Free Medical Mission by George Ivanoff

thoughts turned to home – the cattle station in the centre of nothing. Alone. Isolated. Like him.
    And then he thought of Mum. He’d be seeing her soon. And that calmed him down.
    He looked through the windows on the opposite wall of the cabin. There were five of them. He watched clouds going past, following them with his eyes from one window to the next. But he was soon bored with that.
    He felt a warmth spreading through his body and a fuzziness through his brain. He wondered if it was the medication in the IV.
    Or maybe it’s the snake venom, he suddenly thought, spreading through my body, slowly killing me ?
    â€˜How are you feeling?’ Nurse Josh’s voice broke into his thoughts.
    â€˜Ah … scared,’ he said.
    â€˜Understandable,’ said Nurse Josh. ‘You’ve been through a lot. But really, you’ve got nothing to worry about. You’re in good hands. You’ll be at the hospital in less than two hours now, which is within the safety margins for treatment of a King Brown bite.’
    â€˜Okay.’ Josh’s response was half-hearted.
    â€˜The trick is to keep your mind occupied,’ said Nurse Josh. ‘How about a game of I Spy?’
    â€˜No, thanks,’ he answered. That’s a little kid’s game , he thought. Out loud he said, ‘I’m a bit too sleepy.’
    â€˜Not surprising with all the pain meds we’re pumping into you,’ said the nurse. ‘They should be taking effect by now. Why don’t you try to have a nap? It’ll make the flight go faster.’
    Josh nodded and closed his eyes. He couldn’t imagine falling asleep at a time like this. He was too worried – too scared. Too much was happening.

    Josh woke with a start as the plane jolted.
    â€˜What happened?’ he asked blearily.
    â€˜We’ve just landed,’ said the nurse.
    Josh was vaguely aware of a throbbing in his head, a queasiness in his stomach and pain in his leg. And he was still tired.
    He yawned and tried to cover his mouth. His right arm felt funny. He couldn’t move it properly. He shifted on the stretcher. His whole right side felt odd. And he couldn’t move his injured leg at all.
    What’s happening to me? The question thundered through his mind. Am I dying?
    Josh’s mouth went dry, his heart pounded uncontrollably and his stomach tightened.
    He leaned to the side and threw up all over the floor.

Josh was rushed from the RFDS plane into the waiting ambulance, which raced straight to the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
    He had a hard time keeping track of what was occurring. There were movements and lights, things happening around him. Faces peered at him and voices droned. He threw up again and again, his stomach twistinginto a knot, his throat burning with bile. He slipped in and out of consciousness. When he was awake, his world was filled with confusion, fear and pain. When he was asleep, his dreams were filled with confusion, fear and giant monster snakes. He hardly knew when he was conscious.
    And then he was aware of something.
    What is that sound? he wondered. A baby?
    Josh opened his eyes. Through the blurriness he saw movement. He blinked and his vision started to clear. Someone shifting about. He blinked again. Someone was walking back and forth, rocking a baby in her arms. She had long dark hair tied back and a round, kind face.
    It’s Mum , he thought.
    He tried to say hi, but his mouth wouldn’t work properly. It came out as a grunt.
    â€˜Oh dear,’ said Mum, stopping and looking at Josh. ‘I’m so sorry, love. I didn’t mean to wake you. I’ve been trying to keep Nate quiet but, you know, babies don’t always cooperate. He’s asleep now.’
    Josh’s heart wrenched. Tears welled up in his eyes.
    â€˜Oh, honey, are you all right?’ Mum moved closer, concern crinkling her face. ‘I’ll call a nurse.’
    â€˜Fine,’ Josh managed to