Dark Fever

Warily, she eyed the thing he held. ‘What’s in there?’

He frowned, shrugged. ‘Drugs.’

‘What sort of drugs?’ Bianca did not much like the idea of that long needle going into her and pumping her full of unknown drugs.

The doctor sighed, making a face, then walked away, opened the door and called Gil, who came hurrying. The doctor talked fast in Spanish; Gil talked fast back to him, then came over to the bed and looked down at her, his eyes searching her bruised face.

‘Well, you’ll be glad to hear that the doctor doesn’t think you need to be hospitalised. He agrees you’re in shock but he proposes to sedate you to calm you down, reduce the effect of the shock—you’ll still be able to talk to the police, if you wish, but if you prefer not to we only have to tell them that you’re under sedation and they’ll go away.’

‘Sedatives? That’s what’s in the hypodermic?’

H

e nodded.

She sighed. ‘Oh, well, then, I suppose I’d better let him inject me.’

‘I think you should. If the needle scares you, shut your eyes.’

‘I’m not a child, Gil!’ she snapped, and saw his lids flicker in reaction to her sharp tone.

He went out again and the doctor came back to the bed, prepared her; she tensed, waiting, and then she felt the sting of the needle going in and the doctor’s soft murmur.

‘Good, very good.’ He put a piece of cotton wool over the site of the injection. ‘Hold, please.’ He moved away and Bianca sat with closed eyes, one finger on the cotton wool, feeling her body slow down, her breathing slacken, her heartbeat calm.

‘OK,’ said the doctor, taking away the cotton wool. He studied the faint red spot on her skin where the needle had entered. ‘Good, OK,’ he said, smiling, well pleased with himself. ‘Now rest, please. Stay quiet. OK?’

‘OK,’ she said. ‘Thank you, Doctor.’

‘Goodnight,’ he said in English, and vanished.

Gil stood in the doorway, staring at her across the room as she lay back against her pillows, staring back at him blankly.

‘Will you see the police now or tomorrow?’

‘Now.’

‘Sure?’

‘I want to get it over with. At the moment I feel so calm that if a bomb dropped I think I’d hardly blink. Tomorrow I might feel worse than I do now.’

‘Do you want to put a nightdress on before you see them? They’ll want that dress for evidence.’

She tried to sit up but her energy was so low it was a struggle; Gil slid an arm under her and lifted her, then lowered her feet to the floor. ‘Tell me where to find your nightdress and I’ll help you.’

‘No!’

The cry made him jerk. ‘No,’ he said quickly. ‘Of course not—sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I’ll find the nightie for you and go out while you change.’

‘There’s a clean one in that drawer,’ she said, pointing, and he walked over there, opened the drawer, found a simple blue and white cotton Victorian-style nightdress.

‘Will this do?’

‘Yes, thank you.’ She held out her hand and he gave her the nightdress. ‘Now I’d like to go to the bathroom, please.’ She stood up and swayed, and Gil put an arm out. ‘No, I can manage!’ she said, but felt sufficiently off balance to clutch at his sleeve.

She leaned on him while she slowly walked to the bathroom, which seemed a long way off.

‘Don’t lock the door,’ Gil said. ‘In case you faint.’