Chapter 38

The following day there was still some tension in the household from Francisco's news of his transfer; it wasn't over the transfer itself, for Rebecca knew that she had married a soldier and what that actually meant for her but it was more of a panic about what to take with them and whether he should go to Monterey first and find lodgings before sending for his family or whether she should travel with him and their son at the end of the week.

Diego and Victoria decided to give them some time alone and went to visit Doctor Silvestre Ramirez, while Ramon and Felipe went out on their own.

It was the doctor himself who opened the door to their knock. "Ah Doña Victoria, Don Diego, come in, come in. I heard that you were coming to Santa Barbara and I was hoping that you would come and see me." He welcomed them inside his house and across the hallway to his office. "I'm always pleased to see my former patients." he said as gestured for them to take a seat.

Both Diego and Victoria smiled warmly as they sat down. "Thank you doctor."

Doctor Ramirez smiled as he gazed at his former patient and saw how much she had changed since the last time he had seen her; not only because she was with child but it was in her entire positive attitude to life. "I can see that you are doing well despite losing your arm." he said kindly.

She nodded. "Yes I am, it took a long time but I finally accepted it." she admitted.

He nodded as well. "That is to be expected from such a serious injury as yours." he paused for a moment to look at them. "I guess this isn't a social call."

Diego exchanged a smile with his wife. "Not as such doctor. We came here to ask your opinion about the prosthesis that I made for Victoria." he replied as he gestured to the small bag he had brought with them.

The doctor nodded with a smile. "I wondered what was in the bag. So you actually made one then, I wasn't sure if what I had sent was enough for you to try."

Diego nodded. "It was enough and I can't thank you enough for the books you sent. If you urgently need them back..."

Doctor Ramirez held up his hand. "I'll let you know if I need them otherwise take your time and send them back when you're finished with them. But before we discuss the prosthesis, I would like to examine you to see how your wound has healed." he said.

Victoria nodded. "Of course doctor." she replied.

He nodded as he stood up. "If you will excuse us Don Diego, there's some medical journals on the bookshelves outside if you wish to read." he said.

Diego smiled. "Of course doctor." He said as he left the room and closed the door behind him.

Doctor Ramirez pulled out a small privacy screen from behind the door. "If you would like to use the screen to undress, then I can examine you. It won't take too long." he promised.

Victoria smiled as she walked behind the screen. "Gracias Doctor." she said as she began to remove her clothing.

"Are you still having those sensations of being able to move your right hand and fingers or have any other sensations?" He asked.

"Not so much about moving my fingers." She replied from behind the screen. "I have this tingling sensation in the end my arm, mostly when I first wake up in the morning and I have noticed that I have an ache when the weather is colder." she added as she came around from the screen.

Doctor Ramirez nodded as he gestured her to sit down. "Is it a dull ache or a sharp pain?" he asked as he pulled up a chair beside her.

"Dull ache." she replied.

He smiled reassuringly. "Don't be too concerned about that, I occasionally get an ache in my left knee when it gets colder. If you mostly get the tingling in the mornings, it could be the arm is being pressed to hard against the mattress or your husband for that matter and it's the blood flowing without restrictions once more that can cause the tingling sensations. I would suggest swapping to the over the side of the bed to see if that helps. Otherwise you'll probably have it for the rest of your life and unfortunately, there's not a lot we can do about it. Now let me have a look at your arm." he said as he reached out and took a hold of her upper arm and gently touched the puckered scars.

"Good, good. It has healed very well and there is no sign of infection or and decaying flesh; which I guess you would have noticed that long before now. You've taken good care of it in terms of keeping this area clean." he said approvingly.

She smiled. "I do remember your warning about not keeping it clean."

He chuckled as he continued his examination. "It's good to know that at least one of my patients pays attention to my advice. Does it hurt in anyway? I mean the bone itself." he asked as he gently put some pressure on the end of the stump and was pleased that there was no obvious sharpness to it. Sometimes there wasn't enough time to smooth down the bone after amputation and if it wasn't done right, it could lead to complications later on.

