[Alaskan Quest 03] - Whispers of Winter (27 page)
Adrik nodded and went to the door for his coat. “That’s what I’m thinking. I don’t know where they think they’re headed, but—”
“We’ll help you look,” Jayce said, as he and Jacob stood. Jacob reached over and grabbed a piece of toasted bread and a few pieces of sausage to make a sandwich. Jayce took note and did likewise.
“Let us know as soon as you find out anything,” Leah declared. “Chances are they’re still close by. They wouldn’t have any means of getting too far.”
An hour later Leah had finished cleaning the kitchen, and still there was no word from the men. She worried about the boys and had stopped to pray for the entire party over a dozen times. It was just so hard to imagine the boys out there by themselves. They were smart children, however, she kept reminding herself, and they had grown up learning to fend for themselves. Surely they would be all right.
“Leah, I think the baby is going to be born today,” Helaina said rather nervously.
Leah noted that she was holding her stomach. “Are you in pain?”
Helaina looked up and nodded. “They’ve been coming off and on since early this morning. I thought at first it was like some of the other times, but this is different. These are getting stronger and coming more often.”
Leah glanced at the clock. It was a little past nine. “Well, we should prepare. Since we don’t know what’s going to happen with the boys or our men, I would like to put you up here. Would that be all right?”
“I certainly don’t want to be alone right now,” Helaina admitted.
“Do you feel well enough to go home and get a few things, or would you rather stay here with the twins while I go?”
“I think I’ll be all right.” She got to her feet slowly. “What do I need?”
“Bring a clean nightgown and blankets and clothes for the baby. I have the rest.” She smiled at Helaina’s worried expression. “Don’t fret.”
“I just don’t want anything to go wrong,” she said. “The doctor said he lost a mother and baby last week.” She fell silent.
Leah came to her side and hugged Helaina. “Don’t consider such things. You’ll be fine. Let’s not worry until there’s something to worry about.”
Helaina put her hand to her abdomen and grimaced. “Seems to me that giving birth to a new individual is something to worry about.”
Just then Wills ran full steam into Leah. “Mama. Mama. Look see.”
Leah laughed as he held up one of his toys. “Giving birth is the easy part. Raising them up—now, that’s something that causes worry.”
Helaina took her leave ever so slowly, while Leah reached down to ruffle her son’s hair. Her hand touched the warmth of his forehead, causing her to frown. She put her palm to his head and realized Wills was running a fever. She knew the twins were teething so she put away her concern. No doubt Merry would be feverish too. She went to her daughter and checked. Sure enough, Merry’s head was also warm.
“Well, looks like I should get you two some rawhide to chew on and something to bring down that temperature.” But before Leah could see to that, Helaina returned. Her face was as white as a sheet and her expression told Leah something was wrong.
“What is it?” Leah asked.
“My water just broke.”
J
acob could see frustration and worry etched on Adrik’s face. No one at the railroad or in town had seen Christopher or Oliver. It was as if the children had simply disappeared off the face of the earth.
“They couldn’t have gotten far on foot,” Jacob told Adrik.
“I tracked them here to the railroad,” Adrik said, shaking his head. “If they came here in the night, they might have managed to get on the freighter headed south to pick up supplies in Seward.”
“But why would they head to Seward without you?” Jacob said shaking his head. “They didn’t even want to go to Seattle. Wouldn’t it make more sense that they’d just hide out somewhere around here until they thought you were gone or had changed your mind about the trip?”
“I don’t know. I think I’d better go back to the house and get some gear. Then I’ll catch the train south just like I was going to do. That way if they have made their way to Seward, I’ll be able to look around and find them there. You and Jayce could keep looking around this area.”
Jacob nodded. “You know we will.”
Jayce came trotting from down the road. “Nobody’s seen ’em at the water,” he called. The inlet wasn’t all that good for ship traffic, but there were smaller vessels that could make it through the channels.
“Adrik thinks they’ve taken the supply train south.”
Jayce looked to Adrik as he came to stop in front of the two men. “Why?”
