Finding Your Heart

by McBride, Bess

  “Do you need anything, Doctor?” Mrs. Jackson asked, poking her head into the examining room door.

  “No, I am fine. Could you look in on Leigh and see if she needs anything for herself? Something to eat or drink?”

  “I just did. I will take her a cup of coffee. She claimed not to be hungry, but I think I will just take up a sandwich as well. If she eats it, so much the better.”

  Jeremiah smiled his appreciation. “Thank you, Mrs. Jackson. She does appear to be a bit stubborn, doesn’t she? I suspect she needs to eat but doesn’t want to trouble you.” He rose. “And if it is not too much trouble, could you also bring me a sandwich upstairs? I will collect that coffee and take it up to her.”

  “Certainly, Doctor.”

  Jeremiah followed Mrs. Jackson into the kitchen and collected two cups of coffee to carry upstairs. He eschewed a tray but wished he had taken one as he attempted to balance the cups on his way up the stairs.

  He arrived at Harry’s door with his hands full, and he lifted his foot and tapped at the door with the tip of his shoe. Thankfully, Leigh opened the door.

  She eyed him in surprise before seeing the cups in his hands. A bright smile spread across her face.

  “Coffee! Thank you!” she exclaimed in a hushed voice, taking a cup from his right hand. “Coffee and chocolate. That’s all I need in life.”

  “Then we shall have to find a source of chocolate for you,” Jeremiah said with a charmed smile. He had forgotten his earlier intention of maintaining a professional distance.

  “That would be great!” she whispered. She stood back and allowed him to enter.

  “How is he?” Jeremiah asked, nodding toward Harry, who appeared to sleep.

  “Still sleeping. His temperature seems okay—not too hot, not cold. I worried that he would get cold after we bathed him, but he seems fine. I put another pillow behind him to keep him propped up like you said so he can breathe.”

  Jeremiah set his coffee down on the nightstand and withdrew his stethoscope from his jacket pocket. Harry’s lungs resounded with crackles and rumbles. Jeremiah straightened and stowed his stethoscope away.

  “I cannot like the sound of his lungs. I only hope this passes. I believe it is a viral pneumonia. There is little we can do but care for him while his body fights this disease.”

  He picked up his coffee and looked at Leigh. Given that the curtains had been drawn against the outside light, the room was dark, but Jeremiah noted circles under her eyes.

  “You must take care of yourself, Leigh. It will not do to fall ill. You will not have developed the appropriate antibodies to resist some of the infections present in our time. Mrs. Jackson is bringing up some food, and then I think you must rest.”

  “No, I’m fine!” Leigh said. “You’re staring at me.” She put a hand to her face.

  “You have shadows under your eyes.”

  “Oh those! My skin is pale. Those shadows pop up for almost any reason—fatigue, anxiety, illness. I’m fine.”

  “Nevertheless, I would like for you to rest after you eat. We cannot know what the human body endures in traveling through time as you have. To date, no one has suffered any ill effects—physically—but I do believe that it puts tremendous strain on your body, if not your mental state.”

  A tap on the door brought Mrs. Jackson, who set a tray of sandwiches down on the small table by the window. She looked down on Harry before leaving the room.

  Jeremiah pulled out a chair for Leigh, who sat down. They ate in silence for a few moments as Jeremiah tried to think of subjects that wouldn’t darken the lightness of her blue eyes. He looked out the window and caught sight of the lake.

  “Tell me about the lake in your time,” he said. “Does it look the same?”

  Leigh shook her head. “No, not entirely. There are far more floating logs in your time than in mine. Because the timber mill is gone, so are the logs. The lake seems lower in my time. I would not have recognized your house as being so close to the lake. I’ve walked along the shore lots of times, but never encountered the foundation before. It must have been farther inland, but because we’d had a lot of rain which spilled over the path that I walked, I had to take another route.

  “We have occasional fisherman on the lake, but they’re only recreational. Those folks out there look like they mean business!”

  Jeremiah smiled. “Indeed. I think I mentioned that they sell the fish to the local market.”

  “Not in our time.”

