The White Knight

by Gilbert, Morris

  “Barney, it’s good to see you,” Peter said. “Peter, good to see you too.” The two men shook hands. At age seventy-one now, Barney’s hair was silver, but he still looked strong and healthy, his face weathered from the African sun. He had been a missionary in Africa for many years and was the most famous of all the Winslows. “How have you been?” he asked. “You know my daughter, Erin, and her husband, Quaid Merritt?”

  Peter shook hands with Quaid and greeted Erin and then pulled Luke and Joelle into the introductions.

  “Oh, Mr. Winslow,” Joelle gushed to Barney, “I’ve read your biography over and over again.”

  “Well, don’t believe everything you read in it. It was written by my son, Patrick. I think he sort of gilded the lily.”

  The door opened, and when they got on the elevator, Barney said, “You know, Quaid and Erin are both pilots. They’re both serving as missionary pilots in Africa.”

  Quaid Merritt was a tall, lean man with a pair of keen, observant eyes. “Say, Luke, I heard about your service in Spain. We could use you in Africa.”

  Peter grinned. “Luke and Joelle already have a mission field.”

  “That’s right,” Jolie said. “They’re working with girls who are in trouble and need a place to stay.”

  “That’s a wonderful thing to do,” Erin Merritt said. She had been a famous stunt flyer who was talented and beautiful enough that she had received offers to act in movies in Hollywood. She had walked away from it all when she married Quaid.

  “What do you think about this matter of Japan?” Quaid asked. “They’ve been rattling sabers over there.”

  “I read in the paper,” Luke said, “that their ambassadors are meeting with our State Department. I hope it will work out.”

  “I think we’ll have more trouble with Hitler than Japan,” Quaid said as the door opened. They all stepped outside, and Barney whistled in a low tone. “Look at all the Winslows. I never saw such a mess of them. . . .”

  ****

  The banquet was sumptuous. It was impossible, of course, to meet everybody, but Joelle was entranced by those who were in their immediate vicinity during the meal. Luke had introduced her to the couple on her right. “This is Lewis Winslow and his wife, Missouri Ann. You have to be very respectful of Lewis. He won the Medal of Honor in the Spanish-American War.”

  Lewis Winslow was getting on in years but still looking vigorous.

  “Did you make that charge up San Juan Hill?”

  “Actually, it wasn’t San Juan Hill. It was Kettle Hill. The history books have got that all wrong.” Lewis smiled. “Yes. I was with Teddy.”

  “How exciting! Were you afraid?”

  “It took more nerve to start a second family than charging up that hill with Teddy Roosevelt.” He gave his wife a sly grin. “Missouri Ann here scared me half to death.”

  Missouri Ann was much younger than her husband. She was a large woman, full of energy, and she loved to laugh aloud. “It was the strangest courtship you’ve ever heard of. Lewis was out hunting and broke his leg out in the middle of nowhere. I took him to my cabin, set his leg, and told him God had sent him to be my husband. It nearly scared the daylights out of him.”

  “I was too old to start a new family.” Lewis grinned. “At least, I thought so.”

  “But you weren’t. We’ve got three healthy children now—triplets, mind you—every bit as handsome as his first family.”

  “It was a funny courtship. I didn’t have any chance at all. What do you do when a woman just up and tells you that God has sent you to be her husband?”

  “Now, why didn’t I think of that?” Joelle said, winking at Luke.

  The woman sitting across the table from Joelle tapped her fingernail on the table to get Joelle’s attention. “I’m Barney Winslow’s sister, Esther Krueger. This is my husband, Jan.”

  “Esther is a very famous photographer,” Lewis said. “Does marvelous work.”

  “I don’t do much of that anymore. I have to take care of this husband of mine.”

  Jan Krueger had a foreign look about him, and his accent revealed that English was not his native language. “I think I’m easy enough to take care of.”

