Tender Love

by Irene Brand

  He considered how willing she was to forgive those who had wronged her—of how she’d forgiven Kristin and Gran for their unjustified treatment. She didn’t hold a grudge against Ethel, the Tatums, or her parents, who took her for granted.

  It was well after midnight when Mark felt Alice’s hand move slightly, and she opened her eyes.

  “Mark?” she whispered.

  “Right here, sweetheart.”

  “Kristin and Eddie?”

  “Asleep in chairs on the other side of the room. Do you want me to wake them?”

  She shook her head and groaned.

  “How badly am I hurt?”

  “There’s a knot on your head the size of a baseball, a broken arm and some cracked ribs, but the doctor says you’ll live,” he added with a smile.

  “I have a terrific headache.”

  “I’ll ring for a nurse. Now that you’re awake, they’ll give you something for that.”

  “How’s Don Tatum?”

  “In good shape, thanks to you.”

  “I suppose what I did was stupid, but I acted without thinking.”

  “A good thing for Don that you did. The manager of the stables said he could easily have been killed if you hadn’t gotten him off the pony.”

  When the nurse answered Mark’s summons, she turned on the light and awakened Kristin and Eddie. They ran to the bed and Mark moved aside to let them take the place he’d occupied all night.

  “Arm hurt, Alice?” Eddie asked anxiously, and Alice was reminded of the time he’d been hit in the stomach with the softball.

  “Not as much as my head and ribs,” she said. She reached out her hand and both of them grabbed it.

  “We prayed for you,” Kristin said. “We’re so proud of you, ’specially when you saved Don after his daddy has been so mean to you. And I’m awful sorry for the way I’ve acted the past few months. I want you to be our mother.”

  Mark and Alice exchanged amazed glances. They’d had no idea the children knew about the charges brought against Mark, for they’d carefully avoided mention of the trouble Mr. Tatum and Ethel had caused when the kids were around.

  “Maybe you’ll have your picture in the paper,” Eddie said.

  Alice started to shake her head, but remembered that wasn’t a good idea. The shot the nurse had given her began to take effect, and she closed her eyes. The voices of Mark and the nurse sounded far away.

  Alice was released from the hospital after two days, but she wouldn’t be able to work for several weeks, and Mark inquired about some part-time help.

  “That’s a bit much, Mark,” she said, “hiring help to take care of the hired help.” She insisted on going to a nursing home until she was able to work again, but that request brought a resounding no from all the Tanners.

  Although Alice spent much of her time in her bedroom, she did go into the family room after dinner on her second night at home. While Mark and Kristin were rinsing dishes, the doorbell rang, and when Mark answered, Ethel Pennington stood on the steps. Mark was speechless for a few minutes, as he stared at Ethel. She spoke first.

  “I’ve come to help out.”

  “Come in, Ethel,” he said.

  “I won’t come in now—I wanted to find out what needs to be done.”

  Eddie and Kristin ran to Ethel, grabbed her hands and pulled her into the house. They were glad to see her, and rightfully so, for she’d been their friend during those difficult days when their mother was dying.

  Mark exchanged glances with Alice, and she nodded.

  “Sit down, Ethel,” Alice invited.

  Ethel perched on the edge of a chair, ill at ease.

  “I’m going to play T-ball this summer,” Eddie said.

  “We’ve got some new ponies, too, but I don’t know if I want to ride anymore after what happened to Don,” Kristin said, and Eddie’s eyes grew large in fright.

  Alice and Mark had anticipated this reaction, and he said evenly, “Of course, we’re going to continue riding. That was a rare accident, and not likely to happen again. You’ll be perfectly safe after you’ve taken more lessons and know how to handle your mount.”

  “Buffy wouldn’t have scared the pony,” Eddie said.

  Ethel’s eyes darted to Alice. “Are you hurt very much?”

  “Nothing that won’t heal eventually, and I’m not in a great deal of pain if I don’t move quickly. We do need some help, and it’s good of you to offer.”