  “Why is that?”

  Leigh shrugged. “I don’t know. Probably not enough stock? Everything has gone to big corporations, and mom-and-pop industries are struggling to make a living. So a lone fisherman in a canoe could not make enough to support himself.”

  “What a pity,” Jeremiah said.

  “It is, isn’t it?”

  “It would appear that not all things are more advantageous in the future,” he stated.

  Leigh shook her head. “No, but you know that the breakthroughs in medicine save tons of lives.”

  “I had heard that,” Jeremiah said.

  Leigh looked over at Harry. “Though modern medicine still can’t cure everything,” she said.

  To Jeremiah’s dismay, her eyes darkened, and he knew she thought of her mother. He had hoped to avoid topics that saddened her.

  “No, I hear that as well. I believe that Tan— I was told that pneumonia has not been eradicated. I was very sorry to hear that.”

  Leigh sighed. “Yes, I think people do still die of pneumonia, though probably far fewer than used to. You say you think Harry’s pneumonia is viral. How can you tell? Did you treat him with antibiotics?”

  Jeremiah quirked an eyebrow. “You do have a working knowledge of medicine, Leigh. I regret to say that we do not have antibiotics yet. I believe a drug called penicillin will be discovered in the early 1920s, but it is not available yet. I should say that I hope Harry’s pneumonia is not caused by a bacteria.”

  “No antibiotics?” Leigh echoed in a tone of surprise.

  “No, not yet. Soon though. I believe some forms of antibiotics are being devised, but Tan— But I was told they have dangerous side effects, so I will not be using them.”

  “You can say her name, you know, Jeremiah. Tanya. I take it that you were in love with her?”

  Jeremiah’s face heated, and he dropped the rest of his sandwich on the plate. He rubbed a hand across his cheeks, as if in doing so, he could disguise his embarrassment.

  “Was I so transparent?” he asked.

  Leigh scrunched her nose in a charmingly childish fashion. “A little bit, but to tell the truth, I already knew.”

  “Mrs. Jackson,” he murmured.

  “Yes.”

  “I was very fond of Tanya. One of her interests was the history of medicine, and it was she who educated me on the medical discoveries that will come.”

  “Were you engaged to her?”

  Jeremiah’s face continued to burn. “No. I asked her to marry me, but she could not stay here in Kaskade. She chose to return to her time.”

  “I’m so sorry, Jeremiah.”

  He lifted his chin and squared his shoulders. “No need,” he said brusquely. “Her decision was perfectly understandable, and I dare say one that you yourself will make.”

  Leigh blinked. “Probably,” she responded.

  “Of course!”

  Jeremiah had his answer. Leigh would leave as well. And of course that was right and proper. The lack of antibiotics alone seemed to trouble her. He suspected she had no idea how difficult her life was about to become.

  “Don’t take it personally,” she said.

  “Of course not!” he said, forcing a smile. “Were our roles reversed, I would hate to be thrust into a future in which I could not function with any great success.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that, Jeremiah. You’re pretty smart. It wouldn’t take you long to catch on.”

  Jeremiah’s spirits lifted at her confidence in his abilitie
s. “Thank you,” he said. “Though I think there might be too many difficulties to surmount, I value your vote of confidence.”

  “Could do with some more soup,” a voice said from the direction of the bed.

  Jeremiah and Leigh rose and headed for Harry’s bedside. He looked at them with bloodshot eyes. Leigh picked up the bowl of broth.

  “It cooled down,” she said. “I’ll go ask Mrs. Jackson to reheat it.”

  “Cool is fine,” Harry said. “Sure was tasty. It’s more than I’m used to.”

  Leigh looked at Jeremiah, who nodded.

  “It is just broth. The temperature does not matter.”

  Leigh sat down on the edge of the bed and resumed spoon-feeding Harry, who didn’t seem to mind at all. Jeremiah stood by with his stethoscope in hand and watched.

  “Doc, please tell me you’re the one who put me in this nightshirt,” Harry said between bites.

  “Certainly, Harry, if that makes you happy,” Jeremiah responded with a wide smile.

