Reluctant Brides Collection

by Cathy Marie Hake

  Sally blushed but smiled. “Maybe we can study together. Lacey says you’re a good student. I’m having trouble with math.”

  “I’ll help you.” Micah fell into step with Sally and the two of them took the lead walking back toward the house.

  They entered through the back door, and Percy found herself standing in the kitchen that Lacey and Josh had grown up in, looking at the table where Lacey had taken her lessons as a child. Through the doorway in the other room, she could see a piano and remembered that Joshua had reluctantly admitted that his mother had insisted that he learn to play. Above them rose the lighthouse. Josh had spoken to her of filling the lamps with whale oil, trimming the wicks, polishing the brass, shoveling coal into the kitchen stove, and hauling supplies up the side of the cliff every few months when the supply boat’s owner remembered to come.

  Lacey and Josh had not had a coddled childhood, not at all like Percy’s. They had been isolated from a real community and expected to work hard from the time they were small children. Yet they had grown into adults who could open their hearts and take in a stranger and her daughter seeking safety. And Alvira and Sally were not the only strangers they had taken in, Percy reminded herself. They had taken her in, too.

  Chapter 22

  A few hours later, TJ clattered into the dining hall. Percy had not been back very long herself. The waning afternoon had finally demanded that she return for the evening meal, and she and Lacey had traversed the trail once again. Percy now held a half-peeled potato in her hand, with one eye on the clock, wondering if she would make the mealtime deadline. She raised her eyes to meet TJ’s when he entered the kitchen.

  “I can’t find Sally,” he said. “I came to see if Mama knows where she is. I’m worried that she wandered off.”

  Percy set her knife on the edge of the sink and turned to face TJ.

  “Your mother is not here, but Sally is safe,” she said, wiping her hands on her apron. She spoke cautiously. “Have you been out at the work site all day?”

  TJ nodded. “I just got back. I like to see Sally before supper, but she’s not in the shed. It doesn’t look like she’s here, either.”

  “So you’ve been gone all day?” Percy verified.

  “Miss Morgan, what’s the matter?” Anxiety rose in TJ’s voice. “Did something happen to Sally? Where’s Mama?”

  “Everything is fine. It’s just that…your father was here this morning.”

  “Daddy? Here? How?” Percy saw the color drain from the boy’s face as he asked the incredulous questions.

  Percy gestured that TJ should sit at the small kitchen table and she quickly recounted what had happened in the street that morning.

  “Where are Mama and Sally now?” TJ asked.

  Percy hesitated. She and Lacey had agreed that it was best if no one knew where Alvira and Sally had gone. “I have to ask you a question first,” Percy finally said.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Do you want to go and stay with them?”

  “Stay? You mean, give up my job?”

  Percy nodded. “Temporarily. I’m sure Travis would take you back when it’s safe.”

  TJ raised his roughened and calloused hands for inspection. “Finally my hands don’t hurt every time I bend my fingers. Finally I’m earning some money to take care of my family. I can’t quit now.”

  “I understand, and I think that’s the right decision. But unless you want to go into hiding, I can’t tell you where your mother and sister are. Lacey and I believe that it is safer for all of you if no one else knows.”

  “You have to tell me!”

  She shook her head firmly. “No. You might try to go there. And what if your father is still lurking around in the woods watching you?”

  “I’ll be careful.”

  “I know you would be careful. But he managed to find you here when no one thought he would. We can’t risk having him follow you.”

  “I won’t go, I promise. I just want to know where they are.”

  Percy stood up and picked up her knife to resume peeling potatoes. “I’m sorry, TJ. I promised Lacey.”

  She looked at his crestfallen face and knew exactly how he felt. Nevertheless, she maintained her resolve. “You trust Lacey, don’t you?”

  He nodded. “More than anybody except God. She showed me how to trust God.”

  Percy was not sure what to make of that remark. She had learned from other people not to trust anyone. But she believed TJ.

