by Al Lacy
The chief U.S. marshal divided his half of the search party up, and the women watched from the buggy as the search began.
Hours later, when the searchers had not returned to the buggy and darkness was falling, the women headed for the Brockman place.
It was just after midnight and the silver moon was shining down out of a clear sky when the women heard the sound of horses blowing at the front of the house.
Having already put her two children to bed, Breanna led Hattie and Tharyn to the front door. They stepped out on to the porch and saw George, John, Dr. Dane, Dr. Tim, and Pastor Blandford dismounting in the moonlight.
As the men stepped up on the porch, it was obvious by the dejected look on their faces that they had found no sign of Melinda.
“No sign of her?” said Breanna.
George took Hattie into his arms as John sighed and said, “None at all. If there had been any tracks on either side of the river, Melinda’s, or even hoofprints of somebody’s horse who might have picked her up, the heavy rain obliterated them. We could see no tracks at all of any kind. My deputies went on home to get to bed so we can start again early in the morning. Dr. Dane has to perform the hip replacement for Mrs. Cox in the morning, so he won’t be going with us.” He looked around. “Is Eric here?”
Breanna nodded and smiled thinly. “Mm-hmm. He was pretty tired, and since he’s got the strain of the surgery in the morning, I encouraged him to go to bed.” She ran her gaze over the faces of the others. “I know you want to get to your beds, but come inside for a moment, and we’ll have Pastor Blandford lead us in prayer.”
As they moved inside, Hattie looked at Dr. Tim. “Will you be going on the search in the morning?”
His face drawn, Tim nodded. “Yes, I will. Dr. Carroll told me to stay with it as long as necessary.”
As the group entered the parlor, which was well lighted with lanterns, Dr. Tim noticed the bonnet and slicker lying on a small table beside the sofa. He bit his lips. The fresh reminders of Melinda’s disappearance wounded him like a physical pain.
Tharyn set her concerned gaze on the chief. “Will you do anything different tomorrow, John?”
“Yes. We’ll all work downstream this time. We’ll cover several miles and check both sides of the river, just in case she somehow might have been able to crawl out of the water, and is lying on or near the bank, needing help. In addition to this, we’ll talk to residents of the area, both upstream and downstream, and ask if they have seen anything that would lead us to believe Melinda is still alive.”
George’s throat was very dry. He spoke in a husky, low-pitched voice. “Chief Brockman, if it should turn out after another day’s searching that there is no sign of Melinda at all, what then?”
John shook his head and sighed. “Then we’ll have to face it, George. It will give strong indication that she fell into the river and drowned. Her body may never be found.”
Dr. Tim made a moaning sound, and with tears in his eyes, he went to the small table beside the sofa and picked up the bonnet and the slicker. Pressing them against his face, he sobbed, “No, dear God! It can’t be! My darling Melinda can’t be dead! You know where she is. Bring her back to me!”
Pastor Blandford put an arm around the young doctor. “Don’t give up, Tim. It is still possible that she is alive.” He looked around at the others. “Lets pray right now.”
The pastor kept his arm around Dr. Tim and led the group in prayer. He asked the Lord if Melinda was still alive to let them find her quickly, but if He had taken her home to heaven, to let her parents and Dr. Tim and the rest of them know, so they could have peace and closure about it.
When he had finished praying and he and the others were about to leave for their homes, the pastor told them he was going to contact all the members of the church in the morning so they could be praying also.
On Wednesday morning, Dr. Dane Logan did the hip replacement surgery on Nelda Cox with Tharyn at his side. When it was done, Dr. Dane left Tharyn with Nelda and went to the waiting room to tell Eric that the surgery was successful, and that in a few months, Nelda would be walking as well as before her hip problem began. Eric was elated and poured out his thanks to the doctor for his skilled work.
Late in the afternoon, the Logans and Eric Cox went to the Brockman place where they found Hattie Kenyon with Breanna and her children. The chief U.S. marshal and his search team had not yet returned.
