Work Text:
What the “Dickens”
Christmas Time 1887
By Denise Craig
Jennifer tripped over the protruding tree trunk out back of the house, and fell head first into the ice cold lake. The chill took her breath away, but fortunately she was still in shallow water. She hauled herself out and rung the water from her sodden clothes. She was mumbling under her breath as she walked into the house.
“What happened?” Heyes asked, from his favorite chair.
“Tripped!” was her curt reply. She trudged upstairs still muttering.
When Jennifer came back down, she was dressed in her long johns, flannel nightgown, robe and two pair of Jed’s wool socks. She trudged into the kitchen and made herself some hot cocoa. When she came back out, she sat on the sofa with a blanket.
Heyes just hid behind his paper. He knew in her current mood she would not appreciate answering questions although his curiosity was sorely tested.
Much later, he dared a peek over the edge of his paper. Jennifer was fast asleep. He looked at her and noticed a small pink spot on each cheek. Getting up he went over and sat on the edge of the sofa. He placed his cool hand on her forehead. She felt a little warm. He gently shook her.
“Jennifer.”
She slowly opened her eyes and stared at him. He noticed the slightly glazed look they held.
“Let’s get you to bed.”
Slowly she stood and then swayed slightly. Heyes caught her and easily swept her up into his strong arms. She placed her head on his shoulder as he carried her up to her room and laid her in the bed.
“I don’t think I feel too well.” Jennifer whispered.
Heyes placed his hand back on her forehead, “You have a fever.”
“I’ll be fine in the morning. I’ll just sleep it off. Goodnight, Han.”
“Goodnight, Jen.” Heyes covered her up and quietly left the room.
Sometime after 2:00am, he woke. Something wasn’t right. He put on his pants and crept silently upstairs. He opened the door and saw Jennifer lying very still. The pink spots were now the only color in her pale face. He placed his hand on her forehead. She was burning up. He watched her for a moment and noticed she was struggling for breath. He placed his ear to her chest and heard a definite wheezing sound. Now what was he to do. The doctor was out of town.
He got a basin of cool water and bathed her face, neck and hands in an effort to bring down the fever. As the night wore on, he could tell he was fighting a losing battle. She was going downhill fast. He made a decision. He would go over to the neighbor’s and ask them to roust out the local midwife. Maybe she could help.
Heyes went downstairs and got dressed. He went to check on Jen one more time before he left. As he entered the room, he pulled his gun. “Don’t move.”
There was a man standing over Jennifer. He was dressed in rags and had looked like he was about to kiss her. He looked up at the intrusion. The man’s eyes held an intelligence that belied his bedraggled appearance.
“Hannibal,” he nodded.
Heyes was shocked. “I said don’t move.”
“I am not here to hurt you,” the stranger replied.
“I don’t know who you are or how you got in here but you had better slowly remove your gun.” His weapon never wavered.
“I am unarmed, Hannibal.”
“Who are you and what are you doing here?”
“My name is unimportant, but I am here to help her.”
“Help her. How?”
“She is dying. It is not her time. She has much to do yet.”
“What are you talking about? What is she supposed to do?”
“Right now she is taking care of you and Jedediah. She needs to continue this work for a while yet.”
“How do you know this?”
“I know many things. I know how much she means to you. I know what it would do to Jedediah if she were to die.”
“And you can prevent this?”
“No, I can’t.”
“But… you just said you could help her.”
“He has instructed me to do so.”
“He…he who?”
The stranger looked heavenward.
“You have got to be kidding me!” Heyes replied, stunned.
“No, I’m not.” As the stranger said this, his appearance began to change. There was a soft glow around him now and his face became bronzed. He appeared taller and more muscular. His clothes began to shine.
Heyes couldn’t believe his eyes. “I’m not saying I believe you, but what would you have to do to save her?”
“Kiss her.”
“Kiss her?” Heyes studied the man. He knew Jennifer needed help and he was just desperate enough to try about anything. But this… this was insane!
“I don’t believe in God.”
“Yes, but he believes in you. He loves you Hannibal and understands your pain. He has never deserted you.”
“I never felt him, after…after…”
“You never allowed yourself to. You had to be strong for Jed, and afterwards got out of the habit. You have been running long and hard from His love.”
Unbidden tears sprang to Heyes‘ eyes, his heart constricted in his chest. He realized the truth of this statement, but had never allowed himself to dwell on it for very long. Some of the pain he had kept bottled up inside slowly melted. He didn’t know if he could allow himself to release control over the demons that haunted him. It may be worth thinking about. He slowly holstered his gun.
“God is willing to save her?”
“Yes,” was the simple answer.
“Okay.”
The angel, Heyes knew now that is what the stranger was, bent his head and gently kissed her. As he drew his head back, a wisp of light escaped from her lips. Then he slowly faded from view, floating backwards, out of sight.
Heyes bent over Jennifer and noticed the color come back to her pale face. Her breathing had evened out and she looked to be in a restful sleep. He placed his hand to her forehead. She felt cool. He couldn’t explain what had happened. He just knew he was relived that she was all right.
***
Heyes sat bolt upright in his bed, unsure if he was still dreaming or awake. He grabbed his robe and ran up the stairs to Kid and Jennifer’s bedroom. He bolted through the door and saw Jennifer asleep in Kid’s arms and, Kid’s gun pointed at him.
“Heyes!” Kid hissed.
Heyes ignored him. “Jennifer, is she okay?”
“What?”
Jennifer woke at the commotion. “Hannibal, what is it?”
Kid holstered his gun, “This had better be good, Heyes.”
Heyes went and sat down next to her. He took her face in his hands and searched her eyes. “Are you alright?”
Jennifer just looked back at him. She could tell something was bothering him. She looked deep into his eyes, past the wall that was always there. She placed her hand on his cheek. “Yes, I’m fine, and you will be too. Just give it time. Go back to bed, Dear.”
He nodded his head, looked over at a very confused Kid and mumbled an apology. When he was gone, Kid asked Jennifer, “What was that all about?”
“He had an encounter with an angel, Jed. He’ll tell you about it when he’s ready.”
“How do you know that?”
“When someone has an encounter with a heavenly being, it can’t help but change them. I saw it in his eyes.”
“Oh.”
“Let’s go back to sleep. Maybe you should tell him about your experience in the morning.”
“My experience! But how did you… I never told you that.”
“I told you, it’s in the eyes.”
She snuggled back into his arms, ready for sleep.
“I didn’t mean to keep it from you, I had just forgotten about it. It happened when I was little.”
“You can tell me about it when you’re ready, Love. I can wait.”
He kissed her head. Sometimes it was a bit scary having someone know you so completely.
***
Heyes sat on the edge of his bed. He certainly wasn’t ready to go back to sleep, the dream had seemed very real. He propped up his pillows and reached for the book on the nightstand. He was up to the ghost of Christmas future. Heyes opened the book but never read a single word. He just sat staring at the pages, his thoughts whirling in his mind. He closed the book with a decided slam. He knew what he wanted to read and he knew Jennifer had about three of them stashed in the house somewhere. He started his search.
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