Page 295 of Conveniently Wed
Jim pulled the team to a stop at the edge of the front walk and hurried down to help Garrett carry the injured man.
Nora hustled out of the wagon and ran inside the house before Jim and Garrett made it to the porch steps. Aundy trailed along behind, uncertain what she could do to help.
“Bring him in here,” Nora called from a room off the large living area.
Heedless to the mud dripping from all their clothes, the men carried Erik into the bedroom and carefully placed him on an oilcloth Nora had yanked from the kitchen table.
“That should keep the bedding from being ruined,” Nora said, watching as Garrett and Jim removed Erik’s boots and the outer layers of his muddy clothing. Erik groaned. Though still unconscious, his hands tightened into fists. When he coughed, drops of blood dripped from the corner of his mouth.
Nora grabbed a rag from the basket of supplies she set by the bed and wiped Erik’s face. Shaking her head, she left the room and took Aundy along with her while Jim and Garrett removed the rest of Erik’s muddy clothes. Quickly stoking the stove in the kitchen, Nora filled a big pot with water and set it on the stovetop to heat. She returned to the sink and began filling another large pot. After she set it on the stove, she moved the teakettle to the front to heat faster. When Garrett and Jim entered the room, she filled a bucket with warm water.
“I’m afraid to do too much more until the doc gets here,” Garrett said, nodding toward Aundy. “Maybe you can help her get cleaned up, Ma, and see about setting her arm. Looks to me like it’s probably broken.”
“What?” Nora spun around. Aundy held her arm against her side, her face pale and pinched with pain. “Why didn’t you say something earlier? I would have set your arm before we ever left my house.”
“We need to see to Erik first.” Aundy’s legs felt weak beneath her and dizziness started to overtake her. “I’ll be fine.”
“My lands, child,” Nora said, taking control of the situation. Gently placing her hand on Aundy’s muddy shoulder, she directed her to sit in one of the kitchen chairs. “Garrett, you and Jim take this water and these rags and see what you can do about cleaning Erik. Just be careful. We don’t know what might beinjured.” Nora handed Garrett the bucket full of water while Jim took a stack of rags and a couple of towels.
Aundy began to shiver, whether from the shock or her cold, muddy clothing she didn’t know. White-faced, she sat in the chair and pinched her lips together in an effort to keep from fainting. Other than being knocked out when the wagon wrecked, she didn’t plan to lose consciousness again.
Anxious to focus her attention on anything other than her arm and Erik lying injured in the other room, she noticed a basket packed with food on the counter. It was most likely the cold supper Erik mentioned Nora prepared.
“It was nice of you to provide supper for us.” Aundy used her good hand to motion to the basket.
“My pleasure. It’s not every day a new bride moves into the neighborhood. Erik was so excited about you coming, he nearly burst his buttons.” Nora smiled as she filled yet another kettle then set it on the stove. “We hope you’ll enjoy being a part of our Pendleton community. The town is definitely growing and we need good families to help lead it in the right direction.”
“I didn’t have the opportunity to see much in town, but it looks like you have a nice variety of shops and stores.”
“Yes, and if there’s something you want that’s not available in town, the mercantile can order just about anything.” Nora decided Aundy had to have a bath before she could do anything with her arm.
Garrett and Jim returned with a pile of dirty rags and damp towels. Quietly opening the kitchen door, Garrett stepped off the porch and dumped the water on a nearby bush then rinsed the mud out of the bucket before setting it on the end of the counter.
“How is he?” Nora asked, watching Garrett.
“Same. I think we got rid of most of the mud. We wiped down the oil cloth and put one of your old blankets over him.” Garrettleaned over and whispered something to Nora, causing her to nod her head with a grim expression.
Nora rolled up the sleeves of her dress to her elbows. “Can you boys run back down to the wagon and get Aundy’s trunks? She’ll need clean clothes to wear and I doubt Erik has anything here fit for her to put on. You had better take care of Erik’s horses, too. We’ll pray the doc shows up soon.”
“Yes, Ma,” Garrett said, opening the door. “I think Erik gave all the hands orders to stay away from the house the rest of the day, so I don’t know that any of them will be around to offer assistance. Once we get the horses cared for, I’ll see about rounding them up.”
“Good.” Nora pointed toward the back door, indicating it was time for Garrett to get out of the kitchen.
“Let’s get you cleaned up, honey. Garrett helped Erik put in a bathroom recently, once he knew you were coming. Not too many farm wives have indoor plumbing, but Erik wanted to make sure you had every convenience he could provide. He thought it might be hard for you to get used to country life and wanted to do what he could to make you feel at home.”
Astonished by Erik’s thoughtfulness, Aundy couldn’t speak. She nodded her head mutely and blinked back her tears.
“I’ll run the bath water then we’ll get you out of those muddy clothes,” Nora said, bustling out of the kitchen and down a short hallway. Aundy heard water running and looked forward to getting out of her filthy clothes and scrubbing away the mud.
Nora returned to the kitchen, carrying one of the old towels she brought from home.
“Take off your muddy clothes, honey, and wrap this around yourself, that way you won’t be dragging all the mud along with you.” Nora set the towel on the table while Aundy got to her feet and tried unsuccessfully to unbutton her dress with one hand.Nora helped remove her clothes and wrapped the towel around her.
Embarrassed to be in need of assistance, and from a complete stranger, Aundy’s pink cheeks flamed through the mud splattered on her face.
“Go soak a while and by the time you’re ready to get out, the boys should be back with your things.” Nora pointed toward the bathroom.
As the woman hurried down the hall, Aundy glanced at her arm, glad to see the bone didn’t poke through the skin. Maybe it was just sprained.
