Chapter 5
January 6th, 1898, Eagle Creek, Montana
Rachel climbed down from the carriage onto the platform and glanced around her, shivering. Thankfully, despite the thick drifts of snow she’d seen from the train, the platform was clear of snow and ice. Someone had obviously done a good job of clearing it before the train came in, but the air was heavy with the threat of more snow to come. She had lived and worked in places with snow before, but none of them had prepared her for the frigidly cold temperatures here. She pulled her woolen coat tightly around her and wished she could afford to buy a fur one, as the woman she’d shared a carriage had worn. Even some fur mittens and a hat would help.
The platform was eerily quiet. There weren’t many passengers beginning or ending their journeys here today, it seemed. It was quite a contrast to the station in Billings, where she had changed trains. There had been a small army of young lads with carts filled with people’s luggage scurrying around, with travelers heading in all directions. Here, there were just two boys to look after the three alighting passengers. Both of them had already been claimed by the other passengers and were busy trying to lug heavy trunks from the baggage carriage into their carts. Rachel sighed. Her trunk was too heavy to manage alone, so she would have to wait for one of them to return.
She made her way along the carriages until she reached the baggage cart. Her trunk had already been unloaded onto the platform. She dragged it out of the way and sat on it, waggling her feet to try and warm them, whilst alternating between rubbing her hands vigorously and hugging herself as she watched her breath form like mist in the cold air. She watched as the guard raised his flag and blew his whistle and the train pulled out of the station with majestic grace – and enough smoke and steam to make her cough loudly. “I hope you’ve not got the influenza,” the guard said turning to look at her. He was young man, of perhaps thirty-one or two, with a cheerful countenance, but his eyes were filled with, well, Rachel wasn’t entirely sure if it was concern or fear – perhaps a little of both.
“No, it’s just the smoke,” she assured him. “I hear that it has been bad here, with the influenza, I mean.”
“The clinic’s full and there’s people in almost every household sick,” he told her. “We’ve got a new doctor here, but it’s not enough. The three of them can’t be everywhere at once.”
“I’m the new nurse,” Rachel said. “I’m here to help.”
“Oh, Miss, that will be a great relief to Dr. Walker. He didn’t know when you’d be here. Wait a moment. I’ll fetch my cart and take you to your lodgings myself. If I’d known, I’d never have let the boys go off with anyone else. You’re the most important person in town right now.”
“That’s quite alright. I don’t mind waiting,” Rachel said, though her toes were so cold that they actually hurt as she stood back up.
“You might not, but Maud can be most particular, Miss.”
“Falmer. Rachel Falmer,” she said. “Maud?”
“Mrs. Tinsley. Town nurse and midwife. She’d be most unhappy with me if I don’t take care of you. I’m Bert Hardcastle,” he added. “I’d shake your hand, but Maud says we’re not to for the time being, nor should anyone be getting too close to anyone.”
“She sounds very wise.”
“She’s been taking care of us all here in Eagle Creek for as long as I can remember, and I’ve lived here all my life.”
“I look forward to meeting her.”
He disappeared into one of the rooms in the station building and emerged with a large cart. He effortlessly picked up her trunk and put it in, then took her other bags and placed them on top. “Shall we go?” he asked as he started to wheel it towards the doors into the waiting room and ticket office.
She followed him through the station and out onto the street. Unlike the station platform, there was thick snow on the ground here, and she could feel it melting around her feet and seeping into her worn boots. She wished that she had chosen to wear a better pair, but these were old and comfortable and far easier to travel in than the new ones she’d bought with the Montana winter in mind. With hindsight, it had been a mistake not to at least change into her newer boots as the train pulled into Eagle Creek.
But she was soon distracted from the cold by all that she could see around her, and she smiled to see the town stretching out on either side of her, nestling cozily between the majestic mountains all around it. Eagle Creek seemed to be centered around a long, wide street, filled with shops and businesses as far as her eyes could see, and it was very pretty indeed. Even with this bone-chilling snow and ice, she could imagine being very happy in a place like this, perhaps for the rest of her days.
“So, where are you taking me?” she asked, half-running to keep up with the guard who had continued walking, having not seen her pause to soak up the beauty all around them.