  “He’s spoiled to death,” Esther said. “I had to give up my work just to pamper him. He’s a famous heart surgeon now, and he gets so swollen with pride it takes half a day to bring him down to earth.”

  Joelle was fascinated with the Winslows. It seemed there wasn’t a run-of-the-mill person in the whole bunch.

  “I want you to meet a real hero,” Luke was saying. “This is Logan Smith and his wife, Danielle. He was an ace in the Great War.”

  “I’m so glad to meet you, Mr. Smith.”

  “Most folks just call me Cowboy, at least they did in France when I went to serve over there.”

  “Did you ever see the Red Baron?” Luke asked.

  “Oh yes. I met the scamp. Nice enough fellow.”

  “What do you think about the new planes, Logan?”

  “Well, from what I’ve read, that Me-109 the Germans have is going to be a tough cookie. They’re giving the Spitfires fits over in England.”

  “I’d sure like to get into one of those P-47s that America’s turning out.”

  “So would I,” Logan said. “It’s shaped almost like a jug. Big huge airplane. You know, if I’d had one of those P-47s in France, I think I could have wiped up the entire Luftwaffe.”

  The conversation was cut off when Peter Winslow stood up. He was sitting at the head table with Barney, and when he got everyone’s attention, he said, “It’s a dangerous thing to let a preacher speak at a banquet, but I have Barney’s promise that he’ll save the sermon for the Sunday morning prayer breakfast tomorrow. We hope all of you will come. As I think most of you know, Barney Winslow has been an intrepid missionary in Africa for many years. His brother, Andrew, is a fellow missionary, as are several of his family. I’m going to ask him to come say a word about the Winslow family. Barney, it’s your show.”

  Barney Winslow rose, and his voice was still clear, despite his age. He stood looking over them and said, “Last night I was reading the journal of Gilbert Winslow. I think you all know that he was the first of our family to come over on the Mayflower, of course. His brother Edward came also, and he was one of the early governors of the colony. Gilbert was an amazing man. My favorite part of his journal is the part that he wrote while he was in prison at Salem. Let me read a few lines of it:

  ****

  “It appears that I will not be able to serve the Lord in this world much longer. We are all to be executed within a week. Strangely enough, I feel no fear, which is of the Lord’s doing. No man can face death without fear unless God helps him.

  “I am an old man now, and I have lived to see my son serve the Lord Jesus. We are privileged to be servants of the living God, and if today is the day we are to die, I shout hallelujah, for we will be ushered into the presence of the great King.

  ****

  “Those words were written by a man on the threshold of death. Obviously Gilbert Winslow did not die within the week, as he had expected, but went on to serve God in many ways. He was the first of the Winslows to make his mark on America, but there have been others. Some have been college presidents, some have been plumbers, and some have been governors. There is an admiral with us tonight who bears the name Winslow. We’ve had our villains and our weak men and women, but the Winslows have served the country and have served the Lord God faithfully throughout the years.”

  Joelle and all the rest of the Winslows listened attentively as the old man talked for a long time, mentioning the names of Winslows who had come down through history. Joelle had not heard of most of them, but she was thrilled at the stories that he told.

  Finally Barney grinned and said, “I promised that I wouldn’t preach a sermon, and I won’t tonight. But tomorrow I want every one of you back here in this very place. We’ll have a great breakfast and then I’ll preach you a sermon that’ll curl
your hair.”

  Peter Winslow rose and grinned. “I always wanted curly hair. We’ll all be here, Barney. Now I have an announcement to make, a very wonderful announcement. I’m going to ask my new daughter-in-law, Joelle, and my son Luke to come stand with Jolie and me here.”

  Joelle found herself nervously getting to her feet, following her husband to the front. “What is this about, Luke?” she whispered.

  “I have no idea. Dad always likes surprises.”

