Jeremy and Rachel Chapter Four
Jeremy was in the washroom retching. Joshua's threat to disown him had made him cry until he was sick. That wasn't the only reason he had cried. Jeremy cried because Mary Alice was dead, and Joshua was so hurt over losing her. The fear that he was responsible for her death also made Jeremy weep.
Jeremy caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. He looked at his reflection for a moment. Jeremy knew what he had to do. Lottie would help him.
The Bolts had a sad quiet day. They spoke only when it couldn't be avoided and then it was short one word sometimes one syllable sentences.
Late in the afternoon, Aaron and Newly came to tell them what had killed Mary Alice. It was a mountain lion. Newly said that William Parker who lived about five miles from the Morgans, shot and killed a mountain lion last night as the beast was killing his chickens. Newly said he and some of the other men compared tracks in Parker's yard and the Morgan's. The tracks matched.
Jason thanked Aaron and Newly for letting them know. After the two men left, Joshua apologized to Jeremy for blaming him and for threatening to disown him. Jeremy thanked his brother, but he told him there was no need to apologize.
Jeremy was relieved that he was not responsible for Mary Alice's death and that Joshua was no longer angry at him. However, he was still going through with his plan.
The Bolts decided to eat supper at Lottie's. Joshua insisted that Jeremy invite Rachel to join them.
"Joshua, I am very sorry about Mary Alice. Lottie told me how close you were and how you have known her since the two of you were children." Rachel told him.
"Thank you, Rachel. Yes, we were very close. In fact, I was going to propose to her this Saturday night after the dance." Joshua sighed.
"Oh, J-J-Josh!" Jeremy gasped.
"I'm heartbroken for you, brother." Jason put his arm around Joshua.
"Oh, my goodness!" Rachel cried. Jeremy put his arm around her. She placed her head on his shoulder.
After supper, Jeremy walked Rachel up to her room. They went into the room and sat down on the side of the bed.
Rachel hugged Jeremy tightly. "Honey, I love you so much. I'm heartbroken about Mary Alice. Poor Joshua. He is crushed."
Jeremy hugged Rachel back. "I feel terrible for Josh. You don't know how horrified I was wondering if I had killed Mary Alice. Rachel, I can't bear the idea of killing someone."
"Oh, honey, I wish I could help you and your brothers. I know Jason is upset for Joshua and he gets upset when you change into a wolf." Rachel put her hand over Jeremy's heart. "This is not appropriate with your brother grieving, but I want you, Jeremy."
"I want you too, sweetheart. But it wouldn't seem right so soon after Joshua has lost Mary Alice. Let's wait awhile, okay?" Jeremy asked.
"Yes, I think that would be a good idea, honey." Rachel agreed.
The Bolt brothers continued to have a difficult time. Joshua was grieving for Mary Alice. Jason and Jeremy were grieving with him. Jason continued to worry because he could not help Jeremy regarding him being a werewolf. Jeremy worried that his plan to ensure that he didn't kill anyone as a wolf might not work.
A few days later, Jeremy ran into Newly at Ben's Store. He asked Newly if he had time to take a walk. Newly said he would be glad too.
Jeremy and Newly walked toward the Bolt family home place on the east side of Bridal Veil Mountain. They were quiet for a few minutes.
"Is there something specific that you want to talk about, Jeremy?" Newly asked.
"Yes, Newly there is. I am trying to think of the best way to tell you. It sounds crazy, but I assure you it's the truth." Jeremy answered.
"Why don't you just spit it out, Jeremy? That's usually the best way to tell something that's difficult to say." Newly suggested.
"Okay, here it is, Newly, I'm a werewolf and I'm wondering if you know of a cure." Jeremy said.
Newly laughed. "That's a good one, Jeremy! Was there something that you really wanted to discuss?"
Jeremy looked at his boots for a minute. When he looked at Newly, there were tears streaming down his face.
"Now Jeremy, you can't be serious. There is no such thing as werewolves. I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings, but I never heard of anyone being a werewolf before." Newly said kindly.
"You didn't hurt my feelings, Newly. The tears are from the worry and frustration of coping with this curse for years. I was wondering since you are a young doctor's assistant if you might know of a possible cure." Jeremy replied. "If you don't have any suggestions that's okay. I have a plan that's not a cure however it should help some."
"I don't have any ideas right now, Jeremy. But I know someone who might know what to do. I'll get in touch with him. How often does this happen?" asked Newly.
"Once a month at the full moon. So I have three weeks to try to do something about it." Jeremy answered.
"I'll let you know something as soon as I hear from Doctor Adams." Newly told him. "He has lots of experience. If anyone can come up with a way to help you, it will be him."
Jeremy felt hopeful. "Thanks, Newly!"
They walked up to the old home place and looked around. Jeremy placed some wildflowers on his parents' graves.
