PART 11
A few hours later, Dan again stepped into Nan's room, only to find Nat in the same position he'd been in for nearly the entire day. "Any change?" he asked.
"None whatsoever," Nat replied dryly, "The doctor, for all he's worth, doesn't know how to help her. Why are you here? Shouldn't you be at home?"
"I was on my way to arrest Foggs," Dan replied.
"Arrest him?! You have proof?" Nat exclaimed.
"Yeah, I found some stuff…some notes about meetings in his office."
"Foggs let you into his office?" Nat asked.
"Well…not exactly…"
"Dan, you can't do that, it'll never stand up in court. They'll-"
"I know, but I figure that there's plenty more evidence and we'll just find it," Dan said with more confidence than he felt.
"Hope you're right," Nat said sincerely.
"Well you just find me if there's any change," Dan said brusquely, looking away from Nan before it became too much.
"I will," Nat replied softly. As Dan walked out of the clinic, he passed David, walking in.
"Where do you think you're goin'?" he asked.
"I'm going to see Annie," David replied.
"I'm going to find out what you did," Dan practically seethed, "And when I do…you're going to be sorry you ever laid eyes on Nan." David looked forlorn as he carried on past Dan and up the stairs. When he reached the doorway to her room, his heart caught in his throat.
"Oh Annie," he breathed softly. Nat looked up in surprise and their eyes met.
"They don't know when…or if she'll wake up," Nat said softly.
"Look Nat, I'm sorry, I-"
"I don't care," Nat said, "I just want her to wake up. I don't care who's fault it is. I'm not interested in blaming people. I just want her back."
"Then why aren't you throwing me out?" David questioned.
"Because I can tell how much you love her," Nat told him point blank. David, slightly taken aback, went to sit in a chair on the other side of the room.
"You know," he said after a while, "I met Annie at this fair that the local colleges were having. They had all sorts of contests…science, math, English. Annie had of course entered into the science area with this study she was doing for her anatomy class, and I got so mad because I didn't think they should have allowed a girl into the contest. I ran into her eventually and we began arguing. She wouldn't give up." Nat gave a small grin.
"Well we ended up being next to the pie contest tables, and that's when she really got mad. I suggested that she make a quilt or bake a pie or something and that's when she took a pie and threw it right at me. Afterwards, we were laughing so hard, we couldn't really remember what we had been fighting about." Nat's smile grew larger.
"Gosh, it's been forever since I've seen that fire in her," David said sadly, "Did I do this to her?" The question went unanswered as the two men sat there, staring at Nan. Clearing his throat gruffly, David said, "I'll go now."
Before he reached the door, Nat asked him in a low voice, "You do love her, don't you?" David kept his back towards Nat and didn't reply. "Why do you call her Annie anyway?" Nat asked, unable to keep the slight edge out of his voice.
"I've always called her Annie, ever since that first day we met…" David said, flashing a weak smile at Nat.
"Yeah? Well..uh…I've always called her Nan…and uh….she never threw a pie in my face….," Nat said, turning back towards Nan. With a sigh, David left the room, giving one brief glance back at their 'sleeping beauty.'
"David Foggs?!" Dan boomed as he entered the tavern.
There was a loud commotion and then one voice rose above the others declaring, "I'm here Sheriff, you want somethin'?"
"Foggs, I'm puttin' you under arrest," Dan said beginning to handcuff the man. There was a mixture of grumbling and booing as he did so, but Foggs put up no fight.
"How long you think this is gonna stick Sheriff?" he whispered softly, "I got me friends everywhere. There ain't nothin' you can do to me, and there ain't nothin' you can prove."
"You're never gonna hurt my family again, do you hear me?" Dan hissed, "Never." He roughly pulled Foggs with him towards the jail, keeping his eyes straight ahead, and trying not to notice the whispers and staring eyes.
Later that evening, a small figure made her way into the clinic, wrapped in a gray shawl. Jo peeked her head into Nan's room, and found Nat half asleep. "Hey there," she said, trying to sound cheerful, "You eat dinner yet?" Nat shook his head, still sleepy. "Well why don't you go get a little something, and let me sit with her for a while?" Jo asked. Reluctantly, Nat nodded and left the room, throwing back glances at Nan.
Jo moved over to her bedside, and took one of her hands. "Hello there Dr. Harding," she said softly with a smile, "You know, I bet you'd be able to figure out what's wrong with you. You wouldn't stop until you figured it out. But you can't, can you? Well…you'll just have to do the next best thing; fight. You've never lost anything you've truly fought for, do you know that? I've always admired that about you Nan…and sometimes I wish I could have been more like you…"
"You are," Nat said, standing in the doorway, " You always have been. Where do you think she gets it from Mrs. Jo? All these years you've fought not just for yourself, but for all of us…and that takes a lot of strength."
"Nat," Jo said, tears coming to her eyes.
"If she's ever learned anything from you at all, then she'll beat this," Nat said, "Won't she?"
"Oh," Jo said, enveloping Nat in her arms, "of course she will…don't you worry…I know she will." Jo looked over to where Nan lay and added softly, "She has to."
"Jo," Nick's voice urgently called Jo from her somewhat peaceful slumber, "Jo wake up!"
"What?" she asked.
"There's another fire," he said.
"Another!?!" she exclaimed, "Will they ever stop?" An hour later Jo and Nick stood dismally, hand in hand, staring at the pile of rubble that had once been the home of the Bishops.