  “What can I do?”

  “Mark is doing all right with breakfast and getting the children ready for school, but if you could come for a few hours in the afternoon to clean, do laundry and prepare the evening meal, it would be a big help.”

  Ethel stood up. “I’ll be here at noon tomorrow and prepare some lunch for you.”

  Eddie took a book from the coffee table. “This is a book I brought from the school library. Why don’t you read to me, Ethel?”

  Ethel looked quickly at Mark. “You’re welcome to stay,” he said, and she sat down again and Eddie stood beside her chair while she read. Ethel stayed for an hour, and the awkwardness of her visit eased considerably. When she finally left, she paused by the door, and without looking at them, she said, “I’m sorry for what happened in the past. I hope you’ll forgive me.”

  “You were forgiven a long time ago, Ethel,” Mark said. “The past is gone—let’s forget it.”

  While Mark supervised the children’s showers and bundled them into bed, Alice carefully walked to her room. The least movement was agony to her bruised body, but she was determined she wouldn’t add to Mark’s workload, and she waited on herself as much as possible. She’d removed her robe and had eased into bed when Mark came to check on her.

  He sat on the edge of the bed and took her hand. “That’s certainly a strange turn of events.”

  “Yes, but one that brought a lot of peace to my mind and heart. I’ve always been uncomfortable about my attitude toward Ethel. I should ask her forgiveness.”

  “I know what you mean. It was despicable of me to order her from our home, and I’m more than willing to let bygones be bygones. It will teach me humility to accept help from a woman I treated so badly.”

  “I’ve always felt sorry for Ethel. I think she does love you, and loving you as much as I do, if you’d chosen Ethel instead of me, I might have been a poor loser, too.”

  Mark bent over and kissed Alice softly, careful not to disturb her injuries. How he wished they’d gotten married before this happened! He wanted to lie beside her and comfort her with his presence, but he didn’t have that right—yet.

  During the next two weeks, Ethel was true to her word. And without the worry of the household, Alice healed rapidly. Ethel was always busy when she was in the house, and she didn’t give Alice an opportunity to talk with her. But one afternoon when Ethel was in the kitchen preparing dinner, Alice eased out of bed and walked slowly into the room and put two cups of water in the microwave for quick heating.

  “Why don’t you take a break and join me for a cup of tea, Ethel? I’d like to talk to you. I believe you take sugar in your tea.”

  Ethel didn’t reply, but when Alice had the water boiling and had placed the cups on the table, Ethel sat down.

  “I’m asking you to forgive me, Ethel. I should have been more understanding of your situation. You’d been good to Mark and his family, and I do appreciate it. We didn’t treat you very well, and I’m sorry for that.”

  Ethel’s face flushed and her eyes filled with tears.

  “I did love him,” she said, “and I thought he’d turn to me when Clarice died. Of course, I know now, you’re the one for him. You’ll be a better mother than I could be, but it’s hard to accept.”

  Alice reached across the table and put her hand over Ethel’s tense fingers. “I can’t apologize for wanting to marry Mark, for I love him very much, but I am sorry that you can’t be happy, too.”

  “I’ll get over it,” Ethel said, swiping tears from her eyes. “It’s no
t the first disappointment I’ve had. Being here in the house has made it easier, although I dreaded to come back.”

  “Can’t we be friends? It would mean a great deal to the children, for you’re one of the few ties they have to their mother. Besides, Mark and I don’t like to be at odds with anyone.”

  “When are you going to get married?”

  “I don’t know. Mark wants to wait until he feels the definite leading of the Spirit for his future. When he’s so unsettled—not knowing where he might be called to serve—we decided to wait. And, of course, Eddie and Kristin need to get used to the idea.”

  After a month, the doctor checked Alice and, with a light brace on her arm, he said she could resume her household duties with caution. Ethel discontinued her daily visits, but she went with the Tanners’ standing invitation to visit them at any time, especially when they moved into their renovated home and had a spare bedroom.

