Changes in Colorado Springs
Life in Colorado Springs had settled into a routine. It had been a little over three weeks since Colleen and Andrew had left for Pennsylvania. Grace's pregnancy was progressing nicely. Jake and Teresa had started their house. The Senator had purchased the Chateau from Preston and Michaela was running both clinics while looking for someone to help her there. Dorothy and Cloud Dancing's friendship was growing. And the rest of the town was the same.
Sully was in Denver seeing Weldon Smith and Senator Dinston about the Rocky Mountain National Park. As he and Mr. Smith were about to enter Senator Dinston's office, a lady came out of the door so fast she almost ran into Sully. Mr. Smith did not seem to notice either the lady or the startled looks on both Sully's face and the lady's face as their eyes made contact. She left in a hurry. Sully wondered who she was, but did not have the chance to find out. She looked very familiar, like someone he had not thought of in years. Who was she?
Who was that man? It couldn't have been him, could it? The Senator had mentioned he was meeting with Mr. Smith and the gentleman who was working on the National Park. The Senator had never mentioned the man's name. If he had, she would have made sure she was not in the Senator's office when he arrived. Well, it was time to move on. She had a few things she had to take care of, but she would be leaving Denver in a few days. She did not want to accidentally run into Mr. Sully again. She had made up her mind when she left home that seeing him was not the right thing to do. The past was the past. It was best left in the past.
Sully was walking towards the train station to catch his train back to Colorado Springs. He was so busy thinking about the lady he had seen in Senator Dinston's office yesterday that he wasn't paying attention to where he was going and he knocked a lady down. As he reached out his hand to help her up, he smiled. "Hi, Myra. I'm sorry I wasn't paying attention to where I was going. Are you alright?"
Myra grinned as she realized it was Sully who had knocked her down. "I'm fine. What are you doing in Denver?"
"I was here meeting with Mr. Smith and Senator Dinston about the National Park. I was just on my way to the train station to catch my train home. How have you been? What are you doing here in Denver?"
"I've been fine. I’m here on business. Sully?"
Sully looked at Myra. He knew she wanted to ask him something but didn't know if she should. "Yes?"
"Sully, how is Horace? Is he taking care of himself? What has he been doing lately?"
Sully smiled to himself as he looked at Myra. He could tell by her face that she was missing Horace and really still loved him. "He's fine. He has been taking very good care of himself except that he works too much. Most of his time is spent working." Sully could tell by the look on her face that Myra was thinking about Horace, but he didn't want to pry.
"Thank you, Sully. Please tell Horace I said hello." With that, Myra turned and walked down the street deep in thought.
"I will." Sully said to the retreating figure.
Sully seemed to be 1,000 miles away when Michaela picked him up at the train station. He didn't say a word all the way home and Michaela wondered what had happened with Mr. Smith and Senator Dinston that would take him so deep in thought.
"Sully, how was your meeting with Mr. Smith and the Senator? Did everything go ok?" Michaela wanted him to open up to her and let her know what was bothering him. When he didn't answer, she gently pulled on his arm. "Sully? Sully?"
"Hmm, what? Oh, I'm sorry, Michaela, did you say something to me?" Sully was brought back to the present by his wife's tugging on his arm.
"I just asked how was your meeting with Mr. Smith and the Senator? Did everything go ok?"
"Oh, everything went great. Both men are pleased with the plans and how well the work is going."
"Well, I just wondered. You seem so far away."
"Well, Michaela, I saw a woman who reminded me of someone in my past. I guess it kind of surprised me."
"Who was she?"
"I never had the chance to find out. But, I bet you'll never guess who I ran into in Denver--literally."
"Who?"
"Well, I was on my way to catch my train and I was thinking about the woman and I knocked a lady down."
"Sully, you didn't.
"Yes, I did. When I reached down to help her up, I realized it was Myra."
"Myra? How is she, Sully? What was she doing in Denver?"
