I regretted deciding to accept the offer when I awoke on Friday morning.

Part of me hoped it would be just like the time I had spent at Doctor Ealing's office when I worked for him. I had spent most of my time organising his paperwork with my limited reading ability rather than dealing with people. The only time I had been needed had been when Doctor Ealing needed a total of six hands rather than four. Those events were few and far between, but I had a feeling this would be different, and I didn't know if I could cope with it.

There was a stark difference between sorting through paperwork and having to interact with the patients themselves. The worst part is knowing they would ask questions about the burn, those questions were unavoidable. I didn't want to have to explain myself over and over again. The glove wouldn't be an option when it came to dealing with serious injuries so I would have to leave it uncovered. I didn't want to have to deal with the questions.

"Are you ready?" James asked. I checked myself in the mirror in the hall one last time, ensuring my hair had been pinned up entirely. The last thing I wanted was my hair getting in the way of helping someone.

"As ready as I'll ever be, I suppose," I said.

"You'll be fine. Just take a breath and stay calm, everything will be fine."

"You sound so sure."

"That's because I am. You were great during the match factory explosion and that was a very chaotic situation to be in. This will be a walk in the park."

He placed his hands on my shoulder, squeezed them slightly and shook me until I smiled. Small tendrils of hair had escaped the knot at the base of my neck, but I didn't have time to redo it. A knock at the door caught my attention and James released my shoulders, side-stepped around me and pulled it open. Doctor Ealing stood in the doorway, a carriage behind him with Robert leaning out the window and grinning like an idiot. I didn't think he had any reason to be that happy.

"Are you ready?" Doctor Ealing asked after briefly greeting James.

"We'll see."

"You'll be fine, Rosie," James said. "I'll see you later." He gave me a light kiss on my forehead.

"Bye."

"Robert and I will ensure she gets back in one piece."

"With Rosie, that's difficult to ensure."

Doctor Ealing smiled and I glared at James, but he smiled and shooed me out the door. He said he had something planned for the day but refused to tell me what it was and James having a secret, and being able to keep it, is never a good thing. I had tried to get Kitty to tell me what it was, but she had smiled and said I would have to wait and see. That didn't exactly fill me with confidence either, but I had to push whatever they were doing to the back of my mind and focus on the day ahead.

I stepped through the door and onto the street, walking the short distance to the carriage and climbing inside. Robert continued to grin at me until I had taken my seat and I wished he would look anywhere else. It was a little unnerving. Doctor Ealing shook hands with James, muttered something in his ear and then followed the same path I took to the carriage, climbing in and sitting beside Robert. Within seconds after he sat down, the carriage pulled away from the house and towards the office.

No one said anything as we moved through London, small drops of rain hitting the carriage window. The carriage moved slowly. The ground was slick with rain and small puddles were starting to form, people walking down the street slipped and skidded on the ground. It had been cold enough to snow, but rain fell instead and started to freeze not long after. Just walking down the street in that weather came with its issues, carriage rides were a whole other story. One wrong turn and the entire thing could overturn.

We moved through the streets until we came to a stop outside Doctor Ealing's office, the rain getting heavier. The driver jumped down and opened the door, with Doctor Ealing scurrying out of the carriage first and up the steps to unlock the door to his office. Robert jumped down second and I followed, running up the steps to avoid as much of the rain as possible. Doctor Ealing swung open the door and we hurried inside, both men removing their jackets and hanging them up whilst I unwrapped my shawl.

"If we don't get at least one carriage accident, I can class today as a good day," Doctor Ealing said. We walked into the main office and Doctor Ealing turned to the paper on his desk.

"Are they common?" I asked.

"They can be. If we have a thunderstorm, the horses get spooked and try to make a run for it. We had to deal with carriage accidents last year and I expect this year to be the same."

"You would have thought people would have more sense then to take a carriage in weather like this. The journey either isn't worth it, or they should take an umbrella," Robert said. He shrugged his shoulders and sat down on the sofa.

"Perhaps. Nonetheless, we need to be on our toes today." He paused. "I have a couple of homes I need to visit on my rounds, will you two be alright here?"

"Of course. If anyone turns up, I can help get Rosie settled before you come back."

"Excellent. I'll try to be quick, they're only follow-up visits."

Robert nodded and Doctor Ealing grabbed his briefcase, nodded towards the two of us and returned to the hallway. The sound of the door closing followed not long after and the only sound in the room came from the rain hitting the window just outside. I didn't envy anyone who had to walk around in that weather, even the factory worked to shelter us from the bad weather.

