The Heart Remembers (5 page)

I
t was almost eleven o’clock, and Melinda Kenyon was still sitting in the waiting area of the doctor’s office anticipating the arrival of Tim Braden and her parents. She had watched patients come and go, while keeping an eye on the hitch rail outside. At the moment, she was the only person in the waiting area.

Tharyn Logan was at her desk, doing some paperwork while her husband was with a patient in the back room, when she heard voices outside the door and looked up to see a young couple enter with the husband carrying their daughter, who was very pale and in a great deal of pain.

Melinda watched as Tharyn rose to her feet and said, “Good morning. I’m Dr. Logan’s wife and nurse, Tharyn. It appears we have a sick little girl here.”

“Yes,” said the father. “Is Dr. Logan in?”

“Yes. He’s with a patient at the moment. Please sit down and let me get some information from you.”

The couple eased onto the two wooden chairs in front of the desk, with the father still holding the child. When Tharyn sat down, he said, “Mrs. Logan, I’m Ben McDonald. This is my wife, Clara, and our daughter’s name is Robin. She’s ten years old. We
live in Nederland, which you may know is a town some fifteen miles north of here.”

Tharyn was writing as Ben spoke. She paused and looked up at him. “Yes. I haven’t been to Nederland yet, but they tell me it is a nice town. I’ll get your address and other pertinent information from you later. Right now, tell me about Robin’s illness.”

“Her stomach’s been hurting for about twenty-four hours,” said Clara. “Her pain has gotten worse this morning, and her stomach is quite distended. Our neighbors in Nederland recommended we bring her to Dr. Logan.”

Tharyn laid the pencil down and rose to her feet. “Let’s take Robin to the back room.”

The McDonaldses followed Tharyn into the back room, where they saw four sections, each surrounded by curtains. They could hear male voices in section number one as Tharyn led them to number four.

When they stepped in, Tharyn moved up to the examining table and said, “Lay her down here, please, Mr. McDonald. I want to check her over.”

Ben carefully placed his little girl on the table. Robin winced, bit her lower lip, but did not cry out. Tharyn laid a palm on the child’s brow. “She definitely has a fever.”

Robin watched as her parents stood by and the nurse examined her swollen midsection.

Going over the child’s stomach with tender, experienced hands twice, Tharyn looked at the anxious parents and said softly, “Robin must have peritoneal surgery immediately.”

Clara frowned. “What does that mean?”

“The abdominal cavity is lined with a thin membrane, which is called the peritoneum. It encloses the stomach, intestines, liver, and gallbladder. Peritonitis is the acute or chronic inflammation of the peritoneum. I assume she hasn’t had this before.”

Clara shook her head. “No.”

“Then it’s acute. Peritonitis is caused by invasion of bacteria or some kind of foreign matter from elsewhere in the body, which has caused infection. This is why her stomach is distended. There is obviously a localized abscess in the peritoneum which must be incised. Dr. Logan will have to open her up, assess the damage, and locate the source of the infection. Don’t worry about it. He will know what to do, and will take care of it. The treatment, once he has established the source, will include antibiotic therapy.”

The parents looked at each other, concern showing in their eyes.

“Wait here,” said Tharyn. “I’ll go alert the doctor and see how soon he can get to Robin.”

Tharyn hurried out of the curtained section. The parents each took hold of one of their daughter’s hands and tried to calm her fears.

Tharyn stepped up to section number one and said in a low voice, “Doctor, we have a ten-year-old female patient with peritonitis. She’s in a great deal of pain. She’s had it for some twenty-four hours.”

“Come in,” came Dr. Dane’s invitation.

Tharyn stepped in and saw that her husband was wrapping a bandage on the hand of the elderly man who had come in about half an hour earlier.

Dane said, “I’m almost through. Is the child’s midsection distended?”

“Yes.”

Still wrapping the bandage, Dane said, “All right. I’m almost finished. Go ahead and prepare her for surgery. I’ll be there in less than five minutes.”

Seconds later, Tharyn entered section number four. Running her gaze between the anxious mother and father, she said, “I must prepare Robin immediately for the surgery. Doctor will be ready in
a few minutes. I’ll need both of you to go sit in the waiting area. She’ll be fine, believe me.”

Both parents leaned down, and each kissed one of their daughter’s cheeks. Clara said, “Don’t be afraid, sweetheart. You heard the nurse say you will be fine. Mama and Papa will be right out there in the office.”

