"She's fine, Bill, relax. She's warm and getting dressed."

"Thank God."

"Bill! Bernard! I see Steve!" Ron shouted from the kitchen.

Stephen had started out slow, plodding through the snow with Toni in his arms, but when he started to shiver, he forced himself to jog and when that wasn't fast enough, he forced himself to run. He knew they didn't have long. Between the frigid temperature and the fall in the river, the odds were against them, but Stephen wasn't a betting man, and he was most assuredly not a quitter.

Cradling Toni in his arms, he ran, he jogged, he walked, and then he ran again, all the while refusing to allow the pain in his body to win out. It didn't matter that their clothes were stiff and frozen. It didn't matter that ice covered their chins and noses from moisture frozen as it was exhaled. All that mattered was getting back to Nancy's and when he saw the lights from the house in the distance, he stopped for a moment to place a frozen kiss on Toni's head before filling his lungs with air and trudging toward the lights.

Racing to the kitchen, Bill was on Ron's heels as he ran out the back door, and sprinting past the younger man, he got to Stephen within seconds. Even though he was shocked at the man's sallow and ice-covered appearance, Bill's eyes were drawn to the lifeless body in Stephen's arms.

"Is she...oh God...is she..."

"No. No, she's...she's alive, but...but she stopped shivering a f-f-few minutes ago," Stephen said, placing Toni in Bill's outstretched arms. "Get...get her inside. Get her inside n-n-now."

The exchange proved difficult as Stephen's shirt and Toni's sweater had frozen together, but after a few hard tugs, the fabric released and Bill rushed to get her into the house. Anxiously waiting just inside the door, Bernard quickly placed his fingers on Toni's neck before Bill came to a stop. Letting out the breath he'd been holding, Bernard said, "She's alive. Let's get her into the library, shall we?"

They sat with bowed heads and joined hands, praying their loved ones would return safe and sound, and lost in their thoughts, when the library doors slid open with a bang, all three women practically jumped off the sofa.

Seeing her father carrying Toni into the room, Laura's heart stopped. "Toni!" she shouted. Getting to her feet, she rushed toward the man. "Toni!"

"Stay back, Laura," Bernard said, pushing her away. "She needs medical attention right now, not someone crying over her. I know you mean well, but let me help her first, and then she's all yours."

Disregarding what he said, Laura tried again to get close, but this time Eleanor and Peggy pulled her away.

"Laura, Bernard's right. You aren't what she needs right now," Eleanor said.

As the rest of the family escorted Stephen into the room, Bernard took charge in an instant. "All right. Bill, put Toni on the sofa, and Ron, get Stephen close to the fire, but not too close. Put him in that chair over there," Bernard said, pointing to the leather wing-back by the fireplace. "Nancy, I need you to warm up some towels. Dorothy, get me something warm for them to drink. No tea. No coffee...broth if Nancy has any. Alice, fill those bottles with warm water...not hot...warm. Eleanor, find some scissors, and Ron, call emergency services again. See if you can find out where they are."

While all the commotion was going on, Peggy walked over to stand next to her husband, and dusting some snow from his hair, she asked, "You doing okay?"

"Never b-b-better," Stephen said through chattering teeth. "You?"

Smiling, Peggy said, "I love you."

"I-I-I love...love you more."

"I found three pairs of scissors," Eleanor announced, rushing into the room.

"Good!" Bernard said, whipping around. "Peggy, we need to get your husband out of those clothes-"

"I can...I can..." Stephen said, trying to stand up.

"Stay right there, man! I don't want you to move unless I tell you to," Bernard said. "Bill, give her a hand. Cut everything off and put him on the floor. Close enough to the fire to get warm, but only warm. Do you understand?"

"Yes," Bill said, taking a pair of kitchen shears from Eleanor.

When Alice walked back into the room carrying three hot water bottles, Bernard quickly checked them to make sure the temperature was correct. "Perfect," he said, placing them on the coffee table. "Now, be a love and figure out a way to make more. We need at least four. Okay?"

"I'll find something," Alice said, rushing from the room.

"And pull those bloody doors shut," he shouted. Taking the scissors from Eleanor, he turned to Laura and handed her a pair. "You need to cut off her clothes. Everything needs to be removed. Don't pull or tug. Cut it off. No hard movement. She needs to stay as still as possible. Can you do that?"

Setting her jaw, Laura snatched the scissors from his hand. "Yes, I can."

"I'll help," Eleanor said, taking the other pair from Bernard. "Let's go."

By the time Bernard returned to Stephen, Bill had the man stripped of his clothing and lying under a blanket a few feet from the hearth. Checking Stephen's hands and feet, Bernard shouted, "Nancy! Where are those bloody towels?"

"I've got them right here," she said, running into the room. "Fresh out of the dryer."

"Bill, wrap those around his hands and feet. I'll get his head. Peggy, be a love and get those water bottles."

Glancing at his patient, Bernard asked, "How you doing, Steve?"

"Better. Not so c-c-cold."

"You'll be fine. I don't see any sign of frostbite, so we're just going to warm you up slowly. All right?"

"Yeah. Okay."

"Dorothy, I need that broth!" Bernard shouted over his shoulder.

Appearing in the doorway within seconds, Dorothy rushed over and handed him a cup. "Here you go."

Feeling the heat radiating through the china, Bernard flung the cup into the fireplace. "I said warm, woman, not hot! Are you trying to kill them? Pull your head out of your arse and do what I ask!"

Paying no attention to his mortified wife as she ran from the room, Bernard looked over at Laura and Eleanor. "How you ladies doing over there?"

"We're trying, but the fabric is frozen," Eleanor called back.

Laura was trying to remain calm as she struggled to force the scissors through the ice-laden cloth, but Toni had begun to shiver so violently that Laura found herself having to regroup after each tremble racked Toni's body. Feeling a hand on her shoulder, Laura looked up to see her father staring down at her.

"Stand back. I'll do it. I'm stronger." For a split-second their eyes met, and reaching out, Bill brushed a strand of hair from Laura's face. "Come on, lass. Let your father lend a hand."

Tears welled in Laura's eyes. Handing Bill the scissors, she said, "Please, just be careful with her. She...she doesn't like to be touched."

"I know, sweetheart. I'll be careful."

Behind them, Dorothy came back into the room with two more cups of broth. Walking over, she held her breath as Bernard took it from her hand.

He grinned at the warmth coming through the cup, and then in a whisper, he said, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you, but I haven't been in this type of situation for a very long time."

"No worries, sweetheart," Dorothy said with tears in her eyes. "Just make me proud."

Smiling, he handed Peggy one of the cups. "Have Stephen take some sips of this. Not too fast though. Can you do that?"

"Absolutely."

"Good girl," he said as he headed to the sofa.

Bill had made short work of Toni's clothing, and with Eleanor and Laura at his side, protecting Toni's privacy as best they could, by the time Bernard came over, Toni was naked and lying under several blankets, shivering uncontrollably. Grabbing his stethoscope, Bernard checked her heart and pulse before placing a digital thermometer in her ear. Waiting for the beep, he read the display, and then rubbing his chin, he sat back on his haunches.

"What's wrong?" Laura asked.

"She's colder than I thought she'd be."

"Well, then let's move her closer to the fireplace."

"No, we can't risk moving her now. It's too dangerous," Bernard said, looking up at Laura. "She's your partner, isn't she?"

"Yes."

"Then take off your clothes and get under the blankets with her. She needs to warm up and body heat's our best option."

Mindless of the fact that she was standing next to her father, and Stephen was lying on the floor behind her, Laura did not have to be told twice. As the men quickly looked away, she pushed her oversized sweatpants to the floor, pulled the shirt over her head and then slid under the covers.

"Christ, she's freezing," Laura said, rubbing her hand briskly over Toni's arm.

"Don't do that!" Bernard yelled, placing his hand over Laura's. "Any excessive movements can trigger a heart attack. Her blood is frigid, and her heart won't be able to handle it. Just lie alongside her and share your body heat. That's all I want you to do." Looking over his shoulder, Bernard said, "Eleanor, get that cup of broth over there. We need to try to get some into her, but just a few dribbles at a time, and Bill, go find Alice and see if-"

"I tripled up some plastic bags," Alice said, running into the room. "I have four, just like you asked."

