Chapter 51. Her hero
When they pulled up to the collapsed bunkhouse, Nathan was out of the car before it even stopped. When he saw Julia, his insides were in knots. He almost couldn't breathe, but knew he couldn't panic now. He had been trained for this, and had to keep going, for her.
In the lantern light, her body was so limp and lifeless, pinned under a huge crossbeam. Julia lay facedown, as if she had been in a low crawl on her way out of the bunkhouse when the beam came down on her. Only her right shoulder, arm, and head were visible, and someone had put a jacket under her left cheek, so her face wasn't laying in the dirt. The crossbeam was laying across her almost diagonally, from her waist on her right side across to her left shoulder.
Nathan came right over, got down on the ground, and came very close. He put his hand on her hair and spoke softly, "Jules. Jules. It's me, Nathan. I'm here. Can you hear me?"
When she heard his voice, Julia tried to open her eyes. She blinked a few times and tried to focus. Nathan could see the strain and the pain in her face. Her eyes just wouldn't focus. And, her voice was terribly faint as she spoke out into the chasm, "my love?"
"Jules, I'm going to get you out of here. Hold on. Please. Jules, hold on." He told her.
"Nathan, I love…" and she lost consciousness.
Faith crouched down and told him, "She's not getting enough oxygen, she keeps passing out."
Nathan stood up and so did Faith. Bill and Fiona were there too. Bill asked, "Faith, what happened?"
"Julia came to get me. One of the young men had come into the infirmary to get us after the bunkhouse collapsed. The young man over there was trapped inside and injured." They all three turned to look at him, his leg mobilized, as he was being loaded into Lee's car.
"She and I climbed through and got to him. We mobilized his leg. With the help of the 4 or 5 guys that had already escaped, he and I got out. But, when Julia was on her way back through the hole, something shifted. The crossbeam came down on her and no matter how hard we all tried, it won't budge." Faith told them quickly.
"How long?" Nathan couldn't get out more than that.
"She's been pinned about 30 minutes." Faith stated. "We've got to get this thing off of her. It's restricting her breathing and I'm worried about oxygen and blood flow."
Fiona didn't waste any time, she stepped back and started clapping her hands, getting everyone's attention. People gathered quickly around then, and she gave instructions. "Okay, okay, listen up everyone! We've got to get this heavy crossbeam off of our beloved nurse. So, it's all hands on deck. We need everyone lifting here! Got me? Nathan here's gonna tell us what to do."
Nathan stepped up next to Fiona and didn't miss a beat, "Lift it straight and cleanly up, not to the side, and please, not down. UP only! And we got to do it quick. So everyone into position, and get a good hold! And, don't let it budge even a millimeter until it's time!" Nathan and Fiona watched as everyone started to move and get into position.
Nathan took his place right next to Julia, Bill on the other side. He looked down the line, lanterns had been placed about so even in the dark, Nathan could see everyone. Mike, Lucas, Jesse, Lee, some oil rig guys, and some of their wives on one side. On the other side of Bill were Henry, Jed, William, all his young friends, and more oil rig guys. Fiona and a few other women were scattered about on that side as well. The only person not on the crossbeam was the injured guy already sitting in Lee's car, and Faith who was with Julia, ready to pull her out as soon as the beam was up.
Fiona called out, "Everyone ready?" Lots of whistles, whoops, and affirmatives. "Ok, Nathan, give the count."
Bill looked at Nathan and nodded. Nathan yelled out "On three! One, Two, Three, Heave-ho!" And they all lifted. The beam moved just slightly and Faith pulled. She managed to get Julia out to the buttocks. "Heave-ho!" Nathan shouted again, and it raised another inch.
Faith pulled her the rest of the way out, and made sure her feet were clear. One of her feet had lost a shoe.
"Ok, she's clear. Let it down nice and easy." Fiona called out and they did. Everyone stepped back breathing hard, but Nathan and Bill were already at Julia's side.
But, Faith quickly put up her hand and warned, "Don't touch her!" Faith began to feel around on her back, spine, touching and feeling for any indication of spinal injury before moving her. Faith didn't find any, nor did she find anything obviously broken, so she and Nathan turned her and she held Julia's face in her lap. Faith tried to wake Julia, get her to take a deep breath now. But, still only shallow breathing. And, she didn't seem to be able to regain consciousness. "Julia, Julia. Can you hear me? Julia, wake up." Nothing but Julia's shallow breathing. In fact, it was so silent you could hear a pin drop.
Faith looked up at Nathan. "We need to get her back to the infirmary."
Without a word, Nathan gathered Julia gently and tenderly into his arms. He held her so very close and walked quickly over to Lucas' car. Bill opened the door for him, and when Nathan was in, Bill got in the front seat on the other side. Fiona was in even before Bill, and the car rumbled to life. In two seconds flat they were off and on their way.
