Play@YSDC

Phyllis and the air raid warden were strong enough together to bear the stretcher with Archie. They made their way to air raid warden's post, and by the time they got there, the ambulance had arrived. Irene Carpenter and Florence Bryant were there. "Oh, hello again!" said Irene. "Here, let's load him in the back. We can take him from here."

Archie:

Archie briefly opens his eyes. He whispers, "Ladies, very nice to see you again. I'm sorry to be such a bother." His eyes turn to Phyllis. "I guess we should report to the authorities that the major went mad and shot me? Something like that. Everyone will assume it was because of his war injuries, I suspect. I'll leave it to your better judgement." With a sigh, he lapses into unconsciousness again.

Phyllis turns to the ambulance ladies, “Hello again, Irene. I’ll come too if you don’t mind. The Reverend’s been shot in his chest and I’ll need to report to the authorities.”

"Goodness!" gasped Irene, helping load the stretcher into the rear of the ambulance. "Of course you can ride in the back with him."

"You did a good job binding his wound, ma'am," said Florence. "He'll be all right until we get him to hospital."

Once Archie and Phyllis were safely ensconced in the back of the ambulance, the air raid warden returned to her duties, and Irene and Florence got in the front of the ambulance, which pulled away.

Phyllis braced herself against the wall of the ambulance as it rattled along the streets and thought back to the recent events.
She and Archie were incredibly lucky to be alive; she wondered what the beast had done with Major Steadman. Mrs Steadman would recover eventually and, in all likelihood, return to her mother. Phyllis wondered how they were getting on at the sanitarium.

Hadn’t Sergeant MacDonald and Eugene seen the beast too, which made them ‘susceptible’ ? Did that mean that she too was in danger? What did it all mean? And that boy had run off with the jewel into the East End and what did that mean for them all?
And had that old man recovered the dagger which they said could hurt the beast? Phyllis shivered; she found that hard to believe.
She clung on as the ambulance bounced across a series of potholes and then she looked at her watch but it had stopped.
“What time is it?” She called to Irene.

Irene was driving, but Florence checked her wristwatch. In spite of the darkness, the dial glowed. It had to be one of those radium watches. "It's almost half eight," she replied.

“Oh dear; the night is fr from over.” Phyllis thinks. She takes hold of Archie’s hand and squeezes it gently. “You remind me of one of those gallant missionaries, Reverend.” She whispers. “Fighting back the dark with a bible in one hand and a sword in the other.”

Nothing came from Archie but a gentle snore.

OOC,[b]Phyllis[/b], is there anything you want to do before you reach the hospital?

Phyllis smiles and then sits back and waits for the journey to end.

Irene drove skillfully, and soon the ambulance pulled up in a hospital parking lot, just outside the emergency entrance. She and Florence got out and went around to the back, where they opened the door. "We've arrived," said Irene. "We took you to St. Bart's." A couple of orderlies emerged from the hospital and made their way over.

“Good, thank you, Irene. Will they be able to see Reverend Pennyfeather right away? Also, I need to make an urgent phone call to the Sanitarium if I may?” Phyllis climbs out of the ambulance, rather glad to be on solid ground again.

"You're quite welcome, dear," said Irene.

"You can use the telephone in reception, ma'am," one of the orderlies told Phyllis as they took up the stretcher with Archie. "Don't worry, they'll treat him right away. Bomb shrapnel?"

"No, gunshot wound, of all things." Irene turned to Phyllis. "You take care and stay safe. Florence and I have to get back out there."

Phyllis followed the orderlies into reception, where she was allowed to use the phone. After a few rings, Anna picked up the phone on the other end.

“Oh, Dr. Jerkins, it’s Mrs Cruckshank here.” Phyllis speaks rather breathlessly. “Is everyone alright there? The Reverend and I are at St. Barts Hospital; the Reverend has been shot but they’re going to operate straight away. It was Major Steadman.

But, Dr. Jerkins, we’ve seen it; we’ve seen the great big bat beast and it was horrible; we were nearly done in! It flew off with the Major and it’s loose in London; it might come your way.” She stops for a pause.

"Poor Reverend Pennyfeather!" gasped Anna. "It sounds as though the Major was up to his neck in things, Mrs. Cruckshank. We're well over here, for the moment at least. The power has gone in the hospital so we are relying on candles and lanterns. Mrs. Exeter looks like she is up to something so I had better get back downstairs. I do hope the Reverend pulls through and the bat stays away from the sanatorium."

“I’m glad you’re all okay. Would you mind asking Eugene and Sergeant MacDonald; well, you see, That dratted bat had its tail wrapped around my waist and, and I’m a bit worried I might be susceptible to its influence now. Could you ask them their opinion? I’d be very much obliged.
“I’ll let you go, dear; you know where to find me. Oh, I used my hurricane lamp to frighten the bat away so keep the lamps burning! Goodbye!”
Once Phyllis has said goodbye she’ll go to the waiting room and look for a cup of tea and a chair.

While Phyllis waited and had her tea in a waiting room in the basement that doubled as an air raid shelter, the medical staff treated Archie and did a decent job. Before long, a doctor with white hair came down to talk to Phyllis. "Your friend is very lucky, ma'am," he said. "That bullet could have killed him. If it hadn't lodged in his Bible, and if not for your quick action to stop the bleeding, he never would have survived to reach hospital. He's stable now and somewhat improved, though he will need extended bed rest before he can recover fully."

OOC,Doctor's Medicine roll (75% skill) treating [b]Archie[/b]: 0

“Oh thank you for saving him, Doctor! May I see him?” Asks Phyllis, much bouyed by the good news.

"You're quite welcome, ma'am," said the doctor. "Yes, he's awake now and able to receive visitors." He escorted Phyllis to a hospital room where Archie lay in bed, being fussed over by a pretty nurse. "i'm sure the police will have some questions about the shooting, I'm just not sure which police force has jurisdiction. If it happened here in the City of London, it'll be the City Police. If it wasn't, it'll be the London Metropolitan Police."

“To be honest, I rather lost my bearings and I don’t know exactly where it happened.” Answers Phyllis. “Hello Reverend, how are you feeling? You look somewhat better than earlier.”

She turns back to the doctor. “Do you have the lucky bible? The one with the hole in it?”