Mr.
& Mrs. CodyMr.
& Mrs. Cody
Chapter 4
Cody awoke with a smile and a plan. He leaned up on one elbow to look at Lou. She looked so peaceful and angelic. 'She's anything but when she loses her temper' he thought. As he watched her sleep, he marveled at the prospect of being an uncle. He couldn't resist placing a soft kiss on her forehead and he rose from the bed. He left the room in search of the doctor. He found him in kitchen eating lunch.
"Would you care for a bite to eat?"
Cody almost turned him down, when he suddenly realized how hungry he was. He hadn't eaten since breakfast yesterday morning. His stomach growled in protest.
The two made small talk as they ate. "I just realized I don't even know your name, son." The doctor commented.
"William F. Cody." He grinned and extended his hand to the doctor.
"My name's Dr. Hansen. So what's your wife's name if I might ask?"
"Lou-ise, Louise McCloud…Cody." Cody stammered. "We, uh, haven't been married all that long." 'Yeah, just since yesterday' Cody added in his head. "She woke up before dawn and drank some water. She was pretty dizzy though."
"That's to be expected after that bump to the head. Well I better go in and check on my patient." The doctor stood.
"Um, I need to go in town and take care of some things. Would it be alright to leave her for about an hour?"
"Sure, sure. Don't worry, none. It's good that she woke up. I'll just give another examination and see if she's ready to eat something."
"Thanks, doc. I'll be back as soon as I can." And Cody headed out the door.
Hopefully his plan would work out. If not, he hadn't a clue how to solve the predicament they were in.
Cody rode over to the Pony Express station of Deer Creek intent on talking with the stationmaster. He found him near the corral where some boys were breaking in a new horse.
"William F. Cody, sir. I'm an Express rider out of Sweetwater."
"Ah, you're one of Teaspoon's boys. Glad to make your acquaintance. I'm John Weber. What can I do for you, William?"
Cody went on to explain the important Army documents and how he and Lou had been chased by the three men, and about his suspicions that there was an ambush set up all along the trail to Ft. Laramie. He was vague about Lou, simply saying he was badly hurt and was confined to bedrest for the next couple weeks. He expressed his concern about leaving his friend behind in case the men decided to come into town and seek them out.
When Cody was done with his tale, John volunteered three of his boys to take the documents onto Ft. Laramie. Cody shakily released the breath he was holding. He was counting on someone else to take the papers for his plan to work out. He handed over the documents to Mr. Weber and bid him farewell.
Now for step two, finding a buckboard.
The doctor quietly knocked on the door, when he heard Lou say "Come in", he entered the room.
He smiled and walked over to the pitcher of water and poured her a glass. Just as she started to drink the doctor asked, "So how are you feeling today, Mrs. Cody?" She started to choke on the water. 'Oh, Lou, what kind of lie have you gotten yourself into this time?' she asked herself.
"Just drink it slowly. If you drink it too fast you'll make yourself sick." The doctor admonished. He took the glass from her and sat it on the bedside table. "Are you still dizzy? Your husband said when you woke up earlier you were." She struggled to sit up in bed and the room swam before her eyes.
She held her head in her hands, trying to keep the room still. "Yeah, definitely still dizzy." She replied.
Dr. Hansen began checking her eyes, the bump on her head and numerous other places before declaring she'd feel better after she slept some more. She started to complain that she couldn't stay in one place that long, but then realized the doctor was only doing his job and it wasn't his fault she had to stay in bed. Finally she asked the one question that had been uppermost in her mind ever since she talked to Cody earlier.
"Doc, is it really unsafe for the baby if I ride?"
"Most definitely, especially after that nasty tumble you took. Your baby was very lucky to have survived that kind of trauma. I want to emphasize the importance of you staying off a horse until after the baby is born. I would really recommend you not get out of bed unless absolutely necessary until the birth as well, but you don't strike me as the kind of lady who would heed that advice. So I'll simply say keep all activity to a minimum. You may take short walks, no lifting anything heavy, try not to let anything upset you and get plenty of rest. Have you been having any morning sickness the past month or so?"
She shook her head no.
"You're one of the lucky women then. Do you think you could eat something for me before you rest some more?"
"Actually, I am kind of hungry." She admitted.
"That's always a good sign. I'll fix you up some lunch and be right back. Oh, your husband said he'd be back in around an hour. He had some errands to do."
She smiled at the kind doctor and rested her head against the headboard. Folding her arms over her chest she brooded over her physical condition. That's how Cody found her when he returned.
"Hey, Lou. What are you pouting about?"