Two shakes later, Faith and Lee were in his car with the injured young man, and fell in to follow right behind Fiona.
As they drove, Nathan looked down at Julia in his arms. So limp and lifeless. He could see her shallow breathing, and couldn't understand why she wouldn't take a full breath now. He held her tight and spoke into her ear. "Jules, breathe. Please. Darling, take a deep breath. Jules, please come back to us, come back to me." He nuzzled his face into her neck, where her skin felt so soft and he could feel her pulse, though faint. He closed his eyes and prayed. He needed wisdom. What was wrong? Why wouldn't she breathe? Lord, what do I need to do? And then it hit him. Like an answer from heaven, he knew what to do.
"Bill, can you unzip her?" Bill looked back and saw what Nathan was referring to. Nathan had lifted her just enough so Bill could get to the zipper on her dress. Bill fumbled but managed to get it down. Nathan fished in his belt and pulled out his pocketknife.
Nathan handed Bill the pocketknife and said, sure as he was breathing, "Bill, cut the strings of her corset…Quick!"
Fiona gasped but Bill did as he was told. As soon as most of the strings were cut, Nathan grabbed hold of the two sides of the corset and ripped it the rest of the way open. Nathan didn't look, nor did Bill. Fiona made another shocked gasp and let out a huge giggle. "Well, that's one way to do it!"
Nathan held everything at her back closed, so that nothing was exposed, taking care for her modesty. But, as soon as the corset gave way, he heard Julia gasp for air and take an audible breath. Over and over, she was sucking in air. She was now breathing, and breathing deep. Something about the corset had been crushed and had continued to restrict her breath. But, now, thank heaven, she was breathing.
Nathan finally let go of the breath he had been holding since the very moment Fiona had announced "it's Julia". Though, his hands were shaking and wouldn't stop. They'd been shaking since he had seen Julia limp and lifeless, laying face down on the ground.
He pulled her in tight and held her, nuzzling back into the softness of her neck. He was sure he had never been so happy to hear someone breathe in all his life. Her pulse felt strong against his cheek now, and he prayed.
And again, Nathan spoke softy into her ear, "Jules, I love you. Please wake up. Come back to me. Please be okay, you have to be okay." He stayed close to her, and continued to speak softly to her, beckoning her to come back to him. When they pulled up at the infirmary, Julia was still not awake. Nathan carried her carefully, gently inside, taking care to keep the back of her dress modestly closed.
Faith was right behind him and told him to put her on the bed. Lee and Bill helped the young injured man onto the table.
Nathan gently lowered Julia down and tenderly placed her on the bed. She still didn't rouse, but her breathing was regular and strong now. Nathan knelt beside her and kept her hand in his. He stayed with her, leaned in close and spoke to her again. "Jules, please wake up. I love you. We have a lot of life left to live, together, me and you."
After a little while, Fiona and Faith came in and closed a curtain around Julia. Faith turned to Nathan. "Nathan, we need to get her out of the corset and these dirty clothes. And, I need to examine her more closely, to find out what's going on. Can you please go into her apartment and see if you can find her a sleeping gown or some bed clothes. Something loose fitting, please?"
Nathan didn't want to leave her, but nodded and moved reluctantly into action. He went through the adjoining door and walked over to her dressing table. He pulled the top drawer and something hard clanged against the drawer as it slid open. It was a picture frame. He picked it up and stared at the old worn photo. He was sure the photo must be Julia's parents. He recognized her mother immediately, but had never seen a photo of her father before. He was handsome, with curly hair, which seemed a little lighter than his own. He had dark eyes and a kind smile, and dimples. More dimples, like Julia. He and his wife made a beautiful couple and looked so happy. Nathan set the photo up on top of her dressing table.
Under the picture frame were lots of lacy things that Nathan didn't feel comfortable looking through. He tried the next drawer and found more things he didn't know how to describe. But, In the third drawer, he found a sleeping gown. He brought it back over to the infirmary, and hung it over the curtain. Nathan couldn't stand still, so he resorted to pacing. After a few minutes, the night-gown disappeared. He couldn't take the waiting anymore, so he decided to step outside for some air. He was so thankful to find Bill on the bench outside, and he sat down with him.
Nathan could feel all of his insides in a knot. He was still shaking uncontrollably. Bill knew that worry, and wanted to reassure Nathan. But, Bill did so in his own way, Bill-style. He looked over at Nathan, and said, with a little smirk, "Just wait till she's in childbirth."
Nathan didn't know what to say to that, but knew that scenario could never be as bad as this. He was sure that in childbirth there would also be a joy, that a precious baby was coming into the world. And, if he let himself imagine Julia in childbirth, Nathan knew he would be excited, not worried out of his mind. And, when it was time, he could completely and totally imagine it. He could see her, so strong, bringing a baby, their baby, into the world. And he would be right by her side, and she would be amazing, he just knew it. But right now, in this moment, all Nathan could be was worried.
