Out of Practice (52 page)

She leaned forward, watching Elsie’s chest for any sign of movement.

She looked so still and so pale that it frightened the life out of Holly when Elsie suddenly said, ‘You really shouldn’t hover over a person like that,’ and her eyes popped
open.

Holly stifled a gasp – part fear, part relief – and then scooped Elsie into her arms. ‘Are you okay? What on earth is going on and why did you let him in?’

Elsie’s jaw set and she looked furious. ‘I opened the door to go out and there he was on the doorstep, pushed his way in.’

‘But are you okay?’

‘I’m fine, my lovely girl, I’m fine – he tried to sedate me, though!’ Elsie unfurled her palm to show two hi-strength diazepam tablets. ‘I tucked them in my
cheek when he forced them in my mouth – I’ve just been playing along to bide my time. But, Holly, he seems to think I’ve signed a form to go to a nursing home!’ The fear was
bright in Elsie’s eyes for a moment, before sadness and confusion swept in. ‘But I really don’t think I did, Holly. You know me. I wouldn’t do that!’

Holly’s thoughts were running on at warp speed. Was it enough to stand up to Henry here, or did she need to take him down once and for all. ‘Elsie, are you up for a starring role? I
think Henry Bruce would look rather good on camera, don’t you?’

Elsie’s smile may have been wonky, but there was no doubting the strength of the grip with which she held Holly’s hand. ‘Let’s take the bastard down.’

Holly tried to breathe quietly behind the curtains, her iPhone shaking in her hand as she captured Henry Bruce on film.

‘Now then, Elsie, the private ambulance will be here shortly and we’ll have you tucked up at Willowbrook in no time.’

Elsie’s voice was trembling but distinct. ‘I do not wish to go to a nursing home and I did not sign that form.’

Henry sighed. ‘You mustn’t work yourself up, Mrs Townsend. Do you remember, we looked at the brochures together? You said the garden looked nice?’

‘I did not,’ Elsie protested. ‘And you sedated me!’ Her vowels were beginning to slur and Holly felt a moment’s panic. How quickly could they persuade Henry to
incriminate himself, she wondered. Then she remembered – Elsie hadn’t actually
been
sedated. She was just a brilliant actress.

She needn’t have worried about Henry. His arrogance clearly knew no bounds.

‘I’ve got all the paperwork here, Mrs Townsend. Look, how you’ve been permanently confused recently and cannot manage your own meds.’ Henry pulled a sad face. ‘Such
a shame. And look, it says here you’re dehydrated . . .’

‘I asked you for a drink!’ protested Elsie, pulling her head back upright with an effort.

‘And yes, you were quite hysterical, weren’t you, so I had to give you a sedative to calm you down before the transfer team got here.’ Henry smiled and Holly zoomed in on his
reptilian features as he loomed over Elsie threateningly. ‘You’ll like Willowbrook, Mrs Townsend, really you will. It’s very exclusive, very expensive. Perfect for very wealthy,
meddling little old ladies!’

‘What’s it to you how I spend my money?’

‘Oh dear sweet Mrs Townsend, or Elsie. May I call you Elsie? Your money is my retirement fund. All my senior ladies are doing wonders for my pension. Such generous commission, you see, on
bringing them a nice little cash cow. And it’s win:win for me – because who will report on your little concert now? Without you there, it’s just a roomful of tuneless wannabes.
You’d have thought they’d be a little more protective of their golden goose, wouldn’t you?’

‘You won’t get away with this. Not when I tell them what you’ve done!’

Henry made his little sad face again, mocking her indignation. ‘Oh, Elsie, you still don’t get it do you? Who do you think will ever believe you?’

‘Well, I will,’ said Holly forcefully, stepping out from behind the curtains, ‘but then I did have the benefit of a front row seat!’

Henry’s face went from puce to white to green in moments. It was a bit like watching a biological traffic light. ‘As if you’re the most reliable witness,’ he
spluttered.

Holly shrugged, waving her phone at him. ‘Doesn’t really matter, when I’ve got everything here!’ Holly stepped forward and took Elsie’s hand in hers. ‘Are you
okay?’

Elsie yawned and stretched. ‘Never better, my darling. You know, once I got into the spirit of it, I really rather enjoyed that. Maybe I was a little premature in retiring. Shirley
MacLaine does some excellent character roles these days . . .’ Elsie flashed a wicked smile at Henry Bruce. ‘And of course, I do an excellent turn as a courtroom witness.’

