‘I’m happy to keep doing it, if that’s all right?’
‘Of course.’ The nurse excused herself to go over to another cubicle where she was needed. Hudson knew what it was like. It would be lovely as a nurse to focus on just a couple of patients at a time but it didn’t work that way. Sometimes, you saw so many, it was hard to keep each case clear in your head, much to the frustration of the parents, as well as the nurses.
Nadia stood and held Lena against her body, swaying gently to calm her.
And then she sat down and tried the bottle again. But it still wasn’t happening.
When the police arrived, she stood up, Lena cradled protectively in her arms once more.
There were two officers, one of them being Conrad, Maya’s ex-husband. Hudson couldn’t stand the guy. He was a total prick, full of self-importance, but as a detective who worked in the next town along from Whistlestop River, he was also known for being relentless when it came to getting to the bottom of a case. So, in that respect, it was good to have him on board.
Hudson and Nadia answered Conrad’s questions the best they could. But there wasn’t much to go on at all.
‘And you answered the ring at the door to the airbase straight away?’ Conrad’s colleague asked.
‘Yes, immediately,’ said Nadia, although she clarified it with, ‘Well, the time between hearing the ring and opening up the door after I’d found the keys delayed me by, say, five minutes.’
Conrad, lips downturned in thought, pushed them for more information. ‘Think hard. Did you see any cars nearby that looked out of place? Had anyone unusual been hanging around the airbase today or recently? Any little detail you can remember might help us.’
But Nadia shook her head. ‘I’m sorry. I can’t remember anything else.’
‘Me neither.’ All Hudson could remember was seeing the baby and Nadia unable to take her eyes away from her. He wished now that he’d gone straight outside and had a look around. But hindsight was a wonderful thing. ‘The cardboard box is back at the airbase if you need it, but there are no markings on it; it’s plain.’
‘Hmm… not helpful.’
Did Conrad mean the box wasn’t helpful or they weren’t? Hudson suspected both. This guy seemed to have a knack for making you feel guilty even if you weren’t.
Conrad spoke over a crying child in the bay diagonal to theirs. ‘Would you be open to doing a television appeal tomorrow?’
Nadia looked at Hudson, then at Conrad, whose focus settled on her. ‘You want me to talk on camera?’
‘Usually, it’s the police who do the appeal,’ Conrad explained, ‘and I’ll be there. But the baby was left at the airbase and you found her. It will make it more personal, in my opinion.’
‘Anything I can do to help.’
‘Do you need me to speak?’ Hudson put in.
‘Too many cooks…’ Irritation laced Conrad’s voice.
The man was an arse – Maya’s frequent description of him – and for a detective, his people skills were seriously lacking. Unless they were all missing something members of the public got to see. But as long as he did the job, that’s all anyone really wanted.
Everyone longed for a happy ever after in these sorts of cases. Hudson had been involved in a case with an abandoned newborn baby three years ago. The teenage mother had given birth and dumped the baby in a bin in the toilets at her school. The baby hadn’t survived despite the air ambulance arriving at the scene quickly after the infant was found. They’d delivered pre-hospital emergency care but it was too late. Hudson had acted as patient and family liaison with the mother, a fifteen-year-old, and her parents, who’d had no idea their only daughter was even pregnant. He’d been the bridge for them to find support and counselling, but they’d never fully get over it. And the case had haunted him with Carys’s arrival being around the same time. He hadn’t been able to fathom how anyone could put a baby into a bin. The case had given him nightmares for weeks and he was only relieved that Lena hadn’t met the same fate.
When Conrad and the other officer had their statement, Conrad told them he’d be in touch about the television appeal.
The nurse came back over with a bottle after the officers had left. ‘Third time lucky?’
Nadia puffed out her cheeks. ‘I’ll give it a go. She seems to be calm enough again.’ She sat down in the chair and, with Lena in position, took the bottle, guiding it to the baby’s lips. ‘Come on, Lena. You can do this.’
‘Stubborn little miss,’ the nurse sighed when Lena turned her head away, the milk from the teat squirting over her delicate features.
Nadia wiped the baby’s face and just when they all thought it wasn’t going to work and the nurse said she’d go and get a teaspoon and try an alternative method, Lena turned her head, the teat slipped inside her mouth and she rhythmically gulped down the milk until there was nothing left inside the bottle but air.
A collective sigh of relief had Nadia, the nurse and Hudson sharing smiles. And when Nadia handed over the empty bottle, she sat Lena on her lap, one hand supporting her chest and the weight of her head, the other rubbing her little back to elicit a burp.
And it was a big one that made them all laugh.
‘If only it were so acceptable to burp that way after a good meal when you’re an adult,’ said Hudson when the nurse left them to it.
