Chapter 8

Alessio

Franco chuckles as the infuriating woman leaves the table without acknowledging me at all. She gave him a sweet smile and a thank you before leaving, completely ignoring me. But I’m not jealous! Why would I be jealous? I am angry, no, furious because she is ignoring me on purpose and showing it by giving my best friend that smile.

“She will certainly test your patience, my brother!” Franco laughs and sticks a bacon in his mouth. I only growl at him as my eyes follow her out of the dining hall.

“I will have her submit one way or another.” Franco hums and drinks the last of his coffee.

“I’m sure you will. But keep in mind what she said. If you injure her she can’t work, so be careful. You can always train on your restraint on the bastard in the dungeon. Make sure you can administer enough strength to hurt, but not enough to injure.”

“Yeah. Maybe you’re right. At least it will keep him alive for a bit longer.” I give Franco a sick smile and he returns it full force. “Let's eat up and we can pay Gregor a visit and see if he has had a good night's sleep.”

***

Catherine

We started the inspection in the room where I performed the surgery. The room is old and has been unused for many years. There is a faint layer of dust in the corners and the instruments are old. I can use the old instruments but with more modern technology I can do a better job.

New lightning, new gurney and new tiles are a must as well as a new room for preparation, both for the medical personnel and the patient. I look at the rooms adjourning the surgery room and am pleased when I see the possibilities of them. Then I move on to the reception. A small room that can be made much more inviting to instill calmness on the patients. Pierto has followed me to every room and right now he is leaning against the door leading out to the corridor. Removing him from the room will ease the stuffy air quite a lot.

“What type of patients do we receive here?” I ask Dr. Davies as I walk around the dark and broody reception and waiting room.

“Everyone that is part of the family. Everyone that lives on the premises. You could say we are a small community on our own.” Dr. Davies is leaning against the door to his office. It is obvious he is guarding his territory.

“Are there elders and children as well?” I raise my brows in disgusted surprise.

“Yes. There are more people than just the ones that are actively mafia members. There is an apartment complex as well as bungalows, semi-detached houses and townhouses. We have a preschool for the younger children and the older children travel to the nearest school.”

“Wow. So it really is like a community.” Dr. Davies nods his head. “Where is the examination room?” He points towards the small corridor that connects to the prep room I want to use for medical personnel. 

Opposite of the door are two others. I open the first and enter a small dark room with a bunk, some cupboards with outmoded instruments. It’s the same as all the other rooms, in big need of a facelift and new instruments. The other examination room looks the same except it is larger and has a window. The window does a lot to give a more welcoming aura, but it would need a frosting or something to prevent others from seeing inside.

Opposite of that room is another office that is not in use. It is about the same size as the second examination room and has a window as well. It would be better to change this into a second examination room instead of having it as an office.

When I come back to the reception Dr. Davies has entered his office. It is a fairly large room but it is full of cupboards with materials and a too big desk with a computer on. The room could easily hold office space for both me and him if we change the first examination room to a storage room and pharmacy.

“It would be better to have this as an office for both of us. The other office should become an examination room and the small room without a window can be storage.”

“Where will we receive the patients if we don’t have separate offices’?”

“In the examination rooms. Both will need computers and a conjoined network so we can access the information on any computer, or if we each have a laptop. This place is very outdated and a lot of changes need to be made. I can use the other office for the time being when I write down all the changes that have to be made. I’m sure you can handle the clinic for the time being?”

“Of course. I have taken care of this on my own for over a year!” He looks insulted at my comment but I pretend to not notice. He might have handled the clinic for a year, but I’m sure there is a lot of room for improvement for him.

“How long have you been a licensed doctor?”

“For four years.” He crosses his arms over his chest and straightens up to appear more threatening. That's only two years less than me but his knowledge is much lower.

“Have you ever been at a hospital or did you come from school to here?”

“I came here immediately after school. I had Dr. Wallace to intern under for almost three years.”

“I see. Well. I’m sure we can have a good companionship with this clinic. I noticed yesterday that there are a lot of things you need guidance in and I might not be a senior doctor but I’m sure I can assist you on some parts.”

“I can do enough without your help.” He spits at me.

“I would never be pleased with just enough. To be a good doctor you need to constantly evolve and try new things. Together I am positive that we can do just that. You have knowledge from your previous senior doctor and knowledge about our patients that I don’t have.” He seems to relax at those words and I smile inwardly. A little flattering can take you a long way. “I have experience from working at a modern and large hospital.” 

“Okay. I can see your point.” He murmurs. I smile at him and he relaxes even more, letting his arms fall down to his sides again. I knew I could win him over. Not that I for a second believe him to accept me fully yet, but with small steps we can make it work. My appeasing nature can be quite an asset when dealing with stubborn children. I mean men.

“I will work on my list now. If there is anything that you would like to discuss, if you have any ideas or thoughts about changes, please come and speak to me.” He nods and I smile at him. “If there is a patient you would like help with, you can come to me as well.” This time the nod is more reserved but it’s still affirmative. Then I go to the other office to start on the long list of things needed to be done.

Seems like Cathering has a lot of work to do getting the clinic modern and inviting and getting Dr. Davies to accept her as his new colleague.