When they reached the magnolia tree, Carsten stopped. “I need a rest. I…” He winced and a low groan escaped. “My ribs took a beating, and I’m having a hard time breathing. I think they wanted to scare us, and they succeeded.”
“Doesn’t look as if they’re following us,” Amos said. “How badly hurt are you all?”
“Just a few bruises,” Edmund said.
Kit took his left hand off his right arm. “I got a pretty good cut, but otherwise, I’m good.”
“I’m okay, too,” Amos said. “He got a blow on my head, but I’ve got a thick skull. Carsten?”
“Something’s not right with my shoulder. It got hit hard and hurts more than my ribs.”
Amos came over and touched Carsten’s left shoulder. Pain radiated through it, and Carsten let out an involuntary groan.
“Let’s go to my ranch. Pa’ll know what to do better than your ma.”
Carsten nodded. “Okay. Lead the way.” He held his arm against his stomach and took a few steps.
“You gonna make it?” Kit asked.
“Yeah. Let’s get there before I pass out.”
Carsten kept his eyes on the friend in front of him. Running had been fine because he hadn’t felt the pain yet. But after the break, the pain gradually got worse until he couldn’t stop thinking about it. He tried to keep his mind anywhere but on the excruciating pain. Not an easy feat. Fire shot straight through his shoulder and into his arm and left side. Walking jostled it, even though he tried not to let it.
By the time they stumbled into the Bar X’s ranch house, his vision had narrowed. He sat on the nearest chair and tried to keep his shoulder completely still. As he sat there, he prayed silently. God, we need more help. I don’t know who, but we need someone else to finish this investigation. Help us, please!
“Carsten.” Obadiah’s voice sounded far away, but he was touching Carsten’s bad arm.
Carsten took a deep breath and winced at the pain it caused.
“Carsten,” Obadiah continued, “I need you to stay awake for me. Open your eyes.”
They were closed? Carsten used his last effort to pry them open.
“There you go. Now, Amos said your shoulder hurts. What happened to it?”
“Someone hit it hard with a club,” Carsten ground out.
“Okay. I’m going to have to touch it to see if I can feel any damage.”
Carsten gave a quick nod and took in a slow, deep breath.
Obadiah poked and prodded Carsten’s shoulder for a few seconds. “It’s dislocated. I need to pop it back in place. It won’t be pleasant, but you should have almost immediate relief.”
Carsten didn’t have a chance to reply before he was moved onto his back on the floor with a hand holding his.
“All right,” Obadiah said as he put a foot on Carsten’s shoulder gently. “One, two.”
Carsten’s shoulder exploded in even more pain, and his vision went dark. The next thing he knew, he was lying on the settee in the parlor, and his three friends were there chatting with Obadiah.
Carsten sat up slowly with a light groan. His shoulder still hurt, but it was an ache rather than burning fire.
“You’re awake!” Edmund exclaimed. “Told ya he’d be fine.”
“Fine?” Carsten questioned. “Not sure that’s the word I’d use.”
“How’s the shoulder?” Obadiah asked.
“Better. Thanks. I guess I passed out?”
“Yes,” Amos said. “We thought you’d be more comfortable on the couch in here than on the floor.”
“Thanks.” Carsten rubbed his head. “What do we do now?”
“You should get home before your ma worries too much,” Obadiah said.
Carsten nodded. “I will, but first we need to talk. We need to bring in someone else to investigate this. We botched it tonight.”
Amos shook his head. “Not completely. We know Carey Eldridge and the marshal are in on it, as well as at least one other mystery man.”
Obadiah cleared his throat. “You should contact the Texas Rangers. They’ll be able to take over.”
Carsten hesitated. More law enforcement. What if they were corrupt, too, like the town marshal? As soon as he thought about it, he berated himself. Even if one or two were corrupt, not all of them would be. “I’ll figure out how to send them a message tomorrow.”
Edmund came over. “You sure? Maybe someone else should.”
“No. If I need someone else, I’ll have Ma come get you. Or have her send the message to the Rangers.”
Kit and Amos joined Edmund. “Do you want us to walk home with you?” Edmund asked.
“No, I can get there myself.”
Obadiah rested a hand on Carsten’s good shoulder. “Stay safe and do not hesitate to come for help, if you need anything. Especially with the farming. Oh, and I suggest asking your ma to put together a sling for your arm and taking it easy with your shoulder for a couple of weeks.”
Carsten gave a light groan. “I’ll try to do that. Talk to you guys later.” He stood and headed for the door. Three sets of footsteps followed him, and he turned. “Guys! I’ll be fine. You can stop hovering over me.”
“Sorry,” Kit said. “You’re hurt worse than we are. And we’re concerned.”
“I know. I’ll take it easy for a few days.”
“Weeks,” Amos interrupted.
Carsten clenched his teeth. “I’ll try.”
“And you’ll tell us when you need help?” Edmund asked.
“Of course. Don’t I always?”
“No,” Carsten’s friends said in unison.
Carsten shook his head. “You’re right. I’ll do better this time. I need to get home before Ma gets too worried.”
He let himself out of the house and slowly made his way home. He needed to think, and his shoulder still hurt if he went too fast. He sucked in a deep breath and instantly regretted it. No more deep breaths. His ribs still ached some unless he kept to normal or shallow breathing.
