Read Online Remote Rescue by George Ivanoff - Free Book Online

have called a ‘no-nonsense’ way. Her blue uniform was neat and clean. And she had a eucalyptus smell – like her clothes had just come out of the wash. She immediately took Jen’s side of the stretcher, leading it to the plane, talking intently with Bruce about Dad’s condition.
    â€˜It’s a comminuted fracture,’ Dawson heard Bruce telling her. ‘It’ll need surgery.’
    â€˜What’s that?’ Dawson called after them nervously.
    â€˜I’ll explain later,’ Maddy responded, without stopping.
    Jen headed into the airport building.
    The pilot, a guy named Mark, stopped to talk to Dawson. ‘A comminuted fracture simply means the bone is broken into several pieces,’ he said. ‘So it’s not a clean break.’
    Dawson grimaced as he imagined Dad’s leg bone splintering into dozens of tiny bits.
    â€˜Hey kid,’ said Mark, as if he’d just remembered something important, ‘I’ve got a message for you about your sisters.’
    Dawson’s eyes lit up.
    â€˜A lady called Gwen phoned the airport about twenty minutes ago,’ he continued. ‘Said your dad’s car had a flat tyre and that they were going to be late showing up. That you should just go with your dad andshe would take care of your sisters until something could be sorted out. Okay?’
    Dawson nodded.
    â€˜Come on then.’ Mark led the way to the plane, climbing up the steps and disappearing into the cabin.
    Meanwhile, Dad and his stretcher were being lifted up into the aircraft on some sort of automatic mechanism through the rear door.
    Dawson took a good look at the plane and suddenly felt worried. Not for Dad, but for himself. The plane was small and had only one propeller. He’d never been in anything like this before. He’d only ever flown in large jumbo jets. This plane looked flimsy in comparison – like an oversized toy.
    Dawson stopped in front of the stepsleading up to the cabin. Even they didn’t look all that sturdy. As the rear door closed behind Dad, Bruce came over to him.
    â€˜Okay, mate,’ said Bruce, ‘your dad is in. Maddy will take things from here.’
    â€˜You’re not coming?’ Dawson asked, a little alarmed.
    â€˜Nah,’ said Bruce. ‘Me and the ambulance need to get back to Marree. But it’s okay, Maddy’s an RFDS nurse and she’ll look after ya dad until they get him to Adelaide. There’ll be an ambulance at the airport to take him straight to Royal Adelaide Hospital.’
    â€˜Another ambulance,’ said Dawson, disappointed. ‘With different people?’
    â€˜I know it seems overwhelming,’ said Bruce, doing his best to reassure Dawson,‘but all these people are experts. They’re trained to help ya in these situations. They know what they’re doing and they’ll take care of ya dad. Promise.’
    Bruce stuck out his hand. Dawson shook it tentatively. He wasn’t used to grown-ups shaking his hand. Bruce then patted him on the shoulder and headed off.
    Dawson looked back at the plane and hesitated. ‘The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia’ was printed above the five little passenger windows.
    â€˜It’s a PC-12,’ said Mark, sticking his head out of the cabin door and looking down at Dawson. ‘I’ve been flying these for years and never had a problem.’
    â€˜Oh,’ said Dawson. ‘Okay.’
    â€˜It’s just that you look a little concerned,’said Mark. ‘And we’re all ready to go. Just waiting on you to get aboard.’
    Dawson nodded, took a deep breath and climbed up. The steps creaked beneath his feet.
    His eyes widened as he stepped into the cabin. It looked more like a mini-hospital room than an aeroplane. Dad was on his stretcher, strapped into place against the wall at the head of the cabin, IV drip hanging next to him, monitoring equipment near his head. A second