Page 161 of Atlas: The Story of Pa Salt
I spent a good half hour staring at the wall in the sterile white reception, wondering just what I would do if Lizzie was confirmed to be a patient. My train of thought was broken when I was approached by a woman with nut-brown skin and hazel-flecked eyes. She was dressed in a blue nurse’s smock. ‘Were you the gentleman asking about Elizabeth?’
‘Yes, that’s right.’
The nurse gave me a smile. ‘Please follow me.’ She led me down a corridor and into a private room with a bed and two chairs. ‘Please have a seat. My name is Yindi.’ She extended a hand.
‘And I’m Atlas. It’s good to meet you, Yindi.’
‘Are you a friend of Elizabeth’s?’
I rubbed my eyes. ‘That’s a little bit complicated, actually. Elizabeth and I have never met. But I am a... relation of her mother, Sarah’s.’ I lied, but knew that as a family member, I would be entitled to more information.
Yindi looked a little sad. ‘Lizzie talked a lot about her mother.’
‘That’s why I’m in town, actually. I’m here to look forSarah. I went to her house, but found it empty. Then I heard a pregnant woman had been living there recently, which is what brings me here.’
‘Okay, Mr Atlas,’ said Yindi, giving me a pat on the arm. ‘A few weeks ago Lizzie came here. She was in labour.’
‘Did she have anyone with her? Her husband?’
Yindi shook her head. ‘No. She told me about him. He had abandoned her a month or so before.’
‘Gosh, poor Lizzie.’
‘Yes. And her labour was difficult. Nearly forty hours.’ Yindi all but shuddered at the memory. ‘The baby, she was a stubborn one. Didn’t respond to our medicines. So I called upon the ancestors.’
I raised my eyebrows. ‘Ah, you have Aboriginal heritage then?’
Yindi giggled. ‘Can you not tell, Mr Atlas? I asked the ancestors to help the baby. And they did. But they also told me...’ Yindi sighed. ‘They told me that the mother would not live.’
My face fell. ‘No... So Lizzie is no longer...’ Yindi shook her head, and my heart ached for Sarah. ‘What about the baby?’
‘The little girl is healthy, and full of spirit.’
‘I am glad to hear it. May I ask what happened to Lizzie?’
‘She had a very bad postpartum infection. I tried hard to help her fight it, but the only medicines she responded to were traditional, which cannot save a life, merely improve its quality. Lizzie stayed alive for seven days, and the ancestors granted her a week with her new daughter before they took her. I’m sorry, Mr Atlas.’
I sat in silence for a while. I had come to Broome to find an old friend, but instead, had discovered some news which would no doubt devastate her. ‘Where’s Lizzie’s baby?’ I asked. ‘Has she gone into specialist care?’
Yindi gave me a wry smile. ‘No. Lizzie’s baby is here.’
‘Really? Still?’
Yindi nodded proudly. ‘That’s right. I have kept her here for as long as possible. She is a very special child, sir, the ancestors have told me. Full of fire! We nurses have tried to find a family to take her in, but have had no luck.’
I was surprised. ‘Really? As sad as it is, I thought potential adopters were most keen on newborn children.’
Yindi looked downhearted. ‘Yes. But the child is mixed race. People here... do not want such a child.’
My stomach turned. ‘Good Lord. How terrible.’
‘It is why I feel particularly protective of her.’
‘I can absolutely understand. I feel compelled to thank you for looking after her, Yindi.’
‘I have done my best to ensure the baby remains under my supervision for as long as possible, just as the ancestors asked me to do. But she cannot stay here at the hospital forever.’ Yindi narrowed her eyes and grinned at me, as if we both shared some cosmic secret. ‘Just today, the paperwork is being processed to hand her over to a local orphanage. What are the chances of that? Thisveryday. And in walks Mr Atlas,’ Yindi said with a knowing wink.
‘That is... interesting timing.’
