Chapter 13

“Good morning, Mrs Catherine Freeman. Kathleen Malone’s treatment proceeds as planned. It has reached 71 per cent complete, and all appears satisfactory. We anticipate completion at about 11.37 a.m. Was that all?”

“That is all. Thank you and goodbye.”

Rather than wake her spouses unnecessarily, she went through to the kitchen to make breakfast; mostly cereal and coffee. She scoffed the cereal hungrily, and sat at the table sipping her instant coffee, thinking about her new life in a newly-formed family, in a new colony, on a new planet.

She decided that it all suited her. She had a job, a loving husband, and a baby started; everything that a girl could want, apart from riches. However, riches was not one of her primary targets. If they achieved riches eventually, then fine. If not, that was also fine. As long as she had a loving family, and a stable life, that was fine by her.

A little later, she noticed certain noises coming from the bedroom, and deduced that John was fucking Elizabeth. They were both awake, then. She thought about breakfast, but was still not clear what their preferences were. In recent weeks they had varied between a cooked breakfast, cereal and coffee, croissants and tea, and even porridge oats followed by Aberdeenshire butteries on one occasion. It all meant that she could not prepare breakfast with any degree of confidence that it would be exactly what was wanted.

They would need to establish what would be the normal, expected, breakfast for most days; and treat all other options as requests to be made in advance. It was not like back home with her parents, where she would decide on her breakfast after arriving at the dining room. Such options either required a household staff, or accommodation at a hotel. Here, it was everyone mucking in.

Looking at the time on her phone, she reckoned it was time the other two were up, so that they could get to their work on time. No long honeymoon here; two days then back to work, Perhaps a longer holiday later, but living here was like one long honeymoon anyway.

The noise in the bedroom had settled down, so hopefully they had reached their orgasms and were dozing. She gave a shout. “Hey! You two? Time to get up, if you have finished having fun.”

The pair stumbled out of the bedroom, both naked. Catherine looked at them and demanded, “Shower! Both of you! Wait. What do you want for breakfast?”

Elizabeth said, “A bowl of cereal and cup of tea.” John demanded, “Hot porridge, please, love; then coffee. Thanks,” and they went off to shower together.

Catherine called after them, “Hey! Kathleen should be finished with her operation by lunchtime.”

John called back, “Thanks love! See you in a short while.”

John’s phone rang, so Catherine picked it up. “Freeman family.”

“This is The Personalia. We have the building supplies for your home, ready to deliver. Is the site as before, or are there alterations?”

“Probably no change, but I will get John to phone you back. Is that all right with you?”

“It is acceptable. Goodbye.”

When the other two arrived back in the kitchen, this time dressed, she informed them of the latest message from The Personalia. John was pleased.

“Great. Now I can get back to the builders and set up a timetable for their work. Now what was that you said about Kathleen?”

“She is expected to have the operation completed at about twenty to twelve. I don’t think that will mean she is awake, though. The doctor will have to bring her out of the sedative she has been under. I also expect the nurse will not allow a man anywhere near her until she is compos mentis and has a chance to restore her hair and make-up, so I think you can stay well away for the present.

Elizabeth and I can go see her at lunchtime, and decided when you can see her. She may not be able to walk right away. After years of walking with a damaged pelvis, her balance will be skew-whiff. There may also be a warning against putting weight on it immediately. We shall see what the doctor and The Personalia have to say.”

John looked at her curiously, and said, “Yes, Mum. Whatever you say, Mum,” ending with a smile to show he was kidding her.

She stuck her tongue out at him, while Elizabeth said “Ignore him, Catherine. Men don’t have the common sense of we womenfolk.”

John laughed at the accusation. “I can live with being a man, as long as I have you two to keep me happy.”

Catherine retorted, “Well, we shall see how Kathleen is doing. I want to see how she stands up to life as an uninjured woman. We’ll let you know if and when you can see her.”

John shrugged. “I have to go see the builders, anyway, so I can confirm to The Personalia that delivery is suitable today.”

They completed their breakfasts and dressed for outdoors, before parting on their several errands. The Governor’s Mansion was within reasonable walking distance, but the builder’s yard was in another direction altogether.

