Chapter 234 – Jack's Embarrassment
After Elizabeth left, Faith sat down and looked at Jack. She had to admit that he did have more color in his face than she had seen in several weeks.
"So how are you feeling this morning?" Faith asked.
"Pretty good." Jack said.
"You are looking better." Faith said. "I will admit that you have more color in your face. I am happy to see that."
Jack ducked his head a bit as more color filled his cheeks.
"Did I miss something?" Jacobs asked.
"Nothing." Jack said.
Jack was grateful that Dee set the hot water in front of him. He immediately leaned over it and started to breathe in the steam as Doug drapped the towel over him.
"Jack." Faith said, laying her hand on his shoulder. "I know that you can hear me. If there is something that I should know as your medical provider, please tell me. I just want what is best for you."
"Things are good." Jack said. "Like you said, I am feeling better. My breathing is better. Nothing to share."
Faith knew that there was something that he wasn't saying, but she wasn't going to push it at this point. Doug and Dee exchanged a look and Dee mouthed something to Doug. Jacobs was watching them and saw. He knew that they knew something.
"Something that you care to share?" Jacobs asked.
"No, Sergeant." Doug said.
"Nothing." Dee said. "I agree Jack looks better. I know that he got a good night's sleep after helping us with some paperwork last night. Maybe it was that we included him in what we were doing that helped him to feel better."
Faith had looked between the two as they spoke and she shook her head. She knew the boys knew something, but they weren't saying.
"How is the exercise coming?" Faith asked. "It is important that as you start to feel better that you are moving around more. You are going to need to build your strength and stamina back up."
"He is doing good." Doug said. "I am not worried about his strength. He didn't seem to lose too much muscle tone and the rest will come."
"Jack." Faith said. "How has your breathing been when you have exerted yourself?"
"Still get winded pretty easily." Jack said. "But it is getting easier to catch my breath, most of the time."
"That is good." Faith said. "Just know your limits for the time being. I don't want you to have another set back. I am going to assume that you pushed too far and learned it hurt."
Jack nodded.
"He knows." Doug said. "He also knows that I will kick his butt if he does something stupid at this time. I have cut him all the slack that he is going to get. If he pushes too far and has a setback, that is on him and I will not let him get away with not doing what he is supposed to."
"Very well." Faith said.
Faith and Jacobs set about getting everything ready as Jack finished up his steam treatment.
Elizabeth got to school and immediately got things ready for the students. She wrote the new words on the board and got things ready for their test. She then made sure she had everything ready for the school official and the science fair. She then set about grading some more of the essays that were sitting on her desk in the workbooks that the students had left in a stack on her desk. She had thought about assigning a writing assignment for the weekend, but she also knew that she needed to catch up on what she hadn't read. Instead of a writing assignment for the weekend, she had multiple worksheets that were also on her desk. She was grateful that the cadets and Mounties had been able to help her with getting copies made at the newspaper office so she didn't have to hand-write each and every one. It had made life so much easier in some ways. She knew that it was work to grade the papers, but she thought it made it easier for the students and she didn't mind the grading. She knew that she was even going to offer to her friend in the fall if she needed help grading.
In her letter to her uncle that she had mailed earlier in the week, she mentioned how much a mimeograph would make her life so much better. She knew it was a large expense of a school the size of Hope Valley, but she also knew that her uncle could probably get one and have it sent. She hated having to rely on the newspaper office all the time. The other thing Elizabeth thought about is that if the school had one, it might also be helpful for Frank if there was ever something that he wanted to hand out on a Sunday.
Elizabeth wasn't surprised that Aunt Elizabeth and Patty showed up about five minutes before she called the students in. She smiled at them and finished the sentence she was one before speaking.
"So what are you doing around so early?" Elizabeth asked.
"Just wanted to let you know that we will be back early to help the children set up their science fair projects." Patty said.
"I also wanted to ask you what you wanted for supper tonight." Aunt Elizabeth said. "I was thinking that if we got something and had Doug and/or Dee start it, we could have a nice family supper. It sounds like David and Andrew might be leaving on Monday. From what they said last night they were almost done with their work and both were anxious to get back to their wives as they had lots to talk about."
"I am fine with whatever." Elizabeth said. "Jack still doesn't have much of an appetite, but there is soup left for him from yesterday's lunch."
"Then how about pork chops." Aunt Elizabeth said. "I will have them delivered with instructions that if Doug needs help he can send for one of us or Dee."
"That sounds good." Elizabeth said. "I think we might also need some more bread and if you want fresh vegetables then you will need to get them. I have some canned food, but not much left."