  “I’ll take your word for it. So you have a new nurse? Can’t say as you told me that.”

  “Mrs. Peters is not a nurse, but she has agreed to care for you.”

  “Do you hear anything from that nice gal Tanya?”

  Jeremiah froze for a moment, cast a glance at Leigh and then moved forward with his stethoscope.

  “Shhh, Harry. No talking. I need to examine you now.”

  Out of the corner of his eye, Jeremiah saw Leigh rise from the edge of the bed and set down the bowl. She moved away to resume her seat at the table.

  Harry’s lungs still sounded full of fluid, but Jeremiah did not reveal the extent of his concern. It would do the old man no good.

  “You still have pneumonia, Harry, but I think you’re on the mend. You need to continue to drink and eat lightly, and rest. Perhaps we shall have you up on your feet in a day or two in order to help clear your lungs.”

  “Thanks, Doc. I appreciate you taking me in like this. I’m sorry about the hospital. I just didn’t want to die somewhere else.”

  “You’re not going to die, Harry,” Jeremiah said. “Not yet.”

  “I feel like I’m going to,” Harry mumbled. “Doc, I got a request before I do.”

  “Harry, you’re not going to die!” Jeremiah hoped he sounded convincing. He noted that Leigh had returned to stand beside him.

  “But I’m happy to oblige a request if it will ease your mind and help further your recovery.”

  “It’s my daughter, Nancy, and my granddaughter, Rosanna. I want to see them.”

  Jeremiah blinked. “You have a daughter? And a granddaughter? I did not know that, Harry! I thought you had no family. How can we contact them?”

  “Well, you see, that’s the thing, Doc. I’ve never even met my granddaughter. I think she’s about twenty years old now. Nancy stopped talking to me years ago, wouldn’t let me see her. They live in Orting.”

  “Orting? Why, that’s just up the road! Of course we could try to contact them. What is their last name?”

  “Nancy married a fella by the name of Reid. William Reid. I think he might have passed. They have a fruit farm up near there.”

  “My third great-grandmother’s name was Nancy Reid,” Leigh said softly. “I think she was married to a William Reid. Are you Harry Johnson?”

  Chapter Ten

  Leigh stared at Harry, who furrowed his already wrinkled brow.

  “That’s me, but what’s this about a third great-grandmother?”

  “Goodness! Look at the time!” Jeremiah said abruptly...and loudly. He had pulled his pocket watch from his vest. “We must let you rest, Harry. Leigh needs some rest as well. Will you be all right for a bit?”

  Harry looked as confused as Leigh felt. Was the old man truly her fourth great-grandfather? How was that possible?

  “Yeah, I’ll be all right. Sure would like to hear more about this great-grandmother of yours,” he said, looking at Leigh. “Do you think you can find my daughter?” he asked Jeremiah.

  “We will talk more about that after you have rested, Harry,” Jeremiah said.

  Leigh continued staring at Harry, her lips pressed tightly together. She understood that she had blundered, that Harry probably wasn’t one of those who knew about Kaskade’s peculiar knack for snatching people from the future.

  She grabbed up Harry’s cold cup of tea and handed it to him.

  “I know it’s cold, but drink this. I’ll bring you some warm stuff when I return.”

  “Are we related?” Harry said, his forehead still knotted in confusion.

  “Rest now, Harry. We can discuss all of that later,” Jeremiah said. He tugged at Leigh’s arm, and she let him lead her from the room.

  Once in the hallway, Leigh whispered feverishly, “Jeremiah! That’s my fourth great-grandfather. I know it is. My mother’s favorite hobby was genealogy, and before she got sick, I used to help her look for names. I wasn’t very interested at my young age, but I do remember a few names. Harry Johnson was one of them.”

  “A common enough name, surely.”

  “Not with a daughter named Nancy Johnson who married a William Reid.”

  Jeremiah looked toward the closed bedroom door.

  “Let’s talk about this downstairs in my office.” He reached for Leigh’s hand to guide her down the hall, but she balked.

  “You mean the parlor, right? You know I can’t do that office again.”

