Australian Affairs: Claimed: Dr Chandler's Sleeping Beauty / Countering His Claim / Australia's Maverick Millionaire

‘Dr Chandler?’ One of the residents approached from further down the corridor.

Jake dropped Kitty’s wrist and turned around. ‘Yes?’

The resident looked from Kitty to Jake. ‘I’m sorry to interrupt…’

‘You’re not interrupting anything,’ Jake said, dropping his hand by his side.

‘There’s a patient just come in who keeps asking for you,’ the intern said. ‘He says he’s your brother.’

Jake went to Bay Two, where Robbie was lying groaning on the trolley. It angered him to see his younger brother so wasted at this time of the day. His skin looked grey and pasty and his hair looked as if it hadn’t been washed in a week. His clothes were little more than filthy rags and his shoes had holes in them. How had his kid brother got to this? What choices had he made that had sent him on this crazy, senseless trajectory? Why couldn’t he just turn his life around? Did he have no self-control or self-respect? Didn’t he want things to be different? How could he expect to live a full life when he was abusing his health so wilfully?

‘Isn’t it a bit early for a hangover?’ he said as he twitched the curtain closed. ‘Or is this one left over from last night?’

Robbie clutched at his head. ‘Don’t talk so loud.’

‘You know, if you’re here for a hand-out there are much better ways to do it.’ Jake said. ‘I told you I’d pay for rent and food. You don’t have to use emotional blackmail.’

‘I’m sick, damn it,’ Robbie said.

‘Yeah, well, I would be too if I was on the same liquid diet you’re on,’ Jake said. ‘When was the last time you had a proper meal?’

‘I don’t know…couple of days ago, I think.’

‘Perhaps I should assess him?’ Kitty said. ‘I’m not family. I can be a bit more objective.’

Jake fought with himself. He was used to handling his family issues on his own. He didn’t want the train wreck of his brother’s issues to intersect with his professional life. It wasn’t only that it was embarrassing. He felt so damned helpless. He was used to sorting out other people’s problems. His life was devoted to saving other people’s sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, and yet he couldn’t do a thing to put his kid brother’s life back on track.

‘Go for it,’ he said. ‘You won’t find anything but a chip on his shoulder.’

Kitty stepped forward. ‘Hello, Robbie.’

‘Don’t listen to him,’ Robbie said. ‘I am sick. I know I am.’

‘What have you been doing to yourself?’ Kitty asked as she examined him. ‘Can you open both eyes for me? Yes, that’s right. Sorry the light is so bright.’

‘My head is killing me.’

‘Have you had a recent fall?’ she asked.

‘I’ve had a few falls lately,’ Robbie said.

‘Excessive amounts of alcohol will do that,’ Jake put in sardonically.

Kitty gave him a quelling look before turning back to his brother. ‘How many falls?’ she asked.

Robbie frowned. ‘I can’t remember…two, maybe three in the last twenty-four hours.’

‘Did you know you were falling, or did it happen so fast you had no warning?’ Kitty asked, examining his pupils again.

‘I just found myself on the ground with no idea how I got there,’ Robbie said.

‘Do you take any medication?’ Kitty asked. ‘Prescription or otherwise?’

‘Not for a while,’ Robbie said. ‘I used to smoke dope. I stopped a few months back.’

‘Nothing else?’

‘No,’ Robbie said. ‘I have the odd drink but I’m trying to cut back a bit. I don’t like how it makes me feel any more.’

‘So it feels different when you drink now from how it felt before?’ Kitty asked.

‘It just takes more to get him drunk than it did before,’ Jake muttered.

Kitty threw him another gnarly look. ‘Do you mind?’ she asked.

‘He’s my brother.’

Her eyes flashed grey lightning. ‘He’s my patient.’

Jake twitched aside the curtains. ‘I’ll leave you to him,’ he said. ‘I have better things to do with my time than try and help people who won’t even lift a finger to help themselves.’

Kitty put a hand on Robbie’s shoulder. ‘Sorry about that,’ she said.

Robbie put a hand over his closed eyes.

Kitty sat on the edge of the bed trolley. ‘Do you want to talk about it?’

He shook his head, and then grimaced as if the movement had caused him pain. ‘Not much point, is there? Nothing’s going to change. I’ve stuffed everything up.’

‘It’s not too late to turn things around.’

He turned his head on the pillow and cranked open one bloodshot eye. ‘You think?’

She covered his thin hand with hers. ‘Jake’s concerned about you.’

He gave a grunt as he laid his head back down and closed his eyes. ‘Jake needs to get a life.’

‘Maybe he can’t do that until he feels you’re on the right track,’ Kitty said.

A muscle ticked in Robbie’s jaw, which reminded Kitty of Jake so much she felt a little ache settle around her heart.

‘I’m not doing this on purpose,’ he said.

‘Sometimes it’s hard to see that from the outside,’ Kitty said. ‘The effort you put in might not seem like much effort at all from Jake’s perspective.’

Robbie put his wrist across his forehead and closed his eyes. ‘I don’t know why I’m like this,’ he said. ‘I just can’t seem to get my life sorted out.’

‘There are people who can help you with that,’ she said. ‘Psychologists, counsellors, even a life coach can help you put steps in place to get back on your feet.’