It was soothing to be taken so firmly in hand with her aunt on one side plying her with port and Maggie urging second helpings and when she was told to. go to bed with the hot milk Maggie had put into her hand, she went willingly enough and presently laid her head on her pillow and went instantly to sleep.

She was up early, feeling marvelous, drinking a cup of tea with Maggie in the kitchen and then taking Shep for a walk before breakfast. And over that meal Aunt Millicent observed that there was really nothing much to do but if she liked to accompany her to the church to do the flowers she was more than welcome.

The church was small and old and cool and the vicar came along while they were arranging their vases and had a long, rather prosy chat, a pleasant hotchpotch of local news, the amount of honey he was getting from his hives, old Mrs. James's poor health and the forthcoming Sunday School treat. Rose found it all very soothing.

"And you, Rose?" he wanted to know.

"How is life treating you? You are able to enjoy your leisure, I hope; your work is hard but worthwhile and nurses deserve their pleasure even more than the rest of us."

She a.s.sured him that yes, life was splendid and there was always something to do when she was off duty and she had so many friends. Aunt Millicent, arranging a ma.s.sive bouquet for the font, for there was a christening on Sunday, glanced at her niece. From the look of the girl, she mused, none of that was true. Telling fibs, in church too, and to the vicar but the dear child was unhappy about something.

Aunt Millicent thought privately that she would like to meet this Dutch surgeon Rose was so careful never to mention. Maggie, an elderly spinster and with a romantic heart, had declared that little Rose was in love and Aunt Millicent had a shrewd suspicion that she might be right.

She bore Rose back to the cottage presently to eat a substantial lunch and then take Shep for his afternoon walk.

"For I am quite exhausted," said Aunt Millicent, who had never been exhausted in her life but held the view that there was nothing like a good walk in the open air to ease one's feelings.

As for Rose, she walked for miles until even Shep slowed his steps and when she got back to the cottage she looked all the better for it with colour in her cheeks and a readier smile. She was given sherry, told to tidy herself for her supper and plied with good wholesome food before sitting down to a game of bezique with her aunt and then being packed off to bed with Maggie trotting up the stairs presently to see that she drank her milk. The two old ladies' sensible kindness did much to restore Rose's equanimity; a Sunday spent as they always were at the cottage: church, lunch, a lazy afternoon in the garden with tea under the trees edging the lawn and one of Maggie's delicious cold suppers to round off the day, more or less completed the cure. At least it had made her see that life had to go on whether she loved Sybren or not and she would have to make the best of it. She slept dreamlessly and went back to London in the morning. It was obvious that things weren't quite right when she went on duty after her early dinner. Sister c.u.mmins pounced on her at once.

"Good, you're back. My goodness, what a weekend and you not here. Mr. Werdmer ter Sane has just gone; Mr. Cresswell's still in the hospital if we want him. Shirley took a turn for the worse yesterday, thank heaven both men came back together; she's on a life support machine--fat embolism--you were worried about her chest, remember?

They did a tracheostomy last night-- there's respiratory failure.

Let's hope there's no brain damage. She's unconscious, of course.

She's being treated by hypothermia. I've been looking after her and they sent a staff nurse to manage the ward; now you're back, take her over, will you? "

Sister c.u.mmins was tired and, unlike her, ruffled. She allowed Rose to sit her down at her desk and fetch her a tray of tea from the kitchen.

"Who's with Shirley?" she asked, sugaring her tea lavishly and opening a tin of biscuits.

"Staff Nurse White from the medical side--^ she's quite good, but she's not dealt with a fat embolism before..."

"And in the ward?"

"The two part-timers and the junior student nurse; they can cope."

"Then Sister, would you agree to going off duty for a few hours? If Doris White could go into the Ward, I'll see to Shirley. Mr. Farrell's on duty, isn't he? And he can get hold of Mr. Cresswell." She couldn't stop herself asking, "Is Mr. Werdmer ter Sane coming back?"

"I don't know. He flew over yesterday after 5 noon; he was here until a short while ago. He and Mr. Cresswell think there's just a chance; she's holding her own. " Sister c.u.mmins was reviving rapidly under the influence of strong tea.

"Everything was going so well too, and it's a bit late in the day for a fat embolism, I mean, no one expected it after the first few days." She poured another cup of tea.