The next day, Jeremy went to the saloon to have a talk with Lottie. It was not a pleasant conversation.
"Lottie, if you don't help me, I don't know what else to do. Please Lottie. You love me, remember?" Jeremy said.
"Jeremy Bolt! It's because I love you that I don't want to do this! Silver potion is dangerous for you. I don't want to kill you!" Lottie exclaimed.
Jeremy sat down in a chair. "Lottie, sometimes, I think dying would be better than being a werewolf."
"Jeremy, please don't say that or think that way. You have so many people who love you. They would be devastated without you and I'm one of them. Think about your brothers and Rachel. Jason would go stark raving mad if something happened to you." Lottie spoke gently.
"I know, Lottie. I don't want to die. I want to stop this curse. Death is the only sure means that I know about. Please help me, Lottie. The silver potion would at least slow me down and keep me from killing anybody. You can't imagine how frightened I was wondering if I had killed Mary Alice." He frowned.
Lottie looked at Jeremy silently for a minute. He gazed at her with such sad eyes that she couldn't turn him down.
"Alright, Jeremy, I will make some silver potion for you. You will have to drink it the day before the full moon for it to work." Lottie explained.
"Thank you, Lottie. I love you." Jeremy smiled.
Time went by fast. It was the day before the full moon. Jeremy was in Lottie's kitchen at the saloon as she was making the silver potion.
"Be sure you put in enough silver, Lottie. It won't do me any good if there isn't enough in there." Jeremy watched her closely.
"Yes, sweetheart, I will put in enough silver. The trick is not to put in too much. Jeremy, are you sure you want to go through with this? It is very dangerous." Lottie worried.
"Yes, I'm sure, Lottie. I have to do this. You wouldn't want me to kill someone, would you?" Jeremy spoke seriously.
"Of course not, sweetheart. I don't want you to kill yourself with this stuff either." Lottie replied.
She gave the potion a stir and placed the lid on the boiler. She heard several people come into the saloon.
"I've got to go fill drink orders. Ken ran to the store for me. Watch this pot, Jeremy, please. Don't let it boil over. Stir it once or twice, please. I'll be back in a few minutes." Lottie told him.
"Okay, Lottie." Jeremy replied.
Lottie went into the barroom. Jason and Joshua could be heard coming in for lunch.
Jeremy stayed by the stove. In a minute, he lifted the lid. The potion was boiling almost to the top. He gave it two stirs. The bottle of silver powder was right there by the stove. No wonder I feel achy Jeremy thought. I'll make sure the potion has enough silver. Jeremy picked the bottle of silver powder and sprinkled more into the boiler. He stirred it a few times to make sure it was blended well.
Lottie came back into the kitchen. "Thank you, sweetheart for watching the concoction. Your brothers want you to come eat lunch with them. I'll give you some of the potion before you leave."
"Alright, Lottie. Thank you." Jeremy headed for the barroom.
Jeremy, Jason, and Joshua had a good lunch. They met Doctor Galen Adams who had arrived on the noon stage. The Bolts invited him and Newly to eat lunch with them. The two men accepted their invitation. There was lots of laughter and lively conversation.
When lunch was over, Doctor Adams and Newly went to the clinic so Doc could meet Doctor Wright. Jason and Joshua returned to work. Jeremy told his brothers that he would be along shortly. He said he wanted to speak to Lottie for a minute.
Jeremy went into Lottie's kitchen. She gave him some of the silver potion and he drank it.
"Jeremy, I pray that this doesn't backfire on you. Sugar britches, this is so dangerous!" Lottie gave him a hug.
Jeremy smiled. "I will be fine, Lottie. Don't worry."
He left heading to the logging camp. Jeremy felt good because he was doing something to fight the curse.
Later in the afternoon, Jeremy began feeling achy and feverish. It got so bad that he had to lie down in the medical tent. When it was time to go home, he was so sick that the brothers had to borrow Swede's buckboard to go home.
"The full moon isn't until tomorrow night. Jeremy, you don't usually start feeling bad the day before. I wonder what's different this time." Jason said.
"Or have you been sick the day before and avoided telling us?" Joshua asked.
"I drank some silver potion today." Jeremy gasped as a pain shot through his back.
"Silver!" Jason bellowed. "Jeremy! That stuff will kill you! Why did you drink it? Where did you get it?"
"The potion is just supposed to weaken me. I thought if I was w-w-weak as a w-w-wolf, I wouldn't k-k-kill anyone." Jeremy whispered. "I asked Lottie to make the silver potion for me. She didn't want to because she thought it was dangerous. I talked her into doing it. And…."
"And what?!" Joshua asked fearfully.
"I put some extra silver in the boiler to make sure the potion would be strong enough." Jeremy answered.
"Extra! How much extra!" Jason bellowed again.
