by Anne Chase
The snowmobile descended into a steep drop, causing Becca to tighten her grip. Deftly, Nick steered the snowmobile and revved the throttle as they turned into a twist. He was right about the road — it had curves! The smile on her face faltered but didn't go away, even as more curves and dips approached. Nick took each one with aplomb, increasing Becca's confidence with every turn.
She realized she wasn't feeling fear anymore. No, what she felt instead was — exhilaration!
She laughed out loud, and Nick heard.
"You okay?" he yelled.
"I'm great!"
Up ahead, she caught sight of lights, barely visible through the swirling snow. Steadily, Nick throttled up a snow-covered driveway to a group of buildings. One of the buildings was a barn, another a farmhouse with Christmas lights twinkling through the windows. He guided them toward the barn, brought the snowmobile to a stop, and turned off the engine.
With the engine's throb gone, the sounds of the storm came roaring back. Wind whistled through the nearby trees. The barn groaned from a blast of arctic air.
Nick turned back toward her. "Need help?"
"I'm okay." Shakily, she got off the snowmobile, her boots sinking deep into the fresh snow. She took hold of her helmet and pulled it off, gasping as frigid air hit her cheeks.
Nick hopped off the snowmobile, opened the ski-pod, and pulled out his duffel bags and medical bag. He yanked off his helmet and tossed it inside the pod, then took hers and tossed it in as well.
Becca turned as a porch light went on at the farmhouse. A side door opened and a woman, dressed in a heavy winter coat, work pants and boots, stepped out and made her way toward them.
"Howdy, Doc!" the woman said, and gestured toward the barn. "Angus is inside with Daisy."
"How's she doing?" Nick said.
"Same, no change," the woman said, and picked up one of the duffel bags. "Let's get you inside."
The woman pulled open the barn door as Nick picked up his medical bag and the second duffel bag. Quickly, they followed the woman inside the barn.
"Center stall on the left," the woman said to Nick as she shut the barn door behind them. "You go on now. This nice young lady and I can handle the introductions ourselves."
With a glance at Becca and a small grin, Nick did as he was told and headed toward the stall.
After watching him walk away, the woman turned toward Becca. The woman was in her early sixties, with graying brown hair cut short around a square, inquisitive face. Her sharp grey eyes took in Becca with a single swift glance, and her lips twitched — perhaps with a smile, Becca couldn't tell. She stuck out her gloved hand.
"Marianne Ferguson," the woman said. "Pleased to make your acquaintance."
"Becca Jameson," Becca said, taking the woman's hand in hers.
"Ah," Marianne said, comprehension dawning. "The new librarian."
Becca nodded. "I arrived in town three days ago."
"Hettie Mae is one of my dearest friends. She's thrilled you're here to take over."
"I hope it's okay that I came here with Nick."
"Of course it is," Marianne said firmly. "A friend of Dr. Nick's is a friend of ours."
"I'm here to help, in whatever way I can."
"Good. There's plenty to do. Let's see what they need."
Marianne led the way into the center of the barn. Becca glanced around, taking in the barn's worn but well-cared-for interior. Stalls ran along one side of the barn, with bales of hay and farm equipment lining the other. Looking up, she saw big wooden beams crisscrossing the open space. Lights placed along the stalls cast a warm light over bales of hay. The smell, she realized as she breathed in, was a mix of cut hay and animals.
When they reached the stall in the center of the barn, she saw Nick and another man bent over a llama lying on the ground. Her heart lurched as she gazed upon the distressed animal. So this was Daisy! The lady llama had a thick coat of brown-and-white hair that even now looked irresistibly soft. The pregnant animal was moaning in discomfort, her eyes opening and closing, her head moving back and forth against the hay.
Becca's mouth opened slightly in surprise when she saw a leg protruding from Daisy backside. So that was the baby, the — what did Nick call it? — the cria.
Next to her, Marianne said, "You ever witness a llama birth, Becca?"
"Never," Becca replied with a slow shake of her head.
