Carson came running in with Allie close behind. Nathan stood up as Carson got closer to the desk. Nathan had tears in his eyes as he spoke, "Carson, she is burning up. I'm not sure what happened, she was fine at lunch."
"Chicken pox. We had two of the children from her class come to the infirmary this morning. Faith and I were busy checking the family for symptoms so I was going to come talk to Elizabeth after school."
"Chicken pox…" Elizabeth whispered quietly, Nathan wasn't even sure he heard it.
Carson walked over to Elizabeth. "Elizabeth, did you not have chicken pox as a child?"
"No. Away when my sisters did. Student never sick…." Elizabeth tried to explain but she felt tired and achy all over. She fever had come on so quickly that afternoon that she just wanted to sleep.
Nathan looked over at Allie who still looked in shock of seeing her teacher like that. He wanted to comfort her but right now he needed to make sure Elizabeth was ok. He turned to Allie and said, "I know you are worried, but I need you to do something for me."
"I saw her getting sick and I didn't do anything." Allie looked at her shoes.
"Allie, there was nothing you could have done. Carson is here now but we will need to get Elizabeth home so she can rest. Can you go to the dress shop and find Rosemary? Ask her if she can watch you and Jack and then ask her if Lee can bring his car."
Allie looked at Nathan and nodded. She was grateful that she could help. She ran out the door towards the dress shop. A few minutes later, Nathan heard the sound of the car outside. Lee walked in and said, "Nathan, Rosemary was walking with Allie to Elizabeth's. They were going to send Laura home and take Jack over to our house. How is Elizabeth?"
Carson walked over, "We need to get her home. Lee, if you could drive us there and then call Faith to meet us over there."
Nathan didn't even ask. He walked over to Elizabeth and put her arm around his neck. He lifted her from the chair as if she weighed no more than a feather. Elizabeth put her face into his neck and moved closer. Nathan thought how wonderful it was to have Elizabeth in his arms, but he pushed those thoughts aside to move quickly out the door and to Lee's car.
–––––––––––––
Nathan walked back and forth in Elizabeth's kitchen. Carson had left a few minutes ago to go back to the infirmary to get medicine and he was going to stop at the saloon to get some ice. Faith was upstairs with Elizabeth helping her change into a nightgown. Nathan had removed his serge and belt holster and put them on the settee. He sat down in the kitchen and put his hands over his face, elbows on the table.
Faith walked down and saw Nathan sitting there. She knew that Elizabeth and he were close, but she didn't realize how deep Nathan's feelings are for her. She walked over and put her hands on the back of one of the chairs. "Nathan, you should go home, there isn't anything you can do here."
"I can't leave her Faith."
"I know we should have asked this earlier but have you had the chicken pox before? If you haven't, it could be dangerous for you to be here."
"I have. Allie and I both have. I had it when I was a baby. We were at a posting shortly after I took custody of Allie when the people in town got it. Allie caught it a couple days later. She was sick for a day or two but the scratching was the worst. Why is Elizabeth so sick?"
"It affects adults worse than children. It could be awhile before Elizabeth is feeling better."
Carson walked in with the ice and medical bag. Nathan got up to help him with what he was carrying. "We need to get this ice up around Elizabeth. The most important thing right now is getting the fever down. After that, we can deal with the other symptoms."
Nathan nodded and started to walk towards the steps until Carson reached out and put a hand on his arm. "Nathan let Faith and I get Elizabeth settled with the ice and check her vitals again. Then one of us will come down to get you so you can see her."
Nathan hesitated but Faith came over, "Nathan, why don't you go check on Allie and Jack for a few minutes. We will come get you when we are done."
Nathan looked at both of them. He wanted to see Elizabeth but he also wanted to see the children. He nodded and grabbed his serge off the settee. He didn't button it but he walked out the front door. Carson and Faith looked at each other. The unspoken words between them were concern for their friend. Both of them walked upstairs with the ice.
Nathan knocked on Lee and Rosemary's door. He stood there numb to all the feelings inside. Lee opened the door, "How is she?"
