Catherine, kneeling down as John took Reynaldo’s reins over his head, held her hand to Jeddie’s forehead.
“I could kill him,” she said.
Smiling through his pain, Jeddie replied, “Let me.”
“Can you stand?” She put her arm under his back as Charles reached them to do the same on the young man’s other side.
Jeddie stood. The crowd cheered. He winced, hand going to his left collarbone.
The doctor reached them. “Let’s walk back to the paddock. You must be made of iron, young man. How you survived that without as many broken bones as dominoes, I will never know.”
Sam and Yancy now reached them. Sam had never seen Catherine.
Yancy, shocked, stammered, “Oh, I do hope you don’t think I would promote such vile behavior.”
She shook her head. “Yancy, you are above such things.”
Sam couldn’t speak and this wasn’t the time for introductions. He beheld a goddess. Oh, yes, he wanted to sleep with Deborah, to perhaps make a large financial arrangement with Georgina to keep her as his mistress, but for this woman, at first sight, he felt something he had never felt in his life. Sam was in love.
The two race promoters stood in the middle of the course while Jeddie was helped back to the paddock. Catherine led Reynaldo, who kept reaching with his nose to touch the rider he loved almost as much as he loved Catherine.
Back at the paddock, the doctor told Jeddie to sit on a tack trunk. Ewing, Barker O., Charles, Rachel, and John stood by him as Ralston and Catherine quickly untacked Reynaldo.
“Wipe him down, Ralston. I must see to Jeddie.”
She stepped over to see the doctor check Jeddie’s ribs as Rachel held a hand towel to his bleeding face.
“No broken ribs, broken arms.” The middle-aged Richmond doctor felt Jeddie all over then touched his collarbone to a small yelp. “Uh-huh.”
“I’m fine.”
“Jeddie, listen to the doctor,” Catherine, worry on her face, ordered him.
Rachel asked the competent man, “What must we do or what must he do?”
“The collarbone is a slender bone. I’ll make him a sling and he must keep his arm in it. No lifting anything. No reaching or using this arm.” He stared at Jeddie. “If you move the bone, which I am going to set, it will heal crooked. You’ll never have full use of it again, and the lump will show through your skin. Do you want to keep riding?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Then do as I say.” He looked at John. “Will you hold him steady in his seat. This will hurt.”
The doctor extended Jeddie’s arm then pulled until the bone snapped back into place.
“Dear God,” Jeddie gasped, sweat now pouring from his forehead.
“That’s the worst. Now I’m going to cut off your good colorful shirt and I’ll bind you up. Then I’ll put you in a sling. When you go to bed at night you can take off the sling, but you must sleep on your back.”
Rachel, hands folded, as Charles put his arm around her waist while Piglet sat by Charles’s feet with his prize, asked, “Doctor, what will keep him from rolling onto his side? Won’t that push the bone out of place?”
“Yes. He’s either got to sleep sitting up or sleep lying flat on his back.”
Catherine put her hand on Tulli’s shoulder. He had been watching with tears in his eyes. “Tulli, you’ll need to be in the cabin with him and sleep with him. If he starts to roll, you need to stop him.”
“I am not sleeping with Tulli. He snores,” Jeddie declared while the doctor still wrapped him.
“I do not,” the little fellow defended himself.
“Well then, Ralston, you sleep with him.” Catherine pointed a finger at the lanky young man.
“Yes, Ma’am,” Ralston agreed.
“What about bathing? Can we unwrap him?” Rachel asked.
“Keep this as it is for two weeks. He can’t get it wet or the bandage will tighten and that will be painful. But he can sit in a tub, he’s got one good wing.” The doctor smiled.
“I’m not bathing him.” Ralston grimaced.
“You don’t even wash yourself.” Jeddie was feeling better.
Ralston looked imploringly at Catherine, who smiled at him.
“Ralston and Tulli, go on back to Reynaldo. Give him some treats. He’s had a difficult first race, too.”
Maureen and Jeffrey carefully approached as the doctor finished the wrap.
“My dear, we had nothing to do with this.”
“I know that.” Catherine acknowledged Maureen’s discomfort.
“Obviously, that fellow planned this,” Charles said.
Jeffrey agreed. “Had to. He’ll either run that horse to death, or dismount when he feels safe, take the tack off because he can sell it, slap Black Knight’s hindquarters. A run to freedom, I suspect.”
“Freedom to where?” Maureen grimaced.
“If he reaches New England, he can pass himself off as a freedman.” John finally spoke.
“How would they know? They have slaves. Well, Vermont has but a handful but still, who would believe him if he makes it?” Jeffrey replied.
“I don’t know.” Charles sighed. “He’s young, skilled, bold. If he lives, who is to say?”
“I am so very sorry for this. To think it was one of my people. I shall question DoRe.” Maureen almost wrung her hands, then stopped.
“Maureen, don’t. Please don’t trouble yourself,” Catherine, quick thinking, told her. “DoRe wouldn’t know. William would not have been foolish enough to betray his plan to anyone, but especially not to DoRe, who is faithful to you.”
This was a flat-out lie. DoRe hated her, thanks to her accusing his son of murder, but he never gave evidence of such feelings. Catherine had Bettina in mind. If Maureen bore down on DoRe, she might make it hard for him to come calling at Cloverfields.
“She’s right.” Jeffrey jumped in. “The only thing we can do is post rewards, a description of William as well as a description of Black Knight.”
“Good idea.” Charles nodded, knowing the flyers produced little effect.
Once Maureen and Jeffrey left, Catherine sat next to Jeddie, his arm in a sling. Suddenly she was tired.
“I’ll kill him if I find him. At least Reynaldo isn’t hurt.” Jeddie had a light bandage on his face, the cut deeper than he thought.