"Yep, Myra. She was in Denver on business. She is doing fine, but I had the feeling she still loves Horace and misses him very much. I must remember to tell him she said hello."
"It's too bad that two people who love each other so much can't be together." Michaela's heart broke for both Myra and Horace.
"Did ya' miss me? " Sully put the woman he had seen yesterday and all thoughts of Myra and Horace out of his mind. He wrapped his arm around Michaela's waist and was filled with love and happiness.
Shannon had quit her job and left Denver in two days. Now she was riding in the stagecoach looking at the pictures in the book before her. The tears slid silently down her face and she turned so no one, especially Carolyn, would see them. Even though Carolyn was ten years younger than Shannon they had become best friends. However, she had not told Carolyn about seeing him. Since she had run into him in Denver, she was bound and determined not to go anywhere near Colorado Springs. She had almost changed her mind until she saw him. No, the past was best left in the past. But what would it have been like if she had changed her mind? She was daydreaming about what might have been, when shots and shouts rang out. She felt a burning in her shoulder and the stagecoach beginning to tip and then everything went black.
Sully walked into the telegraph office. "Hi, Horace."
"Hi, Sully. What can I do for you? Do you want to send a telegram?"
"No, I just came to talk to you. Horace, I saw Myra when I was in Denver."
The sadness that set into Horace's face broke Sully's heart. "How-- how -- how is she? What was she doing in Denver?"
"She is doing fine. She was in Denver on business. Horace, she asked about you."
"She did?" Horace's face seemed to light up a little when Sully told him that. "You aren’t just saying that are you?"
"No, she asked if you were taking care of yourself and said to tell you hello. That was about it, but I wanted to let you know."
"Thanks, Sully, Thanks a lot." Horace seemed happier than he had been in months. He knew that it wasn't much, but Myra had asked about him. Maybe she still cared a little.
Sully smiled to himself and said a prayer that maybe somehow Horace and Myra would get back together.
Michaela loved the feel of the light, warm summer breeze as she opened the door to the clinic. Life had settled into a calm routine after Andrew and Colleen’s wedding and departure for Pennsylvania where Colleen would continue her schooling. Colorado Springs was growing and Dr. Mike, as most people knew her, liked to watch the people during the breaks from her work. She sat on the bench just outside her door and had just started thinking about Sully when Dorothy walked up.
"Good morning, Michaela."
"Good morning, Dorothy. How are you today?"
Before Dorothy could answer, two riders came into town as fast as they could ride.
"Dr. Mike, Dr. Mike," yelled Daniel as he and Matthew came riding up to the clinic. "There’s been a stage coach robbery and accident. There are some people who need your help."
Sully was on his way to the clinic to have lunch with Michaela. He joined Hank, Jake, Loren, and Robert E who were on their way over to the clinic to see what had happened.
"How many are hurt, Daniel?" Dr. Mike immediately began to mentally make a list of what she would need.
"Well, there are two drivers and six passengers. All of them seem to have been hurt in one way or another."
"I’ll get the wagon ready." Sully was already starting to hitch up the horses.
"I’ll get one, too, just in case we need it." Robert E had already started back to the livery.
"I’ll help." Loren, Jake, and Hank all responded at the same time. Dr. Mike and Dorothy went into the clinic to gather the supplies they would need as the men all went to get their horses. No one knew what to expect.