  “TJ, if you truly trust Lacey—and God—then you have to accept what I’m saying. Hopefully the separation won’t last long. We just have to be sure your father has given up.”

  Heartbroken, TJ left a few minutes later when it was clear that pressing Percy further would yield no more information. Percy allowed herself to sink into a chair and slump her head down on the table. She hated denying TJ’s request. In her mind’s eye, she saw herself at an age not much older than he was, standing in her cousin’s parlor, demanding to know where they had sent Ashley and no one would tell her. It was for Ashley’s own good, they said. She had not believed them then, so how could she expect TJ to believe her when she said the same thing? If the look on his face was any indication, she was not sure that all his talk about trusting God would make any difference in the end. She hoped it would.

  Somehow Percy muddled through the evening meal, avoiding TJ’s eyes as he came through the serving line. He sat apart from the other men, ate quickly, and left. Acutely missing Alvira’s company, she cleaned up after the meal and began laying out what she would need in the morning. When she heard footsteps crossing the main room, she intuitively grasped the handle of an iron skillet. The footsteps slowed on the other side of the door, in the darkened dining room. Percy tightened her grip.

  “Who’s there?” she called out.

  The footsteps resumed, moving steadily closer.

  “Who’s there?” Percy demanded.

  “It’s me,” came the soft voice of Joshua Wells, just as he pushed the swinging door open and stepped into the kitchen. He raised an eyebrow at the poised skillet.

  “You should have come to the back door,” Percy said brusquely, “so I could see it was you.”

  “You’re quite right. I’m sorry if I frightened you. May I come in?”

  Percy let out her breath and set the skillet down. Inwardly she was relieved to see him, to see for herself that Bert Richards had not harmed him. “Yes, of course. I have some coffee on the stove, if you’d like.”

  “That would be nice, if it’s no trouble.”

  Percy moved to a cupboard and took down a cup and filled it. She set it in front of Josh, who had taken a seat at the table. “Is there something I can do for you?” she asked.

  Josh caught her eyes and held her gaze. “I was wondering if I could do anything for you,” he said gently. “You’ve had quite a day.”

  Percy ached to slump into a chair and weep, but instead she methodically pulled out a chair and lowered herself gracefully into it. “It has been an eventful day,” she agreed. “Did Bert Richards hurt you this morning?”

  Josh shook his head. “Not really. He was too drunk to throw a decent punch. It’s amazing he ever found his way up here, as soused as he was.”

  “Apparently he has moments of sobriety during which he thinks quite clearly.”

  “It would seem that way. He stumbled around the street, banging on doors and screaming for Alvira. I was grateful than when we got here, you were gone. Thank you for taking Alvira out of here.”

  “It was the only thing to do. She’s in a safe place now.” Had Lacey told Josh where the refugees were? Percy wondered. She supposed that Josh might guess before long, but she resolved to say no more to Josh than she had to TJ.

  “No one saw you leave,” Josh said. “Travis was surprised to find Lacey gone when Bert headed toward the house. How four women managed to disappear together into the woods without being seen, I can’t explain, but I’m glad you did. When we found Lacey and S
ally gone, we knew you and Alvira were in safe hands, too.”

  “Lacey is the one who managed the whole escapade,” Percy said. “I’m not even sure why I went along. I wasn’t needed, not even to carry anything.”

  Josh shrugged. “There are different ways of being needed. I’m sure Alvira was glad you were there. She’s become quite fond of you.” He picked up his coffee cup and took a deep sip of the steaming liquid.

  “Oh?” Percy was not sure how to respond. She stood up to pour herself some coffee, suddenly wishing to keep her hands busy.

  “Anyway,” Josh continued, “I just wanted to be sure you were all right.”

  “I’m fine, thank you.” She seated herself at the table once again.

  “You greeted me with a frying pan,” Josh reminded her. “Are you sure you’re all right? Do you feel safe here?”

  “Considering Bert Richards’s state of mind, I think a few prudent precautions are in order. How did you finally get him to leave?”

