Grooms with Honor Series, Books 10-12

by Linda K. Hubalek

  “Right now, we’d like for you all to leave the room. Mary and I need to talk to Doctor Pansy about her care,” Kiowa added.

  “Ki?” Kiowa bent down to listen to Nolie, sensing he didn’t want the others hearing him.

  “What do you want to know, Nolie?”

  Nolie looked around, waiting for Doctor Pansy to escort everyone from the room before he continued.

  “Are we going to become a family now, the four of us?”

  Kiowa caught Mary’s gaze, and she moved her eyebrows up to question him too.

  They’d been in love and married out of state but kept their union a secret so as to not cause problems, mainly for the children. He was worried they, and Mary, would be ridiculed for having a half-breed as their father and husband.

  But today’s accident showed Kiowa his wedding vows to Mary were more important than what people thought of his background.

  “Yes. We’re a family, but please don’t talk about it to anyone else yet but your Shepard relatives. Your mother and sister have to heal first—”

  “But where are we all going to live?” Nolie interrupted him, and Kiowa predicted the questions were going to be a constant stream coming from his stepson, the Shepards, and eventually, the rest of the community.

  Pastor and Kaitlyn Reagan didn’t even know their secret.

  “Don’t know yet, Nolie. We got to let your mother and sister heal first. They can’t walk up to your apartment above the dress shop yet, and you know my place behind the blacksmith is too small for everyone.”

  Mary was having problems keeping her eyes open. How much pain was she in, and what were her exact injuries? He’d guessed she’d glossed them over to spare Nolie the truth.

  “For now, it’s best you stay with your grandparents and help with your sister’s care. I’ll take your mother to my place since there are no stairs to contend with.

  “And it will be easier for you, and Burdie, since she’ll be walking on crutches for several weeks, to visit your mother at my home.”

  Nolie seemed to think about that but then looked back at Kiowa. “That will work. When can I come to see how Ma’s settling in?”

  Kiowa glanced at Mary before answering. “How about you wait until tomorrow morning before school?”

  Kiowa leaned toward Nolie and pretended to whisper. “She smells like she fell in the outhouse and it might take a few baths to wash off the stink.”

  “Kiowa Jones, I heard that,” Mary huffed without opening her eyes.

  But Nolie’s faint smile was worth Mary’s warning words. Kiowa knew she understood he was trying to ease Nolie’s concern.

  “Okay, Nolie. Go home with your grandparents, then come over tomorrow.”

  “Do I have to go to school?”

  “Yes,” Kiowa said with new authority he was happy he could now use. “There are only two weeks left, and you’re in charge of bringing Burdie’s schoolwork home, besides your own. You both want to finish your year and move to the next grade in September.”

  “Nolie, it’s time to go,” Doctor Pansy interrupted their conversation. “I need to tend to your mother, all right?”

  “Yes, Ma’am. Thank you for helping Ma and Burdie,” Nolie’s voice wobbled, but he politely said the right thing to the doctor.

  “We’ll see you in the morning, Nolie,” Kiowa promised as he gave his stepson a nod.

  “Well, you four have kept a secret for a long time. A belated congratulations on your marriage,” Doctor Pansy said with a smile.

  Kiowa reached for Mary’s hand, holding it in public for the first time ever in Clear Creek, even if it was in a private exam room.

  “What’s Mary’s problem, Doc, and what do I need to do to take care of her?”

  “Mary has injured her back, and we don't know how permanent the damage is until the swelling goes down around her spine.

  “Testing Mary’s legs earlier, only her left leg responded with limited movement. She couldn’t move her right leg at all, not even to wiggle her toes.”

  Mary squeezed his hand harder as she tried to keep from sobbing. Kiowa moved his left hand to wipe away the tears running down her face.

  He wanted to calm her with words, but they clogged in his throat and wouldn’t come out. Was his wife permanently paralyzed? Kiowa’s vision blurred with worry and panic.

  “I’m hoping Mary’s mobility will improve with time and exercise. But I’ll warn you both, this could take months of hard work to get to that stage, and it won’t happen at the rate you want it to.

