[stylist] Trials of an honorary Dragon chapter 30 (Last chapter) Please comment.

[helene ryles]

Chapter 30
My sister at large
Liza Bronze

I gently stroked Nadia's hair.
“Nadia?  Are you ok?” I signed using tactile sign language as she
seemed to respond better to that then visual sign language.  Even
though the eye doctor had not detected any change in her eyesight.
It’s hard to know how much she can see these days.
Nadia made no response.
“Would you like some soup?” I asked, making an effort to be patient with her.
 “Is it vegan?” she signed back using the same method.
“Yes, it is vegan.  One of the Parvesh witches made it for you
especially.  She even typed out all the ingredients for you to read to
put your mind at rest,” I reassured her.
“My mind is never at rest.  I had that dream again.  I keep dreaming
about mother.  I won’t have to see mother again will I?” She asked me.
“No, your mother will be sent to prison soon as the police catch her.”
“I saw her last night, standing at the doorway.  I saw her coming
towards me…” Nadia told me.
“You must have had a bad dream.  She wouldn’t come here because there
are a lot of police officers guarding this ward.  They would arrest
her in no time if she came anywhere near this hospital.  Your old
bodyguard Katrina is also here,” I told her, hoping to reassure her.
“But the police don’t believe me,” She commented.
"They do now.  They are going to arrest your mother as soon as they
can find out where she‘s gone to.  You are safe here with us, and when
she is arrested and put on trial I will take you to the cave where
Sunniva and Pluto live.  They are very keen to see you and so is
Vinny.” I told her.
“I don‘t feel safe.  I feel scared.  You won‘t abandon me again for
Vinny will you?” she replied.
I sighed deeply.
      Several weeks had passed.  The operation to remove Nadia’s
cochlear implant had been successful.  Nadia’s physical health had
greatly improved but she was still as listless as ever.
She would have done better going back to the Parvesh stronghold now,
but P.C. Rickshaw still insisted that all the various ailing witnesses
for Madrella’s trial should be detained in this well guarded hospital
ward to keep us all safe and in one place.
I haven’t met Talmon or Vinny since then.  Vinny and I have been
exchanging letters, but it’s just not the same as being with him in
person.
On top of Nadia's health, I was still having problems with my
Glaucoma.   The eye drops I was given clearly had not started working
yet.  They are going to try a different combination. What if that did
not work either?  What if the doctor decided to take the eye out
altogether to feed to his dragon?  I would have to get used to being
totally deafblind like mother and Vinny.  Who would care for Nadia if
that happened?

"Here's a present from Talmon," Katrina signed.
"What is it? I asked feeling the large box that they had presented me with.
"It's a CCTV.  It‘s a device that enlarges print," she explained.
"You were assuming that I would still have sight to use it with?" I commented.
"I‘m sure you will.  Some people have been known to read regular print
sizes after being treated for glaucoma, but since you already had
delicate eyes to begin with and you left your Glaucoma untreated for
so long, we expect you would need some magnification," Katrina told
me.
I watched them setting up the machine.  It was quite a bulky
contraption with a monitor that looked just like a TV screen and a
space under that to put printed reading matter.
They presented me with a newspaper cutting to read:

“Dark secrets discovered at the dodgy deaf unit
Many will know about the 'let them fly' research team.  However, the
research team were recently horrified to make discoveries of an
entirely different nature, concerning the heartless hearing impaired
unit that they formally shared the premises with.
"All this started when Adam Wood went completely deaf," admits Mrs
Bird from 'Let Them Fly', "Adam is one of our most promising fliers.
We were hoping the hearing impaired unit would assist us in finding an
appropriate mode of communication for him.  Unfortunately he was far
too deaf to befit from their training methods.  They advised us to get
a cochlear implant for Adam, which we did at great expense.  Sadly
Adam died soon after being returned to the hearing impaired unit.  We
were assured that this was a fluke of nature.  Lots of children are
implanted without them dying, so we put Adam's death down as a tragic
accident and carried on as before.  I'm deeply ashamed to confess that
although we shared the building, we have never really had much to do
with the hearing impaired unit before Adam's deafness was discovered.
They took care of their children, and we took care of ours."
A few months after Adam's tragic loss,   the units dark secrets were
discovered, when a severely abused and starved child was found.
'Let them fly' hired an undercover agent to investigate further.
Their shocking finds reveal outdated forms of corporal punishment and
the regular withdrawal of food.  Such forms of discipline simply don't
belong at the end of the 20th century.
"I'm absolutely appalled,” Mrs Bird continues, "We had no idea any of
this was going on, under our very nose.  I'm glad to say the culprits
have been sentenced to jail and long may they rot there.   We have
just evicted the whole unit.     The deaf children have now all been
transferred to a really good deaf school in Druzil where they will be
more appropriately cared for.”