Nick, bent over Daisy, was listening intently to the llama's heartbeat with a stethoscope. He moved the stethoscope from Daisy's chest to her belly and listened some more.
"Both heartbeats are elevated but steady," he said to the man kneeling next to him, who Becca expected was Marianne's husband Angus.
Marianne said, "What do you boys need from us?" Angus looked up at his wife's use of the word "us" and his attention shifted to Becca.
"Angus," Marianne said, "this is Becca. She came with Doc. Becca, my husband Angus."
"Pleased to meet you," Becca said.
Angus gave her a brief nod, then turned back toward Daisy and her cria, his brow furrowed with worry, his bald pate gleaming in the light.
Nick stood up. "The cria's right front leg is in the wrong position. We need to get it repositioned."
"Is Daisy going to get through this, Doc?" Angus asked, anxiety in his voice.
"She should be fine," Nick said. "I brought most of what I need." He turned to Marianne and Becca. "But we'll also need towels. And we all need to wash our hands thoroughly."
"The barn has a sink along the wall," Marianne said. "Becca and I will get the towels."
"We'll need a blow dryer as well, in case the cria's body temperature is too low. Also a big plastic bag."
"Got it."
"Does the sink out here run hot water?"
"No, just cold."
"Let's get hot water into the sink in the house. If the cria's body temp is too low when she's born, we'll need to raise it."
"We'll get that ready."
Nick turned his attention to his gear, his expression serious, his focus singleminded. Becca had noticed that level of concentration from him before — how the rest of the world seemed to vanish when he zeroed in on something important.
Becca realized that Marianne was already walking toward the farmhouse, so she hurried to catch up. Marianne pulled open the barn door again, and Becca stepped out into the cold night. Marianne followed and shut the door behind her.
"Have you ever had a llama with a difficult birth before?" Becca asked Marianne as they tramped through fresh snow toward the farmhouse.
"Just once," Marianne said. "Most llama births are easy. The mama stands there and the baby cria basically just slides out." She let out a short laugh. "A lot easier than the three labors I went through, I can tell you that."
"So, you have three kids?"
"All grown up now, two with young families of their own, the youngest in college."
Becca gestured back to the barn. "What about the time you had a llama birth that didn't go easy?"
Marianne shrugged. "Luckily, we had Dr. Nick. He was here and saved two lives." She reached the door on the side of the farmhouse and pulled it open, ushering Becca into a warm and homey kitchen, brightly lit and decorated country-style. On the white fridge, held up with magnets, was a blue ribbon for "Best in Show." Next to the ribbon was a photo of Angus and Marianne standing next to a very happy-looking brown-and-white llama.
Marianne saw what Becca was looking at and smiled. "That's Daisy."
Becca's eyes widened. "She looks quite cheerful."
"Especially compared with how she's feeling right now," Marianne said as she vigorously soaped up her hands in the sink. "Every summer, Heartsprings Valley has an animal fair. Daisy won for the camelid category. Of course," she added wryly, "it helped her chances that she was the only entrant in her category."
"Not many llamas in Heartsprings Valley?"
"Just our herd." Marianne grabbed a fresh hand towel from a kitchen drawer and dried her hands
. "After tonight, fingers crossed, we'll be up to nine animals."
Becca slipped off her gloves. "I'll wash up next, if that's okay."
"Soap's there, next to the sink." Marianne picked up an empty basket from a spot next to fridge and placed it on the counter. "When you're done, put the soap in the basket and grab the paper towels and also the hand towels in the drawer to the right of the sink. Also, if you could rinse out the sink and start filling it with hot water, that would be great."
"Will do."
Marianne bustled out of the kitchen and Becca got busy washing her hands in the big white farmhouse sink. The warm water from the faucet ran over her soapy fingers. Her wedding ring caught the light and gleamed.
She picked up a sponge next to the counter, dribbled liquid soap over it, and set about giving the sink a good scrub. When she was satisfied that it was clean, she rinsed the sink by splashing running water over the walls. Once that was done, she pushed the stopper into the drain and watched the hot water begin to fill the sink.
