Chapter 19 – Nellie
The first rays of light could just be seen when Jack woke on Thursday morning. He put some coffee on and then went to get ready for rounds. He was meeting his mother and Joe at six at the livery. The plan was to ride out toward Harper's first, check on Nellie and let Mr Harper know to bring her into town. He then planned to leave his mother there and continue on rounds, letting Joe chose what he wanted. Since he was up so early, Jack had a cup of coffee and then quickly went to the livery. He saddled Sergeant and then his mother's horse and finally Joe's. He lead all three from the livery and then rode Sergeant while ponying the other two to the jail. He tied all three horses and then went to see if Abigail had breakfast ready.
Jack knocked on the back door to the cafe and Abigail opened it. He saw that he mother was eating at the table in the small private dinning area. Abigail let him in and handed him a cup of coffee and then a stack of pancakes that she had kept warm in the oven. Jack had barely taken a bite when there was another knock at the door. When Abigail opened it, Joe McGinty stood there. She quickly let him in and handed him a cup of coffee and some pancakes. Charlotte, Jack and Joe sat there eating without saying anything. Charlotte was the first to finish.
"I think I will let you finish." Charlotte said. "While you do that, I will go saddle Mr Jingles and meet you back here."
"No need." Jack said. "I have saddled all three horses and they are infront of the jail."
Charlotte just looked at Jack and then sat back down. Joe and Jack quickly finished their food, then stood and took their plates to the sink.
"Thank you Abigail." Jack said.
"Yes, thank you Mrs Stanton." Joe said.
"Let's go," Jack said. "It is going to be a long day and I have a lot to do."
Charlotte wasn't sure what happened, but she had seen this focused Jack before. She was sure that his talk with Elizabeth had not turned out the way that he had wanted. She made a note to talk to both of them at some point to see if there was anything else that she could do to help. She knew that Jack needed to calm down first and the best way for him to work things out, was through physical labor. She hoped that helping out that morning helped Jack figure things out.
Quickly the three were riding out. Jack headed towards Jed Campbell's place first. He wanted to make sure that he made it back safely and that he had seen the note about Laura. He figured that he had, since no one came pounding on his door the previous night. They were almost to the Campbell's when Charlotte stopped Jack.
"Is everything okay." She asked.
"Yes." Jack said. "There is a lot to do, with Lee being hurt, Collins here, the schoolhouse to finish and I have to write a speech for tomorrow. I just want to get rounds done and start on the rest of my day."
Sensing that there was more to things, Joe quickly rode ahead to see if he could find Mr Campbell. Charlotte was grateful that he could read the situation and used that opportunity to leave them for a moment.
"I take it things didn't go well with Elizabeth." Charlotte said.
"Yes and no." Jack said. "She told me that she loved me, but there still feels like there is a wall between us. There is something pushing us apart and the harder I try to reach her, the farther she seems."
"Did you ever consider that she is scared." Charlotte said. "She needs to find a way to work through her fears before she will be able to commit to you. Find a way to get the two of you alone. You both need to have an honest and open discussion about the future."
"Okay Ma." Jack said. "Lets continue."
Charlotte and Jack rode up to the Campbell's just as Joe was talking to Jed.
"Thank you for taking Laura in to town last night." Jed said. "She has stayed here alone before, but I don't like it. She was busy with the garden when I left. I told her she could go into town."
"No problem." Jack said. "I was on rounds when I saw her. When she said that you had left for Benson Hills and wouldn't be back until late, I just felt better taking her into town. I see you meet Constable Joe McGinty and this is my mother Charlotte Thornton."
"Pleased to meet you both." Jed said. "I will leave you to your work, I have plenty of my own."
Tipping their hats, the three rode on. Jack didn't do the full rounds that he normally did and Joe noticed, but didn't say anything. It wasn't long and the rode up towards the Harper's. Jack saw Patrick trying to pump water. He hurried Sergeant over and pulled up near the pump. Patrick heard the horse and turned his head.
"Need a hand." Jack asked.
"I still have to milk Gertie and muck out the stalls, but Dad needed more water for Nellie." Patrick said.
"Well how about this." Jack said. "My mother will go check on your sister with me and Mountie Joe here will go help you with chores. I will be out in a moment."
"Okay." Patrick said.
