crates that had been used to ship his possessions from New York. He returned to his office and stuffed everything he could into the crates. Emptying drawers, pulling pictures from the walls, he managed to achieve his desired results. The room was in shambles and not a moment too soon.
The clanging of the brass bell on his front door announced the arrival of a guest. Peeking through thecurtains, he saw Katie standing on the porch. Her dark cloak pulled closely to ward off the chill, the handle of a basket looped through the crook of her arm. He took the time to regain his breath as Mrs. Adkins answered the door.
“Dr. Keffer?” Mrs. Adkins said. “Katie Napier is here.” She stepped through the doorway of his office, and her mouth gaped open.
Don’t say anything, Mrs. Adkins , he willed, knowing the state of his office surprised her. Hell, it surprised him.
“Miss Napier,” he said, walking toward Katie in hopes of stopping Mrs. Adkins from exposing his charade. “I’m so glad you agreed to help me. As you can see, I need it.”
He glanced at Mrs. Adkins, and the twinkle in her eyes told him his secret was safe with her. “I’ll leave you two to work,” she said, pulling the door closed behind her.
“My, oh my,” Katie said, turning a small circle as she removed her gloves and eyed the pandemonium around them.
“I’ve been occupied,” he lied, “and I just haven’t had the chance to organize things since I’ve moved in.”
“Well”—she allowed him to remove her cloak—“we’d best get busy.”
He laid her cloak across the back of the only accessible chair in the room, then picked his way through the chaos to his medical instruments. Those were the first things he had to get off the floor; the thought of one of them breaking under foot sent a shudder through him.
“Did you get a chance to tell your friends they could contact you here if they need you?” Was that too obvious? He glanced askance, but she didn’t seem suspicious.
“Yes, I told several people at church yesterday.” She dug through his box of diplomas. “As a matter of fact, Eunice Kopp is stopping by after a while for some goldenseal root. Her stomach is actin’ up again.” She smiled before continuing. “Of course, by the time she gets here she could have six or eight other things actin’ up.”
She lifted his medical diploma with its ornately carved wooden frame from the crate. “Do you know where you’d like to hang this?”
“Hmmm.” He pretended to think. “How about the wall behind my desk?”
She crossed the room and hung the picture on the nail it had occupied until fifteen minutes before. “Why, that’s perfect.” Standing back to admire her work, she made a quick adjustment to the frame. “And the nail was already there.”
“What luck,” he mumbled, taking as much time as he could to place his stethoscope in the cabinet, scooting it a few inches to the left, then back to the right. This disaster needed to last a few days, or at least until he had the chance to create another. “So when is Mrs. Kopp coming by?”
“This afternoon.”
He kept his back to her with the pretense of putting away his instruments, but the truth was, he found deception more difficult than he’d anticipated. “Does Mrs. Kopp have a large family?”
“Yes, and all of them sick with one thing or another.”
“Good. Not that they’re ill, of course, but good that they can come here—or to you—for help.” Could he have bumbled that any more?
Silence.
Great. Katie was already on to him. Slowly he turned toward her, expecting a knowing, if not rebuking, expression on her face. Instead, he found her kneeling on the floor beside his medical books, touching the leather bindings as though they were gold.
“Do you read, Miss Napier?”
“ An Elementary Treatise on Human Anatomy ,” she read from the cover of the top book on the stack. “I don’t read books like these, but I read most anything I can get a
The clanging of the brass bell on his front door announced the arrival of a guest. Peeking through thecurtains, he saw Katie standing on the porch. Her dark cloak pulled closely to ward off the chill, the handle of a basket looped through the crook of her arm. He took the time to regain his breath as Mrs. Adkins answered the door.
“Dr. Keffer?” Mrs. Adkins said. “Katie Napier is here.” She stepped through the doorway of his office, and her mouth gaped open.
Don’t say anything, Mrs. Adkins , he willed, knowing the state of his office surprised her. Hell, it surprised him.
“Miss Napier,” he said, walking toward Katie in hopes of stopping Mrs. Adkins from exposing his charade. “I’m so glad you agreed to help me. As you can see, I need it.”
He glanced at Mrs. Adkins, and the twinkle in her eyes told him his secret was safe with her. “I’ll leave you two to work,” she said, pulling the door closed behind her.
“My, oh my,” Katie said, turning a small circle as she removed her gloves and eyed the pandemonium around them.
“I’ve been occupied,” he lied, “and I just haven’t had the chance to organize things since I’ve moved in.”
“Well”—she allowed him to remove her cloak—“we’d best get busy.”
He laid her cloak across the back of the only accessible chair in the room, then picked his way through the chaos to his medical instruments. Those were the first things he had to get off the floor; the thought of one of them breaking under foot sent a shudder through him.
“Did you get a chance to tell your friends they could contact you here if they need you?” Was that too obvious? He glanced askance, but she didn’t seem suspicious.
“Yes, I told several people at church yesterday.” She dug through his box of diplomas. “As a matter of fact, Eunice Kopp is stopping by after a while for some goldenseal root. Her stomach is actin’ up again.” She smiled before continuing. “Of course, by the time she gets here she could have six or eight other things actin’ up.”
She lifted his medical diploma with its ornately carved wooden frame from the crate. “Do you know where you’d like to hang this?”
“Hmmm.” He pretended to think. “How about the wall behind my desk?”
She crossed the room and hung the picture on the nail it had occupied until fifteen minutes before. “Why, that’s perfect.” Standing back to admire her work, she made a quick adjustment to the frame. “And the nail was already there.”
“What luck,” he mumbled, taking as much time as he could to place his stethoscope in the cabinet, scooting it a few inches to the left, then back to the right. This disaster needed to last a few days, or at least until he had the chance to create another. “So when is Mrs. Kopp coming by?”
“This afternoon.”
He kept his back to her with the pretense of putting away his instruments, but the truth was, he found deception more difficult than he’d anticipated. “Does Mrs. Kopp have a large family?”
“Yes, and all of them sick with one thing or another.”
“Good. Not that they’re ill, of course, but good that they can come here—or to you—for help.” Could he have bumbled that any more?
Silence.
Great. Katie was already on to him. Slowly he turned toward her, expecting a knowing, if not rebuking, expression on her face. Instead, he found her kneeling on the floor beside his medical books, touching the leather bindings as though they were gold.
“Do you read, Miss Napier?”
“ An Elementary Treatise on Human Anatomy ,” she read from the cover of the top book on the stack. “I don’t read books like these, but I read most anything I can get a
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