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‘I see it.’ Ted guided the SUV into a space and got out. Jess could see flashing blue lights approaching from the other direction, and hoped that it was an ambulance.
They moved as if choreographed. Ted was in the lead, the reflective panels on his jacket advertising his presence. Greg was half a step behind him, medical bag and torch in hand, stopping to listen to a man who had detached himself from the small crowd that had gathered around three vehicles, which the force of impact had locked together, like in some gruesome sci-fi movie.
‘Okay, take me to her.’ Greg turned, beckoning to Jess to follow him, and the man led them to an upturned car.
‘She’s under there.’ Panic was welling in the man’s voice as he pointed to the tangled wreckage. ‘We couldn’t get her out. It’s her leg, it’s trapped.’
‘That’s okay. We’ll take care of her.’ Greg stripped off his jacket and dropped it on the ground. ‘Jess, will you see what other casualties we have?’
He didn’t look around to catch her assent. He didn’t need to. Jess jogged over towards Ted, pushing through the circle of people that surrounded him.
‘What have you got?’
‘Someone’s trapped underneath a car there. Greg’s going to see if he can reach her.’
‘Okay. I’ve a couple here, but there’s nothing major. You go and assist Greg.’ Ted passed her his car keys. ‘Take the green bag from the car over to him.’
‘Thanks.’ Jess took the keys and made for the car, pulling out the large holdall in the back, hoping it would contain whatever they needed. She could see Greg carefully manoeuvring himself under the wreckage, trying to reach the injured woman, and doubted that her leg was his immediate concern. He couldn’t treat her here. All he needed to do was to keep her alive until she got to the hospital.
She jogged over to the car, dumping the bag on the ground and calling out to Greg to let him know she was there. A slight nod of his head told her that he’d heard, and that was all he needed to know for the time being. She could see the woman now, her leg pinned under the collapsed steering column, apparently unconscious.
The side of a truck blocked the driver’s door and Greg had crawled in via the passenger door, twisting his body around the buckled frame to examine the woman as best he could in the cramped space. Jess unzipped the bag and quickly looked through the contents, arranging what she might need to one side.
They worked as if they were one unit. They’d done this before, although not for a while now, but the passage of time hadn’t dulled their edge. Greg worked quickly, Jess putting what he needed into his hand, almost before he had a chance to ask for it.
‘I think she’s waking up.’ Jess saw the fingers of the woman’s outstretched hand flutter then clench. ‘Pain relief?’ Jess got the words out two seconds before the woman started to scream.
‘Yep.’ Greg’s head snapped back as a flailing hand caught him square in the face, and he struggled for a moment to control his patient. ‘Okay. Okay. I’m
a doctor. You’re going to be okay. We’re getting you something for the pain.’ He held her tight. Not just to stop her from moving and injuring herself any further, but for comfort. The screams subsided and the woman whimpered in his arms.
He called out the dosage, and Jess slid carefully inside the car, gasping as the sharp smell of blood and sheared metal hit her. She could reach the woman’s arm, and she cut the sleeve of her coat and searched for a vein. ‘Okay… That’s it… done.’
‘Good. Now go.’ His voice was suddenly harsh, an order instead of a request, and Jess wriggled backwards out of the wreckage.
She wished he wouldn’t do that. He was the senior doctor, and there was no need for two of them to run the risk of being inside the wreckage. All the same, it rankled somehow that she wasn’t by his side. The firefighters had just arrived on the scene, and she was pushed aside so that the senior man could speak directly to Greg and assess the situation.
She heard Ted’s voice behind her. ‘The hardest decision is knowing when to step back.’
Jess composed her face into a smile and turned. ‘I just do as I’m told.’
‘Really?’ A smile played around Ted’s lips. ‘I’d be disappointed if that turned out to be true.’
He pulled her to one side, as someone came through with props to shore up the unstable wreckage. She could hardly see Greg now, masked by twisted metal and concentrated activity.
Ted was still watching every move that the firefighters made. ‘See, they’re going to cut through there. It won’t be long now, and Greg knows what he’s doing.’
‘Yes, he does. He’s a great doctor.’
Ted nodded, with the air of a suspicion confirmed. ‘Damn shame.’
‘What?’
‘If he decided to re-evaluate his priorities.’
‘But he’s only just back from… ’ Jess stared at Ted. His measured demeanour wasn’t just for show, he’d said no more and no less than intended. What was going on with Greg?
She could find that out later. For now it was enough to watch as the fire crew began the task of carefully peeling back the layers of metal that imprisoned the woman. She had calmed as the morphine kicked in, and Jess could hear Greg talking to her in between the shouts and the sounds of machinery. She knew he’d be watching her like a hawk, checking her responses, her BP, her pulse. His job was to make sure that she was brought out of the wreckage alive, and his quiet, reassuring tones were all part of the fight that he was putting up to do so.