  “Kiowa, I know you want to do this, but can you afford to take time off work to take care of your wife full-time for at least the first couple of weeks?”

  “Yes, I can,” Kiowa didn’t elaborate the reason why though.

  “You two have so many questions to answer about your marriage, that I think I’d put up a ‘do not disturb’ sign on your door for a while,” Doctor Pansy muttered, still in disbelief of their marriage. “My father-in-law is going to be upset at you.”

  “Why? Because we didn’t have him marry us?” Kiowa asked.

  “Because you kept it a secret. You know everyone confides in Pastor Reagan. Plus, he’ll say you should have been sitting beside Mary in church, instead of roaming outside the building to listen to the services.”

  “What do I need to do to keep Mary as comfortable as possible?” Kiowa asked to ignore the doctor’s remark.

  “Give Mary a few drops of laudanum as needed for the first few days, if the pain is unbearable, but I don’t want her to use it past that if possible.”

  “A bath will do me the most good right now,” Mary interrupted them through gritted teeth.

  “I agree, and I’ll warn you, Kiowa, cover the bed with old towels as we don’t know how well her body functions are working yet.”

  Kiowa noticed Mary’s face redden with embarrassment.

  “Noted. Can you get supplies for us through Daisy’s pharmacy? We’ll need a bedpan, a rubber sheet, and uh, maybe other feminine necessities?”

  “Kiowa, please take me home,” Mary whimpered.

  “Can I carry her to my place, Doc, or do you prefer I get a board and help?”

  “Let’s get her eased into a sitting position and see how she does first,” Doctor Pansy suggested. “Don’t be surprised if you feel like passing out, though, Mary. This first time up is going to be a jolt to your head, back, and your senses.”

  Kiowa slid his right arm behind Mary’s shoulders and slowly lifted her back a few inches off the table and held her in place to get used to the position.

  “Doing okay?”

  Mary acted as if she was scared to breath. “Y…yes.”

  “Do you think she hurt the back of her ribs on her fall?”

  “That’s always possible. By the bruise placement, the worst blow to her back was between her kidneys and top of her pelvis bone.”

  “Breath in and out through your mouth, Mary. Take slow, deep breaths,” Doctor Pansy instructed.

  A slight tint of color came back into Mary’s pale face.

  “Move her to an upright position,” Doctor Pansy suggested, and then moved to the side of the table.

  “Still feeling okay, Mary?” Kiowa asked as he slowly moved her upright, moving his left hand to the top of her chest in case she fell forward.

  “Yes… I guess.”

  “Move her sideways and we’ll move her legs over the edge of the table. Let us do it, Mary, nice and slow.”

  Doctor Pansy slid her hands behind Mary’s knees and guided them to bend over the table, although Kiowa had a sinking feeling her legs would have flopped over the edge as limp as a cloth rag doll.

  He sent a prayer of thanks toward heaven when her left foot twitched upward. Hopefully feeling and use would slowly return to both of her legs with time.

  “How does that feel, Mary?”

  “Strange. I feel like I can’t sit upright without support.”

  “That might be the case until your back heals, so be pr
epared at all times. Pillows around you when sitting up. Don’t reach for something beyond your grasp, etc.”

  Doctor Pansy went to the exam door and opened it. “Gabe, Tate, please come in here to help move Mary.”

  Kiowa wasn’t surprised the Shepard’s hadn’t left the waiting room yet.

  Doctor Pansy moved a wooden chair next to the table. “Gabe, get on the other side of Kiowa, reach under Mary and grasp Kiowa’s hands to make a solid bridge. Carefully lift Mary up and sit her onto the chair. Tate, be sure Mary doesn’t fall forward in the process.”

  “Here we go, Mary. Cross your arms in front of your chest, if you can. We’ve got you,” Kiowa assured her.

  Everyone sighed with relief, including Mary, when she was sitting in the chair. The doctor wrapped the sheet that had been on top of Mary’s body around her and the chair, tying the fabric ends together on the back of the chair to keep her in place.

  “I assume the three of you can carry Mary and the chair a half block down the alley to Kiowa’s. Let’s go,” Doctor Pansy announced as she grabbed her medical bag and pointed for them to exit the room through the back hallway to the alley. Apparently, the doctor was going to lead the way to Kiowa’s home.

