A/N: Not to throw her under the proverbial bus, but it's thanks to Mistress Dickens that this is getting more interesting now. This chapter comes from a conversation we'd had ages ago about possibilities for this fic, and she blew my mind when she brought one up that was eerily similar to a real-life experience of my aunt, who lives on the farm upon which my Elsie's place is based. It freaked me out! Thanks to brenna-louise for hearing me about about it and endless conversations about the direction for this fic ... and for proofing it and catching my silly typos.
So ... Don't hate me. Please. Have faith! :)
**Second update in one day - be sure you've read Ch 25 first!**
xx,
CSotA
Monday, February 23, 2015 - Misty Cove, ME, USA
"Morning, Edith!" Elsie chirped, rounding the corner to her boss's office. "Oh," she added quietly, seeing the greenish hue to Edith's face.
"Oh is right," Edith moaned, motioning with her hand for Elsie to shut the door.
"Here, maybe this'll help," Elsie said softly, placing a cup of tea on Edith's desk. "Peppermint."
Edith looked at it warily. "I'm not sure if I can," she said. "I tried a few crackers … never mind,' she said quickly, clenching her teeth and squeezing her eyes shut. "Best not to think about those."
Elsie walked over and put her hand on Edith's forehead. "No fever, which I'd expect you not to have anyhow, but you're pretty clammy. What's on your agenda for the week?"
"Not much, thankfully. One IEP meeting on Thursday, but that's in the afternoon and I'm fine after about ten o'clock anyhow … so far," she said. "Besides, that one's just for Jimmy; I can task it out to Phyllis if I need to."
"Alright, then. Stay put here. Madge has things well in hand at the front desk, so hole yourself away and look busy. I'll split your lunch duty with Mr. Levinson. The timing will be great, as I can pop out the first bit of each lunch and get the meds out. And he won't mind, because it means he can stay close to the kitchen … and the cooks," Elsie smirked. Both ladies knew Mr. Levinson, their regular substitute teacher, had a soft spot for one of the young cooks - and that the feeling was mutual. No, Elsie thought, he won't mind that at all.
"You're a life saver, do you know that?"
Suddenly, Elsie heard a knock on her open door. "Coming!" she called, patting Edith once on the hand before leaving her office.
"Joseph!" she exclaimed, seeing him standing quietly in the doorway to her office. "It's only second block … don't tell me you've got one down already!"
"Oh, no," he reassured her. He indicated the seat by her desk. "May I? It's my free block, and I feel like we should chat …" His voice trailed off, and Elsie motioned for him to take a seat as she closed her door and sat behind her desk.
"What can I do for you? It must be a student."
"It's Daisy," he said bluntly.
"Ah," Elsie said, with just a hint of reserve. "Alright."
"Look," Joseph sighed, "I know you were all away in Yorkshire, and that is wonderful, truly. But the not talking really is affecting her in class, at least with Sarah. She's been on the warpath all morning about it, and I felt like you should know."
"Wait," Elsie interrupted him. "Yorkshire … how, may I ask, did you know that we were all together? Not that it's a secret, but still." Her brow furrowed, and she looked at him warily as a smile broke out on his face.
"I knew, Elsie, because Daisy told me. This morning, because she was a bit earlier to arrive than usual?"
Elsie flushed a bit. "Well, yes," she hedged. "She arrived with me."
"So she said," Joseph replied, still smiling. "Elsie, she spoke to me. I said something about how she was early, and she said you had driven her. And I just asked why, and she said she's staying with you this week because Mr. Carson is finishing up some business in London?"
"Yes, he's selling his law firm," she said absentmindedly. "That's of no consequence - she spoke to you. Joseph, I must say, that is truly remarkable! It is completely down to you and your patience and caring, you must realize that."
It was his turn to turn pink. "I suppose so," he acknowledged quietly. "But now …"
And it clicked. "Of course … now Sarah is going to make your life a true living hell, because if I am certain of anything, it's that Daisy is decidedly not speaking to Sarah O'Brien."
"You presume correctly - Daisy admitted as much. She doesn't like her."
Elsie laughed, then bit her lips closed. "Well, she's such a smart young thing," she murmured, perfectly well heard by Joseph.
"That she is," he agreed. "Will you speak to Daisy? For me? I'm afraid her week is about to get much more difficult in Sarah's classes. I'll keep an eye out, and I will most certainly report anything over the top to Edith, but …"
"I shall," Elsie promised. "And thank you. We were worried that she'd retreat back into being non-verbal once she got back to school, but it appears that is not the case."
