Mail Order Match Maker

by Kirsten Osbourne

  Max nodded slowly, waiting for her to start.

  “I’m going to start at the very beginning, which may not make a lot of sense until I get through it all.” She took a deep breath and began. “My parents were schoolroom sweethearts, both raised in pre-war Charleston. They had a great deal of money, and weren’t afraid to throw it around. Mother was unable to conceive, and she saw several doctors talking about her problems. They told her she would probably never have a child.” She stared down at her hands as she talked, aware that Max was watching her closely and wondering what on earth this could have to do with Higgins.

  “My parents were in their forties when I was born,” she explained. “Mama was forty-two and they’d long since given up hope of ever having a baby. They still don’t know what miracle was wrought, but she became pregnant with me, and they were happier than two parents have ever been.” She smiled at him over his desk, a half smile that showed she knew she’d been spoiled. “I was their little princess. They knew they’d never have a child after me and bought me everything I ever wanted. I had six china dolls who would have tea parties with me and my little china tea set made in France.” She smiled at the memory of her pretty little playhouse her parents had built for her. She still wished she could take her daughter back to play in it.

  She unconsciously rubbed her leg as she continued speaking. “When I was sixteen they threw a huge coming out party for me with all my friends. I was shy and stayed off in one corner giggling with all the other girls until a tall blond man walked in. He was so handsome I thought he must be a prince sent there for me. I believed in fairy tales and he was my dream come true. He singled me out for a dance, and then another. By the time the night was over, I was certain I wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with that man.” She stared at the wall over his shoulder, unable to meet his gaze as she continued. “He was everything I’d ever wanted in life. Every evening for two weeks he came to my home and took me for walks and showered me with gifts. He brought me daffodils, because he said they reminded him of me.” She smiled at the memory of how naïve she’d been. “Two weeks after we met, he asked my father for my hand in marriage, and then he went down on one knee and told me that he’d never loved anyone the way he loved me, and he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. It was all I could do not to jump up and down squealing in excitement.” She made a face at her naiveté. She still couldn’t believe she’d ever been so young and stupid.

  Max studied her carefully, knowing this was important somehow. “And you married him?”

  She nodded. “Six weeks later Arthur and I married. We had a big elaborate wedding at my parents’ house and Arthur controlled it all. He told me the style of dress to wear and what kind of veil I needed to wear. He told my mother what she needed to serve for the guests and what people we could and could not invite. I never realized that was strange until we married and you told me your sister had done everything.” She’d never imagined she should have just planned her wedding however she’d wanted it. All her life, she’d dreamed of what she wanted for her wedding, but had none of it, either time. The first time, she’d caved to every one of her fiancé’s wishes. The second time, she’d been too far away to do what she wanted. She’d cared a lot less the second time around, though.

  Max nodded. “That was very controlling.” His brows narrowed. “Was he controlling of you after the marriage?”

  “You’re jumping ahead. I have to tell it my way.” She looked down at her hands which were clasped tightly together. “During the ceremony and the reception afterward, I thought everything was perfect. He danced with me, smiling at me the whole while. I was sure I was going to live happily ever after like someone in a fairy tale.” Her eyes met his for the first time since she’d begun. “When we left, my year-long nightmare started.” Her eyes were sad in her stark white face.

  “What do you mean?” Max was leaning on his desk, trying to get closer to her for the discussion.

  “We weren’t a mile away from the house in the carriage when he started berating me. He said that I was wearing the wrong kind of dress. He’d wanted a dress with puffy shoulders and mine were too tight. I’d done what I thought he wanted from me.” She shrugged. “By the time we got to the hotel, he’d told me my dress was wrong, I ate too slowly, my shoes weren’t the kind he’d wanted me to wear and I shouldn’t have spoken to a young man I’d known all my life at the reception.” She sighed heavily.

  Max shook his head. “He had no right to talk to you that way.”

  “I thought he did. He was my husband.” She leaned back in her chair, watching him. “My parents had a very loving relationship. I don’t know what went on behind closed doors, of course, but I thought all marriages were like theirs, and I assumed that when I stopped making him angry, our marriage would be perfect. He used a belt on me that first night. Before he even consummated our marriage, he told me he was going to have to punish me. Once we were in the hotel room, he took off his belt and beat me across the back. I hadn’t even gotten my wedding dress off before he laid into me.” Her eyes were distant as she remembered how badly that night had shocked her. “He told me he didn’t want to have to punish me, but I had done everything wrong, and I’d never learn if he didn’t punish me.”

  Max stared at her. He’d thought she may have been beaten, but the story he was hearing was much worse than anything he’d ever expected. “Did you go home to your parents?”

  She shook her head. “Of course not. I truly believed that he was punishing me for something I’d done wrong. I thought if I could just do things the way he wanted me to do them, he would love me.” She stood up, unable to be still any longer as she continued her story. “By the time our honeymoon was over, he had gotten so angry he hit me in the face. When I met his servants in New York, I had a bruise the size of his hand on my cheek. They all pretended not to see it except Higgins. As soon as Arthur was gone, he came to my room with a steak to put over the bruise and talked to me. He told me he knew that Arthur had beaten me, and it would make no difference if I denied it. He told me that if I needed him to scream, anytime day or night, and he’d be there to help me.” She shook her head. “I really think he stayed awake at night listening for me.

