Together Under the Stars by Beryl Matthews

Author:Beryl Matthews
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Allison & Busby
Published: 2021-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-One

‘Any change?’ Luke asked the moment they walked back into the ward.

‘No, their condition is still the same.’ She smiled at them. ‘You two look more rested.’

Yes, we were ordered to eat and sleep,’ Andy explained.

‘That was just what you needed. You may stay for as long as you like.’

‘Thank you, Sister.’

There was a chair by each bed, and they settled down, determined to stay all night if necessary. Neither felt like talking, so they remained silent, each lost in their own thoughts.

After about an hour a nurse brought them a cup of tea, and Sandy arrived just in time to cadge one as well. He borrowed another chair and the three of them waited, keeping a silent vigil on their friends. They were just dozing off when something brought them wide awake. A stream of expletives coming from one bed had them shooting to their feet, leaning over Ricky. His eyes were still closed, but his language was inventive.

‘That’s it, mate,’ Andy told him. ‘You bloody well let rip.’

‘Sister!’ Luke called. ‘I think he’s coming round.’

After checking him over she gave the hint of a smile. ‘My goodness, he is cross.’

‘That’s a polite way of putting it. His language is only this bad when somebody shoots at him.’

‘I’ll send for the doctor.’

When she left, Luke touched his arm. ‘Ricky, can you hear me?’

One eye opened, then the other and he looked around, rather confused. Slowly the memory returned, and he turned his head towards the other bed, grabbing Luke’s arm in surprise. ‘What the hell is Steve doing here?’

‘He’s badly hurt,’ Andy told him.

‘Was it a rough landing, then?’

‘It was, but he was injured in the fighter attack.’

‘Who landed us, then?’

‘Steve did, but he’d lost a lot of blood and collapsed once we were down.’

Ricky laid his head back and screwed his eyes shut. ‘How bad is he?’ ‘

It’s touch and go,’ Andy replied.

He was going to ask more questions, but fortunately the doctor arrived and made them move away. It appeared that Ricky was going to be all right, but they waited anxiously for the doctor’s verdict.

They were by Steve’s bed and Andy reached out and gripped his arm. ‘Come on, mate, keep fighting.

The doctor finished his check on Ricky and stood beside them, studying the still figure of Steve. ‘Your friend in the other bed will make a full recovery. It was the head wound we were concerned about, but there doesn’t appear to be any lasting damage. A few days’ rest and he will be up and about again – on crutches, of course.’

‘That’s a relief, but what about Steve, Doctor?’ they wanted to know.

‘He was hit several times, but fortunately no vital organs were damaged. One was close to his heart and another couple of inches and he would have died instantly.’

‘Along with all of us.’

The doctor nodded to Andy. ‘I understand he continued to fly.’

Luke shook his head in disbelief. ‘I don’t know how. I shouted all the time to keep him with us.

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