Summer of Love Marie Ferrarella (easy books to read in english TXT) 📖

can,’ Daniel assured him. He carefully felt the swollen foot, pausing when he discovered a strong pulse beating beneath the flesh because it confirmed his initial diagnosis. Standing up, he took a bottle of hand gel out of his case, deeming it more hygienic than using the sink to wash his hands.

‘It looks to me as though you have immersion foot, Mr Dawson. It’s a type of injury caused when feet are allowed to remain wet and cold for a prolonged period. You may have heard of trench foot which so many soldiers in the First World War suffered from? It’s the same thing.’

‘I’ve not been standing in any trenches,’ Harold retorted scathingly.

‘I’m sure you haven’t. But if you’ve been outdoors and got your feet wet and not bothered to change your shoes and socks, that could have caused it.’ Daniel tactfully didn’t add that from the state of the man’s socks there was no could about it. It was doubtful if Harold Dawson had put on clean socks or anything else for a very long time!

He took a prescription pad out of his case and wrote out a script for painkillers. ‘I imagine your foot’s very painful so these will help. You’ll also need to bathe your foot in tepid water to cool it and reduce the swelling. Make sure you put on clean, dry socks and that your shoes or boots are dry too.’ Daniel handed the man the prescription. ‘If you notice any sores appearing, contact the surgery. Skin ulcers can develop and that’s something we want to avoid.’

‘So that’s it, is it?’ Harold Dawson slammed the prescription down on the table. ‘Take some pills and put on dry socks. I could’ve worked that out for myself! ‘

Daniel smiled calmly, resisting the urge to tell the man that if he’d done that in the beginning there wouldn’t have been a problem. ‘That’s right. It’s just a question of taking care of yourself.’

‘I don’t need any advice from you,’ the old man responded belligerently. He shuffled towards the door, making it clear that he expected Daniel to leave.

Daniel picked up his case, knowing how pointless it was to suggest that he arranged for the community nurse to call and check how Harold’s foot was healing. If the poor woman received the kind of reception he’d received, she would probably refuse to call a second time, and he wouldn’t blame her either. He made a note to speak to Ruth about the old man when he got back to the surgery and headed out to the hall, pausing when there was a loud banging on the front door.

‘What the dickens.!’ Harold Dawson pushed past him and strode along the hall. Wrenching open the door, he glowered at the young man standing outside. ‘You can take yourself off my property right now.’

‘Believe me, I’d like nothing better than not to see hide nor hair of you or this place for the rest of my life,’ the other man retorted.

Daniel frowned when he realised that the caller was Alistair Grant. It seemed a coincidence that he should turn up here when he needed to speak to him. However, he was less concerned about resolving Alistair’s health issues at that moment than he was about defusing the situation.

He hurried to the door, hoping to avert a full-scale row.

‘Hello, Alistair,’ he said quietly, drawing both men’s attention to him. ‘I’m surprised to see you here.’

‘I’m not here out of choice, believe me, Dr Kennedy,’ Alistair replied angrily. He glared at the old man. ‘If you don’t stop dumping stuff on the road to the construction site then I warn you, Dawson, that the company I work for will take legal action. Carry on with your little games and you’ll find yourself in prison. Is that clear?’

‘Aye, it’s clear enough. But if you think a young pup like you can come to my home and threaten me, think again.’

Daniel’s heart sank when he saw Harold Dawson reach behind the front door and pick up a shotgun that had been standing there. He aimed it at Alistair Grant’s chest. ‘You need to learn some manners, lad, and I’m just the one to teach them to you.’

‘Come on, now, let’s all calm down,’ Daniel said soothingly. He stepped forward then stopped when Dawson swung round and pointed the gun at him.

‘I’ve told you once that I don’t need any advice from you.’ The old man scowled at him. ‘You’re no better than he is. Coming in here, thinking you can tell folk what to do. Well, I’ve had enough, do you hear me? It’s ‘bout time someone stood up to the likes of you. Inside, both of you.’

Dawson waved the shotgun towards the kitchen. Daniel hesitated but one glance at the old man’s face warned him that it would be foolish to refuse to do what he asked. He headed back along the hall, wondering what was going to happen next. Maybe Dawson only wanted to scare them but he didn’t think so—it looked far more serious than that.

He put his case on the table as Alistair followed him into the room, seeing the sheen of perspiration on the younger man’s face. It was obvious that he was scared stiff and Daniel didn’t blame him. Harold Dawson was on the brink of losing control and there was no knowing what would happen then.

A picture of Emma suddenly appeared in his mind’s eye and he felt a shaft of regret so sharp run through him that he winced. He couldn’t bear to think that he might die without telling Emma that he loved her.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

‘I DON’T suppose you’ve seen Daniel, have you, Emma?’

Emma paused when Ruth called to her on her way into the surgery that afternoon. It was five minutes to four and she was keen to get to her room before her first patient arrived. ‘Not since lunchtime, I’m afraid.’

‘Oh, right.’ Ruth sighed.

Emma frowned. ‘Why? Is there a problem?’

‘No, not really. It’s just