"I will take care of it." Patty said. "You just do what you need here and we will see you later."
"Thank you." Elizabeth said. "Also please let the cadets know that the school official should be here at about twelve thirty. His name is Mr Landis. I don't remember his first name, but he should have a paper that shows who he is. I sent a wire to remind him."
"I will handle that." Patty said.
"Anything else?" Aunt Elizabeth asked.
"No." Elizabeth said. "I think that is everything. I have a vocabulary test right away and then a couple short lessons with worksheets. I was thinking of assigning a writing assignment over the weekend, but maybe some reading instead so I can get caught up on the essays."
"I think that will be good." Aunt Elizabeth said. "I heard a number of parents in the cafe this week say something about the amount of homework lately."
"Then I will hold off on the writing assignment." Elizabeth said. "The kids are almost caught up to where they should have been with being out over the week and that is with the science fair."
"That is a good plan." Aunt Elizabeth said. "We will see you soon."
With that, the ladies left and Elizabeth grabbed her bell and headed to the back to call the children in. When she stood there in the doorway, she saw several of the mothers whispering and a couple pointed at her. She figured they were all talking about how big she was getting so fast. She was sure that many of them thought that she was further along then she was. She was going to let them think about what they wanted. She and Jack knew the truth, along with their families and that was all that mattered.
Elizabeth greeted the children as they came in and reminded them to quickly get settled as they had a lot to cover that morning before they got ready for the science fair. She waved to the mothers and quickly shut the door as several had made a step toward the schoolhouse to ask questions. She didn't want to deal with the mothers at the moment as she knew they were just looking for gossip.
After Jack finished his steam treatment, Faith got a quick set of vitals before Jacobs went to work. Doug watched intently as Jacobs worked. He was hoping that he had picked up on enough to help Jack if needed. He also was hoping that he would never have to encounter something like this again, but he wanted to be prepared if he did. He had asked Jacobs a lot of questions and the man had taken the time to answer them. At least Jacobs understood why Doug was so interested. Jacobs understood that the young man wanted to help his friend and to also be more prepared should he encounter something in the future. It bode well with Jacobs that Doug was so willing to learn and try things that made him more prepared for anything he might encounter as a Mountie.
Faith was happy with Jack's vitals. She made a few quick notes in her notebook as Jacobs worked. She noted that Jack was coughing up less from his lungs. She was very hopeful that he was well on his way to a full recovery.
"You are sounding much better this morning." Faith said. "Even from last night. I noticed you are coughing as much."
"I already coughed up quite a bit this morning." Jack said.
"I thought I heard you coughing this morning." Dee said. "I didn't come up because neither of you called for help."
"Thank you." Jack rasped. "We were fine."
Jack was glad his head was down because he had blushed. He wondered if they had heard them that morning. He was embarrassed, but he tried to shake it off as he didn't have time to think about it and he also knew that Dee was embarrassed enough as well that he wouldn't say anything. It was one of those times that Jack couldn't wait to be in his own house and not constantly have other people around. He knew that even once they were in their new house, that there would be people around the property and the house, but it was going to be big enough that it wouldn't matter. As Jack thought about the house, he unconsciously smiled.
"Glad to see you smile again." Faith said. "It has been missing for the last month. I hope that we start seeing it more. Can I ask what made you smile?"
Jack sat back as Jacobs was done.
"I was thinking about the new house for Elizabeth." Jack said. "I thought about the kids running around and chasing them."
"You will be up and running in no time." Jacobs said. "Good to focus on the positive."
"Thank you." Jack said.
"So be honest." Faith said, sitting down and looking Jack in the eye. "How are you really feeling? Pain? Breathing?"
"Breathing is definitely getting better." Jack said. "Like I said I still get winded at times, but it is also getting easier to catch my breath. Pain comes and goes. It is mostly fine, but then I will move and be reminded that I hurt. I think the ribs are the worst. Not that my hip doesn't hurt from time to time, but mostly only if I touch it or roll over and put pressure on it."
"I would expect that." Faith said. "Anything in particular that makes the breathing worse or for that matter better?"
"I don't know about worse." Jack said. "But when I feel like I am gasping for air, I try to remember to count out the beat in my head to slow the breath and let my lungs/body catch up. It helps. Pain, there isn't much I can do but to be careful how I move. I know with ribs, it will just take time. There isn't much more that we can do that we are not doing now. I am glad that we have my ribs wrapped, I think it would be worse if they weren't. As for my hip, that is also just going to take time."
"I have painkillers if you want them." Faith said.
