THE next couple of weeks were painful for Georgie. Every time she saw Logan she would catch her breath. True to his word, he kept his distance. Oh, he was just as polite and friendly as always, but he didn't ask her out again and he never indicated with a word or look that she meant anything to him. Even that they had been lovers. What else did she expect? She had told him there was no future for them. Not the way things were. And he had made it perfectly clear he couldn't-wouldn't-take anything less than her total acceptance of him and his life. And if her heart was breaking into tiny pieces, it was better that it happened now. Time would heal. Hadn't she already learned that?

Whatever. It was better this way. She would get over him. He would move on and she would return to her predictable, happy, safe life.

No one seemed to notice the tension between them, which was a relief. The rescue service was going through a quiet spell. Georgie had gone out with Nick to a car accident, which had happily turned out to be less serious than had been reported. Sally and Nick had attended a rider who had fallen and had suspected head injuries, and Sally was clearly relishing her new role.

'The rider's doing well,' she confided in Georgie. 'If we hadn't been there, if Nick hadn't been able to keep her breathing till we got her to hospital, it might have been a different story.'

This was exactly the kind of emergency they had been trained to deal with and the new rescue service was already making an impact.

So much of an impact that other A and E departments were beginning to take notice. If theirs continued to do well, the Scottish executive that dealt with the funding of these extra national services had agreed to look at setting up similar services in Edinburgh and Aberdeen. In fact, Logan had been away for a week visiting the other units and had only returned that morning.

This time it was Lata who told them about the call. 'Ambulance Control has just phoned in. There is a report of a multiple pileup on the A82 going towards Lochgilphead. They want to know if you want the 'copter to pick you up. I a.s.sumed you do.'

Logan smiled. 'You bet. What about you, Georgie? The helicopter can only take two of us. Nick and Lata would be better staying here to receive any casualties.'

Mouth suddenly dry, Georgie could only nod. It would be the first time they'd be alone together since the night at her house and she wondered if he'd say anything. Like what? I'm going to give up the army to be with you? He'd already made it clear that wasn't going to happen.

'Lata, how soon until the helicopter's here?' Logan asked.

'They're already on their way. They'll be on the helipad in three minutes.'

Before Georgie realised it, she was fully suited and on her way to the helipad. The RAF helicopter had already touched down and was waiting with its rotors still whirling.

'Copy what I do.' Logan yelled to make himself heard above the noise. 'But whatever you do, keep your head down.'

Georgie mimicked his crouching run, following close behind him. He jumped into the helicopter and pulled her in unceremoniously beside him. As the helicopter took off, Georgie fell against Logan. For the briefest of moments he held her in his arms, tightly against his chest. Then, as soon as the helicopter straightened out he let her go.

The paramedic in the back held out headsets for both of them. Logan fastened one to his helmet and, taking Georgie's, placed it securely on her head. As his fingers brushed her cheeks she felt a tingle zip through her right to her toes.

Her heart started beating wildly, and she tried to tell herself it was the usual adrenaline rush that accompanied emergencies.

'There are three cars involved, as far as we know,' a disembodied voice came through her earphones into her ears. 'The fire service and one ambulance are already at the scene. Another is on its way from Glasgow, but I think we'll get there long before it does.'

'Roger that. What do we know about the condition of the casualties?'

'Not too much. The driver of one of the cars is trapped at the moment, and the fire crew are attempting to cut him free. His status hasn't been confirmed yet. There are at least four other casualties, including a child, but their condition is not yet known.'

By the time they arrived at the scene, the firemen and police had the road cordoned off and the helicopter was able to land nearby on the road.

'We're on.' Logan grinned at her. 'Stay close to me.'

They ran the few metres to the accident scene. Georgie sucked in a breath. Two of the cars were embedded in each other, the third a short distance away, its front wheels perilously close to a steep drop. The car that the fire service was working on looked so badly damaged it was difficult for Georgie to believe anyone could have survived.

The senior fire officer on the scene detached himself from his crew and strode towards Georgie and Logan, his expression grim.

'We have one driver trapped by his legs. We're going to have to cut him out. We're worried that once we do, we might be left to deal with an uncontrollable bleed. He's been drifting in and out of consciousness since we arrived.' He pointed to the car near the cliff face. 'There's a mother and child in there. The mother is conscious, but can't move. Not until we secure the car. The other car's occupant has only minor injuries. But until we know what caused the accident we should keep an eye on him.'

