“Yes, it was rather horrid, but I managed to live through it. Now I can dress as I please. However, Wolf chose to wear only his breech-cloth. Martin wanted me to suggest he put more clothes on when you came. Instead, he decided to leave for his village before you came, so you would not be alarmed at his lack of attire,” I lied.
“Oh,” is all she said.
“If you are going to remain here, we should clear out my brother’s room to give you a place to stay. Ben, my son was named after my brother Ben. He is sleeping so we should probably pack up my brother’s belongings before he wakes up and needs tending to,” I suggested, dreading the chore before me, but thinking it might be easier if Rachel was helping me.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Packing up Ben’s belongings was a difficult task. Every item reminded me of how much my older brother had meant to me. He had always been there, ready to protect me and show me new things. In the end, he was the one that needed protecting and I had no way of giving him that kind of protection. Rachel and I neatly folded Ben’s clothes and put them in a trunk, along with his boots, books and few personal belongings like a watch father had given him, a snuff-box, letters he had exchanged with friends in England, his coonskin cap, and his journal. Someday I would read his journal, I told myself, but up until now, it was still too painful to contemplate. His long gun had been taken when the Indian’s had ransacked our home. They had also taken my father’s long gun, which I discovered right after I boasted to Martin that I had the gun to protect myself. When we were finished, Rachel and I were able to lug the trunk up to the attic, as we each grasped a leather handle.
We had barely talked while we accomplished the chore. I told Rachel a few minor things about Ben, but even that was difficult to do. I thought about how I had insisted that Wolf wore some of Ben’s clothes, but thinking on it now, it would have been difficult to see Wolf in Ben’s clothes, considering he had been the one who put an end to Ben’s life. My parents would have believed it to be sacrilegious, I thought. Maybe that was another reason Wolf refused to put any of Ben’s clothes on, I concluded. Perhaps he still felt guilty about killing my family.
I looked about the cluttered attic, filled with memories of the past. Discarded items we no longer used but still would not part with. It was like the history of my family, covered with dust and long forgotten yet still present to remind me. Now there would be no one left but me and little Ben to make new memories.
As we came back down from the attic, I could hear horses approaching and when I went out to investigate, I discovered that Martin had not only brought one of Jamie’s uncle’s sons, but my uncle’s brother and his other two sons were with him as well. Rachel came out on the porch with me as I watched them dismounting their horses, and Martin climbing out of the buggy.
“Candice,” the older man said as he approached me.
Then, to my surprise, he was throwing his arms around me.
“It is a terrible thing that has happened to your family! I hope your Indian husband will be able to free my nieces and nephew from his people’s clutches and bring them home safely.”
At his words, I almost trembled. Wolf would never be bringing his relatives home. He wasn’t even coming home himself! I merely nodded because I did not want to extend my lie any further than I already had.
“I am sure they are safe though,” I told him, wanting to put his mind at ease when he discovered they were never coming back. “Jamie happily joined the Lenape tribe and could speak the language fluently at the time of my escape. I am sure the girls are getting along fine as well, but they went to different villages than Jamie and me so I never saw them while I was there.”
“That is all over with now. You are family and we are eager to help in any way we can. Call me Jake. I am Jake Hanford, your uncle’s brother, and these are my three sons. My wife, Mary, God bless her soul, passed away during our journey over here on the ship. We had to bury her at sea. My oldest son, Calvin will come here to help out each day until your husband returns. He is strong and a willing worker. These two other boys are Joseph and Thomas.”
All three boys removed their hats and nodded at me as I took in their attire and features. Calvin was tall with wavy reddish-brown hair. In a way, he reminded me of Ben. He looked to be about the same age. Joseph looked a few years younger than Calvin, and Thomas looked to be a little older than Jamie. They both had sandy blond hair and freckles. They were dressed in clothes that denoted their father was fairly well off. Many immigrants coming from the homeland often looked bedraggled, as though they were trying to escape their poverty in England to find new hope in a new land, so it was a pleasant surprise to find this family well-dressed in clean sturdy clothes. They all wore tan trousers, gray shirts, made of thick woven cotton, red vests, a wool jacket and a kerchief around their necks. Their hats were worn with the brims down, rather than turned up in a three-corner style. They wore tall boots that looked well made, even though they were a little scuffed and worn.
