Chapter 8 eight

Dr. Kenward shook his head secretly for Wilma to consult with him, and then went to the living room. Only a few seconds later, Wilma.Staller also came into the living room, and Dr. Kenward was sitting in a chair by the table, leaning forward, with his elbows on his knees, staring somewhat despondently at the rug. Dr. Kenward was a calm doctor.Even in the face of emergencies, hysterical attacks of patients, or moments of life and death struggle between people and fate, Dr. Kenward can resolve the difficulties one by one. But today he seemed to be a different person, and everything seemed to be out of control.

He's sitting on the edge of the chair, slumped with exhaustion, and he's just a very tired, overworked, slightly distracted guy right now.Wilma entered the room, he looked up, maybe it was an illusion caused by the light, Dr. Kenward's dark circles were very prominent, she was startled. Wilma saw that it wasn't a matter of nurses insisting on working with doctors, but of two tired people bound together by common interests.Realizing this, she pulled up a chair and sat beside him. For about a minute he said nothing, and Wilma waited for him to speak.She slowly realized that he didn't want to talk, he just wanted some kind of spiritual power from himself.

She took out a pack of cigarettes and handed it to him. He took one out without a word, and Wilma struck a match, shielding the flame with her hand, and lit both of their cigarettes. The silence was not at all unnerving, much less embarrassing.They seemed to be immersed in a silent mutual understanding that belonged only to themselves, and the troubles and worries of the outside world could not do anything to the two of them anymore. Finally, Dr. Kenward broke the silence: Thank you for the sedative, I think the situation is not serious. Is it arsenic?she asked. no doubt.The dose is not large, but it is indeed arsenic.

He sighed wearily, paused, and said: What you just said about Banning.I can't remember everything about Clark, especially the details.Can you repeat that? OK.she says. He took a deep breath of the cigarette, leaned his head on the back of the chair, exhaled slowly, and closed his eyes.Wilma said: I was going to see Banning when Mr. Mason called me.Clark.I called you and I gave them a stomach wash and put them on iron potions.Then I went to see Mr. Clark. You know the path goes past the stone wall and then around the big cactus bushes and then through the sand and around the patches of cacti.I was running as fast as I could then, so fast that I didn't realize how important what I saw was, or rather, how important what I didn't see was.

She stopped and looked carefully at Dr. Kenward, wondering if his closing his eyes and relaxing his body meant he was asleep. Go on!He didn't even open his eyes when he said this. You know how they sleep Yan Dinger.Bowles is on the north side of Xiaoshawo, Banning.Clark was lying against the wall on the south side.Oh, running across the fire, I suddenly realized something was wrong.Their sleeping bags were all gone. Haven't seen Clark?he asks. absolutely not.The two sleeping bags were gone, the cooking utensils were gone, the broken car he had been driving was missing, and Banning was nowhere to be found.Clark and Yan Dinger.powers.

No clues in the sand?Like footprints or something?asked Dr. Kenward. I didn't look carefully. Is the donkey gone? No, they are there. Dr. Kenward wrung out his cigarette in the ashtray and said: Let's go over there again, do you have a flashlight? have. Look at the patients, he said, and tell them you're out for five to ten minutes.Where is the butler? I have no idea.As if by magic, everyone disappeared in the blink of an eye.Mrs Sims is not here, her daughter has run off with Hayward.I remember she left a note saying they were going to Las Vegas to get married.Mrs. Simms was very unhappy about it.She left the plate in the sink and ran away too.

unhappy?Why? She doesn't like Hayward. What about the rest? I have no idea.They seem to be having a shareholder meeting.Lawyer Moffgate was there.He made a little stratagem, but it failed because of Mr. Mason's presence.Then everyone went out.I'm just a little surprised that Mrs. Bradisson and her son are gone, because they should be feeling a little weak from the effects of the poisoning.At least that's what makes sense.How sick they were last night. Dr Kenward said: "They seem to be recovering satisfactorily.However, that has nothing to do with us, we have to inform the police again.But before they take over, I want to know about Banning.What happened to Clark, figured out that he was indeed not in the yard, nor in the building.If he needs medical attention, I think it's best before the police question him.

Wilma.Staller looked at her patient, then said to Dr. Kenward: They are resting quietly, shall we go now? He nodded. They came out of the back door, walked down the stone path, down the steps, and were guided by the light of the flashlight to the carefully designed slope paved with stone steps.To their left is a stone wall, and to the right in front of them is a cactus garden. The moon hangs high in the eastern sky, clear and serene, with silver-white moonlight shining on the ground, and its shadow is mottled. It's like being in the Mojave Desert, Dr. Kenward said, and every time I come here I get a creepy feeling.Creepy isn't the right word either, it's like you're suddenly transported back in time from the present.