"The same. Carson and Faith are checking on her now and Carson brought ice to bring her fever down. They told me to leave and come over here until they got her settled."
"Come in, the kids will be happy to see you. We were just about to eat dinner if you'd like something to eat."
"Thank you Lee but I am not hungry," he said as he walked in the door.
"Uncle Nathan!" Allie ran over and gave her uncle a hug. Nathan held her close and put his chin on top of her head. Lee walked into the kitchen where Rosemary was with Jack.
"Allie why don't you come sit over here?"
"Is Mrs Thornton ok?"
"Dr. Shepherd and Nurse Carter are checking on her now. I wanted to see how you are doing? I am so proud of you today."
"Why? I didn't do anything when I saw Mrs. Thornton was sick. I just sat there reading."
"Allie, when I got there you went and got Dr. Shepherd and then you went to get Mr. Coulter. You were a huge help today. I know that Mrs. Thornton will thank you when she is better."
Allie started to cry as Nathan held her close. After a few minutes, Rosemary walked over and said, "Allie, why don't you come over here and get something to eat."
Allie wiped her face and walked into the kitchen, sitting next to Jack. Nathan walked behind her and bent down to talk to Jack.
"Hi Jack, are you having fun with Aunt Rosemary and Uncle Lee?"
"Yes Montee Natan," Nathan smiled at how Jack said his name. The little boy giggled as Allie made faces at him. He was grateful that Jack seemed unaware about his mother's illness. Nathan stood up and looked at Rosemary and Lee, "Thank you for looking after both of them."
"We are happy to. We have extra things for Jack here, but I will walk down with Allie so she can get some of her things for tonight. We can get some things for you as well."
"Thank you, I would appreciate it. I want to be close by in case Carson or Faith need anything or if Elizabeth needs me. I am going to go back over there and see how things are going. Allie, be good and I will be next door if you need me."
Nathan walked towards the door, anxious to see how Elizabeth was.
–––––––––––
Nathan went into Elizabeth's house. He could hear Carson and Faith talking upstairs so he sat down on the settee. He folded his hands in front of him and said a prayer for Elizabeth. For her to get better. For comfort for Allie and Jack. For their future.
Carson walked down as he saw Nathan with his head bowed. Nathan looked up as he heard one of the stairs creek beneath Carson's shoes. Nathan stood fast and walked over to Carson, "Any change?"
"No, we put the ice around her but her fever hasn't broken yet. Faith is upstairs with her now. You can go up if you want to see her."
Nathan didn't wait for Carson to change his mind. He ran up the stairs, taking them two at a time. He got to Elizabeth's bedroom door which was open. Nathan looked at her lying in the bed. Her face was covered in sweat and her head moved from side to side. Her eyes were closed just as they were when he found her in the school house. Elizabeth in her nightgown with ice around her shoulders and her side.
Faith stood up from the chair next to Elizabeth's bed, "I'll give you two a minute. I will be right downstairs if you need anything."
Nathan nodded, "Thank you Faith. To you and Carson. For everything."
Faith walked out the room as Nathan sat down in the chair. He reached out and took Elizabeth's hand, pressing it against his cheek. "Elizabeth, I'm here." Nathan took his other hand and put it against her cheek. Her fever had not gone down. "You need to get better, do you hear me? I know I was foolish to hesitate about us being together. I let my fears get in the way. My guilt for your kidnapping made me want to protect you with everything that I had. We have wasted so much time. Sweetheart, I want a future for us. We haven't even had our first date yet but I want so much more. So you need to get better so we can start all of that."
"Hmmm…." Elizabeth didn't respond, the fever taking every bit of strength she had.
Nathan felt the tears rolling down his face. He kissed Elizabeth's hand. He needed to be strong for both of them but it was becoming more and more difficult. Nathan knew that he would sit in that chair until she was better. He felt like he was glued to the seat. He didn't look around the room or even notice when Carson or Faith walked in during the night. He stared at Elizabeth's face the entire night, trying to will her to open her eyes. He leaned his head against Elizabeth's shoulder, just wanting to be close to her. At some point, exhaustion took over and Nathan fell asleep.
