"Have you no sense, woman!" he roared, almost lifting her bodily out of the chair. "Why didn't you send for me this morning when you weren't feeling well?"
"Send for you?" she croaked confusedly, wishing the room would stop swaying about her.
He uttered an exasperated sound as he took her arm and propelled her out of the office.
"Where are you taking me?" she asked weakly.
"I'm putting you to bed," he snapped, and Jacqueline thought it better not to ask further questions.
Instead of walking her over to the staff quarters, he bundled her into his car and drove round to the entrance.
"Stay here!" he said sharply as she was about to get out. Hazily she watched him entering the building and wondered what he was up to.
He emerged a short while later with a suitcase in one hand and a blanket thrown over the other. Dropping the suitcase on the back seat, he wrapped the blanket about her shivering form.
"Where are you taking me?" she asked again, lying back and closing her eyes.
"I'm taking you to Aunt Ellen," he said, casting a quick glance in her direction. "You can't stay in your apartment alone."
She must have dozed, for she awoke suddenly to find Meldon bending over her.
"That's funny," she giggled hoarsely. "There are two of you."
With a muttered exclamation he wrapped the blanket more firmly about her and carried her bodily from the car into the house. He placed her on the bed in the spare room and went out to fetch the suitcase. When he returned, he opened the suitcase and extracted a filmy nightdress. With a look of disgust on his face he flung it on to the bed.
"Why you women can't get yourselves something substantial to sleep in, I'll never know."
He stood regarding her for a while, his eyes taking in her flushed cheeks and drooping eyelids.
"Aunt Ellen isn't here at the moment. Can you undress yourself?"
"Of course!" she muttered indignantly.
He turned his back on her as she fumbled with the zip of her dress. Her arms felt heavy and when she got to her feet her legs seemed to have turned to jelly. She gasped as she sagged back on to the bed and Meldon, turning at the sound, took in the situation at a glance.
With a few quick strides he was at her side.
"Let me help you."
"No!" She straggled feebly as he unzipped her dress.
"For God's sake, Jacky!" he said impatiently. "I'm not going to seduce you."
Too weak to struggle and suddenly too tired to care, she allowed him to remove her clothes.
When Aunt Ellen arrived home, Jacqueline was already tucked up in bed and becoming drowsy from the sedative Meldon had given her.
"How is she?" she asked softly after Meldon had related to her the events leading up to his decision to leave Jacqueline in her care.
"I'm not very happy about her, Aunt Ellen," he replied, frowning. "I don't like the sound of that chest of hers, but at the moment there's nothing more I can do for her."
To Jacqueline, lying in the enormous four-poster bed, it seemed as though their voices drifted hollowly towards her from a vast distance. She tried to speak, to reassure them, but her lips refused to obey.
"She's very hot," Aunt Ellen remarked, and Jacqueline felt the coolness of her hand against her feverish brow.
Meldon nodded. "I've left something on the bedside table which you can give to her at four-hourly intervals."
"Is there nothing else I can do for her?"
"Just keep her warm and as quiet as possible," he said, packing his bag. "I'll come around again tonight."
After he had departed, Aunt Ellen made herself comfortable in a chair beside the bed, and Jacqueline knew she would not relinquish her vigil. During the rest of the afternoon, while the fires raged through her body, she was continually aware of Aunt Ellen's comforting presence. Dear Aunt Ellen!
"Dear boy, I'm so glad you've come," Jacqueline heard her say almost tearfully when Meldon arrived that evening. "Jacky's condition is getting worse."
"Damn!" he muttered. "I should have hospitalised her, but I didn't think she would become this ill."
He bent over Jacqueline and examined her carefully. Her chest made a wheezing sound when she breathed and her dry lips were parted as she struggled valiantly to suck enough air into her lungs. The faces of the two other occupants in the room receded and then advanced again in rapid succession, their features twisted and blurred. Jacqueline wanted to giggle, but the sound ended on a peculiar-sounding groan as an agonising pain tore through her chest.
'Oh, God, please help me,' she prayed, and then mercifully knew no more. She was drifting in a world where faces came and went, and snatches of conversation meant little or nothing to her.
She was back in the operating theatre, operating on Mr. du Toit. She had made the first incision and there was blood everywhere. Time was of the upmost importance, but somehow her mask was suffocating her. She tried to rip it from her face, but something held it firmly in place. 'Please, give me some air!' she shouted, but no one seemed to take any notice as they all stood staring at the gaping wound in the patient's stomach.
"I had to come and help you," Sally Meyer was saying here beside her. Why was she not dressed for the operating theatre? Jacqueline wondered. Meldon would be furious.
The sensation of being closeted in a box-like object penetrated through to her, and, terrified of being suffocated, she fought it off. The hands that pinned her down were too strong and she finally gave up the struggle and succumbed to the inevitable. Strangely enough the weight seemed to lift off her chest, although the fire within her continued to devour her.
