Ford came downstairs with a plate of food for Holly and sat it on the table next to her. He pulled some pills out of a cabinet and said, "After you eat, I have placed your pills in here." He sat a small cup on the side of her tray. I will be in my office in the next room. Call me if you should need anything." He looked her over, and she looked petrified. Ford knew very little about comforting someone because he never really had someone to comfort him as a child. So he did the only thing he could think of at the time and said, "You're safe here, Holly. I promise."

She looked down at her food and began to eat, so he walked to his office and kept an eye on her as he worked on making medicine. After Holly ate, she fell fast asleep.

A cold front blew through that night, bringing quite a storm in its wake. Lightning lit up the night sky as heavy winds blew through. The electricity flickered a few times until a loud boom was heard, followed by a loud clap of thunder. Ford heard Holly scream in terror and fumbled for the drawer knob on his desk. He pulled out a flashlight and walked to the next room, where Holly was curled up in a ball. He lit a lantern in the room and said, "Holly, I am going to go set up a generator outside, but I need you to stay calm."

She reached out to him and said, "Please don't leave me."

It was clear she was terrified, but he needed to get the generator running in the clinic. He placed the lantern on the table and walked to the cabinet to pull an umbrella out. He was about to go outside to fix the generator. When she held his hand and tried again, "Please, I don't want to be alone."

He was annoyed, but he knew she had been through hell, so he asked, "Is there anything I can do that would make you feel less scared."

She bit her lip, questioning whether she should ask for it, but the honest look in his eyes gave her the courage to ask, "Could you hold my hand?"

For a second time today, Ford was surprised by her. Regardless, he did realize that the action could have a soothing effect, so he held his hand out to her and allowed it. Unconsciously his mind said, 'Forget the damn generator.' He stayed with her, holding her hand until she drifted off. He smiled at her and wondered how any man could put his hands on such a beautiful and kind girl.

Once he was sure she was in a deep sleep, he carefully placed her hand on her bed and grabbed the flashlight to go work on the generator. He looked back to her and mildly regretted letting her hand go because he missed the warmth of her touch. It wasn't until then that he realized that he wasn't wearing his gloves when he held her hand.

The following day, Ford came downstairs and found Holly still fast asleep. He placed the breakfast he made her on the table and allowed her to sleep. Ford walked over to his desk with his food and noticed Wayne had left the picture of Holly there. He picked the photograph up and looked at the girl resting on the stretcher. The girl lying on the bed looked like a shadow of the girl in the picture. Her face was pale, with dark circles and a gaunt appearance from a definite drop in weight. He heard her start to stir, so he shoved the picture into the pocket of his coat. She sat up and looked at him. "Finish your breakfast. I would like to pick up some clothes for you from your Uncle Frank's house."

Holly's face turned red with embarrassment, and she replied, "I uh… Well, I don't have any clothing with me. I was in kind of a hurry when I came into town."

He thought for a moment and said, "I suppose I could call up the general store and see if they have something that might fit you. So, go ahead and eat your breakfast while I handle that. At least that way, we don't have to move you too much."

About an hour later, a plump-looking woman with bright red hair came barreling into the clinic, holding a large bag of clothing. She looked over to Holly and chirped, "Ah, you must be the patient Ford wants me to dress. I am Miranda."

Holly blinked in surprise as Miranda held up dresses to her, asking a million questions before she could get a word in edgewise. "My word, you are a pretty one, except for that bruise on your face…How did that happen, sugar? I don't think I have seen you around these parts. How do you know Ford? He is an excellent doctor. Did you know that he is single?"

Holly could not process what just happened and thought to herself, 'Good God, this woman is on a mission.'

Ford walked in clearly oblivious to what had just happened and asked, "Did those antibiotics I ordered come in yet?" Ford asked as he came down the stairs.

Miranda beamed when she saw Ford and said, "No, not yet. Where did you find this pretty young thing? I am imagining the children already."

Ford choked on his coffee and replied, "She's a patient, Miranda…If you could go back to finding something that will fit her, I would appreciate it." He poured himself some more coffee and returned upstairs before Miranda could ask more questions.

Miranda laughed heartily at Ford's quick escape and said, "Well, it looks like it is just going to be us girls. Now let's try on some of these clothes. Miranda gave her a few outfits to try. They were all beautiful, but she doubted that any of them would cover all of the scars and bruises.

As she was ushered into the bathroom, Miranda handed her the first outfit. The clothes were beautiful, but she knew before she put them on that they wouldn't cover even half of the bruises. She was about to ask for something different when Miranda yelled, "I'm not leaving until I see it on you."

Reluctantly, she took her dress off with her back facing the mirror, afraid of what she might see. She pulled on the white shirt and blue skirt. It came with a vest that she put on last. She took a deep breath before she dared turn around and look. When she did, her body started to tremble, and her hands shook violently. She started sobbing in the bathroom.

Miranda heard her crying through the door and said, "Sweetie, it can't be that bad looking. Let me see."

"No, please don't come in…."Holly called out as she continued to cry. Suddenly her legs gave out, and her head hit the side of the bathtub.

The large thump spooked Miranda, and he called out to the doctor, "FOOORRRRD GET IN HERE!"

Ford ran down the stairs and started to knock on the bathroom door. "Holly, Holly, are you alright in there?"

Holly moaned in pain and said between the sobs, "I'm… fine, but I need help."

Ford asked Miranda to sit in the waiting room for a moment before going in. The first thing he noticed was the blood on her head, where she hit it on the tub. Ford grabbed some gloves, cotton, alcohol, and a box of tissue paper before kneeling down next to her. He placed the tissue paper in her lap as he worked on cleaning up her forehead.

"I…I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ruin Ms. Miranda's clothes," Holly said tearfully.

Ford focused on her injury and said, "The clothes are the least of my worries. What caused you to fall down?"

Holly got extremely quiet and looked away from him. Ford gently turned her face back to force her to look him straight in the eyes and said, "Holly, there is such a thing as doctor-patient confidentiality. You can tell me anything."

Holly chose her words carefully before saying, "I saw the bruises, and it felt like it was happening all over again."

Ford nodded and finished cleaning and bandaging her head before saying, "lean forward, please."

He checked the tag on the back of her outfit and wrote down the number before saying, "Stay put for a moment."

He walked over to the waiting room and said, "We'll take the outfit she just tried on, but would you mind ordering a few floor-length dresses with long sleeves in this size…Better yet, order it a size larger with an elastic waist. I intend to get her to a healthy weight before she leaves."

He handed her the piece of paper, and Miranda nodded, "Of course, doctor. Is she going to be alright?"

Ford nodded, "Yes, but I must go back to tending to her. How much do I owe you?"

Miranda patted Ford on the back and said, "You can pay me when the other dresses come in. Just go take care of her."

"Thank you," Ford said before returning to the bathroom.

He took off his coat and put it on Holly to prevent her from seeing the bruises again.

"No, Doctor Ford, I am going to get blood on it," she protested

The doctor replied simply, "It's a lab coat. That's its purpose. Now put it on, and I will help you get back to bed. You can't go to sleep, though, just in case you have a concussion. I will bring you a book to occupy yourself."

Holly nodded and allowed him to help her to her feet.