Uncertain Alliance

by Davis, Mary

  “Who were those two boys you were with?”

  Burl picked up a long stick. “Just boys.”

  “Are they your friends?”

  The stick hissed as it dragged on the ground behind the boy. “Sure.”

  Ian would guess they weren’t the kind of friends that were good for him. “Do you do a lot of things with them?”

  Burl shrugged. “I guess.”

  “Were they with you that day on the ship?”

  Burl looked up at him with big, round blue eyes, evidently surprised he’d guessed.

  “And did they talk you into breaking into my store?”

  Burl suddenly became fascinated with the mud beneath his feet. The boy didn’t have to reply; Ian had gotten his answer. “Those two are quite a bit older than you, aren’t they?”

  The boy nodded slightly.

  He’d guess maybe eighth grade. “They aren’t very good friends to keep getting you in trouble.”

  Burl kept his focus down and his mouth shut.

  “The friends you choose can guide your life. They can take you in a good direction. . .or a bad one.”

  Burl raised his gaze to him. “What if they choose you?”

  “You can say no.”

  “They’re bigger than me, both of them.”

  The poor boy felt trapped. Ian would have to think of some way to help him break free of those two troublemaking ruffians.

  ❧

  Alice trudged up the steps toward the apartment. She leaned against the wall next to the door. Lord, give me strength to face my family still without any prospects of a job.

  The door opened, and Grandpa stepped into the hall. When he saw her, he closed the door behind him.

  Tears pooled in her eyes. “I’m out of places to look. I guess I’ll have to go up to the sawmill and see if they’ll hire me as a cook. If they do, we’ll have to move closer.”

  “The Lord will provide.”

  She held up a sack. “Minister Pepper gave me some more food. At least we can eat tonight. I don’t know how much more he can afford to give away.”

  “Well, come inside. There’s someone here to see you.”

  She squared her shoulders and followed Grandpa inside. Mr. MacGregor stood beside a chair that Burl sat in. Burl looked pale. She ran and knelt in front of him. “Are you sick?” She finger combed his bangs off his forehead. “Are you all right?”

  Burl pulled away from her hand.

  She stood and looked at Mr. MacGregor.

  “Mrs. Dempsey, it’s a pleasure to see you again. I wish it were under better circumstances.”

  A sickening feeling twisted her stomach. Lord, give me strength. “What’s wrong?”

  Mr. MacGregor put a hand on Burl’s shoulder. “Burl, tell your sister.”

  She turned her gaze on her brother. “What have you done this time?”

  “I broke Mr. MacGregor’s window. It was an accident, honest.”

  “Like throwing the barrels over the side of the ship was an accident? Oh Burl, when will you ever learn?”

  “Sebastian and Murphy said we could sell some of the stuff and get money; then I could buy food so you wouldn’t have to work so hard.”

  Where had she gone wrong if Burl thought stealing was the way to solve their problems? “Burl, stealing won’t make it better.”

  She mustered her courage and turned back to Mr. MacGregor. She hoped he would be understanding. “Are you going to notify the police?”

  “Not if a couple of conditions are met.”

  “I’ll pay for the window.” When she got a job.

  “That won’t be necessary. Burl will come to work for me before school and after school until it’s paid off.”

  He wasn’t going to notify the police. She gave a sigh of relief. He was a nice man. “That’s very generous of you.”

  “I can go with him to make sure he does as he is told,” Grandpa said.

  “That won’t be necessary, Mr. Greig. Burl will do as he’s told. Won’t you, boy?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “I do have one other condition. You come to work for me, too.”

  She jerked her gaze to his face. “What?”

  “I could use another assistant at the store.”

  He was going to use her poor circumstance against her. “I’m afraid that won’t be possible.”

  “Did you secure other employment?”

  “No, but. . .” She didn’t want him using this to take advantage of the situation. She wanted him to stay a nice man.

  “Then you’ll come work for me. I insist.”

  She looked from him to Burl to Grandpa. Tears welled, and she strode to her room. Latching the door, she leaned against it. Dear Lord, what do I do? Is Mr. MacGregor using my poor circumstances and Burl’s bad behavior to take advantage? Please let him just be a nice man with no ulterior motives.

  An alliance with Mr. MacGregor was tenuous at best. She was afraid. Afraid of him. Afraid of what he might do. . .to her heart. She couldn’t trust herself where men were concerned. She had poor judgment. Very poor judgment.

  ❧

  “Mama cry,” Miles popped his thumb into his mouth and wrapped his free arm around Arthur’s leg.

  Ian raked a hand through his hair. “I shouldn’t have pushed.”

  “Do you really have a position available?” Arthur asked.

  “There are tasks that Conner and I aren’t able to get to. Another pair of hands would be helpful.”

  Arthur nodded. “Then stand your ground.”

  “I thought she would be happy. I’ve only served to anger her.” He ached for her suffering. He ached to help her. He ached that she’d shut him out.

  Burl tugged on his sleeve. “Did you mean it? Me workin’ for you?”

  “Of course. You have a window to pay for.”

  The boy’s mouth spread into a wide grin. “Even after I got the window paid for, can I still work for you?”

