Violet finished first and set the empty cup in the basket. “Can you help us build a snowman, Uncle Will?”
“Yeah, Uncle Will. Will you help us?” Lily chimed in.
He turned to look at her. “Come with me?”
“She shook her head, “No, you go. I’ll clean up and keep an eye on Rose.” She urged, but her motives weren’t as altruistic as they might seem. She needed time away from Will’s direct presence to think about what the future might hold if he pressed her to stay and care for the girls.
“When you are finished, come join us. We can keep an eye on Rose from right over there.”
“Yeah, come play with us, Abigail. We’re building a snowman and we’re going to call him Henry,” Lily proclaimed.
“I’ll be right there.” Abigail collected the empty tin cups and wrapped them in a dish towel to keep the drippings from soiling the inside of the basket. She closed the basket lid and set it on the ground. She pulled back Rose’s blanket and the little girl was sleeping like a...well, a baby. Tucking the baby’s covers around her while keeping her face clear so as not to hamper her breathing, Abigail tugged on her mittens and joined the happy little party of three.
“So, what do we do first?” Abigail had never had the opportunity to build a snowman in Charleston. There was never any snow, at least not in her years of living there.
“We roll the snow into a big ball. That will be the snowman’s bottom. Then we roll a medium-size snowball for his middle, and a small one for his head.” Will instructed and pushed on the lopsided snowball.
“Looks like you could use a hand. Here, let me help you push.” Abigail sidled up against Will and bent over. Together they pushed the snowball around and around as more and more snow stuck to it growing the ball bigger and bigger.
Violet and Lily followed them, clapping their mittened hands and jumping in delight until the ball was so big they couldn’t push it anymore. Abigail slipped and fell into the snowball. Will pulled her up and all four of them laughed at her face covered in snow.
“You little minxes. Laugh at me will you? Now, it’s your turn to push the snow. Let’s see how you do.” She teased the girls and they ran towards her pushing her into the snow and falling on top of her. The three of them rolled in the snow and laughed until they were out of breath.
Will pulled them all up out of the snow, his hands lingered on her back. “We better finish our snowman. It’ll be time to head back home soon and we still need to find that perfect Christmas tree.”
The girls raced to start a new snowball and soon the four of them had the middle finished in no time. Once the head was done, Will stacked each ball on top of the other and the girls pulled a dead tree branch so Will could break off the twigs for the arms.
“Since we don’t have any lumps of coal for his mouth and eyes, or a carrot for his nose, let’s see what we can find to use instead,” Will suggested.
He and the girls dug around in the snow and found some loose rocks. “Maybe these will work, Uncle Will,” Lily said holding up the rocks for his view.
“Those are perfect, Lily. Let’s put them on.”
The snowman was a head taller than the three-year-old so Will held her up so she could reach the head. She poked the rocks in at odd angles and they all laughed at how funny it made the snowman look.
Violet found a short round stick and presented it to her uncle. “Will this do for his nose?”
“That is perfect, Violet.” The six-year-old was tall enough to reach without help. They all stood back and admired their handiwork. “He’s so handsome, don’t you think so, Abigail?” Violet asked.
She couldn’t help but cast a quick glance at their uncle. Lucky for her, he was busy with the finishing touches of their snowman, Henry. “Yes, he’s very handsome, Violet.”
There must have been something in her tone that caught Will’s attention because he turned to look at her. She blushed and quickly turned away. “I’ll check on Baby Rose.” She was surprised the baby had slept so long and opened the blanket to make sure the little girl was alright. Two dark eyes peered back at Abigail. “Well hello, little one. I didn’t think you were ever going to wake up.” She reached in to check the baby’s diaper when the heat coming off the little girl’s body startled Abigail. “Why you’re burning up with a fever,” she whispered and picked up the little girl. Her cheeks were bright red and her body radiated heat.
She turned to Will and the girls. “Will, something’s wrong with Baby Rose.” She tried to convey her worry without alarming the girls.
