The Book: chapter 4

Summer made Alice happy, and her life felt perfect. She was overworked and underpaid like every health professional in the world, but she thrived on the stress of her job. The long shifts didn’t phase her. She lived in a movie scene where birds chirped in the garden, and the scent of toast filled the kitchen with bready aroma. She smiled. It was good, but she was wrong, it wasn’t perfect. The lawn needed mowing and her pile of washing threatened to overspill the basket. The car had to have its MOT by the end of the month, and the gas bill was an unexpected breakfast guest that morning. But life was good. She finished filling their mugs, and as she walked behind Mick with the coffees, she leaned over and kissed him before sitting down.

‘Benji. No.  Get down from there,’ she shouted.

Her pet rat, Benji, scurried across the small kitchen table and sniffed her boyfriend’s plate. Mid-movement with a forkful of eggs, Mick paused to eye the brown and white rodent with playful distaste. ‘You know, Alice, you’ve got two types of men in your life: the one who makes you breakfast and the one who steals it.'

Alice laughed. Mick made her feel good and she loved him for his goofiness.

‘Benji, mate, you’ve got your own breakfast,’ he said, nudging the rat away. The creature responded with a twitch of his whiskers, the animal equivalent of a sneer, as Mick relented and gave him the crust from his toast. The happy rat retreated, using his secret agent skills to navigate furniture. He settled in a sunny place on the windowsill over the sink.

‘Do you have to let him run around the kitchen?’ he asked.

‘I’ve told you a million times, he’s cleaner than you are. And he’s housetrained. Another plus over you.’

‘I’ve heard of breakfast in bed, but breakfast with a rat?’

Alice smiled, though her work shift loomed like a storm cloud over her thoughts. Mick had a way of grounding her even when she was preoccupied with work.

‘You’re thinking again,’ he said, flicking a crumb at her. ‘I’ve warned you that’s dangerous.’ He put his fork down and caught her hand. ‘If you keep it up, you’ll dream about alter egos and syringe inventories again tonight.’

‘I’d better not. I’m working the first of my seven nights on remember? I’ll need to grab some sleep later on.’

Mick’s face deflated. He supported Alice in everything she did and said he was proud of her work, but he preferred it when she was on days.

‘It’s not that bad. Think of the welcome you’ll get on my two days off,’ she said and winked.  

‘That’s no way to send a man to work, I’ll be able to think of nothing else. But even that depends on you getting your off duty next week.’ He hugged her to take the sting out of his words.

As a senior psychiatrist at the hospital, her job demanded relentless stamina. There was no room for half-measures or mistakes—a standard she applied to herself and, when she had to, her lower-ranking colleagues.

Most of her co-workers were reliable but didn’t share her obsessive drive. It made her feel detached. The nurses and porters never excluded her, but she was just on the outside of their banter. Mick said it was because of her position and had nothing to do with her personality. But Alice worried about it, wondering if her professional standards created a wall between her and the other staff 

‘Right, you. I’m out of here before Benji steals my toast.’ Mick stood up and kissed her.

When Alice arrived at work that night, the shift was already humming with frenetic energy. She pulled a face and pointed at the sky as she greeted the staff. ‘There’s a full moon. It explains a lot.’ She laughed before guiding Jenkins away from the ward entrance that automatically locked behind her, trapping her for at least the next thirteen hours. ‘Jenkins, lucky you—we’ve got a full-moon offer tonight,’ Alice said. ‘One free happy pill per patient.’

Intense behaviour accompanied full moons and they threw the hospital’s delicate balance into chaos. She’d seen it happen over the years and told herself it wasn’t superstition. Something about the lunation tipped the balance of the hospital’s fragile ecosystem. That’s why they used to be called lunatics. She noticed the patients were more agitated, and the staff irritable.

‘We’re a nurse down and one of the porters got hit with a commode seat. He’s gone to A&E,’ Felix said as Alice walked into the staffroom.

‘And hello to you too,’ she said.

He was sprawled in a chair, and his scrubs looked as if they’d been at a student union party. A forensic team would struggle to identify the various stains.

Debbie smirked from the coffee urn. ‘I bet she’s been counting the minutes until shift time. Couldn’t wait to dive into the playhouse.’

‘You’re not wrong about the counting, but your reasoning might need rejigging. Here’s to another episode of Annexe After Dark,’ Alice unbuttoned her jacket. ‘What’s the word tonight? Anyone combusted?’

‘Plenty of meltdowns but no actual flames yet. The day staff have been fighting fires since breakfast,’ Mara said. Her dark eyes were sharp, but there was a weariness about her that Alice knew well. ‘But, give it time, the shift has just begun.’ Mara groaned and Alice put a coffee in front of her as she sat down. Mara smiled her thanks.

The first two hours passed with controlled pandemonium. Medication rounds, patient checks, and minor crises were coordinated with tea and clinical detachment. But as the clock raced toward midnight, a peculiar tension settled over the annexe. Conversations became clipped. Even the hum of the lights seemed accusatory.

Alice had noticed one of the nurses pacing. Her eyes darted to the clock, tense as though counting down to an explosion. There’d been an altercation involving her that afternoon before Alice arrived. A visitor had been caught stealing from one of the patients and Carla was still riled up about it.

Raised voices echoed down the corridor and she abandoned the stack of patient files on her desk to follow the sound from her office.

She saw Carla by the main door, engaged in a shouting match with a visitor—a tired-looking woman whose clenched fists and flushed face radiated fury. Carla Hesling, a seasoned nurse in her forties, stood her ground, barring the door.

‘You shouldn’t be here,’ she shouted. ‘Go away or I’ll call the police. After what happened, I’m surprised you can show your face.’