The sound of heavy cutters filled the air, making it difficult to hear.

'Where to first?' Georgie asked Logan.

'I'll take the trapped man. You check out the mother and child.' Logan was taking his backpack off his shoulders. 'But I don't want you to do anything that might put yourself in danger. Do you understand? You're not to go in that car until the firemen have made it stable. Do you hear me?'

Yeah, right. Of course she was going to do nothing.

Logan moved towards his patient. Georgie ran to the car with the mother and child. She winced when she saw the car and its precarious position. The car had come to rest with its front wheels hanging over the edge of the cliff. The slightest movement could topple it over at any time. And if it went...She shuddered. There was no way the pa.s.sengers inside would survive.

The firefighters were securing a heavy rope around the rear axle. Georgie tiptoed as close to the car as she could get and peered through the window. In the rear a baby was strapped into a car seat and he, or she, was crying furiously. Despite the obvious distress, that was a good sign. Had the baby been quiet, Georgie would have been more worried. In the front, in the driver's seat, was the mother. Georgie could just make out the back of her head.

'Can you hear me?' she shouted.

The woman tried to turn her head in the direction of Georgie's voice.

'No, don't move a muscle,' Georgie shouted, alarmed. 'We'll get to you in a sec. Your baby seems fine and the fire engine is going to pull your car to safety. What's your name?'

'Lucy,' the woman gasped. 'Please get my baby out of the car.'

'Everything's going to be all right, Lucy. Everyone is doing everything they can. Just be patient. We'll soon have you out of there.'

Georgie whirled around. What was taking so long? If the fire crew didn't get a move on, the woman might panic and reach for her child. Any movement could send the car over the edge or, if the woman had a spinal injury, lead to paralysis.

Just then there was a crunch of metal on rock and the car slipped forward. The mother screamed. Georgie closed her eyes, unable to bring herself to look. A second later she forced them open again. Thankfully the cable the firemen had attached to the car had stopped the vehicle from slipping more than a few metres down the mountainside. The fire engine was bearing the weight, preventing its further descent. The baby was screaming in earnest now.

'Leave it to us, nurse. We've got it. You need to move out of the way while we pull it up.' A fireman appeared at her side and, taking her gently by the elbow, attempted to move her out of the way.

'Step back?' Georgie replied. 'Not on your life. The woman could have a spinal injury. She needs to be immobilised before we can risk moving the car.' She glanced around frantically for Logan but he was preoccupied with his patient. 'Does anyone have a rope?'

'There's one in the fire engine,' one of the men told her. 'But there's no way we're going to let you go down there. One of us will go.'

'For G.o.d's sake, I can do this. We don't have time to argue. Get me the rope and lower me down. I'll get a neck brace on then you can pull the car up.'

The firefighter wasn't convinced. 'Look, miss, if that car slips at all, it could crush you.'

'Or you,' Georgie responded calmly. 'But I'm a trained climber and a medic. Can you say that? Now, please, we're wasting time.'

Resigned, the fireman tied the rope one of the others had fetched from the engine and tied it firmly around Georgie's waist. Before he could protest further, Georgie had slipped over the side and was carefully picking her way down the slope.

When she got to the car, the baby's cries had stopped in response to the mother's voice. Wide, frightened eyes found hers.

'It's okay,' Georgie said, forcing a smile. 'I'm just going to reach through your window and fix this collar round your neck. Then we'll pull you and the car up. How does that sound?'

She got a weak smile in response. 'Seeing as I'm not really in a position to get myself out of here, I guess I'll just have to do what I'm told. But could you make it quick, please?'

As rapidly as she could, Georgie retrieved the neck brace from her backpack and reaching into the car carefully, without adding any weight, fixed the collar and stabilised the woman's neck.

'The neck brace will help, but try and keep as still as you can until the car is up. Okay? I'll see you up there.' And with a final smile Georgie left her and scrambled back up to the top.

There was nothing more Georgie could do until the firemen had pulled the car to safety. It would take them time, she knew. They would want to take it slowly so as not to cause any more damage to the woman's neck. 'Call me the minute it's up,' she yelled, and ran across to the driver of the third vehicle. The ambulance crew had checked him out and he was sitting in the back of the ambulance, an oxygen mask covering his face.