  When the two of them were standing in front of Peter, he was grinning widely. “My spiritual gift,” he said loudly, “is meddling. Jolie and I have practiced this gift to perfection. The Winslows, as Barney has been pointing out, have always been in battle for the Lord. Because Jolie and I want to do our part in the battle, we have decided, Luke and Joelle, to join your ministry to wayward young people. Several of us have been working all week to set up a foundation called the Haven Foundation. A board has been selected to handle the finances. We’re going to raise money from every Winslow we can find, and here is the first check from the Haven Foundation to be used to start a residence for boys and young men. We Winslows don’t like to lose, so we’re expecting God to establish Havens all over this country.”

  Luke took the check and held it so Joelle could see it. Joelle began to cry.

  “That’s the way it should be,” Peter said, smiling. “Now let’s give a big hand to the directors of the Havens, and may there be one in every major city in this country to help the young people who need it.”

  Joelle felt Luke’s arm go around her, and she whispered, “I’m so proud to be a Winslow, Luke!”

  ****

  The next morning, nearly everyone who had been at the banquet the night before returned for the prayer breakfast. Joelle had been able to meet all of the Winslows who would be on the board of the Haven Foundation, and she and Luke had made an appointment to meet with the board before they left town.

  Barney was wrapping up his remarks. “I told you I would preach a short sermon and that’s what I’ve done, even though it goes against the grain for me.” Mischief danced in his eyes. “The Masai don’t have any respect for a sermon that lasts less than three hours, but I can see that this crowd doesn’t have that kind of stamina.

  “This has been a real pleasure for me,” he went on. “It’s wonderful to see so many in this family of ours serving God, and I hope we gather like this again before I get my promotion to the throne room. But if—”

  Barney broke off as his brother, Andrew, burst into the room calling his name. “What’s the matter, Andy?”

  “The Japanese are attacking Hawaii! They’re bombing the fleet in Pearl Harbor!”

  A total silence fell over the room and then everyone began speaking at once. “Are you sure, Andrew?”

  “They’re talking about it on the radio.”

  Someone from the back of the room yelled, “There’s a radio back here in the corner. Let’s see if we can hear something.”

  Andrew turned the radio on and turned the volume up so everyone could hear.

  “. . .attack was completely unexpected,” the announcer was saying, “for the representatives of the Japanese Empire were in Washington for peace talks. The first reports are that the American fleet has been decimated. Many lives have been lost. This, of course, means that America will be at war with Japan.”

  “How could they bomb Hawaii?” Peter asked loudly. “Japan is thousands of miles from there.”

  “Aircraft carriers,” Luke said grimly. “No other way they could have done it.”

  Luke’s words were verified, for as they listened to the newscast, they learned that the Japanese carriers had brought the bombers and fighters to the attack. The one piece of good news was that none of America’s carriers were at Pearl Harbor.

  “That means we still have a chance in the Pacific,” Luke said. “If they had gotten the carriers, there would be no stopping the Japanese.”

  “What will happen, Luke?” Joelle whispered.

  He took her hand in his own. “A lot of people are going to die.” He looked around the room with troubled eyes, then added, “And some of them will be Winslows.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  Christmas Surprises

  Joelle was sitting in the kitchen talking to Jolie. They spoke mostly of the war, for in the three days since the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Winslow household, like practically every other household in America, was filled with talk of nothing but the tragedy. The two women were sipping coffee, and Jolie was speaking softly, her eyes full of grief.

  “The whole world seems to have been turned upside down, Joelle, in just a few days.”

  Joelle nodded. “I read a poem one time. The poet said that once he stooped over to pick up a shoe, and when he straightened up his whole world had changed completely. I didn’t understand that poem until December the seventh. Now I don’t think anyone can have the same life they had before that.”

  “I believe you’re right. I never thought of it that way.”

  “I’ve been thinking about all those poor men who died on the Arizona. They got up that morning, I suppose, and had breakfast and had no idea what was going to happen. That before the day was out they’d be taken out of this earth.”