Marianne returned with an armful of towels and a blow dryer. "There's an extension cord in the lower drawer to your left."
Becca finished drying her hands, then reached down and pulled open the drawer and found the cord and added it to the basket.
"I see you're married?" Marianne said, gesturing to Becca's wedding ring.
"I was. My husband died three years ago." The words came out less painfully than she expected, perhaps because of Marianne's straightforward manner.
"I'm sorry to hear that," Marianne said. For a moment, the older woman came to a stop and gave Becca her full attention. "I can only imagine how painful the past three years must have been for you."
"Thank you."
"It must be difficult moving on."
"Yes, very difficult."
Marianne gave her shoulder a sympathetic squeeze. "You'll know when you're ready."
Becca blinked, then said, "The voice of experience?"
"If living on a farm has taught me anything, it's that anything can and will happen. And that no matter what does happen, life keeps marching on."
Becca swallowed an upsurge of unexpected emotion. "There was a time I didn't believe that. But now, I think you might be right."
Marianne nodded. "Good to hear. I try to stay focused on the here and now, with an eye on what's next. Keeps me sane." She gestured to the ring. "Probably best to take that off for now. Don't want it to get caught on anything."
"Of course," Becca said, slipping the ring off her finger. She watched Marianne placed it on the counter, next to the fridge.
"Okay to keep it here for safekeeping?" Marianne said.
"Sure."
Marianne glanced at the basket. "We got everything?"
"Yep."
Marianne looked at the sink, now three-quarters full of hot water, and turned the faucet off. "We'll adjust the temperature as needed, if and when it's time."
"Okay."
"You got the basket?"
"Yep."
Marianne picked up the towels and held open the kitchen door. "After you."
23
A blast of cold air greeted them as they stepped outside the farmhouse and made their way back to the barn. Becca stepped carefully through the snow, conscious as ever about slipping and falling.
Marianne pulled the barn door open, then shut it once Becca was in. Together, they made their way to the stall, where Nick was already hard at work, doing his best to very carefully get the cria's leg into the right position. Daisy groaned with pain, her cries weak. She was clearly exhausted by her ordeal, her head rolling forward and back, her moans tearing into Becca's heart.
After what seemed like forever but what Becca realized later was only a few minutes, Nick pulled back and said, "Okay, we're good."
Daisy groaned again, her body straining to move the baby along, and this time her hard work was rewarded. Two front legs appeared, followed seconds later by the cria's snout.
"Oh, thank goodness!" Marianne said. Angus looked up with a big grin on his face.
"Got everything ready?" Nick asked Marianne.
"We're ready."
They didn't have long to wait after that. The baby llama emerged quickly, the head followed by shoulders and torso and finally the legs — a wet and gloppy mess, but a joyous one at that!
"Make sure the cria's nose and mouth are unobstructed," Nick said. Marianne reached down with a towel and carefully cleared out the baby's nose. They all breathed a sigh of relief when the baby gasped and wheezed its very first breath.
Everything sped up after that. Marianne and Angus grabbed towels to dry off the cria, Nick checked the baby's condition and announced it was a girl. Becca, meanwhile, grabbed the extension cord, found an outlet, and ran the cord to the stall and plugged in the blow dryer.
"Her temperature is too low," Nick said. "Where's the blow dryer?"
"Right here," Becca said, handing it to him.
He gave her an appreciative look. "Thinking ahead. I like that." He turned on the blow dryer and aimed it over the baby llama's tiny body. "Here," he said, indicating for Becca to take over. "Run the air over her. Not too close, not too far." She took the dryer from him and made a couple of sweeps. "That's good."
Nick turned his attention back to Daisy.
"How's our mama llama doing, Doc?" Angus said.
"She's exhausted," Nick said, his stethoscope on, listening intently to Daisy's heartbeat. "But so far, so good. We'll know more when she passes the afterbirth."
"How long for that?"
"Anytime in the next few hours. In the meantime, we'll keep a close eye on her."
