"Thank you, Otis."
There were a few details to settle, Logan thought, such as getting the lady to agree to marry him. At least now that he had Otis's cooperation in the matter, it shouldn't be too hard to get Karena's.
He crossed his fingers mentally, hoping that Otis would also cooperate with the next thing he had in mind. He unwrapped the bottle of fine Scotch whiskey he'd bought on the way, and found two glasses, hoping Otis wasn't a teetotaler. Logan had never heard of a logger who was.
"There's something I need your help with, sir," he said, and Otis nodded his head, prepared to be magnanimous now that Logan was being properly respectful and would soon be part of the family. He accepted the half filled glass of amber liquid and tossed half of it back in one swallow.
"What is it, professor?"
Hastily, Logan outlined the plan he had in mind to go back to Dora Lake and rescue Mort, and Otis cursed with breathtaking eloquence during the whole explanation. Logan decided admiringly that for a church minded man, Otis had one hell of a vocabulary.
He also had an awesome capacity for whiskey.
In the end, it took a few heartless statements from Logan guaranteed to stir up all Otis's guilt feelings about Danny, and Karena, and even the moose, before the old logger finally agreed.
"We'll leave in the morning, might as well get it over with," he growled balefully. "But before we go, by jiminy, you get hold of these Michigan people and make sure they still want that confounded animal. Be just my luck to get him back here and find out I'm stuck with him the rest of my natural life. I sure never fancied being grampa to a moose."
Logan agreed wholeheartedly with that. He wasn't exactly eager to be Mort's stepfather, either.
Karena opened her eyes. It was early morning, and the watery winter dawn was just beginning to creep through the eyelet curtains on the long narrow window.
She spent several puzzled moments wondering where on earth she was. The small room that held her narrow bed was papered in pink roses and the dresser was painted white.
Lizzie's room, of course.
Memories of the previous day came flooding back, dizzying thankfulness that Danny was safe, random yearning thoughts of Logan, gratitude for the kindness the Gardoms had shown her.
Of course, she couldn't stay here after today. Last night had passed in an absolute fog, she'd been too exhausted to worry about what to say or do. But staying here the whole time Danny was in the hospital was unthinkable.
While she planned how to tactfully move to a motel, there was a soft knock at her door.
"You awake, Karena?" Betsy smiled a warm good morning. She wore a big soft blue terry robe, and baby Nicole squirmed and whined on her shoulder. Behind her was Lizzie, balancing a loaded tray that she promptly brought over and placed on the bed beside Karena.
"Nicky needs to be fed, and Lizzie and I thought it would be fun if you had breakfast while she's nursing. You don't mind, do you?" Betsy made herself comfortable on a chair, and Nicole made frantic, starving, choking noises that soon had everyone giggling.
"She's such a little piggy," Lizzie pronounced proudly. "Sit up, I'll plump the pillows for you," she ordered Karena.
Betsy caught Karena's eyes and they exchanged a smile at Lizzie's proprietary fussing.
Karena sat up.
"You like cream, right?" Lizzie queried, efficiently preparing a mug for Karena, and then doling out hot rolls for each of them with the air of a high priestess presiding over an important ritual.
"Now tell us again exactly where and how you finally found Danny, and everything the doctor said about his ankle. You only gave us the bare details last night," Betsy ordered. "We were worried half to death about him."
Cliff had been out with the searchers, and Betsy had managed to drive to Karena's cabin through the snowstorm one of those dreadful days with huge baskets of food.
They were Logan's family. And because he loved her, they were doing their best to become her family as well. Could she accept that?
A warm glow spread slowly through Karena's strained shyness. She began to talk, sipping the coffee and wondering if this was how it felt to have a sister.
She revised that. Maybe this was how it felt to have women friends. Karena had never had women friends before, and suddenly she had first Abigail, now Betsy...and Lizzie, too.
Karena stayed on with the Gardoms. They made her so welcome, so much a part of the family, that it was impossible to feel shy around them. She could have managed on her own, but strangely enough, after that first morning, she didn't want to.
Danny would be in the hospital for at least two weeks, and Karena phoned her boss at the logging company and arranged to take the two weeks of vacation that were due her. She suggested he call Abigail in to take her place. Then she phoned Abigail and gave her all the news, thanking her for being there while Danny was lost.
"That's what friends are for," Abigail confirmed stoutly.
How had she ever managed without friends, Karena wondered.
The first days passed and Danny got steadily stronger, but the doctors confirmed their earlier diagnosis of his ankle. He was going to need intensive physiotherapy if he were to regain full use of his foot, three times a week for perhaps as long as six months.
Karena relayed this information to Betsy the following morning while they were busy folding the laundry.
"There's no physiotherapy in Northome, is there?" Betsy asked thoughtfully, and Karena shook her head. "We'd just love to have him stay here with us," Betsy continued, "he could come home to you on weekends, but I know you'd be awfully lonely without him. And you do have a job to think of. What will you do?"
Karena smoothed Nicole's minuscule pajamas lovingly and stacked them systematically with the others. She'd spent a long, sleepless night wondering that very thing, and the conclusion she'd arrived at was nothing short of terrifying.
"I was offered another job last summer, although I'm not sure they'd still want me," she blurted out, her voice trembling a bit as she explained about the school for logging arts at Brainerd. "Also, I think I could sell my cabin and the property at the lake. The money from the sale would be enough to help me get reestablished." She swallowed hard. Betsy was a businesswoman, and Karena wanted and needed her opinion.
"That's a lot of changes all at once. D'you think you'd be happy moving down there, Karena?" She gave Karena an astute look. "Would my brother have anything to do with all this?"
