Brow furrowed, Julie nudged her sister aside. “We’re only smarter about flowers, and that’s because Aunt Thora and Miss Audrey taught us.” She grasped Audrey’s hand. “You need to take Papa on a long walk and teach him about flowers, too.”
While Audrey placed the flowers in a vase, Thora plopped the basket of herbs on the table. “We can take your papa with us tomorrow while Miss Audrey is helping Irene with the laundry.”
Josie clapped her small hands together. She offered a wide smile that revealed dimples in her plump cheeks. “Oh yes. That will be great fun.”
The hopeful gleam in Dr. Wahler’s eyes faded. “I would be delighted to have Miss Thora give me lessons on the flora and fauna of Bridal Veil.”
Julie wrinkled her nose. “What’s that?”
Audrey brushed her finger against the wrinkles in Julie’s nose. “Flora means plants and fauna means animals.”
The little girl turned on her heel and looked at Thora. “Ohh. Are we going to see any wolves, Aunt Thora?”
Thora placed her palm along the side of her cheek. “Land alive, I hope not. Miss Audrey took my shotgun, and without it we’d be defenseless.” She winked at Julie. “Maybe you should tell her to give it back to me.”
Julie’s dark curls bobbed up and down as she agreed. “Aunt Thora needs her gun so she can save us from the wolves.”
Dr. Wahler directed a warning look at the old woman. “I don’t think you need to worry about wolves, children. I’m sure we won’t find any wild animals roaming the island during the daytime. Isn’t that right, Thora?”
She hitched her shoulders in an exaggerated shrug. “You may be right. Seems like only the two-legged wolves are out during the daylight hours.”
The doctor attempted a smile, but his features didn’t mask his annoyance. “If you have time, I’d like to speak with you about the girls and their future education, Audrey.” He glanced toward Thora and Irene. “Unless this is a bad time.”
“Not at all. I’m certain Irene would be pleased to put the teakettle on to boil, wouldn’t you, Irene?”
Irene bobbed in a mock curtsy. “Of course, Miss Audrey. I’ll bake a batch of cookies, too, if you like. Shall I start the cookies before or after the laundry?”
Audrey sighed. It seemed that both Thora and Irene were in poor humor today. “I won’t be long, I promise.”
“You girls go out on the front porch and play until I finish talking to Miss Audrey. Both Miss Irene and Miss Thora are busy with their chores,” Dr. Wahler said.
“I’d rather help Miss Irene bake cookies,” Josie replied as she gazed longingly toward the kitchen.
Irene hesitated, obviously aware of the mistake she’d made. “I was only teasing about making cookies, Josie. I don’t have time to bake today, but if you come back tomorrow, you can help me bake cookies.”
Josie’s lips tightened into a pout. “You shouldn’t tease about cookies, Miss Irene. That isn’t nice.”
“You’re correct. I shouldn’t tease about cookies, but I hope you’ll return and help me tomorrow.” Irene lifted an expectant brow as she awaited the child’s response.
“We’ll see. Tomorrow I might want to see the flora and fauna instead.”
Thora chuckled and nudged Irene. “Josie don’t take too well to being teased.”
Once the girls were outdoors, Audrey and Dr. Wahler settled in the parlor. “Now then, what is it you wished to discuss?”
“As you know, the girls will soon be turning six, and it’s time for them to receive a more formal education. I was hoping you might consider taking them on as pupils. I know you are already busy here at Bridal Fair, but I can think of no other solution.” He hesitated. “Our cabin is far too small to bring someone to live with us. And although I will likely send them away to boarding school next year, they’re in need of preparation.”
“The girls are delightful, but I’m not certain I can devote time to their lessons.” At any other time, she would have been delighted to accept the position.
“Without the training they would have received from their mother, the girls are going to lag behind other children their age.” When she didn’t immediately respond, he continued. “They truly need to learn how to become proper young ladies. Along with providing them with book learning, I know you would be the very best person to instruct them in proper etiquette.”