When they arrived at the scene, Dr. Mike quickly looked over each patient to see what the extent of their injuries was. One driver, named Jim, had been shot in the robbery. The other driver, Tom, had a broken leg and a cracked rib. Of the six passengers, Mr. and Mrs. Samuels were the least injured. They both had just suffered a few scrapes and bruises when the stagecoach turned over. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson had each suffered a broken arm and Mrs. Johnson had bumped her head. One lady passenger, Carolyn Stevens, had a few cuts and bruises and a sprained ankle. Dr. Mike was most worried about the other lady passenger. She had been shot during the robbery and had a cracked rib. All Carolyn told her was that the lady’s name was Shannon and she was headed for San Francisco. Dr. Mike was concerned about Shannon’s loss of blood and the fact that she was unconscious. As Jake helped set the broken limbs and patch up the scrapes and bruises, Dr. Mike wished that Colleen and Andrew were still in town to help her remove the bullets from the driver and Shannon. Oh well, Jake would have to do. After stopping the flow of blood as best she could, Dr. Mike let Daniel put Carolyn, Shannon and the driver in Robert E’s wagon to take them back to the clinic. Sully had already loaded the Johnsons, Samuels, and Tom into his wagon and gone on ahead. Dr. Mike wanted to keep all of them at the clinic overnight for observation.
After delivering the patients to the clinic, Daniel, Matthew and Sully returned to the scene of the accident to gather the drivers’ and passengers’ belongings. They took a really good look at the scene and wondered how all of them had escaped with as few injuries as they had. It could have been a lot worse. Daniel, Matthew and Sully turned the stagecoach back upright. As Daniel and Matthew started collecting the luggage, Sully noticed a book inside the stagecoach. He picked it up to take it back to whomever it belonged to. When he did, a letter fell out. The letter was not in an envelope, but was written in a woman’s handwriting. As Sully started to put the letter back into the book, he noticed that it was addressed to Shannon. At least he knew whom the book belonged to. When Sully opened the book to put the letter back, he just stopped and stared.
"Looks like you’ve seen a ghost, Sully." Matthew had come up beside him. "What did you find?"
"Nothing—just a book." But as he closed the book, Sully quickly wondered who this Shannon was. What was she doing with the pictures in the book and where did she get them?
Matthew knew Sully had seen something that bothered him, but he also knew now was not the time to ask questions. Daniel had noticed the look on Sully’s face and wondered what was going on, too. But they both knew Sully would let them know what was wrong when he was ready to and asking him questions now would get them nowhere.
Both Jake and Dr. Mike were tired after they had finished removing the bullets from Jim and Shannon. They had found a couple of places where the arteries had been knicked when they took out the bullet from Shannon’s shoulder. The operation took longer than Dr. Mike would have liked since Shannon was losing blood the entire time, but they made sure that all the knicks were repaired. Dr. Mike didn’t know if Shannon would make it, but she knew they had done their best. She thanked Jake for his help and let him go get cleaned up as she wanted to keep Jim and Shannon downstairs after the operations, to keep an eye on them for a short time. She would have Daniel, Matthew and Sully help her move them upstairs when they returned.
Dr. Mike was still curious about Shannon. When she checked in on Carolyn, Carolyn had said that Shannon had had a book with her that she wouldn’t let out of her sight. Carolyn hoped that it wasn’t ruined and that they found it, as it was very important to Shannon. She checked on the Johnsons, Tom and on the Samuels and found that all were resting quietly for the night.
She went back downstairs and found Dorothy coming to check on how everything was. Dr. Mike gave a report on all the patients and said all they could do was wait to see how Shannon was.
Sully was quiet and withdrawn on the trip back to town. Both Daniel and Matthew had tried to talk to Sully, but he didn’t even seem to hear them. It was like he was in a different place. Both knew something was really bothering Sully and that it had to do with the book he had picked up. They would just have to wait for him to let them know what it was that was bothering him.
The book lay in Sully’s lap. He had not let it out of his sight since he picked it up. As he sat on the wagon seat next to Daniel, he just stared at the book. He had several questions running through his mind. Who was this Shannon? Where did she get these pictures? These were pictures he had seen before, but not since he was 10 years old. What was she doing with them? How and where did she get them? These were all questions he wanted—no needed—answers to.