"He doesn't know anything about it yet," Karena confessed. "But it would be a lot better for us if I lived closer to St. Paul," she admitted. "I've realized for a while now that I should move closer to things. For Danny's sake, but I think it might also be the best thing for me. Maybe now is the right time."
Betsy had stopped folding. "Logan would sure be happy, having you near the college. Brainerd's not far from St. Paul. I know several women there I'm sure you'd like."
A short while ago, that suggestion would have terrified Karena. Now, she smiled hesitantly. "I'm not so hot at being social, but I'll give it a try. I used to think I didn't need people in my life," she mused. "Lately, I've learned I'm not as independent as I thought. But it's so hard to let yourself need people."
Betsy reached out and hugged her hard.
"It's scary, all right. You leave yourself wide open. But that's what life's all about, learning to give and take, to live with other people and get along with them. And most of all, liking yourself while you're doing it."
"I'm sure a late starter," Karena remarked ruefully. Then she found herself impulsively telling Betsy the story of her miserable teenage years. She finished with the tale of what had happened at Logan's friends' party, how she'd simply run away from it all.
Betsy actually thought that part of it was funny.
"I've wanted to do that so often at dull parties, just disappear out the kitchen door," she affirmed. "As for your cousins years ago, they were probably jealous because you're so pretty."
Karena started to demur, but Betsy said matter-of-factly, "Of course you are, I always notice naturally lovely women because I was dreadfully plain as a girl. Heavens, I went through years of misery before I learned how to dress, what makeup to wear. I had no confidence in myself at all for years and years. Instead of retreating like you did, I studied all the time. I became a regular egghead, hiding behind my superior knowledge and ignoring the rest of me."
"You? But now you're..." Karena was flabbergasted. Betsy was so confident, so happy and serene, so... perfect, Karena never dreamed there'd been a moment's awkwardness in her life.
"Is that why you overlooked the dumb way I acted when we first met?" Karena asked. "You totally intimidated me that day."
Betsy looked surprised, then she laughed.
"What I remember is how slim and gorgeous you were in those shorts. I'd just had Nicole, and I was feeling fat. And I remember thinking that I'd never seen Logan look at anyone the way he looked at you. I was delighted to see my bachelor brother falling head over heels in love." She picked up a flowered sheet and Karena took the opposite end. "Now, should we drive to Brainerd tomorrow and see about this job of yours?"
It took more courage than Karena thought she possessed to march into the offices in Brainerd and ask about the job, but she did it the following afternoon. Of course, Betsy was prodding her every step of the way. Shoving, actually.
The person she spoke with was both friendly and helpful. "The school for logging arts is just getting started in January, so enrollment is still small, which means you won't have many classes at first. But we also need instructors for log scaling. Why not consider taking an instructor's training program? With your background, I'm sure you'd do well."
Karena opened her mouth to say she'd never be able to go back to school at her age, she couldn't possibly think of meeting all those people, school had been a nightmare.
Think positive, Betsy had ordered.
Danny and Logan could help her with her homework.
"Where do I register?" Karena asked faintly.
Through her friends, Betsy heard of a small house to rent on the outskirts of town. It would be empty right after Christmas, and they drove to look at it.
The town of Brainerd was about the size of Bemidji, flat and sandy, with lots of trees and parks. It was situated on the Mississippi River, and Karena stared at the wide expanse of water, remembering the summer day when she and Logan had waded the tiny stream at Itasca that marked this great river's humble beginnings. Her life was widening out, just the way the river had between there and here.
"That's the house over there," Betsy indicated after a few moments. There were other houses nearby, but the attractive cottage was set on half an acre with lots of trees in the yard.
"The high school's just a few blocks from here, and I saw a community center not far away," Betsy commented.
There were also power poles and telephone wires very much in evidence, as well as a TV antenna on the roof. Danny was going to like it here fine, Karena knew.
On the drive back to Bemidji, Karena's show of bravado crumpled totally.
"I can't do this, Betsy," she wailed. "I don't know what ever made me think I could. I'm a high school dropout, I can't teach anybody anything. I've lived like a hermit all these years, I don't even know what people wear to school at my age."
"Any woman with a behind shaped like yours would be a fool not to wear jeans. And of course you can teach, you're a natural born teacher, look how you got Alex started logrolling, it's the first thing he's ever done better than his sister. You taught Danny so well he wins prizes at it, don't forget. Plus, you got Lizzie interested in drawing. And yesterday you showed me how to make that special Swedish coffee cake that Cliff liked so much. What do you mean, you can't teach?"
"It's too late anyway," Karena groaned. "I've already said I'd do it, and paid the money for the instructor's course."
"That's right," Betsy said smugly. "No refunds. Now, should we drive straight over to the hospital when we get back and tell your son his mother has a new career?"
Danny greeted them with the wan smile he'd developed, and when Karena told him of her plans, he accepted them with the same lack of enthusiasm he showed everything these days. He'd been quiet and withdrawn ever since his rescue, and Karena grew more concerned about him every day. He just wasn't the same old noisy exuberant Danny, and she and Betsy both worried that his depression would keep him from getting well as fast as he might. Even having a television at his disposal all day didn't cheer him up the way it ought to have done.
"Has he said any more about Mort?" Betsy asked when she was leaving an hour later. Karena usually stayed and had supper with Danny. She walked with Betsy as far as the coffee machines in the lobby.
"Nothing since he broke down that first day with Logan and me," Karena confessed worriedly. "I've tried to get him to talk about it, but he won't."
"Cliff tried when he was in to see him yesterday, but Danny didn't say anything to him, either. Maybe he'll open up to Logan. Damn that brother of mine, I wish he'd phone or something and let us know what time to expect him on the weekend."