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[2016] A Widow's Love

Page 15

by Christian Michael


  Part of her wanted to slip out the front door once more, and try to get down to the creek to take a stroll, but just as she was about to open her door, she heard the back door open to the house. Rose let the drawstring fall from her hand, grateful that it fell back into place silently.

  “Rose! Rose! I say, are you home?”

  Pansy’s aggravating tone filled the house, and she could hear her sister say something to their mother. She couldn’t make out what their mother said in return, but she heard the sound of footsteps quickly approaching her door.

  Rose silently fell away from the door, trying to sit down onto her bed in silence as well.

  “Rose! I know you are in there. That door was open this morning, and the drawstring is pulled in. I will have you know that you have no right to lock me out of a room in my own house, and I require that you answer me!”

  Rose fought the anger that swelled up inside her. She hated how her sister treated her, and the way she spoke to her now almost pushed her over the edge. She thought of whipping open the door and giving her sister a piece of her mind. Let her see how it felt to have someone up in your face telling you everything you don’t want to hear.

  Instead, Rose calmly stood up, and deliberately walked over to the door. She knew her sister could hear her footsteps approaching the door, and when she reached it, she held her breath for a moment to listen for her sister’s breathing.

  “Pansy, I told you I am not going to marry Humphry. That is the end of that topic. And furthermore, I am an adult, and this is my room. Yes, I know it is in your house, but that doesn’t mean I am not entitled to the privacy that I want. If you absolutely need something, I can answer you, but unless that is the case, I will thank you to leave me alone.”

  Rose felt empowered at that moment. It was rare for her to stand up to anyone, let alone her sister. She heard her sister gasp out on the hall, and start to say something, then she heard her turn on her heel and walk away. Rose smiled to herself, and laid back down on her bed.

  She knew her sister’s habits, and in a couple of hours she would be in the fields picking wildflowers. When she did that, Rose would go to the post office and mail her letter. Then, with any luck on her side, she would get her own start tomorrow, and be on her way.

  It all seemed to be coming together at last for Rose, and for the first time in a long time, she felt genuinely happy.

  Chapter 5 – Heading Out

  Later the next day, Rose sat in her room. The door was open now, her mother and sister had gone into town to do errands. Rose already mailed her letter. She had once again gotten up long before her companions and was there and back again before they were even awake.

  With the house to herself, Rose was able to see what she needed to pack for her journey. It was difficult to know what to bring on a trip that she knew she wasn’t going to come back from. If all went well, she was going to stay there for good, which meant the things she left behind now were the things that she wouldn’t see again.

  I don’t know if Pansy would mail them out to me or not. I am sure she wouldn’t. She likes to be in control of things, and this is highly rebellious to her. Not that she is in charge of me, but still. There’s not much I can do when I am in Montana and she is out here and won’t mail me my things.

  Part of Rose was ok with not taking much, but part of her wasn’t sure if that was the best idea. She knew she had to take care of herself, but she also didn’t want to look like she was taking advantage of Greg. It sounded in the ad like his house was small, so she would probably be better off if she took the bare necessities.

  Of course if I did that I can imagine Pansy is going to get upset that I left my things here. There’s just no winning with that woman!

  Rose sighed and opened up her closet once more. There were a few dresses hanging in there, with a shawl and a couple of her bonnets. When Frank passed, she got rid of a lot of her things, not wanting to see anything that reminded her of him. Everything she owned. Everything she had to wear. Every outfit, bonnet, shawl, or even shoe had some sort of memory attached to it, and it made her feel awful.

  Now, with the prospect of moving on her mind, Rose was glad she didn’t have much. It made it a lot easier to decide on the dresses she was going to take and the things she was going to leave. She decided that the best course of action would be to take 2 dresses in addition to the one she was wearing, and only the pair of shoes she had on her feet.

  She could pack one of the bonnets, and wear the other one, and the rest of the things she would just leave in this closet.

  “If Pansy doesn’t like it, she can sell them herself!”

  Rose blurted out the words before she even realized it, and her heart pounded in her chest. She was certain her sister and mother were still both out, but a feeling of dread came over her anyway. She carefully walked over to her door and listened. There was silence in the house.

  Rose let out a sigh of relief, then jumped as she heard the front door open. She whirled around and as quickly as she could she stuffed her bonnet and dresses into the parcel she had open on her bed. She knew with the door open to the bedroom, Pansy was sure to appear at any moment, and she was right.

  Scarcely had she closed the door to her closet when she heard the heavy footsteps of her sister on the hardwood floors.

  “It’s about time you were up. Mother and I were in town getting all kinds of things for dinner. You must come out here and help us make ready now.”

  Pansy turned on her heel and headed back to the kitchen, and at first Rose felt anger swell up in her chest. She didn’t like being told what to do, but she realized it was only going to be for tonight, and she would be gone. By morning, she would be on her way to her new life, and Pansy would be here to do the chores herself.

  The thought wasn’t enough to make the anger pass out of her, but it was enough to get her out to help in the kitchen. Rose was pleasantly surprised to find she actually had some fun with her mother and sister. Their mother was feeling well enough to talk with them as they worked, and it seemed as though Pansy was making an effort to be nicer.

