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CHAPTER ONE
THE NOISE HAD CHANGED The steady drone of the engines had taken on a new pitch Avery lifted his hat from over his eyes and sat up a little Every bone in his body ached;Three plane journeys over twelve hours would do that to a man It didn’t help that he’d been on duty for twenty-four hours before that
He’d expected to have a few days’ rest before shipping out to Italy from Utah But plans in the US Air Force often came unstuck
His orders had changed overnight A fellow physician who’d been scheduled to come to Japan had been struck doith aover the boot-shaped coast of Italy, he found hie of noise was due to the flaps rowled loudly and the serviceave him a s on a commercial jet—there were no air hostesses, no bar and no food They were flying on a military jet and it wasn’t exactly built for coet his head down for a few hours Sleep was all he cared about right now
The plane landed with a bu—the quicker he ate the sooner he would get to sleep The jet took a few minutes to taxi to a halt The rest
of the service their packs, ready to disembark
Avery kept looking outside, trying to get a better feel for the base It housed nineteen thousand serviceest military hospitals Set in the outskirts of Tokyo, the base was a home away from home Most of the staff stayed on-site There were stores, cafés, schools for the kids, places of worship and even a golf course The base had been here since the end of the Second World War
He waited until the rest of the service his backpack and walking down the steps of the plane
The warht away The base was situated on the coast, and the air wasin front of him He smiled A whole world he’d never experienced
He was kind of excited He’d been stationed in a range of bases all around the world Nor about where he’d be stationed Europe The Middle East And numerous places around the US This time around he hadn’t had a chance He’d no idea what he’d find at Okatu
He followed the rest of the servicear Transfer between bases always took a little paperwork A feere already heading towards the housing department
Avery sighed and coatory paperwork and picked up the inforain There was no way he could sleep until he’d eaten Itto eat first, then co officer to find out where he’d be staying
He walked out of the building, glanced at his sheet and turned left He took things slowly, trying to shake off all the aches and pains of travel The base was huge and during the stroll he passed an eleymnasium, the officers’ club, a travel centre, a few shops and a library It was a fifteen-minute walk before the ten-year-old hospital appeared before him
There it was The buzz The tickle That crazy little sensation he felt whenever he saw somewhere new The William Bates Memorial Hospital was named after an aviator hero from the First World War It had one hundred and fifty beds, an ER, four theatres, an ICU, a mother-and-infant care centre, a neonatal intensive care unit, a ical ward and a mental health inpatient facility He loved hospitals like this Most surgeons liked to specialise in one area The eons that opportunity too—there were a few specialists already here But Avery had never just wanted to work in one area He liked variety—and here he would get it
He started to walk towards theright and heading towards the ER He et a look around the place
The glass doors slid open just as a siren started to sound He looked around The main reception area was empty Where was everyone?
It didn’t take long to find out So the doors ahead slide open He took a quick glance and kept walking down the corridor
The ER was set up like many he’d worked in before Cubicles with curtains, some side rooms, a treat outside Resus, the most important room in the ER
A Japanese orderly rushed past, pushing a wheelchair He threw Avery a second glance, looking him up and down ‘You work here?’
He nodded and waved his ID ‘From tomorrow Captain Avery Flynn I’lish He didn’t knoord of Japanese and he wasn’t sure if it was going to be a problem Most military bases didn’t just serve their own personnel Often they took cases froe could prove a problem
The ave hi seven’
He disappeared quicker than a cartoon character Seven what? wondered Avery ‘Oof!’
A force hit hi him clean off his feet and onto the floor He barely had time to put out his hands to break his fall
‘Get out of the way’ came the sharp voice
All he could see was feet Lots of feet, craed off his backpack If he was needed, he was needed
A hand grabbed hirinned at hi for the nurses already?’
Avery blinked as he dumped his jacket next to his backpack and flashed his ID ‘What? Who was that?’
The guy hadn’t stopped s ‘Faiyakuraka’
‘What?’ Avery couldn’t quite make sense of the word
The guy tapped him on the shoulder ‘It’s Japanese for firecracker But you can only call her that once you know her well For you, it’ll be Katsuko’ Then he shook his head ‘Actually, let’s try to keep you safe Just call her First Lieutenant Williaood or not’ And with that, he disappeared into the scrum in front of them