“Young? You’re hardly ancient now.” Nora’s attempt to cheer up Lily fell flat. “Sorry, my gran always says I should use my ears more than my mouth.”
Lily smiled but it was a sad one. “You’re lucky having family who care about you. Me, I was on my own. Lived with my mam but she died and afterwards…well, let’s just say anything was better than what was on offer. So I ran.” Lily scrubbed a potato particularly hard. “I met a man. I thought he loved me. And, well, the rest you can probably guess.”
The potato Nora was peeling fell out of her hand. She groped for it, mortified she had shown her shock so obviously but, also, horrified her action caused Lily’s eyes to fill up with tears. Throwing down her peeler, Nora pulled the other girl into her arms. “Don’t take on so. Doc Erin wouldn’t let you near her precious baby if you weren’t a lovely person. You can’t help what happened to you.”
Lily sobbed and then sniffed as she got hold of her emotions. “I hate leaving Doc Erin and Mick and most of all Michelle, but I ain’t got a choice.”
“But why? If this Clover Springs is such a wonderful place, why do you have to leave?” Nora asked.
“It is a great place and most of the people are lovely but there are one or two ladies in the town who are horrid. They’ve made it very difficult for me. Not just for me but for Doc Erin, too, although she won’t admit it.”
“I wouldn’t let two old busybodies run me out of town,” Nora said firmly. She meant every word too.
Lily eyed Nora for a minute. “No, you probably wouldn’t but I am tired of being stared at and gossiped about. I want a fresh start.”
“So where are you going to go?” Nora asked her gently.
“I don’t know. I have a friend who went to live in Santa Fe. I thought I would go to her.”
“But you’re not keen?”
“I really like Mollie and would love to see her, but she knows how I lived. How I earned my living, I mean. It would always be there. She wants to be a doctor.” Lily spoke so quietly, Nora struggled to hear what she said. “She don’t need any reminders of what our lives used to be like.”
“I’m sure that’s not true,” Nora said, although she didn’t know the Mollie girl Lily was talking about. “I don’t think anyone would prefer not to have you in their life, Lily, and I only met you a week ago. Haven’t you got any family?”
“I have a brother, he lives here in New York but he doesn’t want me in his life. He told me I was dead to him.”
“Well, more fool him. I think you should consider returning to Clover Springs, Lily.”
“Does that mean you are going to move there?”
Nora’s gaze singled out Robbie who was talking and laughing with Mrs. Murphy. “I haven’t made my mind up but I just might.”
Lily followed her gaze. “Am I right in thinking if Robbie was moving too, you would find the decision a lot easier to make?”
Nora turned away, blushing.
“Robbie Fenton is a nice man. But from what he says about New York, I reckon he might fancy a change too. He barely left your bedside the whole time you were unconscious. Why don’t you ask him?” Lily asked.
“I couldn’t do that. It’s not a woman’s place.”
Lily laughed so loudly people turned to stare at them. Nora poked her in the side and told her to shush as Robbie and Mrs. Murphy both looked their way.
“Sorry, Nora, but that was just about the last thing I expected you to say. I thought you were all set to live your life your own way.”
Nora looked at her new friend and shrugged her shoulders. “Maybe I am not brave enough after all.”
“I don’t believe that for a second,” Lily said.
The girls fell silent, each consumed with thoughts about her future. No matter what decisions they made, the road ahead would not be an easy one.
Chapter 43
Ruth headed home, her heart heavy as she battled the last remains of the storm. Poor Carmel, she was never sick. But her mother-in-law was in bed suffering from the ill effects of a chill she’d caught, and, Ruth suspected, she was also probably beside herself with worry about Nora and Charlie. They hadn’t heard anything further other than the message Charlie had sent to say he had found Nora and she was staying with Doc Erin for a bit. Charlie hadn’t come home as he had to go back to the train depot to see his boss but he had sent a friend of his with the message to Ruth.
