Chapter Three. Rebellious Much?
Saturday morning, Victoria and Silas brought breakfast trays and coffee. "How did everyone sleep?" Mother asked cheerfully.
Nick glared at her.
Heath sighed. "He's not very happy."
Victoria shrugged. "He rarely is." She placed her tray on the table by the bed, and Silas put his next to it. "Let me know if you need anything else."
"Why can't Eugene babysit me?" Nick asked.
"Eugene went back to school. You knew that."
"Why can't he come home?"
"Because you'd treat him just like you're treating Heath. Now, eat a good breakfast. You need to get something on your stomach. You barely ate yesterday."
Nick grunted. "I wonder why?"
Victoria ignored him. "Dr. Merar will be here around ten. Before then, I want you to eat, brush your teeth, take a bath, and shave. Heath will help you, won't you, Heath?"
"Yes, m-Mother."
"And, Heath, if he doesn't eat well, please call for me. He will not give me a bad time about it."
Heath glanced at Nick. Yep, he was beginning to understand the rebelliousness.
"Mother, you do know that I'm a grown man, right?" Nick asked. "And have been for some time."
"Could've fooled me." She turned and waltzed out of the room.
Nick looked at Heath. "Was your mother like that?"
Heath smiled a crooked half-smile. "No. Not at all. I can't remember ever being scared of her."
Nick almost smiled. "So, you're scared of Mother?"
"Terrified. Aren't you?"
Nick laughed. "Oh, yeah. Definitely."
"I can't think of another person in this world I'm scared of."
"Me neither. At least, not since Father died."
"You were scared of him, too?"
"Only when I was in trouble for something—which was most of the time." Nick pointed to the coffee, and Heath carefully put it in his left hand. He took a couple of sips and gave it back, then accepted a bite of steak. "Father was easygoing about a lot of things, but he didn't tolerate disobedience. If he spoke, you'd better jump—and fast."
"Is that where your rebelliousness came from?"
Nick swallowed his food. Heath had a fork-full of eggs ready for him. "Rebelliousness? I'm not rebellious."
Heath laughed. "The heck you're not."
"What am I rebellious about?"
"About everything. Anytime someone tells you to do something, you tense up. You're ready for a fight. It don't matter if you agree with 'em or not. You just don't want nobody telling you what to do."
Nick accepted another bite of eggs and considered. "Well, maybe I am rebellious. I guess that would explain a few things." He looked at the remaining food. "Hurry up and eat. I want to get done in the bathroom before that last dose of laudanum wears off."
Heath nodded and sped up the feeding and the eating. They both finished off their coffees.
Heath stood. "I'll go get your bath started." He hurried out of the room.
Soon, he returned. He opened Nick's closet. "What do you want to wear today?"
Nick shrugged. "Find an old shirt."
Heath looked through the options. None of Nick's shirts looked old to him.
"That one with the stain on it," Nick said.
Heath just held up one shirt after another until Nick said, "Yeah. That one."
"You know, we don't have to cut the sleeve off. Instead, you can just not put your arm in the sleeve."
Nick considered. "No. That would feel awkward. You can cut the sleeve off that one."
"Okay," Heath said and did so. He took Nick's clothes into the bathroom, grabbed his own, then returned. "You ready?"
Nick sucked in a deep breath. "Let's get it over with."
Heath supported him while he slid to the edge of the bed and stood. "You okay?"
"Yeah." Nick pushed off Heath's attempts to support him. "I can do it."
Heath rolled his eyes. "Of course you can."
The tub was mostly filled by the time they got there. While Nick used the toilet, Heath tested the temperature, then set out some towels. Finally, he helped Nick step into the tub.
Nick's face scrunched in pain.
"I know. Just take it slow." Heath supported Nick while he sat down.
"Get something to dump water over my head. I'm not gonna be able to go under the water."
Heath looked around. Even though the bathroom had running water, a water bowl and pitcher sat on the stand. He handed the pitcher to Nick. "Can you do it, or do you want me to?"
"I can do it."
"Okay. I'm gonna go ahead and shave, so holler if you need me."
Surprisingly, Heath was able to shave in peace, and then had time to wash himself up and put on clean clothes. "You doing okay?"
"Yep. Just need you to get my left arm."
Heath washed his left arm, then helped Nick out of the tub. Which wasn't as easy as getting him in. The laudanum was wearing off, and Nick wasn't happy. He couldn't get any traction to stand, and every movement hurt.
Finally, Heath sighed. "Let's wait for the water to drain out, and then it will be easier for you to stand." Without waiting for a response, Heath hurried out of the room. Nick still sat in the tub, the water slowly draining.
Heath took off his boots and socks, and once the water had emptied, put a dry towel in the tub. He leaned toward Nick. "Okay, let's try this again. Use the towel so your feet don't slip. You hold your arm, and I'll pull you up. Okay?"