“When will you be needing my son to come help? I could leave him here to work out the rest of the day if you wish. As you probably know, our home is not far away. A little over an hour’s ride from here. It will be easy for him to come over each morning, to help out with the chores, and then return in the evening.”
“It is very kind of both of you,” I murmured, glancing over at Calvin, who was looking at Rachel. I could tell he was attracted to her.
“This is Martin’s cousin, Rachel,” I said, making the introductions Martin had neglected to do. “She will be staying with me until Wolf returns.”
I wondered what I would do when it was obvious that Wolf was never going to return? Would Rachel end up being my house guest indifferently, considering she had no other residence to go to? I watched as Calvin took Rachel’s gloved hand and kissed it. Then he hastily kissed my hand as well. His brother’s followed suit.
“Well, we just came out here to make your acquaintance and to bring Calvin to help you. We have chores of our own to tend to, so we will be on our way,” Jake muttered as he began to swing back up on his horse.
His two younger sons climbed up on their horses, but Calvin remained, his eyes fixated on Rachel. I watched Martin get back in the buggy.
“I will return to town and collect your belongings to bring them out before dark,” Martin told Rachel.
“Good,” I stated. “I will have supper ready and waiting for your return.”
It would be the first time I could actually show off my homemaking skills to Martin, and I planned to make an extra special meal for him and his cousin to make up for my bad manners of forgetting they were even coming.
Martin smiled at me pleasantly.
“Would there be a problem if I remained the night, to save me a ride back to town in the dark?”
“Of course, not! You can use my parent’s bed. I am putting Rachel in Ben’s room. She helped me clear it out today while we were waiting for you to return from Jake’s home.”
I thought how it was the bed Wolf and I had been sleeping in until he left. I almost didn’t want Martin using it, but it seemed there was no other choice.
“I appreciate your kindness,” he said.
Then all four men were riding away as Rachel, Calvin, and I watched on.
“I was in the middle of planting when Rachel and Martin arrived,” I told Calvin. “I will show you what needs to be done.”
Calvin followed me out to the field and Rachel watched from the porch. At least I would have company and a little help now that Wolf was gone, I thought resolutely to myself. It would have been so lonely had I remained there trying to do everything on my own. However, the thought did not make me miss Wolf any less. I still could not understand how he could leave me when he had gone to so much trouble to find me and profess his love for me?
Rachel and I returned to the house and began fixing supper. Cooking took a lot of preparation because it was necessary to heat up the oven before it could be used, and then all the food had to
be prepared, and the dough for bread or biscuits would have to be made. Corn would need shucking and potatoes peeled. Peas would need shelling and squash cut and cleaned. Rachel and I divided the work between us, but I soon discovered that Rachel had no skills in preparing a meal. She came from the city, and before her parents died, they had servants that did all the work for them. She was all thumbs and taking time to show her the proper way to prepare the food, was slowing the process down.
When Ben started crying, I went up to nurse him and then brought him down and handed him to Rachel, hoping that she could at least entertain Ben while I did the cooking. Happy was nipping at my heels while I tried to cook, so I put him outside, and Rachel took Ben outside as well, to let him play in the grass. I looked out the window and could see Rachel looking off toward the field where Calvin was working. She seemed more interested in watching him than keeping an eye on little Ben. I hoped she would be an asset to me while she was with me. Even though she was older than I was, she seemed totally inexperienced and out of her element on a homestead.
