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  ‘No need to suck up, I said you can go. Now get out of here before I change my mind. How many appointments to go?’

  ‘This is the last. I’ve taken their details. Her name is Fleur.’

  It seemed as though the whole town was preparing for the Rainbow Day at the park tomorrow. Only the last few of the tummy bug patients had come in today.

  ‘Okay, go and do what you have to do. I’ll lock up here after I see this pair and have an early mark too.’

  ‘Mwah.’ Lily blew her a kiss as she tottered off on her three-inch wedge heels. ‘You’re a darling. See you tomorrow. I’m so excited!’

  With a smile Emma turned to the young woman in the waiting room. She was unfamiliar to her, and she ushered her and the young boy into the consulting room. ‘Come in, Fleur.’ She leaned down to the small boy. ‘What’s your name?’

  ‘Mason.’ He had a slight lisp. One hand was on his stomach and she gave him a sympathetic smile. ‘Sore tummy, Mason?’

  He turned wide eyes up to her and nodded.

  It was the same virus that had been doing the rounds and she gave the young mum instructions for rehydration and pain relief for the little boy.

  ‘You have a little rest there while I talk to Mummy.’ She left the little boy on the examination table.

  The young woman looked at her with concern. ‘What else is wrong?’

  ‘Nothing. He’s fine. I wanted to ask you how you are.’

  ‘Me? I’m fine.’ Her lip trembled and her eyes shone with threatening tears.

  ‘You don’t look well. You’re very dark under the eyes.’

  ‘I’m tired. I’ve got a new bub, and with Mason here being sick—’ She put a shaking hand to her face as tears rolled down her cheeks. ‘I just can’t cope.’

  Emma leaned forward and took Fleur’s hand. ‘I haven’t seen you around town. Are you local?’

  She shook her head. ‘No, we’re up here on holidays. We’re out at the caravan park at Wonga Beach, and that makes it even harder. My husband is off fishing every day and I’m stuck in a van with the kids.’ Her voice got louder. ‘And now with Masie sick, I can’t do it anymore.’

  ‘Have you talked to your own doctor about how you’ve been feeling?’

  She nodded. ‘Yes. He prescribed anti-depressants but I don’t want to take them anymore. I flushed them down the toilet. I’d rather feel like this than how they made me feel. It was like I was looking through glass.’

  Emma listened sympathetically. ‘Do you know there are more natural ways to treat post-partum depression?’

  ‘No. What sort of things? Herbal tablets and stuff?’

  ‘No. There are other therapies we use. I’ve used it with a couple of my patients and we’ve seen great results and very quickly.’

  Fleur’s eyes widened. ‘Tell me about it.’

  Emma reached across to her shelf and selected the leaflets she was looking for. ‘There’s a combination of therapies we can implement. Folic acid or vitamin B9 which you can start taking straight away, a course of acupuncture and an increase to your daily exercise. There’s also an adjunct therapy called “bright light therapy” which has had great results.’

  ‘Oh, but we’re going home tomorrow.’ She looked across at the little boy who was now dozing on the examination table. ‘That is, if he’s well enough for the drive back to Cairns.’

  ‘I can give you the name of a colleague down there who’ll take you through the program if you’re interested.’ Emma was pleased to see Fleur’s eyes brighten.

  ‘Oh yes, please.’

  Once Fleur and Mason had left, Emma tidied up the examination room, checked the supplies and lifted the lid on the glass bowl where the cocky apple bark was breaking down ready for the infusion. She was looking forward to showing Jeremy how successful the fig leaf abrasion had been on the fungal infection. When she’d checked on Mrs Abernethy this morning, her skin was almost clear. The sweet smell of the cocky apple drifted up to her and she thought of Wilma. She picked up the phone on her desk in the clinic and dialled her number. She’d been uneasy about Wilma ever since she’d refused to come back into town. She’d been short of breath and Emma knew that she only took her heart medication when the pain was almost unbearable. She glanced at her watch. It was still early enough to drive out and check on her and be back by dark.

  The phone picked up on the first ring but the voice was hesitant. ‘Hello.’