When darkness fell, Breanna and Tharyn prepared a light meal. No one had much of an appetite, but they sat at the table, picking at their food and talking about Melinda. After a while, the subject went to Nelda, and Eric had nothing but praise to the Lord and to Dr. Dane for how well the surgery had gone.
That night, Paul and Ginny were sent to bed at ten o’clock, and the adults had barely settled down in the parlor when they heard pounding hooves outside.
“They’re back!” said Dr. Dane and jumped out of his overstuffed chair.
He helped Tharyn to her feet, and they all headed into the foyer. Before they reached the front door, it came open. John, George, Dr. Tim, and Pastor Blandford came in with weary and sad faces.
“Nothing?” asked Hattie, her voice cracking.
George put his arms around her and looked to John, who said, “We found no evidence that Melinda is alive. The search party talked to dozens of people in the areas up and down the river, but they had seen nothing. We have to assume that she fell into the river and drowned. We went much farther downriver than we had planned, but I wanted to make sure.” He paused and choked a bit. “Her—her body may well have caught on some of the undergrowth in the river and will never surface.”
Tim Braden joined the Kenyons as they held on to each other and wept. The others tried to comfort them but were having a difficult time, especially Tharyn, who was in the arms of her husband.
When emotions had subsided some, Pastor Blandford said to the group, “Chief Brockman and I are in agreement that there is nowhere else to search and no one else to talk to.” He turned to the Kenyons. “Would you feel it premature if we have a memorial service for Melinda tomorrow morning at the church?”
George and Hattie looked into each other’s swollen, bloodshot eyes.
When they had not answered after several seconds, the pastor said, “I—I just wanted Dr. Dane and Tharyn to be able to attend the memorial service. I know they have to head back to Central City tomorrow. I thought if we had the service at ten o’clock, they would still have time to make it home before it gets too late in the day.”
Hattie nodded. “I certainly want Dr. Dane and Tharyn to be at the memorial service.”
“Me, too,” said George. “Since the search has been exhausted, I don’t think having the service tomorrow is premature. How about you, Tim?”
Dr. Tim swallowed hard. “No—no, sir. I don’t think it’s too soon. I certainly want Dr. and Mrs. Logan to be able to attend it.”
“We sure want to be there for the service when you have it,” said Dr. Dane.
Tharyn wiped away a tear and nodded. “Tomorrow morning would be fine, Pastor.”
The pastor let a weak smile curve his lips. “Then tomorrow morning it is. Ten o’clock. I’ll see that all the church members are notified, and I will ask them to advise as many townspeople as possible, too.”
Dr. Dane said, “Since I have now turned Nelda over to Dr. Matt Carroll, Tharyn and I will leave for Central City right after the memorial service. We need to get back so Dr. Robert Fraser and Nurse Nadine Wahl can get some rest.”
Dr. Tim Braden said, “Dr. Dane, I will still drive the Coxes back to Central City when Nelda is able to travel, as planned.”
Dr. Dane laid a hand on his shoulder. “I really appreciate that, my friend.”
Dr. Tim managed a smile, then turned to the Kenyons. “You need to get home now. Both of you are completely exhausted.”
John said, “Since George and Dr. Tim are riding horses, I’ll drive Hattie home in our buggy.”
A
t the Kenyon home, when Hattie, George, and Tim entered the quiet house, Tim said, “I’ll light some lanterns.”
While he was doing so, Hattie clung to her husband and began sobbing once again.
George guided her into the parlor and sat her down on the couch. By the time Tim had fired a sufficient number of lanterns in the house and had returned to the parlor, Hattie began drying her eyes with an already soggy handkerchief.
She sighed deeply as Tim sat down in a chair, facing them. “We—we only had Melinda for a few short years, but she was such a blessing. The Lord knew how desperately we wanted a child, and when we first saw her standing on the depot platform that day with all the other orphan children, we knew immediately that she was the one God had chosen for us.”
Sitting next to her on the couch, George said with a catch in his voice, “Yes, we did, dear. And she has been such a wonderful joy in our lives. We will always be grateful to the Lord for letting us be her adoptive parents.”