                          ***  *** ***

I felt someone shake me awake.
I reached for my cochlear implant.  As soon as I had turned it on I
could hear Nadia screaming.
I sighed.  She must be suffering from one of her nightmares.
“You’re niece is screaming again.   Can you do something to shut her
up so we can all get some sleep,” a hand wrote on mine using block
capital letters.  It must be one of those other witnesses who had been
detained.
I sighed irritably at her.  I allowed her to lead me to Nadia’s bed.
“It’s all right Nadia, you were just having a bad dream,” I signed.
“I saw mother again.  She was coming to get me.  Keep her away from
me!” Nadia signed.
“Don’t worry, we won’t let her hurt you,” I soothed.   It would be
useless trying to convince Nadia that her mother wasn’t really there.
Nadia couldn’t see that far and in this lighting condition neither of
us could see anything at all. Yet the notion that her mother was in
the room was unshakable.
Suddenly the door burst open.  The light came on.  As soon as my eye
had adjusted to the light, I could see a couple more patients being
wheeled in on trolleys.
"Who is it?" I asked.
"It's Wendy Krum and Mrs Bird from ‘let them fly’.  Someone has just
shot them both," spelt out the witness who had woken me up earlier.

                     ***  ***  ***

The next day I was busily coaxing Nadia to eat more of the vegetable
soup that had been made for her, when Katrina handed me another
newspaper article.

"Further Deaths linked to Dodgy deaf unit.
Wendy, a young undercover investigator was shot whilst cycling back
from her university to her hall of residence.  She was the under cover
agent who discovered the dark deeds at the heartless hearing impaired
unit.   This was her very first assignment.  After finishing her
degree in criminology she was planning to work for the Darthrilan
secret services.  She was an outstanding student with a very promising
career ahead of her.
 Later the same evening Mrs Bird, 'the let them fly' co coordinator
was also shot at whilst cycling home from work.
Both Wendy and Mrs Bird are critically wounded.
"We have no idea who the killer could be.  Most people want the gift
of flight.  Only a few weirdo's think it's unnatural.  It's either one
of those freaks or some deranged parent.  We have been receiving death
threats from an unnamed person if the hearing impaired unit was closed
down.  I can only hope that whoever shot Wendy and my wife will soon
be captured and promptly executed," Mr Bird commented whilst sitting
at his wife's bedside.
PC Rickshaw has begged people to come forward if they know anything
about the killer involved.

“I didn’t think Wendy was old enough to attend university,  and I’d be
surprised with her views on the Darthrilan police force, if she ever
wanted to work for them,” I commented after I’d read the article.
Katrina was sitting next to me, patiently waiting for me to finish
reading the article.
“No, I don’t think she would want to join the Darthrilan secret
services,” Katrina agreed using tactile sign language, “She did go to
university though.  She attends a special university for gifted
children.  She’s doing a degree on Animal psychology there.  After
that she wanted to take up law, so she can fight for the rights of all
animals in court.   Sunniva is desperately keen to come and see Wendy
but her grandmother has prevented her from coming anywhere near the
hospital in case they also get shot at.  She’s not happy about Pyre
being here, but his magic is just as powerful as hers,”
 I feel terrible about not allowing Wendy to attend Sunniva and
Nadia’s birthday party, even though Wendy came anyway.   Wendy had
helped Nadia escape after all, but she was so heavily into the animal
rights movement, and she said some really awful things about Talmon
Bronze.
It’s obvious who the killer is.  I only hope they catch her soon, so
we can all leave at last.