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[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] "Ve vill speak of this no more." "Stefan, you have to understand--" "No more." It was decisive and cold. But his words seemed to signal an end to something else--the closeness that had been such a vital part of their relationship. He wasn't her longtime friend and companion, but a stranger who didn't want her to heal the hurt she had caused. Lilli wanted to tell him that he could banish the subject but he could never banish the memory from their minds. Somehow she knew it was hopeless. The years had never stretched so wide between them before. Benteen had a couple of the boys carry Webb upstairs to his old bedroom. The doctor was taken there when he arrived. He was a relatively young man, a year out of medical school back east. Slightly awed by the size of the house, Dr. Simon Bardolph was a little anxious about his own skills, especially while examining his patient under the intimidating presence of Benteen Calder himself. He'd never treated a bullet wound before. It was an exciting first in his western adventure, but he thought it better to keep that information to himself. "The bullet passed completely through." He was a little disappointed by that discovery. If he'd had to probe for it, it would have made a dandy souvenir. "Doesn't appear to have damaged any vital organs, which is very lucky," he assured the gentleman hovering on the other side of the bed and tried to make professional comments. "It's a miracle he didn't bleed to death, though. The cold must have prevented that." He smiled at the blond-haired woman who helped apply a fresh bandage to the wound. "Barring any infection, it should heal very nicely. Naturally he'll be quite weak from the loss of blood." "When will he regain consciousness?" Benteen Calder made it a demand for information rather than a simple inquiry. "That's a nasty bump on his head." Dr. Simon Bardolph considered his answer carefully. "He could regain consciousness in a few minutes or a few hours, possibly two days." And maybe never, but he chose not to broach that possibility now. "That's about all I can do for him. Naturally I'll come by tomorrow." "Thank you, Doctor." Mrs. Calder came up beside him, the only one in the room who seemed to understand the limits of his healing abilities. "There's hot coffee and homemade apple pie downstairs. I hope you will have some before you leave." "That's kind of you, ma'am." He folded together his black bag and moved to follow her out of the room. "You'll stay with Webb, won't you, Ruth?" Mrs. Calder inquired of the blond-haired girl. "Benteen?" She spoke her husband's name in a tone that prodded him into accompanying her. Impatience made the stern line of his mouth appear even harder. He flashed a dark look at the woman called Ruth. "I want to know the minute he comes to." "I'll call you," she promised and drew a chair next to the bed to begin her vigil. But it was the middle of the second night before Webb stirred. Ruth had just come into the bedroom so Lorna could get some sleep. She was at his side with the first sign of movement. "He has a slight fever." Lorna Calder wrung out a wet cloth to lay on his forehead and handed it to Ruth. As she laid it on his forehead, Ruth noticed his lips moving. She bent closer to quiet him, then froze as she heard him murmur something that sounded like Lilli. Her gaze jerked to Lorna Calder. Page 111 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html "Is he conscious?" Lorna asked anxiously. "No. That is--" Ruth faltered. "Do you know anyone named Lilli?" A stillness came over Lorna's features. "No, I don't know anyone by that name," she denied. Then she gave Ruth a considering look. "I'd rather you didn't mention this to Benteen." "The man who brought Webb here, was he fairly old--with a gray beard?" Ruth asked, feeling the sharp pain of suspicion and trying to conceal it. "Yes. Why?" Lorna Calder eyed her closely. "I just wondered," Ruth murmured and lowered her gaze. Although she had asked how Webb had got shot, Lorna had indicated to her that she didn't know. At first, Ruth had thought that likely, since Webb hadn't regained consciousness. But if it was the same man who had brought him here that Ruth knew to be the husband of that young woman Webb had danced with at the Fourth of July celebration, it seemed very possible the shooting had been over that woman. At some point this year, she had lost Webb and hadn't even known it. CHAPTER 17 "Benteen, please remember he's very weak," Lorna cautioned her husband before they entered Webb's room. "I will." But he was impatient with the minor delay caused by her brief comment. Now that Webb had regained consciousness, he wanted to find out the actual circumstances that had surrounded the shooting. After two days of being gnawed by the old man's claim, Benteen couldn't accept it as true. "But there's some things I've got to find out." As she opened the door, Lorna gave him another warning look that asked him [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |