13
Fort Daniels, 25 February 1871
Chad got the last wave of patients settled or under Perkins’s care and went outside to lean against the tree that would soon shade the side of the hospital. Its winter-bare branches laced together under the pale blue sky. The air was strangely warm, or maybe he had just been working that hard, his mind moving at a faster pace than his body.
How had Claire gotten to the hospital? Had she run through the shelling? It seemed unlikely for the state of her psyche.
He rubbed his eyes. He was sure the answer was obvious, he just needed a bath and sleep.
“Doctor Radcliffe?”
It was Nanette. He tried not to scowl at his quiet moments being interrupted. She could be summoning him to attend to a patient.
“Yes, Nurse?”
“Go get some rest. We can handle it from h