  Jeremiah ducked his head in acknowledgement. “Yes, the parlor.”

  “Okay,” she said, following him down the stairs. They reached the parlor, and Leigh sat down on the sofa. Jeremiah closed the door to his examining room before seating himself on an easy chair near the sofa.

  “Thank you,” she said with a wince. “I’m embarrassed by my phobia, but that doesn’t make it any less real.”

  “No, of course not. Now, what is this about Harry? Do you truly believe he is your great-grandfather?”

  “Fourth great-grandfather, and yes, I do. I can’t say that I see a family resemblance, but I don’t know that my family had distinct features. My mother’s family have been in Western Washington for a long time.”

  Jeremiah shook his head. “Well, I suppose this was inevitable! I am only pleased that it is not I who is your fourth great-grandfather.”

  His smile make Leigh laugh. Somehow in the last few moments, she felt less lost in time.

  “You know, that means my third and second great-grandmothers are alive! I would love to meet them!”

  “We shall seek them out,” Jeremiah said. “But I do recommend that you not tell them who you are. Will that be difficult for you?”

  “Difficult, as in keeping my mouth shut? Like I didn’t do with Harry?” Leigh chuckled, feeling happier than she had in the past day. “Or difficult, as in I can’t run to them and hug them as relatives?”

  “I was thinking of the latter, that you could not claim them as family. Those of us who know about Kaskade’s peculiarities have discussed whether we should reveal ourselves and the town to the general public, but one imagines that Kaskade and its people would become an object of endless fascination, that we would be overrun with scientists and the press, that our quiet town would transform into a circus.”

  “Not to mention what might happen to the actual time travelers...or abductees. I’m never really sure how to think about that.”

  “Indeed, we have thought about the future lives of our...guests. You would be the source of endless gossip, speculation, study, perhaps even exploitation.”

  “Thank you for thinking of us,” Leigh said. “I don’t know my fellow travelers, and I probably shouldn’t speak for them, but thank you for keeping our secret. I think you’re right. Being unwillingly thrown into the past is bad enough, but the nightmare if people find out would make it a hundred times worse.”

  Jeremiah frowned. “I am so very sorry that you are unhappy here, Leigh. I promise you that the year will be over before you know it.”

  Le
igh heard a tone in his voice that reminded her to keep her ingratitude to herself. “No, I’m sorry. I promised myself I would be more thankful for the help you’ve given me. And look! Now I have family! Even if they won’t know I’m family.” She smiled.

  “I do so hate to remind you, but Harry did say that his daughter will not speak to him. Will you be terribly hurt if she refuses to see him?”

  “Only for him. Because I’m going with you. We’re going up to Orting to find her, and dear second great-grandmother, Rosanna!”

  “We are?”

  “However we get there, whenever we can! I’m pretty psyched about this.”

  “Psyched?”

  “Oh! So there is an expression you haven’t heard from my time. That means elated, happy.”

  “Indeed!”

  “So when can we go?”

  “I have no appointments tomorrow. Is that soon enough to suit you?”

  “I look forward to it.”

  A chime rang, and Leigh looked around the room.

  “That is the front door,” Jeremiah said. “Excuse me.”

  He rose and left the room, and Leigh resisted following him. She wasn’t sure how visible Jeremiah wanted her to be. She stared down at her hands, trying to recall Harry’s face again in a search for any familial resemblance.

  “Leigh, may I introduce you to Mrs. Katherine Ludlow, our minister’s wife?” Jeremiah said, escorting a tall, willowy dark-haired woman wearing a festive beribboned straw sailor hat into the room. “Katherine, this is Mrs. Leigh Peters, our newest...arrival.”

  Leigh jumped up to find herself in a firm embrace, though her face came only to the taller woman’s armpit.

  “Leigh! Welcome,” Katherine said, pulling back and studying her from head to foot. “Mrs. Jackson told me you were here, and I had to come see you as soon as possible. We don’t get many women!”

  Leigh thought she knew what was going on, but she wasn’t completely sure. She looked to Jeremiah for reassurance before speaking.

  Jeremiah recognized her question and nodded.