They agreed they’d do that; it was only a ten-minute walk and at a fast pace, they made it to their tent, added on a dash to the shower block to clean their teeth and had got beneath the canvas just in time to see the rain start up again. They kept the tent flaps open for a bit. With no other campers in front of them, they had a view of the field stretched out before them, vast open space and freedom.
Bundled into their sleeping bags, they both sat at the mouth of the tent watching as the sky grew dark and the rain comforted them beneath the canvas.
Hudson decided that there couldn’t be many moments as perfect as this.
26
Hudson was still smiling about his bonding weekend with Beau when he arrived at the hospital on Monday morning for a meeting.
They’d got back to Whistlestop River yesterday lunchtime and while Hudson played with Carys, who had had the biggest grin for them when they collected her from her grandparents, Beau opened out the tent on the back lawn without even being asked. The rain had gone away and although it still didn’t feel like they were almost into the official start of summer, the sun shone and gave it its best effort which was enough for Beau to clean the tent and make sure it was thoroughly dry before it was packed away.
Hudson had texted Nadia yesterday before he started the dinner prep; he told her they’d been camping and that it was the best thing he’d ever done, he asked whether she was okay as she’d been so quiet since she met with Archie. But he got no reply. And eventually, he’d given up holding his phone in his hand like a teenager desperately waiting for a message to come through. Beau had come in after sorting out the tent and as all three of them sat down for dinner, Hudson had indulged in thepride he felt for his kids. He appreciated them for the wonderful human beings that they were, he loved his little family, whatever it looked like.
Hudson attended his meeting with a patient and her family as well as the representative from a brain-injury charity who would provide the ongoing support to the girl who, at only fifteen years old, had had a seizure and fallen down an escalator at a shopping centre.
Following the meeting, he headed for the café and bought a coffee, choosing a table close to the window so he could start work on his report.
His coffee break had only just started when he looked up and saw Nadia emerge from the main hospital building.
He quickly closed down his laptop, put everything into the protective sleeve, and with his laptop under one arm and his coffee in his other hand, took off for the outside.
He’d tried to call her this morning given she hadn’t replied to his text but with this case to attend to, he’d ended up leaving a message on his second attempt and just hoped she’d call him back. He already knew from Bess, who’d taken her call yesterday, that she needed the day off today. Bess was also able to share with him the drama of Nadia’s sister going into labour on Friday night.
No wonder it had been radio silence. And right now, Nadia didn’t look okay at all.
She was sitting on a bench opposite the car park, right near the bus stop and all the smokers.
She looked to the side when he said her name and as soon as she saw him, her face crumpled.
‘Come on, let’s go around the building,’ he said, ‘there’s another bench and hopefully nobody smoking or vaping. You don’t want to sit here.’
She seemed to register and got up, followed him.
The first bench was occupied, so was the next, but they finally found a seating area and some clean air in a little nook at one side of the hospital.
‘What brings you here?’ she asked.
‘I’m here working on a case.’
‘What’s the case?’
Was she really doing this? Perhaps talking about something other than what was on her mind helped, so he obliged, gave her an overview.
‘That poor family,’ she said when he’d finished. ‘They’ll need a lot of help coming to terms with what has happened.’
‘That’s what I’m here for.’ But then his voice softened and he had to turn the focus to her. ‘What about you? I think you need some help coming to terms with everything; at least that’s the impression I get. Want to talk about it?’
‘I’m fine.’
‘You are notfine.You haven’t seen or been in contact with your sister for decades and now she’s here, you’re here; I doubt anything about that situation is easy.’
She reached for his coffee. ‘May I?’
‘Go ahead.’
She finished a big gulp, took another. And then she recapped what had happened since she talked to Archie, from sitting by the river and watching Giles in the playground, to the emergency call, attending the scene with Monica, Monica going to hospital in the air ambulance, the emergency dash to her side.
‘I had Giles overnight at my place. I told you that. Sorry, I’m repeating myself.’
