by Lilah Rivers
This was the kind of place that he was made for. And yet, without knowing anybody, how was he meant to find work?
David saw a man limping towards the well and he nodded his head in greeting.
“Afternoon,” he greeted.
“And to you. How’s the water?” the man asked.
“Best I’ve ever had,” David said.
“That’s what most people say when they try our water. Comes down from the glaciers and brings us something mighty fine,” he said.
“You’re from Feldey?” David asked, knowing that it was a simple question. He hoped that it would give him an opportunity to converse with the young man, who was maybe a year or two his junior.
“Proudly. I’ve lived here most of my life,” he said.
“It’s a beautiful place,” David said, looking at their surroundings.
There were green hills and tree-topped mountains with white peaks. It was peaceful and beautiful, even better than his own home town. But here, no one knew him and he didn’t have the stink of shame and failure about him.
“You visiting family here?” the man asked.
David shook his head. This was the best chance he could have been given to learn about the area and let someone know what he was looking for.
“No, I’ve just been traveling, looking for work and a fresh start,” he said, comfortable chatting with this random stranger.
“What sort of work?” the man asked, clearly interested.
“I’m a rancher by trade, but I’m pretty good with my hands at most things,” David said.
The man’s face lit up, as if he had just learned the best news he had heard all day.
“Boy, am I glad to have met you. The ranch where I work needs an experienced hand. As you can tell, I’m not much good for some things,” the man said.
“Are you serious?” David asked, taken aback. “I was just standing here, thinking how much I would love to live and work in an area like this. I was thinking about the fact that I don’t know anyone here and have no way of learning if there are any positions needing filled, and here you are.”
“You know who planned that?” The man chuckled.
“Obviously God had something in mind,” David said, also amused at the wondrous ways in which the Lord worked.
“Well, I guess I should introduce myself. I’m Hank Guthrie. Ranch hand, son to Barbara and Simon, brother to Dennis, Corey, and Velma,” he said.
“That is a far greater introduction than any I have to offer. My name is David Brown. I have two older brothers, Warren and Abel. They work with my father, Bernard, on our family ranch,” David said.
“Why did you leave?” Hank asked.
“Well, it wasn’t the right place for me,” he said.
Hank nodded, looking as though he was suddenly worried. David realized that his sudden appearance seeking work could come across as though he was trying to escape something that he had done wrong.
“We are all in good sorts, of course. I just wanted to see a new part of the country,” he said.
“Right, that’s good then,” Hank said, appearing satisfied.
David nodded. He had nothing to hide. His reasons for having left had little to do with his family or the ranch. In fact, his father had encouraged him to go. After realizing that he had no future there, it had been the most logical step and one that David was more than happy to take.
A new adventure was tempting. He had always been more independent than his brothers. So when it appeared that his best bet was to try his luck out west, David had jumped at the opportunity.
Now, more than ever, he was glad that he had done so. Getting away from all that he was leaving behind felt good. He would miss working with his father and brothers, but this was just how things needed to be.
“So what sort of place is the ranch?” he asked.
“Pretty standard. Cattle, horses, and chickens, mainly. Mrs. Roberta was widowed a few years back and has kept up with everything since. We’ve had a few other men working at the ranch, but they had other ambitions. If you come, how long would you be planning to stay?” Hank asked.
“I am looking for a place to settle. I don’t want to be on the move. The ranch I land on is going to be my home,” David explained.
“That’s just what we’re looking for. Welcome, David Brown. I’m looking forward to having you meet Mrs. Roberta. She’s going to be thrilled to know that I have found another man to help out,” Hank said.
“It’s good that you think so. Honestly, I just can’t believe the fortune of meeting you here. As you suggested, it had to have been the Lord that made this happen,” he said.
“You got a wife or kids or anything? I only ask because Mrs. Roberta will need to know if she can put you up in one of the houses on the property or if she needs to help you find something bigger in town,” Hank said.
David shook his head, trying to hide his disappointment. On that matter, he had to accept that he had not been so fortunate. He hoped that he might still find love one day, but even if he didn’t, he would still be thankful that the Lord had brought him this far.