"And she speaks to the entire family now, yes? It wasn't a problem while you were away?"
"She does, and it wasn't. And it was a houseful all week, too."
Joseph twisted his hands, contemplating if he should even bother verbalizing his thoughts. But he liked Elsie, and was happy if she was doing well, so he chanced it.
"If I may say so, and feel free to tell me to butt out, things seem to be going extremely well for you and Mr. Carson."
Elsie couldn't help the smile that came to her face, and Joseph thought she positively glowed in that moment.
"I don't mind you saying so, Joseph, because I trust you implicitly." She let that sink in for a moment, knowing she'd made him slightly embarrassed with the compliment. "Things are perfect, and I consider it a huge blessing that the Carsons were brought into my life."
"And the reason for the trip to England?" he asked.
"Ha! Charles just turned fifty - on Valentine's Day, no less," she added, absentmindedly fingering the pendant that rested on her chest. "And once Edith's grandmother got wind of it, well, that was that."
Joseph laughed heartily at that, remembering meeting Violet at Edith's wedding. "Oh, I have no doubt! That one doesn't do anything by halves, does she?"
"Not at all," Elsie agreed. "But it was wonderful."
Joseph glanced at the clock and got up. "I'm glad to hear that, Elsie," he said meaningfully. "You truly deserve to be happy."
"So do you," she muttered, tilting her head down the hall toward the Guidance office.
"I'm working on it," he replied with a smile. "Just, you know … it's me, so … slow and steady?"
"Whatever works," she smiled. "Thanks for stopping in, Joseph. I will talk to Daisy, and to Charles."
"Thanks. See you later, Elsie."
"See you."
Elsie did speak to Daisy that night, and Daisy was adamant: she didn't like Miss O'Brien. Daisy knew she was getting her work done and didn't even require extra time in which to do it, often done before her classmates. The way she saw it she'd still do well with zeroes on the few assignments on which speaking was mandatory, as she aced all her tests. Elsie couldn't really argue, and didn't want to anyhow. Until things changed drastically - in ways that involved a ring residing once again on Elsie's left hand, if that ever happened - she was not Daisy's mother, and she wouldn't discipline her as though she were. She filed it away to add to the conversation she'd have with Charles in the morning.
They settled in with a movie Monday night, and Daisy slept well with Max tucked in by her side. Elsie didn't sit in with her again, but stayed up to do a bit reading in the living room - close enough to be right there should Daisy wake up again, which had not happened.
Tuesday morning was fairly uneventful, except that by now everyone seemed to have figured out that Daisy was staying at Elsie's, which meant that the staff were all now aware of the relationship between the girl's father and their school nurse. Many of them didn't live in town, or hadn't attended the New Year's Eve party; others simply didn't listen to gossip.
Tommy Barrow stopped in during his study hall to see Elsie, asking if she needed any help now that she was back. She didn't, but got him to verify in a roundabout way that his father was still away and that his Mum was doing well. She noted Tommy looked good, and told him so.
"How's Daisy?" he asked, and Elsie appreciated the thought.
"Very well, thanks."
"I hear she's spoken to Molesley," he said.
"Mr. Molesley, Tommy. You know better than that."
"I know, I know," he replied. "But did she really?"
"She did," Elsie admitted, and Tommy - somewhat to her surprise - smiled brightly.
"That's great," he said heartily, and she knew he meant it.
"She'll be staying with me most of the week as Mr. Carson is in England. Stop over tomorrow for dinner if you like." Elsie loved that Tommy and Daisy had gotten on so well on his birthday, and wanted to foster that if she could. "Bring your Mum if you think she'd come."
"Not likely," he admitted, "but I'll mention it to her, though. Thanks, Ms. Hughes."
"No problem, just let me know. Now get back to class before we both get in trouble!"
"Sure thing. Bye!"
Wednesday flew, as Elsie was busy with kids that were now getting sick, the ones who'd gotten too little sleep over the school break. Put them all back in here, together, coughing all over each other, and … lovely. She sent five home with fevers, one who was vomiting (which almost - almost - sent Edith over the edge), and one who Elsie was sure had strep.
Daisy popped in during lunch and checked that they'd be going straight home after school. She had a good amount of homework, she'd said, but was looking forward to her set hour with the horses.