I know how you feel, she said, it was a complete change.Here's where they camped, here's the fire, and you see, here's where the sleeping bags used to be. Don't move the flashlight, let me see, Dr. Kenward said, ah, I think so. What? That rectangle of sand.You notice how the marks lead little by little to this smooth part, which is slightly concave here, like the marks made by the barrel of a revolver. Ah yes.I didn't notice it before, how did this trace come from? This is Banning.Where Clark laid out his sleeping bag.The sleeping bag was neatly rolled up.From these marks, it can be seen that someone here has rolled the sleeping bag. He pressed hard and pushed the sleeping bag tightly with his knees forward.See those special marks?These marks are left by pressing your knees into the sand while rolling your sleeping bag.Then, with the sleeping bag already rolled up taut, it was picked up and tied with rope.Finally, when the sleeping bag was compacted, it left this rectangular, slightly concave indentation in the sand.

I get it, but is it really important? I think so. I'm afraid I don't quite understand what you're trying to explain. One camper, Dr. Kenward said, no matter how urgent the situation, he always rolled up his sleeping bag and carried it on his back, unless he was going to put it on a horse, he just folded it in half.But if a novice is eager to take away the sleeping bag so as not to be used as evidence, he will run in, pick up the sleeping bag and run out regardless of the situation. So you think this sleeping bag is made by frequent campers? He nodded. It's Banning.Clark?

Either Clark or Yan Dinger.powers. What does this mean? One possibility is salt dinger.Bowles and Banning.Clark is playing hide and seek.I was afraid that on the way, without any emergency medical treatment, Clark would develop symptoms of arsenic poisoning. Even if the poison was not fatal, the nausea and vomiting would be enough for his heart. He walked slowly back to the small building, immersed in the silence of the night.Wilma turned off the flashlight. The moonlight was bright enough to see the road. They walked around the strange cacti and walked through the stone wall. They could see the sound of the sea and the waves in the distance, adding a layer of mystery to the night. Dr. Kenward stopped suddenly, his back against the wall.Take a ten minute break.He said, we should rest for a while, the patient is in good condition, and it is not a big deal to call the police ten minutes late. you are tired, aren't you? I've been working, he said, how quiet it is, not a single sound, and being able to get away from ringing phones, neurotics, and people who worry too much about their health.I met Yan Dinger.After Bowles, sometimes I would think of life in the desert. In the vast space, there are only you and the donkey. Spread a sleeping bag, and you can sleep with your whole body relaxed, submerged in the quiet starry sky and the earth.That must be a wonderful experience. Look, Bruce, she said suddenly, hardly realizing she was calling his name, you can't work like this day in and day out.Why not prescribe a cure for yourself the same way you prescribe it for your patients?Take a month off and let everything go. I can not. You can tell a patient that if you break down or die, the world will keep going. The moonlight softened his smile, which had been a little stiff: it was."But I can't control it, and if I leave now, it means my work falls to someone else, who already has a lot to worry about," he said.I can only continue to bury my head and work hard.Of course, there are only a few of us insisting, but at least it makes sense for us to take a ten-minute break occasionally. He grabbed her arm and walked back to Banning.Clark and Yan Dinger.He sat down where Powers was camping, and pulled her to sit beside him on the sand. He said: Now we are a pair of prospectors sitting in the desert.We have nothing to do until dawn, we are experiencing the breath of peace and tranquility that can only be touched by those who live close to nature and live in the open air. Wilma.Staller pointed to the distant mountains dimly reflected in the blue moonlight, choking. Tomorrow, she will learn from Yan Dinger.We're going over that pass, Bowers said in a drawl, and we're going to do some prospecting on the outcrop.Nothing to do now, go to sleep. That's the right way to think, Bruce.Ken Ward said.He lay on the sand and couldn't help clapping his hands.He faced the sky and said, how strange, the moon is still full, but there are still so many stars in the sky.I think in the city we never really see the sky.Salt Dinger.One thing Bowers wanted to tell me was that you don't think about the existence of stars hanging in the sky until you leave the city and lie in the dry desert air and look at the sky. The stars are very bright tonight, she said, even if there is a moon, there are stars that can be seen. He said silently: On a night when the moon is sparse, how many stars should there be in the desert sky!It would be nice if I could take my day off one night and drive out to the desert to see it for myself.I just wonder how many stars are visible now.Look, five ten fifteen twenty twenty five thirty thirty one thirty two thirty three I'm thinking if you count that She didn't say a word, and Dr. Kenward slowly fell silent. After a while, he was panting evenly, and the exhausted sleepless man fell sweetly into sleep. She stood up carefully, walking on the sand as quietly as possible.After walking five or six steps, he turned back to look at him again, with a hint of attachment in his gentle eyes, and the moonlight gently sprinkled on Dr. Kenward's sleeping face full of worries. She stood there watching him for a while, then turned around and walked towards the small building.She groped into a guest room, rolled up two thick blankets under her armpits, returned to the cactus garden, tiptoed to the sleeping doctor, and covered him with the blankets like any well-trained nurse, without him noticing. . Then she hurried back to the small building and looked at Perry.Mason and Della.street.Then she went to the library again, got through to the operator and said: Police Headquarters, I want to report an attempted murder.