And until things changed in his heart, he didn’t mind so much being alone. It was better than being hurt.
“No wife and no kids. It’s just me,” he said.
“Well, all right then, David. Do you need anything else? I was just on my way back to the house and I might as well take you with me,” Hank said.
“I can’t think of anything. I mean, I don’t have much with me, but I’m not a man who needs much,” he said.
“That’s just the sort that we like. I bet you’ll do well here. I can tell you’re a good man already. So come with me and we can get you some good foo-”
Hank trailed off before he finished the word and his eyes met the horizon. David turned and saw a figure fast approaching.
She appeared to be a young lady, but one who walked with a rather aggressive gait. Her legs urged her forward in an almost angry manner, as if she was always going about in search of someone to scold.
With the light at her back, David couldn’t yet see much more than this, but as she approached, he realized that she was a thin, reedy woman with dark brown hair that hung straight and blunt at her back. Her cheeks were sharp and intimidating and her eyes small and grey.
“Hank,” she greeted, informally and without a hint of warmth in her voice.
“Miss Tabitha,” he nodded in reply, before clearing his throat and gesturing to David that they ought to leave.
“And who might this be?” she asked, before they could take a step.
The young lady put herself directly before David so that it would have been rude for him to pass her by. A sudden smile was on her face and it somehow made her appear both less intimidating, but also less approachable.
“You are new around here, aren’t you? Well, I am Tabitha Statham and I can help you with whatever you need,” she said, not allowing him to speak before she continued.
“You should know that our town is the best there is. I do love it here and I’m sure that you will too. Do you need someone to show you around?” she asked.
Taken aback by her overt friendliness towards him, David pretended to slide his foot on a rock in order to step back from her.
Tabitha Statham had quite a presence. One that she did not mind using to invade his space and make herself known. But he wondered why she had been so cold and rude to Hank while trying to warm to David as she was doing.
“You know, I believe that I am well set, thank you,” he said.
“Are you sure? Because I know all there is to know around here. I can help you find anything you need,” she said.
“Mr. Guthrie has already done more than enough for me, thank you. I have all that I need,” David said, as quickly as he could.
With that, he looked to Hank.
“We ought to be making our way, right? I don’t want to keep Mrs. Roberta waiting,” David said.
“Oh, you’re going to Roberta’s
ranch? I used to go by there all the time. Didn’t I?” she asked, rather aggressively towards Hank.
“Yes, you did,” Hank sighed. “And you’re right, Mr. Brown. We should go.”
David was relieved when he and Hank managed to make their way away from the well where the young woman stopped to fill her canteen.
“Don’t pay her any mind. I promise you that there is no one else in town like her,” Hank explained.
“You don’t think very highly of her?” David asked, wanting to be careful how he went about things. The last thing he needed was to be making enemies by insulting the people who lived in the town that he was trying to make his home. It would not have done him very well to be rude.
“I’ll explain it all another time. For now, it is better that I simply prepare you for the ranch,” Hank said.
David listened as Hank told him all about the ranch’s history and the man who had owned and run it before he passed away. It sounded as though Mrs. Roberta was a decent woman to work for. It was a shame that she had lost the other men who had been helping her.
“And you’re certain that she will approve of you finding a stranger at a well?” David asked.
“Didn’t Abraham’s servant find Isaac’s wife at a well? The Lord arranges our meetings and we have no say in how he chooses to go about it. I’m sure that Mrs. Roberta is going to be happy about your experience and the fact that you want to be in Feldey,” Hank said.
It was a good enough point and David was glad that Hank was the sort of man who would think about that. Whatever had happened in his past, it didn’t mean that God was closing off his future.
“Well, this is it,” Hank said as they drew near a wide, open land with a ranch house, a barn, and a few smaller houses dotted behind.
David saw the cattle out grazing. The horses were nearby, closer to the pen where he could work them. And the sound of chickens was echoing all around.
This was the perfect place to call home.
“Think it will do?” Hank asked.
David smiled. It would do just fine.
