Wedding Bells for Beatrice

The first paper in the morning was to be read by an eminent surgeon from Valencia, well known for his research into nutritional disorders. It was a cold dark morning and his audience came promptly and briskly, glad to be indoors. Beatrice, counting heads, saw that they were all there. She hadn’t seen Professor van der Eekerk go in, but there he was sitting near the front, his handsome head bent to listen to whatever it was his neighbour had to say. She went back to the kitchen and began to pile biscuits on to plates and make sure that there was a plentiful supply of coffee. There was at least an hour before it would be required; she began to do her daily round of the building, checking that everything was as it should be. She had barely done that before it was time to help with the coffee and once that was done she went to her small office on the ground floor, to do the paperwork which took up a good deal of her time. Professor van der Eekerk had begun his paper but this time she didn’t go near the lecture hall; she had too much to do, she reminded herself, and besides that, what was the point? She didn’t see him to speak to for the rest of the day, and somehow, she didn’t quite know how, she missed his leaving at the end of the afternoon. Leave-takings had been slow and numerous and several people had stopped to speak to her and thank her but he hadn’t been among them. Putting everything to rights once more with the help of her assistants, she reflected that probably, since they had met at a friend’s house, politeness had prompted him to seek her out; she was working at St Justin’s after all and he couldn’t have ignored her completely. He had, she thought, done rather more than that, and at least the sight of him might discourage Tom.

She made her supper in her little kitchenette and went to bed with a book. She read half a page and flung the book on to the floor. Life was being very dull, she decided, and she had to admit that she would miss Tom’s company even though he could be tiresome. At least she had New Year’s Eve to look forward to, she reminded herself. Derek’s grandmother lived in Hampstead, a lively old lady who never missed an opportunity to enjoy life. His parents would be coming up to spend the night and he had managed somehow to be free. There would be a lot of people there and she mulled over her wardrobe.

Waking in the morning, common sense combined with the cold clear winter’s day decided her to despatch the professor from her mind. It was surprising how sensible she felt about it; of course, after a day’s work and feeling a bit fed up, she would probably regret not seeing him again.

Quite soon, she was summoned to the hospital committee’s office. She went, outwardly composed, inwardly wondering what was in store for her. Like every other hospital St Justin’s was cutting back on staff, beds and equipment—perhaps there was a plan to cut back on the research department, the path. labs and the numerous study rooms and library. If so, she supposed that they could make do with part-time staff although the lab people weren’t going to like that … She went through the hospital and into a wide corridor at the front of the building where the various offices were, and tapped on a door, convinced that she was about to be made redundant.

A voice told her to enter and she went inside.

Ten minutes later she came out again; nothing was being cut back, she wasn’t to be given her notice; on the contrary, she was to exchange her post with someone similar in the Netherlands. ‘A step forward in the unification of Europe’, she had been told. It was envisaged that within the next few years it would be possible for hospitals to exchange staff as and when they wished; this was by way of an experiment.

Her observation that she had no knowledge of the Dutch language was waved aside. ‘English is spoken,’ she was told, ‘although of course you will be expected to study the language during your stay there.’

She had wanted to know how long that would be.

‘We haven’t decided yet. I believe that the Leiden School of Medicine recommend a month in the first instance. Two ward sisters, a male nurse and a physiotherapist will also be going.’

Authority had dismissed her courteously, her head full of unanswered questions.

That evening she phoned her mother, who heard her news without interruption and then remarked in her placid way, ‘Well, dear, it will make a nice change for you and you’ll meet some nice people. You might see that charming man who came to the party with Derek—’

‘Most unlikely,’ said Beatrice quickly, and wished that it wasn’t. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ll know more by then, maybe.’

She dressed with care on New Year’s Eve in a silk crêpe dress in a pretty shade of old rose, covered it with a long velvet coat and, with her new shoes and her evening bag tucked under her arm, went down to the forecourt. It was a bitter night but the sky was clear and the hospital lights dispelled the dark. She was fitting the key in her car’s lock when footsteps behind her made her turn round. Tom was coming towards her.

She had managed to avoid him for two days, firmly refusing to go out with him when he had telephoned. She opened the door and got into the car just as he reached it.

‘Still playing hard to get?’ he wanted to know. ‘I’m not taking no for an answer, Beatrice.’

‘I’m not playing at anything, Tom; I said no and I meant it.’

She switched on the engine and he put a hand on the window. ‘Let’s get together and talk this through,’ he suggested. ‘You know as well as I do that we could rub along together.’

‘I’m sorry, Tom, but no.’

‘Are you off this weekend?’

‘I’m going home, Tom. I must go, I’m already late.’

