Dr Menon Again · Second Shift · Pulse Beat
He found out within the hour, as everybody did. He came to her in the canteen at six, with a cup of tea, and sat down opposite without speaking. She stared at the table. The warning letter was in her…
He found out within the hour, as everybody did.
He came to her in the canteen at six, with a cup of tea, and sat down opposite without speaking. She stared at the table. The warning letter was in her bag like a stone.
"It was my fault," she said. "Not the notebook. Me."
"It was the system's fault," said Dr Menon, "and yours, in proportion. You were exhausted. You shouldn't have been reading. The ward shouldn't have been running one nurse on a floor of twenty-eight." He stirred his tea. "I've told Matron I'll put it in writing."
"You don't have to."
"I do." He met her eyes. "Fatima. I have been a doctor for sixteen years and I have made mistakes that were far worse than yours, and nobody put them in a letter. Do you know why? Because I had a white coat. You have been punished for trying to get one."
She laughed, a short, helpless sound, wiping her face. "That's not fair."
"No. It isn't. It's what it is." He pushed the sugar across. "Do the exam anyway. If you give up now, it will have worked."