Chapter 1
December 15th, 1897, Fort McKinney, Wyoming
Dr. Matthew Inglis was restless. He’d barely been back in Wyoming for three months, and it already felt too familiar. Despite his best efforts to be sent elsewhere, it seemed that his orders were to finish his military service here. He’d spent more than three years posted at Fort McKinney when he’d first joined the army, only then had he been permitted to go further afield. It had driven him half-crazy, being stuck there. So much for the life constantly on the move that he had been promised. And now, just three postings later, and he was back where he’d started – though he only had another week until his time in the army was up completely. He could bear it. And then, heaven alone only knew where he would go next.
He had considered re-enlisting, but being forced to go where the military sent him hadn’t exactly fulfilled his need to wander and be free of the strictures that staying in one place entailed. He had hoped to move regularly and see different things, but the inside of one military hospital was much like any other, the work the same, and the rules and regulations that bound his conduct had been stifling at times. So, now, he would be leaving in just a few weeks, but he had nowhere to go, and while the thought excited him, he had to admit that it was also a little daunting.
He dressed quickly for dinner and checked himself perfunctorily in the cheval glass in his quarters. He had to admit that he certainly looked good in his uniform, and he would miss the attention from pretty young ladies that it brought him at military functions. He ran his finger under the tight collar and winced. He would not miss the scratchy, heavy wool of it though, or its restrictive nature. It was like being in a furnace when he had to dance, and the stench of the wool if it got wet made him stink like a wet dog.
He peeked out of the window. The threatened storm had not yet arrived, but the clouds looked a little ominous. He prayed that the rain stayed off until he’d gotten safely inside General Holkham’s house on the other side of the Fort. It was one thing to return home a bedraggled and offensive smelling mess, but it certainly would not make for a pleasant dinner if he arrived that way. He turned out the lamp and hurried out along the corridor of the barracks, across the training yard and through the arch that led to the senior officers’ quarters.
Thankfully, the rain held off until he was safely under the cover of General Holkham’s porch, where he knocked on the door and waited patiently for the door to open. Mrs. Holkham opened the door, smiling. “Well, Captain Inglis, how lovely to see you. I’m so glad you could come,” she said tucking her arm through his and leading him inside.
“I am delighted to have been invited,” Matthew said politely.
“My dear niece, I think you have met Angelina before, is here staying with us along with her mother and father, and I could think of no pleasanter company for her than you.”
“You’re too kind,” Matthew said. Angelina Holkham was a very pretty young lady. She danced beautifully, could paint and play the pianoforte with some skill, and sang like a lark. Many men would consider an evening in her company to be a reward, but Matthew had to stifle a sigh. For, sadly, despite her many charms, Angelina was terribly dull. She did not read, had no interest in current affairs, and only talked about herself and her own achievements. Had he known that she was the reason for his presence here tonight, he would have claimed too much work at the hospital.
He forced himself to smile, and let Mrs. Holkham lead him into the library, where General Holkham and his brother were smoking their pipes and drinking scotch whisky. General Holkham was an imposing man, with a barrel chest that looked like it was about to burst out of his uniform. Though of only average height, his bulk conveyed a sense of gravitas, and stability that was oddly reassuring. Well-respected by his men, and his superiors, he was a good man, too. Matthew saluted him, clicking his heels together audibly, the movement of his arm sharp and deft. “At ease, Captain. This is my home, not the parade ground.”
Everyone chuckled, even though he said the same thing every time – and woe betide any man who hadn’t offered him his due deference before receiving this platitude. “You remember my brother, Earnest?”
Matthew nodded to the rather portlier version of General Holkham standing by the fireplace, clad in a beautifully tailored suit, though like his brother there seemed to always be a little too much strain on his buttons. “I do, Sir,” Matthew said, giving him a nodding bow. “It is a pleasure to see you again. How is business in Sheridan, Sir?”
“It goes well, Captain Inglis, I am glad to say,” Earnest said happily.
“And your wife and daughter are here tonight, I understand? It will be a pleasure to see them again.”
“They are and are looking forward to seeing you. Angelina has some very exciting news she wishes to tell you,” General Holkham said handing him a glass of whiskey and raising his eyebrow discretely as he did so, in a way that told Matthew that he was well aware of Matthew’s lack of interest in the young lady. “And there is a gentleman I want you to meet. I think he may be of use to you when you leave us, though I am still hopeful that I will be able to convince you to re-enlist.”
“I’m afraid my time in the military is most certainly over, Sir,” Matthew said firmly. “It has been a long six years and I am looking forward to life in the normal world.”
“You’ve been an asset the military can little afford to lose, my boy,” the general said. “But we will have to soldier on, I suppose.” Matthew was saved from responding by the sound of a bell ringing.
“Dinner is served,” Earnest said, patting his rather formidable belly. “Shall we go through?”
Entering the dining room, Matthew was surprised by how many guests there were present. A table was laid for twenty-two, a number that seemed almost unthinkable in a dining room of this size, yet somehow the long table did not look cramped. He spied Angelina standing towards the end of the dining room by the French doors. He waved and nodded to her politely. She smiled and waved back, bobbing a tiny curtsey, but she did not leave the side of the tall, rather gangly young man by her side.
As everyone took their seats, Matthew was not surprised to find himself on Angelina’s left-hand side. The young man she had been with earlier was to her right. “How are you, Miss Holkham? It has been some time since I last saw you,” Matthew said politely.
“I am well,” she said, her cheeks a little flushed. She smiled and turned to the gentleman to her right. “This is my Archie,” she said, gesturing towards him with her hand. Matthew could not miss the glint of the large diamond upon her ring finger, and it was clear she had not meant him to. “Archibald Glossup. His father owns half the mills in Wyoming.”