"I didn't measure it, I just sprinkled some more into the pot and stirred it." Jeremy said shivering.
"We had better take you straight to the clinic, brother. I pray that Doctor Wright can help you." Jason was frightened.
"Maybe Doctor Adams can help." Joshua suggested.
"I t-t-talked to N-N-Newly a few weeks ago. He said that Doc might have a c-c-cure." Jeremy told them.
When they arrived at the clinic, the youngest Bolt tried to get out of the buckboard. He was too weak to do that. Jason lifted him out of the wagon and carried him inside.
"Allyn! Allyn! We need you, please!" Jason shouted.
Jeremy was moaning and writhing in pain. Jason carried him into a room and sat down with him still in his arms on the side of a cot. Joshua followed them looking very upset and worried.
"J-J-Jay-s-s-son! It h-h-hurts so m-m-much!" Jeremy screamed.
Jeremy had his arms around his oldest brother's neck. He dug his fingers deeply into Jason's flesh.
"I've got you, Jeremy. I've got you. I know it hurts. I'm so sorry. We are going to fix it. You will be alright. We love you, Jeremy, Joshua and me. We love you so very much." Jason whispered.
Joshua was crouched in front of his brothers rubbing circles on Jeremy's back. "We love you, Jeremy. We will make it better."
"Joshua, please run fast to the saloon and get Lottie and Rachel. Get Newly and Doctor Adams too." Jason said.
"Okay, Jason." Joshua ran out the door almost running into Doctor Wright.
"Jason, what happened to Jeremy? Do you have any idea why he is in such terrible pain?" Allyn asked walking into the room.
"Yes, Allyn, I know why Jeremy is hurting so badly." Jason sighed deeply.
He told the doctor the whole story about why Jeremy was in horrible pain.
"Jason! How can you tell jokes when your brother is obviously very ill?" Doctor Wright asked. "Werewolves and potions! Really, Jason!"
"He isn't joking, doctor. It's all true." Jeremy whispered hoarsely.
Jeremy had been quiet for a few minutes. His head was resting on Jason's chest. His ear was over his brother's heart. The sound of Jason's heartbeat had calmed him since he was a child.
Just then, Joshua returned with Lottie and Rachel. Joshua said Doctor Adam's and Newly had an errand, and they would arrive at the clinic soon.
Rachel went immediately to Jeremy and Jason. "Oh, honey! Joshua told us what happened. Why did you drink that potion? I would rather you be a live wolf than not be here at all! I'm sorry, Jeremy. I shouldn't fuss at you when you are so sick. I love you, sweetheart."
"I love you, Rachel. I drank the potion to make sure I wouldn't kill anyone. Now it seems that I have killed myself." Jeremy told her.
"No, honey! You will be alright. The doctors will come up with something." Rachel stroked his hair.
"Jason, put me on the cot, please. The pain is not as bad now." Jeremy said.
Jason did as his brother asked and laid him on the cot. Rachel sat on the side of the bed holding her fiancé's hand.
"Jeremy, what can I do to help you? I will do anything you want me too." Rachel was on the verge of tears.
"Stay here with me, please. That helps a lot." He smiled weakly.
"Yes, I will, sweetheart. I love you." She replied.
"I love you, Rachel." Jeremy whispered.
Doctor Adams and Newly came in. Doc Adams had sent a telegram to a colleague of his in Arizona Territory. He confirmed the cure for being a werewolf.
Dock told them that his friend in Arizona Territory agreed that to be cured of the werewolf curse, the person affected has to feast on a human heart.
"There we have it! A cure!" Jason was excited.
"Jason, where are we going to find a human heart?" Joshua asked.
"In the cemetery, Joshua, where else?" Jason asked.
"I'm afraid that won't work, Jason. It has to be a fresh bloody human heart. It can't be old and dried up." Dock told him.
"Oh, that makes a big difference, doesn't it? Jason replied. "Joshua, listen to me…."
"No, Jason! Absolutely not! I won't let you do it, and neither will Jeremy! Don't you know it would kill him if you died to stop this curse? Jeremy would rather be a werewolf than lose you!" Joshua said sternly.
"So, what is our plan, Joshua? To let Jeremy die from the silver potion? We don't want to lose Jeremy either." Jason said firmly.
"I don't know, Jason. Of course, we don't want to lose Jeremy." Joshua responded. "We are talking about all this like our brother is not even in the room."
The two oldest brothers glanced at the youngest brother's cot. He was asleep. Jason and Joshua were glad that he was resting, and he had not heard their conversation.
That night, Jason, Joshua, and Rachel sat up with Jeremy. Doctor Wright and Dock Adams were there as well. Jeremy was able to sleep. The doctors were concerned that his ability to sleep was an indication that he was getting weaker.
Jeremy's brothers and his fiancée talked to the doctors about their concerns.