When Elizabeth and Catherine arrived, they were met at the front door by Diane Kempe, who was expecting them. She had been told the same information about the timing, and wanted to check on her distant cousin.

“Hi, girls. Come along with me, and we can see Kathleen together. I still don’t want to show that we are related, so say nothing about it for the present. We can ‘discover’ the relationship at a later date.”

“Will do, ma’am,” said Elizabeth. “Is she awake yet?”

“No idea. Let’s go find out from the nurse or the doctor.”

They went through to the ‘hospital’ room, where the Colonel knocked on the door. It was opened by the nurse.

“Oh, it is you, Colonel. The patient has completed her course of treatment, but is not yet awake. The doctor wants her brought back to consciousness slowly, without her making any untoward movements until he runs some tests.”

“Should we wait until later, then? These ladies are her close friends.”

“That might be a good idea, Colonel. Can you offer them some refreshments, and I’ll call you when the doctor permits?”

“Sounds fine to me. We can go through and get some coffee and a biscuit or two.”

They were taken through to Mrs Kempe’s living room, and told to sit down while Diane saw about coffee and biscuits.

She told them when she returned, hands laden, “I have to do this every time we have official visitors from Earth. We like them to feel that socially everything is Earth-normal for them!”

Elizabeth grinned at that conceit. “Of course. Why shouldn’t it be Earth-normal? It is only another planet, after all!”

Mrs Kempe grinned in reply. “You see my point; so this is easy for me; not an imposition. I also want to be friends with the Major’s two wives.”

Catherine was astonished. “YOU want to be friends with US?” But you are the Governor’s wife. It should be the other way around.”

“Normally, yes, but Bob was quite taken by your John and his friend Bob Henrison the other evening. It was the first time he was able to have a good time just chatting as friends with a couple of men who didn’t worry that he was the Governor. He enjoyed the relaxation immensely, so I thought I should get to know you two in much the same way. Would you mind?”

Elizabeth exclaimed, “We would be honoured to have that, Colonel.”

“Girls, in private, please call me Diane. I am Colonel, or Mrs Kempe, in more formal circumstances only.”

Catherine deferred to Elizabeth, to let her say, “We will do that, Diane. Thank you.”

“Now, let’s get that coffee down you before it gets cool. It is a special brand we import to impress our guests. If we want to be nasty, we imply it is grown here!”

Catherine blurted out, “It couldn’t be! The colony has not been here long enough.”

“Quite so, Catherine. Well observed. Fortunately, the sort of people I am referring to don’t think logically like that.” She smiled sweetly.

Catherine grinned in return. “Of course. I should have thought of that.”

They chatted for a while longer, before Elizabeth enquired, “Should we ask the medics about progress, Diane?”

She checked the time. “Hmm. Let’s give them another ten minutes. We don’t know how long the doctor will take on his tests, for it is all new to him as well as us.”

Elizabeth suddenly said, “Diane, where is your toilet? I think I need to throw up.”

She was ushered to the little room, and quickly was sick into the pan. Diane held her head during this, sympathetically. “Morning sickness, dear?”

Elizabeth coughed her mouth clear, and said, “Yes. This is the first time. Sorry it had to be in your home.”

“Oh, I had it for a while, but it has left me now. It is a damn nuisance. Believe it or not, at my age, this is my first child I am carrying, and I am going through all the trials that every first-time mother does.”

“Diane, you make it sound horrendous!”

“Oh, it is not that bad. It is because I have always been physically very fit that all the restrictions annoy me more. But I really want this child. Bob and I want to have children, as does Ruth, so I am happy to put up with the hassle that goes with it. Bob would be glad to shoulder part of the burden if he could, so instead he does what he can around the house to make things easier for me.”

Catherine was concerned for her. “Will you want to have any more children, Diane? I want to have several, if I can.”

“It depends. I want to give Bob a son, so if my first baby is a daughter, then I will want another child. If my first-born is a son, then we shall see. Ruth wants more than one, so we will wait and see what she produces. I am not as certain about my future children as I would like to be, but life is like that. What will be, will be.”

