To The Reader:
The following story was written over three years ago and was never fully polished. I always meant to get back to it, but have never had the chance because life hasn't let me. I give it to you now in its current form and ask you to be kind in your criticism.
RavenDove
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Angel Of Mercy: The sequel to Unconventional Lady
By Lyda Mae (RavenDove) Huff
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Will Cartwright dozed in the stagecoach as it made its way over the well-worn road. Will was a good size man with handsome features. He had brown hair and eyes, and a neat mustache, and he wore a blue shirt, black pants and had a dark brown hat resting over his eyes.
Beside Will, his cousin Hoss sat going over the instructions his father had given them for this trip. Hoss was a big man with sandy brown hair and blue eyes. He wore a white shirt, brown pants, a brown vest, and a tan hat.
They were headed to San Francisco to negotiate one a minor business deal for Hoss's Pa. Ben Cartwright normally would have sent his oldest son Adam, but Adam was in Colorado and Ben needed someone there now. Hoss and Will had been traveling for the last two and a half days, and Will had gotten up to early this morning. He yawned and looked over at Hoss then out the rear window of the coach. Hoss folded the letters of authorization that his father had given him and placed them back in his vest pocket.
Mrs. Tandy sat in the seat facing froward knitting as they went over the bumps in the road. She was young, beautiful, and very married. She had light auburn hair and her eyes matched the violet of her dress. She dropped one of her needles and Will reached down to retrieve it for her.
"Thank you Mr. Cartwright." she said, accepting the needle from his hand.
"You're welcome ma'am." Will said with a slight smile.
Just then the stage jolted suddenly leaving the road and they found themselves tumbling down the slight cliff. The door on Hoss's side swung open and the hefty Cartwright was thrown out. Will watched this and bit his tongue as he strained to hold on and shield Mrs. Tandy at the same time. The coach hit bottom and rolled once coming to rest on the open door.
Will took a moment to register the sudden stop. His knuckles on his left hand were scrapped and bleeding but it didn't look that bad and he was otherwise unharmed. He let go of where he had been holding on, "Are you alright Mrs. Tandy?"
The woman had been stabbed though the right shoulder with one of her knitting needles and her hat was missing. "I think I will live." she admitted through a pained grimace.
Will forced the door opened then climbed out helped Mrs. Tandy to follow. The driver lay about fifteen yards away with a broken neck. Hoss lay at the base of the cliff, which was only about twelve feet high, his body splayed in an odd position. His left arm looked as if it had practically been ripped from the socket and he was bleeding from a wound in his upper abdomen.
At first look Will feared his cousin was dead, but as he kneeled beside Hoss the giant let out a cough and then a moan. "Hoss?" he asked gently.
Hoss's eyes fluttered open at the sound of his name. "Is everyone alright?" he asked with a labored wheeze.
Mrs. Tandy ripped a swath from the hem of her dress and knelt down to try and stop the bleeding. "Don't talk Mr. Cartwright." she said gently.
"I'm alright, Mrs. Tandy hurt her shoulder, and the driver is dead." Will said as he brushed sandy brown hair from Hoss's eyes. Will could make out the outline of Sacramento in the near distance. One of the horses had managed to brake free from the doomed coach and survive the drop nearly unscathed. Will knew what he had to do. "I'm going to take that horse and get help." he told Mrs. Tandy. "You stay here with Hoss." Mrs. Tandy nodded understanding. "You just lay still and keep quiet Hoss. I'll be back as soon as I can." Hoss nodded slightly in acknoledgement. At this Will practically leaped to the horse's back and road off.
---
Dr. Josephine Argyle and Dr. Thadious Johanson were on rotation in the emergency ward when the ambulance came in. Josephine Argyle was a short woman in her late twenties with neatly curled brown hair and sharp green eyes. She was going over papers as they lay her next case on her exam table. She pushed her golden spectacles up the bridge her nose, they seamed to slide more often since she had finally broke down and gotten thicker lenses. She knew she was only fighting the inevitable, but she was a stubborn woman. "What have you brought me?" she asked the ambulance attendant as she turned to face him. When she saw who they had brought in she nearly dropped her clipboard. It had been a year and a half since she had first met Adam and Joe Cartwright near the Ponderosa, but she recognized Hoss easily. She reached down brushing her fingers across his face. "Hoss?" she questioned.
