Jack pressed the snow-covered Stetson to his head, the brim curling against the harsh wind. Hills of snow, some over a foot high, drifted across his path, obliterating the recent footfalls. How was he going to find Elizabeth and Julie?
"Jack! Jack!" Tom's cries echoed as through a tunnel.
Jack jumped when his brother nudged him.
Shrugging off Tom's hand, he kept pushing through the snow. "Go back to town."
"Hey." Tom stepped in his brother's path. Bracing both hands against Jack's shoulders, his pale blue eyes blinked against the blinding snow. "My wife is out there too, in case you forgot. So I'm not leaving."
Jack exhaled. As concerned as he was for the well-being of his fiancé, Tom's situation was far more dire. What if Elizabeth hadn't found Julie yet? Or what if she had and they'd both gotten lost in the middle of the thick forest? In this raging blizzard, neither of them had a chance of survival without some kind of shelter. A few abandoned cabins spotted the area, but in the haze of his panic, he had no idea where to find them.
Jack shook his head, shoulders relaxing under the pressure of Tom's hands. "Alright, you want to help? Go back to the row house, in case Elizabeth or Julie found their way back. I'll keep looking."
"You know, you're never going to find them in this." Tom rubbed his hands together and then pulled them into the sleeves of his worn brown leather coat. "The snow is getting deep, and if you go into that forest to look for them, you'll never be able to find your way back."
Snow swirled around their calves and toward their knees. Jack kicked a path through the snow, but drifted over behind him. Tom was right. How did his brother get so level-headed? So responsible?
Hands on his hips, Jack tilted his head, seeing his brother, really seeing him, for the first time.
Snow collected in Tom's sandy blonde hair, and fine lines etched in his forehead made him look much older than his twenty years. How could this be the same boy - now man - who had gotten both of them thrown out of a pub in Hamilton just over a year ago? Perhaps it was his life experiences during the past year that had spurred the sudden responsibility, or the terrifying possibility of losing both his wife and unborn child.
"Alright, we'll hold off on the search for now." Jack pulled his feet up out of the drift. "But the moment this snow stops, I'm coming back out here, and I'm not stopping until I find both of them."
"Jack?" Tom grasped his brother's forearm. "Elizabeth and Julie, they'll be fine, right?"
"Yeah." He slapped his brother on the back. "They'll be fine. They're Thatchers."
A warm band of sun streamed through the gap in the curtains and cast a sliver of light on Julie's face. Flinching, she pulled on the thin blanket and turned out of the harsh glare. Couldn't she sleep just a little bit longer?
The curtain rustled in the icy draft whistling through the window, brightening more of the small space. Julie shivered as the memories came back to the front of her mind.
Viola. Father. The blizzard. Elizabeth, with her shawl and a hat. Searching for the road. Finding the cabin.
Bolting up in bed, a loud creak echoed in the tiny space. Behind her, Elizabeth's body lay twisted under the blanket they had shared, her face turned sideways and her back almost touching the bed. A curtain of chestnut curls lay across her face, pooling on the dusty mattress. So peaceful. How could she wake her? She deserved some extra sleep.
Rubbing chilled hands over her belly as the baby stirred, Julie arched her back and stretched her legs as she rose from the bed. Carefully she tiptoed to the door and opened it just a crack.
White. Blinding, overwhelming white. She blinked and rubbed her eyes, giving them time to adjust.
Her breath caught in her throat as she brought a hand to her heart.
Pure, sparkling snow covered the entire forest. It spread in rippled drifts around dusted pine trees, rose and fell in a landscape of its own. She had never seen anything like it.
Julie opened the door further to widen her view, and light fluffy crystals spilled through the doorway. Pushing the door against the deluge, she just managed to shut it before a pile of snow spilled into the cabin.
"Wake up and come see this!" Julie reached across the bed and pulled the curtain aside. "It's beautiful!"
Elizabeth didn't budge.
Shaking her head, Julie sat next to her sister. Silly girl, pretending to be asleep. Well, there was one way to fix that. The bright sun would wake her up wake up for sure.
Grinning, Julie brushed the hair away from her sister's face. Eyes wide, she staggered backwards, tripping on the hem of her dress.