  ‘Hi, Wilma. It’s me, Emma.’

  ‘Hello, Emma.’

  ‘I thought I might come out for a drive. Do you need anything from town?’

  ‘No, thank you. And don’t bother coming out, I’m fine. Waste of a trip.’

  Emma pulled up Wilma’s chart on the computer screen as she held the phone to her ear. ‘How much heart medication have you got left?’

  Silence.

  ‘Wilma?’

  ‘I have plenty.’

  Emma stifled a sigh. ’You haven’t been taking it, have you?’

  ‘I don’t need it.’

  ‘I’m coming for a drive. Are you sure there’s nothing you need?’

  ‘No.’ Her voice was quiet.

  ‘I’ll see you in a couple of hours.’

  *

  The visit to Wilma’s was frustrating. Her lips were pale and she was short of breath when she opened the door for Emma but she refused to be properly examined, and wouldn’t come back to the hospital.

  ‘How about a cup of tea before I head back into town then?’

  Wilma went to stand but Emma put a gentle hand on her shoulder. ‘I’ll get it. I should know where everything is by now. It’s almost like my second home.’

  Once the pot of tea was brewing on the table, Emma pulled out the chair beside Wilma.

  ‘Now I’m going to be blunt with you. I’m not prepared to sit back and let you get sick because of some stubborn reason that I can’t understand.’

  Wilma reached for the teapot and poured her tea without looking at Emma but her lips were set.

  ‘I’m talking to you as a practitioner, but more as a friend. Wilma, you’ve taught me so much. I’m not going to turn up here one day and find you cold on the floor.’

  Wilma lifted her chin and held Emma’s eyes.

  ‘You have to listen to me. Otherwise I’m going to insist that you are admitted. I’ll cross a professional line here and call an ambulance and have you carted off to the hospital. I’ll say you’re incapable of making the decision yourself.’ Wilma sat back and folded her arms, her lips clamped tightly. ‘If that’s what it’s going to take, that’s what I’ll do.’ Emma was firm.

  Eventually, Wilma reached for the box of Corlanor sitting in the middle of the table and snapped it open. She popped one of the small tablets out of the foil, and placed it in her mouth.

  Emma smiled as relief coursed through her. ‘Good. Now can I have your word that you’ll keep taking them?’

  ‘Yes. I’ll take them.’

  Emma’s voice was gentle. ‘Sometimes we have to take pharmaceutical drugs. You know that as well as I do. Now what do you say about you coming back with me and you can come to Rainbow Day tomorrow?’

  Wilma nodded. ‘I’ll be there anyway. I’ve got a stall booked.’

  Emma was surprised. It was the first time Wilma had mentioned it. ‘Are you up to it?’

  ‘I am.’ The woman’s gaze was steady.

  ‘What are you selling? Have you been baking?’

  Wilma laughed, and Emma was pleased to see the stubbornness had disappeared.

  ‘No. All sorts of interesting things. You’ll have to come and have a look tomorrow.’

  ‘I will.’

  ‘It’s time I was going.’ Emma finished her cup of tea and stood. ‘Your next tablet is due in four hours and then another one when you go to bed.’

  ‘Yes, Doctor.’ Wilma’s voice was meek but there was a twinkle in her eye. ‘Give us a hug, love.’

  Emma hugged her and headed up the hill to the car.

 
The last shards of sunlight filtered through the trees and motes of dust hung like lace in the shadows. It would be dark by the time she got to the ferry and she had an early start tomorrow.

  As she drove she wondered how Jeremy had gone up north, and whether he was back at the pub yet. She tried to push him from her mind and focus on the organisation for tomorrow’s fundraiser. This year, all she had to do was check that everyone with a job turned up, and have a thank-you speech ready. Jeff was in charge of getting the tents and setting them up, and he and Cissy were running the coffee stall.

  But she couldn’t stop thinking about Jeremy. Worrying how he’d gone on that road and whether he’d known to take spray to keep away the mosquitoes. Dengue fever was a problem up here. Cooktown was such a different town and once he’d got to the small settlement of Quarantine Bay he would have been in an entirely unfamiliar world. She was looking forward to hearing what he thought.

