The Heart Remembers by Al Lacy

stress we’re feeling.”
    Shirley took a handkerchief from the cuff of one of her sleeves and mopped at the tears. “Thank you, dear, for understanding.”
    “We’re here to help in any way we can,” Tharyn replied softly.
    Shirley saw that Barry was looking down at his father, with a hand on his arm. “Well, son. Let’s go home.”
    The Logans followed Shirley and her son to the office, and when Barry opened the door, Shirley said, “Dr. and Mrs. Logan, I want to thank both of you for the way you have taken care of my husband, and are continuing to take care of him. It means more than I could ever tell you.”
    Dr. Dane smiled. “That’s what we’re here for, ma’am.”
    When Barry and his mother pulled away in the wagon, Dane closed the door and turned to Tharyn. She smiled and said, “Well, honey, I’ll go home, cook supper, and bring some to you.”
    He took her in his arms, kissed her tenderly, and said, “Thank you, sweetheart. I am sort of feeling a little hungry.”
    “So tell me. How did the peace treaty signing go?”
    “Couldn’t have been better. Chief Tando was fully cooperative. He was definitely ready to make peace.”
    “I’m so glad. And it is a blessing to me to know that it wouldn’t have happened if my husband hadn’t saved Latawga’s life and taken him back to the village.”
    Dane shook his head. “Give the glory to the Lord, honey. I’ve already had plenty of glory showered on me for the deed.”
    Tharyn reached up, tweaked his nose, and giggled. “You needn’t be afraid of a little praise.”
    He laughed. “By the time we got the treaty signed, I’d been given more than a
little
praise. I just did what any doctor would have done.”
    The next morning, Marshal Jake Merrell and his deputy, Len Kurtz, were sitting at their desks when they looked up to see Dr. Robert Fraser coming through the door.
    Fraser entered, holding his medical bag, and said, “Good morning, Marshal … Len.”
    “Good morning, Doc,” chorused the lawmen.
    Merrell frowned. “Doc, you don’t look like you feel well.”
    “Just some trouble with my back,” Fraser said as he approached the marshal’s desk. “How’s the swelling around Earl’s eye?”
    “It’s almost gone. You want to see him?”
    “Best that I do. I’ll check on him, then go back home.”
    At the same time Dr. Robert Fraser was checking on Earl Dubose at the jail, Tharyn Logan was at her desk at the doctor’s office. She smiled when she saw a wagon pull up to the hitch rail out front. It was Shirley Chandler and her son.
    When Shirley and Barry entered the office, Tharyn greeted them and said, “You’ll be glad to know that Michael had a good night, and no complications have set in. Doctor is with him right now.”
    “So we’ll be able to take him home. Right, ma’am?” said Barry.
    “Mm-hmm,” replied Tharyn as she rose to her feet. “Take a seat in the waiting area. I’ll go tell Doctor you’re here.”
    When Tharyn entered the curtained section where Dr. Dane had Michael stretched out on the examining table, she said, “Shirley and Barry are here.”
    A thin smile curved Michael’s lips.
    Dr. Dane nodded. “I’m almost finished, honey. Would you bring them in here, please, so I can talk to them?”
    “Be right back.”
    Less than two minutes later, Michael’s eyes brightened when he saw his wife and son step up to the table.
    Barry smiled. “Good morning, Papa.”
    Shirley bent down and kissed his cheek. “Mrs. Logan told us you had a good night, without any complications.”
    “That’s right.”
    “So, how are you feeling?”
    “Well, I’m experiencing some pain in my chest, but Dr. Logan said this is normal. He expected it.”
    “I did,” said the doctor. “I just gave him some powders to help relieve the pain. I’m sending some of the same powders home with you, Shirley. You’ll need to mix them periodically with water and administer it to Michael as per my written instructions. It will