  “He got even angrier when Travis would not let him near the house. He was just sure Lacey was hiding Alvira, and for all we knew, she could have been. But Travis stood his ground, and Peter had gone to his house to look after Abby and the children. So Richards was not getting anywhere. He cursed up a storm and finally left.”

  “Did he threaten to come back?”

  Josh nodded. “I believe he will be back.”

  “Then it was wise of Lacey to take Alvira and Sally away.”

  “She wouldn’t tell me where they are.” Josh looked at her hopefully.

  Percy smiled slyly. “Lacey and I made a pact, so you won’t get anything out of me, either.”

  “Well, I have my suspicions.”

  Percy did not respond. She could not help if Josh’s intuitions proved correct, but she would keep her word to Lacey and not be the one to tell him.

  Josh pushed his chair back. “I suppose I should be going. I hate to leave you here, though.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  “It’s not too late for a game of checkers over at the house.”

  “Adam will be in bed soon,” Percy said.

  “I wasn’t thinking of inviting him to play,” Josh said, catching her eyes. “I’ll be happy to walk you back over here later.”

  Percy shifted her gaze. The pull to go with Josh to the Gates house was a strong one—too strong. She was not sure she could trust herself over there anymore, especially after a day as trying as this one. Surely she would say too much and regret it later. She shook her head.

  “I really ought to stay here and get a few more things done. After all, I won’t have Alvira in the morning and there was so much that didn’t get done today.”

  “If I can’t do anything for you tonight, I’m sure I can be of service in the morning.” He stood up and moved toward the back door.

  “That’s not necessary. I managed on my own before Alvira came.”

  “I’m not offering because it’s necessary, but because I want to. I’ll see you bright and early.”

  He left before Percy could protest further. And she was not sure she wanted to protest further. She picked up the iron skillet and took it into the bedroom with her.

  Chapter 23

  Each report that Lacey brought back from the lighthouse was more encouraging than the one before. Alvira was thriving, her cheeks rosier by the day and her countenance more serene. Daniel’s garden kept her occupied and outdoors much of the time, but she did not neglect the indoors. Anxious to earn her room and board, she fastidiously cleaned every nook and cranny of the house, mended worn clothing, and polished the heirloom furniture until she could see Daniel’s smiling reflection in every room. Sally, likewise, blossomed. With Micah to set a vigorous academic pace, she threw herself into her books more deeply than anyone could have imagined possible. Lacey temporarily excused Joshua from any visits to the lighthouse and went herself, every few days. Bringing new lessons for Sally, she could barely keep up with the rapid progress the girl made. Even Micah and Daniel seemed invigorated by the presence of their guests. Lacey reported to Percy that she had not seen her father so happy in years, and Micah seemed delighted to have someone in his own age bracket around the house.

  “It won’t be for much longer,” Lacey told Percy one morning three weeks after Alvira and Sally had been secreted away. “Alvira is asking to come back to work.”

  “But you said she seemed happy,” Percy answered.

  “She is. She and Papa have struck up quite a friendship, but she wants to earn her own way. She enjoys my father’s company and she doesn’t want his pity. There’s been no sign of Bert. Alvira is starting to think he gave up and went back south. She wants to come back to work.”

  “When?” Percy asked. She was anxious to have help again. The summer was pushing on and there was so much she wanted to do before the fall.

  “I’ll go get her on Thursday,” Lacey promised.

  “Three more days,” Percy mused.

  Lacey chuckled and left.

  Percy spent the rest of Monday and much of Tuesday planning out the work for the next several weeks. She could certainly make sure Alvira felt that she was earning her way. Tuesday’s evening meal came. The men tousled their way through the line, eager for Percy’s baked ham and scalloped potatoes. Taking delight in their pleasure, Percy stood behind the serving table and presided over the distribution of food. She made sure to fill a plate generously and set it aside for TJ, who was fetching firewood at his own insistence. He had undertaken the task every evening since his mother had left.