  Emma glanced left as something moving at the edge of the forest caught her eye. A possum scurried into the bush. As she turned her attention back to the road, she gasped and hit the brakes. A line of cars were stopped in the middle of the road in front of her. For a moment she didn’t think the car was going to pull up; the brake pedal felt spongy beneath her foot. She pulled up only centimetres from the last car at the end of the line.

  She peered through the windscreen in the failing light. Three tourists with cameras were standing at the front car. There was a flash of movement as a cassowary burst out of the low scrub and ran along the edge of the road. The photographers raised their cameras, snapping madly. Emma reached for her phone, wound the window down and took a photo as the large bird ran past her car only a couple of metres away.

  That was the first time she’d seen a cassowary in the wild; the tourists who were out of their cars obviously didn’t know what a dangerous creature it was. The traffic moved off slowly and she started the car again. Darkness had fallen swiftly and as the last car disappeared around the bend she flicked the headlights onto high beam. The road was a series of tortuous curves and hills descending to the Daintree River. She focused on her driving, wondering again how Jeremy had handled the four-wheel drive on the Bloomfield Track.

  Jeremy. She had to get him out of her thoughts.

  A small nocturnal creature suddenly ran out onto the road in front of the car and Emma pressed the brakes.

  Again they felt strange beneath her foot, and the car did not slow at all this time. Emma wrenched the wheel and the small creature scurried out of the way with a whisker to spare. As the next curve approached she eased her foot back onto the brake, but this time, the pedal went right to the floor. She flicked a worried glance at the speedometer. She was only doing seventy kilometres an hour but that was still too fast to take the approaching curve.

  She told herself to stay calm. The worst thing she could do was panic. As she tried to pump the useless pedal, she downshifted into low gear. Keeping her eyes on the road ahead, she reached for the park brake and slowly pulled it up, remembering the driving lessons Dad had given all of them back on the farm in their teens. The rear wheels squealed as the car skewed slightly to the wrong side of the road, but she adjusted the steering and the car slowed enough to take the curve. Thank goodness there was nothing coming towards her.

  She let out the breath she’d been holding and pulled the park brake a little more. The car slowed a fraction more but a tighter, almost hairpin bend was fast approaching. Emma flicked on her hazard lights and, checking that nothing was approaching, moved the steering wheel from left to right and back again, trying to slow the car even more.

  Not enough. The car was going to go straight through the curve at this speed. At the last moment she yanked the park brake to its full extension and the back of the car skewed around as the car slowed. Sliding across the narrow bitumen, the headlights lit the heavily timbered forest. Emma yanked the wheel to the left as a large gum tree loomed ahead.

  Chapter 22

  Friday evening

  Cape Tribulation Road

  It had been a successful few days. As Emma had predicted, the pub at Quarantine Bay had been full of patients waiting to meet him. No one had been ill, apart from a couple of children with earache, thank god. Most of the locals had just wanted a yarn.

  He’d spent two nights at the hotel in Cooktown and had made the most of the time writing up his report on the viability of Quarantine Bay for a clinic. Even though he’d been busy, he’d still found himself thinking about Emma. He’d missed her. He was looking forward to seeing her at this fundraiser tomorrow, and to being part of the community activities. He was sure, with it being an environmental thing, Troy would be a big part of it, but he’d have to deal with that. Emma would be passionate about the fundraising, Troy or no Troy. Maybe she’d missed having him around too.

  Maybe he was kidding himself.

  The road hummed beneath the wheels of the LandCruiser as he got closer to the ferry crossing and home. Yes, home. After almost two weeks, he felt more settled here than he had felt since his days at university. Being based at Dalrymple Hospital was an added bonus to the Outreach work.

  Emma had worried about him driving on the Bloomfield Track, but he’d enjoyed the four-wheel driving and was proud of how he’d handled the challenges. The road narrowed and he slowed the car as a bright flashing light ahead caught his eye. There had been roadworks all the way this afternoon and he was surprised to see them still on the job. But as he got closer, his eyes narrowed. He realised that the light was coming from the side of the road.

