Streams of Mercy (30 page)

“Easy there. Don’t go jumping around.”

She stared down at him. “I did not jump. I just jiggled.”

Astrid had to laugh. That was Inga all right. Be careful that what you said was accurate. She caught her husband’s eye, and he winked at her. Even this was better than just on the telephone. “Thank you,” she mouthed.

“Ma, when are you coming home?”

“I’ll be there as soon as my germs can’t make you or anyone else sick.”

“There is a sickroom at our house, you know.”

“I know, but I need to stay here, where Dr. Astrid and the nurses can take care of me.”

Inga looked at her, no more joy on her face. “Did you get the dip, dip-ria.”

“Diphtheria. Possibly.”

Astrid closed her eyes. Inga was too smart for her own good. What other child would have picked up on a slip like that?

“From all the people you been taking care of?”

“I hope you get to ride on the elephant.”

“Me too. When is the circus train going to leave? I wish we could see the circus. Pa won’t let me even go look at the lion, but I heard him roar. Pa, can we go fishing tomorrow for the sea lions? Emmy said they catch fish for them every day. I haven’t seen her forever either.” She huffed her disgust and down she went.

Astrid could hear her giggling and Daniel laughing. Someday maybe they would have a little girl or several girls and boys as well.

Elizabeth reached up for Thorliff’s hand and laid her cheek against it.

Inga and Daniel got her back up on his knee.

“We’ll come back tomorrow. I know, we’ll bring the wheelbarrow, or I could bring Roald in the wagon, then Onkel Daniel won’t have dents in his leg.” She sobered again. “Thelma and me, we pray for you and all the sick people every night and I pray during the day too.”

“Thank you.” Elizabeth blew her daughter a kiss. “And I’m sending you a hug too.”

Inga blew a kiss back and then one for her pa. “I drew you a picture, but I forgot to bring it. I’ll bring it tomorrow.”

“Good. And I’ll put it on the wall so I can see it.”

Dear God, please don’t rip this family apart.
Please.

C
HAPTER 23

B
y morning the rash had deteriorated to a suppurating wound as the bacteria ate through the epidermis and into the next layer of tissue.

Thorliff stared at it, then at Astrid. “Not like poison ivy or anything I’ve ever seen.”

“We’ve seen it here, on one of the men from the train, but that had ulcerated clear down to the bone. Let me check your glands.” She palpated his jawline and more in his neck. “Swollen. Is your throat sore yet?”

“More scratchy but nothing to be concerned about.” He started to roll his sleeve back down but stopped at her command.

“I have bad news, I’m afraid. All this points to diphtheria for you too, just starting differently than the others.”

He stared at her, then shook his head. “I-I thought I was beyond the danger point.”

She wagged her head. “’Fraid not.” Was she getting calloused or just detached? She refused to acknowledge that this patient sitting on the examining table was her brother. He was a patient who had to be treated for a disease.

“But I’m not even old or young. I thought those were the primary victims. Astrid, this can’t be.”

“The positive side is that you are healthy, you do not live in squalor, and you’ve not been cooped up with folks getting sicker and sicker around you to the point of dying. Many victims, most actually, live through this and become immune. Now, we pray not only for healing, but for a light case, and we are starting treatment at the very first sign. Now, please, just do what we tell you and—”

“Will my being with Elizabeth make her any worse?”

“No, but perhaps we should not tell her right away. She feels so guilty already that she asked you to help the night the train arrived.”

“The night we should have sent them on their way.” He shook his head. “Charlie Becker was so much smarter than we were. He saved Grafton, and we let the demon into Blessing.”

“As Reverend Solberg says, the past is past. You can’t change it, so don’t waste your time dwelling there.”

“Ja, well right now . . . What about Inga and Roald? They’ve been with me.”

“We’ll have to watch them carefully. They did not have contact with the ill here like you did. That spot on your arm—you might have had a bit of a scratch or some such for the bacteria to invade.”

“What will you do?”

“Scrub it with carbolic acid, apply poultices, honey, like treating a boil or some other infection. Make sure you get lots of sleep, all the things we are doing for the others here.”

“I really didn’t think it would get me.”

“As soon as we treat it, you can go back to Elizabeth. Make sure she gets fluids, food, and all we can do for her.”

“Let’s get on with it.”