'He was looking a little cyanosed and his sats were low so we put him on oxygen as a precaution,' the paramedic told Georgie. 'He can't remember much about what happened, so we can't be sure that he didn't lose consciousness and cause the accident. We're just waiting for the doctor to have a quick look before we get on our way.'

Logan was inside the other car, alongside the driver. The roof had been completely removed and with the help of one of the paramedics Logan was fitting a neck brace to the occupant.

Georgie sprinted across. 'Do you need help?' she asked.

Logan glanced up. 'Not right now. The fire crew are going to cut away the part of the car that is trapping his legs. I might need you then. How are the other casualties?'

'The car with the mother and baby is being pulled up now. I haven't been able to examine them properly, but the baby is crying and the mother is conscious. I've fitted a neck brace on the mother.' Logan's mouth tightened as he realised what she must have done. She went on before he had a chance to say anything. 'Neither seems to be badly injured, although we'll need to check them out to be sure. The driver of the other car is being given oxygen by the paramedics. I think they suspect a heart attack. Should they take him to hospital or will we take him in the helicopter?'

'It could take us another thirty minutes before we get this driver out. The nearest hospital is in Oban. What's that? About thirty minutes away?' Logan paused. 'Ask one of the paramedics to go with him in the helicopter. And ask the helicopter crew to return as soon as they can.'

'What about the woman and her baby? What if they need immediate evacuation?'

Logan looked her in the eye. 'We work with what we know. Just do as I say. Any time spent arguing is time wasted. I'll check on the mother and baby as soon as I can.' His eyes were calm, his voice firm. Georgie knew it would be pointless to argue. He was right-wasting time would help no one and he was the one with this kind of experience. 'You need to be my eyes and ears. Trust your instinct.'

She sped back to the ambulance and repeated to the paramedics what Logan had told her. The driver with the suspected heart-attack still didn't look good.

'His blood pressure's dropping,' the paramedic said quietly. Georgie could hear the concern in her voice.

'Okay, let's get him loaded onto the helicopter. One of you has to go with him. I have to stay here to attend to the woman and child as soon as the car is secure.'

Within minutes the man was securely in the helicopter. The paramedic had placed leads from a portable defibrillator on his chest and from the readout Georgie knew they were dealing with a heart attack. He needed to get to a coronary care unit, and fast.

Minutes later the helicopter took off.

Georgie took a few seconds to get her breathing under control. The woman and her car were still being inched to safety. The trapped man was the current priority. It was possible that the part of the car that was pinning his legs was also acting as a tourniquet. If it was, there was a very real danger that once the pressure was removed, he'd haemorrhage. Georgie knew that he could lose more blood in a very short s.p.a.ce of time than they could replace. She was sure that Logan would know what to do. He had told the team it was the type of injury that, unfortunately, he'd had to deal with many times before.

'Georgie, I need you over here,' Logan called.

When she reached him, Logan drew her to the side away from the car.

'The fire crew have reached the point where they're ready to free Alan's legs from the steering column. But one or both of his legs are fractured and we're going to have to sedate him to do that. It's going to be risky, because we haven't secured his airway and he may well stop breathing with the sedation. While you were away I put in a couple of IV lines and got the drugs ready. Can you get ready to give the propofol while I stand by with the laryngeal mask airway? I've explained to Alan what we're going to do, and why.'

The chief fireman signalled they were ready to move the car and at Logan's nod Georgie injected the IV sedation slowly.

'Alan, you'll feel yourself drifting off to sleep as I give you this. The next thing you'll know you'll be in hospital.'

Alan grabbed her hand. 'If I don't make it, tell my wife I love her, please.'

'We're not going to let anything happen to you, Alan,' Georgie soothed, praying she was telling the truth.

Alan wasn't finished. 'We had...argument...morning.' He was struggling to speak. 'Didn't say goodbye.'

Tears burned behind Georgie's eyelids. She knew what it was like not to be able to say goodbye.

As the sedation took effect, Logan supported Alan's head and carefully but precisely pa.s.sed the tube down his throat. At his nod, Georgie inflated the cuff that would prevent air leaks and squeezed the bag a few times. Logan nodded in the direction of the waiting firefighters. In a few seconds their equipment had pulled the wrecked vehicles a few inches apart.

