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Chapter Eighteen
Helping Ethel
Julie visited Ethel every day, the girl didn't trust her and was suspicious but at least Julie could see she was safe, sometimes if she went to the cafe and had no money Julie would buy her something to eat. The girl was grateful but Julie, from her years as a nurse was worried the girl was sick, she was looking more pale and sickly each time she saw her.
The next day Julie went to check on the girl, hoping her worries were just her motherly sense to overreact and stopped dead when she reached the usual spot. Ethel was lying on the floor, which wasn't unusual considering she slept there but the way she was lying worried Julie.
"Ethel, Ethel" Julie said realising the girl was not asleep and she wasn't conscious. Julie was worried as she could have anything from been out here. She pulled out her mobile calling the hospital, grateful she had the number that would put her straight through without having to wait.
"Sarah, it's Julie, I found a young girl fainted near Barson Road, she's homeless so I don't know if she is dehydrated or it's a lack of hunger, can you send someone, I am not sure how grave she is," Julie said knowing she couldn't do much without her equipment to check her over. The girl was breathing fine which was promising.
"Oh, Ethel" Julie sighed without thinking unable to believe the girl who had once bullied her daughter was in this state.
"How do you know my name...I never told you" Ethel replied half-waking but very groggy as if she had just had anaesthetic.
"I am Mildred's mum" Julie admitted knowing there was no point lying, the girl didn't have the strength to run away.
"What...no...leave me alone," Ethel said scared off what the woman was going to do to her.
"I can't do that, you aren't well love," Julie said "And your sisters and Mildred will never forgive me if I know where you are and I leave you to die in the gutter" Julie explained, knowing the girl didn't want to hear this but she had too.
"My sisters...you know them?" Ethel asked
"Briefly from the foundling stone trouble, but I don't need to know them properly to know how worried they are and that they are looking for you," Julie told her.
"They are looking for me?" Ethel said and Julie was sad to hear the surprise in Ethel's voice.
"Of course, they love you," Julie said but stopped as the paramedics arrived and Julie explained everything as best as she could as the girl was taken in.
As Julie wasn't on duty she wouldn't be treating Ethel so waited in the waiting room, she knew the staff working on Ethel and knew she wouldn't have better care if she tried, a woman named Millie came out a while later.
"Hi Julie, thanks for bringing her in," Millie said gratefully.
"Is she alright?" Julie asked worried
"Thankfully yes, she is extremely malnourished and dehydrated but we got there in time to be able to put her right" Millie told her colleague.
Julie sighed, even the times Julie had given her food hadn't helped, it hadn't been enough for it to be a healthy amount and now she was in the hospital.
"This is my fault, I should have done more," Julie said feeling extremely guilty Ethel had gotten in this state.
"You know you couldn't do much, as she is eating so little she needs more to make up for it, you couldn't exactly buy her a four-course meal every day, we have started her on a drip which should give her back the lost calories, it's lucky you found her, she might not have survived much longer when she was so malnourished," Millie told Julie. "We will have to call social services though, she is young, she has to have somewhere to stay," Millie said.
"No, I know her sisters, they are looking for her, Ethel doesn't want them to find her but I don't know if I should tell them," Julie said thinking what would be best.
"Julie, it isn't about what Ethel wants, it's about what she needs, shes not coping on her own, if she doesn't go home she will have to go in the care system, I am not sure which one will be better for her" Millie replied. Julie sighed and nodded. She knew which would be best.
Esmerelda and Sybil were discussing baby names, it was never too early and Sybil could never make up her mind, so they were trying to think of names for each gender.
"How about Colgate? "Sybil asked looking in the name book
"That's a type of toothpaste," Esmerelda told her crinkling her nose in disgust.
"How about Wilfred?" Esmerelda asked
"It's not 1461 Esmie" Sybil giggled thinking it was too old fashioned.
Mildred ran in at that moment looking at the sisters with wide eyes.
"My mum found Ethel, she's in the hospital she works at but she's alright," Mildred told them. The blondes jumped up without question, there was time for them later, they needed their sister, they rushed to the courtyard grabbing their brooms and flying to the hospital.