A blanket of darkness descended upon her once more, and for a time she knew nothing until she saw again Meldon's expression as he looked at her that day in his office. It was a look of disillusionment and disgust.
"Meldon!" she cried out. "You don't understand!"
"What don't I understand?" she heard him ask gently.
How could she explain? How could she make him see that she wanted more than just a mere flirtation? She wanted his love! Oh, how she needed it!
Heavens, how cold she was suddenly. Someone must have put out the fire, she thought deliriously. Her teeth were chattering uncontrollably as gentle hands wrapped blankets about her, and voices murmured soothingly, yet unintelligibly.
As the hours of the night sped by, she was vaguely aware of alternating between hot and cold. Outside the silence was unbroken as though holding its breath until it knew the outcome of the struggle that was taking place within the walls of Ellen Martin's small but comfortable home.
As the stars lost their brilliance and a glimmer of light appeared in the east, Jacqueline heaved a sigh and slipped into a deep and dreamless sleep.
CHAPTER SIX
Jacqueline awoke several hours later to find Aunt Ellen sitting beside her bed. She tried to sit up, but discovered she was too ridiculously weak to move.
"What happened?"
"You've been a very sick girl," Aunt Ellen told her. "Meldon sat with you all night. The poor boy looked absolutely exhausted when he left here this morning."
"Meldon?" Jacqueline asked weakly. "Was he here?"
"All night," Aunt Ellen confirmed.
Jacqueline digested this quietly. "I thought I'd imagined it."
"No, my dear, he was here all the time." She looked at her closely. "Are you hungry?"
"Yes, I think I am."
Aunt Ellen disappeared and returned a moment later with a steaming bowl of soup. She propped Jacqueline up against the pillows and proceeded to spoon feed her.
"Oh, Aunt Ellen," Jacqueline smiled faintly, "I feel as weak as a baby."
"It's not surprising. Your system has taken quite a knock."
Jacqueline's eyes slid to the apparatus standing in the corner of the room.
"What's the oxygen tent doing here?"
"Child!" Aunt Ellen's kindly eyes clouded with the memory of the anxious moments they
had experienced during the night. "You gave us such a fright when your chest closed up. Meldon had to put you in the oxygen tent until your breathing was less constricted."
Jacqueline managed to drink a little more soup, after which Aunt Ellen made her comfortable and she slept once more.
The next time she awoke it was to find Meldon sitting beside her on the bed. She peeped at him through half-closed lids, then, blushing furiously at the vague recollection of how he had put her to bed, she pretended to be asleep.
"It's no use," he said in his deep baritone voice. "I know you're awake, so you might as well open your eyes."
Jacqueline resigned herself to the inevitable and did as she was told. Her eyes were like dark pools in her pale face. She looked up at him steadily, blinking in the light from the bedside lamp. Her thoughts flew immediately to the patient she had attended to prior to her own illness.
"How is Mr. du Toit?" she asked, her voice the merest whisper.
"Dr. Sanderson has taken over, so there's nothing for you to worry about." A look of concern crossed his face at the hollows in her cheeks and the purple smudges beneath her eyes. "How are you feeling?"
"Tired."
He took her wrist between his fingers and took her pulse.
"You've been very ill," he pointed out calmly, still holding her hand and rubbing his thumb gently across the back of it.
Jacqueline suppressed the mad desire to twist her hand palm upwards into his and instead jerked it free to clutch at the sheets. Meldon promptly pushed a thermometer into her mouth and proceeded with his examination. When he was finished he packed his bag and closed it, and sat for a long while looking down at her, his expression thoughtful.
"During the night when you were delirious," he said eventually, "you kept repeating that I didn't understand. What is it you think I can't understand?"
Jacqueline turned her face to the wall and caught her lip between her teeth. How could she explain that what troubled her was that he should think she kissed all men the way she had kissed him? Had she not been humiliated enough by the knowledge that to him it had meant nothing?
"I can't think of anything offhand," she managed unsteadily, only to find her chin taken between strong fingers that turned her face towards him.
"Are you sure?"
His keen eyes raked her face and saw the tears forming in her eyes while her lips trembled uncontrollably. The muscles in his jaw tightened as he got to his feet and turned his back on her, giving her the opportunity to regain her composure.
"We'll talk some other time when you're feeling stronger," he said gruffly, lifting his bag off the floor and leaving the room.
Aunt Ellen went into the room a short while later to find Jacqueline crying weakly into her pillow.
"Dear child, what's wrong?" She sat down on the edge of the bed and stroked the damp hair from Jacqueline's forehead. "Has Meldon been bullying you again?"
"No,"*Jacqueline replied in a muffled voice.
"Then what's the matter?"