  “We’ll see how you do first. If you’re not a hard worker, I can’t rightly keep you on.”

  “Oh, I’ll work hard, I promise. Real hard.”

  He hoped the boy did. “You can’t bring your friends around.”

  “I won’t. I promise.”

  Lots of promises. He hoped the boy could keep them.

  Eight

  The next morning as Ian approached his shop, he saw Burl out front with a broom. “You’re working already.”

  “Yes, sir. I’m a hard worker.” Burl didn’t break his stride. The boy apparently intended to prove just how hard a worker he was.

  “Is your sister coming today?”

  “Don’t know. She’s in a sour mood this mornin’. It’s best not to talk to her when she’s like that.”

  He would have to remember that. “Make sure you get the corners in the doorway.”

  “I will. Mr. Jackson showed me just what to do. Said iffin I don’t do it right, I’ll be doin’ it again.” Burl held the door open for him.

  Ian went inside and found Conner near the window, looking out. “I see you put him to work already.”

  “He said he was here to work. I thought out front might be the safest place to start until we had two sets of eyes to watch over him.”

  He smiled. “Thank you for having him sweep out there. I guess I’ve neglected the sidewalk.”

  Conner leaned on the counter. “Since a certain beautiful lady no longer works next door, you’ve been spending less time out there.”

  “You’re a perceptive fellow.”

  Conner gave him a crooked smile. “The glazier will come this morning to replace the broken window.”

  “With any luck, Mrs. Dempsey will come in to work today.”

  “I thought that was one of your conditions for not handing her brother over to the police.”

  “It was, but she wasn’t happy with the idea.”

  “Why?”

  “I have no idea, except that Arthur said she didn’t like to be beholden to any man. I just want to help
her and her family. She needs work, and I can provide that for her. ‘Bear ye one another’s burdens’ and all that.” Ian paused. “I’m glad she let Burl come.”

  “I sure hope you still feel that way at the end of the day.”

  “Burl will keep his word.” He had to believe that.

  ❧

  Alice stopped just short of the pharmacy. Lord, thank You for this job. Please let it be a genuine job and not a concocted scheme for a man to use me again. She took a deep breath then entered the store. She stared around at shelf after shelf after shelf of medicines lining both walls of the long, narrow room. Medicines were in the glass display counters, too. There were too many. She’d never be able to learn this all.

  Mr. MacGregor smiled at her and came over. “Good morning.”

  “Good morning.” She removed her hat. “I wasn’t sure just when you wanted me here. I hope I’m not late or haven’t caused you any inconvenience.”

  “You have caused no inconvenience.” He held out his hand. “Let me put away your coat and hat.” After taking them to the back, he returned.

  She shook her head. “I can’t do this. It’s too much.”

  “Like I said, you won’t be working directly with the medicines. Along this wall are the pharmacy medicines; the other wall has the folk remedies.”

  “You have both?”

  “Some of the pharmaceuticals started out as home remedies. And there’s a reason some of these remedies have been used for generations. They work.”

  This would be no simple job for her. There wouldn’t be any sewing or mending. She stood next to her brother. “Burl, you’re going to be late for school.”

  Burl straightened up from his task of sorting small corked bottles and untied his apron.

  “Burl, don’t leave just yet. I need to talk to your sister first,” Mr. MacGregor said.

  Her brother pulled his eyebrows together and looked from Mr. MacGregor to her.

  Mr. MacGregor turned to her. “May I speak with you in the back for a minute?”

  She followed him. “I don’t want him to be late for school. I have enough trouble getting him to behave.”

  “I know. I’ll get right to the point. I want him to stay here at the store.”

  “All day?”

  He nodded.

  She put her hands on her hips. “I want him to get schooling so he doesn’t have to work at the mill or in a factory. That’s no kind of life. I don’t want him missing an arm like Grandpa.” Grandpa never complained, but the horror was still fresh in her mind.

  “I’ll teach him.”

  She knit her brows together. What was he up to? “You?”

  “I was at the school yesterday after he broke in here. The teacher was condescending to him and wouldn’t extend the time for him to take the arithmetic examination that the other students had already half finished.”

  “Maybe he’ll learn to behave and not be late.”

  “It only served to prove to him that he didn’t need to be on time. He finished the examination on time and got all the questions right.”

  Her brother was very smart. She knew it, and Grandpa knew it, but the rest of the world needed the proof of his finishing school. Why did Mr. MacGregor even care? “My brother may be smart, but he hasn’t learned everything he needs to know yet.”

  “I can teach him far more than he’ll learn at the school.”

  Was he scheming with Burl? She narrowed her eyes. “Did Burl put you up to this?”

  He shook his head. “This was my own idea.”

  Anger boiled inside. He was going to use Burl to get to her. “I get it, and I don’t like this one bit.”

  “Why not? It’s a good solution.”

  “You’re trying to turn my brother against me.” She didn’t think it would take much. He was already severely discontent with school and with her. With a lot of things.

  “What? No. I just want to help.”

  “You and he have this all worked out, and if I go back out there and tell Burl he still has to go to the school, I’ll look like a mean, unreasonable sister. He’ll side with you, and the only way I will get any peace will be to give in.”

