The Iron Wagon (5 page)

O
n Sunday morning, August 26, Paul Brockman helped his sisters onto the driver’s seat of the ranch wagon in front of the house, then climbed up and sat beside Meggie. Paul snapped the reins to put the horse team into motion. He and his sisters waved to their parents standing on the front porch. John and Breanna waved back, and the children said they would see their parents at church for the preaching service. Then they headed for Denver.

“Whew, it sure is hot today!” Meggie exclaimed as they turned onto the road.

“It sure is.” Paul nodded.

Ginny fanned her face with a handkerchief. “It’s only nine fifteen, and that sun up there in the sky is already making it blistering hot!”

Meggie palmed away perspiration from her brow. “I’m sure glad I’m not going to hell.”

“I’m glad I’m not either!” Ginny still fanned her face with the handkerchief.

“Me too,” Paul said. “Praise the Lord for our salvation!”

Both sisters responded with an “amen!”

Ginny laughed. “Oh well, it won’t be long and winter will be here; then we’ll be complaining about the cold.”

Gripping the reins, Paul chuckled. “You’re so right, sis. We
humans are never satisfied. Well, hardly ever, anyway. Just think—when we get to heaven, everything will be perfect, even the weather!”

“There won’t be any complaining in heaven at all!” Meggie said, laughing.

After Sunday school was over at First Baptist Church, Paul and his sisters met in the auditorium at the pew a few rows from the front and just west of the center aisle, where the Brockman family always sat.

When it was time to start the preaching service, the church’s music director opened the service by leading the choir in singing the stirring hymn “In the Cross of Christ I Glory.” He then stepped to the pulpit, asked the congregation to stand, and led them in singing “Brightly Beams Our Father’s Mercy.”

After the song, the crowd and the choir sat down, and Pastor Bayless left his chair. As he walked toward the pulpit, he flicked a glance toward the rear of the auditorium. The six ushers who would be taking the offering stood just inside the double doors. They smiled and nodded at him. This was their signal to let him know that John and Breanna Brockman were in the vestibule and ready to enter the auditorium.

Pastor Bayless reminded the church members of nurse Breanna Brockman having been knocked down a flight of stairs while on duty at Denver’s Mile High Hospital on July 13. This fall was caused by an injured rancher who was out of his mind in extreme pain from broken ribs. The rancher was running
down the hall on the second floor toward the staircase, and Breanna was climbing the stairs from the first floor. Just as she reached the top, the rancher collided with her and knocked her back down the stairs, which resulted in Breanna receiving spinal and leg injuries.

The pastor went on. “Shortly after the rancher knocked Breanna down the stairs, he tumbled down the stairs himself, adding to his own injuries. That rancher’s name is Damon Fortney. His ranch is about twenty miles southeast of Denver.”

Pastor Bayless then pointed at Barbara Fortney, seated next to a big, silver-haired man on the second row of pews to the right of the center aisle. He reminded the church members of how Breanna Brockman had led Mrs. Fortney to the Lord on July 18 when she had visited Breanna in her hospital room. Mrs. Fortney had come to First Baptist Church the following Sunday, walked the aisle during the invitation after the sermon, gave testimony of her salvation, and was baptized.

The church members were smiling and nodding their heads. The pastor went on to tell of how he had the joy of leading rancher Damon Fortney to the Lord in his hospital room on July 14. “Amens” sounded all over the auditorium.

Beaming, Pastor Bayless said, “Damon Fortney has been in the hospital all this time, recovering from surgery, and was just released yesterday.” He pointed at the man seated next to Barbara. “Brother Damon Fortney, would you please stand up so everyone can see you?”

Tall, muscular, heavyset Damon rose to his feet, smiling and looking around at the crowd.

“Just so you know, folks, Brother Fortney is here this morning to be baptized.”

The crowd cheered and applauded; then the pastor looked at Damon. “You may be seated now, dear brother.”