"Doc Hansen says I can't ride anymore and he actually said I should stay in bed until the baby is born."
"I told you."
"Yes, but me and Jimmy were gonna keep working for the Express after we got married. Now it'll just be him. We were really needing the money since Jeremiah and Teresa are going to be living with us. And now with a baby on the way, too. What are we going to do? This is going to be a lot harder than I thought it was going to be."
Cody sat down on the chair next to the bed and just listened.
"What were you doing in town?" changing the subject.
"Well I went over to the Express station and explained everything."
When Lou looked up at him shocked, he added, "Not everything, Lou. What do you take me for? I'm not that dumb."
"Sorry. And I don't think you're dumb. I just wasn't thinking right."
"Anyway, the stationmaster agreed to have three of his riders take the papers on to Ft. Laramie for us. So now we just have to wait for you to get feeling better and we can head back home."
"But Cody, I can't ride. How do you propose I get home? Sprout wings and fly back to Sweetwater!?" she cried.
"No, Miss Sourpuss, I'm getting us a buckboard to take you back in. You can lay in the back or sit up front if you're feeling up to it. As soon as the doc gives the okay, we can leave."
"Sorry, Cody. I didn't mean to be so cross." She reached over to take his hand. "I really appreciate everything you're doing. I do. Being bedridden has just thrown me for a loop. I can't stand sitting around doing nothing. But I guess I better get used to it for awhile. Doc Hansen, said I could only take short walks and I have to do a lot of resting, otherwise it could hurt the baby."
All of a sudden she burst into tears. Not knowing what to do, Cody sat on the bed and held her in his arms. "Lou, you aren't going to be in bed for the rest of your life, just 'til the baby shows up."
The doctor chose that moment to walk in. Noting her tearstained cheeks the doctor commented that from now she'd find herself more emotional and that crying wouldn't be out of the ordinary for her.
Lou started crying harder. The doctor patted her back and said, "There, there." Cody looked up at the doctor over Lou's head, a pleading look in his eyes. The doctor just shrugged in a non-committal way. He left food on the table and quietly left the young couple alone.
After Lou had cried herself out, Cody coaxed her into eating something. He went out in search of the doctor.
"Doc, how soon before she can be moved safely? I got a buckboard so I can take her back home. I thought she could lay in the back if need be."
"She could probably be moved tomorrow if the dizziness has gone away. She had a pretty bad concussion. If she keeps the food down that'll be a good sign she'll be alright. Son, I've got to warn you though, she seems overwhelmed with the thought of the baby so she might have some mood swings. Crying one minute and mad the next. It'll just take her some time getting used to. Once she's adjusted to the thought of being a mother she'll be better. I just didn't want you to be alarmed if she suddenly bursts out crying one day and is spitting fire at you the next."
"Well Lou's always had a temper. Kind of used to it by now."
The doctor chuckled. "By the way, in the next room I've got quite a collection of books if you need something to pass the time with. You can read can't you?"
Cody's face brightened up. "Oh, yes, sir. In fact you could say reading is a hobby of mine. That and writing stories."
"Well then, you help yourself. I'll be back in to check on you and your wife in a little while."
"Thanks, Dr. Hansen." Cody greedily went in search of some new reading material.
Reading was a mistake Cody realized.
He had brought in a copy of 'Gulliver's Travels' by Jonathan Swift and sat in the chair next to Lou and began to read. Or try to read. Every few minutes, Lou would ask him a question.
It started out innocently enough, she wanted to know what he was reading. Then she wanted to know what it was about. Was it any good. What was happening. The questions never seemed to stop. Cody slammed the book closed.
"Lou, I swear, if you ask me one more question I'm leaving you here by yourself!"
She burst into tears. Cody looked heavenward for some sort of answer. Of course none was immediately forthcoming. Then he remembered what the doctor said about mood swings. Feeling guilty for making her cry he sat on the bed next to her and rocked her in his arms.
After she calmed down and in between hiccups she said, "Sorry (hic) Cody. Don't know (hic) what's (hic) got into (hic) into me." Silent tears coursed down her cheeks.
"It's alright, Lou. You remember the doc said you'd probably be crying a lot. I guess it's normal." He handed her his bandana and she wiped her eyes. Then she blew her nose. When she was finished she held it out to give it back to him. He looked at the offending fabric, pushed it back in her direction and said, "Uh, why don't you keep it."
They sat in silence for awhile. Finally Cody came up with a brilliant idea. He said, "Would you like it if I read the book out loud? That way it'll keep us both busy."
Her face brightened and she nodded her head.
They spent the rest of the day engrossed in the book.