He took his hand away reluctantly and she drove out into the quiet street and turned the car westward. The street would be lively enough in a few hours’ time, the pub would be overflowing with people celebrating the new year and there would be a good deal of activity still. She drove carefully, avoiding the very heart of the city where crowds were already gathering. She wasn’t nervous, only anxious to get to Hampstead on time.

The house Derek’s grandmother lived in was in a quiet, wide avenue, a large Edwardian mansion surrounded by a well kept and uninteresting garden, full of laurel bushes and well kept shrubs, rather sombre. Its large windows were blazing with light and there were any number of cars parked on the sweep before the front door. Beatrice eased her little car between a Daimler and a Mercedes, replaced her sensible driving shoes with the new ones and trod across to the portico. The old lady lived in some style and her servants had been with her for almost all of her married life. The elderly butler who admitted her was white-haired and a little shaky but his appearance brought a nostalgic whiff of earlier days as he led her solemnly across the hall and handed her over to an equally elderly maid who preceded her up the long flight of stairs to the room set aside for lady guests. Beatrice poked at her hair, wriggled her feet in the shoes to make sure that they were comfortable, gave the maid the coat she had shed and went downstairs.

There was a good deal of noise coming from behind the big double doors on one side of the hall. The butler opened them for her and she went inside and found a room full of people.

It was necessary to find her hostess and she was relieved to see the old lady sitting at the other end of the room, talking to Derek. She made her way there, said all that was civil, exchanged a friendly kiss with Derek and looked around for her mother and father.

‘They’re in the second drawing-room; I’ve just come from there. Do come back here when you’ve spoken to them, I want to hear about this jaunt to Holland.’

She had begun to work her way through the groups of people drinks in hand chatting together. She knew several of them and stopped to say hello as she went. She was going through the open arch which led to a smaller similar room when she stopped.

Professor van der Eekerk was leaning against a wall, watching her.

CHAPTER THREE (#ulink_0d988ea4-3d6d-5021-9ae1-5184ae0aa265)

BEATRICE felt a glow of pleasure at the sight of him and instantly suppressed it. She said sedately, ‘Why, Professor, I didn’t expect to see you here.’

He had moved to stand in front of her so that she wouldn’t be able to pass unless she forgot her manners and poked him in the waistcoat. Unthinkable but tempting. ‘Why should you expect to see me?’ he asked coolly. ‘How are you?’

‘Very well, thank you. It will be nice when this cold weather—’

‘Ah, yes, let us hide our true feelings behind remarks about the weather. Are you glad to see me?’

She gave him a cold glance. ‘I would rather discuss the weather.’

He smiled suddenly. ‘Come off your high horse, Beatrice, and tell me how life is treating you.’

She had quite forgotten her parents. ‘Well, just the same as usual, you know.’ She glanced at him and found him watching her intently so that she felt compelled to add, ‘As a matter of fact, I have to go on an exchange scheme—just for a month or so—to promote a wider exchange of jobs in the EC.’ She wasn’t going to tell him where.

In the silence which followed she stared at his waistcoat, a sober black affair, not at all like the trendy sort of thing some of the men there were wearing. When she peeped at him at last he was obviously waiting for her to say something else. She said pettishly, ‘Oh, all right, I’m to go to Holland.’

He said mildly, ‘Yes, I know. Leiden—you’ll like it there, I think. Why didn’t you want to tell me, Beatrice?’

‘It couldn’t possibly interest you. Besides, it would look as though …’

He said gently, ‘But I am not very often in Leiden; our chances of meeting would be very slight.’

She said, suddenly brisk, ‘Well, that’s all right, isn’t it? Now I really must find Mother and Father. If I don’t see you again …’

‘Oh, but you will. I’m spending the weekend with Derek’s people at Little Estling. You’re going home tomorrow?’

She had said yes before she had time to think.

‘Splendid; I’ll drive you down. I have to be back on Sunday evening—I can give you a lift back.’

‘I intended driving down in my own car.’

‘No, no, that won’t do at all; I can tell you about the hospital at Leiden as we go.’

He smiled down at her and she said weakly, ‘Oh, very well. Now I really must …’

‘Yes, yes, they are at the far end of the room. Let us join them.’

Her mother offered a cheek for her to kiss. ‘That’s a pretty dress, darling.’ Mrs Crawley eyed her daughter with motherly concern. ‘What’s all this about going to Holland?’ She smiled at the professor as she spoke. ‘I expect you know about it, Gijs?’

Gijs, indeed. Beatrice waited to see what he would say.

‘Yes, I was told something of the scheme when I was in Leiden this week. I’m looking forward to meeting the nursing staff who will be going over too. I feel it is most important that we should have instant rapport with those with whom we work wherever we go.’