Nick nodded.
Heath got in the tub behind Nick and lifted him from just below his ribs. Nick slipped slightly, but Heath steadied him. "You're okay. I won't let you fall. Just try to stand upright, and then we'll get out. Don't try to do everything in one step."
Nick didn't argue. Soon, they had him out of the tub, dried off, and dressed in his drawers.
Heath put a bit of toothpaste powder on Nick's pig-hair toothbrush, then sprinkled water on it. He handed it to Nick. When Nick was finished, Heath gave a half-smile. "Now comes the fun part. I get to shave you."
"I'll shave myself," Nick said.
Heath shrugged. He made a pot of shaving cream and brushed it onto Nick's face, then rubbed the straight steel razor against the leather strop. He examined it, then gave it a couple more swipes. "You sure you want to shave yourself?"
Nick took the razor from him, but shaving left-handed was harder than he thought. He nicked himself. "Blast!" Then he nicked himself again. He threw the razor into the basin.
Heath put a towel to the cut, then looked at Nick. "You want to keep skinning yourself, or you want me to do it?"
"I don't need you to skin me. I can do that myself."
Heath smiled. "Shave you, you foozler. Shave you."
Nick sighed. "All right. Do it."
"Sure." Heath rinsed off the razor and pulled Nick's face around. He took a couple of swipes.
Nick punched Heath's ribs.
Heath dropped the razor. "What the heck was that for?"
"You're breathing on me."
Heath said nothing. Instead, he took a towel and wiped the rest of the lather off Nick's face.
"What're you doing? You ain't done."
"I don't want to splatter shaving cream everywhere when I slap you."
"That was just a tap! I barely touched you!"
Heath continued wiping off the shaving cream. "Well, it's my turn to give you just a tap."
Nick stepped back. "You hit me and I'm telling Mother."
"And I'll tell her you hit me first."
Nick took another step back.
"Now, hold still and let me hit you so we can get you shaved."
"I'm not going to let you hit me."
"I'm gonna hit you whether you 'let' me or not," Heath said calmly. "Of course, I could just go get Mother and tell her what you did."
Nick frowned. "Just do it. Hit me. Go right ahead." He leaned against the wall, cradled his arm, and shut his eyes.
Heath slapped him just a bit harder than Nick had hit him, avoiding the bruised areas. "There. Now, was that worth all that fuss?"
"Do you feel better?" Nick demanded.
"You better get used to the idea that I ain't gonna be your punching bag no more," Heath said in his soft, even voice. "Every time you hit me, I'm hitting back, harder. Every time. Even if it's just a 'little tap.'"
"But you hit me harder than I hit you."
"That's called 'interest.' You know, the extra penalty you have to pay."
"I know what interest is." Nick scowled.
Heath mixed up a bit more shaving cream, brushed it on Nick's face, then gently shaved him. "And don't you even think about shoving me. You're in no shape to be shoved back, and I'd hate to do that to you."
By the time they were both cleaned up and dressed, Dr. Merar had arrived.
Victoria led him to Nick's room.
"You smell a little better today," the doctor noted, nodding at Nick. He pointed at the chaise Heath had slept on. "Why don't we work on you over here?" The doctor studied the chaise briefly. It had a single rolled arm with a curved back panel that went about half the length. He removed the blankets and smoothed the sheet, then put the pillow on the end that was open. He glanced at the length, then took the two pillows from Nick's bed and put them next to the rolled arm.
"C'mere, Nick." Dr. Merar pointed to the center of the chaise. "I want your posterior right there, and your head at this open end. Put your feet up on the pillows and over the arm."
Nick allowed the doctor to position him while he held onto his arm.
"Good." The doctor gently untied the sling, but he didn't remove it. "Let's see what that arm looks like."
Nick sucked in a deep breath while the doctor felt around his arm. "When did you last have some laudanum?"
"Before breakfast," Heath answered. "I gave him half a dose."
The doctor nodded and put his hand on Nick's shoulder. "We're going to have to set that arm today. We can either give you some chloroform and knock you out, or we can give you another dose of laudanum and get a couple of hands in here to hold you down while we set it. What's your preference?"
"Isn't chloroform dangerous?" Victoria asked.
Dr. Merar shrugged. "It can be. I try to use the least possible amount I can. He's young and healthy and has good lungs, so I don't think it would hurt him."
"Which is easier?" she asked.
"Definitely using the chloroform. It's not easy to set a bad break like that as it is, but trying to do it when you have someone as strong as Nick trying to fight you off would make things a lot tougher."
"I think we should go with the chloroform," Victoria said.
"Wait a minute!" Nick roared. "It's my arm! It's my body!"
Heath patted his shoulder and whispered so only Nick could hear, "Rebellious much?" Not that he blamed Nick for his reaction. Who wouldn't be rebellious when someone else made their decisions?
