Chapter 49 – Holding Vigil for Jack

When they returned to town, Charlotte and Faith were there to meet the group. Abigail insisted that they take Jack to the upstairs of the cafe, she hadn't known how bad he was. She figured that if he was really bad that either Elizabeth or Charlotte would insist on taking him to the infirmary. Charlotte had gone to the house and grabbed some clean dry clothes for Jack and Elizabeth. She had them waiting in the cafe. Jesse and Lee got Jack upstairs and then they left Charlotte and Elizabeth to get Jack out of his wet clothes. Together they were able to get him into warm dry clothes before they had Faith come up and check on him. Elizabeth quickly went and changed into dry clothes as well. Abigail came up with Faith to see how Jack was and was surprised that he was unconscious.

"He is suffering from exposure." Faith said. "He's lucky you found him when you did. He probably wouldn't have lasted much longer."

"Faith." Abigail said. "Shouldn't he be in the infirmary?"

"I think that he will be more comfortable here." Faith said. "Besides, the infirmary is full. I can treat him from here. The biggest thing right now is going to be keeping him warm and letting him rest."

"What aren't you saying?" Charlotte asked. "I can see the worry written all over your face."

Faith hesitated for a moment. She then lifted Jack's hand so that they could see.

"His fingernails are blue." Faith said softly. "It's an early sign of pneumonia."

"Just how bad." Elizabeth managed to say quietly.

"It's hard to say just yet." Faith said. "Keep him warm, of course and we will force liquids as soon as we can. We should know more by morning."

Faith gathered her things and left Charlotte, Elizabeth and Abigail with Jack. She had other people that she needed to tend to and there wasn't much that she could do. She also knew that Jack was in good hands. The women all exchanged looks and then Elizabeth sat on the edge of Jack's bed.

"We can take turns sitting with him." Abigail said.

"No!" Elizabeth said forcefully. "I am staying with my husband."

Abigail and Charlotte exchanged a look, but didn't want to press Elizabeth anymore.

"Can I stay too?" Charlotte asked.

"Of course you can." Elizabeth said softly.

Abigail knew that it was pointless to argue with either Charlotte or Elizabeth, so she just left them be. She had other things that needed to be taken care of. She made a mental note to check on them later, but for now she didn't mind letting Charlotte and Elizabeth sit with Jack. After Abigail left, Elizabeth laid down next to Jack on the bed. She wanted to be close to Jack and she also knew that her body heat would help warm him up. Charlotte sat in a chair along the wall. She just watched as Elizabeth laid next to Jack. She couldn't be positive but she thought that she heard Elizabeth softly crying. Not only did Elizabeth want to be near Jack, she needed to be near him. She didn't feel good, so she hadn't gotten up the morning before. She hadn't kissed Jack when he left the house and then by the time that she knew what had happened, Jack had already left to help the men at the mine. She couldn't lose Jack, not when they were just starting their lives together.

The rest of Friday was a blur for Elizabeth. She refused to leave Jack's side. She kept warm clothes on Jack's head. Charlotte left at a few different points. She couldn't sit there, she felt that she needed to do something. She tried to help Abigail in the cafe, but she also didn't want to be away from Jack for long. Charlotte wanted to be strong for Elizabeth, she also didn't want other people to see her as weak. She tried to keep her emotions to herself, but Abigail saw cracks in her armor and tried to get her to engage. Abigail sent food up for Elizabeth since she refused to leave Jack's side. Abigail didn't know what else she could do. She felt so helpless. She was so grateful that Jack had worked on the disaster plan, but then for him to get hurt, it was too much. Abigail was glad that she was busy, that way she didn't have much time to overthink things.

The rest of the townspeople were just as shocked as Abigail had been when they learned that Jack was critically ill. They wished that there was more that they could do to help Jack. Lee and Bill tried to assure people that if they wanted to do something to help, they needed to make sure that the men injured at the mine and the people from the settlement were taken care of. There were so many people that needed to be tended to and not enough hands. Abigail was worried about Faith and if she was spreading herself too thin. She took it upon herself to assign some of the women to tend to some of the injured men. She also encouraged Faith to take a break and eat once and awhile. Most of those that were injured weren't hurt that bad and Faith had seen them. Most of the people just needed some time to heal. With a number of the women in town tending to the sick it would be easier for Faith to focus her attention where it was needed.

Saturday morning Faith came in to check on Jack. The good news was that he wasn't getting any worse, but the bad news was he wasn't getting any better. Faith let Elizabeth and Charlotte know that she had wired the hospital in Union City about Jack. She let them know that the doctors agreed that she was doing everything for Jack. She also let them know that the doctors didn't advise moving Jack at that point. Faith reminded them that they needed to try and get Jack to take some fluids. She advised that the best way to do that was to put a damp cloth to his lips and if he sucked some of the water great, but to at least keep his lips moist. Faith didn't have to say anything to Elizabeth and Charlotte, they knew that it was critical that Jack wake up at that point. Faith promised to keep checking on Jack, but there wasn't much more she could do. Elizabeth said that she would stay with Jack.

Faith wished that there was more that she could do, but she also knew that Jack was in the capable hands of Elizabeth and Charlotte. She had other people that she needed to check on. Part of her wanted to sit with Jack, but she knew that would not be possible. Faith was also getting worried about Elizabeth. Faith knew that she was exhausted, she was still recovering from the illness she had had. She tried to encourage her to rest, but Elizabeth refused to leave Jack's side. Abigail was able to convince Elizabeth to curl up next to Jack on the bed. If she wouldn't leave, maybe she could get a little sleep and still know if there was a change in Jack. It wasn't long before Elizabeth's breathing evened out and Charlotte felt that she was asleep. Charlotte decided that she would stay there and keep an eye on both of them. Abigail had tea sent up for them. Elizabeth woke when she thought that she felt Jack stir. It ended up just being Charlotte changing the cloth on Jack's forehead. Charlotte encouraged Elizabeth to lay back down and rest. She said that she would keep an eye on things.