"Now I'll give you a report and take your advice and have an hour or two off.

You're on until the night staff come, aren't you? " She added belatedly, " Did you have a good weekend? "

"Lovely, thanks. Sister."

"You look better for it. I'll come back to give the report, shall I? ".

That will leave you free to see to Shirley before you go off-duty.

Staff Nurse White can see to the ward--relieve each other for supper. "

It was a good thing that there were no other very ill children; all the same, there was more than enough to do and Shirley needed constant care. Rose sipped a cup of tea one of the nurses brought her and hardly noticed the time. When she got off-duty at last she was tired and hungry. Mr. Cresswell had been in and so had Mr. Farrell and Percy Pride had been with them, out of his depth, she suspected, although he looked as though he knew exactly what was going on. Her last thoughts before she slept were a sure hope that she would never be in a tight corner with him.

She was on all day for the next day or two; she had breakfast with the other girls and was on duty by half past seven, the long day stretching ahead of her but not minding that; it was a good thing to have something to think about, something urgent enough to dispel Sybren from her mind.

It was mid-afternoon with only another couple of hours before she could go off-duty when he came into the ward. He nooded briefly at her, said, "Let someone know I'm here, will you?" and went to look at Shirley.

Mr. Farrell came almost immediately followed by Percy, and Mr. Werder ter Sane asked, "Where is Sister c.u.mmins?"

"Off-duty, Sir," said Rose and when he frowned a little went indignantly pink although she asked reasonably enough, "Would you like Staff Nurse White here. Sir? She's been nursing Shirley." She gave him a calm look, hiding her hurt feelings. He didn't want her on the case any more; well, that was all right by her. She met his cold eyes without a blink. How puzzling it was that she could love him so wholeheartedly and find him such a very tiresome man.

"That won't be necessary. Staff Nurse. Shall we have the charts?"

He was there quite some time, discussing what was best to be done, and presently Mr. Cresswell arrived and they stood around muttering and murmuring to each other, while Percy hovered on their perimeter and Rose sensibly got on with her observations, checked her tubes and paraphernalia, taking no notice of the learned gentlemen and their deliberations. They gathered round the child presently and Mr. Werdmer ter Sane said, "If you will continue the treatment. Staff Nurse, and notiiy Mr. Farrell of any change." He looked at Mr. Cresswell who nodded agreement and who then said surprisingly, "Good work. Rose, keep it up."

But Sybren said nothing, merely nodded even more briskly than before and walked away with Mr. Cresswell, leaving Mr. Farrell to give her a friendly pat on the shoulder as he followed them. Percy would have spoken to her but she said rather crossly, "I'm busy--do you mind?"

and went back to her dials and tubes.

She didn't see Sybren again, although he was in and out for the next day or so, always when she was off-duty or at a meal. Little Shirley began to show signs of recovery; a slow recovery but steady. Now it was a question of waiting to see if she had suffered any brain damage and Rose, watching the small signs of returning consciousness, prayed that that had been avoided. Shirley was still on her life-support machine and would be for another few days, after that they could be optimistic.

The weather was unusually warm and Rose longed to be at her aunt's cottage out in the fresh air, taking Shep for his stately walk, doing a little undemanding gardening. She did go for a brief walk each evening with whoever was off-duty with her, but there was only the nearby park and besides the streets round the hospital were crowded by various processions of people chanting for or against something. Usually they didn't come on to the streets until the early evening, but as she went about her work in the early afternoon she could hear a good deal of shouting in the distance. Sister c.u.mmins, coming in to take a look at Shirley before she went off duty, remarked upon it.

"I'll be glad to get away from the din for the evening," she observed, "I'm off to Maidenhead. See you in the morning. There is nothing new since I went over the report with you."

Staff Nurse White was in the ward with two student nurses and since half the children were convalescent she would be able to cope easily.

Rose began to bed-bath Shirley, still unconscious but restless. She was just finishing when one of the student nurses came into the room to tell her that Percy Pride was in the ward.

"Staff thought you'd like to know," she explained.

"He's just pottering around."

Rose nodded.

"He would, leave the door open, will you? Have the children had their teas? Will you ask Rene if she'll make a pot of tea for Staff and me? You two go to tea at four o'clock, will you?"

