Nurse Saxon's Patient by Marjorie Norrell Page A

showed in his increasing irritability as Tansy ’ s visits drew to an end. June had drifted into July and Tansy had been visiting Woodlands the second weekend of that month. The day had been close and sultry, with thunder in the distance and occasional flashes of vivid lightning across the sky. The sense of electrical tension was in the very air. Tansy had just left, and Garth walked moodily back into the house to become suddenly very conscious of Julie ’ s watchful glance.
    ‘ Don ’ t look so solemn, ’ he chided her, smiling a little. ‘ You ought to know by now that these spats between Tansy and myself don ’ t mean a thing. I know I must sound a bad-tempered so-and-so, but it doesn ’ t appear to worry her a great deal. She ’ ll come back for more next weekend, just wait and see. ’
    ‘ It isn ’ t Tansy I ’ m worrying about particularly at this moment, Garth, ’ Julie said slowly. ‘ It ’ s you. Something ’ s worrying you, retarding your progress, and Mr. Greensmith will expect me to know why. ’
    She smiled as she spoke, speaking lightly so that he would not think the matter of too great an importance, but Garth was not deceived.
    ‘ Something is worrying me, ’ he confessed. ‘ In fact there are two things. When am I going to be free of all this, ’ he gestured his still bandaged hands helplessly, ‘ and ... what did happen just before the accident? What ’ s lost in that blank space in my mind? Whatever it is I ’ m positive it has some connection with Tansy. I can ’ t remember a thing, but I ’ ve a feeling there ’ s something very important to remember, something that isn ’ t very pleasant, and until it has come back to me I can ’ t feel any real sense of peace. ’
    J ulie lay awake a long time that night, thinking over Garth ’ s words, his obvious strain and sense of unrest. One of his worries would soon be brought to some sort of a conclusion, for on his last visit, just over a week ago, Ian had confided that he hoped, the next time he came to Woodlands, to take off the plaster from the left hand, which had suffered the least damage.
    Once he can see for him self how his one hand responds to treatment he ’ ll have more heart and hope for the other, the all-important right hand, Julie told herself, but the other problem isn ’ t to be dealt with quite so easily.
    Indeed it was not, for she felt that both Ian and herself were working in the dark where Garth ’ s feelings for and reactions to Tansy and his emotional life were concerned. He had taken the word of the surgeon that Tansy was his fiancé e without question, and if he still looked puzzled from time to time as he stared at the pretty ring on her engagement finger, or did not appear to be overwhelmingly in love with the girl, that did not prove there was any real basis for unease on his behalf.
    It ’ s only because I know what did happen, Julie reasoned to herself. I feel he is ... enduring this engagement because he has given his pledged word and doesn ’ t remember, as we know, that the pledged word had been broken by both of them, on that occasion, just before the accident.
    She clasped her hands behind her head and lay awake, staring at the summer night sky through her window where she had drawn the curtains wide to let in a breath of air.
    I wonder if I ought to tell him—gently—about what reall y did happen? she asked herself. As it is, he knows there ’ s something wrong, but he can ’ t put his finger on just what it is, and that ’ s what ’ s worrying him.
    There was something worrying Julie too, something she could not mention to anyone, although she had a sneaking feeling that Mrs. Andy had more than a suspicion that all was not well with the nurse she had taken to her heart. Deeply as she wanted to help Garth to recovery she knew now that she had really fallen deeply and sincerely in love with him, and that once he was no longer in need of her daily care she must take herself out of his