It was the voice of an angel of mercy. Hoss opened his blue eyes, "Jo?" he asked with great difficulty, using the woman's nick name. On seeing her face a peace came over him and he closed his eyes again.
The ambulance attendant puzzled a moment then answered the question. "There was an accident with the stage. He has a wound in the upper abdomen, and suspected fracture of the sternum, clavicle and ribs. I also suspect internal bleeding."
Dr. Argyle took a quick assessment of the man's diagnosis. "Squeeze my hand if it hurts Hoss." she instructed taking his right hand and probing his abdomen. He squeezed at the slightest touch. She peaked under the dressing on the wound. What she saw was not good. She used a stethoscope to listen to his chest and she took his pulse. His pulse was to fast and his breathing labored. "Hoss I'm going to have to operate. Do you understand?"
Hoss weakly squeezed her hand again. "I trust you." His voice was nearly a whisper.
She called for a nurse and told the woman that responded to see that things were prepared. Then she went over to where her uncle Thadious was treating a woman with a wound in her shoulder. "When you finish I need you to send a telegram to Ben Cartwright."
The old Doctor looked up at his niece. "Why?"
"His son Hoss was just brought in, in bad shape. I'm going to operate . . . "
"But you don't like his chances." Johanson finished.
The patient spoke, "His cousin Will is outside. They wouldn't let him come in."
Thadious shrugged, "I'll talk to his cousin too."
"Thanks." She said rushing after the gurney with Hoss on it.
---
Will paced the hall angrily. When he saw a group rush out wheeling Hoss on a gurney. He grabbed a nurse with brown hair and glasses by the arm before she could pass him. "Nurse They won't let me see my cousin." he pointed to the gurney.
Dr. Argyle pulled back her arm, "Will Cartwright I presume." She realized he bore a slight resemblance to Adam Cartwright, thought she had to admit the mustache was a nice touch. "Hoss is being taken to surgery, and under the circumstances I will forgive your lack of manners. Now If you will excuse me, they can't operate without the doctor." At this she turned on her heal and hurried down the hall.
"Doctor?" Will yelled after her. It was then that he realized that though matronly in her dress the woman did not ware a nurse's starched white uniform with cap and bun. She had a half-bun and spit curls with no cap on her head, and wore a white blouse and dark grey skirt with her apron and surgeon's sleeve protectors.
"Dr. Josephine Argyle to be exact."
Will turned to find an older man with a beard standing behind him. "That name sounds familiar."
"Then you've heard about how she saved the lives of your cousins Adam and Joseph." the man said with a blank face.
Will nodded, "And you would be?"
"Dr. Thadious Johanson." the doctor offered his hand.
Will accepted the offered had, "Would you mind telling me what's going on?"
"I will while I take a look at that left hand of yours."
Will looked down at his bloody knuckles and found himself following Dr. Johanson.
---
Ben Cartwright waited for the evening stage that would be carrying his oldest son Adam. Little Joe was over at the general store loading their order into the wagon. It was a beautiful spring evening, and Ben leaned against the wall of the stage office thinking. He was interrupted when the clerk in the office leaned out the window and looked at him with a somber face.
"This telegram just came through for you Ben." the man handed him an envelope then retreated back into the office.
Ben had a bad feeling about the small envelope. He opened it quickly and read. It was from Will, and it was not good news. He turned to face the man in the office, "I need to send a telegram to Dr. J.V. Argyle in Sacramento, and another to Mr. Alan Detrice in San Francisco." He wrote down both messages quickly and paid the clerk.
"Right away Ben." the man responded as he hurried over to the telegraph.
Ben slipped the telegram from Will into his vest pocket and turned to see the arriving stage. It pulled to a stop in front of the station and quickly began disgorging its passengers. Adam was the last one off and he caught his travel bag as it was tossed down to him.