Ruth walked on, trying not to worry about her elder children. She hadn’t been able to find anything for her family to eat apart from three old potatoes, a small cabbage, and some mangy looking carrots. It wouldn’t make much of a soup.
Intent on getting to her family, she nearly fell over something lying on the ground in front of her. She was about to kick it out of her way when she stopped. Sweet Mother of Jesus it was a baby girl. Gingerly she’d picked the little one up. She was still breathing but barely. Ruth looked around her frantically but she couldn’t see any sign of the baby’s mother. She didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t leave the child here, but if she took it away, the mother may die looking for her baby. A couple of seconds in the freezing cold was enough to make her mind up. She had a chance to save the child, so she bundled the little girl to her and moved quickly up the rickety stairs. The lights were still out, someone said the gas pipes had frozen solid. She moved carefully for fear of falling over and letting the child drop. Finally, she reached their rooms.
“Ma, you were gone ages. Did you find something?” Katie’s voice trembled as she shivered from the cold. She was lying in the bed with everything the family owned, which wasn’t much, stacked on top of her. Her younger brother was fast asleep, huddled on the bed.
“Mam, what you got all bundled up? Is it sausages?” The hope in her daughter’s voice brought tears to Ruth’s eyes.
“No sweetheart. It’s a baby. A girl.”
“You brought me back a baby sister. A real one. You’re the best mam in the whole world.” Katie jumped out of bed forgetting her cold and hunger. “But why isn’t she moving, Mam?”
“She’s very cold, darling. Could you put some water in the sink for me? I got to give her a wash; we need to try and warm her up a little. Have we any milk left?”
“There’s a little bit. Stevie wanted it but I said he had to leave it for when you came home.”
“Good girl, what would I do without you?”
Katie beamed at the praise. “Do I need to heat the milk?”
“Just a little. You did a great job, darling, keeping the fire going and looking after your brother.”
“Thanks, Mam. I did everything you said. But there’s no coal left now.”
Ruth couldn’t think about that. She had to get the little girl warm. She gently peeled back the rags wrapped around the baby and lowered her into the sink full of tepid water. The baby whimpered but didn’t open her eyes. She couldn’t have been out in the cold that long.
“What’s her name?”
“I don’t know, Katie. What do you think we should call her?”
“Emma.”
“That’s beautiful, darling, but, Katie, she is very sick. She may die.”
“No, Mam, she won’t. You’ll save her.”
Ruth wished she shared the little girl’s confidence. She washed the baby tenderly all the time wondering how she could feed her. She’d have to try to spoon some milk into her mouth.
“Can you bring the milk over to the table, child?” Ruth quickly dried little Emma and wrapped her up in some clean clothes. She tucked her up against her body as she tried to spoon milk into her mouth. The first couple of attempts, the milk dribbled out the side of her lips, but finally Emma responded. She took a few spoons of the milk before falling back asleep.
Meanwhile, Katie was busy making her a cradle out of a drawer.
“She can lie here. I put some jumpers under her to keep her warm. If you put it by the fire, I will watch over here.”
“Thank you, darling.” Ruth kissed her daughter’s head before pu
tting Emma down to sleep in the snug cocoon her daughter had made.
Katie’s stomach gurgled loudly.
“I know you’re hungry. I will have soup ready in just a little while. In the meantime, you can have this.” Ruth gave Katie a small carrot. It wasn’t much but it would keep the hunger pains at bay. She quickly set to washing the rest of the vegetables and getting some soup going. She had some bread leftover from the day before. If she toasted it, the children mightn’t notice it was hard. As she worked, her mind fretted over how to keep the children fed and warm for the next day. The coal was gone and it was pointless asking the neighbors for help. They were as badly off as she was. In some cases, they were worse. There was so little in the shops now and the prices being charged were prohibitive.
She looked around the room. They would have to burn something. Her eyes fell on her table. After the bed, it was her prized possession. All they had left of the little house they had before they moved to New York, thinking its streets would be paved with gold. How had they been so naïve? Maybe Charlie or Nora would be home before she needed to start chopping up anything.
