by Al Lacy
Tears were running down Betty’s cheeks. “I’ll take good care of him, doctor. Now, I want to say this to you. Thank you for your bravery.”
Dr. Dane’s eyebrows arched. “Bravery?”
Betty used a hankie to dab at her tears. “Yes. I’ve been told how that gunman threatened to shoot you if you tried to take Mike away, but, dear doctor, you risked your own life to do just that.”
Dr. Dane’s face flushed. “Well, I—”
“We all heard about it, Dr. Logan,” cut in the elderly man. “That was some deed!”
The other patients joined in.
Dr. Dane cleared his throat just as Tharyn was coming into the office from the back room and said, “Folks, I only did what any other doctor would have done.”
One of the men said, “Most doctors would not have jeopardized their own lives in the face of a gun to do what you did, Dr. Logan. You’re a brave man.”
The others spoke their agreement, and the loudest voice was that of Betty Anderson.
Tharyn said to her husband, “Nadine came in the back door a minute ago, having heard about the shooting incident. She’s watching over Mike at the moment so I can do my work here in the office. Darling, what’s this about your bravery? Exactly what happened out there?”
Dane’s face flushed again. “Honey, I told the man who shot Mike that I had to get him to the office and treat him immediately or he would die. He pointed his gun at me and told me not to do it. I had no choice. I had to carry Mike here in a hurry. I’m not some hero. I just did what had to be done.”
Betty moved up close and looked at Tharyn. “Well, he’s a hero as far as I’m concerned. He risked his life to save my husband!”
Tharyn smiled. “I agree, Betty. Dane has been my hero since we were orphans together on the streets of New York City.”
Dane smiled at his wife, then said, “Let’s take Betty back so she can take a look at Mike.”
“You go ahead, honey. I’ll stay here in the office so I can have these patients ready when you’re ready to see them.”
Dane nodded and led Betty to the back room.
Tharyn was about to talk to the people who had come into the office without appointments, wanting to know the order they came in, so she could line them up in that order to see the doctor. However her attention was drawn outside when one of the men in the crowd called out, “Mrs. Logan! What’s the mayor’s condition? We want to know how he is!”
Voices from the crowd pled with her to let them know about Mayor Anderson. She hurried to the door, opened it, and stepped out onto the boardwalk. The crowd went quiet immediately.
Tharyn let a wide smile capture her face. “Folks, I’m happy to tell you that though Mayor Anderson has been seriously wounded, my husband is certain that he is going to live.”
There were cheers of elation.
When the cheers faded, Tharyn said, “My husband and Betty are with Mike right now, but if you want to wait, I’ll ask the doctor to come out and explain the mayor’s condition to you in detail shortly.”
At that instant, Dr. Dane came out the door with Betty on his heels and moved up beside Tharyn. “I’ll talk to them right now, honey.”
Betty moved up beside Tharyn, and Tharyn put an arm around her.
Pastor Mark Shane was in the crowd near the front standing beside Marshal Jake Merrell. All the townspeople knew that Merrell was a Christian, and that Shane was his pastor.
Dr. Dane explained the details of the wound that Mayor Mike Anderson had sustained, but that he was able to get the bullet out and the internal bleeding stopped in time. He assured them that he would keep a close watch on him.
One of the townsmen lifted his voice so all could hear: “Dr. Logan, we all know how you defied that gunman and risked your own life by walkin’ away with Mike in your arms!”
Tharyn could tell that her husband was embarrassed, but joined with the crowd, applauding him.
At that moment, Betty Anderson took a step forward and the crowd quickly grew quiet, knowing she wanted to speak to them.
Betty had tears in her eyes as she spoke of Dr. Dane’s courage. The crowd broke into applause and cheers again.
When they grew quiet once more, Betty looked at the doctor through her tears, then looked back at the crowd. “This man now has a special place in my heart! From now on, I will call him the beloved physician of Central City!”
Cheers were raised again, and one man shouted, “Yes! Dr. Logan, to all of us you are the beloved physician!”