"Well, Nick," Victoria said tiredly. "What do you want?"
Nick looked at Dr. Merar. "Does chloroform give you a hangover?"
"No," the doctor replied. "Ether can—it can cause vomiting and so forth. That's why I quit using it. But chloroform doesn't. You just wake up and it's over with. You'll probably be a bit drowsy for a while, but that's not a bad thing. Your body needs to rest so it can heal."
"What would you choose if it was you?" Nick asked.
"Definitely the chloroform. The laudanum just can't cut the pain enough to keep the patient comfortable. And, to give enough laudanum to work at all, you will feel more aftereffects."
"Let's go with the chloroform." Nick glared at Heath, waiting for him to say something.
Heath just smiled.
"We need another man." Dr. Merar looked at Heath. "Someone strong enough to hold him down if he starts to come to."
Heath nodded and took off at a run. Just as he hit the front door, the door opened and Jarrod walked in. Heath plowed into him.
"Whoa, there." Jarrod dropped his briefcase and grabbed his brother by the arms. "What's the hurry?"
"The doc is ready to set Nick's arm. We need a hand to help hold him down."
"Well, that was just what I came home to do." He moved his briefcase and hung up his gun belt. "I never want to miss an opportunity to subjugate Nick." He winked.
Heath explained the situation to Jarrod as they walked up the stairs.
As they entered Nick's room, Dr. Merar was instructing Victoria on how to administer the chloroform. "Most of all," he said. "Be careful you don't get too close to the cloth. We don't want you passing out on us."
"Jarrod!" Victoria smiled as her oldest son walked in.
"Looks like I'm just in time." He kissed the top of mother's head.
The doctor nodded at Jarrod. "You are. Glad you could make it." He quickly explained the plan to Jarrod. "I need you to watch if he starts to come to and tries to fight us. If so, it will be up to you to hold him down until the chloroform takes effect again."
"My pleasure," Jarrod said.
Nick rolled his eyes. "Can't we get a couple of hands in here instead? They wouldn't take as much delight at my pain as my brothers do."
Dr. Merar smiled. "They'll be fine." He looked at Heath. "I'm going to need your muscle, young man. We need to pull his arm in opposite directions so we can move it to align the bones."
"But what if there are bone fragments still in there?" Victoria asked.
"It's definitely a possibility, especially with the severity of the break. Hopefully, they will just be absorbed by his body. If they aren't and if they bother him later, we may have to operate to take them out. However, for now, I think we're better off not cutting him open."
"I agree with that!" Nick said.
"Okay, everyone ready?"
The gathered family nodded.
Dr. Merar took a clean cloth and poured a small amount of a liquid on it. "Nobody get too close, now," he said, holding it away from him. "We only want Nick out, not anyone else." He handed the cloth to Victoria. "Hold this over his mouth and nose, like this." He demonstrated the proper way. "Once he's fully out, back it off a bit. Keep it close, though, because if he starts to come to, you'll need to put that back over his mouth and nose."
"Okay."
"Can you leave us some of that so we can use it on him when he gets loud and annoying?" Jarrod asked.
Heath smiled. That sounded like a good idea to him.
Dr. Merar ignored him. "Go ahead," he said to Victoria.
Nick was soon unconscious.
Dr. Merar looked at Heath. "Okay, I want you to stand at the open end there behind his head and hold tight to his upper arm no matter how hard we pull. Don't let go."
"Alrighty."
The doctor pointed at Jarrod. "I need you to come over here and pull." He waited for Jarrod to stand near Nick's waist.
"Jarrod, you need to be especially careful. You're not going to pull hard. Just gently. And slowly. And firmly. I want to align the two parts of the bone while you're separating them just a bit."
Jarrod pulled while the doctor felt the bones. "Stop!" the doctor ordered.
Jarrod froze.
The doctor again felt the bones in the arm. "It's still not lining up. The break is in the radius, the bone on top when the arm is held out to the side. I don't think the ulna is fractured. At the least, it isn't displaced, so it should heal fine."
Dr. Merar twisted Nick's lower arm slightly to the right.
"Try it again. Just like before."
Jarrod pulled.
"Okay. Hold it right there."
Jarrod did.
The doctor continued to manipulate the bones, his fingers expertly arranging the bone under the skin. Finally, he smiled. "I think we have it. Heath, you keep holding your end. Jarrod, I want you to release your end slowly. Slowly. Go on."
Jarrod did as he was told, his eyes on the doctor. The doctor continued to support the area of the break.
"Okay, Heath. Same thing. Release the pressure gently, slowly. We don't want to knock anything out of place."
Heath also watched the doctor as he slowly released Nick's upper arm.
Dr. Merar smiled. "Thanks, boys. I think we got it put back together. Now, we just need to keep it that way."