Next to Daisy, the new baby cria was breathing well. Nick turned his attention back to her and took her temperature again. He shook his head. "Still too low."
"Should we take her inside?" Marianne asked.
"Is the sink in the farmhouse ready? Filled with warm water?"
Marianne nodded.
"Good. Let's get the cria nice and dry, then into the plastic bag, and then into the warm water."
He rummaged through his duffel bag and found a baby bottle. "Angus and I will get the colostrum and bring it in."
Marianne and Angus finished drying the baby, then slid a black plastic garbage bag over her, covering her so that only her head stuck out. Lovingly, they wrapped her bag-clad tiny body in a fresh towel.
Angus picked up the baby, then turned to Becca. "Here you go, young lady."
Becca gulped, but immediately set down the blow dryer, knelt, and took the swaddled baby llama in her arms. The baby looked up at her with the softest eyes that Becca had ever seen. Oh my, her heart was going to melt! Truly, this was turning into the most eventful Christmas ever. Just being here was such an unexpected gift. She knelt in the hay-filled stall in a trance, the baby llama resting her head on her shoulder, every tiny breath like music to her ears. She could just sit here in this moment forever, just her and the baby and —
She heard a cough then, and looked up to see Nick, Marianne and Angus staring at her patiently, waiting for her to snap out of her reverie, regarding her with a mixture of understanding and amusement.
"Oh my," she said. "Yes, of course. Let's get inside!" She stood up and followed Marianne out of the barn, stepping carefully through the snow with the precious cargo in her arms. Marianne opened the kitchen door and Becca slipped inside and made her way to the big farmhouse sink. Marianne reached in and hand-tested the water temperature. "Just right," she said, then gestured to her. "We might get wet. Let's get you out of that coat."
Carefully, Becca passed the baby to Marianne, then shrugged off her coat and placed it on the kitchen table.
"Now," Marianne said, "we need to get this little girl into the warm water."
"I can do it, if you'd like."
"You sure? You'll get wet."
"That's fine — no worries."
"Okay, roll up your sleeves and let's get started."
Becca rolled up the sleeves of h
er turtleneck sweater and stepped in to take the baby llama back into her arms. The baby mewled softly, her beautiful eyes staring up at her, as Becca lowered her in. The baby blinked rapidly and moaned again as she reacted to the warmth, then sighed — with relief, it seemed — as the warm water began to have its intended effect.
"Good job," Marianne said to Becca. "The cria seems to like you, which is good." Together, they waited for the cria to slowly gain strength as the warm water helped her body temperature rise to normal.
"I heard Nick use a word I'm not familiar with," Becca said. "What's colostrum?"
"It's the first milk from a new mama," Marianne said. "It's rich in the nutrients and antibodies that the cria needs to develop her immune system."
"So Nick and Angus are ... milking Daisy now to get colostrum?"
"That's right. Once the cria's body temperature is normal, she should be able to drink the colostrum and absorb the nutrients."
"And once she has some colostrum in her, she'll have the energy to nurse from Daisy herself?"
"That's the plan."
"Thank you for letting me help you," Becca said. "I've learned so much. I've never done anything like this — ever. Farming life is way more exciting than I ever would have expected."
Marianne chuckled. "Sometimes I'd prefer a bit less excitement. I'm always relieved and grateful when a crisis results in a blessing."
The cria chose that moment to bleat softly, as if agreeing.
Becca looked down at the adorable creature nestled against her arm. "A true Christmas gift — that's what you are."
"You might even call her a Christmas miracle," Marianne said. "If Doc hadn't made it out here, we could have lost her and her mama."
"Well, that didn't happen," Becca said, glued to the baby in her arms. "Do you have a name for her?"
"I don't name my babies until I see them with my own eyes," Marianne said. She looked silently at the baby for a long moment. A smile appeared on her face. "All right, her name just came to me."
Becca said, "I'm all ears."
"We're going to name her Rebecca."
Becca's eyebrows shot up. "Rebecca?"
"In honor of a very nice young lady who helped bring new life into the world tonight."