“I was told to take you to Mrs. Garfield’s straight away. She runs a very respectable boarding house. You’ll like her. She’ll probably try and fatten you up. She hands out food to everyone.”
Rachel smiled. It wouldn’t be the first time that she’d had a landlady who thought she was too thin. She tried to take note of the shops and things that they passed, but she was a little too excited, and a little too tired to really recall them all. “That there,” Bert said pointing at a double-fronted building with white trim and a small brass plaque by the door. “That is the medical clinic. I’m to take you there once I’ve taken you to Mrs. Garfield’s.”
It seemed that her entire day had been mapped out for her, but as Rachel wouldn’t have intended doing anything differently, she was happy to do as was expected. Another few hundred yards and they were standing outside a rather lovely-looking house. “This is where you’ll be living,” Bert informed her as he knocked politely on the door.
It was opened by a rather rotund lady with a kindly face. She beamed as Bert introduced Rachel. “Oh, my dear. We were all so glad when we heard you were coming. They’re falling over themselves, they’re so tired over there. I only hope that there will be more coming. There’s supposed to be, another two nurses, I think.”
“I am sure that will be most helpful,” Rachel said.
Mrs. Garfield began to waddle along the corridor. She beckoned with a finger to Rachel to keep up. For her size, she moved at a rather incredible pace. Mrs. Garfield led her to a sizeable room on the first floor that contained a large iron-framed bed with a feather mattress, a comfortable armchair and a large chest of drawers. A fire had been lit in the grate and it felt so cozy and welcoming that all Rachel wanted to do was to curl up in the chair by the fire and stay there.
“I’ve put you in the room opposite me,” Mrs. Garfield said. “I’ve mostly got gentlemen in at the moment, so I thought you might feel safer on this floor with me.”
“That’s very thoughtful, it is a lovely room.”
Bert heaved her trunk into the room behind them. “Well Miss Falmer, if that’s all, I’d best be getting back,” he said with a grin. “Welcome to Eagle Creek.”
“Thank you, Mr. Hardcastle.”
“Just Bert’ll do, Miss. Just Bert.” He gave her a cheery salute and then went on his way.
“Would you like some tea?” Mrs. Garfield asked her.
Knowing that if she sat down and got fully warm that she would never want to go back outside again, Rachel knew she needed to go and call on Dr. Walker immediately. “I think I should probably go to the clinic before I do anything else, though I must say that you all seem to have thought of everything, given that I wasn’t sure when I would be arriving.”
“Oh, they wanted all of us to be ready. I’ve had the room aired, the sheets on clean since Monday and lit a fire every day so it would be warm and welcoming. It’s most important to them that you’re here, Miss Falmer.”
“Rachel.”
“Rachel. Such a lovely name.”
“Thank you. I’ve always liked it.”
“Well, if you must go so soon, it’s just along the street, back the way you came.”
“Bert pointed it out to me on the way,” Rachel assured her. “I shall return soon, though, and a cup of tea and a chance to get to know you better will be most welcome.”
Mrs. Garfield beamed again, clearly delighted.
Rachel checked that everything had made it to her room, dug out her new boots and a clean, dry pair of stockings. She removed the old ones and put on the new ones. The boots pinched a little, but they were certainly warmer. With a few quick, stamping steps, she vowed to get used to them, then let herself out of the house and hurried along the street to the clinic.
Though she tried not to linger, she couldn’t help herself as she walked along Main Street. A busy bakery smelled divine and had a queue that spilled out onto the street. She looked forward to trying it out soon. Everything here was so different to anywhere else she’d been. The houses and buildings along the street were a hodge-podge of different styles and sizes that made the little town seem quirky. She didn’t doubt that an artist would never run out of inspiration for things to paint in a place like this.
But the clinic wasn’t far enough away that she could get too distracted. She reached the door that Bert had pointed out to her earlier and knocked politely before trying the handle. It was locked, but a masked face framed with almost white hair appeared. “One moment,” he said. “We’re keeping it locked so people don’t just come wandering in, given everyone but us has influenza in here.”
“Very wise.”
