‘How is she, doc?’ ‘She’s resting. I put her on fluids and gave her medication for pain and nausea through the IV, so she should be more comfo...rtable now.’ ‘How bad is it?’ He couldn’t sound cool right then if his life depended on it. He saw Tammy look at him funny, and threw her a dark look. Don’t go there, sis. Not now. ‘It’s not. She’s going to be fine very soon. The cut to her head was minimal and didn’t require stitches, and if she has a concussion at all, it is very mild. She should be. Our employers gave us'soft' loans, and so we found, and jointly bought, a pleasant little oldcottage in the country. Although it needed a lot of work doing, weenjoyed converting it to our style in between the long hours consumed bywork and commuting.Jennie had always been an 'achiever'. She had got a First in businessstudies, and was soon recognised by the directors of her Merchant Bankas a candidate for high office. While I read the sports pages on ourcommuter train, she would usually be. The clinic had quite a queue for an abortion and as I was early in my pregnancy I had a pretty low priority. There was plenty of time before Charley came home though, or at least there was until he let me know that he’d be coming home two weeks earlier than expected. I still had a few of days between my abortion and his return and I hoped it would be enough. I set out in good time but a flat tire made me late for my appointment. After parking the car I ran towards the clinic. Charley always. "Tomorrow, when you wake up, you'll have 48 hours before you have to come back. I want to see you Friday morning, no later than noon. Remember, you get a year younger every hour. If you wait too long, you'll forget how to get here – and I'm the only one who can reverse the process."Byrne shuddered, remembering that part. But then he put it out of his mind. Whatever was in that foul-tasting tea the old man had given him, it was working. The pain in his hip was lessening, and the arthritis in his.