Cast
“It’s definitely broken,” Dr. J. Edward Simpson assured Daniel once he reached the hospital located on D Deck, which was just one deck below where the incident had taken place.
Daniel had already ascertained that bit of information, but hearing the medical expert confirm it made it no less difficult to swallow. “What now?” he asked.
“Well, first I’ll set it, which will likely be quite painful, then I’ll cast it, which will take quite some time, and then in a month or so, depending upon how it heals, you can have a doctor in New York, or wherever you’ll be residing, remove the cast,” Dr. Simpson explained.
“A month?” Daniel exclaimed, looking at Charlie and shaking his head in disbelief.
“It’ll be all right,” Charlie assured him.
“But how am I goin’ to work with a cast on my arm?” Daniel questioned, rubbing his good hand along his forehead and into his sand-colored hair.
“Don’t worry about that. There are a lot of jobs you can do with one arm. Listen, right now, you need to focus on feeling better so you can make it back downstairs to your wife and daughters. Let Dr. Simpson do his job, and let me worry about everything else, all right?”
“I don’t know what to say,” Daniel began, a look of gratitude on his rugged face.
“This isn’t charity,” Charlie reminded him. “As far as I’m concerned, you’re an employee now, so I need you fixed up and back on the job.”
“Yes, sir,” Daniel replied with a grin, despite the enormous pain. “Still, I never expected…”
“Well, as much trouble as that little girl of yours is turning out to be, you can at least be thankful that she brought us together,” Charlie replied. It appeared as if Dr. Simpson was ready to get to work. Turning his attention that way, he asked, “Is there anything I can do to help, Dr. Simpson?”
“Yes, Mr. Ashton, if you don’t mind, holding him still would be quite helpful,” the doctor replied.
Charlie wasn’t quite sure how qualified he was for such a procedure, but he didn’t think it could be too difficult, so he got into position as directed by the middle-aged physician.
After a few moments of feeling the break, Dr. Simpson said, “Now, Mr. O’Connell, this is going to hurt. A lot.”
As the doctor began to force the bone back into place, Charlie felt Daniel’s entire upper body stiffen and found it almost impossible to hold him still. However, just when Charlie was quite certain Daniel could take no more, the doctor was done. “There we go,” he was saying calmly, as if he had not just made a grown man cry. “Now, I will start to work on the cast. It will likely take at least six hours to dry.”
“Six hours!” Daniel repeated, wide eyes, still brushing tears from his cheeks.
“Possibly longer in this humid air,” Dr. Simpson admitted in his even tone.
“I can’t sit here for six hours,” Daniel implored, shaking his head.
“I’m afraid you’ll have to,” Dr. Simpson stated as he readied himself for the casting. “I can’t risk letting you get up before it dries. If you displace the bone, we’ll have to set it again. And I’m fairly certain you do not want me to have to do that.”
“No, sir,” Daniel answered quickly.
“Good, then let’s begin,” the doctor replied and set about casting the broken arm.
“I’ll go speak to Kelly and make sure she knows you’re all right. Then, I’ll come back and check on you,” Charlie offered.
“Again, thank you so much, Mr. Ashton,” Daniel said, careful not to move his arm one iota as Dr. Simpson worked.
“Certainly,” Charlie said before disappearing out the door.
Charlie met Jonathan just a few steps out of the hospital ward, headed his direction, a worried expression on his face. “Jonathan, did you get Meg and the baby back to their quarters safely?” he asked.
“Yes, they’re fine,” he assured his friend. “I ran into Kelly. Is Daniel doing all right?”
“He is, though it was a pretty terrible break,” he confirmed. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a tough man like Daniel O’Connell cry, but setting that bone seemed awfully painful.”
“That’s too bad,” Jonathan replied, nodding his head politely at a couple as they passed by in the crowded corridor. “I’m glad it wasn’t something more serious. And that you caught Ruth before she fell overboard.”
Charlie shook his head. “That girl is something else.” Burying his hands in his pockets, he let out a deep sigh and added, “I hope she learned her lesson this time.”
“She’s certainly a little spitfire,” Jonathan agreed, scratching his head.
“I’m going to go let Kelly know how Daniel is doing and that the doctor said it will take about six hours for the cast to set,” Charlie continued.
“Six hours?” the valet repeated. “That sounds awful. What can I do?”
“Nothing right now, I guess,” Charlie admitted. “We should probably go check on him in a few hours, though. Do you know the O’Connell’s room number?”
“Yes,” Jonathan replied. “It’s E 204.” Charlie repeated the number, and then Jonathan added, “All right, I’ll head back to my room for a while then. See you in a bit.”
Charlie nodded and headed off toward the stairs that led to E Deck thinking, if nothing else, at least he’d have another opportunity to see Meg.
* * *
“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,” Kelly exclaimed just above a whisper as she made her way into the cabin. “You’ll never believe what your niece has done now.” She plopped Ruth onto her bed, handing her a doll that had been Meg’s at one time. “Lie down girly, and say your prayers, thankin’ the Lord that He kept you safe.”
Meg had been lying on her bed reading a book, but she had all of her attention focused on Kelly now. “What happened?” she asked.
Kelly checked on Lizzy, who was still sleeping, and then sat down on the edge of Meg’s bed, careful not to hit her head. “She almost fell overboard pretendin’ the railin’ was a horsey,” Kelly explained. Even retelling it now seemed painful, and Meg’s eyes widened in horror at each word. “Just as she was about to tumble into the water, Charlie reached her and pulled her back over. If he hadn’t been there, well, I think she’d be gone.”
“Oh, my!” Meg exclaimed, her eyes wide in astonishment. “How did she…. What …. Did she….”
“She slipped away again. We took our eyes off of her for just a moment, and when we turned back, she was gone. Then we spotted her climbin’. I tell you, Meg, I don’t know what to do. And Daniel slipped and broke his arm. He’s at the hospital now gettin’ it fixed up.”
“What? Is he all right?” Once again, Meg could hardly believe her ears.
“I hope so. I don’t know. I needed to get her back here. Charlie took him. I just….” She paused and turned to face her friend before continuing. “Meg, it’s as if God placed him directly into our lives, you know?”
Meg wasn’t sure what to make of that comment, so she dismissed it. “I’m glad nothing worse happened,” she finally said, still shaking her head.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