“I’ll send in Sandra. Just wait here.”

“Astrid, can you call Devlin and ask him to come by? We have to get the paper out.”

“He should be here anytime.” She left the examining room, gave instructions, and returned to her office, closing the door behind her. How would she tell her mother this news? And Andrew?

Later that morning, when the train arrived, Daniel and the new intern pushed the handcarts with supplies over to the hospital, accompanied by three student nurses. Astrid met them at the door.

“Welcome. You have no idea how much we appreciate your coming. Thank you, Daniel.” She smiled at her husband, wishing she could go home with him and sleep for a week or at least a day in her own bed. His smile in return said he felt so too.

“I am Dr. Astrid Bjorklund.” She beckoned them in. “And I know you must be Dr. Johnson.” He smiled and shook her hand. As she nodded to the others, each of them said her name.

“Rose Kendricks.”

“Ethel Brand.”

“Alice Williams.”

“Now, since we are under quarantine, once you are here, you will not be allowed to leave. We take turns sleeping in the other ward. I’m sorry to say we have to share beds, unless you choose to sleep on a pallet on the floor.” She watched their faces, trying to gauge their responses. “I hope they prepared you for the siege we are under.”

While Reverend Solberg and Dr. Johnson wheeled the boxes into the supply room, she showed the nurses where to put their suitcases.

“Dr. Astrid!”

“Excuse me. You will find aprons in the supply room on the shelf.” Wiping the perspiration from her forehead, she headed down the ward to where Vera was holding a convulsing child.
“Suction his throat and bring him into the steam room.” She placed her stethoscope on the boy’s chest. “Heart rate up. Come on, son, hold on a while longer. We thought you were improving.” He lay limp in Vera’s arms.

“He’s not breathing.” Vera carried the child into the steam room, and together they held him over the steaming kettle. “There, he is now.” Astrid tented a towel over their heads. Hot as it was in the hospital, this room made them drip immediately. But it helped, if nothing else, to help the sick relax as the airways cleared even the smallest amounts.

Astrid heard Miriam taking over introducing the newcomers to the rest of the staff and the way of the hospital. “We also have a tent full of folks from the circus train that we are taking care of.”

“The train that brought diphtheria to your town? Correct?” the resident asked.

“Yes. They briefed you in Chicago?”

“Yes, but none of us have worked with diphtheria.”

“I know you must be tired from your trip, but people here are exhausted too. Our head nurse is sleeping now. We all do whatever needs to be done. Most of our patients need close to full-time care. Dr. Commons is healthy, but our other full-time doctor has contracted the disease and is getting worse by the minute. So, Dr. Johnson, if you will scrub and work with Dr. Bjorklund.” Miriam paused. “I hope you brought a uniform. All we have are regular nurses’ aprons.”

“I did. Where do I change?”

“The bathroom would be all right.” She pointed in the direction. “I will assign each of you to two patients to start. Dinner will be in an hour, but we try to feed around the clock for those who have so much trouble swallowing.”

Astrid headed for room one. Time to check Elizabeth again.
Both of them were sleeping, Thorliff in the chair by her bed. His neck was now visibly swollen. She carefully unwrapped the dressing on his arm. It was worse too. Much worse. She wrapped it in clean bandaging. “Thorliff, please go lie down on the other bed.”

“I can help you.” The rasp in his voice startled him. He laid his hand on his throat and blinked. “Getting worse, right?”

She nodded. “You have to drink. Fill your glass from that pitcher and keep drinking. I can work more if you will move to the other bed. Our new staff members arrived a bit ago. I’ll be right back.” Back to the kitchen for broth in a cup and a spoon.

When Dr. Johnson joined her in room one, he asked, “Why are you not using a straw?”

“We have run out of them, and patients with diphtheria are not able to suck in the liquid due to the swelling in the throat.”

He nodded. “We did bring a box of straws. They are in the supply room.”

“Thank you.” She shook Elizabeth gently. “Time to get more into you.” She set the cup and spoon on the bedside stand. “Let’s get you sitting up.”

Elizabeth nodded, but as soon as she tried to move, the cough wracked her so hard the bed shook.

Astrid motioned to the young man to assist with getting the pillow in place.

Thorliff swung his feet up on the bed, watching them as he sipped.

With Elizabeth propped up, Astrid wiped her face with a warm cloth and introduced her helper.