  Only for a single second did Rose second guess herself. Part of her wanted to stay here and enjoy this forever. She thought she could raise a child on her own. She could care for their mother along with Pansy, and raise her child in this house. The whole idea of it seemed to be quite nice, until Pansy started talking about marriage once again.

  She didn’t bring up anything about Humphry or New York State, but she did speak of the friends they had that were married, and the ones that were getting married soon. Rose knew what she was doing. She knew Pansy was trying to get the subject on hand so they were able to talk about Humphry, but Rose wasn’t going to have it.

  She changed the subject to the wildflowers that were growing in the back of the house, on the south side of the field, and she talked about the food they were making. She could tell Pansy was irritated that she didn’t want to talk about marriage, but it didn’t bother Rose.

  She remained in the kitchen with her mother and sister long enough to have their dinner, and she washed up the dishes that were in the wash basin. After that was completed, Rose excused herself and headed back to her room, in spite of Pansy’s protests.

  “You can’t spend all of your time hiding in that musty old room!”

  Pansy called into the hallway after her, but it was too late. Rose already closed the door and pulled in the latch behind her.

  I’m not going to spend all of my time in here, in fact, this is the last night I am going to spend in here for the rest of my life.

  Chapter 6 – Going West

  Rose was annoyed. She had wanted to get a start on her journey right after she mailed the letter. In fact, she told Greg in the letter she was going to be following it directly, and he need not try to respond to her for it would cross her path in the mail and wouldn’t reach her.

  But, fate intervened, and she was left in the house for nearly a week longer than she wanted to be
. The morning after she had made dinner with her sister, she started to feel dizzy, and the feeling only got worse until she was left in bed with a fever. The doctor came and told her she must remain in bed until further notice.

  This was an order Rose simply couldn’t abide by. As soon as she felt able, she was up and about her room once again. Her sister didn’t dote on her, so Rose didn’t see any great benefit to being in bed as opposed to being up and about.

  If I get a ticket on the stagecoach, I can sit down for the journey anyway. I’ll get off and head right to bed in the hotel, and only be up to get on the stage again the next day.

  Rose felt funny ignoring what the doctor told her to do, but she also felt she knew her body better than anyone else did, so she was justified in her decision. Every moment she could, Rose was up and about, getting the last few things she needed together so she could be ready to go at a moment’s notice.

  As the day wore on, Rose felt well enough to go for light walks, so she made up her mind to head to the post office and purchase a ticket for the stage. She hoped against hope she could get out of the house and not run into her sister, a hope that was realized in a very welcome manner.

  Once she was out of the house, Rose walked as quickly as she comfortably could in her condition. She knew she had to hurry. If she ran into Pansy or if she started to feel dizzy again, things were going to go downhill fast. As it was, she made it to her destination and purchased her ticket.

  Rose hurried home as quickly as she could, and just as she kicked off her shoes and crawled into bed once more, she heard her sister coming up the steps on the porch.

  “Rose? Is that you?”

  “Yes, I was moving about in bed… did I disturb you?”

  Rose didn’t feel that it was entirely a lie. After all, she was moving about in her bed. She didn’t know what else to add to the story, so she shifted her weight to a sitting position and looked up expectantly at her sister as Pansy walked into the room.

  “No, I thought I heard you up and about is all. You know the doctor said you are to stay in that bed, and if you are up and moving around you are not obeying the doctor’s orders. That’s only going to lead to-“

  “I know what the doctor said, and I can handle it. Don’t you worry about me, Pansy, I have this under control.”

  Rose didn’t look up at her sister as she spoke to her, she knew her sister wasn’t going to take the rebuke well. Pansy stood in the door of her room for a minute, and didn’t say anything. Rose hoped she wouldn’t ask her what she had been doing all day, or if she cared to get out of bed.

  Rose said nothing, and neither did her sister, until Pansy finally shrugged and turned to go. Suddenly, she paused, and turned to look at Rose once more.

  “I think I am going to take a walk downtown. There are a few exhibits going on right now, and I don’t think I will be home until late. If Mother wants to join me, I’ll take her along so you don’t have to worry about her. You get some rest, and don’t wait up for me.”

  Rose smiled, and thanked her sister. There was something in her chest that made her feel guilty, but she was relieved when Pansy walked out of the room.

  “Goodbye Pansy.”

  She whispered to herself, and laid back on the pillow before closing her eyes.

  The next morning, Rose sat on the bumpy stagecoach, doing her best to get comfortable in the tiny cabin. She was the only one inside, which she was grateful for, so she tried not to complain. Rose had gotten up before the sun, and they were on the road just as the pink rays were breaking over the horizon.

  Rose had left a note for her mother and sister to find. It explained where she was going and why she was leaving, it told them not to worry, and assured them she was going to be ok.

  Rose knew it wasn’t the best way to handle her move, but she didn’t want to try to explain it to them face to face. That just wasn’t going to go well, and she didn’t want to leave them on poor terms. She was on her way out West, and this was going to be a happy time, regardless of what they thought about it.