Ben was really glad to see Adam at that moment, but decided to wait until they met up with Joe to tell him about the telegram. He took Adam's bag from him, "Joe has the wagon over at the general store." he managed a slight smile.
Adam stretched a little after the long ride. "Is something wrong Pa?" he asked as they made their way through the Virginia City street.
Ben looked back at Adam, "I'll tell you about it on the way back to the ranch."
"Alright." Adam nodded to his father. This was not good and Adam knew it.
---
Joe had just finished loading the last of it when he saw Pa and Adam walking toward the wagon. "That's the last of it Pa." he told the older Cartwright.
"That's good," Ben said as he set Adam's bag in with the parcels. "I want to get back to the ranch and get packed. All three of us will be leaving in the morning for Sacramento." Ben climbed up and took the rein.
"But I just got back." Adam protested as he took the seat beside his father.
"I know but . . . " Ben couldn't finish the sentence so he pulled the telegram from his pocket, and handed it to Adam.
Adam pulled out the telegram and developed a sour expression on first glance of the content. He then turned to face Joe who had climbed into the back and began to read aloud as the wagon began to move forward. "Dear Uncle Ben, I regret to inform you that we will not be able to meet with Mr. Detrice in San Francisco. Our stage overturned outside Sacramento. I am fine, but Hoss was badly hurt. He was taken in for emergency surgery at the Sacramento Community Hospital, but Dr. Argyle does not have much hope. Please come quickly, Will"
The contents were of the telegram were more than sobering. Ben loved all three of his sons deeply. He knew their strengths and weaknesses, and when one of them was hurt he wished with all his heart to take their place. "I'll need you to continue on to San Francisco Adam." Ben said with a sad note to his voice.
"Understood Pa." Adam nodded as he refolded the telegram.
Then all three men were silent. Each one saying a prayer. Not wanting to admit the possibility that Hoss was already dead.
---
After Informing Will that he had broken his two finger and sliced open another Dr. Johanson proved to be a gentle touch in treating them. Thadious had then taken him to the telegraph office and insisted on paying for the telegram and buying Will lunch before returning to the hospital. It was almost as if he felt that he owed the Cartwrights something. Perhaps he did after what had happened a year and a half before, but Will was not going to argue the point. At the moment he just wanted to find out about Hoss. He had been taken from surgery to a critical care ward, and Will let Dr. Johanson lead the way.
Dr. Argyle was standing over Hoss with a stethoscope to his chest. There were many beds, but no other patients. Hoss was breathing slowly and though it still sounded labored it did sound clearer. His chest was bare except for bandages and his left arm was immobilized against his body with the hand across the sternum. The bruises were dark and terrible.
"How is he Doc?" Will asked taking Hoss's right hand from her.
"I was able to stop the bleeding and stabilize the broken bones," she looked Will in the eye with her glasses sliding down her nose, "thankfully his lung was only bruised, but he has lost a-lot of blood and may be too weak to recover. At this rate he may not even regain consciousness." She frowned as she pushed her glasses back into place.
Will looked down at Hoss. His large cousin was usually the picture of health, but now he was so pale. "I'm sorry for being so rude to you earlier Doctor."
"It's okay. I ought to be used to it by now." she remarked off hand.
"That doesn't make it right." Will admitted.
Thadious took Hoss's hand from Will and checked his pulse. "The contrition will have to wait, because I do believe he's going into shock."
Will stepped out of the way as Dr. Argyle took Hoss's wrist. "Help me get these pillows out from under him." She turned to Will, "We need to raise his feet."
The three of them worked frantically to change Hoss's position in the bed. "It may make it a little harder for him to breathe." said Dr. Johanson.
"The lesser of two evils Uncle." Josephine shot back.
Thadious nodded, "We need to try a transfusion."
Josephine looked at her uncle, "That might kill him quicker."
"We have a male blood relative right here." Johanson pointed to Will.
"A trans what?" Will asked knotting his brow.
Dr. Argyle looked Will in the eye, "A transfusion is where blood is taken from a healthy individual and given to another that needs it. It has a slim chance, but if we don't try Hoss is as good as dead anyway."
"Dose this have a better chance of working if I volunteer?" Will asked.