  “It’s an awesome thought, but you know, Joelle, it’s true of us every day. Not just the sailors on the Arizona but every one of us. When we wake up in the morning, we ought to think, I may not live to see bedtime. I may be in the presence of the Lord tonight.”

  “You’re right, of course,” Joelle agreed. “We never know when our time will come.” She took a sip of her coffee. “I’ve heard that several of our family have already enlisted. One of Wesley’s sons enlisted in the navy. Just yesterday. I talked with Wes and his wife and they were saddened by it, but at the same time they understood that it was going to be that way.”

  “There was a picture in the paper yesterday of one of the enlistment lines in Little Rock. The same thing is taking place all over the country. All the young men are rushing to arms.”

  Suddenly Joelle lifted her head. “I hear the front door.”

  “It’s probably Peter. He usually comes in about this time.”

  The two women turned to face the door, and Peter came in, accompanied by Tim.

  “Hello, dear.” Peter kissed Jolie and smiled at Joelle. “What have you two been doing all day?”

  “Nothing much,” Joelle said. “Luke went out on some business. Hasn’t been here all day.”

  “I was hoping he’d be here,” Tim said. “There’s something I want to talk to him about.”

  “What are you so excited about, Tim?” Jolie asked. “You never could cover up your feelings too well.”

  “The greatest thing has happened, Mom.” Tim’s face was flushed, and his eyes were dancing with excitement. “Dad and I have been talking all day to government officials.”

  “Talking about what?”

  “About the company. It’s great, isn’t it, Dad?”

  Peter did not seem as excited as his son. “I suppose it could be called exciting, but it’s sad too.”

  “Sad? How could it be sad? It’s a great opportunity for the Winslow Company.”

  “What are you two talking about?” Jolie said. “What were you talking to the government about?”

  “Mom, they want our company to make carburetors for army vehicles. Of course nothing’s signed yet, but they’re positive that we can get a contract. Why, it’ll be the biggest thing that our company has ever done. We’ll have to put up a new building to take care of all that business.”

  Jolie glanced at Peter and saw that he did not seem entirely happy. “Aren’t you in favor of this, Peter?”

  “I guess so, but it’s going to mean a lot of changes.”

  “What kind of changes?” Joelle asked. “We’ll have to enlarge the factory, and it’s going to be harder to get help. All the young men will be going off to fight.”

  “We’ll find the help,” Ti
m said confidently, “and we’ll be doing a great work too. You know—we’ll be doing our part for our country.”

  “This whole country has got to gear up. We’ve got to build an army. We’ve got to build tanks and planes and ships. It’s going to be the biggest effort this country has ever made,” Peter said.

  Tim turned to Joelle and smiled excitedly at her. “All the time we were talking to them, I was thinking of you and Luke.”

  “Of me and Luke? Why would you think of us?”

  “We’re going to need all the help we can get. This expansion might work out perfectly for the two of you.”

  “I don’t see what it has to do with us. We’ll be going back to Tennessee to continue with the Haven and to start looking into expanding to take in boys.”

  “I realize that, but here’s what I was thinking,” Tim said. “Why couldn’t you establish the headquarters for the Haven Foundation in Little Rock?”

  “Why here? Why not in Tennessee?”

  “Because, don’t you see, Joelle, if your office was here, you could run the Haven—and Luke could go to work for the company.”

  Joelle glanced at Jolie and then shook her head. “We’ve already got plans.”

  “Everyone is changing their plans. This war has changed everything. You can still do the Haven work. With the money that’s coming in, you can hire a director to take Luke’s place, and he can plunge right in here. It’s an opportunity of a lifetime.”

  “I don’t think of it like that,” Peter said heavily. He seemed depressed. “It seems wrong to take advantage of a terrible thing like a war to make money.”

  “Dad, the carburetors have to be built. We’ll be serving our country.” Turning to Joelle, he said, “Would you agree to it if Luke does?”

  “I suppose so,” Joelle said reluctantly, “but I don’t think he will.”