She shook her head. "Only if I bump into something and then it hurts. But I have noticed that the end of my arm seems smaller somehow. I don't know if it makes sense but it seems to have shrunk a little."

Doctor Ramirez straightened up as he finished his examination and smiled re-assuringly once more. "Some shrinkage is expected as the muscles and the skin comes together over the stump. I guess you could say it moulds itself around the bone. It shouldn't change anymore, not now after a year has gone by. Well Doña Victoria, I'm pleased to say that your arm has healed extremely well and you should not have any problems in the future."

Victoria felt a rush of pride at his approval. "Thank you doctor."

He smiled. "Good, good. Now, I think we have left your husband on his own for far too long." he said as he moved towards the doorway, while Victoria moved behind the screen once more.

Doctor Ramirez smiled as he saw Don Diego studying a book rather intently; he really does have a mind for the sciences, he mused to himself. "Ah Don Diego, before you go and read all my books, perhaps you would like to come back now."

Diego grinned as he closed the book and replaced it on the shelf. "I could spend many hours here and never get bored." he replied as he crossed over to the doctor.

The older man chuckled. "I know what you mean, sometimes I get so enthralled in reading that I forget to eat, much to my housekeeper's dismay." he said as he lead the way back to his office and gestured to Diego to resume his previous seat just as Victoria came around from the screen, dressed once more and sat down beside him.

"Don Diego, I can inform you that your wife's arm has healed completely but I guess you already knew that." he said with a smile as he sat down on his chair.

Diego smiled back. "Yes, but it is good to get a professional opinion about it."

Doctor Ramirez nodded. "Of course. Now before we go any further, I want to ask you why you believe you need a prosthetic arm Don Victoria, when it's so obvious that you have managed extremely well without it." he asked in a careful and non-threatening tone.

Victoria glanced at her husband, who gave her a small smile of re-assurance before she turned back to the doctor. "You're right, I'm coping well with this. I've adjusted to what I can do and Diego helps with what I can't but with the baby coming, I've realised that I need more help than Diego can provide. He can't be with me all of the time and I don't expect him to either."

The doctor nodded. "So it's because you're having a child that you want this. What about having one of your servants help you or hire a nurse?"

She nodded. "I've thought of that but I still need to hold my baby, to feed him or her. But there could be other things I can do with it that I won't know until we try."

Doctor Ramirez gazed thoughtfully at the determined young woman in front of him. "Do you realise that this may not even help you, that it might be more of a hindrance to you. I don't want to get your hopes up only for you to become disappointed if it doesn't work the way you think it should."

Victoria glanced at Diego again before she answered. "I think we both understand that but we won't know unless we try it."

Diego nodded. "I agree with Victoria, doctor. We need to try this, even if it doesn't work."

The doctor nodded and smiled. "I hope you don't mind me playing devil's advocate but I wanted to make sure you knew all the outcomes of this, both good and bad. Now let me have a look at what you made Don Diego. I have to admit that I am rather curious as to what you have done." he said.

Diego nodded as he leant over and grabbed the bag that held the wooden arm he had made. "This is just a model, Doctor, it isn't for Victoria to use at all and there some parts of it that I am not happy with." he said as he pulled it out. "I want you to tell me honestly what you think." he added as he handed it over to the doctor.

The older man nodded "Of course." he said as he took the wooden arm from Diego and examined it. "Well this is much better than I had expected, in fact it's better that some of the ones I've commissioned through the maker in Mexico City." he complimented. "But I can see a number of things that can be improved. For instance..."

At first Victoria listened with interest over what the doctor was suggesting but as time went on, their words became almost meaningless to her; she simply didn't understand what they were talking about but she noticed that Diego did. He seemed totally interested in what the doctor was saying and asked many questions. She knew she should at least try to understand, after all this was about her but she found her mind drifting away from the conversation and her eyes strayed to the large bookshelf on her left. She was amazed by the large number of books, of all sizes; some looked well used while others looked brand new.

She pulled her attention back to the conversation between the men but was immediately confused by the doctor's words. "...the elbow joint should bend at a right angle to the upper arm..."

