[Reviews - 219]
-
Table of Contents [Report This]
Microsoft Word Chapter or Story | ePub eBook Chapter or Story | Printer Chapter or Story

Has been viewed 2536 times

- Text Size +




Chapter 30


William couldn’t remember spending a nicer Christmas, and he said so to Joyce

“And you’re VERY welcome William, anytime you need a place to stay, think of this like your home”

William smiled fondly at her

“Want mustard on this?”

“Just a dab – I’m being greedy, but it was SO delicious!” Joyce beamed as she passed him a sandwich of turkey, ham and stuffing.

She warmed mince pies and made tea and took it into the lounge.

They watched TV, then they played ‘Charades’, then cards – for matchsticks

Buffy and William hardly had a matchstick left between them – Joyce had them all!

Will looked at the clock, it was well after midnight, nearer 1am in fact.

“Would you have any objections if I turned in – I woke at 6.30am this morning, I’d forgotten to re-set my clock!”

“Not at all William, in fact, I’m going to turn in myself now”

Joyce took the dirty crocks into the kitchen and loaded the dishwasher, she then said goodnight to them both and went upstairs

“It’s been fabulous, really, I told your mum, best Christmas ever” he gently stroked the hair away from her face.

Buffy homed in and began to kiss him with passion.

When she broke for air she smiled.

“Best Christmas for me too”

William stood

“Baby, listen, as much as I want things to develop between us, I’m not going to disrespect your mum, she’s a brilliant lady, and I don’t want to do anything to upset her”

“I know – there will be other times for us, yes?”

“Count on it, in fact – let me do a bit of sorting my diary, and I promise you we’ll do something great okay?!”

Buffy nodded, kissed him again and then let him go

William went on up to bed, while Buffy switched everything off.


***************


Angel sat in his room, staring at the TV, not taking anything in. He didn’t know where Illyria was, or what she was doing, and he couldn’t put the phone back on the hook because it did nothing but ring with either journalists, or strangers hurling abuse, calling him names and threatening to firebomb the place…


*******************


“And if you’d just sign here, this is your release papers…and then again here, this is your formal suspension notice – thankyou Miss Tate. Now, as you’ve been suspended on full pay until the enquiry is over, you are not allowed on hospital property as an employee anymore, everything from your office has been collected together for you and put in some cardboard boxes – I think there are three of them – now you will be informed of the hearing of the board of governors sometime this week, okay – you will be required to be at these hearings, do you understand?”

Dru nodded dumbly, she understood – she understood alright, she understood that now she was up shit creek without a paddle, luckily for her, she’d have full pay, but that wasn’t going to last more than a few weeks tops – and she hadn’t a clue what to do next………

“Miss Tate...Miss Tate”

“Hmm?” Dru looked up to the nurse who was holding out a laundry bag with her clothes in it…

“Come along, get your skates on – you’ve been discharged early, you can go home!” A nurse was holding her civilian clothing out to her

Numbly Dru took the bag of clothes and put them on the bed. She pulled at the hospital issue white robe and suddenly stopped, the garment halfway over her head

‘Get your skates on…get your skates on’

In her minds eye, Dru saw William leaving in a black SUV, then she saw, again in her minds eye the same car pulling up, a neat attractive woman in her early 40’s came bounding up into the hospital…

Where had Dru seen her before-got it, she, had, GOT IT!! she nearly whupped with delight!

She was that little blonde skater’s mother…so William was consorting with a patient was he – well he wasn’t going to be the only doctor in trouble around here, not if she could help it……....

*****************

William woke feeling refreshed, he turned on his back, yawned and stretched, there was a quiet knock on his bedroom door

“Um, yeah, come in!”

“Morning! I thought you’d like a nice cup of tea – breakfast is ready when you want it and you can get up anytime you like – I’ve put you a bath towel to warm in the airing cupboard, it’s the blue one, and the shower is simple enough to operate, the more right you turn the knob, the cooler it gets, or there’s plenty of hot water if you prefer a bath – and now I shall leave you in peace – oh were you warm and comfortable enough?”