"Absolutely," Elsie said fondly. "Now, go eat!"
A couple hours later, Elsie was clearing her desk when Daisy came down to her office at the dismissal bell. She plopped down in a chair, completely frustrated by the amount of work Miss O'Brien had assigned to her.
"It's not fair," Daisy muttered, and Elsie silently agreed. The teacher seemed to be taking Daisy's silence very personally and it was, quite frankly, beginning to piss Elsie off.
"What did she assign you?" Elsie asked, keeping a level tone to her voice.
"Three extra chapters to read - which is fine," Daisy said, "because I read fast. But I'm to answer almost twice as many questions as the others, because 25% of the assignment is to present the report orally and I won't do that. So I'm to … what did she say? … Oh! Yes. I'm to 'show that I know more ahead of time,' as she can't ask me to explain any of it when I turn it in." Daisy was aware that her tone of voice was inappropriate, and was grateful that Elsie seemed angry herself - but not with Daisy.
"She certainly could ask you anything she wanted, and you'd write down the answers!" Elsie argued. She knew she shouldn't, but the words just fell out.
"I know." Daisy looked down at her shoes, clearly furious, and Elsie was at a loss. She got up and went into the Guidance suite for a moment, then returned with a folder.
"What's that?" Daisy asked, coming over to Elsie's desk.
"It's your 504 file," Elsie said, her reading glasses perched on the end of her nose as she scanned for the part she was looking for. "Here it is," she muttered. "Be right back, dear, and then we'll head home."
"Okay," Daisy said, her brow furrowed as she pulled out her iPod and opened up a game. "I'll stay here, then."
Elsie marched into Phyllis's office and shut the door behind her.
"Elsie? Whatever is the matter?" Phyllis asked calmly.
Elsie took a deep breath and plopped the file on her friend's desk. "Sarah O'Brien. She's in violation of Daisy's 504."
"I'm sorry?"
Phyllis was confused. Everyone knew Sarah could be a right bitch when she wanted to be, but she was ridiculously detail-oriented and did her job to the letter. Of all the staff, it was Sarah whose reports were meticulous, Sarah who was the first to arrive at staff gatherings and the last to leave at the end of the day, all of her grading and planning clipped and labeled and ready to go for the next day, Sarah who had every assignment returned to the children the day after they'd turned it in. If what Elsie was saying was correct, and Sarah was not adhering to the plan, then there was no way it was a mistake or an oversight on Sarah's part.
"I know, she's a model teacher," Elsie said. "But I'm not kidding - listen to this." She crossed her arms in front of her chest as she gave Phyllis the condensed version of Daisy's assignment.
"But she can't do that," Phyllis said. "It's not an equitable assignment - it's literally more time-consuming, and more work, and different work."
"I know," Elsie repeated. "That's why I'm standing here. Legally bound, Phyllis," she said, tapping her fingernail on the 504. "She is legally bound to abide by this. She can't not follow it, or Charles could quite literally come after her."
Phyllis leaned back in her chair and squeezed the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger. "How do you want to play this, Els?"
"What do you mean?" Elsie was thoroughly confused for a moment, and then the penny dropped. "Oh, right. The perception - of it being me who complained. Of course."
Phyllis nodded. "Yes. You're not her parent, although just as good as if you ask me. Don't even," she said as Elsie started to protest. "You completely came in here like a mother, Elsie, so don't even try that. And I think it's wonderful, but perhaps not the best tactic in this instance."
"But she can't keep doing this!"
"Calm down, Els. Here's what I propose. Go home, and have a good night. I am scheduled to meet with Daisy tomorrow anyhow. I am quite certain that Daisy will tell me, and then I can be the one to raise the issue. I'll talk to Sarah, because it sounds as if she's just doing it to get a rise out of Daisy, to see if she'll - no pun intended - 'say something.' But I'd venture a guess that she expects Daisy to complain to you, Elsie. I think she's trying to get a rise out of you, so stay away from it while you're here, alright?"
Elsie knew Phyllis was right. "Okay."
"Good. I'll see Daisy in here tomorrow, then. Tell her we spoke, but obviously I would gloss over some of why you aren't complaining to Sarah yourself."
"Of course. Phyllis … thank you," Elsie whispered, her eyes full of emotion.
"You are such a Mama Bear, Elsie - and it suits you," Phyllis said, standing to hug her friend.