Henry sat down heavily onto one of the armchairs. Tall and strong, he could easily have overpowered Holly for her phone, but the element of surprise seemed to have completely thrown him.

Holly imagined that this little scenario had been played out plenty of times before – maybe Henry had become a little complacent. He certainly hadn’t been expecting Candid
Camera.

Holly pressed a few buttons on her phone. ‘Chief Inspector Davis, I’m sorry to disturb, but could we borrow you for a moment. I’m at Elsie Townsend’s house and we need
your expertise.’

Holly hung up and eyeballed Henry Bruce. ‘I hope you rot in jail,’ she said with feeling.

‘Ooh yes,’ joined in Elsie. ‘A pretty chap like you will never be lonely.’

Henry opened his mouth to fight back, just as his face crumpled like a sodden napkin on one side and his hand slipped off the arm of the chair. ‘Iv nob goh . . .’ he began, the panic
in his eyes betraying his fear at whatever was happening.

‘Oh shit!’ cried Holly, kneeling down beside him to loosen his tie and wishing she had her medical bag with her.

There was a heavy knock at the door and Holly cast a glance back at Elsie. ‘Are you okay to get that?’

Elsie made her way through to the hall to answer the door.

‘It looks like your private ambulance got here just in time,’ said Holly, stepping back to give them access. She turned to them. ‘Garth is it? Okay then, Henry here has had a
stroke, so I’ll let you do the honours. And when you’re done,’ Holly beckoned to the figure that appeared in the doorway behind them, ‘I’m sure Chief Inspector Davis
would love a word.’

The house was silent for a moment after Henry Bruce and his medical and police entourages had left.

Holly felt mildly deflated. All that intense panic and pressure had led to a bit of an anti-climax.

Elsie patted her face gently. ‘Let’s get a bit of colour back in those cheeks, shall we? And of course, we must attempt to avoid dehydration at all costs . . .’ She went over
to the fridge and pulled out some fresh orange juice and a bottle of vodka. She waggled it at Holly. ‘Doctor’s orders?’

Holly laughed, utterly in awe of the speed with which Elsie had recovered her equilibrium. ‘Make mine a double,’ she said. Checking her watch on autopilot, Holly gasped. ‘The
concert!’

Elsie passed her a drink. ‘It’s only five past. Relax . . . They’ll wait for me. They always do.’

They clinked glasses and smiled at each other. ‘I think we’ve all done very well,’ said Elsie.

Holly took a long drink and fought the burn. ‘To karma!’ she said.

‘I’ll drink to that,’ agreed Elsie. ‘Although, you know, Holly, that Doctor Bruce may have had a point. About my meds. Maybe I have been muddling them up, because these
ones here . . .’ she jabbed her finger at a clear container holding little white oval pills. ‘Well, those are supposed to help with anxiety, but I’ve been taking them all day and
it hasn’t made a jot of difference.’

‘Jesus, Elsie. How many did you take?’ asked Holly switching back into panic mode.

‘Oh, only one or two,’ said Elsie, ‘and then maybe another couple . . .’

Holly reached over to take Elsie’s pulse which was strong and steady. ‘Do you mind if I . . .’ she leaned over to get a better look at what Elsie had been taking ‘all
day’ and then burst out laughing with relief.

Elsie gave her an arch look. ‘Is my decrepitude amusing to you, young lady?’

‘No,’ said Holly. ‘But you are. And no wonder these tablets haven’t been working. They’re Tic-Tacs!’

‘Oh,’ said Elsie, rather losing the moral high ground with that one. ‘Well, at least I know I’ll die with minty fresh breath.’

‘Did anyone order a feisty octogenarian?’ asked Holly, pulling open the stage door with a grin and ushering Elsie in.

Relieved cries of ‘
Elsie!!!
’ echoed back stage, until Grace shushed them with a wave of her clipboard.

Taffy and Julia rushed forward, relief etched onto their faces. Taffy scooped Elsie up in his arms and swung her around until she giggled like a schoolgirl. Gently placing her back onto her feet
and making sure she was steady he looked her squarely in the eye. ‘We were all so worried. Are you alright?’

‘I am now,’ said Elsie, ‘thanks to this one.’ Elsie pulled Holly to her side.

Holly couldn’t look up. She’d hoped to insert Elsie into their midst and sneak away. Elsie’s ability to recover like India rubber put her to shame. She felt shaken and nauseous
and certainly not in a position to cope with Taffy.