"Dock, do you think Jeremy is going to die from the silver potion?" Jason worried.
"Jason, I'm very concerned about Jeremy. Yes, I think he is going to die unless we can cure him of the werewolf curse. That's the only thing that can cure the silver illness." Dock wiped his face with his hand. "Unless…I don't know if this has ever been tried before. My friend in Arizona Territory mentioned it. It might be worth trying."
"What is it, Dock? We are willing to try anything to save Jeremy." Rachel asked.
"We could try letting Jeremy drink some blood from a relative. It's not as good as eating a heart because it won't end the curse. But by golly! It just might keep Jeremy alive! And that's much better than beating the curse." Dock told them.
"Joshua, I will take no argument from you. Tomorrow, my blood will be used for Jeremy to drink." Jason spoke seriously.
The next morning, Jeremy woke up very early around 4 am. For a few hours, he seemed to have gained a bit of strength. Then the severe pain began, and he became weaker quickly.
Dock and Allyn talked to Jeremy about him drinking some of Jason's blood to try to gain enough strength to fight the silver potion. Dock explained to him gently that he would die unless something counteracted the silver. Dock also explained that he might die even with this treatment. Jeremy took the information calmly. He consoled his brothers when they cried.
Dock did the bloodletting on Jason where Jeremy could see them so he would know that Jason was alright. When a half cup of blood was collected, Joshua brought the cup to Jeremy and held it to his mouth.
Jeremy drank the blood in the cup slowly. "How much blood do I have to drink, Dock?"
"I'm not sure, Jeremy. I will give you several cups and we will see how you feel." Dock answered.
"Don't forget about me, Dock. I'm willing to let you get some of my blood for Baby brother here, so he won't bleed Jason dry." Joshua said with a wry smile.
"I won't forget, Joshua." Dock smiled.
"Baby brother." Jeremy muttered as he finished drinking Jason's blood.
Dock gave Jeremy another half cup of blood which he drank slowly as well.
"Jason, you rest awhile before I take anymore blood from you. I have taken enough for Jeremy to have several cups for right now. Dock advised. "I want to see how the blood affects Jeremy before I take anymore."
"Whatever, you say, Dock. This is the first time I have been through a bloodletting." Jason replied.
In about two hours, the youngest Bolt had drunk all the blood Dock had taken from Jason. It was about seven small cups.
Dock and Allyn watched Jeremy closely. Jeremy said he still felt weak and he had some severe pain at times. He said he thought the transforming might be starting early. Jeremy said he didn't feel any worse than he did before drinking the blood.
Jeremy laid down on his cot and went to sleep. Rachel sat on the side of the cot holding his hand and stroking his hair.
About an hour later, Dock resumed the bloodletting on Jason. He had collected about three cups when Jeremy woke up screaming in pain.
"J-J-Jay-s-s-son! H-H-Help!" Jeremy cried. "M-M-Make it s-s-stop!"
The two doctors examined Jeremy. They agreed that he was getting weaker, and the pain was more severe.
"I'm sorry to tell you this, but the blood doesn't seem to be helping much. If we can't get a human heart, I don't think Jeremy is going to make it." Dock said with tears in his eyes.
Rachel sobbed and laid her head on Jeremy's chest. "I love you, sweetheart."
Jason and Joshua exchanged a frightened glance. "Come on, Jason! I know what to do!"
Jason put on his shirt fast, and the two brothers ran out the door.
About a half hour later, Joshua came back with a bowl covered with a clean dish towel. He had a fork.
"Rachel, may I take your seat for a few minutes, please? Will you sit at the head of the cot and help Jeremy sit up, please?" Joshua asked.
"Yes, I will." She replied as she moved to the other end of the bed.
Jeremy moaned in pain as Rachel helped him sit up. Joshua uncovered the bowl he had brought in. The bowl contained a bloody mess.
Joshua cut something in the bowl with the fork. He held up a dripping bite on the end of the fork and leaned close to Jeremy.
"Jeremy, eat this, please." The middle brother said.
Jeremy did as his brother told him. When he had eaten three more bites, he looked around the room.
"Where is J-J-Jason? What is this that I'm eating?" Jeremy asked.
"Here eat some more, Jeremy." Joshua offered him another bite.
Jeremy took the bite. As he was chewing, he raised his eyebrows at Joshua for not answering his questions.
"Alright, Jeremy, you're eating a heart. The doctor said that's what you needed so I got you one. I did what I had to do. I'm sorry." Joshua confessed.
Jeremy was horrified. He tried to lunge at Joshua, but he was too weak. Jeremy collapsed in his brother's arms sobbing and screaming.
"You, bastard! You killed Jason! And then…then…you f-f-fed me my b-b-brother's h-h-heart!"
"J-J-Jay-s-s-son!" Jeremy screamed as he sobbed in Joshua's arms.
To be continued….