It appeared her father had come with her. Good. She hadn’t come alone. Maybe things were better between the two.
“Whoa.” Whitney’s calm voice echoed through the earlymorning quiet. She steered the sled up to him, her fur hood framing her face. “How is everyone doing, Doctor?”
“Better.” He sent her a smile. “Much improved, actually.”
“Good.” She started unloading supplies.
“Good to see you, Mr. Powell.” Peter stuck out a hand in greeting. “Did you have any luck finding your brother-in-law?”
The man shook his head. “No, not yet. It’s getting difficult to hold out hope.” Whitney’s father lifted a box out of the sled. “I wanted to help you with the sick. I hear it’s hit the gold camps too.”
Peter frowned. Not good news. “I hadn’t checked in with any of the gold camps outside of Nome. Is it bad? How long have people been sick?”
Powell ran a hand over his beard. “That I don’t know. That was the news as we left camp yesterday.”
“Well, be sure to let me know if you get any specifics or find out where the sick are. This spreads fast, and the sooner we can get a handle on things, the better.”
The sound of voices behind him made him turn.
Amka rushed Whitney and hugged her. “It is so good to see you. Thank you for fetching the supplies that were needed!”
Within seconds, two of the younger boys had food and water for each of the dogs. Peter watched the animals. He needed a team sooner rather than later. It didn’t hurt that this would give him more time with Whitney.
He looked up at her and watched her lively conversation with Amka and her family. The weariness had eased from her face as she talked with her friends. She reached down and lifted one of the littlest ones. How natural she seemed with the child. She laughed and covered the toddler’s face with kisses. He could imagine her doing the same with her own child—a little redheaded girl with curls like her own.
She glanced at him, a question in her eyes. Had she noticed him watching her? Peter forced his gaze away and fiddled with the crates.
The people went to work distributing the supplies, and Whitney walked over to him. “I’m glad to hear things are better. Are the children past the worst?”
“I believe so. Last night, the rest of the fevers broke, which is a good sign.” He shoved his hands into the pockets of his coat.
“Good.” She lifted her arms and then let them fall at her side. “I was hoping to be able to help you with your patients, but if things are better, do you need me to take you back to Nome soon?”
“Your father was telling me that there was sickness among the miners.”
The news made her frown. “That can’t be good. Especially with the conditions at the camps and so many people within close proximity.”
He nodded. “Exactly. But as of right now, I don’t know which camp to check first.”
“And there are quite a few of them out here.” She toed the snow with her boot. Her brown eyes shadowed.
Was she not feeling well? “Do you have another headache?”
She rubbed the back of her neck. “It’s a twinge really. Not as bad as they have been.”
Now was the perfect time. He took a tentative step forward. “I had an idea last night about your headaches.”
“Oh?”
He took the opportunity to step even closer. Gold flecks in her brown eyes caught his attention. How had he never seen that before? A few curls had escaped her long braid and moved with the wind. Her attire, which matched that of thenatives, was very fetching. The deep caramel color of her sealskin pants and tunic was quite a contrast to her fair skin.
“Peter?” She leaned forward and tapped his arm. “Peter?”
“I’m sorry.” He coughed into his hand and tried to cover his embarrassment. “I’m wondering if you might actually suffer from what we call hypertension.”
Her brow wrinkled. “Hypertension? What is that?”
“It’s when the blood pressure within your body gets too high.”
