| Chapter 9: Preparations
The weeks began to pass by quickly, and it was nearly Thanksgiving. Grace, who had recently wed Robert E. in a small ceremony at the church, was planning on preparing Thanksgiving dinner for the entire town at her café. Charlotte was starting to get stronger, and Michaela was hoping that she could stay strong until May, though she knew her hopes were most likely not going to come true. She hadn’t told Sully of her inner wishes to marry him before May, but she had come close on several occasions. She knew it would be a beautiful wedding though, even if Charlotte couldn’t be there. Perhaps it was her longing to be his wife in every sense of the word that was causing her to wish for an earlier wedding. The Quinn sisters had returned to Boston, but were still very much in on Sully’s special plan. They had been communicating back and forth through letters and telegrams. Elizabeth and Josef were staying at the boarding house in town, and as the cold winter air blew in, they found it hard to stay warm at night. But, Josef was glad to be in the fresh mountain air, and Elizabeth was glad to be there now that she had spent some time with the children whom would be her daughter’s one day. Michaela and her mother were finally getting along, and it was as if their relationship had taken a three-hundred-and-sixty degree turn. But, she was still wary of her mother’s feelings toward Sully. It seemed as if they got along, but she knew that her mother didn’t approve of him before. She felt that perhaps she was overreacting and that things were finally working out for the best. But at the same time, she felt like things were too good to be true. The children were becoming more and more attached to Michaela, Sully, Josef, and Elizabeth. Although Charlotte was becoming stronger, Michaela knew that it was only a matter of time before she lost her battle with the disease that was keeping her in bed for twenty three hours a day. Michaela was in the middle of treating a young woman named Nancy Edwards, and the young girl had a serious case of laryngitis. She was a singer, and was supposed to perform in a concert in Denver as soon as her family finished visiting with relatives in Colorado Springs. “Dr. Quinn, there has to be something you can do,” Nancy squeaked out, almost inaudibly. “Nancy, the only thing I can do is give you something to brew into a tea and tell you not to use your voice until it heals. As long as you do that, you could get your voice back before your concert. I’m not guaranteeing anything, but it’s a possibility.” Nancy nodded sadly, and Michaela gave her what she needed to try to help heal her voice. Nancy left, paying Michaela two dollars, and as soon as the girl was gone, Loren came walking into the room. “Afternoon, Dr. Mike,” he said with an unusual smile. “Good afternoon, Loren. What can I do for you?” “I was wonderin’ if Elizabeth was here.” “My mother is taking a stroll with my father. I hope you aren’t here to try to woo her over, because she is a married woman,” Michaela warned with an amused tone. Loren grumbled as usual. “I just have some supplies for her that she ordered from Boston.” “What kind of supplies?” “Now that’s your ma’s business, don’t ya think?” Loren asked with a wink. He tipped his hat to her and left the clinic. Michaela sighed heavily. She didn’t know why, but somehow she felt left out as of late. Everyone seemed to have things going on in their lives that were private, even Charlotte and the children! Sully spent most of his days building the house, and the homestead was coming along nicely. He had finally broken down and let Matthew help him by building the fences that would go around the future barn. It was a bit of a time-saver after all. But, what really bothered the doctor, was the fact that the townspeople were busy with secrets of their own while she felt she had nothing to do and that everyone knew all of her secrets. Of course that wasn’t true, and she knew that the way she was thinking was childish, but it still bothered her. Jake came walking into the clinic, and Michaela glanced at him. He never came to her for help because he felt that he could cure all of his own ailments. “Mr. Slicker, what brings you here?” Michaela asked. He sighed heavily and decided to admit that he couldn’t cure whatever was wrong with him. “I’ve been havin’ some problems.” “What kind of problem?” “Well, I ain’t been able to . . . you know, and I’ve been drinkin’ prune juice and eatin’ apples.” “Oh,” Michaela replied, chuckling on the inside, but trying to remain professional on the outside. She walked over to her cabinet and pulled out a small bottle. “Have you tried castor oil yet?” “I’m all out and Loren’s chargin’ me extra ‘cause I won’t tell him why I need it.” “Alright. Well, just take some of this, and if it doesn’t help, come back to see me,” Michaela replied. “Thanks Dr. Mike,” Jake said sheepishly, reluctantly accepting the bottle of oil into the palm of his hand. He left two dollars for his visit and a shiny half-dollar for the castor oil. He left, and Michaela couldn’t help but laugh as he disappeared back into his barbershop. It took a bit of irregularity to finally get Jake Slicker to