Nathan looked at Bill, flabbergasted that he had just imagined having a baby with Julia. And, they weren't even engaged yet. "You just imagined it didn't you?" Bill asked Nathan.
Nathan looked down at his hands and didn't answer. The shaking was a little bit less. "I'll take that as a yes, then." Bill said, "But, it got your mind off her laying in the bed at the infirmary now, didn't it?"
The lightbulb came on. "Ah, I see what you did, there." Nathan said to Bill. But, Nathan was surprised how easily it had been to imagine it. He really needed to get his carts and his horses in order.
Fiona came out and Nathan shot up to standing. She said softly, "Nathan, she's awake, and she's asking for you."
Bill didn't think he had ever seen Nathan move so fast.
When he got to the curtain, though, he stopped in his tracks, shocked to see how tiny she seemed in the bed. Her hair was down now and had been loosely braided, and the long braid was falling love her left shoulder. Her face had been wiped clean, and she was sitting up in her dressing gown. He walked in slowly, very slowly, but when she extended her hand out to him, he moved quickly. He knelt next to the bed and wrapped her in his arms. He hugged her so tight, he hoped she could breath. He felt her soft sobs and he matched them. He could not remember ever being so scared in his life. And, now that he had her safely in his arms, all the emotions he had pushed down, in order to get the job done, came out. When he saw her limp and lifeless under the huge crossbeam, he had thought he would lose her. He had thought the world so very cruel and unrelenting, to take her before they could truly start their life together. He hadn't thought he would get another chance to hold her, to smell her scent, to touch her soft skin.
He let it all out, and when the sobs were done, he buried his face in the softness of her neck, as he had done earlier. When he pulled back, he looked her in the eyes, and touched her face. "I thought…"
That's all he managed to get out, before she kissed him. She kissed him like someone who thought she'd never get another chance to kiss him. She had thought it the end, too. And when he had come and spoken to her as she lie pinned under the crossbeam, she had thought it the kindness of the Lord to let her say good-bye.
But, it hadn't been the end. There had been a grace. The same grace that had been given the night she thought she was losing him. The night he was saying goodbye to Allie. There had been a grace then and there had been a grace today. So, it wasn't the end. It was just the beginning. It was just the beginning.
When she pulled back from the kiss, she rested her forehead on the side of his face. Then she looked back up at him and told him, "I heard you, Nathan. Everything you said to me, I heard you. I just couldn't answer."
Nathan touched her face tenderly and said, "Thank you for coming back to me."
Julia smiled softly at him, staying so very close. And said in a whisper, "I didn't have anywhere else to be just yet."
"I'm glad." He said, staying close to her and smiling tenderly at her. "I'm so very glad."
"I love you, Nathan Grant." She told him.
"And, I love you, Julia Matthews. And, I meant what I said about a lot of life left to live, together. I can't imagine my future without you in it. And, I want to talk about the future with you. I want us to talk about it." And, he kissed her again. Slow and sweet and gentle. A pure flow of love, and hopes, and dreams between two people who adored each other. Two people who could no longer imagine life without the other.
When he pulled back, she had one more important thing to say. She stayed very close and fixed her gaze on him as she told him, "You're my hero, Nathan." She touched his face tenderly. "You got me out of there, just like you said you would. Thank you." He wasn't expecting what came next. But, as soon as she said it, he knew that she was really okay, because she was able to tease him a little. "And, my love, thank you for saving me from my corset."
Nathan chuckled very lightly, and replied. "I'd be just fine if you never wore one of those things again in your life."
Julia let out a soft giggle and said, "What would the ladies of the town think about me then?"
He was so very very happy to see she was okay. Even her sense of humor was okay. She didn't move her left shoulder or arm very much, but other than that she was miraculously okay.
"And your shoulder, Jules?" He asked.
"Its really sore. Nothing broken, but Faith says I shouldn't move it too much. And, it's so painful I don't really want to." Julia stated.
"Do you have any other injuries?" He asked looking down at her, hoping he wasn't holding her in any way that was painful for her.
"No, miraculously, nothing else." She looked him in the eye then. "I meant what I said about you saving me, Nathan. The corset. How did you know?"
Nathan kept her gaze and said, "I prayed. In the car, when I was at a loss, and you weren't breathing very well…I prayed. And, it came to me so simply. Like an answer from heaven. And, I just knew I had to get that corset open."
Julia nodded, so very thankful to the Lord for his answers to prayer, that are always perfect and in the perfect timing. Just like this beautiful man in front of her, this tall, amazing answer to her heart's prayer.
"Knock knock." Bill said from behind the curtain.
Nathan stood and pulled a chair up close to the bed. He stood and said, "Come in, Bill." He offered the chair to Bill.
