The Heart Remembers

by Al Lacy

  “This is my favorite time of year,” Tharyn said. “I love the crispness in the air and the quaking of the golden aspen leaves. Right now, Central City looks like a beautiful patchwork quilt with all of the brilliant colors. The sky today was such a clear canopy of blue. Of course, any day now the snow can come. But that’s a lovely sight, too, and we look forward to it.”

  The foursome headed for the warm kitchen where Kitty already had the coffee on the stove. They sat down at the table, and she placed steaming mugs before her daughter and son-in-law and husband, along with plates containing large pieces of chocolate cake.

  After devouring the delicious cake and downing a sufficient amount of coffee, Tharyn covered her mouth as she yawned.

  From the opposite side of the table, Kitty said, “Tharyn, why don’t you go on up to your old room and take a nice nap? There’s plenty of time before we need to leave for the Brockman place.”

  Tharyn yawned again. “Are you sure, Mama? I came here to visit with you and Papa, you know.”

  “Of course I’m sure. Your papa agrees.” Then to Dane: “Why don’t you take your luggage upstairs to Tharyn’s old room and get some rest yourself? You both look pretty tired out. This is an extra good chance to rest before you tackle that hip replacement surgery tomorrow.”

  “Thank you, Mama, that sounds so good,” Tharyn said around another yawn.

  “Run along now,” said David. “You two enjoy a nice nap.”

  Dane and Tharyn left the kitchen arm in arm.

  When evening came, the Logans and the Tabors arrived at the Brockman place in the country. Dr. Tim had left the hospital early to be sure he was there before Dane and Tharyn arrived.

  There was a sweet reunion between Tharyn and Melinda … and between Melinda and Dr. Dane, who had freed her from her captivity at the Ute village. Dr. Tim was very happy to see Dane and Tharyn again. The Brockman children, Paul and Ginny, asked to sit beside the Logans at the dining room table.

  As the group was eating, they talked about the recent peace treaties that had been signed with the Utes, and those who hadn’t heard were thrilled to learn that Chief Tando and his family had become Christians.

  David then turned to the phenomenal growth of the medical practice in Central City that they had learned about from the letters Tharyn had exchanged with her mother. Melinda and Tim, especially, wanted to hear the latest.

  Dane explained that the growth had caused him to make plans to expand into a clinic with as many beds as seemed reasonable as soon as they could afford to buy property on Main Street and erect a new building. As Dane spoke, he noticed Dr. Tim’s eyes light up at the mention of the new clinic.

  The subject changed again as John Brockman brought up the incident at the Central City town hall on Wednesday. “I talked to Judge Claude Harper,” said John. “The Barton gang trial will be held this coming Tuesday. There’s no question in my mind that they will hang. And when Bud Finch is brought to Denver and faces trial, he’ll also hang.”

  Tim told Dane and Tharyn that Chief Brockman had informed them all about the incident, and he commended Dane for his courage in capturing the gang.

  When the enjoyable evening was over and the guests were leaving, Dane told Tim and Melinda that he and Tharyn wanted to talk to them sometime Sunday afternoon. Kitty overheard it, and invited Tim and Melinda for Sunday dinner, saying the four of them could go to the parlor and talk in private afterward.

  The next day, Dr. Dane and Tharyn finished the hip replacement on Max Thurman just after one o’clock in the afternoon, with Dr. Matt Carroll and a hospital nurse present. While Tharyn and the nurse stayed with Max, who was still under the anesthetic, Drs. Logan and Carroll went to the surgical waiting room and informed Mrs. Thurman and other family members that the surgery was a success.

  The church services the next morning were enjoyable for Dr. Dane and Tharyn. Along with the teaching and preaching, it was a blessing to see old friends, including Pastor and Mrs. Nathan Blandford.

  After dinner at the Tabor home, the Logans and Dr. Tim and Melinda went into the parlor for their private talk.

  Dane brought up the proposed clinic again. He explained that Dr. Robert Fraser needed to completely retire as soon as possible, and set his eyes on the young intern. “Tim, I want to ask you something.”

  “Sure.”

  “Would you be interested in going to work for me in the practice after you finish your internship here?”

