Tanith Panic, thank you, I'm really happy you're enjoying it. I hope you like this chapter too!
ETWentHome, thank you so much! I'm so glad you love reading it. I love reading your reviews.
"I'm afraid this really isn't a good time," said Cal. "Emma and her friends have been in an accident. I appreciate that you want your money, but perhaps you could wait a week or so."
"I've been waiting three weeks already," said the man. "I should have thrown them out last week, but that Izzy persuaded me to wait another week. So I've waited a week and here I am and I want the money. And you can tell Miss Izzy that no amount of eyelash-fluttering and crossing her legs is going to work this time."
"I'm afraid I can't tell Izzy anything," said Cal. "As I said, Emma and her friends were involved in an accident and I'm very sorry to say that Emma's friends didn't make it. I'm sure Emma will pay any rent that's owed in time, but she's not able to deal with anything like that at the-" Cal broke off as the man suddenly barged into him, pushing him to one side, and marched into the flat. Cal grabbed hold of him. "You can't just barge in like that! It isn't your flat."
"That's where your wrong," said the man, poking Cal in the stomach. "I'm the landlord so it is my flat and I want my rent." His gaze fell on Emma, who was sitting with her head bent and tears on her cheeks. "Hello, Emma love. I heard about your friends. Very sorry and everything, but the fact is, I'm still alive and I need your money. You'll pay your rent today or you're out on those streets. And then you'd better be paying me your three months' notice, love, because I can't see you keeping up the business or the rent on your own."
Cal turned to him in disbelief. "What's wrong with you? Emma's just lost her friends. Everyone she's got in the world. And all you care about is her money?"
"I'm her landlord. It's not my job to offer sympathy. Come on, Emma. Are you going to pay up or what?"
"I can't pay, Doug." Emma's voice was hard and brittle. "I haven't got the money."
"No money? Haven't you got paid for that party a couple of weeks ago where you were playing that God-awful music till all hours?"
"Yes, but the money went into the…" Emma's voice trailed away as her face filled with horror.
Doug waved a fist. "Where did it go, Emma? Into your wardrobe?"
Cal took hold of him by the shoulders. "Please calm down. There's no need to be aggressive. I'm sure Emma will do everything she can to get you the money."
"Where's the money, Emma?" asked Doug. His voice was quieter now, but steely.
Emma was crying. "The money's in the joint account."
"Then get it out of the joint account."
"I can't!" Emma began to sob and Cal went quickly to her side. "We can't get anything out of the joint account unless at least two of us are present. And… and there won't be two of us present. There can't be. Never again."
Cal put his arms around her. "It's okay, Emma. It's okay. Don't worry. I'll deal with this." He turned back to the landlord. "Just leave it, okay? Leave it for another week. I understand you want your money, but these are exceptional circumstances. I'm sure the joint account thing will be sorted out, but it's going to take time."
Doug's gaze swung to Cal and he began to smile. "You seem to care about Emma a lot."
"Of course I do," said Cal.
"So the solution is obvious. You pay Emma's rent for her. Then I'll have my money, I'll go away happy, and Emma can pay you back when she gets into that joint account."
"How much?" said Cal. The flat was small and he guessed Emma and her friends must have been crammed into two bedrooms. A month's rent shouldn't be very high. £500 a month tops. Even that would be a strain on Cal's bank balance, but it was affordable. Ethan would have to go without Cal's contribution to their household expenses, but what choice did Cal have?
Cal often felt tired after a shift, but it wasn't often he felt quite this emotionally drained. The last thing he needed was Ethan accosting him before he'd even sat down. "Where have you been?"
Cal had anticipated this question and had planned an answer before leaving the hospital. "In town getting your money," he said wearily
Immediately, he wanted to bash his head against the wall, though if it was any consolation, there was a good chance Ethan might do it for him.
"That took a long time," said Ethan. "Was the queue at the bank long?"
Cal sank onto the sofa, propped his ankle up on a cushion and muttered something about not being able to walk very fast at the moment.
Ethan sat down too. He looked serious. "Caleb, I know where you went. Robyn saw you getting into a taxi with Emma."
"And she told you?!" said Cal.
Ethan shook his head. "As far as I can gather, she only told Lofty and Max, but I heard about it from Lily. So I would guess the whole ED knows what you've been up to."
He shook his head again and it was the look of disappointment that upset Cal the most. Anger he could have dealt with. If Ethan had been angry, he could have shouted back at him. But disappointment he couldn't deal with, and he had a horrible feeling it was going to get worse.
"Caleb… I don't know what to say to you," said Ethan. "Emma's lost all her friends. She has no contact with her family. She's all alone. And you…" He broke off, his face twisted with disgust.
"And I what?" said Cal. He wanted to be angry and now he had a reason to be angry, but all he felt was hurt. "Is that what you think, Ethan? You think I'd take a girl home and sleep with her when she's going through that? Do you really think I'm that much of a monster?"
