Page 66 of Sands of Sirocco
Panic welled in Ginger’s throat.Young remembered.
Dr.Radford gave her a querying look.“Did you understand him?”
Lie.
She had to.She couldn’t very well tell Dr.Radford the truth.The doctor may not know who Noah was, but she could repeat his name to the authorities.
Ginger gulped down a breath, trying to think of a response.“No, it was a mumble.”
But Young wasn’t done attempting to communicate.“Bennnnsonnn …”The word sounded malformed coming from his swollen lips.
This time Dr.Radford understood.“Benthon?”She repeated the word as Young had pronounced it.Dr.Radford exchanged a look with Ginger and grabbed a notepad.She scribbled the word down.“Is this a name—no, don’t speak.Just give one nod if you can.”
Young nodded.
Fear crawled down Ginger’s back like a hundred baby spiders breaking free from the base of her neck.Young slipped out of consciousness again shortly after, but the damage was already done.
As the women left the operating theater, Dr.Radford stared at the name she’d written.“Poor man.I can’t imagine how much pain he must be in.I told you how an orderly found him on the steps of the hospital last night?Simply awful.”
“Quite.It’s a frightening time to be in Cairo.”Ginger’s throat was thick, and she swallowed a few times to clear it.“Did you still want me to do that test today?”She didn’t deserve it, given the circumstances.
“Oh, yes.”Dr.Radford’s face brightened, and she gave Ginger an eager smile.“I would.And, in fact, I thought it might be nice to go for tea together afterward.I know I’ve been pushing you quite hard, but it’s only because I see so much potential in you, Sister Whitman.”
Normally, Ginger would have felt pleased with the compliment.Dr.Radford didn’t seem like the type of woman who gave them lightly.“Thank you.”She had to gasp the words out.“You’re welcome to call me Ginger, if you’d like.”
“Only if you call me Jane.”She stopped in front of the door to her office, where she knew Peter Osborne waited.“I’d like us to be friends, Sis—Ginger.I know I’m a bit brash.”
The offer of friendship overwhelmed Ginger in a way she couldn’t quite understand.She’d been desperately needing a friend since Beatrice had left, and her sisterly moment with Lucy the night before had only furthered that need.But would Jane Radford hate her if she knew the activities Ginger was involved in?
She gave a wordless nod, smiling.Jane opened the door to her office, and Peter Osborne rose from his chair.“Mr.Osborne.”Jane breezed into her office, dashing to gather a few files from her desk.“I apologize for keeping Sister Whitman occupied this morning.We had an emergency that needed to be tended to first thing.”
Osborne removed his hat.“No trouble at all, Doctor.”He stood beside his chair, indicating that he wouldn’t continue speaking with Ginger until Dr.Radford had left.
Jane held the files in her hand.“I’ll be right down the hall, Sister Whitman.You can take the test directly after this.”
“Test?”Osborne asked as Jane shut the door.
Ginger settled into the chair across from him.“Yes, a test to see if I can qualify to be trained in administering anesthesia.”She folded her hands in her lap.“I’m sorry to say, Mr.Osborne, I don’t have any news to share.I have made little progress on finding Mr.Mortimer since the polo match.”She’d been forced to tell him about the debacle with Lady Hendricks the day before.“I’m hoping Lady Hendricks will accept my offer to go to tea, but she hasn’t responded to my note yet.Other than that, I was terribly busy studying last night.”
Osborne cocked a brow at her.“Even when Colonel Benson snuck into your house near midnight?”
She froze.They are watching me.She tried not to squirm under his gaze.“Goodness, that’s quite an accusation.”She drew a shallow breath that did nothing to relieve the light-headedness she felt.
“He wasn’t seen leaving until almost four in the morning.”Osborne leaned toward her, calm but clearly unrelenting in his accusation.He knew he’d caught her in a lie.
Ginger blinked at him, then scrambled to her feet.“I don’t see how that has anything to do with you, sir.”
Osborne caught her by the wrist, his grip strong.“Lady Virginia, you forget yourself.You swore an oath not only to me but to your country.I must insist on the truth from you.”
“You’ll release my hand.”Damn, but she wished she had the pistol he’d given her.Even though he offered no direct threat, she’d let herself get too comfortable around him, too trusting that he presented no harm.
“Then you’ll explain why you felt it necessary to lie to me.Colonel Benson visited your bedroom, yes?”His grey eyes were unflinchingly cold.
Osborne released her wrist and she rubbed it.She should take him to task for it.But the situation with Captain Young clouded her thoughts.She could tell Osborne about her marriage, but she’d previously told him she wasn’t close to Noah.
“You told me to make myself available to Colonel Benson to find out what he knew of the concession, and I did.I didn’t think that required me giving you any details that would only bring my reputation harm.I’ve told you the truth—”
“That you didn’t see him?”