  Shit. It was a car’s hazard lights. A small red car. And the vehicle was hard up against a tree.

  His blood ran cold. Emma.

  Jeremy flicked his own hazard lights on and pulled carefully to the side of the road. He flung the door open and jumped down from his seat.

  Holding his breath, he pushed his way through the low scrub, not giving a thought to snakes or wildlife as the long, rough grass caught on his suit. He ran to the driver’s side and peered into the car, the interior lit garishly by the flashing orange of the hazard lights.

  It was empty.

  Horrific visions of injured drivers wandering away from the site of car accidents tumbled through his head. He’d attended a particularly nasty accident on an isolated road in the outback when he’d been out at Bourke. Three passengers had been airlifted to Sydney but it had been two days before they’d found the driver’s body two kilometres into the bush.

  He cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled, ‘Emma!’

  A loud bang and a muffled ‘effing hell’ came from the front of the car. He leaned forward as her head appeared over the front of the bonnet.

  ‘That hurt.’ She sat back down, rubbing her head.

  Jeremy hurried around to the front and dropped down beside her as she pulled herself up on the front bumper bar.

  ‘No, sit back down. Where are you hurt?’ He held her shoulders gently, scanning her face and body for any visible injuries.

  ‘Only my head where I just banged it under the car when you called me,’ she said crossly. She looked up at him, her face smeared with oil and her hair full of small twigs.

  ‘Did you get thrown out when you hit the tree? Christ, Emma, you scared ten years off my life.’

  ‘No, I climbed under the front to see if I could back it out. But the car is wedged on a tree stump.’ She ran her hand over her face, grimacing as it came away covered with foul-smelling brake oil. ‘I wasn’t hurt at all, so there’s no need to panic.’ She glanced across at the passenger side that was crumpled in and her voice broke. ‘I’m just so thankful that Wilma wouldn’t come with me.’

  ‘I still want to check you out. Tip your head back.’ Jeremy held her face gently as he checked her pupils. He was calmer now that she seemed to be relatively unhurt.

  ‘I’m okay. I managed to slow it down enough that the air bags didn’t go off, thank goodness. I’ve seen the skin abrasions and black eyes they can cause.’ She pulled
away from his hold. ‘I’m all right. I’m just angry at myself. I’ve been so busy I haven’t had my car serviced for over a year and the brakes failed.’

  ‘Come on, I’ll get you back to town.’

  ‘Can you get the boot open? There’s some stuff I need out of there for tomorrow.’

  ‘Sure.’ Jeremy opened the boot and carried the box back to his vehicle while Emma leaned against her car and waited.

  He held his hand out and glanced back at the car. He’d be surprised if it wasn’t a write-off.

  The satisfaction that he felt when she leaned into him was mixed with the worry of how much worse it could have been.

  *

  They drove by the police station after calling into the garage and arranging for her car to be towed in. It was locked up and in darkness.

  ‘I’ll report it tomorrow. I’ll have to for my insurance.’ Emma ran her hand through her hair in frustration. ‘When I can find a spare minute.’

  She shook her head as Jeremy turned on the left indicator at the street past the lights.

  ‘Take me straight to the village, please.’

  Jeremy shook his head. ‘I want to check you out thoroughly . . .’

  ‘No.’ Her voice was emphatic. ‘I’ll admit it shook me up, but honestly by the time I went into the scrub the car was crawling. There’s no need. I’m fine.’

  She took a deep breath and held her hands together as he headed along the road to the village. ‘So how was your trip?’

  ‘It was an eye opener.’ He shot her a grin and Emma was taken aback by the little tingle that ran through her. ‘But it was great.’ His voice was full of enthusiasm. ‘I met with the elders, had a few “yarns” and treated half a dozen patients. I’m looking forward to the next trip.’

  ‘I’m pleased.’

  ‘I fell in love with Cooktown. How would you feel about going up there one weekend and showing me around?’

  ‘Maybe.’ She turned and looked out into the darkness. She was getting used to Jeremy being around and, if she was honest, it was a lot better than what she’d anticipated when he’d first turned up at the pub two weeks ago. It would be fun to show him around.