She was alone again, bending over Shirley when the world seemed to explode around her, a thunder of sound which rumbled and grumbled to a never-ending crashing of brickwork and masonry and tinkling gla.s.s.

Rose wanted to scream, as it was she waster 9 ribly afraid and trembling so much that she had to put down the thermometer she was holding, but the discipline of years of training took over; the ventilator, not surprisingly, had come to a halt; she started the manual emergency and switched on the oxygen from the cylinder, aware that Doris, her face as white as her own and shaking just as badly, was at her elbow.

"The windows are blown out, thank G.o.d the gla.s.s went outside, the floor's sagging..."

"Three of you--four with Percy, if the stairs are safe get the children down to the next floor-- stay in the ward, get a nurse on the landing and another at the bottom of the stairs--make a chain; get Percy to help. "

"But you? I'll send Percy here as soon as the children are safe."

"I'm all right for the moment, and there's the door over there." She nodded towards a small door at the back of the room which led to a narrow pa.s.sage, relic of the earlier days of St. Bride's and seldom used.

"Hurry, Doris."

There was noise all around, but not very close, people shouting, ambulances wailing, running feet. Rose, feeling that she was in the middle of a particularly nasty dream, worked away at her machine and hoped for the best. Someone would come soon and if she gave way to panic both she and Shirley would come to grief.

She could hear frenzied activity in the ward and then silence before Doris called, "We're empty Rose, and Percy's coming."

But before he came there was a slow shudder as the outside wall of the ward swayed slowly outward and disappeared. There was still the width of the ward between Shirley's room, and a good stout wall besides, although the door was hanging on its hinges. Rose made a small sound which might have been a sob and then pulled herself together again.

They would have to risk making a run for it once Percy came back. They would go through the ward and down the stairs; he could carry the child while she pumped; it would be touch and go but better than staying where they were.

He came in slowly, almost reluctantly, his face pale, "The stairs," he said hoa.r.s.ely, 'they've just fallen to bits, we'll never get out that way. "

"Then we'll go along the pa.s.sage: it's narrow and it'll take twice as long but we're sure to find help. You warned someone we're here?"

He looked at her and she saw that he wasn't listening. She said it all again, fear making her shrill, and this time he said, "Help, no I didn't. We'll never get away," he repeated.

She had a blanket ready.

"We'll have to manage without the oxygen--pick her up carefully and don't go too fast or I'll never be able to keep up," she said bracingly, more to rea.s.sure herself than him.

"There's sure to be someone..."

In the distance someone yelled "Fire!" and she froze.

"Get a move on, Percy," she managed from a shaking mouth and opened out the blanket.

"I'll get help." He had turned and rushed out through the door before she could speak. Her first frantic attempt to shout after him came out as a very small squeak, the second was an earsplitting yell, unfortunately drowned by the urgent sirens of approaching fire engines. She couldn't believe that he had gone away and left them; he knew, even better than she, that Shirley needed two people to get her to safety. She shouted again still hopeful that he had gone for help and would come back at any moment, but there was no reply, only ominous creaks and groans from the building and the faintest whiff of smoke.

Something would have to be done; anything was better than staying there waiting for the roof to fall in or to be enveloped in flames.

She remembered Doris, then, she would have told someone; Rose took fresh heart, s.n.a.t.c.hed up some towels in her free hand, planning to wet them in the wash basin. She would disconnect Shirley, go through the door into the pa.s.sage and go as fast as she could until she reached the small stairs at its end. They opened into, for some reason which she had never bothered about, one of the underground pa.s.sages which honeycombed the hospital's foundations. There were several doors leading into the courtyard around the building, once there they could get Shirley on to a portable ventilator. Even as she planned she knew that the chances of the child surviving were small. She filled her lungs and gave a great shout.

This time she was answered.

"All right, I'm not deaf," said Mr. Werdmer ter Sane, bending his large person so that he could get through the door.