Audrey realized he was hoping to convince with his praise—and it was working. Though she disliked admitting it, his flattery pleased her. “I would enjoy nothing more, but my duties here at Bridal Fair must come first. As you see, it is difficult for me to slip away for even a brief conversation. There simply aren’t enough hours in the day.”
“But I know you are the perfect choice.”
“That may be true, but I must decline.”
Dr. Wahler leaned forward until they were only inches apart. “I’m not a man who normally begs, but I implore you to reconsider. The girls are quite fond of you, and I believe you have feelings for them, as well.”
———
Marshall stood on the other side of the parlor door listening to Dr. Wahler’s plea. He’d seen the twins playing at one end of the wraparound porch when he’d come home to retrieve an old pair of work shoes for one of the men. Hearing Dr. Wahler’s voice in the parlor, he became inquisitive. He’d heard only snatches of the conversation but enough to realize the good doctor was trying to entice Audrey. His stomach clenched into a knot the size of his fist. He didn’t know which was worse: the fact that Dr. Wahler would use his children to lure an innocent woman or that Audrey would sit still long enough to entertain the man’s suggestion. Why didn’t she get up and walk out?
“I know the girls care for me, Edmond. And I care for them—very much.”
Edmond? When had Audrey begun to call the doctor by his first name? Marshall took another step closer and strained to hear what she was saying.
“That’s exactly why I was drawn to you. The girls need someone like you. Someone who will show them all of the things their mother would have. I know you’re that person, Audrey.”
“Even if that’s true, I would never want the girls to think that I was making any attempt to take the place of their dear mother.”
Marshall silently chided himself. He’d been too busy at work. Rather than taking time to reveal his true feelings to Audrey, he’d spent long hours at the construction site. Obviously, she didn’t understand the depth of his desire or his intent. How could she? Though his thoughts were constantly about her, he’d never made them known. Now the doctor was sitting in the other room practically proposing to Audrey. And from what he’d heard, she was bordering on acceptance. Well, he’d have none of that. At least not without putting up a fight for the woman he wanted.
Pushing aside any thought of proper manners, he burst into the room. “I arrived home a short time ago and need to speak with you, Audrey.”
Audrey looked at him and blinked, clearly surprised by his sudden appearance. “I’m sorry—I’m busy at the moment, Marshall.” She glanced at the doctor as he pushed up from his chair.
“I’ve taken too much of your time, Audrey. I’m certain the girls are eager for some attention, so I’ll be on my way.” He took hold of her hand, and Marshall thought for a moment he would kiss her fingers. Instead, he merely bowed over her hand. “Do promise that you’ll consider my proposal.”
Proposal? Marshall’s irritation rose to new heights as the word slid from Dr. Wahler’s lips. Had the doctor’s young daughters not been playing on the front porch, Marshall would have escorted him outdoors and settled any further talk of the good doctor’s marriage proposal. How dare that man ask for Audrey’s hand! And in front of him! The blatant audacity of Dr. Wahler infuriated him.
Marshall stared at Audrey, amazed by her calm and unruffled appearance. Why had she been willing to overlook the doctor’s ill-mannered conduct? Perhaps the two of them had been secretly courting while Marshall worked overtime at the clubhouse. Now he wonder
ed if he’d made a mistake by allowing his work to become his only priority. He should have taken more time to court Audrey, for now it appeared he’d lost his opportunity. And Dr. Wahler had quickly stepped in.
Not that the doctor hadn’t shown interest in Audrey from the outset. Even during Boyd’s illness, the doctor had sometimes appeared less interested in caring for his patient than in gaining Audrey’s attention. It seemed he always wanted advice about his daughters or had some silly question that could have been answered by Irene or Thora. Instead, he would seek out Audrey. And if she wasn’t available, he’d return rather than ask someone else. Well, he hadn’t fooled Marshall. The man had been after a wife and mother for his daughters from the first day he’d laid eyes on Audrey Cunningham. There was no doubt in Marshall’s mind.
Audrey tucked a wisp of hair behind one ear and uttered a charming good-bye to the doctor. In fact, it sounded downright alluring to Marshall. He wanted to step between the two of them and block the doctor’s view of her.
