The Case of the Nurses Bed part three.

One day two hours later...

"Mrs Hudson? I say, Mrs Hudson I am a qualified nurse you know, there was no need to lock me out. You do realise I have probably prepared over a hundred men for bed rest and ... and made them err... well as god made them in doing so. That is to undress them, patients I mean, indeed to bathe them too. It is all part of our duties."

"Aye, I kinna well believe that, but you'll noo be seein this one as gud made him that's for sure."

"But he will just be another patient, please open this door again. I may be needed!"

"Lord bless us!"

"What? What is it Mrs Hudson?"

"I'll tell yea this missy, when the maker himself was a'handin out the flesh o'man, he was non too stingy* with Mr Holmes here. Gud-help his poor bride if ever e as one."

"What is it? Has he deformities?"

"I'm noo sure you'd call it deformed, but it's no quite right if you ask me. Shocking, aye shocking it is." The door opened and she came out fanning herself with a folded copy of The Times, 'I'll have ta have bed rest myself after that. He'll do, aye yea can hav im now, but none of your mischief mind.

"Why should I cause mischief Mrs Hudson, he is quite out of it?" But she was gone with alarming speed and it seemed pointless to shout after her.

As I entered the bedroom I felt a repulsive chill, not a drop in temperature, but in the very atmosphere itself, the ambiance was macabre indeed. The walls where covered in photographs, most of them were portraits of individuals who looked rather like common criminals, others shockingly where of actual corpses, some were records of crime scenes and there were one or two of corpses after an autopsy. There were also pictures of weapons; occasionally there was an actual weapon, a knife on one wall, a sword, bits of rope and a pick-axe on another. There were other objects, fascinating but unrecognisable. Cuttings from newspapers everywhere, these where littered with scribbled notes. The collection was connected by bright white ribbons, upon which were scribbled more notes or names and the whole assemblage seemed to all lead to one point, like a huge spiders web. In centre, on the far wall opposite the bed was the only framed picture in the whole room. I moved forward, guided by the ribbons and drawn to this one image. Arriving and upon closer inspection, the image was rather disappointing, merely a standard college portrait, capturing a smartly dressed elderly don in cap and gown, he was clearly an intellectual of some sort-

"What the devil are you doing madam and who invited you into my room. Get out now!"

"Ah, Mr Holmes you are awake and quite alert, that is good."

"Get out!"

"Absolutely not, I have promised Mrs Hudson I would take care of you, therefore she has not called for the doctor. So I must at least check your temperature and pulse."

"Do so and go. Who the devil placed me here?" He suddenly looked down at himself, peeping below the blankets and went quite pale, "I am in a nightgown! My clothing has been removed... all of it!"

He had frozen in horror and I took that as an opportunity to grab his wrist and take the aforementioned pulse, his heart was obviously racing. I placed the cup I was holding on the bedside table and removed a thermometer, shaking it lightly, "here take this and it was Mrs Hudson who undressed you, I just sat and watched, it was rather amusing."

He went paler still.

"You are quite ill sir, you have a temperature and your pulse is somewhat erratic, I do believe you have the beginnings of a fever. However I am more concerned about the puncture marks on the skin over your left arm, I have seen those marks before, several officers in the medical regiments had them. I assume you have not been administering your own medication for an illness?"

"You watched while she undressed me?!"

"Of course not and you have yet to answer my question."

"Miss Watson, why do you speak so irrationally? You are making false statements to alarm me, considering my health is as you say, this would be somewhat counterproductive to my wellbeing. Then you ask a question that you clearly know the answer to already, it is annoying."

"So you have been taking chemicals for amusement purposes?"

"I am hardly ever amused when I take them, I merely crave preoccupation."

"You have gone too far sir; your present condition is witness to that. Is it morphine or cocaine, both of those drugs are taken intravenously, opium I believe is smoked in a pipe?"

Amazingly the skin on his face turned from pale white to bright scarlet and so quickly that I was reminded of watching a desert chameleon in India. "What I do to myself is my own concern madam."

"And the health and wellbeing of any sick individual is mine! Despite your dreadful attitude Mr Holmes I do believe you are a good man and as such you are worth saving. "

He looked stonily ahead and said nothing.

"As I stated you have the beginnings of a fever and will need medical care, you are obviously finding it difficult to even move or you would not sit so stiffly and you are clearly shaking. You have not been eating, this has lowered your immunity and left your body fragile, I believe your have recently experienced several minor illnesses as a result. The impact against the door has merely contributed to these more alarming symptoms, however it has left you with a severely sprained left foot, which is swollen, I doubt you will walk for a day or two and for that I apologise. Now, a fever has some similar signs to a chemical addiction, I am rather concerned about what is what, though I have a great deal of knowledge of how to treat one I am uncertain as to the other. Either way I can at least treat your immediate symptoms, if of course you will let me?" I could sense he was about to say no and send me packing so I added , "of course if I am refused the Doctor will be called, no doubt he will make short work of you and leave you to the mercy of Mrs Hudson."