Once pink, Elizabeth's cheeks were as pale as the newly fallen snow, her parted lips an icy shade of bluish-purple.
"Elizabeth?" Julie crawled across the floor and nudged her sister's shoulder.
No response.
"Come on, Elizabeth." Julie's hands trembled and she gripped the side of the bed. "Wake up already and get that makeup off your face."
Pushing herself to her feet, she bit her lip and backed away from the bed. "I mean it." She removed her hat and twisted it in her hands. "Please, Elizabeth, you're scaring me."
Julie blinked hard and dropped to her knees at the bedside. If Elizabeth intended this to be some cruel joke, it sure wasn't funny. Even as kids, Julie had often made it clear to both of her sisters that she didn't like this kind of teasing. Why did they feel the need to continue, even as adults? This had to stop. Stress like this wasn't good for her, or the baby. Didn't Elizabeth know that?
Bracing for a shout of surprise, she swallowed and put an ear to Elizabeth's chest.
Silence.
Her own heart pounding in her ears, Julie covered her face and shook her head. This wasn't possible. Maybe she wasn't listening hard enough, or in the right place.
Elizabeth couldn't be - Julie didn't want to think of the word. Her beloved sister had sacrificed everything by following her into the storm, making sure she stayed warm, even when it meant offering her own coat.
Her coat!
With clumsy fingers Julie removed the warm blue coat and laid it over Elizabeth's body. She then laced her fingers together and bowed her head.
Please breathe. Please, dear Lord, just let her breathe.
Tears poured down Julie's cheeks as she pressed her face into the mattress. "Please, don't die!"
Lifting her face for a moment, she gasped as small frozen puff of air escaped from Elizabeth's parted lips.
Julie exhaled a burst of laughter, wiping tears from her eyes.
"Oh, Elizabeth! You're alive. You're really alive!" She peppered her sister's cold face with kisses.
But she wasn't waking up. She must be getting warmer, and she was breathing, so why wasn't she waking up?
"Elizabeth?" Julie patted her sister's cheeks. "Wake up, please wake up!"
"Elizabeth!"
Clutching her belly, she sank to the floor and screamed.
Sergeant's dark muscular legs pushed through the light snow as he snaked through the forest. Jack and Tom had already searched three cabins with no luck. Exhausted, Tom went to the row house, in case Elizabeth and Julie were on their way back. But Jack, more determined, rode toward the only place he hadn't checked-the cabin that the Tolliver gang used as their hideout two years ago.
There it stood, at the bottom of a hill in a copse of snow-laden trees. No smoke came from the chimney. Jack tugged the reins, turning Sergeant back toward town.
A scream shattered the silence.
Spurring Sergeant on his flank, he plowed through the fine powder, stopping just short of the cabin door.
"Jack!" Julie opened the door, snow pouring into the cabin as she threw herself into his arms. "Oh Jack, I'm so glad you're here. We got lost, and we found this cabin, but there were no matches, and she gave me her coat to keep me warm, and we fell asleep, and the sun woke me up, and-"
Jack put his hands on her trembling shoulders. "Where's Elizabeth?"
Julie grabbed his hand and pulled him inside. Her eyes glistened with tears. "She's so cold, Jack. She's breathing, but barely. And she won't wake up, Jack. She won't wake up and it's all my fault for running away!"
Her knees buckled underneath her, and she collapsed on the floor in the pile of snow, her body shaking with sobs.
Jack rushed to the side of the bed and dropped to his knees. Elizabeth's body lay motionless, knees bent under her skirt, her lips an icy blue. He'd heard enough stories from Mounties serving farther north to know what it meant.
"Julie." Jack turned and held her shoulders until she stopped crying. "Julie, do you think you can walk back to town from here?"
She shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not sure. Everything looks different in the snow. And the drifts are so deep."
"Take Sergeant. You can follow his tracks back to town." He pulled her to her feet and led her outside to where his horse waited. "You can ride a horse, right? I mean, in your condition?"
"I...I think so." Julie brushed the tears off her face. "Maybe if I just take it slow."
Carefully he helped her up into the saddle and handed her the reins. "Tom is at the row house. Go there first and tell him to get Faith or Dr. Burns."
Julie nodded. "Elizabeth...will she be alright? She has to be alright."