Once Wahler disappeared out the front door, Audrey turned toward Marshall. “After such an abrupt entrance, I assume there is something urgent you wished to discuss?” The charm had disappeared from her voice.
Suddenly, Marshall couldn’t put two words together. At least not two words that made any sense. “Well, I thought . . .” He shuffled his weight to his left foot. “I mean, I wanted to . . .” Embarrassment got the best of him, and he swatted the air. “Seems I’ve forgotten what I wanted to ask. I need to get a pair of work boots from upstairs and return to the work site.” He could see the confusion in her eyes, but it was no match for the confusion in his heart. He dared not talk to her right then, for he’d surely make a fool of himself.
Chapter 19
Audrey stopped Marshall as he came down the stairs the next morning. “Aunt Thora isn’t feeling well, but she mentioned she’d like a word with you in her sitting room before you leave.”
“I’m sorry to hear she isn’t well, but I’ll take a minute to visit with her.” He wondered if the old woman had decided to become a help or a hindrance where his courtship of Audrey was concerned. Way back in January she’d said she would study the Scriptures and then get back with him, but she never had. By now she’d taken enough time to read the entire Bible, and he didn’t hold out much hope.
He tapped on the door and waited until she signaled for him to enter. “I heard you wanted to see me.” Thora Lund must be quite the actress to fool Audrey, Marshall thought. The woman didn’t appear sick at all. She pointed to the door.
“Close it. I don’t want no one to overhear.”
Marshall nodded and closed the door. “Am I to guess that the Lord has finally spoken to you through the Scriptures regarding my request for your help?”
She studied him a moment, pointed to the chair beside her, and took up her large, worn Bible. “You’re impatient, but the Lord moves at His own pace—just like me. Now, sit down, and I’ll tell you what He told me.”
Marshall did as instructed. Thora turned to where she’d marked a passage. She looked up. “This is from the forty-first chapter of Isaiah. Are you familiar with it?”
“With Isaiah? Yes. The forty-first chapter—not so much.”
“Well, this is what it says. ‘Keep silence before me, O islands; and let the people renew their strength: let them come near; then let them speak: let us come near together to judgment.’ ”
She paused and looked over the Bible at him. “I’ve been silent, and now I’ve called you to come near. That means the Lord is ready for me to talk to you and to judge the situation.”
Marshall nodded. “All right. Let’s talk.”
“But there’s more.” Her tone of voice sounded rather ominous. She bent down over the book. “ ‘Behold, all they that were incensed against thee shall be ashamed and confounded: they shall be as nothing; and they that strive with thee shall perish. Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them, even them that contended with thee: they that war against thee shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought. For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.’ ” She stopped and looked at Marshall once again. “Do you understand? That’s the Lord sayin’ He’s taking a stand against them that warred against us. He’s gonna restore the South.”
It puzzled Marshall how the old woman had pulled that from the passage, but he said nothing.
She seemed to sense this as his approval and continued to read. “Here’s the part where God spoke to me about you. ‘I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come: from the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name: and he shall come upon princes as upon mortar, and as the potter treadeth clay.’ ” She looked up with brows raised. “Makes it all perty clear if you ask me.”
“I’m . . . not sure I understand.”
The old woman frowned. “God has taken pity on us here, but in order to help us, He raised up one from the north. At first I thought maybe it was that Mr. Morley who the Scriptures spoke of, but it weren’t. It’s you.”
“And how do you figure that, Mrs. Lund?”
“Because you’re the one workin’ with mortar—with the tabby. Only seein’s how Isaiah’s folk didn’t have tabby, they had to write about mortar, and you’re the prince of mortar.”
Marshall was completely baffled. “Mrs. Lund, I don’t mean any disrespect, but I’m not clear as to how that verse could possibly be about me.”
She sighed in exasperation, as one might when working with a child. “God’s tellin’ me here that He’s raised up one from the north who calls upon His name. You profess to be a God-fearin’ man who prays, and you’re the one God is gonna use to help us against the Yankees takin’ advantage of us. It’s as plain as that.”