Tim wiped tears. “And I’ll always be grateful that I had her love and had her for the short time the Lord allowed us to be together.”
Both parents nodded silently.
After staying with the grieving parents for a little longer, Tim felt his own need to be alone to mourn his loss. He explained this to the Kenyons, and they both told him they understood. They walked him to the front porch. When he and the horse were swallowed by the night, they walked back into the house arm in arm.
Aboard the horse, Tim guided the horse toward town in the moonlight with tears coursing down his cheeks. “Lord,” he said with a tight throat, “I love Melinda more than life itself. I don’t know what to do. Please help me. We were so close to being married. Just a few months. Come May, she would have been my wife. How—how will I ever live without her?”
Ever so gently the Saviour’s words came to him: “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
A measure of peace filled his wounded heart. Tim knew that the Lord was with him as promised and would heal his heart in His own time.
TWENTY-ONE
Dr. Dane and Tharyn Logan arrived back in Central City late Thursday afternoon in the special carriage they had used to carry Nelda Cox to Denver, and as they entered the office, Dr. Robert Fraser and Nadine Wahl were talking to the last patient of the day. He was a middle-aged man named Harry Miles, whom Dr. Dane had been treating for arthritis in his hands.
Dr. Fraser explained that Harry had come in to have him examine his hands and to get more salicylic acid powders. Harry welcomed the Logans back, then left the office.
Nadine rose from the desk chair. “So how did Nelda’s surgery go, Dr. Logan?”
“Just fine. She’ll be walking well in a few months.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“Me, too,” said the elderly physician with a grin. “But then she had the West’s greatest hip replacement surgeon perform the operation.”
“Amen!” said Nadine.
“You two may be just a bit prejudiced.”
“Oh no,” said Fraser, chuckling. “We speak the truth.”
Nadine set her eyes on Tharyn and frowned. “Honey, are you all right? You seem a bit melancholy.”
Dane looked at Tharyn as she bit her lips and blinked at the tears that suddenly filmed her eyes. He put his arm around her shoulders. “Nadine, you’ve heard Tharyn talk a lot about her best friend, Melinda Kenyon.”
Nadine frowned again. “Yes.”
“Let me tell you why Tharyn is sad.”
Dr. Dane explained to Nadine and Dr. Fraser about Melinda’s disappearance at the South Platte River, of the extensive but fruitless search led by Chief U.S. Marshal John Brockman, and of the memorial service that was conducted that morning by Pastor Nathan Blandford.
Nadine moved to Tharyn and embraced her, saying how sorry she was. Dr. Fraser did the same.
Tharyn dabbed at her eyes with a hankie, and Dane put his arm around her again. She sniffed and said, “I know I’ll meet Melinda in heaven, and that is what sustains me.”
“Of course,” said Dr. Fraser. He took a deep breath. “I … ah … have some good news.”
Dr. Dane smiled. “Tell us.”
“Well, you remember that you sent me to check on Jack Bates?”
“Yes. How’s he doing?”
“Very well. Both ways.”
“Both ways? What do you mean?”
“Physically and spiritually.”
Dane and Tharyn looked at each other quizzically; then he said, “All right, Dr. Fraser, explain it.”
“When you made the note for me to go check on Jack, you said you were going to take time to deal with him about salvation next time you saw him, since he would be feeling better.”
Dr. Dane nodded. “Mm-hmm. Both Jack and his neighbors, Rex and Dora Wilson. The opportunity just wasn’t there the day I took that slug out of him.”
“Well, I figured it ought to be done as soon as possible, so when I went up there to the Wilson place to see Jack, I took Pastor Shane with me. He preached to them and led all three of them to the Lord!”
Dr. Dane’s face beamed. “Wonderful!”
“Yes!” said Tharyn. “That’s wonderful!”
“And as soon as Jack is healed up so he can be baptized, all three of them are coming to church to take care of that matter,” put in Nadine.
“That indeed is good news,” said Dr. Dane. “I’ll get up there to check on Jack in a few days. I want to congratulate all three of them.”