“Thank you for coming.”

He had to lean down to hear her. “You are welcome.” Automatically he took her wrist and counted for her pulse, then looked at Astrid, eyes slightly widened. She nodded back.

“If you would please check her heart and lungs, then her throat after she drinks some.” She held the cup to Elizabeth’s mouth. She swallowed several times before she started coughing again. “I have the cough syrup right here, but you need some broth first.”

“Sorry. How is Thorliff?”

“Drink.”

“Steam room?”

“After this.”

It took both her and Dr. Johnson to help Elizabeth to the steam room, but they quickly got her settled in a chair near the steaming kettle.

“Can you sit by yourself?”

She shrugged before tipping her head back on the cushion, her eyes drifting closed. “I can’t . . . cough . . . anything up.”

“I know. Doctor, will you please go ask Miriam for the cough syrup.” Returning to Elizabeth, she continued. “I should just carry a bottle in my pocket, much as we go through.”

“It . . . helps.” A pause, then, “Thorliff?”

“Neck worse, running a temp, and the ulcer is still there. We’ll keep treating it.” She would not tell Elizabeth that the ulcer was out of control, not responding to treatment.

After they put Elizabeth back to bed, she beckoned Astrid closer. “So tired. You take care of Thorliff.” With pauses between words, she was even harder to understand, the weak voice fading in and out.

“Of course.”

“After.” But she drifted off to sleep before Astrid could ask her what she meant.

That evening after supper and the patients were readied for the night or the next round of nursing, Astrid left instructions to be awakened if any emergencies occurred and gratefully sank
into bed. She needed to tell . . . But that thought didn’t even get finished.

Deborah woke her with a touch and a whisper. “Astrid, come quick. Elizabeth.”

Astrid didn’t bother to put her shoes on, just dashed to room one.

Thorliff was holding his wife’s hand, tears streaming down his face. He smoothed her hair back and kissed her, then turned to Astrid. “She’s gone. I was watching her, and she gasped once and quit breathing. She could still breathe. Why did she die?”

Astrid dropped her stethoscope back around her neck. “I am sure her heart gave out.” She mopped the tears streaming down her own face and stroked Elizabeth’s cheek. “I think she knew it was coming.”

“How could she?”

“Sometimes people just know. All I know is she is out of pain and home in heaven.”

She came around the bed and put her arms around her older brother. “I’m sorry, Thorliff, I’m so sorry.”

He sobbed on her shoulder. “How do I tell Inga? Roald won’t understand, but Inga knows about heaven. After all, Far is there.” He stared at Astrid. “I can’t even tell her, can I? Through the window? If only I could send her out to Mor. Is it safe to do that yet?” He coughed so hard and long he couldn’t catch his breath. “Astrid, I
have
to get well.” He gasped between words.

“I’ll get the cough syrup.” She turned to see Deborah and the others in the doorway, tears streaming down their faces too.

“I’ll get it,” Deborah said. “We should have wakened Reverend Solberg. I’ll do it now.”

Astrid shrugged and handed her brother the glass of water. “Here, drink this. That will help and . . .” Her voice trailed off as a fresh wave of tears caught her. When it came, she poured
the syrup into the cup on the stand and handed it to Thorliff. “Drink this slowly, and let it coat your throat.”

She turned to the bed of her dear sister-in-law, feeling they were really closer than sisters with all they had been through together. Ignoring her burning eyes, she gently pulled the sheet over Elizabeth, telling her good-bye as she did so.

“I’m so sorry,” Reverend Solberg whispered as he came into the room. “Thorliff, Astrid, I would like to read the prayers over her and for you before you move her.”

Astrid nodded and looked to Thorliff, who had moved to the chair and taken his wife’s hand again. “Do you want to be alone with her for a while?” Thorliff shook his head.

After folding back the sheet from Elizabeth’s face, the reverend opened his book and made the sign of the cross on her forehead. “Our Lord God is welcoming you home, we know, but we are bereft,” he said, his voice cracking on some of the words. “Please, Lord, may thy grace and peace surround us all, and the comfort only thou canst give.” He closed his book. “I know there are no words to convey my sorrow, but we do know God is right here with us. He promised to never leave us, and He has not for a moment left Elizabeth alone either. Heaven is as close as the last breath she breathed.”