Will rushed over and felt the baby’s face. “We need to get her to the doctor. Violet. Lily. Let’s get in the sled. We need to get back to town right away.” His worried gaze pinned hers and their unspoken message said all there was to say.
“Ah, Uncle Will. Do we have to go right now? Violet and I want to play some more,” Lily pouted.
“Girls, Uncle Will said it was time to go. No argument. Get in the sled,” Abigail instructed the girls in a stern, but calm voice. No sense in alarming them. Abigail was alarmed enough for all of them. Why hadn’t she checked on Rose sooner? Why hadn’t she wondered about the baby sleeping so much? It wasn’t like the baby to sleep so long and Abigail knew it. She’d been having too much fun with Will and she had shirked her duties for her own selfish amusement. As their caretaker she should have had their best interests at heart, instead of her own.
She just hoped Rose would be alright.
Chapter 12
Will loaded up everyone and turned the horses towards town. He was worried and every time he glanced at Abigail’s pale face, those worries intensified.
He pushed the team as hard as he dared on the slick road. The last thing he needed was one of them to come up lame and cause them delays in getting Rose to town and the doctor.
Within the hour, they galloped into town and headed straight for the doctor’s office. Lucky for them, Dr. Pembroke had been called into his office for a young man who had been thrown by his horse and had broken his leg. The doctor had just finished setting the leg and applying the cast when Will and Abigail rushed into the office.
“Doctor, the baby has a fever. She’s really hot.” Abigail lay Rose on the examining table and uncovered her for the doctor’s examination. “Will, I think you should probably take the girls on home. I’ll be there just as soon as I can. Try to keep the girls from worrying. And you too. I’ll do enough worrying for all of us.”
He could hear the emotion in Abigail’s tone and he felt he needed to reassure her somehow. “This isn’t your fault, Abigail. I can see the look of guilt on your face. I was there too and I never thought anything about Baby Rose sleeping so much today. Nothing at all.” He offered her a smile of sorts hoping it, and his words, would help ease her worries.
“Will, I wouldn’t expect you to notice a sleeping baby, but I should have. It isn’t like Rose to sleep so much and I knew that. I should have noticed. Please take the girls home and get them settled. I’ll be there just a soon as I can. I promise.” She gave him a look that spoke volumes. She was worried and she was blaming herself.
“Alright, but we’ll talk about where to place the blame later.”He shot a quick look to the baby lying on the examination table. He turned and left the doctor’s office and relieved the soldier he’d enlisted to stand guard over the sled and the little girls sitting in the back seat.
He returned the private’s salute and gathered the reins and jumped into the front seat. Should he head to the livery stable and return the sled and horses then walk the girls home? No, he should probably get the girls home first. “Hey, soldier. Can you do me a favor?” He addressed the man who had helped him with the sled and team.
“Yes, sir, Captain Bennett.” The soldier saluted again. He was obliged to salute back.
“I need you to ride with me to my house then take this sled and team back to the livery stable. Can you do that for me?” he entreated the man.
“Absolutely I can, sir.”
>
“Then climb onboard.”
The soldier climbed up and sat on the seat next to him. Will snapped the reins and guided the team to his house at the edge of town. When he arrived, he helped Violet and Lily down from the back seat and gathered the quilts and hot chocolate basket. “Thanks, Private…what’s your name soldier?” He hadn’t even bothered to ask, he was in such a state about Rose.
“Benjamin Turner, Captain Bennett,” the man responded.
“Very well, Private Turner. Thank you for your help. Now, take the sled and team to the livery and here’s the money to pay the owner. Please relay to him that a family emergency was the reason I didn’t return it myself.” Will reached into his pocket and handed the money to the soldier. “There’s a little extra in there for you too,” he added.
