Chapter 6

Supper was a quiet affair that evening. The children had all been informed of the surgery taking place that night and their fear was clearly shown on their faces. The boys didn't push or shove, and there was no more girlish chatter from their sisters. Just the sound of clinking china and the occasional sigh. When the table had been cleared, Mrs Davis suggested they all go to father's room to pray a rosary together. Timothy watched while all the older children took the hands of their younger siblings or picked them up to carry them up the stairway. Annabelle took his arm and asked him to join them. It occurred to him then that he was growing really very fond of this family.

The prayers were beautiful, if repetitive, and Timothy caught on quickly to the ones he didn't know. As the Davis family lifted their prayers to the Lord, the anxious and worried looks left their faces and peace filled the room. When they were finished, each child kissed their father and left the room. Only Mrs Davis, Michaela, Elizabeth, and Timothy remained. They helped Dr Mike prepare the patient. Mrs Davis and Elizabeth were used to the goriness that accompanied surgeries but the Reverend found himself growing sick even just standing over the man's head with chloroform. When he started turning a deep shade of green, Mrs Davis suggested he step out for a bit and he did not argue. The sound of music drew him downstairs to the sitting room. There the children were all gathered round the piano and in the chairs by the fire. Annabelle was playing a hymn and Jennifer was softly singing, joined by a few of the children. One of the older boys, Peter, saw him and beckoned him in, asking if it was over already. Jessica walked in them with a tray of hot drinks and 11 anxious faces looked to him for news. He told them it had been a normal procedure so far and he didn't sense any problems. A moment of quiet and sighs followed his words and then Annabelle began playing again. They sat for the next 3 hours, sending someone up every now and again to check on the progress. When 10 o clock hit, the young children were all sent to bed and the older ones went to get them settled. Timothy went to Dr Davis's room to see if he could help again. He was appalled at the amount of blood everywhere, it made him queasy again but he decided he had to be brave. Dr Mike was just beginning to stitch up the gaping hole in the man's belly. They looked up when he entered and Michaela gave him a tense smile. She looked exhausted. "I got it" she said, "the surgery was successful. Now we can only wait. " She shared a brief smile with the other women and then bent again to her task. They worked together to clean up the mess and then Timothy volunteered to sit with the unconscious man for the rest of the night so that the women could get some rest. Dr Mike and Elizabeth gratefully agreed but Mrs Davis refused to leave her husband's side. Dr Mike tried to persuade her, "I wouldn't leave unless I was sure he'd be alright." But she refused. When the others had left, she sat staring at her husband's face and holding on to his hand as if she could by force keep him in this world. "Reverend," she said, never breaking her gaze on my man she loved, "could you perhaps read to us a little from the Bible?" Timothy picked up the copy that lay on the bedside table and retired to a chair in the back of the room. He began with the Psalms, reciting in a quiet and lulling voice that carried on throughout the night.

A little before three in the morning Jessica came in to find the patient and both his watchers sleeping soundly. She woke her mother and the Reverend and sent them to bed, promising to wake them if there was any change. Dr Walter made no movements or sounds in his sleep. He looked so peaceful that his daughter had to keep checking to be sure he was breathing. "Well Daddy you've gotten this far so I gotta believe the good Lord still needs you here on earth and I'm grateful for that. The clock just struck three so why don't we pray the Divine Mercy now?" She pulled a rosary from her pocket and took her father's hand.