Tears were in Robin’s eyes, but she managed to nod and give them a brief smile.

“If other patients come in while you’re waiting,” Tharyn said, “will you tell them that I’m assisting the doctor with the surgery on your daughter, and that I’ll return to the office as soon as possible?”

Both parents nodded and walked away slowly.

While Tharyn was with Robin and her parents in the back room, Melinda was doing her best to be patient as she sat in the waiting area. But to her, time seemed to drag.

She kept glancing out the window for any sign of Tim and her parents, then at the clock on the wall above Tharyn’s desk. She wondered if the clock was in need of repair. The hands seemed to move so slowly.

Unable to sit still another minute, she rose to her feet, stretched her back, then circled the empty room several times, always stopping at the large window to peer anxiously at the street and hitch rail. Each time she surveyed the street, there was no sign of her loved ones—and she took another slow walk around the tidy room.

She was just sitting back down on her chair when she saw Ben and Clara emerge from the back room, and she heard them talking about the impending surgery on their little girl. She could see that they were on edge. The elderly gentleman with the bandage on his hand moved on past them and out the door.

As Ben and Clara sat down near her, Melinda said, “Mr. and Mrs. McDonald, my name is Melinda Kenyon. I was here when you brought your little Robin in. Do I understand correctly that she’s about to undergo surgery?”

“Yes,” said Ben. “Mrs. Logan called it peritoneal surgery. But she assured us that Robin will be all right. Dr. Logan is about to do the surgery right now.”

Melinda pressed a smile on her lips. “Well, let me assure both of you that Robin is in the best of hands. Dr. Dane Logan is an excellent surgeon.”

Clara took hold of Ben’s hand. “Thank you, Miss Kenyon. It is
Miss
Kenyon, isn’t it?”

“Yes, ma’am. I’m waiting right now for my fiancé and my parents to arrive.”

Even as she spoke, Melinda’s attention was drawn out the large window as she saw a buggy pull up to the hitch rail. Her heart leaped in her chest as she jumped to her feet and bolted for the door. “There they are now! They’re here! They’re here!”

Outside, George Kenyon was helping Hattie out of the buggy while Dr. Tim Braden was tying the reins to the hitch rail when they saw Melinda burst through the door, tears flowing.

Tim vaulted the rail, gasping, “Oh, thank God! Thank God! Melinda, sweetheart, I love you!”

“I love you, too, darling!” she cried as he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her soundly.

They clung to each other, both weeping for joy.

When George and Hattie drew up, tears flowing from their eyes, Tim let go of Melinda and stepped back so they could embrace her. People on the street were looking on, as were Ben and Clara McDonald from the office window as both George and Hattie took Melinda into their arms.

Tim waited a minute or so, then joined them, making it a four-way embrace.

Melinda caught her breath, and anxious to tell Tim and her parents all about her experiences, found her words tumbling on top of each other. She stopped, took a breath, and said, “I’m sorry. Let me start again.”

“Whoa, now, honey,” said George with a lilt in his voice, “let’s find a quiet place, and you can tell us where you’ve been, and all about what happened to you.”

“Oh Papa, of course. I’m sorry to run on so, but I’m so very eager to tell you all about it. Let’s go inside the doctor’s office. I’ll slow down and start at the beginning.”

“Good girl,” exclaimed George, giving his daughter another quick hug.

Taking Tim’s arm, Melinda retraced her steps back inside the office while her parents followed.

Ben and Clara were seated once again, but smiled as the group came in. Melinda introduced Tim and her parents to the McDonaldses, explaining that Dr. Logan and Tharyn were doing surgery on their ten-year-old daughter at the moment. She then said to Ben and Clara, “You can tell that we’re having a reunion here. You’ll understand it all when you hear me tell my story to Tim and my parents.”

Ben said, “Maybe we could go elsewhere, so—”

“Oh, no,” Melinda said. “You need to be right here when Dr. Logan comes out to tell you about Robin’s surgery. We’ll just go over here in the corner.”

The foursome sat down together with Melinda facing them, and George, Hattie, and Tim each touching her as she slowly related her story, starting with her fall into the South Platte River. Ben and Clara listened intently.

As Melinda told the story in detail, every eye was glued to her, and they hung on every word.

