Colleen and Andrew went down to breakfast to find the entire family there. Sully, Katie, Matthew, Brian, Michaela, then Andrew and Colleen. They had not been together in this house for so long. Even Andrew felt the immense contentment at being together in the house again. Still, he was slightly anxious about getting their own house. He wanted to make a real family with Colleen.
"Ain't ya surprised to see Pa, Colleen?" Brian asked, a little confused about his sister's calm greeting of their father. Brian, resentful that he was, still had enthusiastically hugged his father. Here was his sister, calm with a slight smile.
Colleen smiled. "Pa had a very interesting way of coming in last night," Colleen replied.
"Sully," Michaela reprimanded teasingly. She was delighted to have her beloved husband home again.
Sully grinned and kissed his wife's temple to quiet her rebuke. He knew that it would be coming. "This is great," Sully said as Andrew and Colleen sat together. "We ain't had the whole family together in this house in months. I'm sure glad you moved back, Colleen. You, too, Andrew."
Colleen looked at her pa oddly. She could never remember him being so outwardly playful and affectionate with his children. With Michaela it was a different story but rarely with his children. He showed the most affection to Brian. Colleen looked at Matthew. He had caught it, too.
"Somethin' good happen, Sully?" Matthew asked for Colleen.
Sully gestured loosely to the table. "This happened," Sully replied. "Cloud Dancin' and I got the Cheyenne a new sergeant. Sergeant O'Connell. Seems he's a great fella. Couldn't be happier." With that, he tossed an affectionate look his pregnant wife's way.
The Coopers and the Cooks exchanged glances. Sully had to have something up his sleeve. They could not remember the last time that he had been so happy because he never outwardly had been. Sully was not one for showing his emotions to anyone but Michaela, whom he called his heartsong. But Sully was openly expressing his elation at his family being under the same roof, on the homestead, again.
For the next week, Sully's good mood continued. Andrew and Colleen ran the clinic together. Michaela and Sully wanted time together. Alone, apparently. Brian graduated school that week, top of his class. Brian began his job with Dorothy at the rapidly growing newspaper. Loren Bray had helped the town with their prejudice. It did not seem to be such a big issue to them anymore. They were wary of Cloud Dancing, even though he had been a peaceful, helpful citizen of Colorado Springs for over two years.
Three weeks after arriving, the Cook homestead was finished. Sully had gone over and diligently worked every morning. Colleen and Andrew would exchange a look while he whistled. They finally learned that Daniel was on his way. He would be there in two more weeks. Daniel had left to find something in the world for himself. He had his fortune. He wanted to find a place to settle down.
The trail led back to Colorado Springs. Sully had his best friend back in town. That put Sully in a fantastic mood.
Moving day for Colleen and Andrew Cook was nerve wracking. Sully, Matthew, and Brian had all been helping them with the furniture. Most of the furniture had been rented but they brought some with them. The rest was being constructed. Sully had fashioned it after his own house. A smaller version, of course, but it was obviously by the same man. Colleen and Andrew thanked him countless times for all the work he had put into their house.
All day, every recognizable townsman, and woman, came to help the Cooks move in. That helped Colleen. She had felt so alienated lately, like Andrew was the only truly existing person in her life. Everyone coming made her feel better.
Andrew sat on the front porch that evening. It was a warm night, not yet in the middle of summer but in early summer so the air was not sticky. Colleen stood silently in the open doorway and watched her husband gaze around him. Colleen felt that same awe. Their own house. Their own life. Together. This was their real house. The brownstone in Philadelphia had simply been temporary. This was where they wanted to raise their family. This was where they wanted to grow old together.
Andrew sensed his wife's presence and turned to see her. He smiled and put his hand out. Colleen returned the soft smile and walked forward, stepping down the single step from the door. She put her hand in Andrew's them moved around to sit between his legs on the top step. Andrew wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. It was the first time they got to be solely together since they arrived in Colorado Springs. There was no four year old in the room over, no parents (parents-in-law) down the hall, no sixteen year old young man on the other side of the Cooks.
Just them.
"Our own house," Colleen said, soaking in everything. She closed her eyes and leaned back against Andrew. She rested her head back on his shoulder, her back to his chest. Andrew bowed his head to rest his chin on her slim shoulder and turned his head to the side, lightly kissing her neck. "Alone," Colleen said, distracted by her husband.
"Completely alone," Andrew agreed. Colleen and Andrew looked at each other, grinned, then went inside.