Without waiting for an invitation, Taffy pulled Holly into a hug, dropping a lingering kiss onto her hair as Elsie breathlessly filled them in on their exploits.

Holly’s mind was all for pulling away. Holly’s body seemed to have other plans. She found herself relaxing into his embrace, the warmth of his arms and the comforting smell of him.
It was like coming home to a crackling log fire on a snowy day. He was home. The softness of his shirt pressed against Holly’s cheek and his arm tightened imperceptibly.

‘I thought you weren’t speaking to me,’ he murmured into her hair.

In that instant, Holly was forced to remember all the reasons that she wasn’t. She pulled away, just as the audience in the Little Theatre burst into a deafening round of applause.

Elsie looked dumbfounded, more shocked than she had all evening. ‘You started without me?’

Grace rushed forward to explain and Holly quietly extricated herself from Taffy’s arms. ‘Just a little warm-up act, Elsie. We didn’t know how long you’d be and the crowd
were getting restless.’

‘Hmm,’ said Elsie suspiciously. ‘Has Dan gone out to do our opening yet?’

‘No, no,’ soothed Grace. ‘We just wanted to keep the masses happy.’

Holly tilted her head and listened. Whoever was on stage had the most amazing voice and seemed to be singing a cappella. Not only that, but they sounded awfully familiar. ‘Grace? Who is
that? They’re doing an amazing job. You know, they almost sound as good as Barry O’Connor!’

Holly couldn’t help but think how much Lizzie would have enjoyed this warm-up act. Okay, so it wasn’t the real thing, but how many years had Lizzie been listening to his records on a
loop?

‘Well, actually, that’s the thing,’ Grace whispered excitedly, dabbing at her forehead and looking all overcome. ‘It
is
Barry O’Connor! In the
flesh!’

Holly and Elsie turned sharply, listening harder.

‘Isn’t it exciting?’ said Grace, flushing happily. ‘He even signed my clipboard!’

Elsie was softening a little, apparently happy to concede the stage to a fellow luminary but Holly was just plain confused.

‘But how did he . . . ? I mean, who . . .’

Grace ferretted around on her clipboard and produced a small cream envelope. ‘He arrived with this, for you.’

Holly immediately recognised the handwriting on the envelope and tore it open. What on earth had Lizzie been up to?

Holly felt the relief wash over her. Whatever had happened with Lizzie, they could sort it out. They had too much history to let their friendship ebb away. She peeked through the curtains and
watched Barry doing his signature hip moves as he belted out his all-time hits.

She looked out over the crowd and spotted the twins clapping along, delighted to be hearing some songs that they recognised, thanks to Lizzie’s O’Connor obsession. Marion had
obviously enlisted the Major as her babysitting support, as Tom was standing on his lap, wearing half the Major’s medals and looking particularly pleased with himself.

Holly spotted Lance and Hattie in the row behind. He was looking pale and a little fragile, but his arm was around Hattie’s shoulders, the other hand resting gently on the bump. A little
boy. And after such a successful surgery, Lance would have every chance of watching him grow up.

Holly felt quite choked.

The theatre was simply heaving, children perched on knees, seats surrendered to the elderly and Lizzie dancing at the back, a cameraman right beside her.

The atmosphere was electric.

For all her worries about their little concert, they clearly weren’t short of support. Barry drew to the end of his set and the crowd roared their approval. Promising a reprise later in
the proceedings, Barry left the stage, allowing Dan and Elsie to take their places.

‘Thank you all so much for coming out tonight and showing your support for The Larkford Practice,’ Dan began, a whoop of cheers interrupting him mid-sentence. He
looked a little overwhelmed for a moment, so Elsie seamlessly took her cue.

‘And may I say how heavenly it is to see you all here, old and young, on this very special evening.’

Dan cleared his throat and continued, his delivery a little stiff next to Elsie’s natural charisma. Rather than looking stupid though, Holly realised he had somehow hit the perfect note.
He looked young and accessible, nervous yet proud, and completely committed to their cause. ‘As you are all aware, we’re here, joining together, because we have a common goal,’ he
said. ‘We share a common belief – that Larkford needs its own medical centre. That Larkford would not be the same without its own medical centre.’ The cheers from the residents
almost drowned him out and Elsie laid a hand on his sleeve, urging him to take a beat.