I listened to the sound of the rain lashing against the window, the sound of carriages driving over the cobblestone and through puddles. Rain was all well and good, but it wasn't the snow that I had been wanting and waiting for since winter set in. All I wanted was a heavy enough snow fall that meant I could pelt James and Christopher with snowballs for the first time in years. The dancing at the ball had been fun, purely because none of us knew what we were doing, but I had made a decision to have more fun in my life and snow would be a big part of that.

When I moved in with James, all three of them had staged an intervention early on to try and stop me from spending all my time helping out at the office. It hadn't had the desired effect since I still spent a lot of time helping James out, but I had made a promise to try and have a little more fun. The incidents with Mrs Ealing and Matilda certainly didn't fill the 'fun' criteria but the ball did, and I hoped a snowball fight would as well.

"What made you change your mind about joining us? You were really unsure at the ball," Robert said. He swung his leg off the sofa and rested his elbows on his knees.

"Something James said. Both him and Christopher thought it would be a good idea," I said.

"And you don't?"

I shrugged. "It's just not something I ever considered before. At first, I thought I would be in service, then it was about my artwork and now this. Service is off the table, but I didn't mind the idea of developing my art skills since I always enjoyed it. Being a nurse just seems so different from both of those."

"Different, but something you're good at. Besides, there is nothing to suggest you cannot do your artwork as well, especially during the training. Maybe you could be multi-talented, working as a nurse but selling your artwork on the side."

"Seems a little extreme."

"As long as it makes you happy, what should that matter? I love working under Father and completing my training before I can qualify as a real doctor, but I also love to write – don't laugh – and I would love to do it as career. I have submitted some things to newspapers and magazines, but no luck so far." He paused. "What I'm saying is that you can take the position with us, train as a nurse and have that safety position but also work on your artwork at the same time and do the thing you love."

I regarded with a tilt on my head and chewed on the inside of my cheek in thought. The idea of working on both had never really crossed my mind and I always thought it would have to be either one or the other. When I worked for the Ealing's, I didn't have time to do my art because it was dedicated to serving or cleaning and I hadn't drawn in so long I didn't think I would be able to. Then Robert had made the suggestion of drawing when I was recovering from Influenza and I found my love for it all over again.

If I trained as a nurse, I would have a decent job and position, but I could also do the thing I loved more than anything. Robert was right. Just because I was training as a nurse didn't mean that I had to stop doing the thing I loved if I had the time to do it. Christopher had already suggested I make money selling my artwork, but everything had gotten so intense with Mrs Ealing that I hadn't been able to start, and the idea had just been forgotten.

Perhaps doing both wouldn't be such a bad thing, but it would be a struggle to complete the nursing training and receive the qualification if I did two things at once. I would need to put all my attention into my reading and writing skills. The idea seemed fair but executing it would be harder.

Doctor Ealing returned not long after, with no one having knocked on the door or asked to see him in the time he was gone. Despite having taken an umbrella from the stand, he returned dripping wet and shook his lightly at Robert to prevent him from asking any questions. He had just disappeared into the back room to dry off when the front door banged open and the sound of heels snapped against the hard wood flooring.

"I want my children back, Albert." Mrs Ealing's shrill voice bounced off the walls and caused my to cringe and wish I could hide away so she didn't see me. She probably knew I was there, and I didn't want her to see me and end up creating more trouble.

"Here we go," Robert muttered beside me. "Don't make eye contact if you can help it, this is between them."

"Albert!"

Doctor Ealing emerged from the backroom with a towel flung over his shoulder and his hair sticking up in all manor of different directions after having me dried with the towel. He looked towards Robert and I and waved his hand, warning us off from any sort of interaction with Mrs Ealing; not that I had planned to get involved. Mrs Ealing came storming into the main room, her hair a mess and her dress soaking wet. Behind her, also looking a little worse for wear but no less looking proud and otherwise pleased with herself was Matilda.

Robert looked at me and moved a little closer towards me on the sofa, no doubt willing to step in if she turned away from Doctor Ealing and towards me instead.

"What is all this about, Elizabeth? This is my place of work. You cannot just come barging in here screaming at the top of your lungs. It's hardly appropriate and I doubt it falls into the etiquette and decorum lessons you have attempted to drill into our children."

"Because that had a big impact," Robert muttered beside me. He pressed his elbows into his knees and grasped his hands in front of. His eyebrows were furrowed as he watched the exchange between his parents. It was a difficult situation to be in, for all of us.

"I want my children back," Mrs Ealing said, her voice still high-pitched.

"We had this discussion the other day; the twins are better off with me at your sisters. At least for now."

"They need their Mother!"

"They need someone who isn't going to encourage violence. Both of them were terrified after Matilda's action the other week and it's no wonder. You have already turned Matilda into a vindictive and aggressive young lady, I won't have you doing the same thing to Charlotte and Zachariah."

Robert made a noise.