Dorothy and Michaela were having a cup of coffee when Sully, Daniel and Matthew returned. They unloaded the wagon and left the trunks, etc., in the little closet just off the examining room. Dr. Mike asked if they would help her get Jim and Shannon upstairs. Since Jim had regained consciousness, Daniel and Matthew said they would get on either side of him and help him up the stairs. Sully said he would carry Shannon up. Besides it would give him a chance to get a good look at Shannon. He had not really had an opportunity to see the lady who owned those pictures. Just as Daniel and Matthew were about ready to help Jim up, Sully let out a gasp. He was in the process of laying down the book, but had just gotten a good look at Shannon. He was as white as a sheet and had the same look on his face Daniel and Matthew had seen at the stagecoach when he had opened the book.
"Sully, is everything ok? You look like you’ve seen a ghost again." Matthew was getting a little concerned.
Sully looked at Shannon, then at the book that was still in his hands, then at Matthew, Daniel, Dorothy and Michaela in turn. Without a word, he took the book and left. Dr. Mike ran out of the door and saw him riding off as fast as his horse would go.
"Sully-y-y-y-y-y-y." But Sully didn’t even seem to hear her. Michaela turned and headed back into the clinic. Daniel and Matthew told Dorothy and Michaela what had happened at the stagecoach and on the trip back to town. No one knew what to say or do. What was bothering Sully so much?
It was 20 minutes before Sully slowed his horse to a walk. It had taken him that long to clear his mind and think straight. He rode to one of his favorite spots to think in when he needed to sort things out. As he dismounted, he realized that he still had Shannon’s book in his hands. He sat down with his back against a tree trunk and opened the book. He knew he was intruding, but he had to know. Inside the book he saw the pictures, pictures of a man and woman. Pictures of his parents before they left England to come to America. It struck him again that Shannon looked exactly like the woman in the pictures—exactly like his mother. Who is Shannon? As he turned the next page of the book, he found the letter he had put back. He considered reading the letter, but felt guilty. Instead he put it back and turned another page. The next page had pictures of another couple—his mother’s sister, Anna, and her husband, John—his aunt and uncle. He had not thought about them since his mother’s death. Was Shannon somehow related to them? She couldn’t be their daughter. He remembered his mother saying Aunt Anna had to have an operation and, therefore, couldn’t have any children. But Shannon looked exactly like his mother. Sully really needed answers now and turned another page. There weren’t any more pictures, but there was another letter. This one was in a sealed envelope. When Sully turned it over, his mouth dropped. The letter was addressed to Byron Sully.
After Sully left, Daniel and Matthew thought it would be best if Dr. Mike went back to the homestead. Dorothy offered to stay at the clinic and would have Robert E ride out if there were any problems. Robert E as well as Grace, Hank, Loren, and Jake had seen Sully ride off and were concerned. They would help in any way they could. Daniel and Matthew gathered Brian and Katie from Grace and took them and Michaela home.
Michaela kept pacing in front of the fireplace while Daniel and Matthew tried to figure out what was bothering Sully. Brian was playing with Katie in the corner. Sully was so quiet when he opened the door that Michaela jumped when she turned around and saw him standing there.
"Michaela, how is Shannon?" Sully’s face was still pale and he was thinking about something. "Will she make it?"
"I don’t know. We took out the bullet and sewed up all the holes. Now all we can do is wait. Dorothy is staying at the clinic. Sully, what is going on?"
"I can’t tell you right now, but I need to go check on Shannon. Don’t wait up for me, I may not come back tonight."
"I’ll go with you."
"No, Michaela, I need to go alone." The look on Sully’s face told all of them that he really did need to go alone. He laid the book he was holding on the table to hug and kiss Michaela who had crossed the room to his side. As she looked into his eyes, she knew there was something he needed to sort out. She just wished she knew how to help him. Sully turned and walked out of the door forgetting the book on the table. The letters he had found were safe in his pocket so he could talk to Shannon about them.
Michaela stood just staring at the door. As she heard Sully go down the steps she turned and realized he had left the book on the table. Not sure what to do, she picked it up and ran out onto the porch to take it to him, but he was already down the path. She slowly walked back into the house. As she closed the door firmly behind her, she was determined to find out what it was that was bothering Sully so.
