It took a while, but in the end their struggles were successful and Todd collapsed onto the ground. Pat was already upright, examining the sting on his leg.
“It swollen,” she remarked, poking at the sting, “Does this hurt?”
“Ouch! Yes, it f*****g does.”
“That’s good. Numbness would be worse.”
“Breast pocket of my coat,” Todd panted, “There’s a tin.”
Pat reached into his coat and produced a rusty tin that had once held breath mints. “This one?”
“Open it. There’s Aspirin. You said it helps.”
Pat opened the tin and frowned. “Well, it’s better than nothing.”
She handed Todd two Aspirin to pop into his mouth and crushed a third tablet between her fingers. Then she rubbed the crushed tablet directly onto the sting and tied a strip of cloth she’d torn from her blue batik top around the wo