"I hope so. I won't know for sure until someone takes a look at her." He stepped back. "Julie? Please don't blame yourself for this. You know she was only trying to protect you."
"I know. I just don't want her to..." Julie blinked hard, then lightly kicked Sergeant in his side and snapped the reins.
Jack reached into his pocket, pulling out a box of matches. Once inside the cabin, he pushed the door shut behind him. To his left, a small stove held two pieces of firewood. Jack struck a match and held it against one of the logs with shaking hands, but the cold, damp firewood wouldn't catch. He needed dry wood, and the only place he could find it was back in town.
But he couldn't go back. He couldn't leave Elizabeth.
Kneeling at her bedside, he removed his gloves and pressed the back of his hand to her forehead. Ice cold. This wasn't right. He was supposed to keep her warm. How many times had he made that promise? And now... he didn't want to think of it, but one ugly word kept repeating in his mind.
Jack stroked the soft curls framing her pale cheekbones. "Please don't leave me. So many people need you."
Tears welled in his eyes and he blinked them away. "I need you."
Wiping his face, he sat on the bed next to her. "You know, it's funny, when I first came to Coal Valley, I thought it would be the most boring, mundane posting of my career. That it could never compare to the excitement of Cape Fullerton."
He exhaled. "I sure was wrong, wasn't I?"
Jack traced her icy lips with his thumb, swallowing against the hard lump in his throat. "We've had so many adventures together over the past two years, haven't we? Some were better than others, I will admit that. But each one of them brought us closer. They showed me what a wonderful, loving, strong woman you are. And I know I'm not good with words. That's your specialty, isn't it?"
Suppressing a chuckle, he brushed a wisp of hair from her forehead. "But you need to wake up, alright? You have that story to tell. Our story. We have a life ahead of us. A house to build, children to fill it with." He sniffled and rubbed his nose. "And I promise when you wake up, I won't let a day go by without telling you how much I love you."
Jack knelt and leaned forward, a sweep of dark hair hanging over his forehead. His interlaced fingers pressed into his eyes, pushing back a waterfall of tears.
Please Lord, help her pull through. I'll to submit to your will, to whatever you have planned for her, for us. But - I don't know what I'd do without her. I love her so much, and I do believe that we have many adventures ahead of us. Just please God, please let her live.
His face inches away from Elizabeth's, he laid his head on folded arms and closed his eyes, slipping into a deep sleep.
Dreams.
Beautiful, vivid images flooded his mind.
Elizabeth rushing into his arms after her encounter with Spurlock. Rescuing her and Julie from the Tolliver gang. Watching Haley's Comet streak across the evening sky. Riding lessons. Hamilton. The homestead. The mine. Her first home. Camping with the children. Helping the settlers. His mother. The landslide. Waking to her angelic face.
Then the greatest adventure thus far - asking her to be his wife.
The images changed then, blurred by whirling snow. Elizabeth running through the forest. Taking off her coat. Giving it to Julie. Falling asleep as the color drained from her face. Screams.
The sound of knocking woke him from his fitful slumber. Jack jerked his head up, stars swirling in front of his eyes.
"Come - come in." He stood, rubbing the back of his neck.
The door opened, and Faith entered, followed by Charlotte and Mr. Thatcher.
"Ma, you didn't have to come." Jack stepped aside so Faith could examine Elizabeth.
"Nonsense." She shook her head, reaching into the satchel on her shoulder. "I care about Lizzy too. And I brought some dry firewood, and some old newspaper for kindling."
Taking the firewood and paper, he pushed them into the stove. "Where's Tom?"
"He's back at the row house with Julie. She's been through quite the ordeal." Charlotte fastened the buckle on her satchel and adjusted the strap. "Sorry it took so long, but Faith wanted to check on her first, to make sure the baby was alright. Everything's fine."
"Thank you." Jack lit a match and tossed it into the stove. It took a few minutes, but soon a warm fire blazed and the cabin warmed.
Clearing his throat, Mr. Thatcher stepped forward. "I brought some blankets from Abigail. She sends her love and prayers."
Jack nodded and took them. As heartbroken as he was to see Elizabeth this way, he could only imagine how Mr. Thatcher felt to see his daughter like this.
