The Montana Doctor's Love (New Montana Brides Book 8) (4 page)

Chapter seven

A Good Day

A lot of wagons were on the street. Dust filled the air. They walked on the board sidewalk to the International Hotel Restaurant. It was beginning to fill, but they managed to find a table in the corner.

“Emily, have you eaten in a restaurant before?” Patrick asked.

She shook her head.

“Well, they have this great big kitchen in the back and they cook for all of these people. I’ll tell you what they have today, and you pick whatever you want, okay?” He read the menu from the chalkboard to her.

Mary Louise watched this exchange with a smile on her face.
Patrick is really good with her. Wonder where he picked that up?

“Did you decide?” he asked.

She nodded her head.

“Don’t forget, and when the lady comes to the table, you tell her and they’ll cook it for you. Would you like milk?” he asked.

Another nod.

The waitress came to the table. “What’ll you have today folks?” Mary Louise gave her order, and then Patrick did the same.

“And the little girl?”

“She’s a big girl now. Emily tell her what you would like,” he said.

Emily gave her order, in a voice so low, the waitress asked her to repeat it.

“You’ve been in school since you got out of Montana University?” Mary Louise asked.

“Just about,” he said. “Or at least in training. I had a year internship at Johns Hopkins. That was the first time we had anything to do with patients. Then I did a three year residency at the Washington General Hospital. That was hard work. We would have shifts where we were on call for thirty-six straight hours. You could barely function at the end of a shift. It was busy, but it was good. I got to see all sorts of injuries and maladies.

“Emily, do you have a doll?” he asked.

She nodded.

“What’s her name?”

“Lizbeth”, in a voice barely above a whisper.

“Elizabeth is my mother’s name. Did you know that?”

“No.”

“Do you remember the lady you stayed with while your papa was sick?” he asked. “She’s my mother.”

“Where did you learn how to talk with children?” Mary Louise asked.

He laughed. “Not in school. I got it from watching Dad. He says a doctor needs to make a child feel comfortable so they can tell him where it hurts. Dad doesn’t stand erect and talk; he kneels down to their level. I never saw a child he couldn’t get to talk. I spent a lot of time with him, going on house calls with him during the summers, and if the patients allowed, I would be in the examining room with them. It was a great experience.”

“I always liked him. I can see much of him in you,” she said.

“That’s the nicest thing you could have said to me. He’s my idol,” Patrick said.

They finished eating. “You did well, Emily. Would you like some pie or chocolate cake?”

“Cake.”

“What about you?” he asked Mary Louise.

“I don’t think so. I’m not much for sweets.”

“Is it too soon for me to ask if could call on you?” Patrick asked.

Her eyes downcast, she said, “I’m not ready for that.”

“I understand, and if I’ve offended you, I’m sorry.”

“I’m not offended,” she said. “I’m flattered, but I just can’t… at least not yet.”

“I’ll keep asking until you tell me to stop, he said.”

The Christian Church had an all-day, service with dinner on the grounds several times during the summer months. Members brought food and in between the services, they had a picnic. The food was shared by everyone, and games were held for the children. Since Helena did not have much in entertainment suitable for families, the picnics were festive occasions and popular among the members.

“Are you planning to come to the picnic next Sunday?” Patrick asked Mary Louise.

“I don’t know. If Mama and Papa want to, we will, but I wouldn’t want to make that hour long ride with just Emily and me,” she said.

“If you do, you’re invited to eat with us. There’s always a lot of good food. Emily might enjoy it too.”

“We’ll see,” she said.

* * *

He stayed outside the church at the beginning of services until the last minute.
I guess they are not coming.
Disappointed, he went inside.

Two weeks passed, before he saw them again. Patrick and his father were having lunch in the small café down the street from the International Hotel. They were sitting by a window. “The Parsons are in town,” Carter said. “I haven’t seen them in a while.”

“I haven’t either,” Patrick said. “I’m going to see if everything is all right.”

“Courting the widow?” Carter asked.

“She’s not ready for that. I asked,” Patrick said.

“Well,” his father said, chuckling. “They’re in the store. This is your chance.”