Chapter 3
Clementine stretched and yawned before trying to see through the slit in the curtains to look at the light from outside. It had to be well past ten in the morning.
Her aunt had obviously allowed her to sleep in and recover from her exhaustion. But this late?
She stood up in a panic, opening the curtain to confirm her suspicion.
Yes, it had to be mid-morning now. There was no way it was any earlier.
That meant that she had not only failed to make dinner the night before, but also breakfast that morning. She must have slept for what, fifteen or sixteen hours? Was it longer?
She could hardly remember.
Clementine hadn’t realized she had been so tired, but she was immediately feeling terrible. She had come to see her Aunt Roberta and had made a promise to take on the cooking. But she had missed her first two meals.
With that in mind, Clementine rushed down the stairs, desperate to find Aunt Roberta and apologize.
She stumbled out of the room and took the stairs down two at a time.
“Aunt Roberta?” she called.
There was no answer, but she smelled the remnants of a breakfast that had ended hours before.
There was a sound behind her, towards the front door, and Clementine rushed to turn and find her aunt.
“Oh!” she cried out, bumping into a man that she had not met the day before.
“Excuse me,” he said in a deep, warm voice.
He was handsome. Very handsome. With brown hair that reminded her of oak and eyes that shone like the water, she was also taken aback by the masculine chin with the little dimple at its base.
“Excuse me,” she echoed. “I didn’t mean to run headlong into you.”
“Me either,” he said. “I’m just looking for Roberta. Do you know where she is at?”
“I was looking for her also,” Clementine said.
“I see. Well, I should have brought them in, but we do have a few dishes out there. I didn’t want her to have to clean them but since she has a maid, I guess I’ll bring them. Anyway, please let me know if you find her,” he said.
Clementine’s jaw dropped as he turned around.
A maid? He thought she was a maid? What a rude thing to assume!
He may have been handsome and made his assumption politely enough, but it was still something that irked her pride.
Clementine searched for her aunt in the house but did not find her. What she found, instead, was a mirror hanging on one of the walls.
A maid.
It all made sense now as she took in her appearance.
Clementine had rushed down from her room without taking time to look after herself. She had woken from a sixteen hour rest.
Her hair was disheveled and her dress crumpled from the travel the day before. She had worn something comfortable rather than fashionable and it was the sort of thing that a maid might wear when she had dirty duties to take care of.
Humiliated, Clementine determined that she would look the part of Aunt Roberta’s niece the next time she stumbled into anyone.
She rushed up the stairs and into her room, opened her bag, and pulled out something far more decent. Then, with the brush that she had taken as a piece of her mother to remember, Clementine brushed through her long, golden tresses before pinning them neatly back.
If only she had thought to do this earlier! What a terrible first impression she had made. And on a man she had considered so handsome. She was more than embarrassed.
Now that she had made herself presentable, Clementine went back downstairs and was startled to find Aunt Roberta seated quite comfortably in the living room.
“You’re here,” she said.
“You’re awake!” Aunt Roberta replied, delighted.
“Yes. Please forgive me for having slept so long. I did not cook dinner or breakfast,” she said, still feeling awful about it.
“Oh, piffle,” Aunt Roberta said, waving it away. “You needed rest. I had already been planning to cook anyway before you showed up. Why would I have been upset to have to keep to that plan? Anyway, let me get some breakfast for you. I’m sure that you are famished.”
“Oh, I can do it. You have done enough,” Clementine insisted, knowing she would end up feeling even worse if her aunt now cooked for her as well.
“Clementine, my dear, we have an agreement. You will do the cooking here. But for the moment, would you please allow your old aunt to indulge you? I would truly appreciate it if you would allow me a chance to just take care of you for a day or two,” Aunt Roberta requested.
Hesitant to accept, Clementine paused. Her silence was enough of an answer for Aunt Roberta.
“Very well, then. Have a seat. I’ll get you some eggs and a bit of bacon. Do you like broccoli? Oh, I do love it when it is cooked in with my eggs. Also, cabbage. Which would you prefer?” she asked. “Or both, if you’d like that.”
