The doctor entered the room and immediately pushed Isaac aside. He took the chair Isaac had been sitting on and placed his bag on the cot beside Addie.
“What happened to her?”
“We think her brothers attacked her,” Isaac said. “But we don’t know for certain. They are around and have great hatred for her, so it stands to reason.”
“She’s nearly dead. I must get her to the emergency hospital,” the older man declared after a cursory examination. “It’s at the north end.”
Pearl cried and buried her face against Otis, while Isaac stood in silence. In that moment, he knew he was capable of murder. He wanted nothing more than to kill Hiram and Shep Bryant.
“I can carry her,” Isaac said, tamping down his rage.
The doctor nodded. “Then let us hurry.”
The expo’s emergency hospital was quite a ways from the photography shop, and once there, it became apparent that they didn’t have all the necessary things to help Addie.
“I have a car,” the doctor announced. “We’ll take her to Seattle General Hospital.”
“I’ll go with her,” Isaac announced.
“May I also accompany her?” Pearl asked.
“Of course, but we must hurry. She’s bleeding, and the pressure building in her head must be relieved.” The doctor motioned to Isaac. “Bring her to my car, and let’s hurry.”
It was nearly nightfall before Isaac heard any report on Addie’s condition. She had been sent to surgery, and he and Pearl had sat waiting for some word. At six o’clock, a doctor clad in white surgical clothes appeared.
“I’m Dr. Anderson. I operated on Miss Bryant. Are you her family?”
Isaac got to his feet. “We are.”
The doctor nodded. “She’s in stable condition now, but she’s suffered a terrible ordeal. Her arm is broken, and there are multiple lacerations on her back from what appears to be a whipping.”
Isaac gripped the back of the nearest chair. Pearl came to his side. “Will she live?” she asked in a strong, steady voice.
“She will. At least, I have every confidence that she will, now that we’ve relieved the pressure in her brain. You’ll be happy to know that we were able to do the surgery without shaving too much of her hair. I know that’s important to most ladies.”
“I wouldn’t care if she was bald, so long as she’s going to be all right,” Pearl declared.
“Can we see her?” Isaac asked.
“Not tonight. She must rest. I don’t have any idea of when she’ll regain consciousness, but I suggest you come back tomorrow.” And with that, he was gone. Hurrying away to no doubt help someone else.
Isaac turned the chair around and sat down hard. He had been so afraid she would die. What would he have done if she had died? He’d spent so long trying to find her ... knowing that she was the one and only woman he would ever love.
He lowered his head in weary sorrow.Please, God, let her heal and live.
“Isaac, we only live a few blocks away. Why don’t you come stay with us tonight? It’s close enough to walk.”
He barely processed Pearl’s words. “I can’t leave her.”
“You heard the doctor. No one can see her tonight. Come on home with me. I’ll get you some supper. There’s no sense in letting yourself get sick. Addie’s going to need all of us to get through this.”
He looked up at Pearl. “I want to kill her brothers. I know that’s shocking, but I cannot help myself in thinking the world would be a better place without them.”
“I agree and feel the same, but we both know murder isn’t in us to do. We might think it is as we rage over what has been done to our dear friend, but God did not make us that way, and He certainly hasn’t grown us that way.”
“I feel as if I’ve failed her over and over. It’s no wonder she doesn’t want me.”
“She wants you, Isaac. She’s just afraid.”