“I tracked them here. There’s no sign of their leaving the area on foot. No sign of a wagon in the area where I see the signs of their boots. Just railroad tracks. I don’t know why they would do this. I just don’t understand.”
“Understanding can come later,” Jacob said. “Let’s go back to the cabin and figure out how we can help you the best.”
They began walking back to the house. Jacob wished he could offer some encouragement, but he knew how awful Adrik felt about the situation. If Jacob had a son and he disappeared, he would be frantic. There would be no comforting him.
“You can get word to me by telegraph,” Adrik said. “If you find them, just wire me in Seward. I’ll check in periodically at the telegraph office.”
“You’re going to Seward?” Jayce asked.
“I don’t see as I have a choice.”
“We’ll keep searching the area,” Jacob promised. “We can hire another man to help with hunting and just devote ourselves to the search until we hear otherwise from you.”
“I really appreciate your help. I don’t know what I’ll do if—”
“Don’t borrow trouble. We’ll find them,” Jacob said.
They were nearly to Adrik’s house when a scream tore through the air.
Adrik turned to Jacob. “What in the world was that?”
The scream came again.
“That’s Helaina!” Jacob said. He made a mad dash for the house. “Helaina!”
He practically knocked the door off its hinges as he burst into the room. “Helaina!”
Leah came from the bedroom she’d been sharing with Jayce. “Calm down. You don’t have to yell.”
“What’s happening? What’s wrong?”
Leah smiled. “Nothing’s wrong. You simply have a son.”
Jacob stopped in midstep. “A what?”
Leah laughed. “I said you have a son. A boy, Jacob. Helaina just had the baby. It’s a boy.”
Leah watched as Jacob carefully took his son from Helaina. He looked at her with such love that Leah thought she might burst into tears.
“What will you call him?” she asked the couple.
“Malcolm Curtis Barringer,” Jacob declared. He studied his son in apparent wonder. “Malcolm because we both like the name and Curtis for Helaina’s maiden name.”
“That’s a good name,” Adrik declared. “I wish I could stay and get to know the little guy better, but my little guys need me.”
“I won’t stop looking either,” Jacob promised. “The baby doesn’t need me right now as much as Oliver and Christopher do.” He looked at Helaina, who nodded.
“You have to help them,” Helaina said firmly. “I’ll be fine here.”
“Leah,” Jayce said, coming into the bedroom, “something’s wrong with the twins.”
“What do mean?” She dropped the blanket she’d been holding.
“They’re sick, Leah. I went to check them like you asked, but they aren’t waking up. They’re burning with fever.”
Leah felt her stomach clench. She pushed past Jayce and went into the room where the twins shared a bed. Reaching to touch their foreheads, she pulled back in alarm. They were decidedly hotter than when she’d checked them only an hour ago. “We need the doctor. Can you find him?”
“I’ll go right now. What do you think is wrong?”
Leah could only think of the newspaper accounts of influenza on the Seward Peninsula. “I don’t know. I pray it’s not influenza.”
Leah refused to leave her babies until Jayce returned with the doctor. The man appeared quite grave as he examined each child. “It could very well be influenza,” he told her. “There are several cases in the area that seem similar. I have no way of knowing for certain. At this point, their lungs are clear, and that’s a very good sign.”
“What can be done?” Leah asked, wringing her hands together. Jayce put his hands on her shoulders and pulled her close.
“You should work to get that fever down. I recommend tepid vinegar baths and aspirin powder. I don’t have much on hand and I have none of the new tablets. I’ll leave some of the powder,” he said, reaching into his bag. “I’ll look in on Mrs. Barringer, then check back on everyone later this afternoon.”
Leah watched him leave, feeling completely helpless. In the other room Helaina was recovering from childbirth, and baby Malcolm was vulnerable to whatever sickness the twins were suffering. As soon as Helaina felt up to it, Leah would encourage her to go back to her own cabin. Maybe she would even suggest Jacob move his wife and baby there right away.
“Tell me what to do,” Jayce said after seeing the doctor out.
