“So you are a Fairy Godmother?” asked the Doctor.
“Yes,” said Myrtle.
“We don’t usually have your sort in here,” he said.
“My sort?” asked Myrtle. “New mothers?” she added looking at the twins yawning in their sleep. They had a look that said they would be waking up soon and would want to be fed.
“I meant Fairy Godmothers,” he said.
“Well, I’m here now,” said Myrtle. “Why are you here?”
“I’ve come to check up on you,” he said.
“I thought that was the mid wives job,” said Myrtle. “Come to that, I haven’t seen you checking any of the other Mothers,” she looked up and saw him dashing out of the ward.
“Best ring security,” thought Myrtle.
“There was a strange man on the maternity ward,” she explained to the security man on the door.
“There are a lot of people on the wards before visiting hours,” said the man. “Just because you don’t recognise him doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be there.”
“So why did he run away when I asked him why he was there?” she asked.
“We’ll keep a look out for him,” said the man. “But I don’t see anyone running.”
“Considering the distance,” said Myrtle. “He’d have to be very fit to still be running by the time he gets to you.”
“Tell me your name and I’ll let you know if we see anything,” said the security man.
“My name is Myrtle,” she replied. “And don’t worry about it, I’ll get my Mum to sort him out.”
“And who’s your Mother,” he laughed.
“Enid,” Myrtle replied. “She used to be the head of the Fairy Godmothers.”
“God help him,” exclaimed the man. “I think I can see someone running,” he added hanging up.
“What’s wrong?” Enid asked.
“There was a man here, a couple of minutes ago, when I asked who he was, he ran off,” said Myrtle. “I was just on the phone to security.”
“But?” asked Enid.
“He didn’t take me seriously, not till I said I’d ask you to look for him,” Myrtle smiled. “Then he said God help him and suddenly he said he saw someone running.”
“Have you seen that husband of yours yet?” asked Enid.
“He’s been working all night,” said Myrtle.
“So his shift should be finishing soon,” said Enid.
“Finished five minutes ago,” said James. “And how is my beautiful wife and children this fine morning?”
“She’d be feeling a lot better if some strange man hadn’t been here,” said Enid.
“What happened?” asked James.
“He asked me about being a Fairy Godmother and said he was here to check up on me,” said Myrtle. “When I said that the Mid wives did that, he ran out of the ward.”
“I’ll tell security,” said James, fishing his phone out.
“I did that, but I don’t think they took me seriously,” sighed Myrtle.
“I think they should go home. I can look after them there,” said Enid.
“Do you think they are in any danger?” asked James.
“Well you do,” said Enid. “Or you wouldn’t be ringing security.”
“I haven’t left the room or gone invisible have I?” asked Myrtle.
“It’s nothing for you to worry about,” said Enid.
“Really,” said Myrtle. “I think it is or I wouldn’t have rung security, what I didn’t like was their attitude, but if you think they will take you more seriously, please ring them,” she added as his phone rang.
“I’ll just take this,” James said, waving his phone and walking away from them.
“Does he often do that with phone calls?” asked Enid, watching him walking off.
“Some of the calls he takes are from his patients,” said Myrtle. “They are confidential.”
“If you say so,” said Enid.
“I say so because it happens to be so,” said Myrtle. “Perhaps I should call security again. They may have some answers. It would be nice to at least know that creep was out of the building.”
“He’d still be somewhere,” said Enid ominously.
“That was security,” James smiled. “They have caught the person pretending to be a doctor.”
“And what are they going to do with him?” asked Enid.
“They are talking to him now,” James replied. “It would seem it’s not the first time he’s been in here trying to examine the patients.”
“So what are they doing to stop him coming back?” asked Enid.
“They’ll talk to him again and explain that he shouldn’t do this sort of thing,” said James.
“Is that all?” asked Myrtle. “Because, by my guess, they did that last time.”
“He’s harmless,” said James. “He just talks to people.”
“He isn’t harmless,” shouted Myrtle. “He just didn’t do anything this time. We don’t even know why he was here.”
“I think you are over reacting,” said James.
“I’ve had at least two people try to poison my in the last year or so and when a strange man turns up on the ward wanting to examine me, you think I am over reacting because I don’t think he’s harmless,” said Myrtle. “I think you two are under-reacting and I find that highly surprising of you.”
“I thought she’d twig,” said the person pretending to be Enid as she changed back into Ivy.
“Why are you doing this?” asked Myrtle as the man pretending to be her husband turned back into the man who had run out of the ward less than an hour before.
“You spoiled our plans,” said Ivy. “And I don’t like having my plans spoilt.”
“You are supposed to be my Aunt,” said Myrtle.
“All the more reason for you not to spoil my plans,” snapped Ivy.
“Hard to do that if you don’t tell us what your plans are,” said Myrtle.
“And would you have reacted any differently?” asked Ivy.
“I would advised you against this course of action,” said Myrtle. “Especially the bits where you tried to kill me. I find it very hard trying to eat mushrooms and they were my favourite.”
“You don’t understand,” said Ivy.
“Probably because no one has bothered to try and explain anything to me,” said Myrtle. “If I was asked to draw a family tree, I’d have problems.”
“Look just because you don’t know half of your family,” said Ivy.
“Are you saying that there are even more family members than I thought,” asked Myrtle.
“Well, Enid and I have five full siblings and I think seven half siblings,” said Ivy.
“We could still talk it through,” said Myrtle. “I think there are ways of getting this resolved other than escalating things.”
“And how do you propose that we do that?” asked Ivy.
“We could get some of the family together,” said Myrtle.
“Some?” asked Ivy.
“I’ve been at a do with all the women,” said Myrtle. “They were set to tell me how my wedding was going to be.”
“And did it all go as they planned?” asked Ivy.
“We eloped and did our own thing,” said Myrtle.
“Enid did that,” said Ivy. “Quite surprised me.”
“We married at the same place, Enid suggested it,” said Myrtle. “They remembered her.”
“Hard to forget is our Enid,” said Ivy.
“Why don’t you talk to her?” asked Myrtle.
“I’ll think about it,” said Ivy, fading away as the light came into the ward window.
“I was getting worried there,” said James, shaking her shoulder.
“What!” muttered Myrtle.
“You were having a bad dream,” said Enid.
“You were talking to Ivy,” said James.
“Why on earth would you talk to her?” asked Enid. “She’s tried to kill you twice.”
“I was trying to talk her into sorting everything out by talking to you,” said Myrtle.
“I have nothing to say to her,” said Enid.
“And whilst that state continues she will always be a threat,” said Myrtle. “And I don’t want her trying to use my two little ones in this.”
“What do you mean by that?” asked Enid.
“You need to sort this,” said Myrtle.
“I’ll think about it,” said Enid.
By Janice Nye © 2021
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