The time flew by for the Cooks. Two months went by. Occasional arguments arose but nothing they could not handle. They had learned how to deal with marital problems while in Philadelphia. In a way, Colleen thought that was best. There had been no interested family trying to solve their problems for the, thrusting unwarranted suggestions in their faces.
OK, that was only Michaela.
Daniel Simon worked side-by-side with Matthew. Together, they began restoring law again to the rapidly growing town of Colorado Springs. Hank had expanded. Jake had expanded to buy Loren Bray's Mercantile with the money he got from selling his share of The Gold Nugget. Loren worked for him occasionally and was planning his trip. They all knew that when he left on that trip, they would never see him again. It was why Loren was sticking around. He loved Colorado Springs.
The resort had been torn down and was now being rebuilt. Thankfully, after his bankruptcy, Preston A. Lodge III had returned to Boston. He still needed the supervision of his father, which the town laughed about for the next six months.
Then the day came. Colleen was alone in the clinic when a patient came in, needing surgery. Colleen panicked then calmed herself. It was only an appendectomy. She had assisted on countless appendectomies. Surely she could do one. Colleen did not even have a nurse. The nine year old girl was in serious pain, though.
"Go get Jake Slicker," she told the young girl's father, who immediately ran out. The mayor and barber was the closest she was going to get to a nurse. At least he could stomach it. Colleen searched for the girl's file after preparing her. Jake Slicker came in as Colleen read the file.
"Said ya needed me," Jake said, no emotion in his voice. Colleen knew he loved to be needed and recognized as a decent medical mind.
Colleen nodded. "Andrew and Ma are both out," Colleen said. "I'll need you to assist me, if you can."
"'Course," he replied. "What do I do?"
"Wash your hands thoroughly, first," said Colleen, pointing to the basin, pitcher, soap, and towel. Colleen turned back to the file. It was written in Michaela's handwriting. Since Colleen left, Michaela had to do all her own files. Colleen had always enjoyed doing them, as she enjoyed researching. Her mind craved knowledge and doing the records had been a good way for her to learn the terminology.
"Lord," breathed Colleen, reading the file. The girl had a serious heart condition. Colleen knew it would be a very fragile surgery. Her first solo and she had a town barber to help her. Colleen bit her lower lip, terrified of what potential horrors she imagined. "God, help me."
Colleen gnawed on her lower lip then upper lip alternately. She focused on the gruesome sight before her with the utmost concentration. It concerned her what might happen if she was not careful. Her hands were bloodied. She wondered if they were stained.
The door opened and Andrew and Michaela came in. She had not expected them back so soon and breathed a sigh of relief at seeing them. "What is it, Colleen?" Andrew asked, going to her side. Not being sterile, he only looked over her shoulder.
"Appendectomy," Colleen said. "Severe pain, nearly developed into peritonitis, cardiovascular complications. I didn't know you'd be back so soon or I'd have waited."
"No, it's good you started," Michaela said. "These things are severely painful and putting her out would make her tolerant to the ether. Waking up in surgery is worse than before."
"Colleen," Jake said, urgency in his voice.
Colleen turned back to see him holding two fingers to her throat. The rest passed in a blur. Colleen remembered backing away from the body, numb with pain. She vaguely heard Michaela and Andrew discussing what happened and send Jake away with thanks. Colleen stared at the corpse of the young girl.
"I killed her," Colleen whispered in horror. The blood seemed to be burning her hands and she whirled to quickly wash it off. She scrubbed and scrubbed ferociously at her hands until they were raw but the blood seemed to still be tinted on her hands.
Andrew turned to see his wife scrubbing her hands so hard, they were liable to be sore. Andrew went quickly over to her and she shuddered when he touched her waist. He bowed his head to her chin and felt her body trembling from withheld tears.
Michaela glanced at the couple and, sensing a private marital moment, slipped from the room.
"Colleen, it wasn't your fault," Andrew whispered.
"Well, I was the one in charge, wasn't I?" Colleen demanded, angry at herself and irritated that he was trying to tell her differently.
"She had a serious heart problem," Andrew said. "There was nothing anyone could do for her. I don't care who held the knife. Colleen, it was a misfortune that she died. But she was already diagnosed with an eventually fatal disease. What could you have done about cardiac arrest? What could any of us had done?"
"My first solo surgery," Colleen murmured, hearing him but not listening to the logic. "I lose a nine year old girl."
Colleen looked up at her tall husband before abandoning the clinic. Andrew started after her but she gave him a forbidding look as she paused in the doorway. "How are they supposed to trust me now?" she asked quietly. She let the question hang and walked out of the clinic, closing the door behind herself.
It was the loneliest, saddest sound Andrew ever heard.
To Be Continued!