"It might." she shrugged.
"What do I do?"
Dr. Argyle called to the nurse, "Amelia, bring that gurney over." Thadious helped the nurse position the gurney next to Hoss's bed. "Lay down and roll up your sleeve." Josephine pointed to the gurney. Will complied and Dr. Argyle found the necessary equipment. She then proceeded to prepare Will's arm.
"You may not want to watch." Thadious said, covering Will's eye with one hand.
Will felt a prick in his arm. When Dr. Johanson finally moved his hand Will looked down to see a rubber tube going from his left arm into Hoss's right. The gurney was at a slightly higher level than the bed and Will could see the red blood flow along the tube. "How long do I have to lie here?"
"Until a certain amount of blood travels from your arm to his." Dr. Argyle gently pushed Will's head back down so it was laying flat. "Just lie still and quiet, and tell me if you start to fell sick to your stomach or light headed. I will stay here and monitor both of you the whole time."
Will looked over at Hoss. His color was starting to improve already. Will rolled his head back and closed his eye whispering a silent prayer.
---
Will was not sure how long he had lain there when Dr. Argyle gently shook him. He looked down to find his arm bandaged and the tube gone. He looked over to see that the gurney had been pushed away from Hoss's bed and Hoss had been returned to his original propped up position. "How long?" he asked, seeing it was dark out.
"Long enough." Dr. Argyle stated. "I let you rest for a bit so you can recover." She helped him to sit then handed him a glass of juice, "Drink slowly."
Will did as he was told. "Did it work?"
Josephine looked into his brown eye with her green. "I think so, but he still isn't out of the woods. I'd like you to stay here for the night as well so we can be certain that the transfusion didn't harm you."
"Can I stay here next to Hoss?" Will asked.
"So long as someone in worse shape doesn't need the bed I think I can arrange that." Josephine gave him a smile. She held up a telegram. "This arrived while you were resting." She unfolded it and read. "Dear Jo, I trust your judgment. Do whatever you think is best. If anything special is needed, I will pay for it. Please keep an eye on Will as well. He may feel the urge to disappear, and I would prefer he didn't. I will leave on the first available Stage. Sincerely, Ben Cartwright"
Will couldn't help but look a little sheepish. "I'm not about to up and leave right now."
"I sure hoped you wouldn't." she admitted.
He smiled, "So, is Jo your nick name?"
Josephine took the empty glass from Will, "Yes, and you may call me that in private if you prefer, but around here it's Dr. Argyle. The night nurse on this ward is named Hanna. She will know where to find me if I'm needed." At that she left.
---
The next morning Dr. Argyle was glad to declare Will fit, but Hoss had still not come to. The stagecoach company had retrieved their things and brought them to the hospital. Will's bag had been pretty much intact, and Will was glad for the clean clothes. Though something had busted in Hoss's shaving kit, ruining almost everything in his bag. Plus another telegram had arrived from Uncle Ben saying that he, Adam and Joe had taken the morning stage and should be here day after tomorrow. Will hoped things would change for the better by then.
Will sat next to Hoss reading a book that Thadious had given him. It really wasn't that interesting, but it was better than counting how many times the sleeping giant breathed. The nurse came over and checked Hoss's vitals for the umpteenth time.
"Still no change?" Dr. Argyle asked.
Will looked up to see her and Dr. Johanson enter the ward. The nurse only nodded, and Josephine frowned. Only one other patient had been added in the night, a man with a high fever that moaned ever so often. They all watched as the nurse went to attend to him.
Dr. Argyle came forward putting a hand on Hoss's right shoulder, then bent and whispered in Hoss's ear. "You really need to wake up Hoss, or your Pa might decide he doesn't like me anymore."
The joke didn't get a rise out him, and Jo frowned even deeper.
Thadious changed the subject, "We were wondering if you would join us for lunch."
It was then that Will realized Jo wore no apron and carried a simple hat in one hand. Will closed his book and stood. "It's not like he's going anywhere." he looked over at his cousin. Will's stomach growled, "I swear I'll be back Hoss, but a man has got to eat." At that he left with the two doctors.