Bill came in and looked at the two of them. "How are you feeling, Julia?"
"I'm feeling fine. Thanks to the two of you, Fiona, and Faith…and well, most of Hope Valley. My shoulder is sore, though." Julia said.
"I'm glad you are okay, Julia." Bill told her. "It's quite late, so I'm going to head home." Julia realized that Bill must have been here all this time waiting on news about her.
Julia told him, "Bill, thank you for being here. And for being worried about me."
Bill nodded kindly at her, and said, "You're one of us, Julia."
That meant so much, her eyes filled with tears. She adored this old, grumpy man, every last inch of him. "I love you too, Bill." Julia replied.
Bill nodded, said good night and headed home.
Faith entered as Bill left. She looked at both of them. "It's getting late, and Julia, you are cleared to go back and sleep in your bed tonight. Fiona is going to help me set this young man's leg." She motioned, meaning the guy on the other side of the curtain. "Then I'm going to need that bed you are in. I'll set up the cot and sleep here tonight, Julia. Just leave the adjoining door open, and I will sleep in the middle, so I can hear both of you."
Nathan spoke up, "Faith, I can stay and stand watch over Julia."
Faith looked at him and answered, "It's really not necessary, Nathan. If the adjoining door is open, I can keep watch over both of them."
Julia spoke up, "And, Nathan, if you don't go home, Allie will be even more worried."
"Okay." He said reluctantly. She had a point about Allie. "But I'm back first thing in the morning." Nathan told them both.
"Fine by me." Faith answered. "But, get some rest, Nathan. It was an emotional day." She paused, "And, Nathan would you please help Julia over to her apartment and get her settled for the night, before you leave?"
Nathan nodded. "Sure thing." Nathan then added, "Thanks, Faith. You and Fiona were amazing. Really." At the mention of her name, Fiona came in.
"Fiona, I don't know what to say. Back there, you took charge and got it done. You were amazing." Nathan told her. "Both of you were above and beyond. Thank you."
"I didn't do anything that you or Julia wouldn't have done for me." Fiona stated.
"Well, thanks all the same." Julia told them both. "I love you girls."
They came forward and hugged her, and Nathan stepped back and let them have their girl moment. When they were done, Faith uncovered Julia and helped her stand up so Nathan could help her walk back over to her apartment.
Though, once Julia was standing, bare feet on the floor, Nathan came and scooped her up in his arms. She was shocked at first, but there was no way he was letting her walk over to her apartment. Fiona let out a giggle and said, for the second time today, "Now that's one way to do it!" Faith let out a giggle too, and the two of them walked back over to the other side of the curtain.
Julia finally relaxed against him and Nathan carried her towards the adjoining door. She finally, gently hooked her right arm around the back of his neck, her bare toes in the air. He looked at her with his crooked smile, as he walked.
When she realized his gaze was still fixed on her, she couldn't help but tease him, just a little. "Are you watching where you are going, Lawman?"
He never took his eyes off of her as he turned with her, and stepped through the adjoining door just perfectly, so very smoothly. And then, once on the other side of the door, still with his eyes on her, he answered. "Not at all. It's rather difficult to take my eyes off of you."
"Smooth, very smooth, Lawman." She encouraged him, with a cute smile. He really was the most charming man she had ever known.
He kept ahold of her with one arm, and pulled her covers back with the other. And then, he set her ever so gently in the bed. Perfectly in the middle. "You've done this before, Nathan."
He laughed. "About a million times. Allie used to fall asleep anywhere but in her bed."
He covered her up and made sure she was settled. He sat on the bed next to her.
"Are you sure you don't need me to stay, Jules?" Nathan offered. "I would be happy to sleep in a chair."
"Nathan, I'll be fine. Please go home and get some rest." She told him.
He leaned forward and hugged her again, making sure to be careful with her left shoulder. He held her for a long time, still so very thankful that she was okay. He softly whispered next to her ear, "I love you, Jules."
And she answered, "I love you, Lawman. You're my hero."
Another few minutes passed, and finally, reluctantly he pulled back. He looked intensely at her. She looked so beautiful in the low light of the oil lamp. He very tenderly cupped her face in his hands, and placed a featherlight kiss on her forehead.
"Do you need anything else before I go, Jules?" He asked her softly.
"No, my love. You've taken great care of me." She told him.
He stood, and walked to her back door to make sure it was locked.
As he came back by her bed, Nathan looked at the clock. It was now after midnight. "Ok. I'll be back at 6 a.m. That's in 6 hours." He told her. "Sweet dreams till then, my darling."
"Rest well, my love." Julia replied. And he slipped out through the open adjoining door, and was gone.
Julia turned off the oil lamp, and curled up in her bed. Her shoulder was still quite painful. But, she was so very happy to be alive. So very thankful for another day to love Nathan Grant.