  Melinda looked at Tharyn, who flashed her a smile.

  Tim’s face brightened. “You really mean it, Dane?”

  “I sure do. And Tharyn is in full agreement with my offering the job to you.”

  “I’d be more than interested! I’d be delighted!” Tim closed his eyes for a few seconds, then looked at Dr. Dane. “I … I wish I had some funds to invest in the practice so it could become a clinic sooner.”

  “You don’t need to say another word. I very well know how expensive medical school is, and how low the pay is when you’re an intern.”

  Melinda took hold of Tharyn’s hand. “Tim and I will be getting married right after he finishes his internship. That means—”

  “Yes!” squealed Tharyn. “That means you’ll be living in the same town I am!”

  The two women hugged and gave praise to the Lord.

  Dr. Dane told Dr. Tim what he could afford to pay him, and Dr. Tim told him it would be plenty enough for him and Melinda to live on.

  Tim said, “Dane, I don’t know how to thank you. This is so wonderful!”

  Dane smiled. “When I was still a kid in the alleys of New York City, a kind old doctor befriended me. He’s the one that I met when I first went to live on the streets. He and his wife had me in their home many times. They got me into church, where I first heard the gospel and learned of Jesus and His love for me. That precious old man led me to the Lord, Tim. Then later, he led everyone in our alley colony to the blessed Savior. But that’s only part of what he did for me.

  “Tharyn was hospitalized due to the trauma of losing her parents. I was trying to find a way to pay her hospital bill. Dr. Harris, the one I just mentioned, paid the bill for me, and when I offered to pay him back, his comment was, ‘You don’t owe me anything. But when you’re a physician and find a young doctor in need, you help him out. That’s what a fellow physician once did for me, and now I’m passing it on.’

  “Tim, I will never forget that generous man. He took special care of all of us orphans, got me a job at a pharmacy, and was a great strength to me. Now it’s my turn to carry on this most worthy tradition.”

  Tim had tears in his eyes. “Thank you, Dane. I appreciate your attitude so much. And when the time comes, I too will pass along this kindness to another struggling young doctor.”

  “Good for you, Tim! We need to always care about others.” Dane paused, then said, “Now let me add this—whenever we can afford to buy a lot on Main Street and have the building built, I’ll make you a partner. Your income will increase as the clinic grows.”

  Tim was thanking Dane as Tharyn and Melinda embraced each other, agreeing how wonderful it was going to be to live close to each other again.

  The Logans then told Tim and Melinda that they would love their church and Pastor Shane’s preaching.

  Dane said, “We’ll stay in contact with you by mail, and keep you posted as to the progress of our plans for the clinic.”

  Melinda asked about housing in Central City. Dane told her there were usually some houses and apartments for rent in town, but if there weren’t any available at the time they came, there were always rooms in boardinghouses.

  Tim said, “Well, my internship will be finished on Friday, May 5. We’ve set the wedding with Pastor Blandford for the next day. We won’t be able to go on a honeymoon, so we’ll come to Central City on Monday, May 8, 1882.”

  Dane’s face beamed. “Really? May 8?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “For some reason, I had the idea it would be later in May
when you finished your internship. I figured if you were willing to come to work for me, it would be in June. Well, Tharyn and I will be here for the wedding, that’s for sure. The four of us can travel from Denver to Central City that Monday together.”

  Tim and Melinda smiled at each other, then Tim said, “We just set the date with Pastor Blandford a couple of days ago. We were going to write you, but we’ll tell you right now. I’m sure glad you two are wanting to come to the wedding, because Dane, I want you to be my best man.”

  Melinda took hold of Tharyn’s hand and smiled. “And Tharyn, I want you to be my matron of honor.”

  Dane and Tharyn smiled at each other, and then Dane said, “Tim … Melinda … we are thrilled at this. We will gladly grant your requests!”

  TWENTY-ONE

  It was three minutes till noon in Central City on Monday, October 17, when Dr. Robert Fraser and Nurse Nadine Wahl watched their last patient for the morning walk out the door.

  Nadine was sitting at Tharyn’s desk, and Fraser was standing in front of it, rubbing his lower back. She looked at him with compassion and said, “Hurting again?”

