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Chapter 33

William had arrived early for the hearing, got himself a vending machine coffee and phoned Buffy………


“I know baby, but you could come here, mom said any –“

“I’d LOVE TO, really, but we don’t need any more problems, until I sign off as your doctor on the 27th, we, I mean *I* could be in trouble, we have to be careful. I tell you pet, I’m not looking forward to this, I swear to god, if she says I gave her ANY encouragement, I’ll –“

“Honey, nobody will believe her, you have Dr Travers and Dr Gupta both on your side then there’s that stuff they’ve dug up on her, why she was supposedly ‘unemployed’ but had a regular salary going into a bank account, NOBODY is going to blame you in the slightest”

“I know…it’s just that ooh, she makes me SO mad! Anyway, enough of my ramblings, how are things with you my sweet?”

“We’re still having mainline calls pre-answered, I had one journalist try and sneak through…”

“Have you decided what to do yet, about testifying, I mean?”

“No…he never touched me, but then, well…after what Faith said, I never gave him the opportunity, so I don’t know if that makes me a good or a bad witness”

“Speak to his attorney, let HIM decide”

“Her, he’s gone for a woman, thought it would make a better case for him”

“Well let her decide then”

“Yes, I think I will. Mom said to say hello, and that second exhibition has been set for three weeks time, she’s put you down as a VIP visitor”

“Great! I was thinking about buying a picture…but first I suppose I better get somewhere to hang it!”

Buffy sat up

“You mean somewhere other than the hospital room?”

“Yup…and I’ve been doing a lot of thinking too – but I don’t want to say anything over the phone, can I come over on Friday night?”

“Of course, you don’t have to ask…Will – you’re not………you’re not going back to England, are you?”

She tried to keep the desperation out of her voice, she hadn’t succeeded though, and she could feel tears threatening.

“Course I’m not babe! I’ve become acclimatised to California – although I am leaving the state next week, but not the country”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, just for a couple of days, I said I’d do favour for a friend, he lives in Arizona – Phoenix to be precise, I’m going to patch up his dodgy knee – not so much a sport injury as such, more coming off his motorcycle too many times, but we used to room together when I lived in New York, well he put me up for 3 months when I worked in the City General teaching hospital. So kitten, all ready for Thursday?”

“Yes – boy will I be glad to see off my last physiotherapy session with Miss Whiplash!”

William laughed

“Sonia’s tough, but she gets the job done!”

“Boy, I swear to god she still thinks she’s in the military!”

“Babe, I gotta go, Travers and Gupta are walking down the corridor okay?”

“Okay babe, good luck, let me know what’s happened”

“I will, bye pet”


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


………………”Now that everybody has been introduced, I think we can get on with the proceedings………Quentin said.

Copies of everybody’s statements about what had happened on Christmas day were in front of everybody seated.

William made sure he sat the farthest away possible from Drusilla, and was pleased that the seating was arranged in a straight line facing Travers, Charles Heaton and a few other governors of the hospital. Sitting in the middle were two inspectors of the General Medical Council, upon whose say so could either suspend or end Doctor Drusilla Tate’s medical career.

Drusilla dressed in a dark blue coat-dress, with a bright red scarf tied at her throat. She’d tied her hair back and when statements were read out, she put on spectacles to read. By her side was her ‘adviser’ and lawyer, a man by the name of Ford Denton.


The incident with Drusilla being drunk on duty was read out first, with Dr Rae, and the two nurses, Jeff Collins and Sally Parfitt giving their account of what happened in the emergency room.


It was established that the patient died, but it was virtually 95% down to that her injuries were just too severe, and the amount of blood loss and the fact that it had taken over ninety minutes to get her from the crash site to the hospital, a fact that Drusilla’s adviser emphasised.

Travers looked at his watch and decided that it was a good time to break for coffee, it was 10.55am.

Two trolleys with coffee machines on with cups and saucers were wheeled in by the kitchen staff, Pearl managed to wave to William.

William went over and got himself a cup of coffee and took a cookie.

Travers joined him, as did Dr Gupta.

“It’s making it sound like she’s done nothing wrong!” Gupta said

“Well, she didn’t succeed in fixing the drip into the girls hand, but I know, you MUST emphasise on just how drunk she was Ashok, and how you had to section her” Travers said, stirring his coffee

William stood facing the two doctors, when Dr Ashok Gupta went wide-eyed and said,

“I don’t believe it, she’s making her way over here!”

“What?” William looked up, and saw that Drusilla was making a bee-line for him.

“What IS that woman up to now – I better……” Travers swiftly thrust his coffee cup and saucer into Dr Gupta’s hand and pushed between the pair of them to head her off. He stood in front of her and said,

“Miss Tate, I don’t think it would be a very good idea for you to start a scene in here, now would it?”

She was shaking, possibly through nerves, more likely through the DT’s - delirium tremens alcoholics get.