  Max closed his eyes against the images going through his mind. “Why didn’t you get out?”

  “I didn’t know where to go. Or really understand that what he was doing was all about him and not about me.” She paced the room as she continued. “He would leave me a to-do list every morning, and I had to do everything on the list or he would punish me. Even if I did everything on the list, he found a reason to punish me. I’d been married about eight months when I found out I was carrying our child. I thought the beatings would end then, and they did for a time.” She sighed. “When I was five months pregnant, he got mad at me for something. I’m still not sure what it was and honestly don’t care. I’d never seen him that angry. He used his fists on me and was hitting me anywhere he could reach. I was afraid, and I ran from him, screaming Higgins’s name. I was so afraid he was going to hurt my baby. I ran away from our bedroom and out into the upstairs hallway to the top of the stairs. When I got there, I saw that Higgins was already standing there with a rifle. He had it to his shoulder, ready to shoot Arthur. To protect himself Arthur pushed me down the stairs toward Higgins, who shot him as soon as I was out of the way.” She sat back down in the chair heavily. “Arthur was killed immediately. It was both a blessing and a curse, because Higgins was taken away and couldn’t be with me while I was in the hospital.” A single tear floated down her cheek. “I lost the baby during the night and my leg was so badly mangled, they told me immediately I would need surgery if I ever wanted to have any hope of walking again.” She rubbed the top of her leg, not realizing what she was doing. “I made them wait to do the surgery so I could go to his funeral. I had to see them put him in the ground. I had to know that he was really dead and couldn’t ever come after me again.” She sucked in a deep breath
, so glad the telling was almost over. “Everyone thought I loved him so much to be at the funeral so soon after my accident, but they didn’t know what had really happened. No one would have believed it of perfect Arthur anyway.”

  Max stared at her shaking his head. He obviously didn’t want to believe what she was telling him. “So Arthur is the reason you limp and he killed your child?”

  Harriett nodded. “If Higgins hadn’t been there, I truly believe he’d have killed me that night. I know he would have killed the baby, but he did that anyway.” She met his eyes again. “Higgins was tried for murder, but I convinced the jury he was acting in self-defense. I didn’t tell them what had happened though. I was too ashamed.” Her voice was flat and lifeless as she explained how it had all made her feel.

  “I don’t understand why you were ashamed. You did nothing wrong!”

  “I realize that now, but back then I was sixteen and thought Arthur knew everything. I truly believed that he would stop hitting me if I just stopped doing things that were wrong. I hadn’t gotten over those feelings yet.” She paused looking down at her hands. “My mail order bride business taught me that marriages can be good. I gave a talk to every woman I put on a train, telling them to come back if their husband hurt them. I never explained why, but every woman needs to hear at least once in her life that you don’t have to stay with a man who hurts you.”

  Max took a deep breath. “So now what is Higgins doing for you? Why do you two keep going off alone together and talking? He’s not still investigating me, is he?”

  “No! Of course not. I trust you completely, or I wouldn’t be telling you any of this.” She sighed. “When I went to the mercantile yesterday, I saw a woman with a bruise on her cheek. I knew immediately she was abused. She told me she was clumsy and it was none of my business, but I used every story in the book when I was being hurt. I would say that I fell. That I was clumsy. That I bumped into something. Anything but the truth. I could see in her eyes she was doing the same thing. So I asked Higgins to watch out for her like he watched out for me. He doesn’t even like me to be out of his sight after what he witnessed.”

  Max made a face. “You have Higgins following a woman around because you think she’s being beaten by her husband?”

  Harriett nodded. “I know it sounds strange, but I have no idea how else to help her. He’ll step in if it looks like her life is in danger.” She shrugged helplessly. “I just wish I could do more.”

  “Why does Higgins care?”

  “Arthur killed his daughter a couple of months before we married. He only kept working for him to try to get proof that he was abusing women. He’d thought about killing Arthur, but he didn’t want him to die quickly. He wanted him to suffer.”

  Max’s eyes widened, but he nodded understandingly. “And now Higgins has been your protector ever since?”

  “And he does things like checks people out for me. He’s watching the woman I saw and trying to make friends with her. I hope he can talk her into leaving.”

  Max walked around his desk to her, sitting on the edge of it. “Why did you wait so long to tell me all this?”

  She shrugged. “Even though I’d been writing to you for two years and I knew Higgins had checked you out as thoroughly as possible, I was still afraid. I didn’t think you’d hurt me and I trusted you as much as I trust anyone, but I couldn’t get rid of the fear.” Her eyes met his. “I’m sorry.”

  He shook his head. “You have no reason to apologize. You did nothing wrong. I wish you would have told me sooner, but having never been in your shoes, I can’t say that I wouldn’t have done the same thing.” He sighed. “I only have one thing to say.”

  “What’s that?” She was almost afraid to hear his reaction.

  “I wish Arthur was still alive, so I could thrash him to within an inch of his life, let him heal and do it again over and over for fifty years.”

