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Jesse’s eye opened. “Why?”
“Because you might like a little privacy.”
He didn’t answer, but his grip loosened on the sheet.
She faced the window. Outside, a wagon rattled past the clinic. Behind her, Nate lifted the cup and spoke quietly to his brother. Jesse coughed once, then managed to swallow.
Josiah had hated having an audience for the smallest things. Eden had learned to offer help without requiring gratitude for it.
“That’s enough,” Nate said. “I need to examine his ribs. Miss Whitcomb?”
“I’ll wait outside.”
Jesse’s eye followed her to the door. She couldn’t tell whether he’d object to her leaving or staying. For once, she spared him the trouble of deciding.
The clinic’s front room was crowded. Emily sat near the stove with Bass at her side, while Carolina cleared a place at the table. Simon and Maddy had apparently been discussing something, though both fell quiet when Eden entered.
Near the far wall sat the young woman Eden had noticed when she first arrived at the clinic. Her faded dress and tightly drawn shawl were much the same, but now Eden saw the girl couldn’t have been much older than herself. She kept twisting the fringe of her shawl around one finger, her attention fixed on the sickroom door.
Carolina beckoned Eden to the table. “Sit. You’re worn out.”
“I’ll be all right.”
“Then you can be all right with a cup of coffee.”
Eden sat. Emily put a thick slice of bread and jam in front of her, and the first bite reminded her how little she’d eaten since morning.
“How was he?” Emily asked.
“He drank some water. He would be pleased to see me on the next stage east.”
Emily winced. “I’m sorry.”
“Please don’t apologize for him. He’s had a terrible couple of weeks.”
Bass folded his arms. “He doesn’t want anyone seeing him like that.”
“Then don’t make him receive visitors before he’s ready.”
“He’s my brother.”
“I know.” Eden set down the bread. “Josiah once refused to let our mother into his room for three days. He couldn’t bear for her to see him struggle. When he finally asked for her, she’d spent those days certain he hated her.”
Bass’s expression changed. He pulled a chair close to Emily’s and sat, though his attention remained on the sickroom door.
Carolina joined Eden at the table. “You cared for your brother after his injury?”
“For three years. I’m no nurse, but I learned his habits. We kept a record of what troubled him and what helped. Some days a sound or a smell upset him, and he couldn’t explain why until much later.”
Emily leaned forward. “Jesse said something about a piano.”
The young woman near the wall stopped twisting her shawl.
Eden kept her attention on Emily. “Was he near one when he was hurt?”
“At Miss Marcy’s,” Carolina said. “Izzy was playing.”
Eden glanced toward the girl. So, this was Izzy, the young woman Jesse had been trying to protect.
