Threads of Love (32 page)

“I know just the young man,” Mrs. Winter declared. “I’ll go and get him right now,” and off she bustled, ready to fulfill the first order of her mission.

Once Mrs. Winter was out of earshot, Mr. Buford looked at Tessie and inquired with a slight twinkle in his eyes, “How long am I to be held hostage?”

“I’m not sure how long it will take you to heal. You’ve had a serious injury. If you do well, perhaps after a short period we can put you on a train back to Chicago, and you can finish recuperating with your sister and her family. Would that bolster your spirits a bit?”

“I suppose so, but it would appear that the time I envisioned seeing the country shall be spent looking out a window,” he replied, trying to keep a pleasant frame of mind. “Don’t misunderstand—I am truly grateful for your excellent medical attention, Doctor, and if you’ll agree to continue treating me, I’ll attempt to be a good patient.”

“I can’t ask for much more than that, Mr. Buford,” Tessie responded as Mrs. Winter and a muscular young man of about eighteen entered the room.

Tessie carefully instructed both the young man and Mrs. Winter in the necessary care of Mr. Buford’s injury. Bidding the three of them good night, she assured Mr. Buford that she would check on him in the morning.

Wearily she exited the front door and found Charlie leaning against the porch railing. “Did you get Mrs. Winter organized?” he inquired.

“I believe she’ll do just fine,” Tessie answered as they walked down the front steps.

“You look exhausted,” Charlie remarked, lifting a wisp of hair that had worked its way out of her ribbon, carefully tucking it behind her ear.

“It’s been a long evening,” she replied. “I feel as though I could sleep for a week,” she admitted.

When they had completed the short walk to her front door, Charlie leaned forward and enveloped her in his arms, allowing her head to rest upon his chest. He stroked her hair and held her close for just a few moments and then lifted her face toward his, placing a soft kiss upon her lips.

“I’m glad you’ve come into my life, Dr. Tessie Wilshire,” he whispered to her and then pulled her in a tight embrace and kissed her thoroughly.

“I’m glad, too,” she answered, smiling up at him, “but I think we’d both better get some rest,” she added.

“That’s the doctor in you—always being practical,” he said, giving her a broad smile. “I’ll leave you now if you’ll promise to stop at the station in the morning so we can have breakfast. Do you want me to check on Addie for you?” he inquired.

“Oh, good heavens, how could I forget Addie?” she exclaimed sheepishly. “I’d better get her,” she continued.

“Why don’t I just stop over at the MacAfees’? She’s probably already asleep. They’ll enjoy having her, and you need to get to bed,” he ordered.

“If you think they won’t mind,” she conceded.

Placing one last kiss on her cheek, Charlie bounded off the porch and back toward the station to get his horse and ride to the MacAfees’.

In the days that followed, Tessie diligently visited her new patient, pleased with his progress. She had begun making her visits to Mr. Buford in the late afternoon after completing office hours. Tessie enjoyed the daily visits, not only because her medical treatment was proving effective, but because Mr. Buford was an entertaining and knowledgeable companion. Addie would walk with her to the hotel and then head for the kitchen, anxious to see the chef and taste his inventive recipes. On this particular day, Tessie knew John would not be in the kitchen until later since he had gone to make a special purchase of oysters.

“Come along, Addie. You can meet Mr. Buford,” Tessie instructed, helping Addie remove her new winter hat and coat.

Addie nodded agreement, although it was evident she would be off and running the minute John returned.

“Now who might this fine young woman be?” Mr. Buford inquired as Addie followed Tessie into the room.

“This is Addie Baker. She lives with me, and if you care to converse with her, you’ll need to be sure she is looking directly at you. She’s deaf,” Tessie explained.

“Come here, young woman,” Mr. Buford instructed while patting the side of the bed. “Come close so we can talk.”

Tessie sat down in the rocking chair and nodded to Addie as the child cautiously approached Edward’s bedside. Amazed at his ability to charm the young girl, Tessie sat mesmerized for almost an hour while he entertained the youngster. Several times Tessie was sure that he had attempted to sign with Addie, but not wanting to disrupt the developing rapport, she remained silent throughout their conversation, surprised that he had little difficulty understanding the child’s occasional distorted words.

John’s appearance outside the hotel snapped Addie out of her reverie, and with a hasty wave of her arm, she was off the edge of the bed and out of the room.

“I apologize, Mr. Buford. I’m afraid Addie’s first love is being in the kitchen with John,” Tessie stated. “That’s not meant as an excuse for her rudeness but rather an explanation,” she continued, shaking her head in mock exasperation.

“No explanations or excuses necessary,” he responded laughingly. “She’s a delightful child. By the way, do you recall that you’ve promised to call me Edward on several occasions?”

“Now that you mention it, I do remember. I’ll try and do better in the future,” she answered, picking up her medical bag and moving closer to the bedside.

“Would you be offended if I asked a few questions?”

“About Addie? Not at all,” she answered.

“Well, about Addie and you,” he countered.

“I suppose you can ask so long as I may retain the right not to answer,” she offered.

“Fair enough! How did Addie come to live with you? Is she a relative?”

“No, we’re not related,” she stated and then, reminiscing, explained how she had met Addie and Lydia, along with the subsequent chain of events that had bonded them together.

“My heartfelt desire is that I can provide Addie with the necessary tools to prepare her for the future. I’ve prayed earnestly about her deafness for I’m sure life will be difficult unless she is equipped to meet many challenges.”