Elsie huffed out a laugh. "Well, that's a sentence I never thought I'd hear."
"Never say never, Els."
Elsie nodded. She thanked Phyllis again and headed back to her office.
"Let's go, Daisy!" she said cheerfully. "Oh, did Tommy stop by?"
"Yeah, he said he's not coming, whatever that means."
"I invited him to dinner with us," Elsie said, smiling as Daisy raised her eyebrows. "You get on well, don't you?"
"Yeah," Daisy smiled. "We do."
Daisy managed to do half her reading before her therapy appointment with Elsie. It seemed strange having an appointment when she was basically living there now, but Elsie still treated it the same as before. Daisy headed over to the barn and ran into Anna.
"Daisy! Are you all ready for today? Trying Star out, I think."
Daisy nodded, looking in on Scarlett and seeing that she still seemed tired. She reached out and patted the horse's nose, then moved on down to stare at Star for a bit - who, Daisy noted, was staring right back at her.
"He's ready, according to Jamie, and Elsie will have him on the lead. You'll be fine. Are you scared, Daisy?" Anna asked.
Daisy realized that she wasn't scared, not really. She was a good rider, and the paddock was fairly small. She just … she couldn't explain it, silently or otherwise, and so she just shook her head.
"Good," Anna said.
"How are we doing?" Elsie called as she came down the walkway. "All set down there?"
"All set," Anna replied. "You've got a new kid starting on Friday, named Kenny. Otherwise it's business as usual. Oh, and one of the bulbs blew on the outside floodlight. Want me to pick up a new one on the way home?"
"Oh, would you? That would be great, thanks," Elsie said. "See you tomorrow, then."
"Bye!" Anna called, already heading for her car.
"Okay, Daisy," Elsie said. "I'm going to get Star out in the paddock, ride him around a few laps to loosen him up a bit. Then we'll get him on the lead and have you get on, and we'll see how he does. I think he'll be fine, though."
"Which bridle?" Daisy asked, and Elsie pointed one out. Daisy helped her get it on Star, and then Elsie saddled him, cinching the straps carefully as Daisy patted and talked to him.
"You're such a good boy, aren't you?" Daisy said to him. "Are we going to have a nice ride?"
Elsie beamed down at Daisy. "I think he likes you," she said, and Daisy smiled.
"Okay, boy, let's get you out." Elsie put her foot in the strap and swung herself up into the saddle, settling herself in comfortably and putting her gloves on. She clicked her tongue and pulled the reins a bit, and led Star out to the paddock area.
Daisy got her own coat zipped up and donned her riding gloves. She walked over to the doorway and watched as Elsie brought Star out and ran him through a few paces, starting him slowly and encouraging him through a gentle walk and increasing his pace into a slow trot.
The next few seconds - maybe ten, Elsie would say much later on - seemed to happen before Daisy's eyes in slow motion. Elsie was rounding the far corner and something spooked Star. He whinnied loudly and bucked a bit, but Elsie managed to control him … until she couldn't. He bucked twice more and managed to throw her, and Daisy watched in horror as Elsie's body hurtled to the ground and she landed on her back with a loud, sickening thud.
"Elsie!" Daisy screamed, running out toward where the woman lay on the ground. Her first thought was to get Star's reins in her hand, but she knew she wasn't strong enough to control him. She didn't have to worry, though, as Star simply bolted past her, running back into the barn and into his stall. Daisy ran over and shut the gate before returning to Elsie's side, dropping to her knees.
"Elsie? Oh, oh my God, Elsie," she sobbed, reaching up furiously to wipe at her face as she willed Elsie to look at her.
Open. Your. EYES! Daisy's mind screamed.
Elsie groaned, and Daisy heaved a huge sob and sigh, hiccuping slightly. "Elsie? I don't know what to do. What do I do?"
Elsie forced her eyes to open a bit and she saw Daisy kneeling beside her. My head … and my back … oh, shit, my BACK … She attempted to move her toes, but she couldn't feel if it was working or not. Oh, God, nooooo …
She licked her lips, seeing Daisy's own lips moving even though Elsie couldn't hear anything. Her head was starting to spin and she was trying valiantly not to vomit.
"Phone … pocket," she managed.
Daisy understood immediately. She ripped Elsie's phone out of her coat pocket and dialed 9-1-1.
"9-1-1. What is your emergency?" came the voice on the other end of the phone, and Daisy froze.