  “Mm-hmm. I took some more salicylic acid when I was in the back room with Mr. Austin. The pain will ease up in—”

  Nadine looked up and saw him staring out the window.

  “Oh! It’s Dr. Dane and Tharyn!”

  Dr. Dane was helping Tharyn out of their buggy.

  Dr. Fraser shuffled to the door and pulled it open as the Logans were crossing the boardwalk. “Well, if it isn’t the handsome hero of Central City and his beautiful wife. Welcome home!”

  Dr. Dane chuckled as they passed through the door. “Well, you got half of it right. Tharyn most certainly is beautiful!”

  “Well, if I can only get one half right, that’s the half I would choose!”

  Nadine had left the desk and stepped up to them as Dr. Fraser closed the door. “Yes, welcome home. How did the hip replacement go?”

  “Just fine,” said Dr. Dane. “No complications at all. And what about Bud Finch, Doctor? How’s he doing?”

  “He’s doing as well as can be expected. I stopped at the jail to check on him on my way to the office this morning. It’s my opinion that it will still be a full two weeks before he can be transported to Denver to stand trial.”

  Dane nodded. “The trial for Barton, Loomis, and Wagner is to be held tomorrow. Chief Brockman is dead sure they’ll hang.”

  There were a few seconds of silence, then Tharyn said, “We’ve already been home. We unpacked the luggage, changed clothes, and ate lunch so we could handle the office for the rest of the day and let you two go to your homes and get some rest.”

  “Well, that’s mighty nice of you,” Dr. Fraser said, “but after making the trip this morning, you’re probably pretty tired yourselves.”

  “We’ll be fine,” said Dr. Dane. “And before you go, I want to give you the good news.”

  Fraser’s bushy eyebrows raised. “Good news?”

  “After Dr. Tim Braden finishes his internship the first week of next May, he and Melinda are getting married. They’ll be coming to Central City immediately after their wedding, because I’m hiring Dr. Tim to work for me. Do you think you can still fill in for me until then?”

  Fraser smiled. “The Lord giving me strength, I sure will. But Dane, my boy, you have no idea how happy this makes me. There are some days when my back hurts so bad I don’t think I can get out of bed, let alone take a step. It will be such a relief to Esther and me when I can retire completely and give this old body some rest.”

  “I know it’s been rough on you these past several months. And I’m so grateful that you’ve stayed on to help me as much as you have. I’m a young man yet, but the load of this practice tires me out. So I can just imagine how worn out you must feel. I deeply appreciate all that you’ve taught me, and even more, I’m glad for the special friendship between us. It won’t be long now, and we can give you a proper, complete retirement party.”

  Dane hugged his friend, and Dr. Fraser pounded him on the back.

  When the two men released each other, Dr. Dane said, “My plan is to establish a clinic with four beds to begin with, but eventually I’d like to have ten or twelve beds. As soon as we can afford it, we want to buy one of the vacant lots on Main Street and have a building built. I’ve got my eye on the vacant lot in the next block south of us, between Hampstead’s Clothing Store and the Central City Pharmacy.”

  Nadine smiled. “Oh, yes! It would really be good to have the clinic right next door to the pharmacy! With all of these plans, when you and Tharyn start your family, you’ll need a nurse to take Tharyn’s place. I wish I were younger so I could do it, but I know an excellent nurse in her late thirties who presently works at the hospital in Colorado Springs. She’s a widow, with no children. Her name is Susan Coulter. She’s a fine Christian and lives next door to my sister in Colorado Springs. They both go to the same church. I’ve gotten to know her quite well since I visit my sister often. Susan has been here to visit me twice, and has fallen in love with Central City. She’s told me that she would very much like to live here.”

  “Nadine, I just might need another nurse even before we start our family,” Dr. Dane said, “if we can get the vacant lot purchased and the clinic under construction within a year or so. I’ll keep Susan in mind.”

  Dr. Fraser and Nadine then left the office, and Tharyn checked the appointment book to see when the next scheduled patient would be in. She told Dane it wouldn’t be for another half hour.