Joe jumped down and tied his horse to a near by tree and went with Patrick. Jack handed his reins to his mother and went to pump the water while Charlotte tied off the horses. Soon the two were walking toward the small cabin.
"Mr Harper." Jack called out. "It is Constable Thornton."
"Come in." Mr Harper called.
Jack and Charlotte quickly walked in. The cabin seemed a little on the cold side and Jack noticed that they were low on firewood. Mr Harper quickly came from the back room and stopped when he saw that Jack wasn't alone. Jack could see right away that he looked like he hadn't slept much.
"Mr Harper." Jack said. "This is my mother Charlotte Thornton. I thought that Nellie might feel more comfortable with a woman. Dr Stone arrived last night and suggested that if you still wanted, you could bring Nellie in. How about you go get some more fire wood and I will introduce Nellie and my mom. I sent Patrick to finish chores with Constable McGinty."
Mr Harper left the cabin and Jack walked Charlotte back toward Nellie's room. Jack noticed that she looked worse then she had the previous evening. He went and sat on by her bed.
"Nellie." Jack said. "It's Mountie Jack. Can you open your eyes."
She half opened her eyes and tried to focus on Jack. He could see that she was struggling. Charlotte came over and wanted to help her sit up.
"This is my mother, Charlotte." Jack said. "I thought that you might feel better talking to a woman. She wants to see your rash and then she is going to help you get ready to go into town, there is a doctor there. Is that okay."
"Thank you Mountie Jack." Nellie said weakly.
Jack then turned to leave and as he walked out, he heard his mother and smiled. She could appear rough around the edges and wasn't afraid to speak her mind, but with a child in need, there was a softness that was similar to Elizabeth's.
"How about we get you more comfortable and then we can get you cleaned up." Charlotte said.
Jack walked back out into the main room and went to stoke the fire in the stove. He then put some water on to heat. About that time Mr Harper came back in with some wood.
"Thank you." Mr Harper said. "You didn't have to. You especially didn't have to bring your mother."
"Some times, girls of a certain age are more comfortable with a woman." Jack said. "Besides, she was up and wants to help. How about you sit here and rest. Have you had breakfast."
"Patrick and I had some leftovers," Mr Harper said. "Neither of us slept well and chores didn't get started on time. There is just so much to do and he can't do it all by himself."
"Well," Jack said. "You stay here and listen if my mother needs anything. I am going to go help Patrick and Constable McGinty. We will have chores done in no time and then you can get the wagon and head into town with the kids."
Jack went out to help get the morning chores done. While he did that, Charlotte was helping Nellie. She came out with a wash basin and saw that Jack had started to heat water. She poured some of it in the basin and headed back to Nellie. She careful, but throughly cleaned Nellie's rash. She agreed that it wasn't measles, but it looked like more then just poison oak.
"Mind if I ask you some questions." Charlotte said.
"Okay." Nellie said.
"I don't want to embarrass you, but I need to ask." Charlotte said. "Do you know about the woman's body and what happens as you grow up?"
"You mean bleeding." Nellie said shyly.
"Yes." Charlotte said. "Have yours started."
Nellie just nodded.
Charlotte didn't have to say anymore, she knew what was going on. She help Nellie to the outhouse and back. When they got back to the cabin. Charlotte helped her change her dress and wrapped her arms and legs, since they were covered in blisters. Before they left Nellie's room, Charlotte sat down and motioned for Nellie to sit as well.
"Do you still want to go see the doctor. I know that your dad is concerned." Charlotte said.
"What do you think." Nellie asked.
"It couldn't hurt. Some of those blisters are pretty bad." Charlotte said. "I will even go with you if you want. You will need to tell the doctor about your monthly, since he will concerned that you still feel warm. I promise he won't say anything and it will be okay."
"Okay." Nellie said. "You will come with me."
"I will even stay with you if that is what you want." Charlotte said. "In the future, if something happens and you need someone to talk to, you know that you can always talk to Ms Thatcher or even Mrs Stanton. They won't say anything to anyone, but they will understand."
"Okay." Nellie said. "And thank you so much."
Patrick, Jack and Joe were just coming into the cabin when Charlotte and Nellie come out and sat at the table. Jack had brought in the milk, Patrick had the eggs and Joe had brought in another load of wood. Mr Harper had gone to hitch up the team and quickly joined the group.