I turned my attention to fixing the meal. I would take time to glance out the window from time to time to see how Rachel was doing with Ben. I noticed she had walked out to the field, where Calvin was, with Ben in her arms, talking to him as he worked. It was probably slowing him down, but I shrugged. Apparently, Rachel was taken by Calvin and it made me miss Wolf all the more, thinking about the possibility that Rachel and Calvin may become a pare as they got better acquainted.
Then Martin was riding up in a wagon with Rachel’s belongings piled in the bed. I was surprised at the number of trunks and cases there were. Apparently, Rachel came from a wealthy family, and I suspected that Martin also came from wealth since military officers had to pay a commission to become an officer. They were usually gentlemen who chose to join the ranks. Even though they were paid, once they joined, they still had to pay for their food and anything beyond what the military furnished them. I thought about how he had begged me to marry him and what it would be like to marry a military officer. Had Wolf never returned, I wondered if I would have agreed in the end? Only Martin did not excite me the way Wolf did. If Wolf never returned and I did end up marrying Martin, I would always be comparing him with Wolf. Wolf would always stand between me and any other man I chose to try and make a life with, I lamented.
Calvin stopped planting and helped Martin take Rachel’s belongings up to Ben’s room. Rachel handed me Ben and followed behind the men, instructing them where to put the trunks and bundles. I was beginning to wonder if I had made the right decision agreeing to let Rachel stay? However, I did want the company and I was sure everything would settle down to normal after Rachel got settled in and learned the daily routine that a homestead followed.
By the time they were through bringing all the trunks and cases upstairs, Supper was about to be served, and I told Calvin he could wash up and get ready to eat. Martin washed up as well, and they all seated themselves around the dining room table. I put Ben in a play area I had made for him to keep him from being under my feet while I worked, and put Happy in the small secured area with him to keep him company.
Rachel was about to be seated, but I motioned to her to come with me to the kitchen.
“I know you are used to having servants serving the meals where you come from,” I said softly, “only here, we do not have servants to wait on us. It is up to us to do everything from fixing the meals to serving them. However, when we do not have company, we will probably eat in the kitchen and it won’t be so much work setting the table and serving the food.”
Rachel merely raised her eyebrows and smiled.
“Yes, of course,” she mumbled. “Just show me what to do.”
“I know you are sort of a guest here,” I said, trying to explain further. “However, Martin offered you to help, not to make extra work for me to do,” I reminded her.
I wanted Rachel to know from the very start, the only reason I agreed to allow her to stay was so I would be relieved of some of my worries. Just watching Ben for me would help, but Ben slept a lot of the time, and when he was sleeping or Rachel did not have to watch him, she needed to make my burden lighter in exchange for a house to live in. I knew Rachel would be eager to please me since she seemed to have an eye for Calvin, who would be coming every day for several weeks to come. I could tell how much she wanted to remain there with me so she could be there while Calvin was around. She was pleasant and pretty and I liked her. I just hoped everything would work out well with her being there to help out.
As we ate, we talked and laughed and exchanged stories with one another. It reminded me of the times my own family was sitting around the dining room table. It took me back to happier times and I was glad that we were all there sharing each other’s company. I began looking forward to many more occasions like this one. Now that Rachel was here, it would give Martin a good excuse to come visit, and Calvin would be here on a regular basis. It was almost like acquiring a whole family again, and I started to feel contented, in spite of Wolf leaving me.
When the meal was over and the table cleared, Martin suggested I play the pianoforte for them. He informed me that Rachel had a pleasant singing voice and perhaps I could play something that she could sing to. I was happy and pleased to entertain them, and as Martin and Calvin seated themselves, Rachel and I thumbed through my sheets of music to find something she could sing. Eventually, she settled on singing Green Sleeves which was rather popular at the time.
I watched as she and Calvin gazed at each other, while she sang, but it seemed that Martin’s eyes were mostly on me. When she was through singing, Rachel suggested that Martin play a song. I did not know that Martin played the pianoforte. I always thought of him as a officer who was strong and commanding, so it was a pleasant surprise to learn he had talent as a pianist. His fingers moved over the keys playing one of the latest compositions of the day, and I admired the way he could play so effortlessly, as he gazed over at me from time to time.
