Page 185 of Conveniently Wed
His gaze drifted to the roof, but his focus seemed to be mostly inward, wandering to images playing in his mind. “Not really. I remember being there with the bear charging right at me. I got a shot in him, but it only made him madder.”
Gideon’s eyes closed and his dark brows pulled together, as if thinking was a challenge. “Drifter charged him, but the bear knocked him away. I thought he was a goner. Then the bear had me in the air. I landed next to my gun. I remember shooting, but that’s all.” Gideon’s eyes fluttered open again, but were dull now—exhausted and spent from reliving his nightmare.
She brushed the hair from his forehead again. “God saved you for something special. But now you need to rest again. It’s time to sleep.”
He seemed to agree, for his eyelids had already drifted closed.
After watching him a moment, she crawled the few feet back to her blanket by the wall and curled up against the bricks. But it was a long time before sleep claimed her.
Leah awoke to the sound of metal clanging across the room. She jerked her head up, but was slowed by a sharp pain in her neck. A survey of the kitchen showed Miriam bent over the work table, pressing hard on something.
As Leah stretched and began to untangle herself from the blanket, her gaze drifted to where Gideon lay on the floor. The pain wasn’t etched as deeply on his face this morning, and his breathing was steady.
She made a wide berth around him as she stepped toward the kitchen. Good thing she’d removed her noisy boots.
“How’re you this morning?” she whispered to Miriam when she drew close.
Miriam whirled, her red-rimmed eyes searching, preparing for the worst. Leah winced at the fear there, and couldn’t help but pull the girl into a hug.
Miriam’s body relaxed against her, and Leah stroked her back while she spoke. “He did very well last night. Woke up a couple times and I gave him tea, then he went right back to sleep. He’s in a bit of pain from some broken ribs, but in a few weeks he’ll be better than new.”
Miriam nodded and sniffed, then pulled away, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. “I know. It’s just hard to see him like that.”
Leah wanted to agree, but she didn’t need to make it harder on Miriam. So she didn’t respond. Instead, she gave the girl’s back a final pat and stepped away. “I’ll go feed the animals and milk Bethany. Do you need anything while I’m out?”
“Oh, let me go, Leah. I meant to do that before you woke up but got stuck with these biscuits. I’d rather be outside, even in the cold.”
It seemed the little magpie was returning to her usual demeanor. This young lady was resilient, to say the least. “If you want. I’ll take over breakfast, but make sure you bundle up.”
As soon as Miriam left, Leah surveyed the biscuit dough spread across the work table and the haphazard pile of dough circles that had already been cut. She couldn’t help but smile.
By the time Miriam blew back through the door in a flurry of wind and cold air, Leah had the oats boiled, the gravy keeping warm on the back of the stove, and a pan of biscuits about ready to come out of the oven.
“Brrr.” Miriam stepped around her brother to put more wood on the fire. Of course, this bustling entrance awakened Gideon.
“Come on, lazy bones. It’s time to get up.” Miriam turned her back to the fire, apparently to warm that side of her, but it probably had more to do with watching her brother’s reaction to the teasing.
He offered a weak smile. “Just waiting for you to get my chores done.”
She eyed him knowingly. “I thought that might be the?—”
Her last words were drowned out by an explosive cough from Gideon. His body wracked in a combination of a wheeze and a cry.
Leah was at his side in a moment, helping him lay back and stroking the hair from his face. Her heart raced as he fought through the pain to catch his breath.
“Miriam, can you please get some pillows—at least three or four. We need to get him propped up so his lungs stay clear.”
Miriam—white-faced again—disappeared into her bedroom first, then Leah’s. She brought two pillows to Leah. “I’ll climb up to the loft and get the two from up there.”
Leah poured some of the echinacea tea she’d been brewing for Gideon, and added another log to the fire.
When Miriam returned with the last two pillows, Leah knelt beside him again. “We’re going to raise you up and put pillows under your back.” She bent down to catch his gaze. “I don’t want you to do any of the work to sit up, do you understand? Just let us lift you.”
He raised a dark brow at her, but only said, “All right.”
With her and Miriam on either side of him, they managed to get the pillows under his upper body so he looked more comfortable. Miriam stepped back, and Leah held up the mug for him to drink. “This will keep you from getting sick.”
He tried to take it from her, but Leah kept a hand at the base. His fingers were shaking a bit, and she didn’t want him to dump hot tea all over himself. The last thing he needed was a scalding on top of those deep wounds.