He needed to pray. God had gotten him through the last couple weeks, and He could get him through this, too.
* * *
“Ma?” There was a lamp lit on the table when Carsten opened the door.
Ma stirred on her rocking chair. “Carsten? That you? Are Amos, Edmund, and Kit with you?”
“No, they’re at the Bar X Ranch.”
She stood and came over. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
She just stared.
“Okay…” He inhaled slowly and told her everything that had happened.
Ma put a hand on his right arm. “Oh, darling. Take your shirt off and let me take a look. I’ll make a sling so you can keep some pressure off that shoulder.”
Carsten unbuttoned his shirt with his good hand and carefully shrugged the material off, wincing as he straightened his left arm.
Ma directed him closer to the lamp.
“Oh, my poor baby. You will have some good bruises on this arm. Let me put some salve on it.”
“Thank you, Ma.”
“That’s what mothers are for.”
He watched as Ma found the salve. He tried to ignore the pain as she rubbed the liniment on his arm and shoulder. It hurt at first, but then the aching started to get better. “What is that?”
“It’s a liniment I bought a while ago. I’ve added a few things to it that I think will help.”
“Such as?”
Ma chuckled. “You probably don’t want to know.”
“True. It’s helping, so whatever’s in it is good with me.”
“Good. Now, I’m going to work on a sling for you, and I want you to sleep on your back tonight.”
“Sleep? Who said I was going to sleep?”
Ma spun him so he had to look at her. “You will at least lie down. If you don’t sleep, fine. But it would be good for you if you did.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“And you are going to take my bed. I don’t want you climbing that ladder. I will not take no for an answer. I’ve been climbing ladders a long time and can do it for a couple days. I’m not a cripple or invalid, and don’t you dare say anything about my age. I’m not as spry as I was when I was your age, but I’m still able to climb ladders. Who do you think goes up to the hayloft to make the kittens tame?”
Carsten’s eyes widened more with each word she said. “Yes, ma’am. I’ll sleep on your bed. Or try to sleep. And I won’t say another word about it.”
Ma disappeared for a bit and came back with a triangular piece of cloth. “Put your arm across your chest so it is comfortable.”
He did as she said.
She slipped the material under his arm and tied it around his neck. “Is that okay?”
“It’ll take some getting used to, but it’s fine.”
“Good. Now go to bed. I’ll bring your clothes down tomorrow.”
“Oh!” He tapped a finger on his head. “We need to go somewhere to contact the Texas Rangers tomorrow.”
“We can talk about that in the morning. Try to get some sleep.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He paused. “Ma. Do you know Mr. Jenkins?”
Ma spun around. “Why do you ask?”
“No reason. Just curiosity. He mentioned it when I was out there, and for some reason, all this reminded me. Probably because he looked like he got hurt a few times.”
Ma smiled. “He did. When we first moved here, your pa and I had a rough go of it. Mr. Jenkins stopped by one day and helped Foster for a couple days. He seemed like a sweet man. I always wondered why he stayed a hermit.”
Carsten shrugged with his good shoulder. “He didn’t say. But I’d like to go visit him again sometime. Maybe you could come with me.”
“I’d love to. Now go get some sleep.”
“Yes, Ma. I’ll try.”
Carsten went to her room and lay flat on his back on top of the blankets. He wasn’t cold and shouldn’t get chilled anyway. He took a deep breath and let it out, closing his eyes. Sleep. He knew he needed it, but with his mind racing the way it was, he didn’t think he’d get any.
Not much later, stabbing light streamed onto his face, and he winced. He slowly opened his eyes. The sun shone in the window. He didn’t have a window in his loft. Where was he? Oh. Right. Ma’s room. The smell of coffee hit his nose next, and he rolled carefully out of bed. His shoulder ached, but otherwise, he wasn’t terribly sore anywhere else. Even his ribs seemed better.
A fresh pair of pants and a shirt were on the chair next to the bed, and he smiled. Ma was a sneaky one. He dressed carefully and discovered how hard it was to pull pants on with one arm.
He shuffled out of the room into the main area. “Mornin’.”
“Good morning, Carsten. How are you?”
“Not too bad, considering.”
“I’m glad. I’ve been thinking. Let’s go to West Prairie to send the telegram.”
Ma handed him a cup of coffee, and he took a sip of it before responding. “I was thinking the same thing. I don’t want to risk anyone in town knowing we’re contacting the Rangers.”
“Exactly. I’ll come with you. I wouldn’t mind seeing if there’s anything new in the stores there.”
“And you want to keep a close eye on me.”
Ma winked. “Of course. I know you, Carsten. And I know you will overdo it at some point. I can’t stop that, but I can try as much as possible to prevent you from overdoing it.”
Carsten groaned. “Ma, you are too smart.”
“I know.”
“Well, all I need is a little something to eat, and then we can go.”
“I happen to have some muffins made. But I’ll whip up some eggs as well. You sit there and drink your coffee. Before we leave, I also want to rub some more liniment into your shoulder.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
An hour later, they were on their way. By the end of the day, the Rangers would have their message and hopefully be sending some people Carsten’s way.