"I forbid a Doctor."

"Try telling Mrs Hudson that, she may still call for one unless I placate her. She is fearful you are about to drop dead and thus lower her reputation as a respectable landlady. She has also stated that if there's a doctor then his fee is to be added to your rent, apparently this is my entire fault and also your own as you invited me."

"I will simply refuse to see him."

"You are being somewhat immature Mr Holmes, which I do not believe is your normal behaviour and as for these symptoms, we both know that they could get worse. If so, you will have little choice on the matter and it will quickly become evident to a Doctor what your game is. Whereas if you allowed me to keep an eye on your progress, I can guarantee all will be well. Mrs Hudson thinks you are ill through my clumsiness, a story I am willing to foster. However, if you wish to keep this... these syringe marks your own business and I believe you do, then you had best let me keep watch until that temperature drops."

"I assure you madam, I am not as dire as you perceive and indeed I feel much recovered already."

"So you think you can get up and retrieve that glass of water on the washstand?"

He made a gallant effort to pull himself upwards and actually managed to get into a seated position, then suddenly went stiff and fell backwards.

"Mr Holmes!" I dashed to his side, pulling him upright against the pillows and making him comfortable again. "That was very foolish of me; I should not have pushed you so."

"No, you are quite right madam, I have been careless, I have pushed my body too far." He allowed me to straighten his nightshirt, tuck the blankets around him and then fetch the water, placing it to his lips. He sipped a little and swallowed painfully, "it appears I may require some temporary assistance." He looked sideways at me, "what is your price?"

I had the grace to look affronted, " I am a nurse sir, this is my duty."

"Your price madam?" A weariness was starting to creep into his voice which clearly showed how exhausted he was.

I realised that the advantage was mine and smiled sweetly, "instead of overnight I wish to have the room in the loft for a two weeks. I will wait on you and I will see to your health, meanwhile I will keep Mrs Hudson and the others away. She may not allow a stranger into her house, but she should have no difficulty with a unpaid nurse administering care to her sick lodger and willing to add a little to the rent besides."

"I intend to be fully recovered in one week."

"Yes but I will need more time to find decent lodgings and also be here to administer to you. Twelve days."

"Nine days and that is my final offer."

"Nine days and twenty three hours is splendid Mr Holmes!" I held out my hand to shake, however he ignored it.

"This of course is blackmail young lady."

"Shush-now you must be quiet, you have already pushed yourself too harshly."

"If I were to have my needle I am certain that it will help reduce the symptoms..."

"Mr Holmes I am thoroughly versed in how to withdraw a patient from long-term dependence on strong drugs, especially after surgery, sudden withdrawal can often result in increasingly worse symptoms and one is often fooled into returning to the full dose again. Ideally you should be withdrawn from medication slowly" I looked at him sadly, "it is just in the psychological treatment of a patient with a long term addiction that I am uncertain."

"I do not have an addiction madam; that implies I am unable to stop and I am in control of my dependence." He pulled his shoulders upwards and closed his eyes, then quickly opened them as though in afterthought, "and do not touch anything in here, do you hear? Do not read those notes and certainly do not go near that end of the bedroom again. I can also wash and dress myself, should I get worse Mrs Hudson will do it, is that understood?"

"Of course, now do please rest as you are exhausted. By-the-way what is it? I will need to know."

"Cocaine, a seven-percent solution."

"Where?"

"It is safely stored away, especially from Mrs Hudson dammed-woman, I am surrounded by interfering females, is a fellow to have no peace at all?"

"I will personally see to it that you get as much peace as possible, but I will not provide you with anything more than what is needed to recover, remember that. Now, I need to look at your foot again and make certain it is not broken, brace yourself for the pain."

"I have morphine somewhere that may ease the pain."

There was indeed an slight note of desperation in his usual velvety voice that disturbed me, it was becoming increasingly clear that this patient would become troublesome. "No need Mr Holmes, the pain will be quite tolerable."

ooooooooooooooooooooo00000O0000000000000000000oooooooooooooooooooo

* 'non too stingy' = not at all ungenerous. Implying 'rather over generous.'

If there are errors in this please let me know and I will edit ASAP. I'm afraid it's not seen a beta as my good friend is currently unavailable.

If anyone out there can suggest any improvements for Mrs Hudson's Victorian Scottish accent please feel free to contribute, I don't want her to lose it but I would rather it was a little more precise.

Thank you so much for reading,

Bravehearttegan