Free Roses For Katie by Dilys Xavier

crestfallen as she was wheeled away. ‘You’ll come again, soon?’ she whispered.
    ‘Tomorrow,’ Katie answered, and left, none the wiser about what was to happen, because Sister had been called away to an emergency in the next ward. Rather than wait for her to reappear, Katie decided it was wiser to leave the issue for the time being, and left. She found Pat reclining in the driver seat with his eyes closed, obviously expecting a long wait.
    ‘You didn’t take long,’ he said, looking surprised when Katie opened the door. ‘Is your aunt okay?’
    ‘Comfortable,’ Katie replied. ‘They’re running more tests right now, and taking every precaution. I really shouldn’t worry so much; it doesn’t help.’
    Pat put the vehicle into gear, and drove onto the main road. ‘First I want you to take a good look as we pass the garden of the house right at the end of this road. I’ve done a lot of work there, and ‘tis my guess that you’ll probably want a few blooms like the ones you’ll see in the front.’ He slowed down.
    Katie gasped. ‘They are simply gorgeous. You’re right; I’d love my garden full of colour like that one. Tell me where I can buy some.’
    Pat gave her a quick sideways glance, and smiled. ‘I thought you’d like them… they’re camellias, pink, and red ones. Right, after our picnic, we’ll visit the centre where they stock them, and you can pick out what you fancy. And your rose trees.’
    Katie sighed and relaxed again, feeling quite happy. Although the concern about Aunt Bertha lay heavily at the back of her mind, there was little she could do about it.’
    ‘Our picnic first,’ Katie reminded him.
    Pat nodded, and left the main road for a leafy country lane that wound up to the local woods. He parked the car and lifted out the basket of food that Katie had packed. ‘Come on, follow me,’ he said, grinning as he made his way up a path. ‘Ah, it’s still there — see? A rustic table and two bench seats only a few yards off the pathway. I spotted them when I came up here for a walk one day last summer.’ He placed the basket on the table and, with a flourishing gesture, invited Katie to be seated.
    There was no sound except the twitter of birds. Squirrels boldly scrabbled up and down trees and darted in and out of the shrubbery, seemingly quite tame. One even jumped onto the table and pushed its little paws inside the bag to rummage around for a tasty morsel.
    ‘It looks like he’s done that before,’ Pat said, flicking the creature off the table. ‘The trouble is, people fill a bag with squirrel goodies, and have a bit of fun watching them. I’ve seen it so many times, so you can’t blame the creatures, and they learn to do tricks for food quite quickly.’
    The other woodland creatures kept their distance. Birds watched from the safety of the trees, probably noting where crumbs dropped so that they could be retrieved later. As they ate, the warm afternoon sun peeped in and out through the leafy trees, dancing around on the grass like ballerinas of nature.
    A delicate breeze ruffled the foliage, and Katie breathed in the healthy smell of woodland air. ‘This is idyllic,’ she whispered. ‘I could stay here forever, and never have a care in the world.’
    ‘Well, it’s good to know you feel so contented,’ Pat, said. ‘It’s always like this in Ireland, y’know; always quiet, always tranquil, barely any cars on the roads and, as you say, idyllic. Have you been there?’
    Katie shook her head. ‘Greg and I often thought about going, but we never got round to it. Maybe one day I’ll go there on a bus tour.’
    ‘Oh, you should take a look at the Emerald Isle, for sure,’ Pat said. Then he sighed and remained silent for a moment or two. ‘The house I live in here is tied to the job on the Poulton Estate, just two miles down the road from your home,’ he said.
    ‘The Poulton Estate? Oh, I know that place, but I had no idea you worked there. I’ve wondered on