“All right.” Marshall decided to take another direction. “How does that pertain to my asking for your assistance in getting Audrey’s agreement to let me court her?”
The older woman smiled and slammed the Bible closed. “If the good Lord has sent you to help us, then He would want me to help you.”
Marshall shook his head, but smiled. “Mrs. Lund, you are a wonder, indeed.”
“You can call me Aunt Thora.”
Later that night as Marshall prepared for bed, he pulled out his Bible and pored over the forty-first chapter of Isaiah. Somehow he just couldn’t seem to fit the pieces together in the same way Thora had. He couldn’t help but marvel nevertheless. The old woman was adamant that she had interpreted this passage to be a personal message from God. How many other people made the Bible twist and turn at their convenience?
As he neared the end of the chapter, however, the last verse caught his eye. Murmuring the words aloud, Marshall read, “ ‘Behold, they are all vanity; their works are nothing: their molten images are wind and confusion.’ ”
A shudder ran through him. Was it a prophecy of their labors on the island? Maybe Thora understood more than he realized.
The following morning, Marshall, Mr. Morley, and the other foremen were still gathered around the breakfast table when a thunderous explosion reverberated in the distance. Moments later, the alarm bell clanged until it peaked in a frenzied crescendo. Several chairs fell backward as the men jumped to their feet and raced for the front door. That bell meant only one thing: injury or death at the work site. The words of Scripture echoed in his mind as he ran toward the clubhouse.
Mayhem. That was the only word to describe the scene. Workers scurried in all directions, each shouting to be heard above the other. Marshall came to a sudden halt, unable to fully grasp the disastrous sight that greeted him. Screams of injured men, the pealing bell, groans of weakening joists and beams all mixed together in a discordant composition that wailed tragedy. He needed to move. Somehow, he needed to make sense out of chaos.
Marshall grasped Frank Baker’s arm. “The third floor has collapsed. You take control of the east side of the building. I’ll see to the west side. Get the men calmed down and make certain there’s no one trap
ped in that debris.” He saw Dr. Wahler running toward them. “Once the doctor assesses the situation, we’ll have a better idea of how to proceed. Until he gives us the order, we don’t want to move anyone and risk causing further injury.”
One of the young workers balled his fingers into tight fists as he approached Marshall. “My brother is in there, and I aim to go and get him out—with or without instructions from any doctor. We don’t need no doctor tellin’ us how to move a heavy beam off a man’s chest.”
Another laborer stepped alongside the younger man. “He’s right. If they’re underneath heavy rubble, their injuries will only get worse. I say we go down and begin looking for them that’s hurt. Ain’t right to leave ’em down there suffering. Who can say how long it’s gonna take the doctor to get ’round to all those men?” The man’s eyes shone with disdain. “Is this your best plan of how to handle a disaster, Mister Graham?”
The worker’s eyes shone with a mixture of anger and hatred. Even now the men preferred to take their orders from his assistant. These men were not easily won over. They trusted no one they didn’t know, especially a man from up north. Their allegiance was to Frank Baker.
Marshall gritted his teeth and stepped forward. Trust him or not, they were going to follow his orders this time. “If the rest of you promise to keep your distance, I’ll see if I can work my way upstairs. If I find something, I’ll call from one of the windows.” The men weren’t happy, but they mumbled their agreement.
All appeared safe enough as he climbed the stairway. He could only pray that the damage had been contained to the second and third floors—and that none of the men had been seriously injured in the collapse. “Please, Father,” he murmured as he continued the upward climb, “keep the men safe.”
As he approached the second floor, it appeared that at least a quarter of the third floor had collapsed onto the second floor. Floor joists had snapped like twigs while others swayed overhead like broken tree limbs after a storm. The sound of groaning timbers told a story of their own: Further damage could occur at any moment. Anyone on the second floor was in danger. A couple of the injured called out to him while others simply groaned in pain.
To Have and To Hold Page 19