"Oh, Aunt Ellen!" she sobbed. "I love him so much that it hurts."
"Dear, oh, dear," Aunt Ellen muttered, patting Jacqueline's hand gently.
"Perhaps I should go away."
"Nonsense!" Aunt Ellen said strongly. "No one has ever been able to run away from their problems. Stay and face them, Jacky."
'Stay and face them'—Aunt Ellen's words kept echoing through her mind. Stay and face Meldon after what had happened between them and knowing that he belonged to someone else? Impossible! Something would die inside her the day that Meldon married Tanya Mason. How could she forget the touch of his lips and hands? Tanya was entitled to his caresses yet, for a few brief moments, Jacqueline had taken her place and had foolishly given her heart where it was not wanted. The knowledge of this had plunged her into the deepest despair and had caused her to seek refuge in her work. Now there was nothing to do but lie staring at the ceiling allowing her thoughts to torture her.
Martin had become a regular visitor during her convalescence and he nearly always showered her with flowers and gifts. He regaled her with anecdotes from the hospital and often had her shouting with laughter. His visits were a welcome change from Meldon's professional calls, during which neither of them spoke except when necessary.
Sally Meyer often accompanied Martin on these visits and Jacqueline became aware that something more than friendship had developed between the two people she had come to look upon as her friends. The glances that passed between them spoke of something far stronger than just platonic friendship, and Jacqueline wondered happily how long she would have to wait before she was informed of their engagement.
Meldon arrived one evening shortly after Martin and Sally had left, and raised his eyebrows at the vase of red roses standing decoratively on the dressing table.
"You've had visitors, I see," he remarked as he seated himself on the side of the bed.
"Yes. Martin and Sally left only a few moments ago."
He nodded and went through his normal ritual with the thermometer and stethoscope.
"When can I get up?" she asked after he had removed the thermometer from her mouth.
"Tomorrow, if you like. But only for short periods at a time."
He completed his examination and after packing his medical bag, he wandered about the room as though reluctant to leave. Jacqueline's eyes followed him anxiously, and she realised instantly that the confrontation she had dreaded was about to take place. When he finally ceased his restless pacing, she steeled herself for what was to follow.
Meldon sat down once more, his weight causing the bed to sag. Propped up against the pillows, she clasped her hands together so tightly that the knuckles showed white, and closing her eyes she uttered a silent prayer for strength.
"What's troubling you?" he asked.
Her eyes flew open in surprise at this new approach.
"Nothing at all," she managed to say, sliding her tongue over her dry lips.
"When we had dinner at my home that evening—"
"Please don't!" she interrupted fiercely.
Frightened by the intensity of her clamouring emotions and what he might see in her eyes, she turned her face away from him. But Meldon would have none of that and to her dismay he placed a hand on either side of her head and turned her face towards him again.
"I kissed you that night," he said deliberately, "and don't try to deny that you responded. But the following morning your attitude towards me had changed. Just like that." He snapped his fingers. "Why?"
"Do you think you're the only man I've ever kissed like that?" she lied defiantly, veiling her eyes with her lashes. What did it matter what he thought of her? After all, his interests lay with Tanya.
"Jacky, your lips were far too innocent for a woman who distributes her kisses freely," he laughed outright. "And don't try and make me believe otherwise."
"That just shows what a good actress I am."
Meldon's face sobered.
"I could willingly spank you for that!"
The next instant she was crushed against his chest, his arms like bands of steel about her. Her smothered protests were silenced when his mouth closed over hers in a brutal kiss that swept aside all thoughts of resistance. But something went wrong with the intended punishment, for his lips became gentle and searching. Jacqueline's lips parted beneath his as once again she was swept along on a tide of emotion.
His mouth strayed down to the gentle curve of her breast and Jacqueline gasped as a delicious, intoxicating languor seeped through her whole body, at once tormenting and delighting her senses.
"By heavens, you're the most desirable creature I've ever met," he exclaimed, kissing her soft, warm lips once more.
Not love. Just desire! Filled with disgust at her own weakness, she pushed him away from her and fell back against the pillows, breathing heavily. She must have been mad to allow him to kiss her like that.
'He's fond of having little interludes with differen
t women, but in the end he always comes back to me', she recalled Tanya saying. Oh, he was despicable!
"Leave me alone!" she cried as he was about to take her in his arms again. She covered her hot face with trembling hands. "You had no right to kiss me like that, and I despise myself for allowing it!"
During the silence that followed only Jacqueline's muffled sobs could be heard. The sagging springs creaked into place as Meldon lifted his weight from the bed.
"You're quite correct, Jacqueline," he agreed contritely. "It was inconsiderate of me to have taken advantage of you like that. You're not yet well and you were unable to defend yourself. It won't happen again."
East of Barryvale Page 10