Then a swarm of helping hands descended and quickly removed Alan from the vehicle and onto a stretcher. To everyone's immense relief the bleeding from Alan's legs wasn't as bad as they had feared. They splinted his legs and very soon they had him in the helicopter, which had returned from Oban and was waiting to take them and their injured patient back to Glasgow.

Logan jumped in beside Alan, and Georgie turned her attention back to the woman and child. While they had been working on Alan, the fire service had got the car up safely and the paramedics had made their a.s.sessment of mother and baby.

'All observations, normal. I don't think there is any real cause for concern,' the medic told Georgie. 'We'll pop them in the ambulance and take them to Oban if you want to get going.'

Throughout the journey they kept Alan sedated and monitored his respirations. The noise of the aircraft kept talking to the minimum, but Georgie found she and Logan worked together instinctively, without the need for discussion.

When they got back to the hospital, several staff were waiting to take over.

As the adrenaline seeped away, Georgie felt her knees turn to rubber.

She stumbled into the staffroom and collapsed on the nearest chair. Suddenly a heady sense of exhilaration flooded her body. She'd done it! She had partic.i.p.ated in a rescue which had no doubt saved lives, and it felt wonderful. Almost more wonderful was the feeling that she hadn't felt any fear, not even for a second. She had proved to herself she was able to deal with any eventuality the rescue service could throw at her.

She looked up as Logan entered the room, and grinned at him.

'We did great, didn't we?'

Instead of grinning back, he frowned. 'You did well. You were extremely brave. No. Actually, you were reckless. The first rule is that no one puts themselves in danger. We are there to save lives, not to have to carry out a rescue of one of the team. You went against agreed protocols. The first priority is staff safety. The fire crew were there and it is their job to make the scene safe so we can treat the patients. It is not our job to argue with them and do our own thing.' He held up his hands as she started to protest. 'Yes, I know the outcome was good, but it could so easily have gone the other way.'

All the exhilaration rushed out of her, leaving her feeling like a deflated balloon.

'C'mon, Logan. You know I couldn't do nothing. If that was your wife and child back there, wouldn't you have wanted someone to go out on a limb for them?'

'But it wasn't my wife and child. We can't make these things personal, Georgie. The moment we do, our judgement goes out the window. You put everyone's life at risk-not just yours.'

The anger in his eyes was unmistakable. It was ironic that he was lecturing her about taking risks.

'You're a fine person to talk,' she responded hotly. 'You're the biggest risk taker of us all.'

'The risks I take are managed, Georgie. Or unavoidable. You didn't have to do what you did. If I thought someone needed to go down to the occupants of the car, I would have gone.'

'But you couldn't go, could you? You had your own situation to deal with. What sort of team member would I be, if I waited for your permission before I did anything? I'd be worse than useless.'

'It's one of the toughest parts of the job. Who to deal with first.' For a moment he looked bleak. Then he shook his head as if dispelling a disturbing image. His voice softened. 'But you kept your head, and that's what matters. But don't ever do that again.'

'There was a time when I didn't know who to deal with first. I kept hearing the baby crying. Although I knew that meant it was probably okay, it still broke my heart not to be able to comfort it. And if I felt like that, G.o.d only knows how her mother felt. Any mother would have done the same for a child in distress.'

Logan's eyes darkened. 'Would they? Somehow I doubt it.'

Before Georgie could say anything else, Jamie and Lata joined them in the staffroom.

'I hear you did good,' Jamie said, switching on the kettle. 'All the casualties are doing well. Tell us about it.'

Georgie and Logan brought Jamie and Lata up to speed with what had happened. Georgie noticed Logan said nothing about her going down to the woman and child while they were in the car. No doubt he didn't want anyone to think he approved of her actions. Nevertheless, his praise of her was unstinting when he related the other, not so controversial part of the rescue.

'It must have been a bit nerve-racking,' Jamie said, holding out mugs of coffee to Georgie and Logan. 'With so many casualties.'

'It was a bit,' Georgie agreed. 'And I know I shouldn't say this, but it was exciting too. There's no doubt in my mind that if we hadn't been there with the helicopter, things might not have turned out so well.'