"How dare you! I have done nothing but show our children kindness and teach them the correct ways of behaving in society."

"I doubt that includes causing a serious head injury."

A knock at the door caught Robert's attention and his head immediately darted up to look through the window. He made a motion to me with his head and stood up, grabbing Doctor Ealing's briefcase and a wooden chair from the edge of the room. I doubt he wanted to bring anyone into the main room if they were still at each other's throats. He probably thought dealing with patients in the rain was better than forcing them to sit through the current situation unfolding in the office.

I pushed myself off the sofa and avoided Matilda's glare as I followed Robert from the room and out into the hallway. He took a breath and appeared – visibly – to be a lot calmer after leaving the room and his parents argument. We could still hear the rather loud discussion from the hallway, so Robert closed the door leading into the main room to muffle the sound before he opened the front door to whoever had been knocking.

On the doorstep to the office stood a young woman, water dripping from her clothing and umbrella. A young man stood beside her, a pair of women's shoes in his hand but he wasn't wearing his own shoes; she was. Robert put the chair just inside the hallway and offered to help walk the woman the short distance to the chair, but the young man took charge. He directed her into the chair and took her umbrella, shaking it outside and placing it against the wall by the front door.

"What happened?" Robert asked.

"She slipped and twisted her ankle. I said those shoes were a bad idea, regardless of whether they're the latest fashion."

"I'm inclined to agree. We get far too many twisted ankles from shoe choices, especially in winter."

"She's got the right ideas, boots all the way." The man gestured to me and the boots that had become a staple piece of every outfit I wore, unless James had other ideas.

Robert laughed and winked at me, kneeling beside the woman and slowly wiggling the man's shoes off the lady's foot. Once the boot was off, he lightly lifted the woman's ankle and started poke and twist it, watching her face for any form of reaction from her. He gestured to me and I knelt down beside him, having little to no idea what he expected me to do. At the factory, twisted ankles were just a way of life due to the uneven flooring and the exhaustion. We would wrap them with make-shift bandages and leave it be. Sometimes it would swell up so badly that getting our boots on or off was impossible. They were small enough as it was.

"First lesson of the day," Robert said. "Twisted ankles are to be wrapped with bandages. We know this is twisted because I can move it with minimal pain to the patient. Once it has been wrapped, the instruction are to ice it regularly, keep off it for two to three days and keep it elevated. They usually heal within a week."

"Are you training her?" the man asked.

"That's the plan, if she accepts. A trainee nurse under my father and I." He turned to the woman. "I will have to remove your stockings to bandage this, it'll be unwise to do it the other day."

"Go ahead, I lost whatever dignity I had when I slipped on the pavement." She turned to look at me as Robert set to work. "Good for you on taking a working path, and one as important as nursing. I wanted to be a teacher growing up, but Mother had other ideas. I hope you accept the training position."

"I do too," Robert added.

I shook my head at him, and he gestured for me to take the bandage from him. With Robert muttering beside me, I wrapped the ladies ankle with the bandage and tucked it into the top and Robert examined it before nodding at me and smiling. He pushed himself up and explained to the woman the correct way of dealing with the twisted ankle. I stood up as the gentleman handed over some coins to Robert, muttered a word of thanks and carried the woman from the chair and down the steps. He called for a carriage and Robert closed the door.

"Not bad for a first job of the day, twisted ankles are so common but easy to deal with." He glanced towards the main office. "I don't want to go in there."

Before I could reply, the main office door swung open and Mrs Ealing stalked from the room and brushed past us, almost knocking Robert out into the rain. Matilda followed closely behind her, sending me a glare for good measure as they both stepped down the steps and onto the street. Robert turned back into the shop to look at his father as he appeared in the doorway. He shook his head and said nothing.

I knew things would have been bad, but not that bad. Doctor Ealing had turned remarkably pale during the confrontation with his wife and it looked as though he could do with a tea and some biscuits. He wouldn't get the chance.

A loud crash and a scream echoed in the streets outside, capturing all of our attention. I exchanged a look with Robert just as a woman ran up the steps to the office.

"My carriage overturned! My son is trapped inside. You have to help!"

~~~

A/N - We are back with Chapter Twenty-Nine! I still haven't finished (or started) the last chapter of TAG purely because I've been so busy trying to finish Maddox Academy, but it's coming! I promise! 

Also, a lot of you suggested interest in a fourth book. I would love to branch out and do a potential prequel but I have no idea what to call it in relation to the current three stories. If you have any ideas, please let me know! It would be about Rosie's life at the factory.

Questions! What do you think will happen next?

Comment below!

Dedication - This chapter is dedicated to mofifoluwa003 for mass-voting on TAG! It means a lot to me :)

First Published - July 28th, 2020