Wealth of the Islands (16 page)

Helen forbore to say that she for one would be quite unable to eat a single bite of the loathsome fish.
“
Gregory is hurt,
”
she said.

Miss Corrigan peered through her short-sighted eyes into the jeep. When she saw Gregory
’
s leg her gasp was quite audible.
“
The poor boy!
”
she exclaimed.
“
The poor boy! We must get him inside at once.
”
Her hand rested for an instant on the doctor
’
s naked shoulder.
“
I
’
m so glad you were there,
”
she said with real feeling.
“
The poor boy!
”

The doctor grinned, revealing fine even teeth.
“
He
’
ll do now he
’
s in your care!
”
he told her.
“
I suppose the hotel has a room
?”

Miss Corrigan laughed.
“
How can you ask? You must know that it
’
s
sti
ll empty except for us! That
’
s naughty of you
!”

The doctor shrugged.
“
I thought perhaps the American tourists had arrived,
”
he said, far too innocently.
“
They are expected, aren
’
t they?
”

“
Sooner or later!
”
Miss Corrigan brushed the remark aside.
“
I
’
ll fetch Peter.
”

Peter Harmon arrived white
of face and extremely concerned.
“
Is he hurt real bad?
”
he asked.
“
I wonder if we have the facilities here. Should I arrange to have him flown out
?”

“
Certainly not!
”
Miss Corrigan squashed the idea flat
“
He has Helen and me to nurse him—Anita too, come to that! And the doctor will be on hand
!”

Peter looked at the long wound and shuddered.
“
He
’
ll
have a scar for life!
”

“
At least he
’
ll have his leg to walk on,
”
the doctor drawled.
“
Shall we get him inside?
”

Helen steeled herself to taking a good at the gash on Gregory
’
s leg herself. She would have to get used to it, she told herself. This was not the time to be squeamish. That would do nobody any good. She was surprised to discover that Gregory was conscious again, has eyes fixed on the shark
’
s tail in front of him.

“
Gregory?
”
Helen said uncertainly.

He conjured up a smile.
“
Don
’
t looked so
a
mazed, Helen,
”
he chided her.
“
It doesn
’
t suit you!
”

“
But—
”

“
But your plan worked, didn
’
t it? Isn
’
t that the shark I see before me?
”

It had been her idea, of course, but Helen couldn
’
t help wishing that he wouldn
’
t remind her of the fact. It hadn
’
t been a part of it that anybody would be hurt, but in justice to herself she had to admit that it might have been worse, if she had not been there someone might have been killed.

“
Yes, it worked,
”
she said slowly.

“
Well then, what is there to look so down in the mouth about?
”

She smiled uncertainly.
“
Well, if you don
’
t know I certainly don
’
t,
”
she retorted.

It was a long, painful business getting Gregory into the hotel all the same. In the end Peter pra
c
tically carried him single-handed, with the doctor following behind, a benign expression on his face and with his doctor
’
s bag in his hand. They had travelled painfully through the foyer towards the lift, when the doors suddenly clanged open and there was Anita standing before them, as astonished to see them as they were to see her.

“
What happened? Oh, Helen, how could you let this happen?
”
she demanded and, to Helen
’
s dismay, her eyes filled with tears and her mouth trembled ominously.

“
We
’
re trying to get him to bed,
”
Helen said patiently, hoping that Anita would hurry out of the lift and allow them to enter.

“
You did it!
”
her sister-in-law said flatly.
“
I suppose, Michael dying wasn
’
t enough for you
?”

Miss Corrigan was shocked.
“
What nonsense!
”
she said gruffly.
“
Here, girl, get out of our way!
”

Anita obligingly moved.
“
Will he be all right?
”
she asked abruptly.

“
Of course,
”
the doctor said gently.
“
He is in my care!
”

Gregory himself said nothing. He looked exhausted. Helen wept inwardly for him. If only they could get him into bed, where he could rest and sleep awhile, then perhaps he would feel a bit better. It was obvious that he was nearing the end of what he could endure in the way of pain and discomfort. She thought that she couldn
’
t bear it if he lapsed into unconsciousness again. He didn
’
t. Once in the lift, he seemed to recover a little.

“
It will be strange to sleep on land for a
c
hange,
”
he said with a wistful touch of humour.

“
Sleep,
”
the doctor nodded approvingly.
“
More sleep the better
!”