  Good thing he’d gone home after Mary and Burdie’s accident to clean up, change clothes, and tidy up his dwelling. Doctor Pansy and the Shepards had never been past the front room of his place behind the blacksmith shop. Only Mary and the kids had ever been in his living quarters beyond the front room, usually sneaking in when no one else was in sight.

  More secrets were about to be revealed to Mary’s family.

  Chapter 4

  “What the heck, Ki?” Gabe murmured as he glanced around Kiowa’s home.

  “Don’t drop me as you gawk, Gabe!” Mary muttered through gritted teeth as the chair slightly dipped to one side.

  “Oops, I’m so sorry, Sis,” Gabe said, as her brothers lowered the chair onto the black-and-white tiled floor of Kiowa’s bathroom next to the gleaming porcelain bathtub.

  “Here we all thought you lived in that small room behind the blacksmith shop, Ki. I thought the building addition to the blacksmith was for raw materials storage for your business,” Gabe continued to say as he looked around the bathroom, and then stepped just outside the door to view the living area.

  Why hadn’t anyone realized Kiowa had a home tucked behind his business? Because they didn’t expect a “poor half-breed” to have such a place?

  The ire of it caused Mary’s shoulders to tighten up but she didn’t need more pain rippling through her body, so she tried to relax.

  When Mack and Kiowa built the addition, the outside was finished to blend in with the rough siding of the original building instead of looking like a house.

  Mack and her husband worked on the interior at night, so it didn’t interfere with their work, and so people wouldn’t be snooping.

  Slowly over time Mary ordered furniture—a bedroom set, table and chairs, an upholstered settee and two matching chairs, etc.—for his home, and Angus Reagan, the depot manager, helped Kiowa bring the furniture over to his home after dark.

  Good thing the Reagans were good at keeping secrets because of Mack’s and Angus’ help with the house. Oh, and their brother Cullen’s help with packages sent to Kiowa through the post office too.

  “Wait ‘til Ma and Amelia see this place,” Tate added as he took in the wallpapered walls, the living room’s plush carpet and all the mahogany furniture in it.

  The home wasn’t large—with only the living room, kitchen, one bedroom and bath—but the quality of the furnishings is what set it above a normal small town dwelling.

  Mary could imagine her mother’s comments when she saw the place. She hated to keep secrets from her family, but she and Kiowa decided to keep their marriage a secret at first…and then never got around to sharing the news.

  Even Burdette and Nolie enjoyed the secrecy, or so she thought. Now she realized the burden they had put on the children to keep their secret.

  All their lives changed the instant she and Burdette took a nose dive down the stairs. Hopefully, her back would mend before Burdette’s leg and their lives would return to normal.

  But, she and Kiowa would have to decide what to do going forward. Nolie’s question on when they’d be “a family” meant it was time for their marriage to become public. Or would Kiowa think it would be best to quietly divorce?

  “Please don’t tell anyone about our marriage and Kiowa’s home for now, Gabe and Tate. And please pass my wish on to our parents and sister,” Mary pleaded.

  “I’ll keep this to myself too, although I’m guessing Mack helped build your home?” Doctor Pansy asked.

  Kiowa let out a long breath. “Yeah, he did. Sorry I asked him to keep it secret from you.”

  “Doesn’t bother me a bit. I don’t tell him about my patient’s problems, and you know how the Reagan brothers were brought up not to say anything about the church parishioner’s either.

  “For now, if you want, I can say both Mary and Burdette are convalescing at the Shepard’s home and not to have visitors,” Doctor Pansy suggested.

  “Don’t you think someone saw us carry Mary like a float in a parade?” Tate asked with skepticism.

  “Well, that’s always possible but that’s why we went down the alley,” Kiowa said.

  “Our parents’ house is just beyond the blacksmith shop. Let’s pretend you took me there instead of Kiowa’s for now,” Mary suggested as she looked at her brothers.

  She didn’t meet Kiowa’s eyes because she didn’t want him to be disappointed in her trying to hide the truth for now.

