As ever I am so sorry about taking so long to update but getting this chapter out was like pulling teeth; it just did not want to be written. Thank you so much for all who read and those who reviewed!
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Chapter 23: Stranger
Michaela was jerked out of her deep sleep by pounding on the door. Such an abrupt awakening caused her mind to immediately begin working and bypass the few minutes it would normally take her to wake up and start thinking clearly. She was out of bed, had her shawl wrapped around her and heading to the door in seconds.
"What is it, Dr. Mike?" Myra had stepped around the curtain that shielded her side of the room and was struggling to wake up.
The doctor had leaned over to look out the window; her eyebrows shot up at whom she saw and immediately unbolted the door. "Walks on Clouds, what's wrong?"
"Father sent me get you," the young man began in broken English, he was still learning the language. "Stranger, we found when hunting; he hurt bad."
"Wait outside, Walks on Clouds; I will get changed and grab my bag."
The young man stepped back. "I get Bear." He ran toward the barn.
Michaela closed the door; then whipped her nightdress over her head, tossing it on her bed before she grabbed the first skirt and blouse she lay her hands on.
"Don't worry, Dr. Mike," Myra spoke up, she no longer looked at all tired, "I'll watch Hanna fer ya."
The taller woman smiled gratefully as she tied her boots on. "Thank you so much, Myra. I'm not sure how long I'll be gone; if anyone asks for me tell them I am tending to a badly injured man and that if they need medical attention to see Jake or Charlotte."
Her friend nodded. "'Course Dr. Mike. Ya be safe."
Michaela stood, smiling fondly at her. "Thank you, Myra, I will and you do the same." She stopped by Hanna's cradle to check on her a moment and press a butterfly soft kiss to the child's forehead before heading out the door.
Walks on Clouds had managed to get Bear's bridle on, but not the saddle, not surprising since the Cheyenne did not use them. Michaela did not take the time to go and get the saddle and instead asked the teen to help her up on the horse's bare back; with a little difficulty they managed it. She was not comfortable without the security of the saddle, but she did not know the condition of the patient and did not want to waste any time. The pair raced off into the night, the white doctor holding on quite a bit tighter and much more unsteady than her Cheyenne companion.
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They finally arrived at the Cheyenne's camp; Cloud Dancing came out of a teepee to meet them. Michaela came to an unsteady halt and began to attempt to dismount, her friend was there in a moment to help her; once her feet were firmly on the ground she gave him a grateful smile before becoming all business.
"Walks on Clouds said that there was a badly injured man?"
"Yes," he led the woman doctor back toward the teepee he had come out of. "He was found by a hunting party in a creek, badly beaten; they brought him here." He held the skin from the opening of the teepee aside for her; she ducked in.
She just barely held back a cry at the sight of the man. He was a mess; it appeared that Cloud Dancing had been in the process of disrobing him, which the medicine man returned to doing immediately. The patient was covered in mud and greenery; they were caked on his skin and tangled into his hair, which was longer than normal for a white man, and unkempt beard. What little of his skin she could see was mottled in bruises, lacerations and possible knife wounds.
The doctor sent up a prayer for this person before her; then took a deep breath and knelt down to get to work. She gently brushed aside the long curls that had fallen over his face and lifted one lid. She jerked back.
"Dr. Mike?" Cloud Dancing asked worriedly.
Her hands shot out toward his left arm and pulled it toward her; she took a rag from a bowl of water near her and began wiping away the mud from his forearm urgently. A gasp was torn from her throat. A scar, faint with age but there none the less, ran from his elbow to his wrist.
"Got it fallin' off a horse as a kid. Ain't been on one since."
Tears welled up in Michaela's eyes. "Sully," she breathed.
"This is your Sully, Hanna's father?" Cloud Dancing was observing the man closely.
She nodded, unable to speak at the moment.
He placed a hand on her lost friend's forehead. "The Spirits said that he was important; now I understand why."
She swallowed hard and blinked away the tears; resuming her professional demeanor. She dunked the cloth in the water again and began to wash away the mud. "We have to clean him up and get him warm and dry."
Cloud Dancing observed his friend for a moment before turning back to the man in front of him. The vision from months ago replaying in his mind. They were in for a long road.
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I am sorry about it being so short but the next chapter should be longer and I am going to try to update by Friday or this weekend. I hope that it was still ok!