The Waterbury Democrat., 1938-07-18
CHAPTER X

Tran was never to forget the hor- TOT of the 10 minutes that followed
 In one sickening flash she had realized how this thing had come to happen to her. The morning before Beula Tagg had volun- teered to carry her nursing care report to Miss Armstrong's office And on her desk with 1t had lain forgotten, that farcical report on the case of the mythical "X".
 Now Dr. Sargent's clear, fas- tidious voice was reading it to the end. smoothly, gravely, inexor- ably, while Tran sat rigid, biting her cheeks, her eyes growing big ger and brighter and wilder in her pallid face. When he had fin- ished, his cool blue eyes swep, the faces of the class, resting fol an impartial fraction of a second on Trans before passing on.
 "As believe I told you," ht said, "the case is not one that has come under my professional care nor, so far as I know" - Inc coughed-"under that of any oi our staff. Therefore I may per haps be permitted more frankness in my comments than l might otherwise use in discussing the medical handling of a case"
 The class, fully aware that there was more to this than met tho naked eye, exchanged furtivt glances. Tran measured the dis. tance to the door, but sat stil from sheer motor paralysis.
 T read 1t to you," Dr. Sargent was going blandly on, because of several unusual aspects O. the report. The first"-his lip' twitched slightly "is the scrupu. lour reference to the text witt which the nurse interlards her re. marks and explains her own re. actions. The second is the amaz. ing fact that after 10 years ol observation, the case was stil lacking a diagnosis, when any police court magistrate should have known at a glance that the patient was mental case a schizothymc with a marked Ma poloonic complex, lowering dan ger0usly near dementia praecox Thnt this was the nurses own opinion is obvious although. quite properly, she does not say so . A good nurse does not offer opin- ions Nursing TeXt)" again he broke off to cough into his hand- inf 8nichnH hactilyy "ths act page, Iregret to say l do not recall"
 He's leading up to something diabolical, Tran thought. Oh, well If he turned me across his knee anc spanked me, 1t wouldn't be any more than asked for.
 Another strange aspect" Tor Sarge was going on, lis that SC carefully documented report should say no more about treat ment than that the nurse repeat edly attempted to soothe the pa tient with little thoughtful atten- tions', I believe was the phrase. He affected to refer to the manu- script for corroboration. "Ol course, mental illness is outside the scope of your present experi- cnce, but I wonder If anyone hap pens to know what treatments are most commonly used in sucf cases Miss-er-" he glanced at the class list before him as il selecting name.
 But Tran knew before he spoke whose name he was going to call
 Miss Dearborn?" he said Per haps you could tell me?"
 So he was going to play cal and mouse with her, was he?
 Tran cleared her throat, but knew that if she cleared 1t dozer times her voice would not come before he could pursue the matter further, however, the bell merci, fully ended the period
 Tran would have scurried Ou of the room without a backward glance, but Dr. Sargent called "Oh, Miss Dearborn-just min ute, please"
 She had to stand, waiting fol the others to file out before Sht could approach the desk. Wher she did, and ventured to look up he was holding out her ill-starreC manuscript. His eyes, meeting hers, said as plainly as words "Of course. It couldn't have beer anyone but little feather brain"
 Have you ever thought" ht asked aloud, that fiction writing might be more exciting thar nursing?"
 For moment Trans hear stood still at the ominous impli- cation of his words.
 T thought you might like tt destroy the evidence" he wenI on, putting the paper into hel hands.
 Why, Tran thought, but - he, really laughing - inside. He doesn', mind at all Oh, I'll never be afraid of him again
 oh, Dr. Sargent" she chokeo out, ''I - you - oh, l think you're simply swell!"
 Then she did flee, because all of sudden she realized that she adored Dr. stephen Sargent.
 Of course she knew he would probably never even give her an other thought But that didn't really - - - -