Smiling at her ingenuity, Bernard took them, and as he turned back to Toni and Laura, he glanced up at Bill. "Um...Bill, we'll need a bit of privacy here."

"Oh. Oh, right...of course," Bill said, turning away. "Call me if you need me."

Returning to the matter at hand, Bernard looked at Laura. "I'm going to put these around her, so I'll need to lift the blankets for that. Okay?"

"You're the doctor."

"Finally realized that did you?" he asked, moving the covers to place one of the bags under Toni's neck. "I thought you believed I was more of a prat."

"I don't anymore."

After putting two of the bags under Toni's arms and another near her groin, Bernard tucked the blankets around them and then placed a multicolored duvet on top of that.

"What now?" Laura asked, shifting just a little.

"Well, it doesn't appear that she has any frostbite, but I'm going to wrap her hands and feet like we did for Stephen. Your mum is going to get a bit of that broth into both of you and...and then we wait."

"Couldn't we drive her to the hospital?"

"No, not like this. She's too cold. Even the movement of the car could be too much. Trust me, Laura. I know what I'm doing. Our best bet is just to let her warm up slowly, and she'll be fine. I promise."

Chapter Forty-Nine.

It was almost two hours before Bernard allowed Stephen to get dressed, and sitting by the fireplace in clothes once belonging to Lawrence Shaw, he waited in silence, praying Toni would be all right.

"Here, I brought you some tea. Bernard said you could have some now," Peggy said, handing her husband a cup.

"Thanks. Anything from emergency services?"

"No, Ron called again. The storm is slowing everything down, and he thinks that once they found out we had a doctor here, that pushed us to the bottom of the list."

"Speaking of doctors," Stephen said, gesturing toward the man walking into the room. "He really is one, isn't he?"

Looking behind her, Peggy grinned. "Yes, I think he is."

Bill had kept the fire blazing, so as soon as Bernard entered the overly heated room, he unbuttoned his red and green waistcoat and tossed it aside. Rolling up his sleeves, he walked over and knelt by the couch. "How are you two doing?"

Shifting slightly under the blankets, Laura said, "She seems better. She stopped shivering a while ago."

Quickly taking Toni's temperature, Bernard smiled as he read the display. "Well, this is looking much more promising."

Glancing over his shoulder, he said, "Eleanor, get your daughter some clothes, and Bill, why don't you go to the kitchen and get a bit more of that broth from Dorothy." Grabbing another blanket from the arm of the sofa, Bernard stood and held it up to block everyone's view. "All right, Laura. Out you go."

A few minutes later, once again dressed in the oversized pink and green jogging outfit Nancy had given her, Laura sat on the edge of the sofa as Bernard folded the blanket and tossed it aside. Opening his black satchel, he pulled out some bandages. "Okay, now it's time to look at that arm of hers."

"Her arm?"

In all the commotion, no one had noticed the dried blood covering Toni's left forearm, but when Bernard reached under the blankets and pulled it out, Laura blanched. "Oh, I forgot all about the glass."

"I saw it when Bill brought her in, but it was the least of my worries at the time," Bernard said, gingerly wiping away the dried blood with a swab. "It didn't appear that it was anything too deep, and by the looks of it now, I think after a quick wash and some bandaging, it'll be fine."

Watching as the man tenderly disinfected and wrapped Toni's arm, Laura said, "I'm sorry."

"Sorry? For what?"

"For ever thinking you weren't a real doctor."

"You're not the only one. Somewhere along the line, I lost track of what made me want to become one in the first place, but today it all came rushing back."

"I'm glad it did."

"Yeah, me too," he said, slipping Toni's arm under the blanket, and just as he did, she began to stretch and shift. Seeing Laura reach over to stop her, Bernard quickly said, "No, don't. If she has the strength to move, let her."

"Is she waking up?"

"No, I don't think so. Probably just stiff and sore, and trying to get comfortable, but since she's come back up to a normal temperature she might be getting a bit warm. Let's get one of these blankets off her," he said, removing one of the three still draped over Toni.