Lifeblood by Ann Funk

Author:Ann Funk
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Western historical fiction, nineteenth century, Mormons, Nevada, Utah, San Francisco, women in medicine, mining, water rights
ISBN: 978-1-56474-763-1
Publisher: Daniel & Daniel Publishers
Published: 2012-09-10T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER XII

Schlossheim

Carson Valley: 1865

When Sarah got back to the Cheneys’ after the ball, she sat looking out the window at the abruptly darkened town. Although exhausted, she was unable to sleep. Gerald Joselyn’s stirring comments, the lavish banquet, her prize; but most of all Giovanni Corbeddu—his mysterious island past, his previous knowledge of the Saints, his eagerness to learn to dance—reeled through her mind, so that it wasn’t until nearly dawn that she finally drifted off.

When she awoke, though, her first thought wasn’t of Gio, but of the amount of time she’d spent frivolously since returning to ­Genoa—the amount of time she’d spent sewing her dress for the ball, the amount of time she’d spent listening to the latest gossip, the amount of time she’d spent simply relishing her return to the town she’d grown to love. A sense of urgency washed over her, a need not only to apply what she’d learned during her apprenticeship, but also to think about the whereabouts of her future home, once Katherine’s sister had arrived to take her place.

The Cheneys’ baby, a little boy, was born a week later; and since the delivery was difficult and demanded the use of forceps, Dr. Mordecai braved the first winter snow to deliver him.

“You could have done this yourself,” he said to Sarah afterwards, as she swabbed the squalling infant and the exhausted mother’s forehead. “All you would have needed was an hour or two of training in midwifery. Have you found someone to do this for you yet?”

“Not yet,” Sarah said, as she applied a solution of ergot to Katherine’s birth canal to slow the bleeding. “I’ve been weighed down with chores, especially cooking, since Wong’s been in Virginia City caring for his sick mother. But now that the baby’s been born and Katherine’s sister is coming, I’ll try to find someone.”

The doctor closed his medical bag and prepared to leave.

“You have great potential, Sarah,” he said, pausing briefly at the door. “I hope you won’t take it lightly.”

The next day Katherine received a telegram from her sister, Hannah, apologizing for her delayed arrival. Owing to recent storms, stage travel between Great Salt Lake and Carson City had been either canceled or postponed. She said she was looking forward to her visit, not only because she hadn’t seen Katherine in three years, but because she sometimes felt stifled by the beliefs and practices of her husband, whose zeal as a Mormon convert far exceeded hers.

Two days later, apparently having heard of the arrival of the newborn, Henry, Wavi appeared at the door bearing a rabbit skin blanket to keep him warm.

After thanking her, Sarah felt at a loss as to what to say next. During the two years of her apprenticeship, she’d had almost no contact with her former Washoe friend. Her new world of medicine was a universe apart from Wavi’s who, along with her people, relied solely on herbs or shamans in times of medical need. But as Sarah observed her smile and wide-eyed expression of trust, it didn’t seem to matter.

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