come visit the doctor. She was impressed that he had had the guts to actually let her know what was wrong with him. Michaela settled back down at her desk and was about to go to work on some records when Brian came running in. “Hey Dr. Mike!” he said with a big grin on his face “Hello Brian,” she replied with a smile. “Is ma awake?” “I’m afraid she’s resting.” “She’s always resting,” Brian said quietly. “It’s almost like she’s dead already.” He sat down on a chair near Michaela’s desk and looked at the floor. “Brian, I know this is tough.” “You’ve got a ma and a pa. You don’t know what it’s like,” the young boy argued. Michaela sighed and shrugged her shoulders. The boy had a point there. “I’m sorry I’ve upset you, Brian.” “It’s alright,” he replied. He looked up at her with his bright, shining eyes. Something told Michaela he wanted to tell her something. “What’s on your mind, Brian?” “Well, you’re gonna be our new ma soon, and I was wonderin’ if when you are our ma, you’ll take us fishin’ and stuff. Ma used to take us before she started feelin’ sick.” “Brian, I’d be happy to take you. I’m sure Sully would to.” “Really?” “Really,” Michaela replied, reaching out to pat the boy’s head. “If ma’s sleepin’, I can’t ask her if I can go to help Matthew and Sully.” “I don’t think that’s any place for a young boy. There’s a lot of building going on, and it could be dangerous.” “Please, Dr. Mike? I promise I won’t get into any trouble. I just wanna watch Sully build the house.” “Well, perhaps you can ask her when she wakes up.” “When will that be?” Brian asked with disappointment in his eyes. He looked away, stood up, and walked out of the clinic, closing the door with a dull thud. Michaela swallowed hard and wanted so much to be able to take Brian into his arms and tell him one way or the other. But that wasn’t her place right now. Charlotte was still alive, and Michaela hated the fact that Charlotte was missing out on her children’s lives because of a disease that exhausted her so often. The sounds of the church bell woke Michaela from her thoughts, and her stomach growled to tell her that she was hungry. She stood and pulled her coat on before she grabbed her medical bag and headed over to Grace’s for lunch. *~* “Mrs. Quinn!” Loren shouted as he hurried through the meadow to catch up with Josef and Elizabeth. The two turned to stare at the older gentleman. “Good afternoon, Mr. Bray,” Josef said with a smile as he put his arm lovingly around Elizabeth. “Afternoon, Dr. Quinn,” Loren replied. “Mrs. Quinn . . .” “How many times have I told you to call me Elizabeth?” “Sorry,” Loren replied with a chuckle. “I just wanted to let you know that the special package you ordered from Boston is in.” “Oh wonderful!” Elizabeth exclaimed with a smile. “I’ll come take a look at it right away. Josef, will you distract our daughter?” “Ah yes. I see she’s going to Grace’s.” They all looked over to see Michaela sitting down alone at a table at the café. Michaela looked up to catch their glances, and they quickly looked away as if they’d been children caught doing something wrong. Loren held his arm out, and Elizabeth linked her own with his. She gave Josef a reassuring kiss on the cheek before he walked over to talk to his daughter. He sat down across from the table at the café. “Father? Where is mother going with Mr. Bray?” “Er,” Josef began. He hated lying to his daughter, even if it was for a good cause. “She’s got an order in from Boston.” “What’s that order?” “I think it’s fabric or what not for that dress your ladies have been making.” “Oh,” Michaela replied with a hint of disappointment in her voice. She wasn’t quite sure if her father was telling her the truth. He never lied to her before, but what if this was something for her own good? What if something bad had happened that everyone knew but her? Oh, no. Michaela realized she was jumping to conclusions. Her mother probably had ordered some fabric, and that was the extent of it. In fact, to cover up for the real package, Elizabeth had ordered some lace along with it to make it seem like a foolproof story. Grace could sense that Michaela was becoming suspicious again, so she quickly came over to fix the situation. “So Thanksgivin’ is comin’ up real soon,” Grace said with a smile. “Can I get you folks some coffee?” “Yes please,” Michaela replied. “I’ll take a cup as well,” Josef replied. Grace nodded. “I’m assumin’ that ya’ll be here for the Thanksgivin’ dinner at the café, right?” “We wouldn’t miss your wonderful cooking for the world, Grace,” Josef said with a smile. “Oh you old charmer,” Grace said with a laugh. Michaela had forgotten all about the strange meeting between her parents and Loren that she had just witnessed. At least for now. “I’m afraid my cooking skills are limited, or I would contribute.” “You not cookin’ is contributin’ enough,” Grace joked. She winked at her friend. “Oh that’s funny,” Michaela replied, rolling her eyes. “Oh, I have stories about Michaela trying to cook as a child.” “Father!” Michaela exclaimed. She had once tried to cook and nearly burned the house down. It hadn’t been a pleasant experience, that was for sure! “Well, between preparin’ that weddin’ dress and this