Rachel sat beside Calvin, and I could see the spark in both of their eyes as they enjoyed the evening together. Then Calvin rose up, insisting he needed to leave before it got dark, and Rachel and I escorted him to the door.
“I appreciate your help,” I told him, and he smiled shyly.
“Glad to be of assistance,” he mumbled. “Your wonderful supper and pianoforte playing was payment I hadn’t expected. I will look forward to returning in the morning.”
“Tomorrow is Sunday,” I reminded him. “I was going to have Martin take Rachel and me to church. We attend the Methodist church in Philadelphia. Perhaps your family would like to join us there.”
“Yes, of course. It had slipped my mind as to what day this was. I will inform my father and we will meet you at the church house.”
“We will be looking forward to seeing you there,” I smiled.
Rachel and I turned back to the parlor. I had not attended church since I had returned home. Wolf practiced his own spiritual beliefs, which did not involve going to church, and I had been at odds with God, ever since my family had been killed and I had been dragged away as a captive. Now, I thought I should make peace with God since so many kind people were helping me out. Only it didn’t seem fair that all these challenges were constantly put before me. Was it punishment from God or just lessons to be learned, I wondered? I wasn’t sure. However, I had always enjoyed going to church with my family and I wanted to raise Ben in a religious manner, the same way my parents had raised me.
When we returned to the parlor, I informed Martin that Rachel and I had to finish cleaning up after the meal. He surprised me by offering to help. For the next thirty minutes or so, the three of us worked happily together, having a pleasant conversation as we did so. It was nice having friends, I thought. However, the concern that Martin had done something to make Wolf leave, beyond my request that he wear more clothes, still troubled my mind. It had to be more than my insistence for Wolf to cover his body when Rachel arrived, that upset
him to the point of leaving, I reasoned.
When we were finished cleaning, Rachel went up to her room and I showed Martin upstairs to my parent’s room. I had not slept in it since Wolf left, and when I pushed the door open, too many memories leaped out at me. I could barely remain there long enough to say goodnight to Martin. I asked him about taking Rachel and me to church the next morning, and he happily agreed. When I started to turn away, he grabbed my sleeve.
“I did not want to approach you with everyone around, but I have a feeling that things are not as they should be. You don’t seem happy that Wolf has agreed to bring your cousins home. In fact, you appear rather sad. Is there something you have failed to mention?”
“It’s just that I am not certain that Wolf can bring my cousins home,” I said, which was partly true. “He boasted that Jamie was happy to remain with his people, and I don’t think he even knows where Beth and Nellie are. He didn’t want to go when I first approached him about it. He was angry with me when he left, so it made me sad. We had hard words with each other before he departed.”
Martin looked sadly down at me. Then he gave me a half-smile.
“I am sure everything will work out well,” he said. “Just know I will always be here to help you out in any way I can.”
“Yes. You have been very attentive from the very beginning,” I said, feeling guilty for taking advantage of Martin when I knew he had been hoping I would agree to marry him, once winter had passed. “I appreciate everything you have done for me.”
“I am happy to help, and now that Rachel is staying here, I hope to see you more often.”
“You are welcome to come anytime you please,” I offered.
“Thank you,” he said and then raised my hand to his lips and kissed it. “Sleep well, Candice. I enjoyed the meal and music. This has been one of the most pleasantest nights I have spent in a long time.”
“Yes, it was pleasant,” I agreed.
Then I turned and went across the hall to my own, lonely room. I got dressed for Bed and pulled Ben next to me under the covers. He was my only source of comfort now. I thought of the many nights Wolf and I had slept with Ben between us feeling like a snug happy family. I wasn’t sure I could face a lifetime without Wolf next to me. He had to come back, I prayed. If he truly loved me, he would return to me.
Across The River Page 16