---
Will sat with Jo and Thadious at a sidewalk cafe not far from the hospital. They made conversation as they enjoyed the food. "I've been wondering Jo," Will began, "if Joe and Adam weren't exaggerating about how good a shot you are, where did you learn?"
Jo swallowed and dabbed a napkin to her lips before answering. "Will, you have to understand that I was fleeing a war zone." She doubted that she could make the same shot now because her eyesight had gotten so much worse, but she didn't voice the fact. "I learned to shoot like that from a Northern sniper that had been a childhood friend of my brother's. He thought he was doing Michael a favor by helping me defend myself." Jo paused, "I aimed for the gun stock because I can't kill. I had a choice but Adam and Little Joe didn't."
"And you didn't take any of the reward . . . " Will continued.
"Because it was blood money." she finished.
"I can accept that." Will nodded. "If it's not too personal, I don't think anyone was too sure what had happened between the two of you." Will pointed to Jo and then to Thadious.
Thadious cleared his throat, "I made a big mistake young man. I treated Jo like a child when she hadn't been one for a very long time."
"Part of it was that I have my fathers temper." Jo admitted. "When Lincoln was elected, I knew that war was coming, and I might never see Michael again if I didn't go East then."
"I tried to talk her out of it and failed." Thadious continued the story. "Then in a fit of selfish rage I tried to forbid her."
"As I left, he told me never to return, and I took him literally." Jo added.
"When I calmed down, I regretted it, but she was already gone." Thadious's face grew long. "I tried to write but none of my letters got through."
"I sent the first ones back unopened, and stopped receiving them all together shortly after Fort Sumter." Jo admitted.
"I knew she wouldn't just stand by while men died and feared for her life." Thadious said with vehemence.
"He was right of course." Jo said coyly. "Though after I lost contact with Michael my big concern was finding him."
"After he died at Antietam, you had no reason to stay with the army." Will finished.
Jo nodded, "There was another lady surgeon named Clara Barton there with a civilian group. After the battle she showed me the hole in her sleeve where a bullet had passed through and killed one of her patients. It really made things seam quite hopeless." she shrugged. "You've heard the rest of the story." She put her napkin on the table. "We had best head back."
They all stood and Thadious looked at Will. "We would like you to stay in our home until Hoss is better."
"Your uncle and cousins when they arrive as well." Jo finished.
"If you're sure you have room." said Will with a little surprised at the offer.
"We have a big enough house." Thadious assured him.
---
Two days later Will went with two of Dr. Johanson's servants to greet the stage. There had still been no real change in Hoss's condition and Will did not look forward to telling his Uncle Ben that. He watched as his uncle and cousins climbed out of the coach and Adam went to ask something of the clerk while Joe gathered their bag. He approached his uncle with a lump in his throat. "Help Joe with the bags Anthony." he said to the young man beside him.
Ben took a good look at his nephew from head to toe, noticing the bandage on his left hand. "I take it that happened when the stage turned over." he said pointing to it.
Will looked at the bandage self-consciously. "It's not that serious, but Dr. Johanson insisted on treating it." He pointed to the man helping Joe with the bags, "This is Anthony, he works for Thadious. There is a carriage waiting for us over there." he pointed he pointed to a nice carriage with a woman at the reins. "The woman is Abigail. She's the housekeeper."
Adam came over, "The next stage to San Francisco leaves at nine tomorrow."
Ben nodded, "Then you should get there before Mr. Detrice's deadline." He turned bag to Will, "Have you arranged for rooms?"
"Jo and Thadious insist that we stay with them." Will gestured to the carriage and started walking toward it. "Anthony and Abigail will take us to the house and then to the hospital," he shrugged, "or the other way around if you prefer." he added almost reading his uncle's mind.
Ben nodded approval and put a hand on Will's shoulder. "How is Hoss doing?"
"I'll tell you the whole story along the way Uncle Ben." Will had trouble facing Ben. Anthony climbed up beside Abigail after stowing the bags and once Abigail was sure the Cartwrights were in their seats she whistled to the team. The carriage pulled out of its spot at a fair pace and they made their way down the busy street. Then Will began the story leaving out the part about the transfusion.