Pastor Mark Shane and Marshal Jake Merrell wove their way through the press to the boardwalk. Pastor Shane said, “Dr. Logan, I would like to go in and pray over Mayor Anderson.”
Dr. Dane smiled. “Mike is still under the chloroform, Pastor, but you’re welcome to go in. Nadine Wahl is with him at the moment, but Betty and Tharyn and I will go in with you.”
Marshal Merrell stepped up and said, “Dr. Logan, may I speak to Mrs. Anderson just for a moment?”
“Of course.”
The crowd began to disperse, but a few people remained, looking on. One of those people was Dr. Robert Fraser.
The marshal turned to Betty. “Mrs. Anderson, the identification I took off the dead gunman’s body showed his name to be Vincent Orcutt.”
Betty’s mouth sagged. “Vincent Orcutt! How in the world—”
“Do you know him, ma’am?”
“I know the name quite well.”
“I see. Well, some of the people who saw the whole thing told me that when the argument started between Orcutt and your husband, there was something said about a family feud. Do you know about that?”
“I sure do. My husband has told me all about it. Mike and Vincent are both from Dallam County, Texas, near the town of Dalhart. Both families were country folk, and a feud got started between them when Mike and Vincent were small children. The feud went on for several years, with family members on both sides being wounded or killed by gunfire. Finally, both Mike’s and Vincent’s fathers were killed in a gun battle between the two sides. After that, things cooled down, but neither side ever got over the hard feelings they had for each other. Mike has told me several times about the last time he saw Vincent when they were teenagers. Vincent told him if he ever saw him again, he would kill him. But that was a long time ago. Both of them moved from Texas and haven’t seen each other since.”
The marshal frowned. “Do you think Orcutt somehow found out where Mike was and came here to follow up on his threat?”
Betty shook her head. “Marshal, I seriously doubt that. It probably was a chance thing for them to run into each other.”
“Mrs. Anderson?” came a man’s voice from the small part of the crowd that was left.
Betty turned. “Yes, Bart?”
“You’re right. It was a chance situation. I happened to be standing on the boardwalk when Mayor Mike came along. At the same time, that Orcutt fella came out of the Rusty Lantern Saloon. There was a surprised look on his face when he saw and recognized Mayor Mike. Apparently Orcutt was just passing through town. But, oh boy, when he saw Mayor Mike, he lit into him royally!”
The marshal smiled at Bart. “I’m glad you were able to see what happened. Thanks for speaking up.”
At that moment, Dr. Robert Fraser stepped up onto the boardwalk and smiled at Dr. Dane. He patted him on the back. “I’m mighty proud of you, my boy. That was some courageous deed you did.”
Dr. Dane was glad that his predecessor was not jealous of the accolades that had been poured out on him by the crowd. “Thank you, sir. I appreciate that.”
Pastor Mark Shane heard the elderly doctor’s comments and smiled to himself.
Marshal Jake Merrell stepped up to the young physician and said in a joking manner, “Dr. Logan, if you ever decide to give up your medical practice, I sure could use a brave deputy like you.”
They both had a good laugh; then Dr. Dane, Tharyn, Betty, and the pastor moved inside to have their time of prayer over Mike Anderson.
/> EIGHT
It was midafternoon in Denver when Dr. Matthew Carroll’s secretary, Hilda Satterlee, entered the Western Union office.
Agent Alex Connor was at his desk behind the counter, tapping out a message on the telegraph key. He smiled at Hilda, holding up the index finger of his left hand to signal that he would be with her shortly. She nodded.
Less than two minutes had passed when Alex finished the message. He arose from the desk and stepped up to the counter.
“Howdy, Miss Hilda. Let me guess. You’re here to send another telegram for your boss.”
She smiled again. “You guessed correctly, Alex. I seldom ever send a telegram myself, so when you see me come through the door, chances are pretty good that it will be another telegram I’m sending for Dr. Carroll.”
Alex picked up a paper pad and a pencil. “All right, who does this one go to?”
“Dr. Dane Logan in Central City.”
“That’s D-A-N-E L-O-G-A-N?”