Because there were so many people that were upset about Jack, Abigail went to Pastor Frank. He was trying to help people and keep spirits up, but it was becoming harder and harder. There had been two fatalities from the miners. One was at the site and the other happened early that morning. Not only was the town worried about Jack, but Pastor Frank was also dealing with two grieving families. He even wished that there was something more that he could do to help people. It was when Pastor Frank and Abigail were talking while in the kitchen of the cafe that the idea came together. Abigail suggested that they have a service like they did after the mine disaster the year before. Since Pastor Frank hadn't arrived in Hope Valley yet, he looked a little confused. Abigail explained how they had had a candlelight prayer service shortly after the mine disaster to help people heal. She explained that their pastor at the time offered prayers for the men lost and then people could share stories about their friends that were lost. Pastor Frank thought that was a great idea. They turned the kitchen over to Bill and Clara.

Pastor Frank and Abigail went to find Cat and saw about getting some candles. She let them know that she had a bunch ready, but she wasn't sure that they had enough for everyone. That was when Pastor Frank suggested that they check the storage at the church, because he thought there might be some there from Jack and Elizabeth's wedding. Abigail thought that would be the most appropriate use of those candles. Cat let Abigail and Frank know that she would make sure that there were enough candles and that she would spread the word. Abigail and Frank went back to the cafe and left things to Cat. Cat in turn enlisted the help of the kids. They were able to gather enough candles and spread the word that that night people would gather outside the cafe and have a candlelight service to pray for Jack and the town. As word spread that they would have a prayer service for Jack, people started to feel better. Abigail let Charlotte and Elizabeth know about the candlelight prayer service, but once again Elizabeth refused to leave Jack's side.

Charlotte left Elizabeth alone with Jack early that evening. Once they were alone, Elizabeth started talking to Jack and telling him what the town was doing for him. Part of her wanted to be down with the people praying for Jack, but the other part of her didn't want to leave Jack for a moment. She chose to stay with Jack and planned to open the window when they started the prayer service. She didn't want the room to cool off too much, but she wanted Jack to be able to hear the people praying for him. As the people started to gather, Elizabeth went to the window so people could see that she was listening. She started to tell Jack about all the people that had gathered. She then went back to sit on the bed with Jack. She started to pray along with the people on the ground. They were praying for healing and that Jack would wake up. Elizabeth prayed that Jack would come back to her, she just didn't want to lose him.

"The whole town is praying for you Jack." Elizabeth said. "Can you get better for them? How about for me? Can you get better for me, please?"

Elizabeth continued to sit on the edge of Jack's bed. She leaned over and was playing with his hair. She continued to talk to Jack while she closed her eyes.

"Do you remember our New Year's resolutions?" Elizabeth said. "Remember we said we were going to be patient, … to be kind, … to trust, …"

"And to love." Jack said softly.

Jack groaned when he moved. Because Elizabeth had her eyes closed, she didn't notice Jack had woken up until he spoke. She quickly opened her eyes, leaned over and kissed Jack. When she leaned on his chest, he groaned again. She apologized and then kissed Jack again and again. She was so happy to see his green eyes again. Elizabeth wanted to make sure that Jack was okay. He closed his eyes again before he opened them and looked at Elizabeth. He told her that his head hurt and that it hurt to breathe. She asked if he knew what happened. He told her that he remembered everything up to being thrown from Sergeant. He asked if they found Sergeant. Elizabeth said she didn't know because she hadn't left his side. Elizabeth knew that Faith needed to be notified that Jack had woken up, but she didn't want to leave his side. Elizabeth didn't have to wait long before Charlotte came upstairs to check on them. When she saw that Jack was awake, she turned and headed to get Faith. When Faith got there, she examined Jack. She felt better that she was awake, but it would still take some time for him to completely heal. She wanted to be optimistic, but he was still at risk because she couldn't rule out pneumonia. She also suggested that Jack not be moved that night, but she didn't see a problem with him heading back to his house sometime in the next day or two as long as he continued to improve. Charlotte let them know that since Jack was doing better, she would stay in her room at the saloon. Elizabeth said that she was staying with Jack. They both needed rest and Faith suggested that both of them do just that.

It didn't take long for word to spread that Jack had woken up. People knew that he wasn't out of the woods, but it was a step in the right direction. Knowing that Jack was awake lifted the whole town's spirits. Yes, they were still grieving for the two families that had lost a husband and father, but it didn't look like anyone else was in immediate danger. There was a point that Bill and Lee thought that they might be able to get through things without suffering any additional loss. They knew that it would take some time for the Silverton Mine to be operational again. They also knew that there would be the matter of getting the people from the settlement resettled somewhere, but at least for now everyone was safe. Bill had sent word down river about the landslide. He had also taken it upon himself to wire Mountie Headquarters and Wynn directly that Jack had been injured. He wasn't sure what they were going to do, but at least they had been made aware. He hadn't heard anything back, but then again, he hadn't checked. He was kind of busy. Ned also said something about having trouble getting the wires through. Bill wondered if the lines had been damaged in the wind and rain. He was going to leave that to someone else. He had his hands full and would until Jack was back on his feet.