When Damon sat down, Barbara smiled at him, then rose up far enough to plant a kiss on his cheek.

The pastor ran his gaze over the crowd. “Now, folks, I have a big surprise for you. I want to thank the members of this church for the way you have been praying for Breanna Brockman since Dr. Matthew Carroll told us she may never be able to walk again.”

The pastor looked toward the double doors at the rear of the auditorium. “All right, ushers, please open those doors.” With excitement showing on his face, he added, “Everyone rise to your feet, please, and look back at the doors!”

The church members complied with the pastor’s request, and suddenly there were happy gasps and words of praise to the Lord filling the auditorium as John and Breanna Brockman stepped through the doors and stopped, John holding his wife’s right hand.

Breanna’s face was still somewhat pale, and she appeared to be a bit weary, but a smile beamed from her face as she nodded and acknowledged the crowd. She then gazed up into the face of her dear husband, where tears glistened in his eyes, and nodded.

The members of First Baptist Church looked on in amazement as Breanna began to walk slowly down the aisle beside her husband. There was loud applause and even louder praises being given to the Lord as the beloved couple made their way to the
pew where Paul, Ginny, and Meggie stood. All three of them tenderly embraced their mother.

When the excitement finally settled down, everyone eased onto their pews.

An hour later, when the sermon was finished and the invitation was given, four adults and three young people came forward to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour, and Damon Fortney presented himself for baptism.

Pastor Bayless baptized the four adults and the three young people first. Then the big rancher stepped down into the baptistry. Speaking so all could hear, the pastor told Damon how glad he was that Damon had finally healed up so he could come for baptism.

The big rancher smiled. “Thank you, Pastor, for leading me to the Lord. I’m so very glad I can finally be baptized.” Damon was submerged in the water and raised up, with Pastor Bayless saying, “Buried in the likeness of His death, and raised in the likeness of His resurrection.” The crowd applauded heartily.

Soon the pastor closed the service in prayer. As soon as the service was dismissed, a crowd gathered around the pew where Breanna was seated, and moving slowly in line, they shared with her their joy that she was able to walk again.

John, Paul, Ginny, and Meggie stood close by in the aisle to give people the room they needed to approach Breanna. John noticed that Barbara Fortney was standing near the platform, waiting for her husband to come from a side door after having changed into dry clothing. Just then Damon appeared and headed toward his wife, smiling.

John motioned to his three children. “Let’s go meet Mr. Fortney.” As they drew up to the Fortneys, John introduced himself and his children.

Damon greeted them warmly, then said with a slight quiver in his voice, “I—I want to tell you again how sorry I am that I knocked Mrs. Brockman down those hospital stairs.”

John laid his right hand on the rancher’s shoulder. “Brother Fortney, we understand clearly that you were totally out of your mind with pain and you didn’t know what you were doing. It was not your fault.”

The children all agreed.

Tears misted Damon’s eyes. “I thank each of you for understanding. Mrs. Brockman has also told me she knows it wasn’t my fault.” He took a few seconds to wipe the tears from his eyes, then turned to John. “Chief Brockman, I am amazed at how much your son resembles you … with the same steel gray eyes, tall stature, and dark hair.”

John smiled. “I agree. Paul is also like me in personality.”

John and his children chatted with the Fortneys for a while, and when the crowd around Breanna diminished, only two people remained—Whip and Annabeth Langford.

Putting an arm around Breanna still sitting on the pew, Annabeth faced John. “Chief, Whip and I would like to invite your family to our house for dinner.”

John glanced at Breanna, who instantly nodded. He smiled at Annabeth. “Looks like Breanna feels up to doing that, so your invitation is accepted!”

Paul, Ginny, and Meggie spoke their joy at the invitation.
Then it was agreed between John and Paul that the son would drive the wagon and the girls would ride in the buggy with their parents.

Soon the Brockman and Langford buggies were moving side by side. They were close enough that the families could talk back and forth above the sounds of the buggy wheels spinning and the horses’ hooves thumping the soft dirt as they moved along the road that led toward their homes.