What on earth is a right angle, she asked herself. She had a vague memory of a lesson in squares and triangles at the mission school when she was a child but for the life of her, she couldn't remember what it meant. Her attention was lost again when her eyes caught sight of a large glass framed boxed mounted on the far wall that had a large number of insects or beetles stuck inside it. As she stared at the fascinating display, she realised that the insects were held by small pins and they seemed to be grouped together with small notes near them, which she assumed, identified what each one was.

Suddenly her attention was brought back to the men as the doctor shifted in his chair. "... All in all, you had done a good job with this and if you take my suggestions under consideration, you should be able to make one that will be more suitable." he said as he placed the artificial arm on his lap and turned his attention to Victoria. "Please forgive us if you feel we were ignoring you."

Victoria smiled even as she felt a slight flush rise over her cheeks. "I don't feel neglected doctor, although I will admit that I didn't understand a word the two of you have said." she hoped she sounded convincing enough for them to believe that she had been paying attention all the way through, even though she had not been.

He chuckled. "I can understand that. Even some of my colleagues wouldn't know what we were talking about. Now do you need my help with measurements?" he asked.

Diego shook his head with a smile to his wife. "No, I think Victoria has had enough of me measuring her."

She chuckled. "Too many times."

Doctor Ramirez smiled. "Good, good. There are just a few more things to mention and then we can finish up and perhaps have some tea or coffee."

Victoria smiled warmly. "That would be wonderful doctor, thank you."

Diego nodded. "What other things should we know about?"

The doctor picked up the wooden arm from his lap and turned the hollowed end to them. "You will need to line this with material and it will have to be kept clean, especially in the hot days and I would suggest putting an old stocking over your stump, Doña Victoria to make it easier for you and you need to keep this clean as well."

Victoria nodded. "Of course doctor."

"Now this will create irritation of your skin and it may even rub it hard enough to make your arm bleed, if this happens, you must stop using it straight away and don't re-use it until it's healed. The wood maybe too rough or too tight and if it is, then you will need to smooth it down again."

This time it was Diego who nodded; this was what Doctor Hernandez suggested as well.

"And one last thing, it will take time for you to learn how to use it, don't get upset if you don't get it right straight away. Have you been doing anything to prepare yourself for this?"

Both Diego and Victoria nodded as they explained the exercises that he had worked out for her.

Doctor Ramirez nodded. "Good, good. Keep doing that, it all helps in building the muscles up to strength again. Now if there isn't anything else, I'll go and get my housekeeper to bring us some coffee."

They stayed with the doctor for over an hour, chatting over coffee before they left, thanking him once more for everything that he had done for Victoria. They walked down the street to Irene's house and this time Victoria hesitated for only a moment at the place where her life had changed before stepping through the gate and up to the front door.

As soon as they opened the door, they heard Alfonso's cries and Victoria exchanged a look of sympathy with Diego before she walked into the sitting room to see her sister-in-law slowly pacing around the room, trying to settle her baby; she didn't know where Francisco was but assumed that he had to return to duty.

Rebecca looked up and gave them a small tired smile. "How did it go with the doctor?" she asked.

"It went really well but why don't you let us take care of Alfonso for a while, so you can rest." Victoria offered.

"It's okay, I've just fed him and I think he has wind." she replied as she gently rubbed his back.

"If it's only wind, then Victoria can look after him." Irene said firmly as she came into the room. "When someone offers to help with a crying baby; take it and have a moment to rest. Besides it would be good practice for Victoria and Diego." she added as Diego entered the room after he had placed the small bag in their guest room.

He smiled warmly. "Of course we'll take Alfonso for awhile."

Rebecca sighed, she knew they were right, she needed a moment to rest. "Okay but if you can't settle him down..."

Victoria winked to the older lady. "Then we'll hand him over to Irene."

Irene smiled warmly, pleased by the way everyone wanted to help Rebecca. She watched as her daughter hand over her son to Diego and Victoria. "Why don't you take him to your room, he might settle if there is less distractions." she suggested.

