Charity and Advice

As suspected I did not have to wait long.  I mailed my letter to Rose on a Thursday, and by the next Tuesday her response had come.   First, being Rose, she immediately offered to fund my trip to the States.  I hated taking money from Rose, but as my situation was desperate and my nursing position hardly paid for passage aboard an airship, I had no real choice but to accept her offer.

Regarding The Professor,  Rose advised me to search my own heart and when I was sure of my feelings, to discuss them with him.  Then, barely containing her glee she wrote, "I knew it, I just knew it!"  Rose always had a soft spot for The Professor.

Rose

After I received the letter from The Professor, the first person I contacted was Rose.  Rose was my angel and best friend.  She was a confidant and a comfort, always knowing the perfect thing to say to put me at ease.

In my letter I told Rose about The Professor's doctor and my need to get to the States to meet with this man.  I also told Rose of my suspicions about The Professor's deepening feelings for me. Now the only thing left to do was wait for her reply, and since this was Rose, I knew I would not have to wait long.

The Professor

In the midst of all my scurrying around for Management, I received a letter from The Professor.  I had of course informed him of my injury, and he was enormously concerned for me.  At least he expressed regret over the mauling and a surprising amount of anger at Management's treatment of me.  He also said he had found a doctor in the States who could be trusted to operate on my leg.  I felt grateful for the help and more than a little touched by his concern.

 I was also beginning to sense that his interest in me might be more than purely academic.  He signed his letter, "Yours always, William."

Management

For the next few weeks I worked under the watchful eye of Management.  This hateful entity sent me on ridiculous errands throughout the wilds of Peru, and I have never felt so useless nor so scrutinized in my entire life.  At first Management doubted my claim that I had been mauled at all.  Though I walked with a limp and was in constant pain, the fact that I lived was to them proof of my lie.  When I pulled up my skirts to show them the teeth marks, they insinuated the whole thing was somehow MY fault, as if I'd asked the tiger to attack me.

Worst of all, the surgeons in our group were unable to heal my leg.  I was stuck working for people who did not trust or appreciate me, and my body, the traitor, was failing me.  Plus, the tiger was still out there somewhere, and though I felt he had not really wanted to hurt me I was afraid he was still watching me, ready to pounce should I ever again venture back into the jungle.

In the Jungle

For years I worked as a nurse in the jungles of Peru.  My patients were mostly children.  Some eventually recovered from their illness or injury.  Others did not.

One particular day, the day my journey really started though I didn't know it then, I was attacked by a tiger.  The tiger leaped out at me as I was walking along a well-worn path toward the home of one of my patients.  I was taken completely unawares, and before I even knew what had happened, the beast was upon me.

 I felt a sharp pain and looked down to see my leg clamped in the tiger's mouth.  He bit down hard once, then just as suddenly as he'd attacked me, he let go.  I followed him with my eyes as he stood and began to walk away.  Through the haze of shock I watched him turn back to me once, and I swear the look on his face was one of regret.  I closed my eyes and when I opened them again he had disappeared into the gloom.