He placed a hand on his future father-in-law's shoulder. "Faith is one of the best nurses I know. She'll help Elizabeth, I know it."
"He's right." Charlotte exhaled, a thin white stream of frozen air slicing through the space between them. "She set up an infirmary in the schoolhouse and helped twenty injured miners after the landslide. After Elizabeth, she's the best thing that's happened to Hope Valley."
Faith stood then, picking up her bag off the floor. Her shoulders sagged as she slipped the stethoscope inside.
Jack held the quilts tight in his hands. Please let her offer good news.
"Elizabeth has a moderate case of hypothermia." She gripped the handles of her bag. "Her heart is beating, but it's so slow, I can see why Julie would panic."
Hypothermia.
The one word he hadn't wanted to hear, and yet there it was. Jack remembered enough stories from his Mountie training to know how serious hypothermia could be. Like Constable Stead, the worst case on record. Five days in the frozen north with limited resources led to two amputated feet and fingertips with so much nerve damage he couldn't even hold a pencil. After a month in the hospital, they released him. But he carried mental anguish so severe that he took his own life a week later, leaving behind a wife, three daughters and two sons.
That was after five days, though. Elizabeth's exposure to the bitter cold lasted only five hours. Surely her prognosis must be better.
Mr. Thatcher lifted one of his hands. "I can wire Union City. Once the roads are clear, we can take her there for treatment. They must have doctors there that can help her."
Faith reached out and touched his arm. "I'm sorry, but moving her now would do more harm than good."
Mr. Thatcher tilted his head. "But you just -"
"I did carefully roll her onto her back, but that was to help open her airway and put her hands on her sides. However, any more movement at this stage, until her temperature rises, could cause widespread damage."
"Oh, alright." He nodded.
"Anything else? Her hands, how are they? If she can't write…"Jack set the quilts at the foot of the bed, bracing himself against the footboard.
Faith held out Elizabeth's gloves. "I took them off to examine her hands, and they don't look too bad. Her fingertips are blue, so she might have some nerve damage, but I won't know until she wakes up."
"So we just wait?" Jack took the gloves, twisting the white leather in his hands.
"The fire will help, and so will the blankets. It's important though, that you warm her body first, before her hands, face and feet, or she could go into shock. The coat that Julie laid over her is a good start. You can add a blanket in a few hours, and if her breathing becomes more regular, you can cover the rest of her, a little at a time. It might take a day or two, and even then, it might be even longer before she wakes up."
"I'll stay with her." Jack sat at the edge of the bed and picked a piece of straw off her coat. The livery. Was that really just hours ago?
Charlotte put a hand on Jack's shoulder. "I'll go back to town to get more firewood, and something for you to eat." Massaging his tense muscles, she leaned closer. "She'll pull through. I know she will. She's a Thatcher."
He nodded as his mother pulled him into an embrace. Her arms gave him strength, just as they had when his father died years ago. Would Elizabeth suffer the same end? He couldn't bear to think of it. Fate couldn't be that cruel.
She gave him one last squeeze before she pulled away, bringing the harsh reality of the situation back into focus. Nodding to Faith and Mr. Thatcher, she opened the door.
"Before I leave, there is one more thing." Faith reached into her bag and pulled out a small tin cup. "It's important that Elizabeth stays hydrated while she recovers. Start with lukewarm water. You can melt some snow on the stove. Just moisten her lips for now. Don't try to pour any down her throat. She might choke on it."
Jack nodded. Don't move her, warm her but not her hands or feet, give her water but not down her throat. It was dizzying. How could he remember it all?
"If there is anything else I can do, just let me know. I'll keep her in my prayers, and I know a lot of people back in town will be praying for her too." She closed her bag and pulled her coat tight around her.
"It's starting to get dark. Please let me accompany you back to town." Mr. Thatcher held out his arm.
"Thank you, I appreciate that." Faith nodded, following him.
The door closed and Jack slid into the chair. Elizabeth's body lay motionless and the few breaths that escaped her lips were so far apart, he had to remind himself she wasn't dead.
She was alive.
And he wasn't leaving, not until she woke up. She didn't leave his side when he had pneumonia, and he would not leave her side now.
No matter how long it took.