“Sure is.”
He scribbled it on the pad. “Central City. The Colorado Central City, correct?”
“Correct.”
When he had scribbled that down, he said, “All right, what’s the message? As you know, I can write pretty fast, so just spill it out.”
“The message is that Dr. Carroll has agreed on the date for Nelda Cox’s hip replacement that Dr. Logan had requested in his wire this morning.”
He frowned. “This morning? I don’t recall—oh, of course! It came in when I was out of the office earlier.”
“Right. Your able assistant, Chet Mullins, brought it over to us.”
“Okay.” He scribbled some more, then held up the pad for Hilda to see. “Do I have the lady’s name spelled right?”
“Sure do.”
Putting the pad back down and poising the pencil, he said, “All right. Go ahead.”
“The date is next Wednesday, July 20. A week from tomorrow.”
Alex wrote it down. “Go ahead.”
“Dr. Carroll agrees that this will give Mrs. Cox time to get over her trauma from the fall down the stairs. He also agrees that they should come to Denver on Monday. This will give Mrs. Cox a day to rest before the surgery and will give her husband and the Logans an opportunity to rest up from the trip. Dr. Carroll will make reservations for the Logans and Mr. Cox at the Brown Palace Hotel.”
Alex scribbled for a few more seconds, then looked up at her. “Anything else?”
“No, sir. That’s it.”
“All right. That’ll be a dollar twenty-five.”
As Hilda was placing a dollar bill and a quarter in his hand, the telegraph key began to sing out. Alex quickly laid the money on his desk and sat down on the chair. “See you next time.”
Hilda nodded and walked out the door with the sound of the telegraph key ringing in her ears.
In Central City, when Dr. Dane Logan and Pastor Mark Shane came into the office after having prayer over Mike Anderson, they found Dr. Robert Fraser chatting with the people who were waiting to be seen by Dr. Logan.
Fraser excused himself to them and moved up to Dr. Dane. “I understand you’re going to keep Mike here for two days for observation.”
Dane nodded. “That’s right.”
“And you’re planning to spend those nights here with him.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Well, I know what that’s like. I’m sure you’ve got busy days ahead of you, so I’ll come and stay with Mike these next two nights.”
Dr. Dane grinned and shook his head. “Dr. Fraser, you’re supposed to be retired. You come in here so often already to fill in for me. I can’t ask you to come and stay with Mike those two nights.”
A sly grin curved the aging physician’s lips. “You didn’t ask me. I volunteered. Now don’t argue with me. I’m staying here the next two nights with Mike.”
Pastor Shane laughed. “Well, Dr. Dane, it sounds to me like he’s got it all planned, and no matter what you say, it’s going to remain that way.”
“You got it, Pastor!” said Fraser.
Dr. Dane shrugged. “What can I say?”
Dr. Fraser winked at him. “Just say you’re not going to argue with me anymore about it.”
“Okay. I’m not going to argue with you anymore about it.”
“Good! Then it’s settled.” The silver-haired physician headed for the door. When he reached it and pulled it open, he looked back at Dr. Dane. “I’ll be here just before closing time.”
Late in the afternoon, Tharyn Logan was at her desk in the doctor’s office when Charlie Holmes came in with a yellow envelope in his hand.
Tharyn gave a warm smile. “Hello, Charlie. Is that telegram Dr. Matthew Carroll’s reply to my husband’s wire?”
“Sure is,” he said, handing it to her.
Tharyn opened a drawer, took out a dollar bill, and placed it in his hand. “Thank you.”
Charlie shook his head. “You don’t need to pay me for bringing it over here, ma’am.”
“Yes, I do. Nadine told me that’s the way Dr. Fraser did it, so that’s the way Dr. Logan will do it.”
Charlie thanked her. Tharyn opened the envelope and read Dr. Carroll’s message. Knowing Dane would want to know what Dr. Carroll had to say on the subject of Nelda Cox’s surgery, she headed toward the examining room where he was with a patient.
