Harry knew he should be feeling more optimistic. That he had a great deal to be thankful for. The nights and days might be blurring into one, but it had reached the point where he was beginning to look less and less like an outsider and more like the loving relative he longed to be. With nobody stopping him anymore to question his reason for being at the hospital all hours, or suggest he ought to go home. Home which was still his room at the barracks, which he was only using to shower and to change, grab something to eat and then return. But it was him struggling to leave Ruth, when at the end of the third day, he and Paul were making the now familiar trek, that Paul came up with a suggestion. Delayed momentarily because when his phone rang it was George. George, who give him his due, had thanked him for his original call, during which they'd agreed that until Ruth woke up and was well enough to have a conversation, that Nico shouldn't visit her. If that meant him waiting until she was out of hospital, then as long as Harry kept him in updated, he'd leave him to make that decision. Now asking if him if that was any closer to that happening?
Harry saying no, not in the sense that George meant, had seen Paul who had discussed it with his wife, waiting until Harry had turned his phone off, before telling him that they'd come up with an alternative. One that would ease Ruth through the next stage of her recovery, where he could be involved almost entirely and in surroundings where if they wanted to be on their own, they could be. Paul who in addition to pulling strings at every turn, had seen the youngest of his three children born in the same hospital. Had on countless occasions, visited the sick and wounded amongst his troops or their family members, so knew how difficult this was going to be. Ruth's doctor having told them that they were planning to reduce her sedation, so that she could in manage her own pain medication. After a second set of scans had confirmed that she had no major internal injuries, but that bruises went deep and only time and rest would help those to heal. With the additional burden of having her forearms swathed in dressings, which meant that in the short time at least, she'd need help with virtually everything. Care which if she had someone to look after her and if going home was an option, then this would be the best way forward. That being the case, they were quietly optimistic that she'd be free to go by the end of the week.
Except Ruth didn't have a home, other than with George and Nico, and George had made it quite clear how he felt about that suggestion. Travelling any distance and certainly on a plane to London was also out of the question, added to which, until Ruth actually woke up, they were still second guessing what she herself would want to do.
While Ros on the other hand, having done more than her bit and after a call from Malcolm to say that the workload was mounting, was already packing and begging a flight home. Ready to quash the rumour that Harry had taken Ruth to Baghdad with him, now knowing the truth behind their first meeting. News also, that Lucas was dealing with Stephen Hillier, who after a good deal of digging and not altogether ethical tactics, had confessed to being the person who had set Ruth up. Another good reason, as if he needed one, for Harry to stay on in Cyprus. Ros, persuading Malcolm to ignore the inhabitants of the shark infested waters of the fourth floor, by pretending that he had no idea where their esteemed boss was. That she'd deal with the fallout in her own good time, not theirs.
Which was why, 'You're very welcome,' said a smiling Ellie Willis, who had already made up the spare bedroom, so that Harry and eventually Ruth could stay with them. Suggesting that there were several cold beers in the fridge, so why didn't they take them out into the garden. The children who ranged between six and fourteen, asleep or otherwise, nowhere to be seen.
The stillness that always seemed to descend with the arrival of night time on the island. The fresh air as opposed to the conditioning in the hospital. The normality of being in what was clearly a calm and comfortable home environment, combining to give Harry a sense of well-being and with the vision of what his own future could be like. Not without acknowledging that there were still several hurdles that had to be negotiated. To ensure that Ruth recovered to the point where she'd be able to travel and what he knew was going to be the most difficult for her, saying goodbye to George and Nico. That done and the not so easy task of her being 'raised from the dead', reinstated as a British citizen and the decision that only she could make and he had to hold back from persuading. What did she want to do with the rest of her life and where did she want that to be?
'I don't have to ask who you're thinking about,' said Paul, who had been watching Harry gazing out over the garden and not he knew, at the evidence of his youngest's toys that were scattered about the lawn.
'Sorry, it's hard not to.'
'Then tell me more about Ruth. What makes her so special and sets her apart.'
'In what sense?'
'I don't know, something that will surprise me. Elaborate on what you told me the other night.'
'Isn't that what women are supposed to do?'
'Then it's high time we bucked the trend. Come on, what is it about Ruth that makes you smile?'
'Turning the clock before Mani got his hands on her will do that, what more can I say? Other she's the opposite of Ros. But then they do different jobs, or did in Ruth's case. She's super bright. Frequently leaves me breathless and more often than not speechless. She has a great sense of humour and the most extraordinary blue eyes. If you're asking me to smile, then convince me that she's going to recover from this. Because working for the security services, tends to knock the edge of one's confidence a bit.'
You don't say, thought Paul. 'If I can persuade you to look on the bright side, what happens next?' he asked Harry instead.
'I'll do anything to get her back.'
He was just about to say good answer, when Ellie arrived and said she was going to bed. Not before reminding him that he had an early start in the morning.
.
Waking up feeling rested, in a bright and cheerful room with the sound of children's voices in the background and Harry acknowledged that he'd slept well. There had been no overnight calls from the hospital and the prospect of having a shower, changing into crisp clean clothes and then eating his breakfast at a leisurely pace before going to see Ruth, and he conceded Paul was right. There was no point in him working himself up into a state. That the prospect of staying here and having Ruth with him, wasn't just an opportunity, it was one that could prove life changing.