“Mam, you’re back. I missed you,” Stevie lisped, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. “I’m hungry.”
“I know, baby. We will have some nice soup in a few minutes.”
“Yuck, I don’t like soup.”
“You’ll eat what you’re given and no complaints,” Ruth snapped, immediately regretting it as tears filled her youngest’s eyes. She reached out to rub them off his cheeks. “Sorry, Stevie, Mam’s grumpy today.”
“Tis okay. Did Grammy get better?”
“Not yet,” Ruth forced herself to be cheerful, “sit up now and get this down you while it’s still hot.”
She divided out the soup between the four of them, giving herself the smallest portion. It wasn’t much but it would help warm them up. She toasted the bread and showed them how to dip it into the soup to make it softer. Baby Emma woke up again, whimpering. She fed her another couple of spoons of milk.
“Can I have milk, Mam?”
“No, Stevie, later. I need it for the baby”
“Where did you get her? Can you not swap her for some real food?”
“Don’t be horrible, Stevie. Emma needs us. She is only little,” Katie reprimanded her younger brother who promptly stuck his tongue out at her. Ruth pretended not to see. She didn’t have the energy to referee the fights between her children now. Where could Joe have gone and with what?
After they ate their soup, Ruth’s mind turned to how she could keep her family safe over the next day or so. She went to the corner of their room, lifting an old floorboard under which she kept the money Erin had given her. She’d put it aside for a real emergency. She searched for the old sock, finally finding it. It was lighter than ever. Her heart turned over. Surely Joe couldn’t have found it. Yet there was money missing. She counted the coins. They had less than a dollar. She could buy some coal from the grocer for ten cents but what would she buy with the rest?
Tears ran down her cheeks. If she caught hold of Joe now, she’d wring his neck herself.
Chapter 44
“Ma, what are we going to eat? There’s only a little flour, one egg, and some lard. That’s it,” Katie said rubbing her stomach. She was always hungry and Stevie was whining. He must be hungry too.
Ruth couldn’t think for a couple of minutes. She was fretting about Nora. Why wasn’t she home? Carmel was in bed asleep having paced the floor for hours waiting for Nora.
“I will be back in five minutes,” Ruth said to her daughter.
Grabbing her shawl, Ruth hurried to her neighbor’s. Maria was a good friend. She’d help if she could.
But it turned out, Maria had nothing either.
“I heard someone say some of the other ladies are baking pies,” Maria said.
“I can’t do that, I’ve nothing to put in it.”
“They are using the sparrows and other small birds who fell out of the sky.”
“Sparrows? Could people eat them?” Ruth couldn’t keep the surprise from her voice.
“I had the same reaction as you. But I guess if it hasn’t killed them, it won’t kill us either.”
Ruth made a face before she squared her shoulders. She didn’t have a choice. She couldn’t afford to be picky.
“I have flour and one egg and a little lard. What do you have?” Ruth asked her friend. “If we pool our resources, we might get more out of it.”
“Great plan. I have no flour. Three eggs and a lump of butter. And a little milk.”
Milk. Emma needed milk. Quickly, Ruth suggested Maria come to her rooms where they could cook. She told her about Emma on the way.
Maria took the little one from Katie. “Is she just the cutest thing you ever saw. Wonder where your ma went?” She looked up at Ruth. “Nobody around here was expecting a baby last weekend. The only one I know in the family way is Ma Connors, and she can’t be more than six months gone.”
“I don’t have any idea where her ma is. I tried looking but it was so cold and she was perishing. I will tell Father Donnelly and Father Devine when I see them. If the ma is still alive, she’ll know to check with the priests, won’t she?”
“If she’s Catholic. But what if she’s one of them?”
“One of who?” Katie replied looking confused.
“A non-Catholic.”