They got him out of the lift, with Peter taking most of the strain, and into one of the empty bedrooms just across the corridor. Helen looked round the room curiously, expecting it to be like the ones allotted to her and Anita, but this one was quite different. There was none of the glamour and none of the South Seas atmosphere that characterised their rooms; This one was sparsely furnished, with rugs on the floor and thinner rugs covering the bed. There were no pictures on the wall and mighty little in the way of a view from the window.

“
It isn
’
t our best room,
”
Peter said apologetically.
“
But it
’
s convenient. You
’
ll need a bit of nursing and
the girls can get in and out from
you here without any difficulty.
”

“
It looks grand to me,
”
Gregory answered thankfully.
“
Thanks for taking me in.
”

Peter looked at him, embarrassed.
“
It
’
s nothing,
”
he muttered.
“
Hadn
’
t you better get into bed?
”

“
Yes,
”
Helen said firmly.
“
The sooner you
’
re in bed the better. I
’
ll leave you to it.
”

In the corridor she met Anita, slightly puffed from running up the stairs.
“
Oh, Helen, you must tell me all about it! Poor Gregory! Doesn
’
t he look ill?
”
Her chin trembled.
“
I suppose he is all right?
”
she sighed.

“
There
’
s nothing to tell,
”
Helen said abruptly. She thought Anita was going to cry, but she didn
’
t.

Instead, she looked very brave and feminine and made Helen feel quite uncomfortably unconcerned and indifferent to human suffering.
“
Do you want to see the shark?
”

Anita shuddered.
“
The
shark?
”

Helen nodded.
“
They thought Miss Corrigan would want it for her party. It
’
s in the jeep.
”

“
I think that
’
s horrible!
”
Anita burst out.
“
And I think you
’
re horrible too! You don
’
t
c
are that Gregory is hurt, do you? Not really! You
’
ll be telling me next that it
’
s a pity because it will put the diving schedules back still more, or something like that!
”

Helen
’
s face twisted into a smile.
“
I hadn
’
t thought of that,
”
she said bleakly.
“
I rather wish you hadn
’
t reminded me.
”

“
Well, I
’
m not!
”
Anita retorted.
“
You
’
d have thought of it sooner or later
!”

“
I might have done,
”
Helen agreed mildly,
“
but how I hope that Gregory has not!
”

That was a for
l
o
rn
hope, however. When she and Anita were called into Gregory
’
s room, she knew immediately, by the lines of anxiety around his mouth, that he too had been made aware of how
long it was going to be before he did any more diving.

“
It
’
s been a pretty disastrous expedition one way and another,
”
he said bitterly.

“
Don
’
t worry about it,
”
Helen said immediately.
“
I
’
ll manage somehow!
”

He smiled at her.
“
You don
’
t know your own limitations, woman. Did anyone ever tell you that?
”

“
Often,
”
she admitted.

Anita pressed her knees against the side of the bed and leaned consolingly over Gregory
’
s prone body.
“
You mustn
’
t worry,
”
she said anxiously.

“
That
’
s easier said than done,
”
he told her wryly.

“
No, it isn
’
t really,
”
she contradicted him.
“
You don
’
t know what Helen is really like. She
’
ll probably manage better without you than if you were there. She
’
ll manage everything, just you see!
”

Helen blushed.
“
Anita!
”
she exclaimed helplessly. Gregory frowned.
“
It
’
s nice to know that I
’
m an optional extra to my own plans!
”
he said dryly.

“
But you
’
re not!
”
Helen interposed hastily, aware in the pit of her stomach that the damage was already done.
“
We
’
ll just have to hold up proceedings until you
’
re better.
”

“
I can
’
t afford to do that either,
”
he said crossly.
“
If anyone should know that, it
’
s you!
”

There would be no pleasing him now, she knew that, but Helen felt she had to try all the same. The grey look was back on his face and she would have done anything to dispel that.
“
Perhaps you can tell me exactly what to do from your bed,
”
she suggested.
“
I can
’
t manage otherwise!
”

Anita
’
s eyes flickered over her anxious face.
“
You
’
ve got the Polynesian sailors to help you, haven
’
t you? Why do you have to bother Mr. de Vaux?
”

“
Why indeed?
”
Gregory sighed. He eased himself against his pillows.
“
For heaven
’
s sake let the subject drop now, will you? I can
’
t think straight at all. I wish you hadn
’
t brought it up, Helen—
”

“
I didn
’
t!
”
she protested.

“
Oh, God!
”
he said irritably.
“
Must we have an argument about everything?
”

Helen bit her
li
p.
“
No,
”
she said.