Thanksgivin’ dinner, I ain’t got much time on my hands. But I’ll make sure the town eats well. Robert E. is goin’ huntin’ for a nice turkey, and we’ll all have a good time.” “Grace, if it’s that much of a bother, we really can put off making the dress until later on in the spring.” “No!” Grace exclaimed quickly. She hadn’t meant to sound harsh. Michaela was startled. “I mean, we can’t stop makin’ the dress or we might forget the pattern.” Michaela sighed as Grace walked off to get coffee. “Something strange is going on.” “Strange?” Josef asked, pretending as everything was normal. Michaela shook her head. “Oh never mind,” she said shortly. She sighed heavily and decided to stop worrying. At that point she began to wonder what Sully was up to at that moment. *~* Michaela rode out to the new homestead where Sully was working on the floorboards. Matthew had nothing to do, so he was in town with Ingrid. The young man had started spending more and more time with her, and the town, though many of them weren’t sure about having one of their own fall in love with an immigrant, were starting to wonder how long it would be before the two would marry. Sully smiled when he saw Michaela riding up, and he walked over to help her out of the wagon. She pulled a picnic basket out of the back. “I thought you might be hungry,” she suggested. “You thought right,” Sully replied, giving her a soft kiss. Michaela, having been suspicious of everyone for the last couple of weeks, relaxed in the arms of her future husband. When he kissed her, he seemed to be kissing away all of the worry in the world. Michaela pulled away and uncovered the picnic basket full of Grace’s infamous meatloaf, potatoes, and biscuits. “I didn’t know how hungry you were, so I packed two tins.” “I ain’t that hungry, but I’d like you to join me.” “But I’ve already eaten.” “You don’t have to eat,” Sully replied. He pulled the picnic blanket out of the back of the wagon. They had been using that a lot lately to eat lunch on the floor of the new homestead. The walls weren’t completely up yet, and the ceiling didn’t exist, but there was a stone fireplace that they could eat in front of. There was no fire yet, but they could only imagine the evenings they could share beside the one in the future. “Sully, can I ask you something?” Michaela asked cautiously as they sat on the blanket. “You can ask me anything.” “What’s going on? I feel as if the entire town is talking about me.” Sully had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from grinning. “I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about.” “It seems as if everyone stops talking when I enter the room. Even my parents have been secretive.” “I haven’t noticed anything.” “You’ve been out here most of the time. You haven’t had to see what I’ve been going through.” “Michaela, those townsfolk think a lot of you, even though you ain’t been here too long. You’ve saved some of them, and for that, they respect you. Maybe you’re just . . .” “Paranoid?” “Yeah.” “I don’t think I’m paranoid,” Michaela replied quietly. A breeze blew by, and Michaela pulled her coat around herself more tightly. She shivered, and Sully took her hands in his. “You’re cold?” “I’m alright.” “Here,” Sully said softly. He stood and pulled a blanket off of one of the wall frames. He wrapped it around Michaela’s shoulders and placed a feather-light kiss on her cheek. Michaela felt instantly better about everything, and she began to wonder if Sully was right. Perhaps she was being paranoid. She also knew that if the people in town were talking about her, she’d have to show them that she wasn’t upset. She couldn’t let it get to her. “Don’t go frettin’, Michaela. From what I’ve heard, everyone is happy and they don’t have a problem with ya. You’ve even fixed Hank, and he’s the toughest sell.” “I suppose,” she replied. She didn’t want to think about it anymore, and as soon as Sully was finished eating, she scooted over to sit beside him. He pulled an arm around her wais, and she leaned her head on his shoulder. “Sully?” “Hmm?” “Show me again where our room is going to be,” Michaela requested. Sully smiled. Michaela seemed to ask him that every time she came out there, but he knew she had never really forgotten. He knew that by seeing the progress made to the house everyday, it was one step closer to their future together, and they were both as eager for that as the other. What Michaela didn’t know was that Sully still had a surprise for her, and he couldn’t wait for the day to give that surprise to her. He couldn’t wait to see her face, and just thinking about the smile that would creep across her face made him smile too. He kissed Michaela in a long, sensual kiss before pointing out where all of the children’s rooms were going to be, including the small one for whoever might come along. Lastly, he pointed out their room, and Michaela smiled in the satisfaction of knowing that it was the room where they would sleep and make love as man and wife, and where new additions to the family could be created. It was only a matter of time before that day would come, but both Michaela and Sully were content to know that by this time next year, they would already be man and wife. |