Gladioli in August Read Online Free

rather bumpy field. He turned off the engine. “This is the Blanchet’s place.”
    “Blanchet…” Jael ran her finger down her list. “OK…dressing change.” She unbuckled her straps, pausing when he didn’t move. “Aren’t you coming with me?”
    “Nope,” he said. “I’m not an escort.”
    “I don’t know these people. I have no idea where to go from here.”
    “Fine.” He undid his harness and leapt from the plane. “Well, come on then…”
    Jael grabbed her pack and followed his long strides four-hundred meters across the field to the house. The uneven ground and her heels meant her ankles twisted several times.
    Micah tapped loudly on the wooden screen door. “Mrs. Blanchet?” There was no answer. He called again.
    “Maybe she’s hurt.” Jael gripped the screen door to open it.
    Micah stilled her arm. “You don’t just walk into people’s houses. I don’t know what you consider normal where you come from, but here we wait until we’re invited in. If there is no one else in and they want the doc to go straight in, then they leave a note on the door frame.” He banged harder. “Mrs. Blanchet. It’s the flying medics.”
    Finally, the door opened and a young girl stood there. Jael reckoned she must be about ten.
    “Hi,” Micah said.
    The child spoke rapidly in what sounded like double Dutch.
    Jael frowned. She turned to Micah. “I didn’t understand a word of that.”
    Micah rolled his eyes. “She says Momma has gone to town in the cart. Papa is inside waiting for you, but he can’t come to the door.”
    Jael took a deep breath and spoke hesitantly in Malay, hoping the child would understand her.
    The child nodded and opened the door. “Come on in.”
    “Go on,” Micah said, as Jael hesitated. “I’ll wait here. Me pilot, you medic, remember?” To emphasize his point, he folded his arms and leaned against the decking wall.
    Jael tightened her grip on the box and followed the child inside the building. It was dark inside, and it took her eyes a moment to adjust. Her patient sat on the couch. “Hi. I’m the nurse from the Achor medical base. My name is Jael.” Her Malay didn’t sound right to her, and for all she knew she could have told him she was a Martian come to kidnap him.
    The man on the couch smiled. “Symon Blanchet,” he replied. He pointed to his leg. “Cows need tending to. I need you to be quick.”
    “Sure.” She dropped to her knees beside him, snapped on a pair of gloves, and began to remove the old dressing. “How did you do this?”
    “I thought you were here to work, not to chat.”
    Her face burned, and she buried her discomfort by working swiftly.
    “This time isn’t convenient,” he told her. “Can you make it later tomorrow?”
    “Sure.” She finished up. “What time would you prefer?”
    “Eleven. I will have finished with the cattle by then. They need tending to early.”
    Jael stood. “Sure. Is there somewhere I can wash my hands?”
    “Water pump outside.”
    She gathered her things and fled as quickly as decently possible. She brushed past Micah and headed to the pump in the middle of the yard. Dumping the box by her feet, she tried to get the rusty handle to produce water. It wouldn’t. Frustration and disappointment built, making her eyes sting.
    What was she doing here? Maybe Kyle was right and she was making the biggest mistake of her career.
    A strong firm hand covered hers, sending sparks shooting up her arm. “Let me,” Micah said gently. “There’s a knack to it.”
    She moved back as he swiftly jerked the handle a couple of times to send water gushing from the pump. Gratefully, she shoved her hands under the clear, cold water. Maybe it would bring her to her senses. That was not attraction she just felt. No way. No how. “Thanks.”
    He picked up the box. “How does it feel to have your first patient under your belt?”
    “He wants us to come later tomorrow. Around eleven.”
    “Not possible.”
    “That’s what