When Melinda finished the account, tears streamed down Hattie’s face and a small sob broke the silence. “Oh, Melinda,
how courageous of Dr. Logan to tell Chief Tando he wanted to take you with him! And how grateful we are for our heavenly Father’s faithful care of you all of this time! We—we thought you had drowned … that the river had claimed your life. What a marvelous miracle to find you alive and well! I—I guess in one sense we owe Latawga a debt of gratitude. He did save you from drowning.”

Melinda drew a shuddering breath and wiped tears. “Yes, he did, Mama. And I thanked him for that. But I have no desire to ever see that village again.”

George wiped a palm over his mouth. “Well, those Indians made a servant of you, honey, but they did feed you, and they never harmed you. I’d at least like to tell them that I appreciate this. And I’m sure Tim does, too. Maybe Dr. Dane would accompany Tim and me to the village, and we could express our appreciation to them.”

Tim was holding Melinda’s hand. “I’d be happy to ride with you and Dr. Dane to the village, Mr. Kenyon. The chief’s son saved Melinda from drowning, and in that sense, also gave
me
my life back. Or if Dr. Dane would tell us that our going to the village would not be good … maybe next time he sees Chief Tando and his son, he could convey our appreciation for us.”

Just then the back room door came open, and Dr. Dane appeared with a smile on his face. He glanced toward Melinda and her small group, and his smile broadened as he nodded at them, then said to the anxious parents, “The surgery went well, and Robin will be fine. I found the source of the infection, and it’s taken care of.”

Clara’s eyes misted. “Oh, thank God!”

Dr. Dane looked at Clara. “I’ll give you some medicine to ease Robin’s pain for the next few days, and I’ll give you instructions on how to keep the incision from getting infected. She’s coming out from under the ether now. I suggest that you find a way to cushion
the ride home for her. I’ll come to Nederland in a couple of weeks and remove the stitches.”

Tharyn came from the back room carrying Robin, and soon the couple drove away with their drowsy daughter in Clara’s arms on the back seat of the buggy.

The Logans, the Kenyons, and Dr. Tim Braden then had a good time rejoicing in Melinda’s return. The Logans closed the office and led the rest of them as they walked to a nearby café.

When they first began eating, George brought up the gratitude he felt toward Latawga and Chief Tando. When he asked Dr. Dane if he would accompany them to the village so both he and Tim could express their gratitude, Dr. Dane said, “I really don’t think it would be wise for Melinda’s father and her husband-to-be to present themselves at the village, though your intentions are good. Tell you what, I’ll be seeing Latawga and the chief on Monday. I’ll express your appreciation to them for you.”

George and Tim accepted this, and thanked Dr. Dane for doing this for them.

As lunch went on, Dr. Dane said, “When we’re done here, I’d like to take all of you to the parsonage so you can meet Pastor Mark Shane and his wife, Peggy. Pastor Shane has had the church praying for you all as you’ve carried the grief of Melinda’s death.”

“Bless his heart,” said George. “I’d love to meet him and his wife.”

“We’d have let the Shanes know Melinda was alive yesterday, but they’ve been out of town and were to arrive back this morning. They’ll sure rejoice when they get to meet the living Melinda and her loved ones!”

“This will be good,” said Hattie. “We certainly want to thank Pastor Shane for having the church pray for us.”

“Then we’d best head back for Denver,” George said. “You want to ride to the parsonage in our buggy?”

“That’ll be fine,” said Dr. Dane. “The church is several blocks from the office.”

When lunch was over, they left the café and walked toward the doctor’s office. They were almost there when Tharyn pointed to a buggy moving along the street and said, “Look, Dane. There’s Pastor and Peggy now. They must just be getting back to town.”

“Sure enough,” said Dane, and stepped into the street, waving his arms at the Shanes. Tharyn moved off the boardwalk and stood beside her husband.

The pastor guided the buggy to a halt where Dr. Dane and Tharyn stood. He smiled and said, “If you’re looking for a good doctor, mister, I can recommend one.”

Dr. Dane laughed. “Really?”

“Mm-hmm. Dr. Robert Fraser. He used to own the practice that Dr. Dane Logan owns now. Dr. Logan’s office is right over there, but Dr. Fraser is presently semiretired. He just works for Dr. Logan when he needs him. But Dr. Fraser is really very good. I highly recommend him.”