Read Online New Surgeon at Ashvale A&E by Joanna Neil - Free Book Online
Authors: Joanna Neil
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managed to come up to your expectations. You just have to remember that the whole unit is straining under a heavier than usual burden right now, and I have to prioritise my time to the best effect. Unfortunately, that doesn’t leave me a lot of time to socialize.’ He turned back to his phone call as the clerk came back on the line.
Ruby drew in a deep breath at the snub. She was taken aback by his attitude, but she couldn’t really blame him for his riposte, could she, even though she’d only been trying to help. Maybe she had gone too far.
In fact, she couldn’t really see why she was bothering at all attempting to help him settle into the department when she had problems of her own to contend with.
She walked away from the desk and left him to his phone conversation. Maybe she would give her neighbour, Claire, a ring and find out if her sister had turned up at the house. It would cheer her up no end to know that Becky’s mother was safe and well and planning on taking care of her little daughter.
No such relief was in the offing, though. Claire said there hadn’t been any news of Sophie, and Ruby then checked in with the police, who informed her there had been no more sightings. They wanted to know if there were any local places where Sophie would go to lie low, but Ruby simply couldn’t think of any. She had already tried looking in all the old familiar haunts from their childhood to no avail.
She went to check on Becky at lunchtime with a heavy heart. The nursery matron said that she had been fine, but the child was tearful when Ruby arrived, wanting to be picked up and comforted, and Ruby sensed that she didn’t want her to leave.
‘Mm…mm…mm…’ Becky mouthed against Ruby’s shoulder. She put her small fist into her mouth and pressed down on it, becoming agitated.
‘I think she must be teething,’ the woman said. ‘Perhaps her gums are a bit sore.’
‘Maybe.’ Ruby felt as miserable as the child. She didn’t want to leave her here with strangers, but in a short time she had to go back down to A&E, so what choice did she have? Meanwhile, Becky was clinging to her, unwilling to let go.
‘I’ll sit down with you and show you a picture book, shall I, poppet?’ she said after a while. ‘Let’s see if that will soothe you.’
She sat in a cosy armchair and nestled the infant in her arms, showing her the bright illustrations in a soft, waterproof bath book. ‘There’s a duck,’ she said, pointing to the mallard swimming on a reed-edged pond. ‘Just like the one at Gran’s country place.’
‘Nan-nan,’ Becky said. ‘Nan-nan.’
‘That’s right. You remember, don’t you?’ She turned the page. ‘And there’s a bird sitting on the fence.’
Becky became excited looking at the pictures, her eyes widening with concentration, her arms and legs moving in eager expectation, her hands closing into small fists as though she would touch it and grasp it with her fingers.
‘You like that, don’t you?’ Ruby said. ‘I think you probably want to hold it yourself.’
She let Becky clutch the book, and after a while the infant drew it closer, testing its softness with her mouth. Ruby laughed softly. ‘I might have known you would try to eat it,’ she said.
Some time later, she settled the baby down in a crib, leaving her to explore the pages by herself.
‘You slip away while she’s preoccupied,’ the matron said. ‘I expect she’ll be ready for a nap before too long.’
Ruby nodded and went out to take the lift down to A&E. She was sad to leave Becky and a little overwhelmed by the tasks that lay ahead of her over the next few days: moving to the smallholding and waiting for Sophie to return.
Concentrating on her work would at least help to numb the edges of her unhappiness. She went in search of the lab results for the man who had felt his legs buckle under him and found that Nick Dryden’s blood test showed that his red blood cell count was low.
She went to check up
Ruby drew in a deep breath at the snub. She was taken aback by his attitude, but she couldn’t really blame him for his riposte, could she, even though she’d only been trying to help. Maybe she had gone too far.
In fact, she couldn’t really see why she was bothering at all attempting to help him settle into the department when she had problems of her own to contend with.
She walked away from the desk and left him to his phone conversation. Maybe she would give her neighbour, Claire, a ring and find out if her sister had turned up at the house. It would cheer her up no end to know that Becky’s mother was safe and well and planning on taking care of her little daughter.
No such relief was in the offing, though. Claire said there hadn’t been any news of Sophie, and Ruby then checked in with the police, who informed her there had been no more sightings. They wanted to know if there were any local places where Sophie would go to lie low, but Ruby simply couldn’t think of any. She had already tried looking in all the old familiar haunts from their childhood to no avail.
She went to check on Becky at lunchtime with a heavy heart. The nursery matron said that she had been fine, but the child was tearful when Ruby arrived, wanting to be picked up and comforted, and Ruby sensed that she didn’t want her to leave.
‘Mm…mm…mm…’ Becky mouthed against Ruby’s shoulder. She put her small fist into her mouth and pressed down on it, becoming agitated.
‘I think she must be teething,’ the woman said. ‘Perhaps her gums are a bit sore.’
‘Maybe.’ Ruby felt as miserable as the child. She didn’t want to leave her here with strangers, but in a short time she had to go back down to A&E, so what choice did she have? Meanwhile, Becky was clinging to her, unwilling to let go.
‘I’ll sit down with you and show you a picture book, shall I, poppet?’ she said after a while. ‘Let’s see if that will soothe you.’
She sat in a cosy armchair and nestled the infant in her arms, showing her the bright illustrations in a soft, waterproof bath book. ‘There’s a duck,’ she said, pointing to the mallard swimming on a reed-edged pond. ‘Just like the one at Gran’s country place.’
‘Nan-nan,’ Becky said. ‘Nan-nan.’
‘That’s right. You remember, don’t you?’ She turned the page. ‘And there’s a bird sitting on the fence.’
Becky became excited looking at the pictures, her eyes widening with concentration, her arms and legs moving in eager expectation, her hands closing into small fists as though she would touch it and grasp it with her fingers.
‘You like that, don’t you?’ Ruby said. ‘I think you probably want to hold it yourself.’
She let Becky clutch the book, and after a while the infant drew it closer, testing its softness with her mouth. Ruby laughed softly. ‘I might have known you would try to eat it,’ she said.
Some time later, she settled the baby down in a crib, leaving her to explore the pages by herself.
‘You slip away while she’s preoccupied,’ the matron said. ‘I expect she’ll be ready for a nap before too long.’
Ruby nodded and went out to take the lift down to A&E. She was sad to leave Becky and a little overwhelmed by the tasks that lay ahead of her over the next few days: moving to the smallholding and waiting for Sophie to return.
Concentrating on her work would at least help to numb the edges of her unhappiness. She went in search of the lab results for the man who had felt his legs buckle under him and found that Nick Dryden’s blood test showed that his red blood cell count was low.
She went to check up
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