“Pure heaven Joyce – and cheers, you’re an angel!” Will propped himself up on his elbow and reached for the tea. It was already half past eight.

Halfway down the mug, there was another soft knock on the door

“Hey!” Buffy put her head around the door and grinned at him

“Hey, did you sleep well?”

“Like the proverbial log!” Buffy went into his room, she was still in her nightdress and robe, and she sat on the side of the bed and leaned down and kissed him

“Sorry – morning breath!” William said, having not had chance to clean his teeth, but Buffy was all minty fresh.

“Don’t worry – you’re fine!” Buffy said with a grin, homing in for another kiss, thinking ‘oh yes, mighty fine…bicep – me likey!’

************************

The first thing Dru did when she got home was to pour herself a drink.

She hadn’t even taken her coat off, she sat on the sofa, putting the litre of vodka and the bottle of tonic on the coffee table and filled a half-pint tumbler half full of spirit, added a splash of tonic and drank deep. She looked at the time, it wasn’t even 10am.

“Bastards! – Fucking bastards – the lot of them – well they can go……they can go to hell!” Dru listed sideways and laid her head on a cushion, tears of self-pity running down her face.

She should have learned from the last time – that hospital in Iowa. They said if she left quietly, they would say no more, and as she’d only been there three months, she left it off her CV, claiming she was trying to find somewhere to live before applying to a hospital.

She hadn’t been helpless drunk in Iowa, she just had a few before her shift to give her a ‘lift’ and it was only really a quiet little ‘country’ hospital mostly farm injuries, rashes and bites…bored her silly, but one day not concentrating on her driving, she knocked a lad off his bicycle – it had been his fault, but she’d been done for Drinking Under the Influence, and of course the police told the hospital and that was that.

She sat up and took out the letter of formal suspension out of her purse, and read it. Her gut tightened and he felt panic rising, and reached for her drink, downed it and shakily poured another. Things were bad she knew, really, REALLY bad this time – she would loose the apartment, her livelihood…and it was all William’s fault! Why couldn’t he see they would be great together – she wouldn’t need to drink if she had him………trying to dismiss what they had when they were students, she always sat next to him in the car or danced next to him when they were in a group – even those in the group noticed, one girl, what was her name now, Rebecca, that was it, cow she was, made some comment about her being William’s little lap-dog, his shadow, how the poor guy must have felt stifled under her constant vigilance. Dru wanted to scratch her eyes out………

After a few more vodka’s, Dru felt more confident, and phoned the hospital, wanting Dr Carling’s telephone number.

“Hello, yes, is, is that the Lacey Memory-rial Hospital?” Dru slurred slightly

“Yes, how may I help, you?”

“Good, I want the telephone number of Dr Carling please”

“I’m sorry madam, we don’t have a doctor of that name working at this hospital, are sure you’ve got the right-“

“Don’t tell me I’m wrong! I know I’m not wrong, I’ve work – I’ve seen him there!”

“Hold on please”

“Bloody stupid woman…” Dru muttered to herself, she cradled the receiver between her neck and shoulder, holding the main body of the phone in one hand, and her drink in the other, she paced around.

“Hello”

“’Ello”

“We DID have a surgeon of that name working here but he isn’t affiliated to this hospital, so I’m sorry, I can’t help you”

“Aff-lif-liffiated – look………he operated on that skater, the one in the air-crash”

“Yes madam, I know who you mean, but-“

“Well if you know, get me ‘is bloody phone number, jeez, is it so hard?”

“I’m sorry madam, I don’t like your tone, I’m not here to be sworn at, I’ve told you he doesn’t work here, and I can’t give out telephone numbers to all and sundry if he did, goodbye!”

“No, wait, don’t hang – hello – HELLO – fuckin’ stupid COW!” Dru threw the phone and it bounced on the sofa and onto the floor. She started to cry again, and only picked up the phone and put it back together again properly when the rapid beeping got on her nerves.





You must login (register) to review.