Consultant In Crisis

And if she had to do something this demanding and dangerous, then most people would consider Neil Fletcher to be the best person she could have at her side. Kelly was quite confident that personal antagonism would have no impact on Fletch’s integrity. She knew that if she needed guidance or protection they would be hers without request, as long as Fletch was capable of providing them.

The huge sliding glass doors of the mall entrance had been shattered. Kelly could feel the crunch of glass under her boots as she squared her shoulders and followed Fletch through the dark, gaping hole that had to be entered. Yes. She could trust Fletch as a partner in whatever horrors they might be about to face.

It was just such a shame that she knew the risk of trusting this man any further than that.

The things I do in the name of research for my books can add some memorable moments to my life. The one that may well stand out above all others is the day I got “buried alive” in a huge, hardfill rubbish dump as a “victim” in an urban disaster scenario. The Urban Search And Rescue team in training had to find me amongst the rubble and then extricate me safely.

The rather lengthy wait to be “rescued,” as I tapped intermittently on a piece of tin with a rock, was a wonderful opportunity to plan one of the most ambitious-and-enjoyable-writing projects I have tackled so far.

Consultant In Crisis is the first of three books based on a USAR team, and one major disaster in particular. I hope you are as caught up in the drama and excitement as I was and that the stories of Fletch and Kelly, Joe and Jessica, and Wendy and Ross touch your hearts.

Happy reading.

With love,

Alison

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Cover

Excerpt

Dear Reader

Title Page

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

Extract

Copyright

‘RESCUE team above. Can you hear me?’

The silence was broken by only the sound of a small piece of rubble, dislodged by a steel-capped boot, that bounced off a broken length of timber before hitting a half-buried sheet of corrugated iron. The next ten seconds were eerily quiet.

‘Nothing heard.’ Urban Search and Rescue team member Neil Fletcher looked to his right along the chain of people.

Kelly Drummond was finding a more secure foothold amidst the precarious surface of building debris. Her heavily gloved hand grasped a shaft of timber between the exposed nails as she leaned closer to the steep mountain of rubbish. Rubbish that had once been houses. Houses that had held, and might still contain, people. Using a rock held in her other hand Kelly tapped loudly on a protruding water pipe before using her voice.

‘Rescue team above. Can you hear me?’

Kelly tilted her head until her safety helmet actually touched the rubble. She listened carefully. The sound created by tapping on a pipe would have carried much further than a human voice. Maybe someone trapped in the collapsed building and still alive could have heard the sound. Maybe she would hear them call out in return or hear tapping that might indicate their use of a similar means of communication. The seconds stretched out. Ten…eleven….twelve….thirteen…

‘Nothing heard.’

Joe Barrington was next in line. Solid, easy-going Joe was a paramedic, like Kelly. She had thought he would be the only person on this team she would know. After an involuntary glance to her left Kelly’s wish that that had indeed been the case was beginning to feel familiar.

‘Rescue team above.’ The deep rumble of Joe’s voice carried right along the ten people making up the human chain. ‘Can you hear me?’

Kelly needed to push her safety goggles back into place but didn’t want to move during the listening phase. Even a tiny movement could send debris tumbling and the sound might mask the whereabouts of a potential victim. A chill puff of wind sneaked inside the collar of the protective overalls and brought with it a mist of drizzle. Kelly closed her eyes for a few seconds. A month ago she had been sitting in the sun at a street-side café in Melbourne. Even three weeks ago she could never have envisioned herself in this situation. Part of an Urban Search and Rescue squad.

Working alongside Neil Fletcher.

She had recognised the possibility of seeing Fletch again. After all, she had chosen to come back to Christchurch and their careers weren’t a million miles apart. But it had been nearly two years now. It was more than likely that an emergency department registrar would have headed overseas for post-graduate experience and then chosen a bigger centre to come back to if he had returned to New Zealand at all. Besides, it had been Kelly who had chosen to end the relationship and the decision had been the right one. The only one. She had come to terms with that a very long time ago and she had moved on. Sorted out what she wanted from life and made damned sure that she was going to achieve it. Even if she did cross paths with Fletch it would make no difference. No difference whatsoever.