“Oh, no sir. I can’t take money for helpin’ somebody. Wouldn’t be the right thing to do. I’ll just give the extra to the livery owner. Mr. Gallagher can use the money, it bein' so close to Christmas and all. He’s got six kids, you know.”
Will was surprised. “No, I didn’t know, but thank you for your honesty and your kindness.”
The soldier waved goodbye and drove the sled away. He turned to the girls and ushered them through the front yard toward the door. Their faces had lost all the joy from their earlier activities and he wanted to reassure them that Baby Rose was gonna be just fine. He just hoped he would be able to tell them that later after Abigail reported what the doctor said was troubling Baby Rose.
“I know you are worried about your baby sister. So am I, but everything is going to be fine. Now, let’s get you girls inside and warmed up, shall we?”
He twisted the doorknob and stepped inside to find a blazing fire in the grate and a strange woman sitting in the rocking chair.
A moment of alarm pulsed through his body as a soldier’s instincts to danger kicked up his adrenalin. He pushed both girls behind him and made ready to confront this unknown danger.
“What’s the meaning of this intrusion into my house? Who are you and what gives you the right to just barge in here like this?”
The dark-haired woman stood and offered him a serene smile that could only come from a place of confidence. Who was this person?
“Hello, Captain Bennett. It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?” The woman’s speech was deliberate and refined. Now that he had time to study the woman’s features in detail, she did look familiar.
“Aunt Danielle!” his nieces exclaimed and raced to hug their aunt.
Will closed the door behind him to keep the fire’s warmth inside and removed his hat and boots at the door.
“Danielle? Are you David’s sister? That Danielle?” His mind was a whirlwind of recognition, confusion at her sudden appearance, and worry about what was happening with Rose and Abigail at the doctor’s office.
“The very one,” she replied and opened her arms to hug Violet and Lily.
Will offered a nod of understanding, but he didn’t understand at all. What was she doing here? And how had she gotten here? The river was frozen and the steamboats had stopped running for the year.
He stood at the doorway lost in his thoughts while his brother-in-law’s twin greeted her nieces. Her nieces.
Finally, when his curiosity got the better of him, he moved across the braided rug in sock feet and spoke to the girls. “Ladies, you should remove your wet coats and boots. You don’t want to catch your death. Your Aunt Danielle will still be here when you get back.” He shot a look at the woman. “I’m assuming you’ll be here for a bit.”
“Yes, of course. Go on, girls. Your uncle and I need to talk about grown-up things anyway.” She offered the girls a smile, but Will could see there was no warmth in it. His instincts pricked and he worried that the sudden appearance of David’s sister all the way from Boston, could mean trouble.
He waited until the girls were in their room with the door closed. Then, he turned to Danielle and got right to the point. “What are you doing here? Montana Territory isn’t exactly a day trip from Boston. Why have you come to Fort Benton?”
“You don’t mince words, do you Captain Bennett? I remember that about you from David and Daisy’s wedding. I heard you’ve had some bad luck in the marriage arena since we saw each other last.”
Her words were benign and appeared on the surface to be idle conversation, but Will knew how to read people—especially women. After all, he’d learned from the best how to read manipulation and deceit. “My personal life isn’t up for discussion. Now, I’d appreciate it if you would answer my question. Why are you here?”
He caught the hint of surprise in her eyes before she regained her composure and her control. “I see, so social niceties aren’t required in this back wood country. I’m not surprised and all the more convinced I did the right thing in coming.”
Will’s gut burned as the portent of her words pushed his defenses into high alert. She was here for a reason and he knew it had something to do with the girls. “The right thing in coming? For what purpose, Miss Wilson?”
She leaned over and picked up her bag sitting beside the rocker. “I have a letter from David.” He watched her reach inside the bag and pull out an envelope.
“A letter from your brother?”
“Yes, I received this after my brother and your sister’s untimely and tragic death.”
“And David’s letter told you to come here?” He just wished she would get to the point and stop dragging out the reason she had come all this way.