The door opened, and a distinguished-looking gentleman stood before her. “You must be Dr. Walker? I’m Rachel Falmer,” she said.
“Oh, my dear, I cannot tell you how glad I am to hear that,” he said with a loud exhale. He turned away from her for a moment then handed her a mask, identical to the one he was wearing. “Pop that on and come inside, where you can wash your hands and take off your coat. I can offer you a clean apron to wear over your clothes while you visit.”
“I see you are taking all precautions,” she said. “That is good. We did the same at Fort Meade, and in Sheridan whenever we had sickness outbreaks there. I don’t know why, but it does seem to help.”
“My nurse is a stickler for cleanliness and fresh air.”
“I like her already.”
“It is impossible not to like Maud, though she can seem a little stern at times. She has the biggest heart of anyone I know.”
Rachel took off her coat and hung it on the hat stand by the door. It was well heated inside and she breathed a sigh of relief at the feeling of the warmth on her cheeks. Dr. Walker handed her an apron that would cover almost every inch of her skirt and blouse. She put it on. “Normally,” he explained, “this is our waiting room for patients. But we aren’t seeing anyone here at the moment. We have been holding a non-influenza clinic each day at the church, and we visit anyone with symptoms in their homes to check on them every other day.”
“That sounds thorough.”
“We’d go every day if we could, but there just aren’t enough of us.”
“I hear there may be other nurses joining us?”
“Oh, I do hope so. Dr. Hartshorn said he would do what he could.” He led her along a narrow corridor. A door to the left opened onto a long, narrow ward, filled with beds. “We normally only have ten beds at most in here, but we’ve had to make room for more. We’re up to eighteen now. We’ll have to turn the reception area into a ward soon if things get any worse, and we are only bringing the very worst cases here.”
“How many are there in total?” Rachel asked him.
“At last count we had one hundred and thirty-three, which in a town of only one thousand is quite a large number,” Dr. Walker explained. “But even as some people recover, the number of sick just keeps growing. We’ve lost six people already.”
“I’m so sorry. In a town this size, I am sure you probably knew all of them well.”
“I’ve been Eagle Creek’s doctor since it had just 200 souls. It’s been growing so fast, and I should have sought out more help long before this, but I was too stubborn,” he admitted. “I couldn’t bear the thought of handing over my patients to anyone else.”
“I think that is understandable, especially when you must have brought so many of them into the world.”
“No, unless there is something very dire that goes wrong, birthing is Maud’s job. She’s my angel. She was the only medical help anyone here had until I came. She’s brought every baby in Eagle Creek into the world for almost four decades.”
“Goodness, that’s very impressive. I’m not much of a midwife. There wasn’t much call for it in the military hospitals I trained and worked in, but I’d be glad to learn from someone so skilled.”
“I’ll tell her that.”
He pointed to a room off to the right. “This is our changing room. We all change out of the clothes we’ve worn in here, wash and dress in something clean before going home. With so many theories as to how diseases like this pass from patient to patient, we don’t take our chances here. Whether they are carried in the air, or on our bodies, in our sweat or saliva, we do our best to ensure we don’t take it back outside with us. We want to keep it here. We have aprons like the one you are wearing now for when we visit people in their homes.”
“I am glad to hear it.”
“So far, thank the Good Lord above, none of us has been sick. But given the severity of this outbreak, I fear that it is only a matter of time. If you are still willing to stay, to help us, we will be glad to have you – but I will understand completely if you would rather take a position somewhere safer.”
“I came here knowing what you were facing. I’m not afraid. Just point me in whichever direction you need me. I’m ready to start work straight away.”
“No, go home. Get a good night’s rest. We have become sticklers for that, too. A rested body is a healthier body, it gives you more resilience. So, enjoy a quiet evening and a comfortable bed, and I will introduce you to Maud and to Matthew in the morning.”
“Matthew?”
“Dr. Inglis. He’s one of Dr. Hartshorn’s, too. I’m hoping to convince him to stay. He’s fitted in with us all here beautifully. And I know I have only met you for a few minutes, but I’m already rather hoping you might wish to do so as well, even once all of this is over.” He gave her an unexpected wink and grinned at her. She couldn’t help smiling back. He was a very charming man.