The next day was quiet, as had been the evening before. Dr Davis had still not yet awoken. The day was rainy and dreary. Everyone was tired and groggy, and life felt like a monotonous cycle checking on the patient every couple of minutes. Those who weren't sitting with the man stayed together in the sitting room with no talking or laughter, just hugs, tears and sighs. The oldest girls tried to rouse some hope with music but no one felt like singing. Finally Jessica seemed to get an idea. "Oh Reverend, did Daddy tell you about the time we put bath salts in his sugar jar and consequently filled the dining room with bubbles when he "sweetened" his coffee?" Timothy said no he hadn't so she asked one of the boys to share the tale. It was indeed rather funny and gained a few giggles and smiles. That did the trick, and soon all the children were sharing funny memories and laughing together. They sat thusly till about 4 in the evening when Dr Mike burst into the room with a happy smile saying that their father was awake. She tried to calm the stampede but that was an impossible task. Timothy felt his heart leap at the laughter he heard when he finally entered the room, at the back of the mob. The patient was sitting up, surrounded by happy faces and smiling, in a tired way. Dr Mike caught Timothy's eye and motioned for them to leave the family in private. They went to the kitchen and got some coffee, taking it to the sitting room to be near the warm fire there. Timothy congratulated her on the successful surgery. She warned that Walter still had to watched closely for signs of infection but it really did seem a miracle that everything was going so well. "It must be this family" he replied, "they really are special."

That night Timothy couldn't sleep. Partly because of the treacherous thunderstorm shaking the house and partly because of his worry for Dr Walter. He got up and decided to check on the patient. He opened the door and found the man being watched over by his wife and eldest daughter. It was apparent that he had interrupted a private conversation though so after he said a quick prayer over the sleeping man, he left. As he tiptoed down the hall he heard voices and saw a light coming from one of the rooms. Thinking it might be one of the smaller children scared by the storm, he knocked on the door. It was opened by one of the tiny girls, Sarah he thought her name was, who immediately after seeing it was him, ran back to where she had been sitting. All the young children appeared to be piled on one bed and from the pile came a laughing voice welcoming him in. The voice wriggled up from the tiny arms and legs and soon became the bemused face of Jessica. "See children, even Reverends are scared by thunderstorms." She winked at him and invited him to take the rocking chair by the bed. "We're all a bit frightened of the storm tonight so I thought it was an excellent time to catch up on our storytelling. Do you know any good lullabies or stories, Reverend?" Timothy felt a pang at her words, thinking of Louise and how their engagement was broken. "I'm sorry, I'm not very good at stories," he said. But Jessica's gentle smile encouraged him and he decided to share one of the tales from his grandmother. The children thoroughly enjoyed it and little Sarah, after being bumped off the bed had even climbed up onto his lap.

When the story was over, the storm had subsided and most of the children were asleep so Timothy and Jessica carried them to their beds. When the last one had been tucked in, Timothy and their sister waited in the hall for a minute, listening for any wakers. All was quiet. Jessica laughed at the look of overwhelm on the preachers face. "Well how are you enjoying our nut house?" she asked. He laughed right back and said he liked it very much but they surely were never idle. She agreed that the pace didn't often let up but she enjoyed it. Timothy inquired then about the books in her room and she eagerly invited him to borrow any that he wanted. When he asked for suggestions, she launched into a long list of her favorites, before stopping and apologizing with embarrassment. "Reading is my passion and I often get a bit carried away. Daddy got me started when I was very young" She explained. He assured her there was no need for an apology; he shared her love of books and didn't often get to talk about them. They smiled. "Well I had better get to bed now. Your older sisters are taking me riding tomorrow and I feel I probably will need much energy!" They laughed and he reached out to shake her hand goodnight and nearly jumped at the zap of electric shock when their hands met. "That'll be the Holy Spirit saying it's high time for bed!" she joked. But the sparkle in her green eyes made Timothy hold her gaze and her hand for just a bit longer before wishing her goodnight and retiring to his room. He laughed to himself as he recalled her unabashed giggling at his awkwardness when her sister had climbed up on his lap and the fire that lit her eyes when she spoke of her favourite books. There was no denying that he found her rather charming. He wondered what she thought of him. Dr Mike had joked that if he was wanting a wife, there was no better place to take his pick. Sir Walter's eldest daughters were all strikingly beautiful and kind. But this one, she was so young! He thought her maybe 18 or 19, really hardly more than a child. No, he decided he needed to try to spend some more time with the other girls, as busy as they were. They would be home for the week though, on break from the university. Well, he thought to himself, the ride tomorrow would give them ample time to get better acquainted.