"You do that Addy! I know that I can be a pest, I'm just really excited about this new life I've chosen for myself." Angie said, "Now, how is the bachelor fare in town? I'm not exactly looking for a husband, but a woman should have some knowledge of what's available. And entertainment, I know it won't be like Chicago, but there must be some kinds of distraction from the daily grind."
That was a number of important questions for a woman alone in a new town, at least to Anigies way of thinking. Especially about eligible men and entertainment, aside from the obvious saloon types. Then again, the hospital might have her going from daylight to dusk, leaving little time for men or entertainment. But that was what she signed on for to work in the hospital, regardless of the hours.
Sit down, shut up, don't touch anythin'
"Good part's it's not like Chicago, right?" Addy chuckled, "else ya could'a just stayed there, an' not had th' chance ta run inta a moose or grizzly!"
Addy didn't mind the chatter, even though she wasn't used to it, and she found that it made the time go faster for them. She happily regaled her captive audience with the lay-out of the town and a telling of the odd assortment of characters that inhabited it.
A short stop to have lunch and let the horses rest, and they were on the way again. "We'll be stoppin' at one'a th' stage line's swing stations," she explained. "They're spaced about a day's ride apart, small cabins, most of 'em, with barns where they keep a fresh team'a horses ta switch out when th' stage comes by. Sometimes folks stay over night, other times just long enough ta use th' outhouse!"
They wouldn't be switching teams, of course, since these were Addy's own horses, but at least they'd have a nice place for the night. "Ol' Man Colbert minds th' place, he's a real nice man, good cook, an' he's got all kinds'a tall tales!"
"The good part is I left Chicago!" She replied. "Addy, you have no idea how it is in a city like that. How crowded, and how dangerous, especially to be a woman living and working there. I'm sure wherever we're going it will be a whole lot better, and safer than Chicago."
The idea of the way station intrigued Angie, she was used to buildings right next to buildings, with cobblestone streets. A cabin in the midfdle of nowhere? Somehow it was something she would need to see, and Addy had said they would spend the night there, a change from sleeping in the wagon. The part she was most interested in was the fact that this Mister Colbert was a good cook. This place never ceased to amaze her.
"I can't wait, this just sounds so amazing, but I suppose Kalispell and a hundred other places out here started with just one cabin." She theorized. It must have started like that most everywhere.
Sit down, shut up, don't touch anythin'
"There it is!" Dusk was just falling, so the shadows were long over the small cabin, and the barn and corral across the yard from it. It was a bit odd that Mr. Colbert hadn't come out to greet them, surely he'd heard them approaching? But he might be out doing something?
"Seems quiet," she murmured, looking around for anything out of place. Setting the brake, she jumped down to the ground. "Hey! Pops! Ya here?" There was no answer...
"Ya mind checkin' in th' cabin, I'll look in th' barn." Just in case, she grabbed the shotgun and handed Angelique her pistol.
(Cabin is empty, fire is out, food still on the stove, like it was deserted a couple days ago)
Once she stepped down, she checked the loads, satisfied, she snapped the loading gate shut and hefted the weight of the pistol then started for the cabin door. Now this was a conundrum, she had never approached any place with a loaded gun in her hand, she was a bit unsure what she was supposed to do other than open the door and step inside, so that is what she did, pushing the door open and stepping cautiously inside.
There was no one in the first room, though there was a pan on the stove that had food in it, overcooked as if it was left in a hurry. She checked the rest of the cabin room by room, before returning to the main room, where she stepped outside. The area was beautiful, that was for sure.
She wanted to call out and let Addy know that the cabin was empty, but decided against it, there was a reason she was sent to the cabin and Addy took the barn. Mayube the red man? There could be any number of reasons why, she would know soon enough.
Sit down, shut up, don't touch anythin'
The barn was empty as well, and the horses stabled there hadn't been looked after for at least a day, there was no water in their buckets, and the stalls were far messier than they should have been.
Something was definitely wrong!
Heading for the house, Addy looked around the yard for any indication of what, exactly, was amiss, but there was nothing out of place.
"Angelique?" She peered in the door of the cabin, spotting the doctor. "Anything?"
But then she frowned and held up a finger. Off in the distance was the faint sound of a dog barking. "Sounds like Gus," she commented, looking at Angelique, then she asked, "Didja hear that? Sounds like someone callin' fer help. C'mon, stay alert!"
Alert for what, she didn't know, but Addy headed off into the deep shadows of trees and brush to the north of the cabin.
Angie and Addy, there was a combination for you! One was a big city doctor, the other an experienced frontier woman and teamster. Now they had a problem on their hands. As Addy headed out into the brush and trees, Angie followed, trusting Addy knew what she was about. And yes, she had heard the weak call for help, as well as the dog doing the same. She marveled at that.
Oh, the Laurant family had had dogs as she grew up, dogs they took hunting, and laid around the house, but this somehow seemed different. This animal had stayed with its master, or so she hoped. It might be an Indian trick, or perhaps a desparado, but then she asked herself why? This cry was a person who was injured. She had heard that too many times to mistake it for anything else. Pain has a certain sound to it, one difficult if not impossible to duplicate.
Her bag was back on the wagon, but it would be easy to get to, it was never far from her reach.
Sit down, shut up, don't touch anythin'
They had made it perhaps a hundred yards into the trees when a big, shaggy mutt lumbered up to them out of the shadows, whining and wagging his tail.
"Gus!" Addy scratched the dog's ears as he ran up to them, then let him go, following after him. "Pops!" she called, there was a low groan in reply. Glancing at Angelique, she nodded and plowed on, despite the brush and brambles tugging at their skirts.
It was only a few moments later that they came on the prone figure of the station master.
"Pops!"
"My leg..." the man muttered, "stupid of me..."
Hopping over him so Angelique could get to him, Addy knelt and checked his leg...caught at the ankle in a badger trap. "I gotta get somethin' ta open this," she told the doctor, "ya all right waitin' here?" Not that she expected Angelique to say 'no', but she wouldn't blame her if she felt unsettled being alone in the woods.
"Yes, I'm fine, get what you need and let's get this trap open and off of his leg so I can treat him. My bag's in the wagon, but maybe we can get him into the cabin and go from there." Angeie said as Addfy raced off, "Hello Pop's, I'm a doctor, my name's Angie, and well, I'm brand spanking new out here, but medicine is medicine so we'll be alright, I promise you that! We'll be just fine, Pop's."
Now just how fine she wouldn't know until they got him in the cabin and the wound cleaned out, but it did not look all that bad from what she could see. "How long have you been out here?" The answer would go a long way to understanding what they might have to do aside from the obvious loss of blood. The trap had done the damage, but it also served to help stem that blood loss.
Oh, the cleverness of me!
"Hello Pop's, I'm a doctor, my name's Angie, and well, I'm brand spanking new out here, but medicine is medicine so we'll be alright, I promise you that! We'll be just fine, Pop's."
"Doctor?" The man's eyes widened a bit as he smiled weakly and reached up to touch her cheek. "An' here I thought ya was an Angel!" Sighing, he closed his eyes and let his hand drop. Gus curled up on his other side and laid his big doggy head on his master's chest. "Guess I'm not dead yet?"
"How long have you been out here?"
"Oh, um...dunno..." His voice was low and weak, his skin pale. "Two days, maybe. Need to see to th' horses...they'll need food an' water. 'M I gonna lose m' leg?"