“Carpe diem, a wise man once told me. See you later.”

He looked around in the store. He saw Charlotte and Zebulon, but no Emily or Mary Louise. He picked a box of pencils off one of the shelves and went to the counter to pay for them.,

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Parsons, Zebulon. I hope you are well,” he said.

Mrs. Parsons said, “We are well, and thank you for asking. Emily and Mary Louise have been a bit under the weather, but they’re doing better.”

“Were they sick?” he asked.

“I think it was just a summer cold. They had a cough, and a fever for a few days, but that’s cleared up now.”

“I’m glad they’re better. When you’ve been exposed to pneumonia as both of them were, it can lie dormant and then become active,” he said.

“It was nothing like Preston had,” Zebulon said.

“I suggested they get inoculated when they were at the hospital. I don’t know if they did or not, but the inoculation would likely have caused them to have a milder case.

“Are they with you today?” he asked.

“No, Emily is still a bit weak, so Mary Louise decided to stay at home.” Mrs. Parsons said.

“That concerns me. Would it be all right if I checked on Emily.”

“That’s a long ride, when it is probably nothing,” Zebulon said.

“The fresh air would do me good, and I would feel better about it.”

“I’m sure Mary Louise would appreciate it,” Zebulon said.

“Thanks, I will do that,” Patrick said and left the store.

“That young man has a case for our daughter,” Charlotte said.

“He’s a good man, just like his father, and Mary needs someone like that,” Zebulon said.

Chapter Eight

A House Call

Mary Louise answered Patrick’s knock. “Has something happened? Are Mama and Papa all right?” she asked.

“They’re fine. It’s you and Emily I’m concerned about. I saw them in the store and they told me you had been sick,” he said.

“I don’t know if I’d call it sick. We were coughing, and sneezing. It was probably a summer cold. You… Oh my God, you think it might be pneumonia don’t you?”

“It’s been known to pop up weeks after exposure. It bothered me. Would you mind if I checked Emily?”

“No, of course not. Come on in. She’s taking a nap,” she said.

“How is her coughing? Is it productive? Wet?”

“It’s better than it was.” She led the way to the bedroom she was sharing with Emily.

He laid his hand on her forehead. “If she has a fever, it’s slight. Can you remove her gown so I can listen to her chest?”

“Sure,” she said, and began removing the gown. Emily awakened.

“It’s okay, sweetie. Doctor Palmer wants to listen to you breathe.”

“Emily, do you remember me?” he said.

She nodded.

“I want you to listen to something.” He wiped the ear pieces and the microphone of the stethoscope with a gauze pad soaked in alcohol. Then he put the earpieces in her ear and put the microphone on her chest. “Do you hear anything?” he asked.

She nodded.

“Would you mind if I listened too?”

She shook her head.

“Now, I’m going to listen. Would you cough for me?”

She coughed, and he moved the microphone. “Again?”

He repeated the process. “Now, I need to listen to your back.” They went through the same process. He took out a tongue depressor. “Can you open your mouth real wide for me?. Like this.” He opened his mouth as wide as he could. She giggled at the sight and opened her mouth; he looked at her throat. He wiped his thermometer with the alcohol pad. “Would you hold this under your tongue? Don’t bite it. It wouldn’t taste good.” He read the thermometer.

He turned to her mother and said, “Her temperature is just over 100º. You need to keep an eye on that. Her throat is red. The lungs have some congestion, but I don’t hear any fluid. What I think what happened is she was trying to develop something, but the inoculation knocked it down to something her body is able to fight off. I’m glad you got them. Give her plenty of liquid. If she feels overly warm, put a damp washcloth on her forehead and call either me or Dad. Is your phone working?”

“Yes it is. What about me?” she asked. “Are you going to check me?”

He felt her forehead? “Let me take your temperature.” He wiped the thermometer down and said, “Don’t bite it. It won’t taste good.” Emily giggled, Mary Louise smiled.

He read it and said, “Yours is slightly elevated, but not quite as high as Emily’s.”

He wiped the thermometer and put it away. “I would like for you to come in and let Dad check you over.”