"Everything okay." Jack asked looking at his mother.
"Everything is good." Charlotte said. "Nellie agreed to go see the doctor, since some of the blisters are really bad. She asked if I could go with her, and I told her I would. So about I head in with them and I will see you boys when you are done with rounds."
"Okay" Jack said.
He exchanged looks with Joe, but knew better then to argue with is mother. The group walked out and Jack helped the kids into the wagon and then watched as his mother jumped up on her horse and followed the wagon as Mr Harper pulled out. Joe and Jack went to their horses and were soon heading in the opposite direction. They hadn't gone far when Joe looked at Jack and just had to ask.
"What happened." Joe asked. "I saw that look that passed between you and your mother."
"Let me ask you this" Jack said. "Do you have any sisters?"
"Nope" Joe said. "Just two brothers."
"Well I don't have a sister." Jack said. "But when we went to live with my uncle, I had three female cousins, one older and two younger then me. Let's just say living with girls is an education, even when you don't want one. I figured that there was a reason why Nellie was being the way she was and that she wasn't going to talk to me, you, or her father. It was one of those situations that needed a woman's touch."
It took a little bit for the information to dawn on Joe and when it finally did, he reached over and stopped Jack.
"Why didn't you say anything." Joe said.
"There was no need to embarrass the girl or her father." Jack said. "I wasn't sure, but I took a chance. I am sure that she wouldn't want you to say anything, so we won't. My mother has it covered and there is nothing that we can do. If we were to say anything, it would just cause undue embarrassment for everyone."
"I am going to trust you on that." Joe said. "I may have finished high school and went to the academy. But I have so much to learn about life."
"My mother says we should never stop learning." Jack said.
The rest of their rounds were rode in silence between them. Jack spoke to a number of residents, but Jack didn't say anything else to Joe and Joe didn't feel the need to speak. They understood each other and knew there wasn't anything else to say. They were just coming up to the livery when Joe turned to Jack again.
"Anything else that you need to do today." Joe asked.
"I want to check on Lee." Jack said. "I also want to see what else needs to be done at the schoolhouse. I also want to move all the books and supplies from the saloon over to the school. That way Elizabeth has all week to get things ready and set the way that she wants. I also need to find some time to work on my speech for tomorrow. If Collins doesn't have anything for you. Spend some time getting to know Captain Rushman. You will be under his command at Benson Hills. He is a good guy. I also suspect that there will be a few other Mountie arriving this afternoon and evening. I know that my mother and Mrs Stanton are planning on a light luncheon after the ceremony. That will be held at the saloon. So there is plenty to keep busy."
"Okay." Joe said. "I will check in with Collins and Rushman."
Jack and Joe left their horse after caring for them. Jack headed toward the infirmary and Joe headed off to the saloon to see if he could find Collins or Rushman. When Jack got to the infirmary, he saw Mr Harper's wagon sitting outside. He didn't see either Mr Harper or Patrick, so Jack went to the mercantile and that is where he found Mr Harper. He was just finishing paying for some things that he needed, so Jack helped him carry it out to his wagon.
"Hey Patrick." Jack said. "I bet you that Rip would love some attention. I am sure that he is still laying in front of the stove over at the jail."
"May I Dad." Patrick asked.
"Go head, but knock first in case someone is in there." Mr Harper said.
When Patrick was out of earshot, Jack directed Mr Harper to sit down on the bench, knowing that he would want to talk.
"Are you sure that Nellie is going to be okay." Mr Harper asked.
"Yes," Jack said. "She may be sore and uncomfortable for a few days, but other then that she should bounce right back. Gabe Montgomery should be bringing out so balm that Cat made."
"I was so scared." Mr Harper said. "She looked so weak and then with the fever. I was sure that there was something else going on. I felt like she wasn't telling me something."
"I kind of felt that way too." Jack said. "That was why I brought my mother out. Sometimes a woman's touch is needed. Especially with teenage girls."
Mr Harper just looked at him and then back down at his boots and then back at Jack as things dawned on him. He didn't say anything. He didn't have to. Neither wanted to talk about it.
"Thank you Jack." Mr Harper said. "I forget sometimes that she is growing up."
"It is not a problem." Jack said. "Say no more. Don't tell her I told you. I don't even think she realizes that I know. She is embarrassed enough, no need to make it worse."