Matthew, Daniel, Brian and Katie all looked up as Michaela let out a gasp. She had opened the book and was just staring at it. Now it was her turn to look as white as a sheet and like she had seen a ghost. Matthew had had enough. He was going to find out what this was all about. He moved to Michaela’s side to look over her shoulder at what was in that book. The shocked look on Matthew’s face made Daniel hurry to Michaela’s other side and look, too. All three exchanged glances and looked back at the pictures in the book. There staring back at them was a man and woman. The man looked exactly like Sully and the woman looked exactly like Shannon. Who were these people? Did Sully know them? Did Sully know Shannon? Everything was getting more confusing and more complicated.
Sully had told Dorothy he would sit by Shannon’s bed in case she regained consciousness and needed something. Dorothy was full of curiosity, but knew she would not get any answers to the questions she had. Had Sully been home yet to see Michaela? If so, why hadn’t she come with him?
As Sully sat by Shannon’s bed, he looked at her face. Seeing it made his mind wander back to when he was a boy. Memories of his mother that he had not thought of in years came rushing back like a waterfall. How he missed his mother. It was well into the middle of the night before Sully could close his eyes and sleep.
Carolyn was in the same room as Shannon. She had been asleep when Sully entered. She woke a little later and was shocked to see him sleeping in the chair by Shannon's bed. He looked just like the man in the pictures. Was it him? She fell asleep praying that it was. Shannon deserved something good to happen in her life.
Shannon opened her eyes and blinked. She remembered hearing a gun shot during the robbery and feeling a pain in her shoulder. She didn’t remember anything after that. How did she get here and where was she? This must be some kind of a doctor’s clinic, but where? As her eyes slowly focused, Shannon looked around the room. She let out a quiet gasp when she saw Sully asleep in the chair beside her bed. Here was the man she had seen in Denver, Mr. Sully. Was this really--? But it couldn’t be, could it? No one knew what had happened to him after his mother died. She had hoped when she saw the paper about a Byron Sully in Colorado Springs being in some kind of trouble with the government, but knew that artist’s sketches weren’t always accurate. She was glad when the President had pardoned that man, but that was the last she had thought about it. Now she was staring into his face. He looked exactly like his father. Was he as kind and loving, too? Did he know her secret? When she had accidentally run into him in Denver, she had made a promise to herself not to stop in Colorado Springs even though she had known the stagecoach would go near there. Her heart was in enough turmoil already; she didn't want to be disappointed. But here she was—this had to be Colorado Springs. God was telling her something. Maybe there was some hope after all.
Sully began to stir and Shannon quickly closed her eyes. She was not sure she was ready to face this yet, but knew she couldn’t put it off. So she opened her eyes again to see Sully looking at her. He didn’t seem to notice she was awake at first, but saw a smile slowly begin to develop as he seem to come back to the present.
"Hi. How do you feel?" Sully wasn’t sure what to say now that the time had arrived. He felt a little awkward.
"Sore—my shoulder really hurts and my rib area seems to be tender. What happened? Where am I and how did I get here?" Shannon felt it would be best to get all the questions out at once before she chickened out.
"Well, there was a stagecoach robbery and accident. You were shot in the shoulder and suffered a cracked rib in the accident. You are in Colorado Springs and Dr. Quinn, with the help of some of the town’s people, brought you here to take care of you."
"I must thank Dr. Quinn, however, I can’t pay him."
"Her—and I’m sure something could be worked out."
"Her? Dr. Quinn is a woman?"
"Yes, she’s my wife." There was a long pause. "Shannon, I need to confess something to you."
"What’s that?" Shannon felt she had a pretty good idea. Somehow she knew that this man had found her book and the letters and knew all about her. After all, he knew her name.
"I found your book and the letters inside. I read them."