“Do you know what caused her deafness?” he inquired.

“Her sister told me she was able to hear up until about a year ago. That was as much information as I was able to glean from her. Lydia, Addie’s sister, was extremely jealous of any attention the child received, and when I questioned about Addie, she became infuriated. Consequently, I have very limited knowledge. I noticed you attempting to sign with her, didn’t I?” Tessie asked as she finished checking her patient’s vital signs and began to unwrap his leg to inspect the stitches.

“Yes, you did. My niece was deaf, and I learned to sign in order to better communicate with her several years ago when my sister brought her to England,” he told her, watching as she carefully removed the bandages from his wound.

“You say she was deaf. Is she deceased?”

“Oh no, not at all. I’ve just come from visiting her at my sister’s home in Chicago. She’s had surgery and is now able to hear. That’s why I inquired about Addie’s loss of hearing,” he explained.

A chill of excitement traveled up Tessie’s spine at hearing his words. Her fingers ceased their movement, and she looked directly into his eyes. “I want to know everything about this surgery. How much can you tell me?” she asked, obviously impatient for answers.

“Not any of the technicalities, I’m afraid. My brother-in-law performed the surgery. While he and Juliette, my sister, were in England two years ago, he heard of a surgeon in Germany who was performing surgery to correct deafness with some success. He left Juliette and Genevive with our family in England and traveled to meet with the doctor in Germany. He remained in Germany for almost a year, studying and developing the technique. The success rate had been very limited, but for some, like Genevive, hearing is fully restored,” he explained.

Tessie’s mind whirled with the information she was receiving. Perhaps there was hope for Addie to hear again. Perhaps this surgery was the answer!

Carefully, she removed the sutures, then wrapped the splints back in place. “How can I find out more?” she asked, closing her medical bag and pulling the rocking chair close to his bedside.

“You could send an inquiry to my brother-in-law. I’d be happy to write a letter of introduction that you could enclose with it. I should have informed them of my whereabouts before now anyway. This will force me to take up my pen,” he told her.

“Oh Edward, would you do that? I’d be so grateful,” she replied, clasping his hand between both of hers.

Lifting her hand, he lightly kissed it before she could pull away. “It will be my pleasure,” he answered, holding on to her hand for a brief moment longer.

Tessie felt her face flush and hoped Edward would think it was from her excitement over the surgical prospects rather than from his kiss.

“I really must be leaving,” she announced. “I’m going to write a letter to your brother-in-law this evening, Edward. I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t mention this to anyone yet. If it turns out that Addie isn’t able to have the surgery, it will mean less explaining.”

“I understand,” he replied, “and I’ll honor your wishes, but I have a good feeling about this.”

“So do I. I’ll see you tomorrow,” she answered, slipping into her gray double-breasted wool coat before heading off in search of Addie.

A
lthough writing a letter to Edward’s brother-in-law immediately after dinner was Tessie’s intent, her resolve melted at the beckoning look of the young child holding out a needle and thread. Addie was determined to have her quilt completed before Christmas, notwithstanding the fact that everyone told her she had set an unobtainable goal.

“I’ll sew for a little while, but then I must write a letter,” Tessie said, reaching out to take the already-threaded needle Addie offered. “I wrote and told Aunt Phiney you were making a quilt. I even sent some little pieces of the fabric for her to see.”

“Did she like it?” Addie inquired.

“Very much. In fact, when I received her letter the other day, she said she was sending you colored thread to match the cloth. She suggested perhaps you could weave the thread together to sew the binding, and it would be very pretty. What do you think?”

“Three colors woven together would be beautiful,” Addie answered, as Tessie began sewing. Stitching effortlessly, Tessie found herself watching Addie, thinking that perhaps one day soon the young girl would be able to hear.

Addie looked up and smiled as she pulled her needle through the layers of fabric. “You’re not sewing; you’re daydreaming,” Addie chided.

“Addie, what would you think if I told you that maybe, just maybe, there’s an operation that would restore your hearing?” Tessie asked, leaning forward, her eyes riveted on the youngster.

“You know I want to be a doctor like you, so that would be wonderful,” the child responded. “Would the operation hurt a lot?”

“It would probably hurt some. I’m not sure just how much. I shouldn’t have even brought this up. I don’t even know if it’s possible, but Edward told me about his niece. She had this operation, and now she can hear. So, you see, I’d like to find out more about it—to see if you could get that same kind of help,” she concluded.

“We shouldn’t get too hopeful,” Addie responded, taking over in an adult fashion, while Tessie seemed more the excited child.

“You’re right,” Tessie said, smiling. “We’ll not talk about it any further until I have more information, but I’ll be praying about it, and you do the same,” she counseled Addie.

Praying that evening, Tessie felt a surge of excitement. She knew this was God’s plan to restore Addie’s hearing, and she was going to see it to fruition. The added medical expertise she might glean would be a bonus. Leaning down, she placed a kiss on Addie’s cheek, tucked her into bed for the night, and carefully penned a letter to Dr. Byron Lundstrom. “No wonder I’m so tired,” she mused, clicking open the watch pinned to her bodice. It was near midnight.

While working through her schedule the next morning, Tessie’s thoughts wandered, delighting in the possibilities that lay ahead. She was anxious for noon to arrive, her concentration waning as the morning slowly progressed.