“Can’t you do it,” she asked. She saw his face was flushed. “I embarrassed you, didn’t I?”

“You did,” he admitted. “I can’t do that. It wouldn’t be right.”

“Why not? Your Dad examines my mother, and he has examined me,” she said.

“Mary Louise, please.”

“Oh all right. Can you listen from the back like you did with Emily?” she asked. He had a distressed look on his face. “It’s all right. I’ll come in and let your dad check me out.

“It might have been interesting, don’t you think?” she asked.

“Mary Louise! I don’t know if I could maintain my professional detachment. You know I want to call on you,” he said.

“I do. Call me, and we’ll talk about it,” she said, smiling.

“I’m glad you came,” she said. “Even if you didn’t finish the job.”

“I’m going back to town,” he said. “Don’t forget to come in to see Dad. Give Emily plenty of liquids, and call me if you even think she’s getting worse.”

“I will,” she said. She rose to her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek. “You’re a nice guy, Patrick. Your patients are lucky to have such a caring person for their doctor.”

The Doctors Palmer Offices Two days later…

Patrick’s face broke into a smile when Mary Louise Wells walked into the office with her daughter Emily.

“Did you bring this pretty little girl to see me?” he asked.

“I did,” she said.

“I didn’t really think you would come in,” he said. “I’m glad you did.

“I told you I would, and I keep my word.”

“I’ll remember that.” He turned to Emily. How are you this morning?”

“Fine,” Emily said.

“Are you going to let me examine you today?”

“Yes,” her voice so low, Patrick could hardly hear it.

“Okay. Come on and let’s get this done. Would you remove her dress, you can use one of those sheets to cover her, and I’ll be right with you.”

In his father’s office, he said, “Dad, Mary Louise is here. Both she and Emily have been sick. I checked Emily the other night and she had some congestion and a fever. Mary Louise had a slight elevation in temp. I’d like for you to check her after I examine Emily.”

“Okay, son. Send them back when you’re ready.

“Are you ready for me, Emily,” he asked.

She nodded.

“I’m going to take your temperature first.” He wiped the thermometer with an alcohol gauze pad, put in her mouth, and said, “Don’t bite it.”

Two minutes later, he read it. “Good news, you don’t have a fever. Now, let me listen.

“She still has a little congestion, but not as much as the last time. I think she’s won the battle.” Then to Emily, “You’ve been such a good girl, would you like a piece of candy?”

She looked at her mother. “”It’s all right, what do you say?”

“Thank you,” she said.

“You’re welcome,” “We’re finished for today. It wasn’t so bad was it?”

“Your turn,” he said to Mary Louise.

“Change your mind about examining me?” she asked, smiling, as her hand fingered a button on her dress.

“No,” he said. “Dad’s waiting for you.”

Chapter Nine

Mary Louise

Doctor Carter Palmer’s Examining Room…

“Mary Louise… How nice to see you! How have you been?”

“A little under the weather, but I’m better. Patrick thinks I need to be checked. He wouldn’t do anything except take my temperature. I think I embarrassed him when I told him it would all right. He said something about maintaining his professional detachment.”

Elizabeth laughed. “Just like his father. Carter won’t examine a woman unless I’m in the room. It’s a matter of propriety. If Patrick had thought it was serious, he would have checked you.

“I think he may have a thing for you. I hope so; he hasn’t seen anyone since he came home. I don’t know about when he was in Washington,” Elizabeth said.

“He asked some time back if he could call on me. I told him I wasn’t ready. I told him to call me and we could talk about it.”

“Carter will be in to listen to your chest in just a minute. How’s Emily?”

“She had the same thing I had. Patrick just checked her and said she was better. She didn’t have a fever, but still has some congestion.”

Doctor Carter Palmer…

“Mary Louise… good to see you again. Patrick said you’ve been under the weather.”

“A little, but I’m better,” she said.

“It’s good that you came in, you don’t mess around with pneumonia, as you well know.

“Did he check your daughter today?”

“Yes. He said she’s better, but still has a little congestion,” she said.

