Maya started up the rotor blades as they approached.
Bess climbed into the seat beside her. ‘Can you believe it was some sicko’s idea of a prank?’
‘I heard over the radio,’ said Maya, preparing for take-off. ‘But there was a person in hi-vis; I don’t understand.’
‘Oh the hoax caller was clever. It was a bloody scarecrow.’ Bess closed her eyes for a moment, a swear word leaving her lips. ‘I suppose at least they called HEMS and gave them the tip off. Otherwise we’d have been searching for a long time, in case the scarecrow was a coincidence and there really was someone out there in need of our help.’
Noah swore into the microphone and had a mini rant until he pulled himself together because the cloud was still rolling in and they had to get back to base.
The mood was sombre on board, none of the usual chitchat.
Maya was fuming too, although she kept it in during the flight back to base. The hoax caller had wasted their time and, worse than that, they’d put the crew’s lives at risk. Their lives were in danger every time they took to the skies. They did it for the good of everyone at ground level, put themselves in impossible situations, went out in all weathers even when it ramped up the danger level, and this was what people did for kicks?
Nadia was inside the hangar when they arrived back with long faces. ‘What happened?’ She wasn’t always in the office to hear updates so right now, she’d be assuming they’d lost the patient; that was what usually brought the grim return, the lack of banter between the crew.
Maya put her helmet on the shelf and filled Nadia in while Bess and Noah put the gear away.
‘Why do people do that?’ Nadia moaned. ‘I’ll report it. We’ve very little to go on but it doesn’t mean we ignore it.’
Nadia turned when they both heard Noah swear again as he went through to the kitchen.
‘He’s upset,’ said Nadia.
‘We all are,’ Maya replied.
‘He must have seen this before.’
Bess passed behind them. ‘Doesn’t make it any easier.’ She added in her own swearwords for good measure. ‘Whoever made that call had better wish I never find out who it was.’
‘Go to the kitchen, have some of the chocolate cake I made for us all,’ Nadia suggested. ‘You need a bit of comfort.’ She was good at watching out for her team at the airbase.
‘I’ll be in to join you soon,’ Maya told Bess.
‘And I’ll go and report the absolute arsehole who did this to you guys today,’ said Nadia. ‘I know HEMS were the ones to advise you it was a hoax but it won’t hurt to raise another complaint, will it?’
‘I suppose not,’ Maya agreed. ‘Thank goodness we didn’t get another job at the same time.’
‘Well, quite,’ said Nadia, hands on hips. ‘Not only could this prank have wasted my team’s time and compromised your safety going up in these conditions, it could’ve cost someone else their life.’
That was the reality of it. To whoever made the hoax call, it was a laugh, but in doing so, they could’ve killed someone.
The team occasionally got calls that weren’t really essential, but those jobs were assigned because it was deemed necessary by dispatch, who didn’t always have much to go on. And if it transpired the air ambulance wasn’t needed, it was no big deal; sometimes it was impossible to know how serious a patient’s condition was. But this was different. And Maya was reminded of how different it was when she went into the locker room and jumped when Noah slammed his locker door so hard, she was surprised the door survived.
‘I know it’s shit,’ she said softly. ‘But it happens. We all feel the same way.’
‘Yeah.’
When he still said nothing, she added, ‘There’s chocolate cake in the kitchen. I’m going to make coffee. Can I get you a cup?’
He turned around as if he hadn’t even been listening. ‘I’m sorry, what?’
‘Coffee. And cake.’
‘And that makes it all better, does it?’ His question hovered in the air until it fell to the floor as he slumped down on the bench next to the lockers, his hand back against the cold hard steel. ‘Ignore me.’
She thought about it. She thought about walking away but instead went over and sat down beside him. ‘I’m not sure about how things worked with your crew in London, but here inWhistlestop River, we’re in this together. You’re angry, so am I, so are Bess and Nadia. And I’m afraid here you have to talk about it.’
She waited for his reply.