  “You have it all wrong. Burl knows nothing of this. It is your decision, not his. I would never speak to him about this before you.”

  “He really doesn’t know anything about this matter?”

  “No.”

  Her anger cooled. “I still want him to get formal schooling.”

  “He will. I made arrangements with the headmaster to teach him here, and he will go into the school every week and take the examinations that all the other students take.”

  Her anger rose again. “You talked to the school without my consent?”

  “No. I. . .I. . .”

  She didn’t like other people meddling in her life.

  “The headmaster came into the store yesterday after I took Burl home. I spoke to him then. I only want to help. Burl runs around with two older boys who are responsible for getting him in trouble down at the docks last week. I saw those boys trying to talk him into something else. I believe they are Sebastian and Murphy, the ones who talked him into breaking in here. If he does his schooling here, he won’t be around those boys and hopefully won’t get into trouble.”

  He had a point, but she hated being more in debt to this man, to any man. Was he arranging things to take advantage of his position? She nodded. “Okay.”

  He smiled at her, and her heart danced.

  “Do you want to tell him?”

  She shook her head. “You can, but he’d better not fall behind.”

  “He won’t. His teacher will have a hard time keeping up with his exams.” Mr. MacGregor went out to the front.

  What was she getting herself into?

  She heard Burl’s excited voice; then he met her as she came out of the back. “Is it true? Is Mr. MacGregor really gonna teach me?”

  Burl really hadn’t known. It warmed her heart. “Yes. But you have to study hard and do as you’re told. And no mischief.”

  “I will.” Burl had a huge grin when he turned away.

  Mr. MacGregor smiled at her again. “He’ll be better off. You’ll see. You’ll all be better off.”

  So it seemed. She nodded. A bit of hope replaced a small piece of the constant struggle to survive that hounded her. But she knew she couldn’t count on this to last.

  ❧

  Ian re-added the column of numbers. He’d just recorded the amount he was paying for his telephone bill here at the store. He’d already added it four times and gotten four different answers. He should just get it over with. No matter how he worded it, she would take it wrong and be mad at him. She was nearby cleaning a shelf.

  “Mrs. Dempsey, I have a request to make of you.”

  She squared her shoulders and folded her arms across the front of her work apron. “What is it?”

  He took a deep breath. “I’d like to buy you a skirt and blouse.”

  She narrowed her eyes.

  So he quickly added, “For work.” Then he looked across the store. “Conner, can you come here a minute?”

  Conner left what he was doing with Burl and came over. “What can I do for you?”

  “Who bought your suit?”

  “You did.”

  “Why?”

  “I didn’t have a suit to wear to work.”

  He turned back to Alice. “I’d like to do the same for you. Not that you don’t look nice, but I’d like you to be in a navy or black skirt with a white blouse.”

  She looked down at her faded yellow print dress. “I’ll make them myself, as soon as I have the money to purchase the yard goods.”

  He shook his head. “Because I’m requiring it for work, I’ll buy them. I’d like to go out today and buy them so you have them as soon as possible.”

  She narrowed her eyes sharply at him. “May I speak with you privately in the back?”

  Conner raised his eyebrows. “I’ll go check on Burl.” />
  Ian followed Alice to the back.

  “Mr. MacGregor, I don’t think it is appropriate for you to buy me clothes.”

  “It is only from a business standpoint. Customers have more confidence in my knowledge and my store when I and my employees dress professionally.”

  “I guess that would be acceptable.”

  “I would also like to buy something for Burl as he will be spending a lot of time here at the store.” He wished he had an excuse to buy Arthur and Miles new clothes as well.

  She gave a small nod of defeat.

  That hadn’t gone as badly as he’d anticipated.

  “Mr. MacGregor, I need to know what the terms of my employment are here with you. The exact terms.”

  Ian nodded. “You are an employee in my store.”

  “For how long? Just until my brother repays his debt to you? Is my pay going toward the window as well?”

  “Burl is responsible for paying for the whole window. You will be paid a fair wage for your work.”

  “Anything else?”

  “Like what?”

  “Do you have any other expectations where I am concerned?”

  He suddenly felt ill at ease and pulled at his bat’s-wing tie. “I don’t know what you’re getting at.”

  “Let’s not play games here. I am a young woman in need—we both know that—and you are a man of some means. Are you expecting anything more than simply having me work in your store?”

  Ian felt his face flush. “Mrs. Dempsey, I would never suggest anything inappropriate. You are my employee, nothing more.”

  She nodded and returned to the front.

  He slumped into a nearby chair. That did it for him. He couldn’t very well try to court her now that he’d insisted she was only an employee to him. She would never be only an employee to him. Lord in heaven, change her heart toward me. Show me how to proceed. He paused.

  “Patience.”

  I’m to have patience with her? Then that was what he’d do.

  ❧

  Mr. MacGregor returned from the back. “At which dress shop do you usually purchase your clothing?”

  “Usually?” Why must everything he asked emphasize her lack of means? Wasn’t there one thing about her that could impress him? She shook off that thought. She was not here to catch his eye. “I have never had the good fortune to buy store clothes.”