Only a short while after Paula's burial, and after a brief courtship, Jamie Smythe proposed to Ginny Lund. She turned him down! She moved from St Peter's Hospital to her old teaching hospital – the Royal Free, in Hampstead – initially as registrar in anaeshetics, then senior registrar, and finally consultant. She surprised everyone by marrying a slight, gentle Swedish surgeon, and settling down with him in a small hospital in Jonkoping, where he performed a large part of the general surgery from the area, and she gave most of the anaesthetics. At week-ends and during the holidays, they stayed in their cabin in the forest, and sailed their small boat on the nearby Swedish lakes. They were too busy to have children.
Russell Potter left Hitchin in January nineteen-sixty-one, to take up locum senior registrar posts in general surgery, successively at the West Middlesex Hospital, King's College Hospital and Westminster Hospital. In January nineteen-sixty-three, he and his wife returned to Canberra, where both were appointed to consultant posts at their old teaching hospital. He distinguished himself as a skilful general surgeon, with an interest in gastric surgery; she became an academic neurologist, eventually rising to professor of her own department – and developing a reputation as an eminent teacher and researcher.
Imran Shah was promoted to surgical registrar at St Peter's Hospital, after Russ left. Unfortunately he failed his Final FRCS examination again; two months later, he left to become a general practitioner down the A505 Road in Luton in the neighbouring County of Bedfordshire, where there was an expanding Pakistani population. He built up a successful practice, married his cousin and fathered five children. Where he had garaged his powerful Norton motorbike and why he had kept it a secret I never discovered.
Abida Siddiqui emigrated to California. She trained in Plastic Surgery at UCLA, then moved to Beverly Hills where she set up a Cosmetic Surgery Centre. Here she performed breast augmentations for aspiring young starlets, and face-lifts on established stars in decline. She became wealthy, but remained single.
Claud Guillam moved to St Mary Abbott's Hospital in South Kensington for six months, and then set up in Harley Street as a private general practitioner. He acquired a large clientèle from the Anglo-French community, no doubt helped by the fact that his uncle was Jacques Guillaume, the French Foreign Minister.
Poppy Patterson left nursing to have three sons. She took on the management of Mackie's garage, and the couple opened showrooms on the Bedford Road for new and second hand Triumph cars – the Herald saloon, the Spitfire and TR series of sports cars. In Poppie's hands the business thrived.
Stanley Pollet surprised everyone by marrying and taming Belinda Peach's firebrand solicitor flat-mate, Rachel Standish, who immediately became pregnant with twin girls. The couple moved to Stevenage New Town, where Stanley was made Matron of the brand new Lister Hospital; Rachel Pollet joined a large solicitor's practice in Stevenage, part-time, combining this successfully with housewifely duties.
Daniel Ellington wed his rich widow, gave up medicine and became a full-time racing driver.
Belinda Peach married Tim Gately; she left nursing to become the mother of a bonny baby boy (whom they named “Edwin”). Tim was transferred to North Herts CID as detective-sergeant. Eventually, the family moved to Paddington, in West London, when Tim joined Detective Chief Inspector (now Detective Superintendent) Butter's team at New Scotland Yard.
And what about me, Edwin Scott? Did I find happiness, matrimony, and live to a comfortable old age? You may, Gentle Reader, have made your deductions already after perusing the prologue, but you will have to read further volumes of the saga, in order to find out for certain.
Table of Contents
Prologue – June 2014
Part One June 1960
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Part Two July 1960
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
Part Three August 1960
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
Part Four September 1960
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
Part Five October 1960
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
Part Six November 1960
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Epilogue
Death on the House (Edwin Scott Crime Trilogy Book 2) Page 23