Nadine noticed three people standing at the large window on the boardwalk. Greg Holton was smiling through the window at them, then turned and said something to his father. Kirby nodded. The third person was Cassandra Wheatley. Greg took her by the hand, and all three entered the office.
“We were just passing by,” said Kirby, “and Greg noticed that the Logans were back. Nice to see you.”
“You, too,” said Dr. Dane.
“Yes,” said Tharyn, smiling.
“How did Mrs. Cox’s surgery go?”
“Just fine, Kirby. She’ll be walking like normal again in a few months.”
“Great! Ah … we talked before you left for Denver about your letting me take you on a tour of the mine.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“How soon can you come to the mine and take the tour?”
“Well, let’s see …”
Dr. Fraser spoke up. “If you’d like to do it tomorrow, I can fill in for you here in the office. I’ve taken the tour. It’s really interesting. I know you’ll enjoy it.”
Tharyn laid a hand on her husbands arm. “Why don’t you take the tour tomorrow, honey? You could use a little diversion from your work.”
Dane smiled at her, then turned to Kirby. “How about right after lunch tomorrow? Say one o’clock?”
“That’ll be a good time. I’ll meet you at my office at the mine at one o’clock. I’d suggest, Doctor, that you come in clothing you don’t mind having stained with coal dust.”
Dr. Dane chuckled. “Okay.”
Greg’s eyes sparkled. He was still holding Cassandra’s hand. “Dr. and Mrs. Logan, something wonderful happened while you were in Denver.”
“What was it?” asked Tharyn.
The young couple looked at each other and smiled. Then Greg said, “On Tuesday evening I asked Cassandra to marry me, and she said yes!”
Cassandra’s face was beaming.
“Well, congratulations,” Dr. Dane responded warmly.
There was a silent moment; then Tharyn said, “Yes. Congratulations. Have you set a date?”
Greg shook his head. “Not yet, but it will probably be in November. Before I asked her to marry me, I discussed it with Dad. He advised me to let the engagement period be at least three months. He felt this would give Cassandra and me time to make preparation for the wedding. I agreed, and after Cassandra had said she would marry me, I told her about Dad’s suggestion and she agreed.”
Cassandra was smiling, but in her heart s
he wished the wedding could be sooner than November. She knew if she had disagreed with Greg, it would only cause trouble between him and his father.
“I’m excited about it,” Kirby said jubilantly. “I’m going to give the entire third floor of the mansion over to Greg and Cassandra when they marry; then next spring I’ll have a mansion much like it built for them on a piece of ground I already own on the north side of town.”
The thought of having her own mansion made Cassandra’s heart skip a beat. She took hold of her future father-in-law’s arm and flashed a smile at the Logans. “Isn’t he just wonderful?”
“Sounds like you’re going to be happy as Mrs. Greg Holton, Cassandra,” said Dr. Dane.
“Oh, I most certainly am!”
Tharyn did not comment. Again there was a silent few seconds before she said, “Well, husband of mine, we’d better be heading to the house.”
While the Logans were driving home, Dane turned to her with a questioning look in his eyes. “Honey, I could tell you weren’t overjoyed with the news of the engagement.”
She looked surprised. “Was I that obvious?”
“To me you were.”
“I just feel so uncomfortable around Cassandra. Mabel has told me at church how the girl is so blatant with her atheism and how greedy she is. And I can see it for myself that the only reason she wants to marry Greg is because he’s rich.”
Dane nodded. “I think you’re right, sweetheart, but Greg is a grown man and makes his own decisions.”
“I know, but I just hate to see him so taken by her. I know he’s not a Christian, but I still don’t want to see him marry a woman who’s after his money.”
As they turned off Main Street to head for their house, Tharyn took hold of his upper arm and squeezed it. “I wish everyone could have a perfect marriage like ours. Centered on Jesus, with all this love between us.”
At one o’clock the next afternoon, Kirby Holton opened his office door in response to Dr. Dane Logan’s knock.