. ‘Is she in pain?’
‘The drugs they’re giving her will be enough to keep her comfortable.’ Rafe looked at the label on the bag suspended above her head. He had every confidence in the people here, but he still couldn’t help checking.
‘Her toes...’ Charlie was staring at the lightweight cast that encased her right foot. The other leg was hidden under a canopy, and Rafe dreaded to think what that looked like. Probably swollen, blistered and almost black by now.
‘Her toes are just the way we want them to be.’ He couldn’t resist brushing them with his fingers, just to check that the cast wasn’t too tight. The small, intimate act almost brought him to tears.
Looking at her face was an almost unbearable effort, but he made himself do it until the shock began to numb. One eye was bruised and closing fast, and a row of stitches ran along her jawline.
‘I...I want her to wake up.’ Charlie reached for Mimi’s hand, taking it in his.