---
Josephine was holding Hoss's left arm still while a nurse and orderly changed the dressing on his wounds and surgical incisions when Ben entered the ward. There were several other patients with various ailments in the ward and Hoss had been given privacy screens, though Ben could see plenty from where he stood. Ben watched unnoticed, seeing for the first time how terrible his son's injuries looked. There were lines in his abdomen and along his sternum where the flesh had been cut, deep purple bruises along his left side, and the left side of his collar bone looked like it had been patched together with pins of some sort.
When they had finished re-bandaging Hoss they adjusted him on the bed, and Josephine pulled up the covers. Then she looked up, and seeing Ben, she opened the privacy screens more. The nurse and orderly left and finally she spoke. "Did the others go to the house?"
She was just the way Ben remembered, though the lenses of her glasses seamed noticeably thicker. Not for the first time he found himself wishing that one of his sons or even Will would marry her, or that he was twenty years younger. "Yes, I wanted to have a chance to talk to you alone."
Jo motioned him past her to Hoss's side. "Aside from the broken bones his left lung and his heart were bruised." she began. "The bleeding was severe, but damage to other organs was minimal. The transfusion stabilized his condition, but he still shows no signs of waking up and the nurses have only managed to feed him some broth."
"Trans what?" Ben asked a little confused.
She gave him a strange look, "You mean Will didn't tell you?"
"Not about that," Ben scratched his chin, "at least I don't think he did."
Jo showed Ben the bruise in the crook of Hoss's right arm. "Will gave Hoss some of his blood to try and replace some of what Hoss had lost. That's probably the only reason Hoss hasn't died yet." She rolled her eyes, "I bet Will played down how badly he'd mangled his hand as well."
Ben sighed, taking a seat in the empty chair beside Hoss. "So Will helped saved his life."
"Well yes," Dr. Argyle admitted, "Will was also the one who came into the city looking for help."
"I'm assuming that your warning about how the chance of infection doesn't end until two weeks have passed stands." said Ben.
"It does," she admitted, "only I've added that it never hurts to pray."
Ben nodded, "I'll try and remember that."
"I have rounds to make, and then I'm supposed to work at the clinic for a few hours," Dr. Argyle stated, "but the nurses always know where to find me when I'm needed. So I'll see you later Ben." Then she left the ward.
Ben watched her go, and then looked down to Hoss. "With her as your doctor you have a better chance than she'll admit, but you really need to wake up Hoss." Hoss didn't respond and Ben settled in to wait for Adam and Joe.
---
Joe found himself trying to keep from losing his mind as he took his turn sitting with Hoss. Adam had left for San Francisco two days before and Ben, Will and Little Joe had begun a constant vigil over Hoss in shifts. Though there were reports of Hoss opening his eyes, he still hadn't woke up or responded to his name.
Joe had finally found a deck of cards and began passing the time by playing cards against the sleeping giant. He held up his hand and the one he'd drawn for Hoss. "Full house Hoss, read 'em and weep." He gathered up the hands and began to shuffle again, and though he wasn't keeping track of money he joked to his brother. "If you don't wake up soon Big Brother, you're going to find yourself broke."
"That's because you're cheating." Hoss grumbled with a little effort.
At the sound of his brother's voice Joe jumped and scattered the cards all over the floor. When Joe recovered, he bent down next to Hoss. "How long have you been paying attention?"
Hoss half opened his eyes and kind of shrugged, "A while."
"And you didn't say anything?" Joe asked as he knotted his brow.
Hoss smiled, "It was kind of funny listening to you play cards with yourself."
Joe rolled his eyes and stood up. "I should have known."
"Known what?" Ben asked as he came up behind Joe. It was time for the shift change and Dr. Argyle had come in with him to check on Hoss.
Joe looked at the two of them with a smile, "That throwing him off a cliff wouldn't change Hoss's sense of humor."
"I see your sense of humor hasn't changed either Baby Brother." Hoss said with a grimace.
At this Ben and Jo pushed past Joe. "How do you feel Hoss?" Ben asked barely containing his excitement.
