Earthquake Baby

‘Doesn’t seem too satisfying at the moment.’

‘Oh, Jack. Sure, we get crazy busy and we lose some. But you know what it’s like! Nothing gives me a bigger thrill than seeing a critically ill patient get better and go home. Knowing you’ve been part of that is the best feeling.’

‘You still need to look after yourself. It’s not uncommon for post-traumatic stress to set in years after the initial incident. Maybe a word to Marie—’

‘Don’t you dare! Don’t you dare interfere with my work.’ She glowered at him.

‘Steady, Laura. No need to get upset.’

‘Oh, for God’s sake, Jack. You’re back in my life for two minutes and you’re interfering already. I think I’m allowed to be a little cross. I’m not a lost, scared twenty-year-old any more. Besides—no one at work knows. I’d like to keep it that way.’

‘It’s amazing you’ve been able to keep it quiet. No one ever recognised you?’

‘Well, I didn’t start here until a couple of years after Newvalley and the hype had died down by then. Plus, most people don’t know that my real name is Mary. I’ve been called by my middle name all my life, but thankfully backpacker hostels check you in as the name on your passport. As far as Australia’s concerned, the girl under the building was Mary Scott, not Laura.’

‘But…you’ve never confided in anyone?’

‘When you have photographers who’ll use every trick in the book to get a picture, it’s hard to know who to trust any more. I’ve had to become a very private person, Jack. When I started here I didn’t want any special treatment or be an item of curiosity. I’ve struggled to keep a low profile. If my past came out, it’d be all around the hospital…the press would find out…’

Jack’s face told her he thought she was exaggerating.

‘It’s true Jack. Every year, my lawyer is still inundated with offers from the media for an interview.’

‘You’re not serious?’

‘Unfortunately, yes. My lawyer thinks I should get an agent.’

‘You could be a rich woman, Laura.’

‘My memories are private and not for sale. Besides, I have to protect…’

‘Protect?’

‘Myself,’ she said rather lamely, thrown by how easily she had almost let the cat out of the bag. ‘And my family and the people I work with. The last thing anybody here needs is a three-ring circus following me around.’

‘Some people would kill for that kind of attention.’

‘Not me.’ She shuddered. ‘Those first few months after…the media camped out on my doorstep. That’s why I moved to Queensland.’

‘I had no idea you were on TV that much.’

‘I wasn’t. I declined all interviews and avoided the vultures like the plague. But it didn’t stop them from trying! Anyway, they finally grew tired of my constant refusals and decided to leave me alone.’

‘It must have been hard to get your life back together with that kind of scrutiny.’

‘You can say that again!’

So deeply engrossed in conversation were they that Laura and Jack had not noticed the arrival of other people. Splashing in the water alerted them. Laura checked her watch.

‘Please, think about coming to Newvalley with me.’

‘No, Jack,’ she said firmly.

‘Well, it’s not until next week.’ He smiled and stood beside her. ‘I’ll be seeing you around. You never know, maybe I’ll manage to convince you.’

‘Don’t hold your breath.’ She smiled back. Her lips slackened as she became caught up in his intense stare. ‘What?’

‘Why did you leave that morning, Laura?’

‘Oh, Jack, it was a long time ago. Let’s leave it in the past, where it belongs.’

‘I need to know.’

‘Impatient as always.’

‘What would you know?’ His voice had a hard edge to it now. ‘How do you know what I’m like? You walked out, remember. You never gave it a chance. Me a chance.’

All the old feelings returned in a rush. It was as if he had stepped back ten years into the morning after. The sadness and disappointment at finding her gone felt as real now as it had then.

‘Are you angry with me?’ His outburst had surprised her.

‘I thought we had something going and then you walk out in the middle of the night and I never hear from you ever again. Yes.’ The hard edge remained. ‘I was upset with you.’

‘Well, I didn’t notice you trying to contact me,’ she pointed out, peeved by his tone.

‘I tried. Quite a lot, actually. I rang and you never picked up. I called around and you never answered the door. Eventually I figured you just didn’t want to be found, so I gave up.’

Laura was shocked at his admission. Her phone had rung hot, night and day, from the media. She’d stopped answering it. She’d stopped spending time at her flat, too. She’d never known when a journalist was going to show up. She’d rarely been at home those first couple of months and then she’d moved to Queensland to be nearer her mum and dad.

‘Look, Jack, you picked a really bad day for this. I have a headache, and dredging up the past is only making it worse.’

‘I’m sorry.’ He sighed, taking her hand, instantly contrite. He took a deep breath, trying to rein in his chaotic feelings. That he still felt so strongly surprised him. But looking at her closed expression, he knew now wasn’t the time to push. He had to bide his time on this one. He didn’t want to blow it with her. She would tell him one day. He hoped. He pulled her to him and gently kissed her forehead.

Despite what had just happened, Laura felt a strange awareness creep into her bones. Every part of her body in contact with his became alive at a cellular level. It unsettled her. She stepped back.

‘No doubt I’ll see you about,’ she said as she started to walk away.

‘Count on it,’ he called after her.

‘I won’t change my mind,’ she threw over her shoulder as she let herself out the pool gate.

Jack watched her retreat until the wiggle of her cute behind was no longer visible. Her movements aroused him. It may have been ten years but his body was responding to her as if it had been yesterday. He ached for her physically but there was a deeper ache that had nothing to do with her body.

She’d certainly convinced herself that she’d dealt with the events of that day in Newvalley. But despite her claim that she was over it, he could sense an inner vulnerability. Maybe it took someone like him, who knew her intimately, to see what she couldn’t.

He had a feeling she was a time bomb ready to go off. It was better for her to do that in an appropriate situation, like the service, with him by her side, than have something else trigger it at work or at home. That could be catastrophic for her. Somehow he had to get her to that service.

CHAPTER TWO