  She eyed him with surprise. “I didn’t realize I’d married such a violent man.” She was so happy he didn’t turn the violence toward her, though.

  He let out a short laugh. “I didn’t either.” He took her hands and pulled her to her feet. “I’m sorry you went through all that, but I’m very happy you told me about it.”

  “You don’t think less of me?” Her eyes searched his for any sign of pity in them.

  He shook his head. “I’m so proud of you for rising above it.”

  She sighed, leaning against him, thrilled he’d taken the story as well as he had. “And Higgins?”

  “We’ll keep him. But you need to start telling me everything you tell him. No more secrets from me.” He pulled her against him as he said the words, letting her know that everything was forgiven.

  “No more secrets.” She rested her head against his shoulder. “Higgins is waiting for me to let him know how our talk went. Do you want to go with me?”

  Max looked down at her. “Would you mind?”

  “Not at all. No more secrets. I have nothing to say to him that I wouldn’t say in front of you.”

  Max smiled, thinking it would be the right thing to do to let her go on her own, but he did want to let Higgins know all was well between them. “Let’s go together then.”

  They walked down the hall to where Higgins was still sitting on the sofa in her parlor, obviously lost in thought. “Higgins?” Harriett called out to him.

  “Mrs. Farmer.” Higgins jumped to his feet, his eyes traveling back and forth between the couple in front of him. “Is everything well between you?”

  Harriett nodded and smiled. “I told him everything.” She had her hand linked with Max’s hoping that would make him understand as much as anything else that everything was good between them.

  Higgins sagged a bit in relief. “I’m happy that your talk went well.” His eyes met Max’s. “I apologize for not telling you what was happening earlier, but it wasn’t my story to tell.”

  Max held his hand out to Higgins. “Thank you for saving my wife. You have a place in our home for as long as you want it, whether you work here or not.”

  Higgins smiled. “Thank you, sir.” He looked at Harriett. “She’s the same age my daughter would have been, and I’ve looked at her as a daughter for a long time now. I don’t like the idea of having to leave her.”

  Max shook his head. “That’s not going to happen.”

  Harriett smiled at Higgins. “Are you going back to watch the Andersons?”

  Higgins shook his head. “Not tonight. I’ll go back there in the morning. I hope to find a chance to talk to her tomorrow and become her friend. I’ll have no way of influencing her to leave otherwise.”

  Max raised a brow. “Influencing her to leave? You are going to encourage her to leave her husband?”

  Higgins nodded. “Mrs. Farmer has asked me to do what I can to get her out of there. So that’s what I’ll do.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll check in with you tomorrow and let you know how things are going.”

  Max and Harriett watched as Higgins left the room to go to his bed. Max looked down at her. “I’m tired too.”

  She nodded. “It’s been a long day, and I have to start planning the party for our nieces tomorrow.” She grinned up at him happily, excited the talk was over and she would get to start planning the party the following day.

  He groaned. “Do you really have to have them all over? Do you have any idea what you’re getting into?”

  She took his hand and pulled him toward their bedroom. “I’m so excited. I can’t wait!”

  He sighed. “I can.”

  Chapter Eight

  Maxwell tiptoed around for the next two weeks, almost afraid to touch Harriett. He still made love with her, but was very gentle, letting her know that her feelings were extremely important to him. She wanted to scream at him that he didn’t need to treat her like a porcelain doll. She was a woman and wouldn’t break.

  She’d thought he would be able to see her strength when he heard her story, but instead, he wanted to protec
t her and cosset her. It was enough to make a strong woman who had been independent for ten years scream with frustration. How did he think she’d made it through all she’d been through with no one but Higgins?

  The party for their nieces went extremely well. Harriett found them a joy to be around, and was even able to get shy Daisy out of her shell some. “It’s not that I don’t like you, Aunt Harriett,” Daisy said earnestly. “It’s that I can never think of what to say to people I don’t know.”

  Harriett nodded understandingly. “Do you want to know a secret?” She leaned close to the young girl, whispering softly.

  Daisy nodded with wide eyes.

  “I was just as shy as you when I was your age. At my coming out ball, I stood in the corner and giggled with my two closest girlfriends instead of dancing with boys until one came up to me and pulled me onto the dance floor with him. I was afraid to even look at boys.”

  “Really?” Daisy looked excited and encouraged that Harriett had been shy as well.

  “Really. And I’ll tell you something else.” Harriett lowered her voice just a bit more to make what she was about to say seem even more special.

  “What’s that?”

  “There’s nothing in this world wrong with being shy. You have people all around you every day, and they all talk without stopping. You’re perfect just the way you are.” Harriett smiled down at the girl, who was staring at her as if she were some kind of savior. She felt it was important to make every young woman as confident in herself as possible. Without confidence, it was too easy to become a victim of men like Arthur. She never wanted to see one of her sweet nieces be a victim.

  “You really think so?” Daisy’s brown eyes studied her aunt carefully.

  “I know so!” Harriett wrapped her arms around the girl’s shoulders. “But we should probably go make sure Iris hasn’t rescued every bug in my back garden. I don’t want them crawling all over me.” She shivered as the idea occurred to her.