The Langford place was just a few miles past the Brockman ranch, on the same road. Three small ranches were between the Brockman ranch and the Langford place. When they were passing the third small ranch, John saw the young couple who lived there out in front of their house.

John looked at the Langfords in their buggy. “Those folks are new here, aren’t they?”

“Yes,” Whip replied. “They moved here quite recently. Their names are Ralph and Lois Bergman. We just met them a few days ago and invited them to visit First Baptist Church. They said they would do so sometime.”

Breanna noticed an elderly woman coming out the front door of the house toward the young couple. “Do you know who that older woman is?”

“Yes.” Annabeth eyed the silver-haired woman. “She is Lois’s grandmother. She came to visit them yesterday from her home in Wisconsin. After getting off work at the hospital, I happened to be out near the road late in the afternoon. They paused in their buggy, introduced her to me, and told me where she was from. They had just picked her up at the railroad station
in Denver. She is in her mideighties, and her name is Ethel Simpson.”

Breanna nodded. “I’m sure the Bergmans are happy to have her here.”

“They sure seemed to be,” Annabeth said.

A few minutes later, the buggies swung onto the Langford place, with Paul behind them in the wagon. As they drew up close to the house, Meggie was the first to spot Whip’s pet wolf, Timber, in his fenced area next to the small barn.

Waving at the wolf, Meggie jumped out of the buggy. “Hi, Timber!”

The big gray wolf wagged its tail as it looked at Meggie and let out a friendly whine. Ginny stepped out of the buggy, stood beside her sister, and called to the wolf, waving her arms. Paul left the driver’s seat on the wagon, hurried up beside his sisters, then called out to Timber and waved. The wolf responded to both Ginny and Paul in the same way it had to Meggie. The three of them ran to Timber’s “yard,” and reaching through the fence, they petted him.

The Brockman family had a wonderful time eating Sunday dinner at the Langford home. However, by the time dinner was over, Breanna appeared quite weary.

Annabeth left her chair at the table and put her arm around Breanna’s shoulder. “Breanna, dear, this has been a big and exciting day for you, but I can tell how worn out you are. Whip and I would love to have all of you stay longer, but I think you need to go home and get some much-needed rest.”

Glancing at her friend, Breanna smiled wanly. “You are just
too perceptive for your own good, Mrs. Langford. I was trying not to let on.”

“I’m a nurse too, Mrs. Brockman,” Annabeth teased back, “and we are trained to take notice of such things in our patients, right?”

Breanna chuckled, patting her friend’s cheek. “You are so right, my dear friend.”

Annabeth mentioned that she knew Breanna had an appointment tomorrow morning with Dr. Carroll for a regular examination regarding her spinal injury and its effect on her legs.

Breanna nodded. “The appointment is at ten o’clock. John is going to take me to the hospital for the examination, then bring me home. After that, he’ll go to his office for the rest of the day.”

“Mama,” Meggie spoke up. “Ginny and I will stay and help Aunt Annabeth do the dishes and clean up. You and Papa go on home so you can get some rest. I’m sure Paul will stay so he can bring us home in the wagon after we’ve helped Aunt Annabeth.”

“I sure will,” Paul said.

“Okay, Meggie girl. We’ll do it your way, then.”

Meggie grinned at her mother as she left her chair, then kissed her cheek. “See? I told you.”

John thanked the Langfords for the meal. Then, being aware of his wife’s lagging footsteps as they headed toward the front door, he picked her up and carried her out to the buggy.

The Langfords and the Brockman children looked on as John placed Breanna on the seat, then rounded the buggy and
got in beside her. Both of them waved at the group, and John put the buggy in motion.

As they turned onto the road and headed toward their ranch, Breanna laid her head on John’s shoulder and snuggled close. “Thank you for carrying me out, sweetheart. You are always so thoughtful. I don’t know if I could have walked all the way outside to the buggy.”