"We're done?" Heath asked.
"He may be disoriented and want to thrash around as he comes to. So, I need you boys to be ready to hold him down."
"Subjugate him." Jarrod's eyes sparkled. "That's something I've always wanted to do to Nick."
"I usually cast before they come to, but we did quite a bit of manipulation there, so I want to watch for swelling before we cast." Dr. Merar took the chloroform cloth from Victoria and pushed it into a glass jar and tightened a lid over it. "He's going to be hurting when he comes to, but I want to wait until he's fully conscious before I give him laudanum."
"How long will he have to be in the cast?" Victoria asked.
"Six to eight weeks, depending on how much he rests and does as he's told."
"You'll tell him that, right?"
The doctor smiled. "I sure will." He busied himself putting his equipment back away while the family waited for Nick to gain consciousness.
Finally, Nick groaned.
Jarrod and Heath hurried to their positions in case they needed to hold Nick down.
"It's all over, Nicky," Victoria said. "You're fine."
"I hurt like hell."
"Nicholas, watch your language."
Nick scowled at his mother but said nothing more.
"Let's get you sitting up and see how you are." The doctor took his left arm and helped him sit. "Any dizziness?"
"No. Well, not much. Just a little lightheaded."
"That will go away. Can you tell me your full name?" The doctor continued asking Nick questions to gauge his level of consciousness. Finally, he nodded. "He can have some laudanum now."
Heath handed the bottle to the doctor.
"I'll give him just a little under a full dose. If the pain doesn't ease, you can give him a few more drops."
"I don't want to pass out," Nick said. "I'd rather hurt than have a laudanum hangover."
"It will take the edge off. We still need to cast your arm." The doctor put the measured dose in Nick's mouth. "As I was just telling your mother, if you behave yourself and stay home and rest for a week, you can start slowly returning to normal life."
"A week?" Nick tried to jump up.
Heath and Jarrod immediately held him back.
Nick fought them.
"Stop it, Nick!" Victoria scolded.
Nick scowled, but he stopped fighting. Then he grunted. "Yeah. That kinda hurt."
Dr. Merar examined his arm. "It doesn't seem to be swelling, so that's good." He looked at Nick. "We still need to cast your arm. So, I need you to hold very still."
"Then you'll quit tormenting me?"
The doctor smiled. "Yes. At least for a short while." He covered Nick's arm with iodine, then spread rolled cotton over his arm. He lifted the bucket he'd brought that had strips of cotton cloth with dry plaster of Paris rubbed into them. One by one, he carefully wrapped each cloth around Nick's arm, then moistened it with a sponge. The cloth hardened quickly. By the time he was finished, the cast was hard. The doctor checked it to make sure it wasn't too tight. "Perfect!" he announced.
Nick looked at the cast and knocked on it.
"Easy there," Dr. Merar said. "You need to baby that arm and keep it elevated at all times. Wear the sling constantly, even to bed. If you do as you're told, you can be out of that cast in six weeks. If you don't behave yourself, it will be eight weeks or longer."
Nick didn't say anything.
Dr. Merar gathered up his remaining tools, then looked around at the family. "I feel a lot better now that we have that arm in a cast. He should be fine now. I'd like for him to stay in bed for another twenty-four hours—just to be sure that arm doesn't decide to start swelling. After that, he can slowly—and I do mean slowly—start doing things. He needs to stay inside and stay quiet for the next couple of days, then he can walk around outside. But I absolutely do not want him on a horse, in a carriage, or doing anything else that will jar that arm. After a week—next Saturday—he can get around in a carriage. Still no horse riding for another few days after that. Then he can start slowly—and I do mean slowly—going back to work. Try an hour the first day. If he does okay, two hours the next. He can add an hour a day, but, again, we don't want to do anything that's going to harm that arm."
The doctor took a breath. "Do keep a close watch of his fingers. If they start turning colors, get him to me at once. Likewise, if his arm starts swelling around the cast, get me immediately. And don't let him do anything stupid like trying to stick things under the cast to scratch. His arm will itch, but scratching it won't help. I'll check in next Friday. Please come get me if you have any issues before then."
Then he maneuvered a clean sling over Nick's arm and adjusted it to keep Nick's arm next to his chest.
"Water?" Nick asked.
Heath handed him a glass of water.
"And don't get that cast wet. Keep it out of the tub when you bathe."
Nick swallowed the water. "Why does my head hurt?"
"Because you need to rest," the doctor said.
"Then get everyone out of here and let me rest."
The doctor nodded and looked at Victoria.
"Heath will stay in here with him and get him what he needs and let us know if there are any issues."
The doctor listened to his heartbeat, then put away his equipment. "Thank you all for your assistance."
"Thank you, doctor," Victoria and Jarrod said simultaneously.