  “All right,” he said. “I’ll take a quick drive over to the parsonage. I want to find out how it went for Pastor Shane at Chief Tando’s village on Friday.”

  When Dr. Dane Logan returned to the office, Tharyn was not in sight, but he noticed two men sitting in the waiting area. He knew Steve Bittner, the manager of the land office in Central City. The other man was a stranger.

  Tharyn had taken a patient into the examining room, and returned to see if her husband was back just as Steve Bittner was introducing him to Todd Eckman, who owned the Central City Construction Company. As they shook hands, Dr. Dane said, “Mr. Eckman, I’ve been past your office many times, and I’ve seen some of the houses you’ve recently built in town, but I’ve never laid eyes on you until now. I’m very glad to meet you.”

  Eckman replied that he had seen the doctor on the street several times, and had heard many good things about him.

  Running his gaze between the two men, Dr. Dane said, “What can I do for you?”

  Steve Bittner smiled. “We are here about what we can do for you, Doctor.”

  Dr. Dane glanced at Tharyn, who was waiting near the back room door, then said to the men, “You have my curiosity up, but could you give me a few minutes? I have a patient who needs my attention.”

  Both men smiled, and Steve Bittner said, “Go ahead. We’ll wait.”

  Twenty minutes later, the patient was gone, and Dr. Dane approached the men where they were seated in the waiting area and sat down, facing them. Tharyn sat at her desk and listened.

  “Dr. Logan,” Steve Bittner said, “now that you and your wife own the vacant lot down the street between Hampstead’s Clothing Store and the pharmacy, I need your signatures on the deed to make it legal.”

  “As soon as you and I can get together on the exact dimensions and floor plan for your clinic, Doctor,” Todd Eckman said, “we’ll get the construction started. Winter’s coming, but if we can get started soon, we still should have it done by early April.”

  Dane shook his head. “Gentlemen, what are you talking about? We don’t own the lot between the clothing store and the pharmacy. I sure wish we did. And … and we very much want to have a clinic building built, but there’s some mistake here. I—”

  “There’s no mistake, Dr. Logan,” Bittner said. “Kirby Holton said you would probably be a bit stunned, but believe me, there’s no mistake.”

  Tharyn left her desk and sat down beside her husband. “E
xcuse me, gentlemen, but I’ve got to hear this from up close.”

  Both men smiled. Bittner said, “You’re welcome to hear it up close, ma’am. You most certainly are involved here. You see, this past Friday Kirby Holton purchased the vacant lot and put it in both of your names. He then engaged Mr. Eckman to construct the clinic building to your specifications, guaranteeing that he will foot the entire bill.”

  Dr. Dane wiped a palm across his eyes. “Gentlemen, I’m overwhelmed.”

  Bittner leaned toward the Logans. “Mr. Holton left for Denver this morning to catch a train to Chicago. He’ll be back a week from Thursday. He asked us to come to you as soon as you got back from Denver so we could get things started.”

  Dr. Dane chuckled and shook his head again. He looked at Tharyn. “Kirby had to have been on that stagecoach we met on the road this morning.”

  “He no doubt saw us, too,” Tharyn said. “Bless his heart. This is wonderful.”

  Steve Bittner opened his briefcase and took out the deed. “I need you both to sign this for me.”

  They walked to Tharyn’s desk, where they used her pen and ink to sign the deed.

  While Bittner was blowing on the ink to dry it, Todd Eckman made an appointment with Dr. Dane for the next day at the construction office so they could make plans for the clinic building.

  When the two men had gone out the door and started down the boardwalk, the Logans turned and stared at one another, hardly able to believe what had just transpired.

  Dane scrubbed a palm over his eyes again. “Honey, I did hear right, didn’t I? Those two men … they did tell us that Kirby Holton bought us that choice property and that he’s going to pay for the construction of our building. Didn’t they?”

  “Yes, sweetheart. We both heard the same thing. What a miracle this is! I’m … I’m still completely stunned by all of this!”

  Dane wrapped her in his arms, and with tears of joy and gratitude streaming down their faces, he said, “O dear Lord, we praise You for this unexpected and marvelous blessing! Please bless Kirby abundantly for his generosity.”