Victoria nodded. "Of course, we'll take care of him." she re-assured her as Diego held the crying baby in his arms.

Several hours later Irene stopped at the doorway of the guest room and smiled warmly as she saw her grandson asleep in the middle of the bed with Victoria asleep beside him and Diego was sitting on the chair by window reading a book.

"Diego." She whispered.

He looked up and smiled when he saw her. He closed the book and placed it on the table before he stood up and crossed over to her.

"I don't want to disturb your rest but Felipe is back and he has news." she said quietly.

Diego's eyes widened. "From the Alcalde? We weren't expecting this for another day or so." he said.

She nodded. "That's true but our Alcalde is known for making decisions without delay. He's waiting in the sitting room."

"Diego, what is it?" Victoria's sleepy voice came from behind them.

He turned to face her. "It's Felipe, he has news from the Alcalde." he replied as she sat up carefully so not to disturb the sleeping infant.

"Already?" She asked as Irene came into the room as gently picked up her grandson.

"He's in the sitting room and I think he is quite eager to tell you what happened." Irene said with a smile on her face. "Thank you for looking after Alfonso, Rebecca was able to get some sleep too." she added.

Victoria smiled as she rose from the bed and straightened her clothes. "I'm glad to help and once he stopped crying, he just slept."

Irene nodded as they left the room. "That's all babies do when they are this young." she replied as she entered her daughter's room to put Alfonso in his crib, while Diego and Victoria continued to the sitting room and saw Felipe standing by the window.

"Felipe, Irene told us that you've heard from the Alcalde." Diego said with a smile.

Felipe turned around and he couldn't keep the grin off his face. "I've got the position as junior Adjutant." he confirmed.

"That's absolutely wonderful son." Diego beamed as he strode over to his son and hugged him. "I'm proud of you." he added.

Felipe swallowed hard against the rise of emotions that he felt for his father as they pulled apart and then he found himself in the arms of Victoria.

"I'm so thrilled for you Felipe." she said happily.

He grinned. "Gracias Victoria."

"So when do you have to report for duty?" Diego asked.

Felipe's grin dropped somewhat. "I have to report back in eight days from today."

Victoria and Diego exchanged a worried look. "Eight days! That barely gives you enough time to return home, pack your belongings and return back here."

Felipe nodded; he too had been shocked by how soon he had to report for duty, he thought he would have had at least two weeks. "I know but I met Francisco just after I left the Alcalde's office and he said that its the way of the military and that I would have to get used to it. I'll have to leave first thing tomorrow morning, it's too late to leave now."

Diego nodded. "Of course, we'll be leaving on the next stage ourselves in two days." he replied as he glanced at Victoria, who nodded.

She reached out and gently touched his arm. "What about Julia?" she asked kindly.

He smiled as he thought of her. "We talked about it before I left and she is fine with it."

Victoria nodded as she glanced at Diego before she turned her attention to the young man in front of her. "Felipe, I don't want you to make any promises to her about the future. You'll be away from each other for months or even years and in that time people change. One of you might even meet someone else." she paused as she remembered Juan and her childish promise to wait for him when he joined the navy but then Diego returned home from Spain and she fell in love with him. "I'm not saying that it would happen but it could and I don't want either of you to feel pressured to keep your earlier promise just out of a sense of duty and not love."

Diego nodded as he too remembered the time when Victoria had almost married Juan. "I agree son, you're both young and many things can happen."

Felipe nodded thoughtfully. "I think I understand."

Diego smiled. "Good, now tell us all about it. I thought that you and Ramon were just going sightseeing today, so how did you end up at the Alcalde's office...?"

Two days later Victoria, Diego and Ramon boarded the stagecoach back to Los Angeles after saying their goodbyes to their family and as Victoria stared out the window at the passing scenery, she found herself eagerly awaiting for the arrival of her baby. She had learnt more about babies from Irene and Rebecca in the last couple of days than she had even known in the last ten years and she was grateful for that knowledge; knowledge that had been handed down from mother to daughter ever since time began, knowledge that she had been unable to learn as her mother had died before they had a chance to discuss it.