Elizabeth told her, “I opted to have one as a minimum, so John and I will have someone we produced together, but I don’t know about the future. My intentions were to have a career in the police force in England. Now I am a sergeant in another security force, so I am unsure about children. If John wants me to have more than one, I will be happy to accommodate him, for he does everything he can for us.” Catherine nodded in the background.

At this juncture, Diane’s phone rang, and she answered it. “Yes? Diane here.”

She listened, said, “Thank you,” then closed her phone. “Kathleen is awake and the doctor is satisfied with her, so far. She can have visitors for a short while.”

Catherine punched up a clenched fist, and declared “Yeah!!

They hurried through the mansion to the ‘hospital’ room, and the nurse was there at the door, prepared to admit them.

She explained, “No ward restrictions on numbers. Just don’t tire her. We are still assessing her condition for getting out of bed. The doctor is amazed at what has been achieved in a very short period of time, and wants to study her carefully for longer.”

“We can cope with that, but what about Kathleen? How does she feel about that proposal?” Diane was not so happy at the planned extended observation.

Elizabeth volunteered. “Why don’t we get in there, and have a chat with her?”

They all made their way into Kathleen’s room. As they opened the door, they heard Kathleen’s voice. “Yippee! I feel great!”

They barged into the room, to be greeted by Kathleen sitting up, dressed in just her bra, and presumably the adult diaper, though it was hidden by the bedsheet gathered at her waist. She noticed the newcomers. “Hi, girls. Look at me. I can sit up straight with no hassle. I am not in pain, and I feel comfortable too.”

Catherine rushed over to hug her. “Congratulations, Kathleen. This is wonderful news, just what we were hoping for.”

“Hi, Catherine, and Elizabeth. Oh, and Mrs Kempe, too! Thank you for the use of your husband’s premises for my operation, Mrs Kempe.” Kathleen seemed quite boisterous after such an operation and sedation.

“Glad to be of assistance, Kathleen. The Governor realised that we had the best location for the work, with the best security, etcetera. It was quite simply the best solution, so we utilised it. How are you, in yourself?”

“It is amazing. I expected to be kept strapped down for ages to allow the repair to heal, but there is nothing to see, except...” she stopped and looked at the nurse. “Nurse, can I get this diaper off and get a pair of panties instead?”

“Certainly, my dear.” She turned to the others. “Can we have a bit of privacy for a few minutes, ladies?”

The three women exited the room and stood chatting outside until they were told it was fine to return. On stepping back in, they beheld a new and amazing sight.

Kathleen was standing beside her bed, now wearing a print dress and standing without a support stick. Admittedly, she was holding on to the bed, but this was because she was uncertain of her new abilities, not daring to accept that she could stand on her own two feet with any assistance.

She declared to everyone, “Look, no stick!” and so saying, she release her hold on the bed. She stood there for a moment or two, then said quietly, “Gosh, I feel a bit dizzy.”

The nurse offered an arm, saying, “It is your body trying to balance as it has done for four years, Kathleen. It will need time to adjust to the new configuration, the NORMAL configuration that you have returned to; your old norm.”

Meantime, Elizabeth was on her phone, telling John to come and see Kathleen.

Kathleen stared at the nurse. “I will be able to balance again?” She seemed uncertain of the facts.

Nurse Sanquhar reassured her. “The doctor told me that the operation – if you can call it that – was a complete success, so you will regain your balance. It will just take practice. He was astonished at your recovery, and wants a CT scan of your pelvis to confirm his conclusions. He is booking you in for that as we speak, down at the Colony health centre.”

Elizabeth was surprised. “You have a CT scanner, in the Colony?”

The nurse nodded. “Yes, it was transported by Landership, as it was able to fit into their cargo space. They even paid for it; I don’t know why. It is a heavy machine, but the dimensions were adequate. If it had been an MRI scanner, it would be impossible, as that is much larger.”

Kathleen was disappointed and her face fell. “Does that mean I can’t get home today?”

The nurse was sympathetic. “I am afraid that is very probable, Kathleen. If it had been a normal operation, it would be weeks before you could get home. I think the doctor is looking for excuses to keep you here longer, so he can develop a paper featuring your treatment. After all, he has just had a medical first! However, I reckon you will be discharged late today or more likely tomorrow.”