More so because all his hosts had asked of him in return, was some help with the children. To drive the eldest two to their respective schools, take them swimming and entertain the little one, who for whatever reason, was being home schooled. Because Paul was leaving for a fortnight of intensive training with the other services, which meant that Ellie would struggle with her other commitments. Something that had resulted in another flashback. Of nights under canvas and the thrill that had come from having the chance to do something that he'd thrown his heart and soul into. A heart that when he thought about Ruth being here with him, not surprisingly beat even faster.
A knock on his door and a voice saying, 'Mum says to tell you that she's taking us to school and help yourself to breakfast,' and he could almost feel that smile returning. The sound of the car driving away and the chance to get ready for the start of a new day without interruption, and he could feel the knots in his shoulders easing.
.
Ruth was also dreaming, but unlike Harry's dreams which were of a bright future, hers were fractured and in the main scary. Unable to analyse as she usually did, she gave up trying to fight her overwhelming desire to run away and wandered from box to box in a confused state. The bad things refusing to go away and the good ones infuriating short lived. A brief visit to Thames House and a joke shared with Malcolm, replaced by Oliver Mace. Hovering over her like an insane rodent. His leering face and with claws that had replaced his fingers, threatening to tear her to pieces. Harry who disappeared all too quickly, as she tried and failed to run after him. To tell him that she loved him. Followed by another negative. George, then Nico who had heard the shouting. George angry because she'd turned down his proposal. During sex for God's sake. Not an ounce of romance. Not that she'd have said yes under any circumstances. The door slamming behind him and with no prospect of a return to anything other than the previous deteriorating situation. As opposed to Nico who she really loved and was starting to cry again. Then Mani chasing her, the pain which had been so bad but she could no longer feel, making her want to fight against the restraints that were preventing her from moving. Muffled voices in the background that she didn't recognise and a sense of being somewhere that she didn't know, making her want to open her eyes. Eyes that remained firmly closed as she gave in to whatever was happening. Her imagination and her dreams, disappearing as the drugs kicked in and reclaimed her.
Later the same evening.
'I think Harry's read enough for today,' Ellie called out to Maddie her youngest, who was trying to persuade their guest to read another chapter. Not that it would have taken much persuading, because in all honesty Harry was enjoying the distraction. Sitting in the garden before Maddie went to bed and reading something as normal as a children's book. The little one who was already calling him Uncle Harry, since Ellie had explained that he was a friend of Daddy's who was going to be staying with them for a while. Harry hadn't needed to know that Maddie called all of their friends either auntie or uncle. The eldest William, who was planning a career in the navy, which at the moment meant that he spent more time messing about with his best friend on his father's boat, than he did doing his homework, still out. Whilst the middle of the three Charlie, was kicking a football into a goal on the other side of the lawn. Paul having phoned to say that he wouldn't be back until late, so Ellie had roped Harry in earlier than planned.
Ellie who had yet to meet Ruth and although she'd hadn't voiced it, was looking forward to meeting this special someone who according to Paul, was the love of Harry's life. A woman who wouldn't want to talk about the army or complain that her other half was going away again. In a way to suggest that they hadn't read the terms and conditions when you married someone in the services. Which she as the boss's wife was subjected to on a more than frequent basis. That and her requirement to attend functions and pretend that she was enjoying them, as opposed to now when she was looking forward to entertaining in her own home. A couple who had no connection to the army and in Harry's case intrigued her. More so, since Paul had told her about his and Ruth's history. Not a man to exaggerate, so the news that Harry was prepared to sacrifice his own career for a woman that he hadn't seen for over two years, she was looking forward to witnessing with her own eyes.
Her thought being interrupted by Charlie who had finished with his football, creeping up behind her and pinching a piece of pizza that she was doing her best to cut into equal slices, with the age-old excuse that he was starving, given the job of laying the table.
Once the children had gone to bed, Harry found himself with a very different companion to the one from the previous evening. Not one that was going to badger him with questions about Ruth or the Security Services, but a woman who he had to admit he felt comfortable with. Someone who by talking about life in Cyprus, but without the rose-tinted glasses that had made him think that Ruth's life with George had been idyllic and without its problems, made him relax. How she herself had needed to adapt to a different way of life and a long way from home. A New Zealander who had come to the UK on holiday and had never gone back. How she and Paul had met in a pub one evening in London, in the dim and distant past, was how she described it, although he imagined her to be about Ruth's age. Quite open about the fact that Maddie had been a surprise baby and that meant they had fourteen years of education ahead to deal with. How William's decision to go into the navy hadn't surprised them and that Charlie was a handful, he could understand. Sufficient that he felt comfortable enough to tell her about his own children. His hopes and his dreams. The disappointments as well as the positives. All of which Ellie listened to without comment until he'd finished. On a night where the only sound apart from their voices, was from the cicadas and when he looked at his watch, it was close to midnight.
'I'll come with you in the morning if you want me to,' Ellie offered. The suggestion being that he might need some company when they brought Ruth round. Now less than ten hours away.