  “Okay, it’s time to leave,” Doctor Pansy said as she motioned for Gabe and Tate to leave in front of her. “Mary, if it’s all right, I’ll go into your apartment and pack up things I know you’ll need for a while. I’ll slip over with things in an hour, to give you time to bathe and get settled in bed.”

  “Thank you. I really appreciate everything you’ve done for Mary and Burdette,” Kiowa answered for Mary before she’d put the words together in her mind.

  Mary’s stamina had rallied to be moved here, but now she felt herself drift back to the pain and exhaustion.

  “Thank you,” Mary managed to say when Doctor Pansy studied her before leaving the room. Mary saw the worry in the doctor’s eyes, but this had to be a temporary problem. She would heal and get back to her dress shop in a week or two.

  “Don’t move,” Kiowa told her as he pushed her chair solid against the wall, being sure she was safe from tipping over. “I’ll be back in a second.”

  Kiowa followed the doctor out the door, leaving Mary tied to the chair. Mary heard the front door lock, then after a few seconds, the thud of Kiowa’s boots as he took them off his feet.

  Kiowa walked back into the bathroom. Mary watched as he turned the water faucet on to fill the bathtub. He had plumbing between the rooms where hot water from the kitchen stove reservoir automatically emptied into the tub. Depending on the temperature of the water, he may have to add cool water to the bath, but he had a hand pump directly from the cistern to the bathroom for that need too.

  “I don’t appreciate being left tied up in the bathroom,” Mary mumbled as Kiowa pulled his shirt off his broad shoulders.

  “I know, but I needed to lock the door. We don’t want any unexpected visitors while I’m giving you a bath,” Kiowa replied.

  “And why are you undressing if you’re getting me the bath?”

  “I might end up in the tub with you, Mrs. Jones,” Kiowa said, probably to lighten their serious mood.

  “I like it when you call me Mrs. Jones, but I’d like to be clean and in bed first.”

  “I agree. Try to stay upright while I unwrap the sheet.”

  Mary tried to sit up straight in the chair, but she felt herself falling forward.

  “Kiowa!”

  “I got you. I’m going to ease you down on the floor to get your clothing off.”

  Mary
relaxed as best as she could as Kiowa laid her on her side while stuffing his balled shirt under her head for a little comfort.

  “You sure you don’t want me to just cut off your clothing? You’ll have time sitting around to stitch them back up,” Kiowa said as he carefully unbuttoned the side buttons on her skirt.

  “Just pull them off for now. But if they are badly soiled, you’re welcome to burn them in your fire forge. I smell like a baby with a full diaper,” Mary grimaced.

  Her light slate blue skirt and cream-colored blouse had to be soiled with mud and blood too.

  “Don’t get your pantaloons in a twist,” Kiowa teased her. “I’m just happy you’re talking to me after that fall.”

  “I know. I hate Burdette broke her leg though, and I can’t be the one to take care of her.”

  “Give yourself a few days, Mary. Your mother can handle it.”

  Mary felt Kiowa’s hands push the clothing off her body but lost his touch as he moved past her right thigh.

  Please let the feelings and movement return to my leg! Mary silently prayed. Surely it would return.

  “Slowly ease your arms out of your shirtwaist without twisting too much.”

  Mary complied but felt her muscles protesting. She must have bruised her whole body as she bumped down the stairs.

  “Now I’m going to unlace and get your corset off.”

  Mary bit her lip at the painful movement but had to smile too. Her husband thought the undergarment was a waste of fabric and whale bone.

  “And your corset is not going back on until you’re healed,” Kiowa said, but he bent down to kiss the top of her forehead after he said it.

  “We’ll see. It might give me support my back needs,” Mary said as she looked up into her husband’s concerned eyes.

  “That might be, but it doesn’t have to be so tight then.”

  Kiowa got up on his knees to lean over the tub and test the temperature of the water. “Feels about right, but I want to add a bucket of cold water just in case. I’d rather have the water warm instead of too hot.”

  Mary wanted scalding hot to clean her stink off and burn the numbness out of her back, but she didn’t say anything to Kiowa, letting him take care of her.