CHAPTER 68

The car was speeding away, Lee and Wynn, coming down that road trying to find Frankison and Elizabeth. And the car passed them, kicking up dust, without even stopping. Jack was in the back seat and saw that Elizabeth hadn't noticed the two men, he had to get into the back seat because he needed to put pressure on the wound that kept gushing blood. He didn't know how, but Elizabeth was holding the steering wheel with one good hand and the wrist of her injured hand. Jack had never ridden in a car so fast, his wife had a heavy foot. A cloud of dust covered the center of Hope Valle, after the car entered the main street, she stopped the car in front of the infirmary and Carson, Faith and Charlote came running, helping Jack carry the wounded man inside. There was a lot of blood in the car and all over the balcony area of the infirmary.

Charlote held Elizabeth in her arms; she was so pale, Charlote was afraid she would faint.

Lee and Wynn arrived at a gallop and, securing their horses, rushed to Elizabeth's side. Lee and Wynn didn't know who was hugging Elizabeth more and comforting her.

At that moment, Aunt Elizabeth appeared in Henry's car, along with Bill and Frank. She was crying a lot and was soon supported by her husband. Bill, for his part, even though his shoulder was injured, got out of the car before it stopped and ran to Elizabeth, he needed to see for himself whether or not she was hurt. When Frank said a prayer that God would guide and find this young woman safe and sound, Bill almost had a heart attack. He only didn't go looking for her because Pastor Frank tied him to a chair.

Elizabeth, after talking to Bill, went over to her aunt and uncle who were hugging her. She had her head down, like a chick abandoned by its mother, and crying, she asked her aunt and uncle for forgiveness...

- If it hadn't been for me, he wouldn't have been seriously injured. I beg your forgiveness. I didn't want this to happen. I...

Aunt Elizabeth pulled her into her arms and there they cried together, where she made it very clear that none of it was her fault but that bandit's...

Nurse Faith opened the door and ran out to tell Wynn that they needed blood from at least two people. Several volunteers came forward, but Carson arrived and informed them:

The surgery was successful, but he's lost a lot of blood. We need two donors and we'll have to take more than we normally would, or he could die.

Wynn made it clear that he would donate all his blood, even if it was necessary.

Aunt Elizabeth also wanted to donate, but as her blood pressure was very high, and Carson was her doctor and knew about the situation, he refused her blood.

Jack and Bill volunteered on the spot, but Carson warned them that they couldn't take that risk. He didn't have the equipment to test the blood, and according to the law and medical studies, it was known that only parents and siblings would be compatible in the case of blood donation.

- I'll donate! Elizabeth said loudly.

- You can't, Elizabeth. You're cousins. You wouldn't be compatible. Faith said. She was a nurse, but first and foremost she was Elizabeth's friend and she knew how she was suffering.

- Carson... I'll donate. And with her hands on her hips, she dared anyone there to contradict her.

Wynn looked at her. Whether they were cousins or brothers, they would now know for sure, and besides, it was Frankison's only chance of survival.

Before entering, Wynn called Bill into the corner and asked him to use all his knowledge and find out about his children's midwife, and about this thug Bile.

Taking Beth's hands, the two entered the infirmary.

Carson thanked God for spending those last few months in Hamilton, where he specialized in some procedures, new types of medication and these types of blood transfusions, which was the innovation in all the study of a great doctor, still created a lot of insecurity for health professionals and their families, but he knew that if now in 1910 they were already starting new techniques, his grandchildren in a hundred years' time would do wonderful things for human life, because progress was coming at a gallop.

In the same way that electric light and cars arrived, everyone had to adapt. He looked at the stretcher, Elizabeth was lying on it, at Wynn's request, he knew that his Beth had been through a lot of stress at the hands of that thug and that was why he had started the donation. She wouldn't let go of Frankison's hand, and Wynn noticed how much she loved her son. Meanwhile, Carson examined Elizabeth, without exposing too much of her body, because her uncle Wynn was there, even with his head down and his eyes looking away, but there was Frankison and the two mounties who hadn't yet woken up after the slaughter, where they had rescued Charles, as well as Tom who was unconscious on the stretcher next to him and his mother. Carson had never had his ward so full and so hectic as it had been over the last few days.

Elizabeth told Carson what had happened in that hut and especially in that bed, she had marks on her wrist where it had been tied. Her broken hand was assessed, but to Carson's surprise it was preserved. Her legs had a few bruises from the man holding her down with his body when he tried to force them open. Her neck and collarbone were very red; they were marks caused by the man's beard, nails and fingers. When Carson saw this, he asked her if she was in pain, but embarrassed at being exposed, she just shook her head.