"Real sore Pa," Hoss answered with obvious strain in his voice, "and kind of hungry."
Dr. Argyle put her stethoscope to Hoss's chest. "Can you cough for me Hoss?" she asked him kindly. Hoss mustered the best cough he could though it hurt and the sound was music to Jo's ears. She listened to his heart and took his pulse. "If it hurts to talk to much then don't," she urged him with a smile, "I'll see what I can do about some food and medicine for the pain."
Hoss looked at her with full recognition, "Thank you Doctor." he then closed his eyes and tried to relax.
Ben pulled Josephine aside, "How do things look?" he asked her with a straight face.
Jo tried to hold a straight face, "Considerably better, but keep praying."
"I will." Ben admitted before letting her continue about her business and going back to Hoss's side.
---
In the week after Hoss finally woke up his health had improved greatly along with his appetite. Adam had concluded negotiations with Mr. Detrice and returned to find everyone in good spirits. Now that two weeks had passed there was good reason to celebrate, and as Adam made his way to Hoss's bedside with an empty wheelchair the nurses and orderlies smiled back at him.
Adam stopped just outside the door of the private room that Hoss had been moved to. Where he found his brother as expected, half dozing. "If you're not to busy Hoss, I think it's about time you got out of that bed."
Hoss looked at his older brother noticing the wheel chair and smiling. "Did Dr. Argyle say it was okay?"
"It was her idea." Adam admitted as he enlisted a passing orderly to help him. It only took a few minutes to get the big man ready for a trip outside and they were on their way.
---
It didn't take Adam long to push the wheelchair outside and along a cobble stone path to a small chapel that connected with the hospital. As they got nearer, they heard the sound of a woman singing and someone playing an organ. Adam had heard that voice before and so had Hoss, and though they knew that Dr. Argyle had sung opera with her father they had never heard her before.
They entered the chapel to find Jo playing the organ and singing in what sounded like Italian. Thadious, Pa, Will and Joe were all in the first pew listening. Adam pushed Hoss's wheelchair to the end of the bench and took a seat with the others. Jo finished her song and all of the men but Hoss applauded.
She did not bow but stepped down from the platform smiling at Hoss. "I was just demonstrating the wonderful acoustics in the chapel, and though you might like to join us."
Hoss just kind of laughed, "I thought you told Little Joe you wouldn't sing to please a man's ego."
"That's Hoss," she admitted, "but I still sing when I feel like it."
"There is nothing wrong with that Josephine." said Ben. "I believe you had some good news for Hoss as well."
Jo smiled, "I think you should be well enough to travel back to the Ponderosa in another week. I've agreed to come visit a few weeks later and remove those pins from your collar bone." She gestured to his bandaged shoulder and immobile left arm. By now the others had gathered around Hoss and Dr. Argyle.
"Isn't that wonderful Hoss?" Joe couldn't contain his Joy.
"Yea, that does sound wonderful." Hoss admitted with a beaming smile.
"Adam, Will and Little Joe will leave for Virginia City in the morning," Ben told Hoss, "and I'll wait to travel with you."
Will rubbed his hands together, "Now that, that's settled Doctor, I hope you still feel like singing, because I've never heard anything so beautiful before."
Jo smiled and gestured them back to their seats where she sang several more songs before her duties called her away.
---
Ben and Hoss were about to board the stage home, and Jo and Thadious has seen them safely there. Hoss was fully dressed, and had his left arm in a sling that had been further secured to his body. "Now remember to have him see the doctor in Virginia City the moment you get off the stage Ben." Dr. Argyle finished her instructions.
"And I promise I won't let him touch the pin in Hoss's shoulder or his stitches so you can take them out the right way when you come." Ben finished.
Both Cartwrights took their seats in the coach, and Hoss stuck his right arm out the window taking Jo's hand. "Thanks for everything Doctor." the gentle giant smiled. "I swear if there are angels you must be one."
"I just do my job Hoss." Jo smiled back as she let go of his hand. "I'll see you both soon." The driver cracked his whip and the stagecoach sped off into the day while Jo and Thadious waved goodbye.