‘Then how do you suggest we do our jobs?’ he snapped, glaring at her as though he held her personally responsible for the state of the country’s medical facilities.
Claire made herself return his stare but the chill in his eyes was unnerving. She couldn’t stop her mind darting back to the way Andrew had looked at her whenever she had done something to annoy him. She had to make a determined effort to focus on the present moment. ‘The old-fashioned way—through good diagnosis. Isn’t that right, Bill?’
‘Harrumph, well, yes.’ Bill looked uncomfortable about being drawn into the decidedly frosty discussion. He sighed when Jude looked sharply at him. ‘I understand your concerns, of course, but in the absence of any modern technology, we just have to do the best we can.’
‘I see.’ Jude turned and glared at Claire again. ‘Well, I want it putting on record that I’m not happy with the situation. Is that clear?’
‘As crystal. I shall make a note of your comments in triplicate, Dr Slater, and ensure that the appropriate authorities are informed forthwith.’
Bill looked even more uncomfortable when he heard the sarcasm in Claire’s voice but Jude ignored it as he plucked a pair of gloves out of the box. He bent over the patient, his hands moving over the injured man’s skull with the same skill and dexterity which Claire had admired earlier. Maybe he was upset about the lack of modern aids, but he was able to contain his emotions while he got on with the job. And it was a salutary reminder of the way her former boyfriend had been able to emotionally detach himself as well.
Claire quickly excused herself and left. She knew it was unprofessional to leave in the middle of an examination but she simply had to get away. Fortunately one of the local nurses was standing in Reception, so Claire asked her if she would assist in triage then made her way to the office to sign in. Every member of staff had to sign in and out whenever they entered or left the building. Although it was a bit of a bind, they all understood how important it was to know where everyone was in case of an emergency. Now Claire sighed as she realised that she hadn’t explained the procedure to Dr Slater. It meant that she would have to speak to him again and that was something she had been hoping to avoid. She’d had more than enough of the man for one day!
Lola was sitting behind her desk when Claire opened the office door and she grinned at her. ‘I see you made it back safely, then, hon.’
‘Only just.’ Claire scrawled her name on the sheet then poured herself a cup of coffee. Walking over to the one and only easy chair, she flopped down onto its lumpy cushions. ‘We found the truck on our way back. And the driver.’
‘And?’ Lola prompted when she paused to sip some of the muddy brown brew that passed for coffee.
‘And we ended up starring in our very own version of the shoot-out at the OK Corral.’ She grimaced as she put the cup on a pile of medical journals which served as a coffee table in the absence of anything else. ‘That coffee is disgusting! How long has it been stewing in the pot?’
‘Who knows?’ Lola dismissed the coffee’s pedigree with a wave of her hand. Anxiety was etched all over her face as she looked at Claire in concern. ‘Are you sure you’re all right? It must have been real scary for you, so don’t think you have to pull that stiff-upper-lip routine you Brits are famous for. If you want to bawl your eyes out then go right ahead.’
‘I’m fine. Really,’ Claire assured her. ‘OK, so it was a bit hairy at the time, but I was too angry to be really scared.’
‘Angry?’ Lola repeated. ‘You mean with the guys who were shooting at you?’
‘No. With Dr Jude Tobias Slater!’
Claire stood up and started to pace the room, her temper rocketing as she thought about all the things he had done that day. Ignoring her instructions to stay with the motorbike had been his first offence and his second had been the high-handed way he had taken charge. Maybe they were only minor misdemeanours in most people’s eyes but they were far more than that to her. Jude Slater had tried his best to undermine her at every turn and she had too much experience of the harm it could cause to allow that to happen to her again.
She turned and glowered at Lola. ‘The guy is a liability! He’s pushy and overbearing and, what’s more, he seems to think that he knows everything about what it takes to survive out here when he knows nothing at all. Would you believe that he actually expected there would be an MRI scanner in the hospital?’
‘It’s his first mission, though, hon.’
Lola shrugged, obviously trying to defuse the situation, but Claire didn’t want it to be defused. She wanted there to be tension between her and Jude, and lots of it, too, because it would help to blot out everything else. The one thing she mustn’t allow herself to do was to like him.
‘So?’ she scoffed. ‘I remember when you arrived, Lola. It was your first mission as well, but you didn’t expect there to be all kinds of fancy equipment here, did you?’
‘Ah, but I came straight from an inner-city public hospital, so my expectations were already fairly low.’
‘I suppose so.’ Claire gave a grudging smile. ‘From what you’ve told me, conditions there weren’t all that much better than they are here.’
‘You got that right, hon.’
Lola laughed. However, Claire knew that her friend was wondering why she had taken such an obvious dislike to the newest member of their team. There was no way she could explain that Jude reminded her of Andrew, not when she had told nobody about her former partner, so she remained silent and, after a moment, Lola carried on.
‘Dr Slater doesn’t have my kind of background, Claire. I checked his file while you were out and discovered that he’s been working in some fancy private hospital in London for the past five years. How’s he going to have any experience of real life when he’s been mixing with rich folks like that?’
‘In other words, I should cut him some slack—is that what you’re saying?’
‘I guess so. OK, so maybe you two didn’t hit it off, but don’t let first impressions colour your judgement. You guys are going to have to work together and it’s going to make life extremely difficult if you’re at each other’s throats all the time.’
Claire knew that Lola was right. However, the thought of having to work with him was too disturbing to deal with right then. She bolted down the rest of her coffee, fixing a smile into place when Lola looked at her in concern.
‘Don’t worry. I’m not about to do anything rash. I forgot to tell Dr Slater that he needs to sign in, so I’d better go and do it before I forget.’
‘You do that, hon. And I bet you find that he isn’t nearly as bad as you thought he was.’
Claire didn’t say anything. It would serve no purpose to argue with Lola. However, as she left the office, she knew that the one thing she wouldn’t do was try to improve her opinion of Jude Slater. She intended to keep him at arm’s length and the more things she could find to dislike about him, the easier it would be.
* * *
‘I’ll remove this section of bone. Then we can see how extensive the bleeding is.’
Jude bent over the operating table as he carefully eased the shattered section of bone from the man’s skull. It was delicate work and even the tiniest slip could have the most horrendous consequences for the patient but he knew that he possessed the necessary skills. He was a first-rate surgeon despite the fact that he spent most of his time these days stripping out varicose veins.
The thought that he wasn’t utilising his talent as he should be doing was unsettling. He had always believed that opting for the private sector had been the right decision. The perks which came with the job were all too obvious: an excellent salary; working hours which allowed him a healthy