"Didn't you?" said Ethan quietly.
"No, of course I didn't!" said Cal. His voice trembled. "I wouldn't. You've seen how upset she is. You said yourself how alone she is. She needs people who are going to be there for the long haul. She doesn't need some guy messing with her emotions."
Ethan looked at him for a long moment, but then he nodded. "I believe you, Cal. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have thought that."
"No, you shouldn't!" said Cal. He stood up. "I'm going to bed."
"Not until you've eaten something," said Ethan.
"I had dinner with Emma." Cal saw the suspicion return to Ethan's eyes. "Not like that. It wasn't a date. I had to make her something. She can't cook with one hand and she's so… you should have seen her, Ethan. She hardly knew where she was! I didn't want her messing around with cookers. But she said she'd only let me cook if I stayed for dinner."
Ethan nodded. "I see. I'm still not sure it's a good idea, Cal. It's not good to get so involved with a patient. But if she really has no-one…"
"She really has no-one," said Cal.
"Okay," said Ethan. "You did a good thing, Cal. I'm sure you really helped. And I am sorry I misjudged you."
Cal shrugged. "It wouldn't be the first time."
"I hope it's the last time," said Ethan. Cal nodded and started to get up from the sofa, but Ethan's voice stopped him. "Could I have the money, please?"
Cal tensed up. "What money?"
"You know what money, Caleb. For our household expenses."
"Why now?" said Cal as he edged towards the door.
Ethan's voice was calm. "Why not?"
"Because I'm going to bed," said Cal. "What's your problem? Do you think I'm going to sneak out and spend it in the night?"
"No, of course not," said Ethan, confused. "There just doesn't seem much point in waiting till tomorrow."
Cal waited for a thunderbolt. Or at the very least an urgent call from the ED for more doctors. Neither happened.
Ethan waited for a moment or two. Then he stood up and held his hand out. "Can I have it, please, Cal? I am actually a bit short of cash."
Cal thought about calling Ethan names and accusing him of not trusting him, but all that would achieve was an alternative argument, with the argument about the money most likely happening straight after it. He thought about storming out of the house and going for a drink, but he was tired and his head was aching already – and he knew he couldn't afford it. He thought of falling to the floor and feigning illness, but that didn't work when your brother was a doctor.
"The thing is," said Cal at last, "the thing is, I haven't actually… got the money with me."
"But you said you'd got it," said Ethan.
"I did get it," Cal said with a touch of defensiveness. "I just… haven't got it anymore."
Ethan looked closely at him and a look of disgust came over his face. "You didn't."
Cal tried to keep the nervousness from his voice. It was stupid to be nervous. It wasn't as though Ethan was going to do anything. "I didn't what?"
"You didn't give Emma the money."
"Only as a loan," said Cal.
Ethan looked as though he was going to tear his hair out. "Caleb, what's wrong with you? Why do you always do this? That was my money, Caleb! You owed it to me and you promised me you'd get it tonight."
"I did get it," said Cal. "But there were… extenuating circumstances."
"I'm sure there were. There always are with you!" Ethan leaned forward, his eyes boring into Cal's. "Caleb, I think you'd better sit back down and tell me exactly what happened. I want to know why and I want to know how much."
"I had to do it!" said Cal. "Emma's landlord came along and demanded that she paid her rent. It was already three weeks late and he didn't want to wait anymore. I explained about Emma's situation, but he didn't care. He just kept on demanding the rent."
"Why couldn't Emma have paid it?" said Ethan.
"Because Emma didn't have £1000 lying around the flat," said Cal.
Ethan dropped his head into his hands. "A thousand… oh Caleb."
"It was a nice flat!" said Cal. It wasn't, but Ethan would probably never see it so he could get away with a lie. "I couldn't very well just pay half the rent for her, could I?"
"And you couldn't have taken Emma to the bank?" said Ethan. "I know she's upset and injured, but asking an almost complete stranger to pay her rent for her…"
"I'm not an almost complete stranger," said Cal. "And no I couldn't have taken her to the bank. Even if she was up to it, which she wasn't, she couldn't have got any money out. Emma has a joint account with her friends. None of them can get the money out unless at least two of the girls are present."
This silenced Ethan, but only for a moment. A second later and he was back on the attack. "And Emma doesn't have her own personal account?"
Cal realised it hadn't occurred to him to ask. "Obviously not one with £1000 in," he said. But he could see from Ethan's face that he'd hesitated for too long.
"You didn't even ask her, did you, Caleb? You just accepted her story and gave her the money."
"What else was I supposed to do?" said Cal. "The landlord guy wouldn't go away. He was upsetting Emma. He was shouting at her and she was crying." He looked beseechingly at Ethan. "I had to do something, Ethan. Can't you see that? I couldn't just walk away."