“It’s still Dr Tate, I haven’t been struck off yet, and I was only going to say hello, and no hard feelings to William”

“Well, that’s not really advisable, as I’m sure your adviser will tell you – over he- over here-“ Travers could see Ford Denton frantically looking around for her. He spotted Dr Travers waving and came rushing over

“Tell me you haven’t spoken to-“

“No, she didn’t get the chance, I saw what she was going to do and prevented it”

Drusilla’s face was thunderous

“Please, Miss Tate, I expressly told you NOT to talk to ANYBODY who had to make a statement!” She stood angrily at first, and then she allowed herself to be led away.

“………Getting tired of living out of a suitcase, so I’m seriously thinking of putting down some roots” Travers heard William say to Dr Gupta as he rejoined them

“She wanted to say hello, and no hard feelings, apparently” Quentin said, with a disbelieving shake of his head, taking his coffee back from Dr Gupta.

“Her problem is, she just doesn’t know when to give up – on ANYTHING”

“If we could get back to the proceedings…”

**

“………No, absolutely not – I did NOTHING to encourage her what so ever”

“You weren’t down to work Christmas morning, were you Dr Carling?”

“No, I’m not affiliated with the hospital, I was there because I’d operated on two sports stars at their insurance company’s requests, I don’t ‘work’ there as such”

“So why were you in the hospital at all?”

“I had been in Munich, got back the day or rather the evening before, it had been a very long day and I’d forgotten I’d left my shoes at the hospital – I’d been invited to friends for Christmas, I didn’t want to go in scruffy trainers”

“I see – you had no hopes of seeing Dr Tate?”

“None what so ever, in fact, I didn’t know she was working until she came into Travers office to speak to Dr Gupta”

“And then what happened?”

“Like I said in my statement, I finish lacing up my other shoe and go to leave – Dr Tate prevented me from leaving the office”
“How?”

“By standing slap bang in the middle of the doorway, I couldn’t push passed with out appearing mighty rude, she caught me by the arm and asked me to dinner…………………”

“Dr Rae…you say in your statement that Dr Carling looked ‘uncomfortable and like he wanted to get away from Dr Tate, is that right?”

“Yes…”

**

“You are a secretary from the ER admin, is that so?”

“Yes”

“Tell me, where did you eventually see Dr Tate when sent to fetch her after she failed to respond to her beeper?”

“Well sir, I’d knocked on her office door but got no answer, there was no lights on and the blind was down…………………”

**

“You’ll have to tell me in lay-mans terms ,what the toxicology report revealed?”

“It revealed that she’d drank the equivalent of ¾ of a bottle of spirits, and there were no drugs present, as she claimed she’d had an allergic or bad reaction to painkillers”

“Thankyou Dr Thompson Well, we won’t waste anybody else’s time, we uphold the hospital’s suspension of you and revoke your license to practice medicine in this country, your name will be put on a list available internationally and if you are caught practicing medicine, then it will automatically mean a custodial sentence for you – we also advise you to get some help as regards your addiction to alcohol – although we cannot enforce this. I’m sorry that you have lost your career Miss Tate, but you know that nobody else is to blame but you, you lost your career by your own hand” The two men from the medical council stood, shook hands with Charles Heaton and one or two other of the board of governors, and then left. Dru frowned


“Is that it – no chance of appeal – you CAN’T do this – you can’t do this to me!” Drusilla stood up and screamed

Her lawyer was having kittens, he could have died with embarrassment, and tried to calm her down

“It’s not fair – it’s NOT FAIR – What about HIM – huh – What about him, why isn’t HE suspended – huh, tell me that” Drusilla was trying to point out William

“Miss Tate…MISS TATE! Pull yourself together woman, stop showing yourself up!”

Before she could say anymore, Ford Denton hustled her out of the building. Outside on the parking lot Ford said,

“I TOLD you there was no way Dr Carling would be blamed, he was totally innocent, he couldn’t be held responsible for what YOU were thinking”

Drusilla’s eyes narrowed and she leaned in close to his face and hissed

“HE should be suspended, he’s banging one of his patients – THAT’S why he should be suspended!”

“What?”

“YOU heard me!”

“Have you any proof of this?”

“Yes! – Well no, but on Christmas Day, I saw the mother of the girl pick him up from the car park”

“Where?”

“Here, the parking lot as you lot call it”

“You saw the mother of one of his patients ‘pick him up?’ – What does-”

Dru got angry at the American guy who didn’t understand her British/ English terminology.

“For fuck’s sake! She gave him a lift, he got in her car and she drove away, do you understand now?”

“You saw Dr Carling get into the car of one of his patient’s mother and drive away, that’s it?”

“What more do you want, huh?”

“A lot more than that I can tell you, and I’m afraid if you say anything, it’s just going to look like sour grapes on your half”

“Fuck it – and FUCK YOU TO – I’m off!” Dru stomped to her car – boy could she do with a drink now more than ever………





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