Susanna was a beautiful baby. She was healthy, strong, and had a good-natured temperament. Edna, Jenny, and Benny fell in love with her right away, and the entire family considered her to be a special gift from heaven. The holiday season at Cohen's Dry Goods store that year was an especially joyful one.
After Nellie had recuperated from Susanna's birth, she and Percival told Dr. Adams that they were finally ready to go ahead with the operation on Nellie's other leg, and Dr. Adams agreed.
"If it had been going to heal on its on, I think it would have done so by now," he said.
The day before the operation was to take place, Nellie sat in a rocker nursing Susanna for the final time before Percival drove her into town. Although she would only be in the hospital for a couple of days, Nellie was reluctant to hand the baby over to Edna. Susanna was finally sleeping soundly, and with a kiss to the baby's soft cheek, Nellie handed her to her mother-in-law. Then she said good-bye to Jenny and Benny, kissed their cheeks, and walked out to the wagon with Percival.
"I know it's a little scary," Percival said, placing a comforting hand on Nellie's knee. "But just remember that this will be the last operation, and after you've recovered from it, both your legs will be healthy and strong again."
The ride into town was mostly silent. Nellie looked at the houses, trees, and buildings covered with snow and thought about how picturesque they looked as a way of taking her mind off of what she would soon be facing.
Nellie felt very tired and fell asleep quickly that night. Several hours later, the discomfort in her breasts awakened her, and she rose and expressed enough milk to lessen the discomfort enough so that she could sleep again. That happened a couple more times during the night.
The next morning Nellie felt the now-familiar apprehension she had come to dread on the morning of each operation. Percival sat by her bedside and held her hand until the anesthetic quickly slipped her into blissful unawareness. When she awakened, she saw that her leg was once again bandaged.
Later that day, Dr. Adams encouraged her to take her first post-surgery step. As she stood on the leg for the first time that day, she cried out in pain and nearly collapsed. Percival quickly caught her and helped her back into bed.
"That's probably the worst pain you'll feel," Dr. Adams assured her. "The two ends of the unstable bone have just been forced together. The next steps you take will be much easier."
Nellie and Percival both hoped with all their hearts that he was right.