"I would prefer it if we just didn't." Jack said. "I have taken an aspirin and the tea from Dee is helping. If it comes to a point I really need them, I will ask, but at this point I don't want to go back on them. I don't like how they make me feel and I have seen several people struggle with being on them too long."
"Fine." Faith said. "I just wanted to make sure that you knew."
"Can we try the dressing change without anything this morning?" Jack asked. "I know that it might be painful, but I want a clear head today. I can't explain why, but I just think it would be better."
"If that is what you want." Faith said. "But it is going to mean that you are going to have to rest a bit more this morning to let the pain subside."
"Fine." Jack said.
"Good." Faith said. "If you continue on the path you are on, I don't see why you might not be able to start spending an hour or two in the office at the end of next week. As long as you don't push it and get a ride to and from at least to start, I think we should be able to let you go back to work for a bit. Just know that it will be the office only and if I find out otherwise, I will not be happy."
"He will follow the rules you set forth." Doug said. "I will make sure of it. Especially since I will be here until he is back at full duty."
"Very well." Faith said. "I will leave him to you."
Jack stuck his tongue out at Doug who just gave him a look.
Elizabeth got to the front of the classroom and greeted the students and collected their homework before asking them to pull out a piece of paper and pencil, clearing everything else out. She also had the students spread out a bit. She reminded the students that she wanted them to all try their best. She also reminded the younger groups of students to try as many words as they could, but the extra ones wouldn't count against them if they got them wrong. Elizabeth walked up and down the middle aisle as she said the words out loud and used it in a sentence. She was looking back and forth as the children attempted to spell the word. She gave them a few moments after she said each word twice and used it in a sentence.
When they were done, she collected all the papers and immediately started on the history and geography lesson that was tied together. She was giving them a lesson on Ireland. It was setting up having Ann Grady and Marsha Cook come in and talk about the country at a later date. She wanted the children to have a bit of understanding about the country before she brought the guests in so the children would have a better idea of questions and it would also help to make things more personal later.
As she was going through the lesson, there were several questions that the children asked, especially those that had come over on a boat and had either stopped in Ireland or at least passed it. The questions from the children gave Elizabeth another idea, but she would need to send off for some more materials before she would be able to do it. But she thought it was important enough to do the lesson that she had planned on sending off for the materials that day. There was so much that Elizabeth wanted to share with the students, but she was running out of time for the year. She knew that she couldn't help that they were out of school for as long as they had been and the science fair was a good project even if it was time consuming. She just knew that she was going to have to push through things the last month or so of school.
After her lesson on Ireland, she had a math lesson and then was going to assign some reading so she could check in with the youngest children and see how they were doing. If there was time, she was also planning on checking in with the children from the settlements. She had read the reports that Aunt Elizabeth and Charlotte had left, but there was something about speaking to them herself. From what she could tell all the children were working hard to catch up with their peers. Some were much closer than others, but she was hopeful that they would all catch up by Christmas.
Doug got Jack settled and Faith and Jacobs changed the dressing together, since she didn't have to watch Jack because of the chloroform. She was pleased with the healing that the spot was showing. She knew it was still going to be painful for a while, but she wasn't worried about additional infection setting in.
"This looks good." Faith said. "I am not worried about an additional infection setting in at this point, but we will still be careful. I think a few more days of us changing the dressing and then if you are fine with it, I think Doug and/or Dee should be able to handle it."
"Whatever you think is best." Doug said. "I am more than comfortable changing the dressing. Just tell me when I will need to do it."
"We will talk about it on Sunday." Faith said.
Once they were done, Doug continued to sit with Jack as he recovered from the pain. It wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be, but it was still painful. Jack also realized that he could handle it, especially if he wanted to get better and be there for Elizabeth. He also knew that she would experience a lot more pain bringing their children into the world. The last thing that Jack wanted was to have the side effects of the painkillers and Doug knew it.
Dee had cleaned up the kitchen area a bit as Jacobs, Faith and Doug tended to Jack. When they came out of the bedroom, he went and grabbed his stuff quickly then left with the duo to head into town for the day. He hadn't finished the dishes, but he knew that Doug would take care of it and not be upset. Dee was excited to get back to the office that morning as Jack, Doug and he had found several answers the night before. He wanted to share them and see if they helped make the picture clearer. He was sure that his answers might lead to additional questions, but he was also hoping that it started to untangle a lot of what they were looking at. Dee knew that it was a key piece of information that usually unlocked things. Just like when working a puzzle, you find a certain piece and suddenly things start to make a lot more sense and it seems like pieces start just to fall into place.