"9-1-1. What is your emergency? Hello? What's your emergency?" the woman's voice kept saying, and Daisy knew she had to answer. She scanned the property for a sign of someone, anyone else, but Anna had left and Tommy wasn't going to be coming.
"Hello?" The voice was insistent now, and Daisy took a deep breath.
"I need help," she squeaked. "At the L'il Farm in Misty Cove."
"Can you tell me what happened?" the woman's voice said.
"Elsie was thrown from a horse," Daisy explained, trying to do so in as few words as possible. "She can't move, I don't think."
"Okay, can you tell me the address of the farm?"
"It's on Spruce Street, but I don't know the number. It's near the beach. Please hurry," Daisy whispered.
The woman on the phone said help was coming and asked Daisy to stay on the line until that happened. Elsie stirred, and her fingers fluttered. Daisy reached down and grasped them in her own and squeezed.
"Try to keep her awake," the woman on the phone said.
"Elsie? Elsie, you have to stay awake," Daisy whispered. "You can't fall asleep. Elsie?"
Elsie opened her eyes fully and locked her gaze on Daisy's, noting the girl's terror and, somehow, finding the strength to do as she was told and stay awake. It would be so easy to just close her eyes and fall asleep, but Daisy was clearly petrified and Elsie couldn't leave her to deal with anything alone.
"I'm here," Elsie whispered, and she breathed a sigh of relief as the sound of sirens came from the corner of the driveway and an ambulance flew up alongside the paddock.
Two paramedics got out and ran over toward the fence.
"Is it electrified?" one asked, and Daisy nodded. She pointed to the switch, and the second man reached to turn it off.
"Okay now?" he asked, and Daisy nodded. The men rushed in, one of them carrying one of those platform things that Daisy figured they were going to put Elsie on.
"This your Mom?" the younger of the two men asked, but Daisy shook her head.
"Okay, are you a student here?"
"I'm staying here. My Papa is in England," Daisy whispered. "She's his girlfriend, we're …" she trailed off, shaking her head and starting to cry again.
"It's alright, sweetheart," the older man said softly. His partner was checking Elsie's pulse and shining a light in her eyes, and Daisy heard her mumble something unintelligible.
"I didn't let her sleep," Daisy managed.
"Good job," the younger one praised her. "What's your name?"
"Daisy Carson."
"And hers?"
"Elsie Hughes."
The older medic looked up sharply. "Elsie Hughes? The school nurse at Misty Cove Elementary?"
Daisy nodded, and saw as the man looked at his partner.
"What is it, Jack?"
"I can't believe I didn't recognize her … She saved my son's life three years ago," he said quickly. "Anaphylactic shock - she got his Epi pen into him before the ambo got anywhere near the school. He could have died out there on the field, but she busted her ass to run across the entire campus to get to him in time. She goes VIP, Rob."
"Got it. Okay, Elsie? Can you hear me? Squeeze my hand if you can."
No squeeze.
Elsie could tell they were talking, but she couldn't make herself speak anymore, couldn't tell them that she could see their lips moving but could hear nothing.
"Gotta go, Jack. Let's get her on."
"Back up a bit, alright Daisy?" Jack said, and she complied. "Wait - do you know where her keys are?"
Daisy thought for a minute, then nodded quickly.
"Run to the house for me and grab them, and lock up. No one else is home, right?"
No, she answered with a shake of her head.
"Then, Daisy, it looks like you're riding shotgun. Grab those keys and we'll get her loaded up, alright?"
Daisy got to her feet and flew across the yard to do as he asked.
"You're brilliant," Rob said quietly, and Jack nodded.
"No sense in her seeing this," he said. "Okay, Elsie? We're going to get your neck secured and then get you on the backboard to get you into the ambulance. The best thing for you to do is relax. It may hurt, but try not to fight us. You're a nurse, you know the routine. I remember you, you know. Fiery personality. But you bury that now, sweetheart, and let us take care of you."
Elsie couldn't hear everything he said, but when she got a good look at Jack she recognized him instantly from the incident with his son. She blinked twice to show she understood the general gist, and she let them get her squared away. By the time Daisy came back out, Elsie was already in the back of the ambulance.
"Okay, Daisy," Rob said, handing the girl Elsie's phone, the one that Daisy had dropped when she went running in for the keys. "You're up front, and we're heading to Southern Maine Medical. Is there someone you can text or call, an adult who can come and be with you?"