Sybren had been driving towards St. Bride's when the bomb exploded, too far off to suffer any injury but near enough to the hospital to have a good idea that it would have been caught in the blast. He parked his car and shouldered his way through the still running crowds. The entrance was damaged but still standing, one wing more or less undamaged excepting blown out windows, but the surgical wing had received a good share of the bomb's force, and Sister c.u.mmins' ward was exposed to the outside world although there was no sign of life there. He had crossed the entrance hall already crowded with patients and nurses and house doctors organising them into a semblance of order when he saw Staff Nurse White. He put out an arm and stopped her.

"Rose, where is she?" he wanted to know.

"Still with Shirley; at least I asked Percy Pride to go back and help her, they ought to be here.1 She looked round helplessly.

"He said he'd see to everything so I haven't told anyone--I had the ward to see to."

He said soothingly because she was on the verge of tears, "Of course--don't worry--I'll see if I can find them."

There was a good deal of rubble blocking his way and before he reached the stairs outside the ward he could see that it was a hopeless task to get up them. He went back the way he had come, the smell of smoke strong in his nostrils. There would be another way up to the ward; he would have to lose precious minutes looking for it.

There was no need, a door along the pa.s.sage in front of him burst open and Percy came hurtling towards him.

"We must get out," he pushed Sybren's arm away, 'the place is on fire. "

"Where is Rose?" Sybren's voice expected an answer, fire or no fire.

"With Shirley..."

"And you left them to roast alive?" Mr. Werdmer ter Sane uttered strong language in his own tongue.

"You will get doctors or porters or police--anyone, a trolley, oxygen and a portable ventilator and you will bring them to this door at once and wait here'. He added grimly, " If you do not, I personally shall break every bone in your body. "

He didn't wait to see how Percy reacted but tore through the door, closing it behind him. The stairs faced him; he went up them at a surprising speed considering how heavily built he was. The narrow pa.s.sage at the top seemed endless and the smell of smoke was stronger.

He saw the door at its end and opened it with a grunt of relief.

Rose stared at him from a pale frightened face, still working away at the ventilator. She opened her mouth to speak but no sound came which was a good thing. From the look on his face he was in no mood to stand any female nonsense. He was disconnecting Shirley from the useless machine and wrapping her in the blanket.

"Work the ventilator and keep close," he bade Rose and without more ado he made for the door. It was a tight squeeze going along the pa.s.sage and even worse on the stairs.

Rose performed miracles of balance, her heart in her mouth, her arms aching beyond belief, her eyes stinging from the smoke eddying lazily around them. If she had had any breath left she would have whooped with joy when they reached the door. Mr. Werdmer ter Sane gave it a vicious kick and it flew open and they burst through it untidily into instant activity. Percy Pride, doubtless anxious about his bones, had a.s.sembled all that Sybren had told him to get. Shirley, connected to oxygen and the ventilator and warmly wrapped, was laid on a trolley and borne away with Mr. Werdmer ter Sane in charge and Percy, anxious to make amends, hovering. There were quite a few people in the procession and no one had noticed that Rose wasn't with them.

She watched them go, leaning against the broken door. She felt a little light-headed but sensible enough to reason that it was natural enough for them all to concentrate on Shirley, and probably the burly policeman who was giving a hand had thought she was just being curious when he had moved her gently aside from the trolley and told her to get out of the way. She would have to make her own way to the entrance hall and find Doris and the rest of the children.

Shirley was being taken to the undamaged wing, being hastily organised to take as many children as possible. Mr. Cresswell was already there and he and Sybren bent over Shirley, a.s.sessing the damage. She was still alive.

"And probably none the worse for it," said Mr. Cresswell with satisfaction.

"How long has she been off the life-support machine?"

"Rose?" Sybren looked around when she didn't answer.

"Where's Rose?"

He looked again.

"Did anyone see her? She came through the door with me."

He didn't wait for an answer but turned and went back the way they had come and found her still leaning against the door.

"What on earth are you hanging round here for?" He sounded so angry that she blinked at him. He couldn't even rescue her with out getting cross about it, she thought wearily.

"I'm going to find Staff Nurse White," she said in a voice quite devoid of expression. She added idiotically, "I'm sorry we were such a nuisance. Sir."

She had whipped past him and sped around the corner towards the entrance hall before he could stop her.

It took a little while to find Doris; the hall was full of firemen, ambulance men, doctors and nurses all intent on getting the children back into some sort of shelter as quickly as possible. Some were.