  Rose gasped as she hit another bump, and placed her hand on her stomach.

  “It’s going to be okay now, Little One… Don’t you worry. I am going to take care of both of us… just like I promised.”

  Chapter 7 – A Stage Surprise

  “Ouch!”

  Rose cried out involuntarily as the stagecoach jostled over another bump in the road. She had made it through three days of this, and she wasn’t sure she was going to make it through a fourth. It seemed the road was getting rougher the more they pressed on, and she was becoming increasingly uncomfortable.

  “Dearie, are you all right?”

  The stranger across the way looked over at her in concern, and she nodded.

  “How far along are you?”

  Rose wished he would let it drop, but he put on his spectacles and looked at her with great interest. Rose liked the man. He was elderly and resembled the pictures she had seen of Saint Nicholas, but she still wasn’t in the mood to talk.

  “About eight months now. I am on my way to Montana to re-marry. I am a widow, you see, and heavily with child. I need to get settled in as soon as I can, but this infernal stage seems to be hitting every bump it can!”

  The old man chuckled at her outburst, and ran his fingers over his beard.

  “I see. I am on my way to see my son. He is a doctor out there in Montana, and says he enjoys it a lot. I haven’t seen him since his mother died, nearly seven years ago.”

  “I’m sorry to hear of your loss.”

  Rose felt sheepish. She wanted to illicit more sympathy from the man than she got, but when she realized he had also lost his spouse, she felt more connected to him than before. She looked him over as he sat across from her, and he looked to be genuinely cheerful. Rose missed that. She wished she could find some of that cheeriness again, but it seemed that sadness pressed in on her more than anything.

  Finally, she decided to ask him about it.

  “Oh, it was hard for a long time, you see. I missed my Annabelle more than words can describe. But God is good. I know He is taking care of her up there in heaven, and one day, when my time comes, I will get to be with her again, this time forever.”

  Rose felt a twinge in her heart. It had been a long time since she had heard God talked about. Since her husband died she really didn’t want to talk about Him, and her sister wasn’t ever one to mention Him. But, with this old man in front of her, she suddenly wanted God in her life again.

  “Is there a church where we are going?”

  She asked the question timidly, hoping he wouldn’t laugh at her for not knowing.

  “Ralph has mentioned one, yes. I think it’s small, but a church is a church, and I think it will serve your purpose.”

  The old man chuckled once again, and sat back on his seat. Rose put her hands on her stomach, and whispered to her baby that she wanted to take him to church when he was here.

  Another bump in the road caused her to cry out again, and she laid back on the seat and moaned. The old man looked at her in concern once more than leaned out the window and called to the driver. She could hear the shout of the driver in reply, but she wasn’t able to make out what he said.

  Suddenly, she felt the stagecoach lurch, and could feel the horses picking up speed. The old man was chuckling once again, and sat back down inside the coach. This time, he pulled the curtains closed over the door, and made himself as comfortable as he could in the middle of the seat.

  Rose felt scared, and tried to sit up, but another pain in her abdomen caused her to cry out and she leaned back against the seat.

  “We’re going too fast. He needs to slow down!”

  Rose gasped the words out through her clenched teeth, but the old man only chuckled.

  “This is clearly your first child, my dear. Tell me, are you excited?”

  Rose felt confused, wondering what the old man meant by that. She looked over at him with a questioning glance, but he just
crossed his arms and sat back on the seat, stroking his beard as he gazed at her. There was humor in his eyes, as well as a chuckle waiting on his lips.

  Rose shook her head, still not understanding what he was getting at. Finally, she spoke.

  “Yes, this is my first, but how would you know that? What do you mean ‘am I excited?’?”

  Then the old man burst out laughing, this time placing both of his hands on his knees and bending forward. Rose didn’t know what was so funny, and part of her felt like she wanted to slap him. Or snap at him and tell him to stop poking fun at her. But just at that moment she was gripped with another pain in her stomach, this one sharper than the last.

  She cried out, and immediately after she heard the driver shout and crack his whip. The horses whinnied and plunged forward, dragging the stagecoach behind them as quickly as they could.

  “What is going on? Why are we in such a hurry? It felt a lot less painful when we were going slower. Can you ask him to slow down?”

  Rose looked at the man pleadingly, but he shook his head.

  “It’s not the speed of the coach that makes you feel uncomfortable, I’m afraid. And I think slowing down is only going to cause us more problems in the long run. My dear, you are about to welcome your new little one into your family, and I am so happy for you!”

  The man clapped his hands as he announced the news, and Rose felt horrified. She didn’t know how the man could tell, and she felt he must be mistaken. She still had a few weeks to go, and she was convinced the pain was from the jostling of the stagecoach.

  Suddenly, another pain shot through her, this one was stronger, and wracked her whole body with aches. She gasped and looked at the man. He smiled at her and winked, and she pulled herself up on the seat.

  The town wasn’t that far away, but she hoped they would get there in time.

 

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