Daisy thought instantly of Auntie Edith, but she was so sick that Daisy didn't think it was a good idea. Anna wasn't home - she'd mentioned going out with John - and Papa was in England. But then ...
"Yes," she said. She flipped through Elsie's address book, but the number she wanted wasn't there. "Wait," she added, "she's not in here." Tears sprang to her eyes, and Rob patted her shoulder as he pulled out.
"Can you call your Papa?" he asked, and she nodded. "Okay. Do that, and perhaps he can get in touch with the person you want, alright?"
"Alright," Daisy said, already tapping on the "Charles" icon, smiling through her tears as she realized it was a picture from his birthday party.
London, England, 21:35
"Thank you for dinner," Charles was saying to the two women seated across from him. He reached out to refill their wine glasses, the new ring on his hand glinting in the candlelight on the table.
"Nonsense," Violet shushed him. "It was our pleasure."
"I should be the one saying thank you," Isobel chimed in. "You both let me tag along!"
"I'm glad we got a chance to see one another again, Isobel. I do hope you'll be coming to the US sometime this year."
"Well, I plan to -"
Her voice was cut off by the vibration of Charles's phone, which was currently in the pocket of his jacket, which he'd draped over the back of his chair. He reached for it and said, "Excuse me, please. I know it's horrible manners, but with Daisy away …"
"For heaven's sake, Charles, don't apologize," Violet said.
Charles managed to extract the phone and his heart flipped when he saw the screen.
"Elsie?" his surprised voice said into the mouthpiece. "Is everything alright?"
On the other end of the line, Daisy burst into tears at the sound of his voice. "Papa!" she cried, and absolutely sobbed.
"Daisy?! What is it? Are you alright?" He glanced up at Violet and Isobel, whose eyes were wide with concern.
In the ambulance, Rob took the phone from Daisy, it being obvious she was going to get nowhere.
"Sir, my name is Rob, I'm a paramedic and Daisy is riding with me. There was an accident at the farm - your daughter is fine," he said quickly, hearing Charles's gasp and realizing the assumption he'd made. "It was a woman - an Elsie Hughes?"
"Oh my God," Charles murmured. "Is she …"
Daisy? mouthed Isobel.
Charles shook his head and sent back an Elsie, his mind attempting to focus on what Rob was telling him.
Isobel turned to Violet and they held a hushed conversation, one made of few words but one in which decisions were made regardless.
"She's alive, and awake and somewhat responsive," Rob was saying. "We're on our way to Southern Maine Medical. I hate to ask, but your daughter was looking for the number of someone with whom she could stay. It was a ..." He looked over at her. "Daisy, who was it?"
"Mary," she whispered.
"Someone named Mary. Is she a relative? Daisy couldn't find her in Elsie's phone."
"No, she wouldn't be," Charles answered. "I'll call her immediately and have her get to the hospital, and I'll have her text Elsie's phone once we've spoken. Is Elsie … what happened? How badly is she hurt?"
"I'm sorry, sir, but I cannot divulge that information to you without her consent. But it looks positive so far," he did say, "although you didn't get that from me."
"Thank you," Charles said, waving his hand at Violet and Isobel, who stood before him with horrified looks on their faces. "I've just finished dinner, and need to get back to the house and pack a bag. I'll be on the first flight out from London as soon as I can get to the airport; please tell them to expect me at the hospital."
"Accompanied by a doctor," Isobel said, reaching for her coat, and Charles nodded. "Accompanied by a friend who is a doctor," he added.
"Do you know who her health proxy is, if she has one?"
"I don't, not for certain, but you can try Beryl Mason at The Cheeky Devil. She's Elsie's best friend; if it's not her, she'll know who it is."
"Okay, thank you." He handed the phone back to Daisy, but the line had gone dead.
"He'll be here as soon as he can," he told her, reaching over to hand her a tissue as she reined in her emotions as best she could. "And he's calling your friend Mary now."
"My aunt," she said softly. "She's my aunt. I hope she comes."
Rob looked at her curiously. "Whyever wouldn't she?" he asked, but Daisy just shook her head. "Well, in any event, we'll be there in five minutes." He flipped a switch to start the siren, and Daisy sat back to wait for Mary's number to come through, the sounds of Jack's voice speaking to Elsie, amidst some beeping machine, blending into the background as Daisy once again began to sob.
Don't hate me - I've got plans. I'd love a review if you're so inclined. x Have faith, folks.