“Not exactly, but it did tell me how he felt about matters of the heart,” she said and pulled the wrinkled letter out of the envelope and unfolded it.
“Matters of the heart?”
“Yes, perhaps it will make more sense if I read the letter to you, Captain Bennett.”
He didn’t answer and she began.
To Danielle Patrice Wilson
14 Louisburg Square
Boston, Massachusetts
Dear Miss Wilson,
My name is Herman Tucker, Esq., and I’m the overseer for your brother’s estate. There’s no easy way to break this news to you, so I’ll just get right to the point. Your sister-in-law, Daisy Amanda Bennett Wilson, and your brother, David Paul Wilson, were killed in a stagecoach accident more than two weeks ago.
“That’s the same letter I got from Daisy’s attorney.” His heart hiccupped as worry for what this could mean pumped adrenalin through his veins.
“Of course, David and Daisy have been dead more than a month now, but let me continue, Captain,” she said and read on.
I’m truly sorry to be the bearer of such tragic news and I offer my sincere condolences. Your sister-in-law was a lovely woman with a kind spirit, and your brother was a very fine young man and a wonderful husband and father.”
Will’s heart dropped. He prayed this letter wasn’t going to the same place his letter had.
Danielle kept reading.
Miss Wilson, I’ll be following this letter with a few legal documents you will need to sign and a hand-written letter from your brother detailing his wishes that you take his children and raise them as your own. However, since I was only made aware of your brother’s wishes through his financial papers I recently acquired, your nieces have already been sent to live with your sister-in-law’s brother, Captain William Bennett serving in the United States Army at Fort Benton, Montana Territory, as that was her wish for the disposition of the children.
Will’s heart plummeted to the bottom of his gut. Danielle was here to take the girls. He shook his head in denial.
“I can see you are having a hard time with this news Captain, but I can assure you, it will all work out. After all, you can’t possibly care for three little girls out here.”
He glared at David’s sister for a moment trying to choose his words carefully.
“I think that remains to be seen, but I’m still not clear why you are here. It’s clear Daisy’s wishes are for me to care for her daughters and that is what I intend to do
.”
“There’s the final paragraph to my letter from Mr. Tucker, the attorney.
Dread filled Will as he watched the confidence in the woman’s mannerisms. He didn’t want to hear anymore, but he knew he had to know what he was dealing with to be fully prepared for a battle if it came to that.
“I realized this situation is now a quagmire of legal wrangling. Since each parent has designated a different guardian for their three girls, it will, therefore, be up to the courts to decide which person is best suited to raise these girls. In the meantime, Captain Bennett has legal guardianship, but as their aunt and next of kin, you have every right to be a part of their lives too.
I’ll keep you and the captain informed as things progress to the final custody hearings set for next spring in St. Louis.
Sincerely,
Herman Tucker, Esq.
12345 Sycamore Lane
St. Louis, Missouri
Will stood in place unable to move. This situation wasn’t something he could have foreseen. Now, he had to decide where to go from here.
Just at that moment, the front door opened and Abigail stepped inside with Rose in her arms. “Everything’s just fine, Will. The doctor said—”
She stopped short when she caught sight of Danielle. “Oh, I didn’t know we...you had...a visitor.” He could tell she was as surprised by Danielle’s presence as he had been.
“Abigail, this is Danielle Wilson, my brother-in-law’s twin sister. This is Abigail. She’s been helping me care for the girls since they arrived at the fort.”
“Ah, yes. I’ve heard about the multi-talented Miss Whittaker from my inquiries into the girls’ welfare.”
”It’s nice to make your acquaintance, Miss Wilson.” Abigail offered a reserved greeting.
“Yes, well, I’m sure it’s nice to meet you too, Miss Whittaker. I’ve heard you’ve had your hands full caring for my nieces this last month. You’ll be pleased to know that you will be relieved of your duties just as soon as—”
Abigail (Angel Creek Christmas Brides Book 12) Page 10