Leah shook her head, feeling so overwhelmed. “Undress them and I’ll get the vinegar bath ready.”
She went into the kitchen to find the things she’d need. Tears came unbidden and before she knew it, Leah was sobbing into her hands.
“Leah, what’s wrong?” It was Jacob. She looked up to see him standing only a few feet away. He reached for her, but she shook her head.
“Don’t. The babies are sick and may have influenza. We don’t know. They’re burning up with fever, though. You should probably move Helaina and the baby to your cabin. I’m so sorry.”
“The doctor is seeing her and the baby right now.”
“Good. I pray they’re all right. There’s no telling what they’ve been exposed to.” Her voice broke, and she began to cry again.
Jacob ignored her protests and pulled her into his arms. “Leah, please don’t worry. I’ll take care of Helaina and Malcolm, but is there anything I can do for you—for the children?”
“No. Nothing. This just couldn’t have come at a worse time.” She pushed away from him and regained her composure. She hurried to pour water into a small tub. “I didn’t know they were sick. When Helaina got closer to delivering, I put them to bed. They were so tired and while they were feverish, I thought they were only teething.”
“How are they now?”
“Much worse. The fever is high, but the doctor said their lungs are clear. He’ll be back this afternoon to check on them.”
She found the vinegar and poured a generous amount into the tepid water. “I have to go.” She started to lift the tub, but Jacob took hold of the bath and motioned her to the room. “Go on. I’ll bring this.”
Leah saw little change in the twins’ condition throughout the day. The doctor came again and left without any word of encouragement. She sat rocking and praying, never feeling more worthless in her life.
Why can’t I make them well? Why did this have to happen? They’re just little babies
. She gently pushed back the hair on Merry’s forehead. Her fever still raged. Why wouldn’t it come down? Merry seemed so pale—so still. Leah lifted the baby into her arms and rocked her. Tears blurred Leah’s vision. The thought of losing her daughter was more than she could bear.
“Please, God, please don’t take her away from me. Don’t take Wills. I love them so much.” She thought back to her worries of old—of whether the children were Jayce’s or Chase’s. None of that would ever matter again. Never. They were hers. They were more important to her than Leah could have ever imagined.
She rocked Merry until her arms could no longer bear the weight. Carefully tucking the baby back in bed, Leah leaned down and kissed each of them on the head. Neither stirred, and her heart constricted as she realized her babies might die and there was nothing she could do to stop it.
“Oh, God, show me what to do.”
She sat by their side through the night and into the day; Jayce joined the vigil from time to time. As Leah dozed she thought of life in Last Chance Creek. She still hadn’t heard from Emma or Sigrid. She was desperate to know if they were well or sick, dead or alive. She wondered if Emma sat beside her babies, feeling the same hopelessness that threatened to strangle the life out of Leah.
In her dreams, Leah was taken back to working with an old Tlingit woman who had taught her much about healing. She watched the woman work, tearing the leaves of a large palmy plant.
“Use the skunk cabbage leaves, Leah. You won’t cut your hands on devil’s club if you do.”
Leah reached for the protective skunk cabbage, then took hold of the devil’s club, with its razor-sharp spiky spine. They used this plant for all kinds of ailments. Karen even called it Tlingit aspirin.
Leah awoke with a start. Her heart pounded hard, as if she’d just run miles and miles behind a dogsled team. She struggled to focus on the dream and the thoughts that had awakened her.
“Tlingit aspirin. Devil’s club!” She jumped to her feet and stopped only long enough to check on Wills and Meredith. They seemed less feverish, but she thought perhaps it was her own wishful thinking.
“Jayce, are you here?” she questioned, coming into the living room. She had no idea how long she’d slept.
“What is it? Are they worse?” Jayce came from the stove, where Leah could see he was busy cooking something.
“No. They’re the same. Look, I have to get some devil’s club. It’s a remedy for fever and pain. I dreamed about it just now and remembered it from the old days in Ketchikan. I think it’s exactly what we need.”
He touched her face and nodded. “Go. I’ll be here.”