“I don’t care what she is. She’s my baby and nobody is taking her away from me.” Katie took Emma back so quickly the baby whimpered in protest. “Shh, little one. I won’t let anyone take you away. I promise.” Katie glared at her ma and Maria over the little one’s head.
“Katie, nobody is going to take Emma away just yet. But her real family might be looking for her. She’ll have to go back to them if they do turn up.”
“They won’t. She was meant to come to us. God sent her.”
Ruth exchanged a look with Maria, but neither of them commented. Let Katie enjoy a little happiness. It was scarce enough in these parts.
Ruth decided to wait to see how the pies turned out before she could think about the priests or baby Emma’s parents. They had to gather and prepare the birds yet, a task she really wasn’t looking forward to.
Chapter 45
Mick arrived back at the hotel much to Erin’s relief. She’d been frantic about her husband who had gone out into the storm again and again to rescue people. Every day he went out with Aaron, both men doing their best to help in the rescue and recovery works. Erin knew she couldn’t stop him, so she’d thrown herself into her own work in an effort to cope.
“Are you alright? Let me see your hands. How are your feet?”
“Erin, I am fine. The blizzard ended days ago. I’m only helping to clear the snow and debris. I didn’t realize we had so many guests.”
Erin looked around, seeing the view from Mick’s eyes. She had grown used to the number of people of all sizes and type in the lobby. People in the best clothes mixed with those dressed in rags, quite possibly for the first time in their lives.
“Quite a change from the way I left it.”
Erin hadn’t seen Mr. Prentice walk up beside them. “I am very sorry, Mr. Prentice, but I couldn’t just leave them to die. I had to provide shelter and assistance. It’s part of my oath as a doctor.”
“It’s part of being a human being, Erin,” Mick said firmly. “Excuse me, Mr. Prentice, but I want to go upstairs with my beautiful, tired looking wife and check on our daughter.”
“Of course you must. I will talk to you later.” Mr. Prentice dismissed them as he wandered farther into the hotel.
Mick took Erin’s hand and pulled her toward the elevator.
“Shouldn’t I stay and try to explain?” Erin said nervously as their rich friend moved among his guests.
“Let him see for himself. He’s a good man, Erin, and these are unusual times.”
Erin let Mick pull her into the elevator. She had done what she could for the people of New York, now was tim
e to concentrate a little on her own family.
Robbie watched Mr. Prentice speak to Doc Erin and her husband. He wondered how long the Doc and her husband planned on staying in New York. He guessed Doc Erin wouldn’t want to leave until her patients recovered. He hoped they wouldn’t leave for Clover Springs anytime soon.
“Robbie, there you are. I have just heard about your exploits in the blizzard.” Mr. Prentice clapped Robbie on the back much to his chagrin. “I heard you are a hero.”
“Not me Sir. It was Nora, I mean Miss Doherty, who rescued Callum from the snowdrift. In fact she was the one who saw the boys clustered around the school door in the first place.”
“Yes, Miss Doherty…I wanted to speak to you about her.”
“Oh?” Robbie hoped his face didn’t show his feelings. He wasn’t sure how Mr. Prentice would react to the fact he was leaving to go to live in Clover Springs. At least that was what he was thinking of doing. He had to ask Nora yet what she thought.
“Stop looking so worried Robbie. I think Miss Doherty is a wonderful young woman. Not that I know her personally. But from the reports I have been hearing, she will make a fine bride.”
“Yes Sir, but I don’t believe she has plans to marry.”
“Well I guess you are the only one that can change that state of affairs aren’t you Mr. Fenton?”
Robbie stared at Mr. Prentice’s back as his boss walked off, his laughter trailing behind him.
Chapter 46
Carmel Doherty finally found her feet again and it was good to be back outside in the relatively fresh air. The damage inflicted by the storm was evident as far as her eye could see. It wasn’t just the mounds of melting snow by the sidewalks or the trampled wires. There was something in the air, like an acknowledgement of how close New York had come to total disaster, yet they had survived.
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