‘No,’ said Don with a smug smile, taking Pav’s non-answer as a yes. ‘I didn’t.’ He paused and cleared his throat, looking down at his shoes for a moment before squaring his shoulders and meeting Pav’s eyes with fresh determination. ‘So. Millie. She’s … well …’ He trailed off, staring beyond Pav and obviously searching for the right words. ‘As her supervisor, I –’
‘Supervisor?’ Pav sat up a little straighter. ‘Why does she need a supervisor?’
Don frowned across at him and sighed. ‘Ah, I thought you knew.’
‘Knew what?’
‘Millie’s … not a consultant.’
Pav’s eyebrows leapt up into his hairline. ‘What is she then?’
‘She’s a senior registrar.’
Pav rocked back in his chair in shock and his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. ‘Why in the fuck is she acting up as a consultant then?’
‘She’s passed all the radiology exams, and when I say she’s passed I mean she’s got 100 per cent.’
‘What?’
‘She didn’t drop a single mark. Not one. Nobody has ever performed as well in postgraduate exams.’
‘Jesus.’
‘She knows more than all the consultants in the department combined. She had to act up. I supervise all her on-calls and her reporting but we can’t have her as a normal trainee.’
‘No, I’d imagine that would be … tricky.’
‘So, as her supervisor I’ve spent a lot of time with her. More than anyone, I think, even Anwar, and slowly she’s let me in. I owe her a lot. I’d have to have retired a while back if it wasn’t for Millie. But –’
‘Why would you have retired?’
‘I can’t work all the new-fangled computer gubbins,’ Don grumbled. ‘Millie looks after all that for me now. But … well, you might not have noticed but I’m getting on a bit. Can’t keep going forever. The missus has been on at me for a while about retiring. Wants to go on a cruise.’ He snorted, his face twisting in disgust. ‘What do I want to go around on a bloody great boat for? Damn fool idea. But women … well …’ He paused and rubbed his chin, his mouth hitching up at the side. ‘Son, fifty years of experience has told me that it’s best to just go along with what they want. The alternative is ugly, and my wife can drag that ugly out foryears, believe you me.’ He shook his head and shuddered. ‘I forgot my mother-in-law’s birthday party in 1979 – one pint led to another at the pub; anyway it was well into the eighties before she forgave me. Sure, day to day she was much the same, but I knew: little things: no pork scratchings on the shopping list, no black pudding with my fried breakfast – cruel and unusual punishment … for over five years. No, I know better than to piss the wife off. So that means a cruise and not long after that I’ll have to retire. Millie needs to be able to … interact a bit better by then, and she needs … Look, she’s a complicated girl and she’s had a difficult time of it so far.’
‘What do you mean?’ Pav sat forward in his chair, his eyes sharp on Don.
‘That’s her story to tell.’
‘She’s not exactly an open book.’
‘Used to easy women are you, son?’
‘What? No … I just –’
‘Course you are. Bet you have them queuing up, a dandy like you.’
‘Hey! So I’m a peacockanda dandy am I? Tell me, Don, did you come here just to insult me or did you actually have a point?’
‘It’s your bloody fault she’s slipped back, you stupid sod!’ Don exploded. ‘Months of work with Anwar and coaxing her out of her shell and you buggered it all up in five minutes flat.’
Silence followed Don’s outburst and a stab of guilt pricked at Pav’s conscience. He had practically forced her up on that stage. She’d warned him that she couldn’t do it. She’d pleaded with him, for fuck’s sake.
‘Okay, okay,’ he muttered, holding up his hand to Don, who had started to push up again from the chair. ‘Look, I’d like to help but I’m not sure how much I can do. If you hadn’t noticed, she’s a mite bit terrified of me.’
‘Millie’s terrified ofeverything,’ Don came back. ‘I’m not saying it’ll be easy. I know you’ve got plenty of friends around to help you out. All I’m asking is that youtry.’
Chapter 9
Millie wuvs books, don’t cha?