“He told me you were inoculated?” Doctor Palmer said.

“Yes. He pretty much insisted on it at the hospital.” She said.

“Well, that probably kept one or both of you from getting a full blown case.”

Elizabeth, can you help me here, please?

“Let me listen to your chest.” Hmm… I don’t hear any congestion. Open wide.” He peered down her throat. “It looks okay. I don’t see or hear anything to cause concern.

“Make sure to drink plenty of water. It can help reduce congestion. Call us if you have heavy perspiration, coughing, or fever.”

“Patrick could have done this when he was at the ranch,” she said.

“He could have, but it’s probably good he didn’t. If he’d seen anything that bothered him, he would have checked it out.”

“He’s a good doctor. He really has a way with children. He put Emily completely at ease with what he was doing. Said he got that from watching you,” she said.

“I guess he paid attention,” Carter laughed. “He is a good doctor. He learned things at Hopkins I had never heard, and I’ve learned a lot from him.”

“Well?” Patrick said when she came out of his father’s office.

“He said I’m good to go,” she answered.”

“Good. Do you have time for lunch before you head back?” he asked.

“We do. Want to join us?” she said.

“That’s what I had in mind.” he replied.

They went to the same restaurant as before. Patrick helped Emily make her selection and gave it to the waitress. “What we talked about the other night…” Mary Louise began. “I thought you were going to call.”

“I knew you had a lot on your mind, and I didn’t want to add to it,” he said.

“I have given a lot of thought to it. I would like for you to call on us,” she said.

“I have a question,” he said. “You don’t have to answer, but would this be a friends call, or a courting call?”

“Which would you prefer?” she asked, turning the question around

He took both her hands in his. “I’ve always regretted losing contact with you after school. I would like to court you,” he said.

She looked down at the large hands that engulfed hers, and then turned her sparkling green eyes to look directly into his. “I would like that, Patrick. I would like that very much.”

I could get lost in those eyes. My hands are sweating
. He released her hands, and wiped his on his trousers. “I’m glad. I don’t know why this made me nervous, but it did.”

The Christian Church Sunday…

Patrick stood outside the church, waiting… Mary Louise had said she would be at church on Sunday. He gave up and went inside when the music started. His mother leaned over and said, “They didn’t come?”

He whispered, “No, something must have happened. I’ll call after lunch.”

He didn’t get the opportunity to call. The hospital called with an emergency. A young farmer had been brought in with symptoms of appendicitis. They asked if either of the Palmers could look at the young man. They had not been able to contact their surgeon.

“I’ll take it son,” Carter said. “You’ve been out two or three times this week.”

“Why don’t we both go? I haven’t done an appendectomy since my second year at Wash General, I’d like to get the experience, if you don’t mind the company,” Patrick said.

The young man’s appendix had ruptured, turning a normal removal of the appendix into an emergency. Anytime the appendix ruptures, there is a high risk of gangrene. When Carter removed the appendix, he pointed to spots of gangrene. We need to debride the tissue surrounding this. If it spreads, we may lose him. The two doctors spent most of the afternoon in surgery.

Late in the afternoon, Patrick said, “Dad, why don’t you go on home. I’ll stay here with the patient.”

“Are you sure?” Carter asked.

“I’m sure. You can take the next one. I’ll go talk to his wife.” Patrick said.

“Is Frank going to die?” the farmer’s wife asked Patrick.

“I don’t think so. He has a good chance of beating this. The appendix showed signs of gangrene, and we removed all we could find. We doused the whole area with carbolic acid. This will probably prevent infection. The only treatment for gangrene is removal of any affected tissues. We did that. Now we wait and see.”

“Then there’s nothing more you can do?” she asked.

“If his condition worsens, we could reopen the wound and see if there is anything more we can do. In my opinion, by that time it will have spread. Don’t give up. I’ve seen a lot of things happen. He looks to be healthy, and that’s in his favor. I wish I could be more specific, but we just don’t understand gangrene. We’re doing all we can for him. It’s in the hands of a higher power now.

“I will check on him in the morning. They will call me tonight if they need me.”