  When the front door burst open unexpectedly, Percy jumped. A thick slice of ham slid off the serving fork and plopped to the floor. At the sight of the figure in the doorway, Percy felt herself become pale.

  “Where is she?” demanded the roaring Bert Richards. “Where’s my wife?” His soiled clothing bore witness to weeks of living in the woods. Dark angry eyes darted around the room.

  “Ain’t no wife here,” Matt Harden returned fiercely. He glared at Bert defensively. “I don’t know who you are and I don’t much care, but Miss Morgan ain’t anyone’s wife.”

  “She’s not the one I want.” Bert lumbered toward the serving table. Percy inched backward involuntarily. “My wife was here. I know she was. Somebody here knows where she is. And I ain’t leavin’ until I find out where she and my girl went.”

  “I think you lost your trail, mister,” Matt said, setting his half-filled plate down and turning toward Bert. “This is a lumber camp, not a refugee camp.”

  “I’ve been all over the backwoods of this state looking for my family. I believe I’ll find them here. And you folks are going to help me or I’ll give you a reason to help.” Bert touched his hand to his hip and Percy saw the shape of what might be a pistol under his grimy clothing.

  At the same moment, she heard shuffling in the kitchen. TJ! She heard the wood drop from his arms into the bin. Purposefully this time, she inched backward toward the door between the dining room and the kitchen. Under no circumstances must TJ come into the main room.

  Matt stepped forward, accompanied by Carson Gregory. “Look, mister, whoever you are, this is by and large a peaceful place. We have our fights from time to time, but they’re our own. We ain’t looking to take on anyone else’s.”

  Keep talking! Percy cried out in her mind as she moved slowly and quietly toward the kitchen. She heard TJ open the stove door and throw in a piece of wood. Next he would pump water to heat for washing dishes.

  “I ain’t askin’ you to take on my fight,” Bert Richards roared. “I’m just asking you to tell me where my wife and kids are.”

  At the door now, Percy leaned against it and pushed it open, slipping into the kitchen. She had no idea if Richards had noticed her. Swift action was the only alternative.

  “TJ!” she whispered, taking his elbow and briskly guiding him toward the back door. He started to talk, but she silenced him with her finger to his lips. “Your father is in the dining hall. Yo
u have to get out of here. Go to Lacey’s right now! Leave!” She literally pushed him out the back door and took a deep breath of relief as she saw him sprint around the side of the building toward the Gates house. She was tempted to sprint out after him, but if Bert noticed she was missing, there was no telling what he might do. TJ would go to Travis and Lacey, and help would be on the way. Bert was far outnumbered in the dining hall, but if he really had a gun, he would quickly have the advantage.

  Quietly, her heart pounding, she slipped back into the dining room. As she surveyed the increasingly restless group, she was thankful for Lacey’s wisdom in not telling anyone where Alvira and Sally had gone. Some of the men knew bits and pieces of her story and they knew she had fled an abusive husband. It was better for Alvira and the men that none of them could say where she was. Only Percy, out of fifty people in the room, knew the whereabouts of Bert’s family and he was not going to find out from her.

  “Where did you disappear to?” Bert demanded.

  So he had noticed her absence.

  “I was just checking on things in the kitchen,” she answered evenly. Her voice sounded far more steady than she felt.

  “Who’s in the kitchen?” He lurched toward her, but Matt Harden stepped in his way. Bert pushed the smaller man aside, not easily, but successfully. Percy was backed up against the wall, Bert’s face in hers. “If your mind is on the kitchen, then you don’t realize the importance of my visit.”

  Percy did not answer.

  “My guess is that you’re in cahoots with that schoolteacher lady. You look like you’d be friendly with her.”

  Percy sucked in her breath and said nothing. Bert stank as if he had doused himself in whiskey.

  “You gonna tell me where my woman is, or am I gonna have to give you some help?” He touched his hip again.

  “I’ll thank you to leave my dining hall,” Percy said between gritted teeth. “You can see for yourself that your family is not here.”

  “You’re gonna tell me where they are.”