The Heart Remembers Read Online Free Page A

bullets were flying.”
    Tharyn’s eyes widened and her jaw slacked. “Oh no! You seem all right. Were any of the Drummonds hit?”
    “No. I’ll tell you all about it later. Right now let’s get in there to those patients.”
    Dane began with the woman with the broken hand, and had taken care of the other two patients by the usual closing time—five o’clock. They closed the office and stepped up to Pal, who whinnied a greeting to Tharyn. Dane hoisted her up into the saddle, then swung up behind her and put Pal into motion.
    “Tell me now, darling, about the Indians at the Drummond ranch,” Tharyn said.
    While they rode toward home, Dane told her of Chief Tando’s son being shot; of the rest of the Ute band being chased by the patrol from Fort Junction, of his caring for Latawga’s wound, and of taking him home to the Ute village.
    Dane went on to tell Tharyn of Chief Tando’s change of heart about white people because of the compassion he had shown to Latawga; of Chief Ouray coming to Tando’s village in four days and that he was going with Chief Tando and Chief Ouray to Fort Junction so Tando could make peace with Colonel Perry Smith, sign a peace treaty, and try to get his captured warriors released.
    Tharyn hipped around in the saddle, smiled at her husband, and said, “Oh, Dane, I’m so happy to hear this! I hope this will cause the rest of the renegade Ute chiefs to make peace, too!”
    “Wouldn’t that be great?” he said with a wide smile.
    As they turned off Main Street, Tharyn said over her shoulder, “Dane …?”
    “What, honey?”
    “Something really strange.”
    “What?”
    “Well, today, I’ve had Melinda on my mind so much in spite of trying to keep all those patients comfortable while waiting for you to arrive.”
    “Well, sweetie, that doesn’t surprise me. You’ve told me all along that she is still in your thoughts every day.”
    “Yes, but today, it’s been so much more.” She was quiet a few seconds, then said, “Maybe it’s because of Pastor Shane’s sermon last Sunday night about that great cloud of witnesses in Hebrews 12:1. It seemed to bring Melinda closer to me.”
    Dane nodded. “Well, Pastor made it very clear that those people in heaven are looking down at us, and they know a great deal of what we’re doing down here.”
    “I like the way Pastor put it when he said that great cloud of saints in glory are gathered in God’s heavenly amphitheater, looking down at us as we run the race down here in the arena right now. While he was preaching, I was picturing Melinda up there, cheering us on.”
    Dane pictured the reunion that was about to take place between Tharyn and Melinda, and his heart pounded his ribs.
    Tharyn choked a little as she said, “Dane, do you suppose up there in heaven, Melinda knows how very much I miss her?”
    They were turning into the yard. Dane was trying to think of a way to answer, when Tharyn noted the smoke coming from the kitchen chimney at the rear of the house. “I didn’t expect the logs in the kitchen stove to last this long.”
    “Oh. Well, I haven’t mentioned it, but I stopped by the house before coming to the office earlier. I put another log on the fire.”
    “Wanted to make sure your supper was hot when we both got home, eh?”
    Dane hauled Pal to a halt at the front porch and slid to the ground. As he raised his hands up to help her from the saddle, he said, “Well, for sure after this hectic day, I want my supper hot at suppertime, yes. But … ah … sweetheart, I came by the house before going to the office for another reason, too.”
    “What was that?” she asked as he was lowering her to the ground.
    “Oh, I … have a little surprise for you.”
    “A surprise? What is it?”
    Dane laughed and hugged her, then looked down into her soft blue eyes. “If I told you, it wouldn’t be a surprise, now, would it? Let’s go in and you can see it for yourself.”
    As they were moving up the porch steps, Dane