Page 23 of A Helpin g Hand for the Village Nurse

‘I can’t remember the last time I ate it, but, yes, I am partial to a bit of fruit cake,’ she said as Corrine cut into it. ‘So, Victor said you wanted to ask me about a problem?—’

‘At least have some tea and cake first!’ Corrine said. ‘And I am sorry he mentioned it to you – I told him not to.’

‘And I did warn you that you’d get pestered by everyone about every little thing that ails them,’ Victor said from the door as he walked in. ‘I never said we wouldn’t do any of the pestering, but you did say you didn’t mind.’

‘See you here, or see you in the surgery – I’d see you eventually,’ Ottilie said. ‘And if it’s too big to deal with easily out of hours, I’ll just ask you to make a proper appointment. And besides, if I get tea and cake into the bargain then I’ll consider it a fair deal.’

‘And alpaca, don’t forget.’ Victor winked.

‘Oh…’ Corrine poured boiling water into a brown teapot. ‘You’re going to see the girls, are you?’

‘They’re all girls?’ Ottilie asked.

‘Easier that way,’ Victor said.

Ottilie wondered why it was easier, but he didn’t offer any more information. Perhaps they were more docile than the males – if he was using them to entertain tourists, then she supposed that made sense.

Instead, he took the conversation in a surprising direction. ‘Has Heath Reynolds been bothering you?’

Ottilie stared at him – she couldn’t help it. ‘How did you…?’

Victor looked at Corrine, who suddenly seemed more ill at ease than she had on Ottilie’s arrival.

‘He phoned here this morning and asked if I could look in on Flo from time to time,’ Corrine said. ‘He said you’d told him she might be lonely but that he can’t get to Thimblebury often, and that his mum and dad can’t either. But I know what he can be like.’

‘What can he be like?’ Ottilie asked.

‘He’s one of them – moves out of the village and forgets how things work around here. Thinks he can click his fingers and folks will jump to his commands. He’s used to people doing what he tells them.’

‘He certainly won’t find me doing what he tells me,’ Ottilie replied, perhaps too tartly because Corrine shot a furtive glance at Victor as if worried she’d offended their guest. ‘I’ve got a certain amount of patience, and I’m happy to help anyone, but I won’t be taken for a mug. He did phone me and, to be honest, it didn’t bother me that much, because if I’d been in his position I’d have probably phoned too. I put him straight, though – don’t worry on that score.’

‘I told him I do check on Flo – we all do. Is she all right?’

‘You know I really can’t say anything about her, right?’

‘Yes, yes…’ Victor said quickly. ‘Of course…Wouldn’t be right.’

‘But you don’t need to worry about her,’ Ottilie added. ‘At least, I’ve no reason to think so at the moment. I think she would probably appreciate a visit from her grandson, but there’s not a lot I can do about that. I did think I’d go and see her after I’ve been here.’

‘I could come with you, if you like,’ Corrine said.

‘That would be nice.’ Ottilie took the cup Corrine handed to her and added some milk from a jug. ‘I’m sure it would cheer her up.’

‘You think she’s down? She never says so.’

‘I don’t know, but there’s a reason her grandson was concerned. I mean, there must be.’

‘He used to visit a lot more than he does now,’ Corrine said.

‘He’s busier than he used to be,’ Victor said. ‘And that ex-wife of his…Well, I don’t gossip, but I don’t know how he hasn’t taken a stick to her.’

‘Victor!’ Corrine shot an apologetic look at Ottilie and then a warning one at her husband. ‘You can’t say things like that!’

‘All I’m saying is she sounds like a piece of work and he must have the patience of Job. Everyone knows it. The day they got married everyone could see how that was going to turn out. Florence tried to warn him, but they say love is blind – in this case it was deaf too.’

‘Is she from Thimblebury?’

‘No.’ Corrine poured herself a top-up from the teapot. ‘To be fair, neither is Heath…well, born here but not raised here. His mother wasn’t from the village and she never settled, even after the wedding and Heath’s birth. They moved when Heath was quite young, but he’s always been very good about visiting his grandmother in the past.’

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