"The one letter was addressed to you. I don’t even know what it said. As for the other letter, I’m glad. It sure saves me from doing a lot of explaining."
"Shannon, I don’t know what to say. Mother never even talked about you. I didn’t even know I had a sister."
"I know—I didn’t know the truth until after Mom and Dad—I guess they are really Aunt Anna and Uncle John—died. That’s when I found the letters and pictures as I was sorting through their papers. I wasn’t even coming to Colorado Springs, but I think God wanted me to meet you. Can you tell me about Mother, Father, and yourself?"
Sully started talking about his life from when his family left England to the present. He told her that he hated the name Byron and wanted to be called Sully. He also told her that they had a brother who had died. He had just finished telling Shannon about Michaela and his family when Michaela, Dorothy, Daniel and Matthew all walked in. They had been worried about Sully and needed to know what was happening.
"Shannon, I’m glad to see you are awake. Here is your book." Michaela was not quite sure what to think when she opened the door and saw Shannon and Sully deep in conversation. "How are you feeling?"
"Sore, but really pretty good." Shannon knew that something was not quite right, but she didn’t know what it was.
Sully knew Michaela had looked at the pictures and had a lot of questions. From the looks on their faces, Daniel and Matthew had seen them, too. He wasn’t sure if Dorothy had or not, but he knew now was the time to tell them everything.
"Michaela, I have something to tell you—something that I just discovered and that Shannon has known for only a few months. Shannon is my sister." Sully stopped to let the news sink in.
"Your sister?"
"Yes, there were a couple of letters from our Aunt and Uncle in the book that told both of us the whole story. Why don’t you all sit down, and I will fill you in."
Sully moved over to sit on the bed and let Michaela have his chair so he could hold her hand. Daniel and Matthew both sat on the floor and Dorothy sat in the other chair in the room.
"Well, Shannon was born two months early. The doctors told my parents that she probably wouldn’t live. Our mother went into a state of denial. She didn’t even acknowledge the fact that Shannon had been born. It was like she had never been pregnant. Aunt Anna and Uncle John gave their support to Father during this time. About six months later Mother got pregnant with me and referred to Shannon as her niece. Father had planned to move to America and decided the change would help Mother. Shannon was still in the hospital and they still weren’t sure if she would live, so Aunt Anna and Uncle John offered to take care of her and handle the arrangements if and when she died. Father and mother packed up and came to America. Well, Shannon did get better. There was a letter from Father to Aunt Anna telling her that Mother referred to Shannon as Anna and John’s daughter. He said that whenever he referred to Shannon as theirs, Mother would deny ever having a daughter and was adamant about Shannon being her niece. Father still hoped Mother would come around and want Shannon to come home. Then Mother sent word that Father had died. She still had not accepted Shannon. Aunt Anna and Uncle John decided to come to America to help Mother. But, Mother died while they were on the ship coming here. When they arrived, no one knew where I was so they thought I was dead, too. Aunt Anna and Uncle John raised Shannon as their own and never told her the story. When they died she found the letters in their belongings."
"Yes, and then I saw Sully’s picture in the paper back home when there was all the trouble with the government. Like, I told Sully, I sure am glad the President pardoned him. Anyway, I didn’t want to get my hopes up that he could possibly be my brother, so I decided not to do anything about it. Then nothing seemed to be going right back home and I had no one, so I decided to go to San Francisco to start all over. I had stopped in Denver to earn some money and ran into Sully there. After that I wanted to get to San Francisco as soon as I could, but because of a robbery and accident, here I am in Colorado Springs. I was not planning on stopping here, but I am glad I did."
"Sully, is this the woman you said you saw in Denver last week?" Michaela was putting all the pieces of the puzzle together.
"Yes, she reminded me of my mother. She looks just like her." Michaela pulled her husband into her arms and let him cry as he remembered his mother.
Carolyn had been quiet while Sully and Shannon were talking. She knew the story and was just thankful Shannon had found her brother.
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