Page 96 of The Village Midwife
‘Don’t youlistenme with your condescending tone!’
‘If you’ll let me get a word in?—’
‘So you can tell me more things I do wrong? I’ve had a baby, you know. How do you think Maisie got here? So don’t tell me how things are done because I know!’
‘I’m not trying to tell you?—’
‘I won’t be judged by the likes of you!’
‘I’m not judging you!’
‘Oh…’ The woman swung her hands to her hips and glared at Zoe. ‘Raise your voice, will you? Shout at me, will you? How dare you! I could have you sacked!’
Zoe was done. She raised herself to her full height. ‘Then Maisie wouldn’t have a midwife, would she?’
‘Is that a threat?’
‘It’s a promise,’ a voice said behind her.
Zoe spun round to see Ottilie at her back. She’d never been so glad to see her old friend.
The woman rounded on Ottilie now. ‘You can’t take Maisie’s midwife away!’ the woman yelled. ‘She’s got rights, you know!’
‘Yes, and so has Miss Padbury. Right now, she’s off duty, for one, so you shouldn’t even be having this conversation with her. And secondly, even if she were on duty, she could deny Maisie access to care on the grounds of your aggressive attitude. She wouldn’t, but she’d be perfectly within her rights to refuse to see her. So I would suggest you think very carefully about what you say or do next. There is no way she is getting fired, but there is every danger you might have to find your daughter a new midwife, and you’d have to drive quite a few miles out of Thimblebury to do it.’
The woman stared Ottilie and Zoe down for a moment and then seemed to think better of whatever retort she had. She was still puce as she stalked away, muttering something about suing and reporting people to the authorities. When she’d gone, Zoe’s shoulders slumped and her eyes filled with tears.
Ottilie gave her a sharp look. ‘Surely you didn’t let that idiot get to you?’
‘She wouldn’t even let me get a word in to defend myself!’
‘I know, but it’s not like you to get upset. I’ve seen you bat off worse than that.’
Zoe sniffed hard. ‘I know, but she caught me at a bad time. I didn’t even say anything bad about her. All I did was give Maisie some dietary advice.’
‘I know that. Everyone knows her around here – she looks for trouble, loves it. She’d take any excuse to come and have a go at you.’
‘Do you think I got Maisie in trouble at home?’
‘What is this? Zoe, you did your job. Why are you letting this get to you?’
‘I’m not. I told you – she caught me off guard, that’s all. I’m fine. I’ll go and find Maisie and talk to her.’
‘You’ll do no such thing! We’ll go and see Fliss and tell her what Bridget has done and see what she has to say about it. She doesn’t stand for her staff being assaulted.’
‘But she didn’t assault?—’
‘Of course she did, and you know that too. Verbal assault is still assault, and we don’t have to take it.’ Ottilie took her arm. ‘Come on…Your lunch is going cold anyway.’
As Zoe followed Ottilie, not wanting to see Fliss at all, she caught sight of Alex standing at the table with the miniature landscape and the little houses, and she felt sick. He glanced up, caught her eye and then looked away again with such disdain that she could barely stand it. It seemed like all she could do today was mess up.
She’d been so hopeful as she’d dressed that morning, choosing the outfit that she thought might please him, that might make him notice, but now he hated her. If Billie went ahead with the adoption, he’d never forgive Zoe. She’d stand by her advice before she’d admit she was wrong because she’d given it with the best of intentions. But what if she had been wrong? What if her advice resulted in something terrible, something that Billie would regret when it was too late?
Fliss was halfway through a pint of cider when they found her. She was chatting to Simon and Stacey and her husband, Charles, but she turned and stopped mid-sentence at the sight of both women.
‘What on earth is wrong?’
‘Bridget bloody Jenkins, that’s what,’ Ottilie said.