Wynn, unable to stop himself and looking at the marks on his wrist and neck, cursed:

- Son of a girl, I'm going to kill that tramp, son of an old mare, who hurt you like that. His face was as red as a bell bell pepper. Carson ran over to him, asking him to calm down or he would have to stop the blood transfusion. Elizabeth, seeing that Carson wasn't managing to calm him down, spoke up:

- Uncle Wynn, if he wasn't dead, you'd have to wait...

- What? He spoke up.

- The line to kill that man would be long. Frankison, Jack, Tom, Bill and now you... In other words, it's lucky for him that he's dead or he'd have to die several times. And he smiled.

Jack was standing by the door with his aunt Elizabeth, who could no longer stay outside without news of her family, when they stopped and listened; they understood Elizabeth's intention to ease the tension. And so they went back outside, when they heard a burst of laughter. Everyone who was awake in that ward couldn't hold back their laughter; once again Charlote was proud of that girl.

Elizabeth began to donate blood. The blood flowed out of her arm and straight into Frankison's; Wynn knew Beth's fear of needles, she'd been terrified of them since she was a little girl, but she'd stood her ground for the moment.

Carson took Wynn outside, as he needed to speak in private. He looked at Wynn and spoke:

- Is she your daughter?

- I'm not sure, Carson. But there's a 60% chance she's my daughter.

- Well, if your son is alive so far, with so much blood she's already donated, I think you can be 99% sure now.

Tears rolled down Wynn's eyes... Beth, it was her daughter... I couldn't be happier. Bill asked to speak to Elizabeth, and went in to talk to her, as he always did... like a father. Then he said that he had to go on an investigation, even though he was wounded, but that he would be careful and return quickly, and when he arrived he would tell her everything.

- You must trust me, my child! Bill said.

- I do.

- And you must trust Wynn more than anything. He will only do what is best for you.

- I know and I trust, my father. Elizabeth said quietly. Few people in the town knew that he was her guardian, and since he was a judge, she preferred not to spread the word in town. Bad tongues might say that she wanted some benefit.

Bill lifted the stretcher from Tom, who was still unconscious, kissed his forehead and said:

- When I get back, I hope you, my son, are better. I love you.

He went back to Elizabeth and said goodbye in the same way. When he reached the door, he heard Elizabeth's voice.

-Go with God and take care, my father.

He left with tears in his eyes; he had already said goodbye to Charlote and Jack and went into his office, grabbed his bag, which was always packed for the trip, and set off for Hamilton. He was going to find proof that something was wrong with Elizabeth and Frankison's birth.

Elizabeth spent the night in the infirmary, Jack by her side sitting in a chair, while Charlote stayed by Tom's side. While everyone was asleep, Charlote spoke:

- Jack, look how she sleeps without letting go of Frankison's hand.

- No, Mom! The right thing for you to say is, how even though he's unconscious, he's holding her little hand as a form of protection?

- Son, aren't you jealous of the two of them together like that?

Jack smiled and said:

- Mom... How could I be jealous of my brothers?

-What could have happened to these two children, Jack?

- Mom, I see so much evil coming from this Thatcher family that I don't doubt anything anymore. I hope Bill finds something, because the worst thing in life is doubt, uncertainty?

-Yes, my son, but no one can doubt the love of these two.

- Mom! How's Tom? Did he wake up?

- Yes, he woke up twice, but he only asked about Lizzie and went to sleep soon after. He was very worried about her.

-Mother, I never imagined that he would defend her like this, with his life.

- He loves his wife. Jack! I know he made a mistake and a bad one, but he's trying to make amends and these days working with her, Tom has become another man. He's kinder, more concerned about everyone around him, and I know he's had some serious conversations with her. According to him, when everyone disappeared and he missed his family, it was she who came along and was his friend, his sister and his shoulder to lean on. When he found out about my involvement with Bill, he said that he dreamt about her, after asking God for a light to know what to do. In the dream, she was picking flowers in a field, lilac flowers, and the sun was shining down on her. The next morning at school, he asked her for advice.

Jack smiled as he looked at his wife. As her hand was in a splint, he kept stroking her wrist all the time, where there were bruises from the ropes that had been tied around it.

- Mom, I love this woman. I'll tell you a secret... I also asked her for advice, or rather, she subtly gave it to me; she made me see that you would never forget our father. And in the end, Tom and I were getting a new father, because Bill had always been one.

Charlote had tears in her eyes and just as she was about to start talking, they heard:

- Mom... Jack... where's Elizabeth?

Tom was starting to get up. Charlote asked him to lie down; but when he saw her lying on the stretcher, he started to get nervous, talking and crying at the same time, thinking that she was hurt. Jack rushed up and tried to calm his brother down, he was so nervous that he didn't realize she was asleep.

- Jack... I tried to save her. I tried to stop that man. And she was crying like a child.

- I know, Tom. I know you tried.

- I love her, Jack. She's become a sister to me.

- I know, Tom... I know... And hugging the boy, Jack tried to calm him down.

- I missed you, Tom!