"She's in God's hands now," Simon Bishop said solemnly, staring straight ahead. As the entire Bishop family stood there, one place remained vacant, "Like I said before, men like Foggs won't stop until we're all gone."
"Bishop!" Dan called out as he road up, "What happened? Is everyone okay?" Dan walked over to the mourning family and looked around in confusion. "What's wrong?"
"Dan," Jo said softly, putting a hand on his arm, "Ruth…she didn't make it sweetheart." Dan struggled to catch his breath and he began to hastily look around.
"No," he denied it, "No, I…..no, that can't be true!"
"I know," Jo said softly, enveloping Dan in her arms, "I know." The smoldering flames sparked and then blurred as Jo's eyes filled with tears…
The burning lantern was blurry at first, and dark around the edges. Nan was aware of someone next to her, their head near her arm. She tried to move her head, but found that to be too painful. The motion though, was enough to alert the person. Nat sat upright and looked anxiously at Nan. "Nat?" she managed to get out weakly.
He grinned the widest grin she'd ever seen and said, "You hold on…just hang on! I'll get the doctor!" He ran from the room and Nan frowned, trying to remember what had happened. A short time later the room was filled with people. Jo, Nick, Asia, Meg, and Dan all crowded by her bedside as Nat hung back in the corner watching.
"Annie!" came a voice from the doorway, and everyone parted to let David through.
"David," Nan sigh, a smile on her face.
"Oh Annie darling, how are you? Are you alright?"
"I don't know…I don't really remember much about what happened," Nan said squinting, "And every time I try to…" She closed her eyes and winced in pain.
"That's alright sweetheart," David said, reaching down to hug her, "The important thing is that you're awake!" David tread lightly, as everyone watched him. What did Nan remember, and what had she forgotten?
"Alright, now this is really too many people in here at once," said the doctor, "I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
As everyone filed out Nan reached for David's hand and said, "Stay a minute, won't you?" He smiled and nodded his head, sitting down next to her. Nat glanced at them once before leaving the room, his stare one of bittersweet sorrow.
"David, was Nat here? I didn't see him, but I could have sworn he was here when I woke up…"
"Really? No darling, that couldn't have been him, you must be mistaken," David said, already hating himself for lying.
"Well I'm glad you're here now," said Nan with a smile.
"Me too Annie, me too," he said, trying to keep the smile on his face.
"She doesn't remember!" Dan practically yelled as he and Nat stood in the front parlor of Dan's home. They were waiting for the rest of the family so they could head over to the memorial service for Hattie.
"She remembered the important stuff," Nat protested, "Maybe this is just what she wants."
"No way Nat…there is no way that that guy is what she wants. I bet you a million dollars that she wants-"
"Dan could you come help Bess down?" called Amy. Dan frowned at the poor timing and briskly walked upstairs.
"I'm fine mother," Bess was saying as he entered.
"But I'd feel a whole lot luckier if I had you on my arm," Dan said with his famous grin.
"I'm going to have to learn how to say no to you some day," Bess smirked, "I seem to remember being very good at it as a child." They walked down the stairs together, arm in arm, followed by Amy and Laurie. Meg hurried out of the room, adjusting her broach and nearly ran into Harrison. He gave her a soft smile and offered her his arm. Hesitantly, she took it and they descended the stairs together in silence. The last to emerge were Nick and Jo. She stepped out into the hallway and looked down it to see Nick.
He walked over to her and she rested her head against his chest. "They asked if I would say a few words today," Jo said softly, "I said I would."
"Well, whatever ya say, I'm sure it'll be from your heart," Nick said. She pulled back and looked deeply into his eyes. "Thank you," she said softly. He nodded and offered her his outstretched hand, which she clasped tightly.
When they arrived at the church they found many other people already there. Ruth had been well known to everyone in the town, and she had been the most beloved of friends.
"My mother was the most inspirational woman I have ever met," Simon Bishop began, "And none of us will ever forget her wit, kindness, or passion. It was her dream for us to come out west and build a home for ourselves. She had always wanted to do that with my father, but he died before they had the chance. I'm sure they're together now…."
"Ruth was one of the first friends I made when I came out here," Dan said when it was his turn, "I was kinda scared, and all alone…but she made it seem possible. And no matter how many dreams I had, or how foolish they musta sounded, she believed in me and she cared for me. And I'll never forget that…"
"I had only known Ruth for a short time," Jo declared during her turn, "But instantly I was drawn to her. She was a woman not unlike myself, and her personality intrigued me and made me admire her. What's happened her is more than a tragedy, it's a horrible crime. And I expect that we'll go on in the memory of Ruth, to fight those who would have us harmed. I think we should expect that much from ourselves…"
After the memorial service, the attendants all filed out of the church into the bleak and cloudy day as the strains of Amazing Grace followed them…
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound…
They walked up to the top of the hill, Simon Bishop carrying the case that contained some ashes from the fire at the house.
That saved a wretch like me…
Dan walked with his head down, and Bess intently looked at him, her face lined with worry.
I once was lost, but now am found…
Nick slipped his arm around Jo's waist and pulled her closer as Simon scattered the ashes into the strong wind…
Was blind, but now I see…
Nat, having left the procession early and gone back over to the clinic walked into Nan's room softly. She was sleeping alone, her eyes closed peacefully. He walked over to her bedside and placed a soft kiss on her forehead. She turned a bit and a peaceful smile came over her face. He pushed the hair back from her face and then silently pulled up a chair next to the bed. She slept for hours, and for hours he sat there, watching her.
PART12