‘It’s none of your business,’ the woman said. Her gravelly voice slurred and an edge of alcohol sharpened her anger. ‘I’m here for my sister, not you. You can’t stop me coming in.’

‘Watch me!’ Carla said. Her tone was as sharp as glass. ‘It’s you who put her in here.’ Alice was shocked by her lack of professionalism. Carla was her best nurse.

Patients spattered into the corridor like sparks from a fire. ‘I knew this was going to happen. I saw it,’ Molly said. She held a book under one arm and let her other hand rise into her hairline.

‘Nurse Hesling. That’s enough.’ Alice didn’t shout, but her tone was enough to pierce steel.  She was aware of the audience gathering near the front desk. Felix and Mara hovered, whispering, and Debbie stood with Louis at the nurses’ station.

‘What’s going on?’ Alice asked, stepping forward, her voice authoritative.

‘Ask her.’ The woman bristled with indignation and, jabbed a finger at Carla. ‘She’s got it in for me. Just because she lives on my street, she thinks she owns it. She’s a snotty cow and needs bringing down a peg or two.’

‘I’m not letting you back in here after the stunt you pulled,’ Carla said. ‘You’re a thief. And rather than turning up here at midnight, you should try cleaning your house and paying your bills.’

‘How dare you!’

‘When was the last time you walked your dog? The state of your garden is disgusting. I’m going to call the RSPCA. You’re not fit to have animals.’

‘I said that’s enough,’ Alice ordered. ‘Nurse Hesling, wait for me in the staff room. I’ll deal with this.’ Before Alice could get between them, the woman pushed through the door. ‘You bitch. Where do you think your husband is while you’re at work, eh? The whole street’s laughing at you, Hesling. They say the wife’s always the last to know.’

‘You’re lying.’

‘Am I?’ Mrs Kelly laughed, but it had no humour and a cruel undertone. ‘You think you’re better than me. But I don’t hide behind a uniform and a fancy car while my man’s shagging a woman from work,’ Mrs Kelly said. ‘What’s the matter? Aren’t you up to the job yourself?’

Carla’s hand shot out, slapping Mrs Kelly with a sharp crack across the face. The velocity silenced the corridor and one of the patients threw his head back and howled with laughter. Other patients, drawn out of their rooms by the noise, paraded a cacophony of reactions—some laughed, others shouted, ‘Fight, fight, fight,’ and banged their fists on the walls in agitation. And Carla Hesling dropped to her knees, covered her face, and sobbed. Molly pushed to the front and stared at the conflict. Her eyes shone.

Chaos broke like an enraged chimpanzee escaped from a cage. Mrs Kelly lunged at Carla, ramming her against the wall. Felix and Debbie rushed over to separate them, but Kelly’s strength caught them off guard. Alice grabbed Carla by the shoulders and tried to pull her to safety, but the fight intensified.

‘Security!’ Alice shouted, her voice cutting through the commotion. Somebody would have hit the panic button under the desk.

Two security guards arrived, burly men whose presence and reasonable force were enough to bring the fight to a flailing end. They restrained both parties with practised efficiency, though Mrs Kelly’s protests echoed down the corridor as they dragged her away. Her lip was bleeding.

Carla was pale and her hands trembled when the guard released her and she leaned against the wall. Alice resisted the urge to shake her, torn between frustration and sympathy. ‘What the hell was that?’ she demanded, her voice low.

Carla’s tone was defensive. ‘She’s scum.’

‘No. She’s the sister of one of our patients.’

‘She came to cause trouble. We have proof that she stole money out of Barbara’s drawer. She came back for more.’

‘So you hit her in front of half the staff? What were you thinking?’

Carla lowered her gaze and said nothing. Her hand tentatively touched the black eye forming as her damaged eye closed. The angry swell was already darkening with bruises and Alice thought Carla’s cheekbone was probably broken.

She was shaken too, her frustration mounting as she scrubbed a hand over her face. This would be a mess to document. Regardless of the provocation, there was no excuse for Carla’s behaviour. Alice would have to fill out the initial incident report, there was no way around it. A knot in her stomach made her feel nauseous. Carla had crossed a line, but Alice knew the consequences would hit hard—especially if the rumours were true. At the very least, she’d have to be suspended pending further investigation, and Alice feared the suspension could lead to eventual dismissal. She was furious with the nurse, but Alice had been cheated on in the past, and the last thing Carla needed was to lose her job—and her husband. She’d arrange a disciplinary interview, but in the meantime, she’d have Carla’s injuries checked and documented, giving Mrs Kelly time to clear the grounds. Then she could send her nurse home and restore some normality—whatever that was. It meant being another staff member down for the rest of the shift.

This was the shift from hell and it felt like trying to patch a sinking ship with duct tape and a prayer. There was a tap on her office door and Debbie came in, wiping something unsavoury on her uniform with a wipe, and told her that Molly was threatening to harm herself. Alice said she’d be right there. A headache pinged at the edges of her temples and she rubbed her arm where Kelly had grabbed her during the fight. She hadn’t noticed then, but it hurt like hell now.  

The fight left a crack in the night’s already disrupted routine, and the patients were riled up. Alice felt it. The staff’s banter was replaced by stiff professionalism and whispers, their unease lingering like smoke after a housefire.

In quiet moments between rounds, Alice retreated to the staffroom, seeking refuge in a mug of stewed coffee. She sat alone, her thoughts heavy after the night’s drama.

Benji would be waiting for her when she got home. He’d greet her without judgement—but he was shit at running a bath for her. Maybe it was time to let Mick move in.

The full moon still wreaked havoc on them and the air felt charged with unresolved tension, but the night wasn’t over. Draining her coffee, Alice braced herself for whatever mischief that dusty ball of rock had held back to throw at them.

 

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