“A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Glossup,” Matthew said. “How did the two of you meet?”
“My father has been doing some business with Mr. Holkham,” Mr. Glossup explained. “He introduced us.”
“How long ago did you propose? I can see that Miss Holkham is still delighted by it, that it cannot have been long.”
“He asked me just this weekend past,” Angelina said happily. “And made me the happiest girl alive.”
“I am delighted for you both. Is this the news that your father told me of before dinner?”
“A part of it, no doubt, but I think he has something else he wishes to tell you about, too,” she said, tucking her arm through her fiancés and smiling as he kissed the back of her hand. It was clear that the two of them were truly content with one another, and as the dinner wore on, Matthew came to see why. Both were as dull as each other, interested only in the same trivial things. It was a relief to find that Mr. Holkham had been seated to his right, so he might enjoy at least a modicum of good conversation throughout the meal.
As they finished their desserts, Mr. Holkham stood up and tapped gently on the edge of his wine glass. The company fell quiet and looked at him expectantly. He beamed at them all, looking as proud as a peacock. “Thank you all for coming tonight, and to my brother and his dear wife for hosting our little gathering this evening. We are here to celebrate the betrothal of my dear, only daughter, to Archibald Glossup. He is a fine young man, from an excellent family.” Mr. Holkham raised his glass just a little and nodded his head towards a couple a little way down the table. They smiled back nervously and raised their glasses in return. “I am honored to welcome them all to our family. To the happy couple.”
“Here, here,” everyone around the table cried as they got to their feet and toasted the happy couple.
It took a while for everyone to take their seats again, and then General Holkham stood up. “I would like to invite any of the gentleman present to join me in the library, where we may smoke away from the disapproving glances of our wives and womenfolk, and they may retire to the parlor to gossip and do whatever it is they do while we puff on cigars and drink brandy.”
Mrs. Holkham rolled her eyes but smiled at her husband. He kissed her hand before leading the gentlemen from the room. Once inside the library, Matthew wasn’t entirely surprised to see that young Glossup hadn’t joined them once again. He was clearly besotted with his bride-to-be, and unwilling to be parted from her. Matthew took a cigar from the general’s silver box as it was offered around and a glass of French brandy. Mr. Holkham sought him out, once he’d spoken to Mr. Glossup senior for a few minutes. “Good news, eh?” he said, as he set his glass down upon the mantel and rubbed his hands briskly in front of the fire.
“I am happy for them both, they seem very content together.”
“Even if they aren’t, it’s a finer match than I could have hoped for,” Mr. Holkham admitted as another gentleman joined them. “But, Captain Inglis, this man here is the surprise I have for you. This is Dr. James Hartshorn” Matthew reached out his hand. Dr. Hartshorn took it and shook it firmly while looking searchingly at Matthew. His eyes were a piercing blue and made Matthew feel a little uncomfortable even though Matthew looked into the doctor’s face just as intently.
“He’s opening a hospital in Sheridan,” Mr. Holkham continued. “And it’s about time. He has need of doctors like yourself, Matthew.”
“That is kind of you to say, Sir, though as you know I’m not really looking to settle anywhere in particular.”
“That might suit me even better,” Dr. Hartshorn said with a slight smile.
Mr. Holkham grinned at them both, picked up his glass and with a polite nod, he excused himself, leaving them alone to talk. Matthew turned his attention back to the man beside him. Dr. Hartshorn was tall and thin, with dark hair that was greying a little at the temples. He looked distinguished and reminded Matthew of some of the men he’d attended medical school with, the ones that had impeccable breeding and no real need for a profession at all. The kind of men that he had despised for their vanity and silliness. Matthew tried hard to suppress his initial impression, which was to dismiss him as a hobbyist, at least until the man had spoken a few words.
“I understand that you will be leaving the military soon,” Dr. Hartshorn said.
“I am,” Matthew admitted cautiously. “But I don’t know that I want to be tied to a hospital in Sheridan. I’ve spent longer in this part of Wyoming than I ever intended to.”
Dr. Hartshorn smiled. “Gerald warned me that you would say something along those lines. I don’t need doctors happy to stay in one place. Those are ten-a-penny. What I need is doctors who are happy to move around, where the need is greatest at short notice.”
Matthew’s brow furrowed quizzically. “I’m not sure that I understand, Dr. Hartshorn.”
“I own and run ten hospitals, mostly in South and North Dakota, a couple here in Wyoming, and even one in Billings, Montana. There are often shortages of qualified doctors, and it can be hard to fill them at a moment’s notice, so I decided to create an alternative company – one that can supply my hospitals with what they need, when they need them. Nurses, doctors and so forth.”
“But that sounds a little precarious. What if there is no place to send your floating doctors to?”
“It would be a rare occurrence indeed. In truth I have more gaps than I can fill at any one time, as many doctors outside of my own hospitals have seen the benefit of being able to call on me to fill a post at short notice, too. Medicine takes quite a toll, don’t you find?”
Matthew nodded, quickly revising his impression of this man. What he said was true. The work was hard and long, and full of hazards. It did not take much for a hospital to grind to a halt if just a few staff were unwell themselves. “Keep talking,” he said. “I think you may be onto something.”
“I rather hoped you’d say that, and I cannot tell you how much it would mean to me to have you as one of my locum doctors. The general never stops telling me how brilliant you are. To have a man of your skill and dedication on our team, well, that would almost guarantee our success.”
“Don’t flatter me,” Matthew said firmly. “Just tell me what I need to know.”
“How would you feel about going to Montana for a few months to get you started?”
“I’m interested, what precisely would I be doing there?”