A few minutes later, Tharyn returned to the office and sat down at her desk. A smile spread over her face. Her husband had read the telegram and told her that after he took her to dinner at one of Central City’s restaurants this evening, they would drive out to the Cox home and let them know that they would be going to Denver next Monday and the surgery would be on Wednesday.
That evening, just before six o’clock, Cassandra Wheatley and her aunt were sitting on the front porch of the house in rocking chairs, with Cassandra keeping her eyes on the street, watching for Greg Holton to show up.
Mabel was weary as she sat in the rocking chair, barely moving it back and forth. A deep sigh escaped her as she looked at her young niece. Cassandra did look lovely. Mabel had sewed a good part of the day on the dress Cassandra was wearing. She told herself the girl was difficult to please, but finally she had restored one of her dresses to Cassandra’s satisfaction for her date with Greg.
With her eyes still on the girl, Mabel said, “I guess by now word has gotten all over town about how Dr. Dane Logan put himself in jeopardy to save Mayor Andersons life.”
“I would suppose so,” replied Cassandra, keeping her eyes fixed on the street.
“Wonderful man, that doctor. His determination to save Mike’s life and the courage he displayed to defy that gunman so he could do it was really something.”
“I agree, Aunt Mabel. Dr. Logan did a wonderful and marvelous thing.”
“This world needs more men like Dr.—”
“Here he comes!” cried Cassandra, moving up to the railing with her gaze fixed on the buggy that was moving down the street.
As the buggy drew near and Greg guided it into the circular driveway, Cassandra waved. He smiled and waved back.
Greg pulled rein in front of the house, hopped out of the buggy, and bounded up the steps.
“Hello, Mrs. Downing,” he said with a smile. “How are you?”
“I’m fine, Greg,” Mabel replied.
Greg then looked at Cassandra. “Ready to go?”
Eyes flashing with elation, she said, “Yes, I am.”
Mabel said, “Greg, I’d like for you to have Cassandra home by nine-thirty.”
Cassandra was about to object to such an early hour, but she refrained when Greg assured Mabel he would have her home by then.
He took her by the hand, guided her down the porch steps, and helped her into the buggy.
Mabel released another big sigh, pulled herself up from the chair, and moved to the edge of the steps. “Have a nice time!”
They both waved at her, and Greg put the buggy in motion.
Mabel watched th
em drive away, then turned and entered the house to prepare her own supper. As she made her way into the kitchen, she couldn’t help but wonder why Cassandra was such a self-centered girl and why she had such a love for money. So much of what came from her mouth was about being rich and living luxuriously.
My sister and brother-in-law are not greedy, she thought. I just hope I can help her in some way. The most important thing is to win her to Jesus. Then He could take care of the rest. But that’s not going to be easy. I’ve never seen someone this young so hardened against the Lord and His Word.
Weary to the bone after working so long on Cassandra’s dress, Mabel tried to think of something quick and easy for her own supper. “I think I’ll just have some bread with butter and jam and some milk, and call it good.”
She sliced some bread, put butter and jam on it, and poured a cup of milk. Sitting down at the kitchen table, she bowed her head, thanked the Lord for her simple nourishment, and asked for wisdom and grace in dealing with her wayward niece.
As Greg turned the buggy onto Main Street with Cassandra holding onto his arm, he said, “I’m going to take you to Central City’s fanciest restaurant, the Golden Eagle.”
“Oh, wonderful! I’ve seen it several times, but I’ve never been inside. Thank you, Greg, for being so good to me.”
“My pleasure, pretty lady.”
Soon they drew up to a hitching post near the restaurant and went inside. After they had been seated by the host and had given their orders to their waitress, Greg ran his gaze over the crowded room and spotted Dr. Dane Logan and the lovely redhead a few tables away. He looked across the table. “Cassandra, did you hear about Mayor Mike Anderson being shot today?”
“Yes, and it was a brave thing that the doctor did.”
“It sure was.” Pointing with his chin, he said, “That’s Dr. Logan right over there. The good-looking man in the dark suit with that pretty red-headed lady.”
“Oh, so that’s him. I’ve heard a lot about him in the short time I’ve been here.”