  Alice was still not up to her usual activities, and after she got the children off to school the day after her trip to the doctor, she sat in the family room to read her Bible and pray. The last two months had been so full of trauma and pain, both physical and mental, that she had trouble sorting out the good and the bad, but as she thought about it, she decided that the good outweighed the bad. She couldn’t wish away the bad days when she considered the positive results of the charges against Mark and her near-tragic accident.

  The appearance before the Ordination Committee, and the dropping of the charges against Mark, had improved his standing with the state organization, rather than having an adverse effect. Several churches had already contacted him with tentative proposals for ministry.

  And her accident had brought some needed reconciliation with her family, too. Her parents, who’d been standoffish since she’d refused to finance a house for Nancy, had come to see her at the Tanner home, and after staying in Richmond a few days had gone home convinced that her decision to marry Mark was a good one. Since Alice had awakened in the hospital, Kristin’s attitude had changed, and more than once, she apologized for her earlier treatment of Alice. Gran had been as attentive as her disability permitted during the days of Alice’s recuperation.

  Alice had only one worry—why did Mark still hesitate to marry her? She knew it had nothing to do with his love for Clarice. The children were no longer objecting, and Eddie asked almost every day when they were going to get married. Any question about an immoral relationship between them had been aired to the community and they’d been pronounced innocent. What made Mark reluctant to set a date? Was he still worried about the money she’d inherited?

  But she learned the truth about Mark’s hesitancy when he breezed into the kitchen that evening. He’d telephoned that he had an appointment and would be later than usual. Alice was busy at the stove, and for the first time since her accident, he put his arms around her. She winced a little, saying, “My ribs are still tender, Mark. Be careful.”

  He dropped his arms and bent to kiss her. “Sorry, but I’m so happy to see you standing there that I had to touch you. And I have some outstanding news, too. I’ve just come from a meeting with the official board of Tyler Memorial Church. The pastor is resigning, and they want me to come back as their senior minister.”

  “Oh, Mark! Is that what you want to do?”

  “Yes, it is, although I didn’t know it. When I learned what they wanted, the most outstanding sense of peace and comfort entered my heart. I’ve been fearful that God no longer had a place for me in His service, especially after I was so wayward in trusting Him during the crises of my life. When I’ve had interviews with other church boards, I felt nothing—no enthusiasm, no interest in their propositions. Now I know why—God expected me to take up the cross I laid down at this local church two years ago.”

  “When will you start, Mark?”

  “Their pastor doesn’t leave for two months—that will give me ample time to tender my resignation at the bank. When can we get married?” he added eagerly.

  So it was spiritual anxiety that had kept him from marriage!

  “Let’s sit down, Mark. I’ve been up more today than usual.”

  He held the chair for her as she sat at the table. “The contractor telephoned today, and he says that the renovations have gone well, and we can move in a couple of months, which will be after the first of the year. But let’s be married sooner than that—perhaps before Christmas.

  “Sounds good to me.”

  “If I can get Aunt Margaret to come and look after Gran and the kids, I’ll go to Alexandria and prepare to close that house as soon as my ribs heal. I need to choose the furniture that I’ll leave there and what I’ll bring to our new home. If Aunt Margaret will come, I won’t feel rushed.”

  “Then, I assume that you have no objection to my return to the local church. I told the board that I wouldn’t give an answer until I talked it over with you.”

  “That’s sweet of you, Mark, but I’ll be delighted to continue worshiping there. All of us have many friends at Tyler Memorial, and I especially appreciate the support they gave us during your hearing with the ordination board.”

  Chapter Twelve

  The insistent ringing of the doorbell awakened Alice, and for a moment she was tempted to ignore it. She hadn’t activated her telephone service for the few days she intended to be in Alexandria, and she couldn’t imagine who would even know she was here.

  She wasn’t sleeping well, for the extra exertion of cleaning closets and tugging on furniture was arduous, making her realize she wasn’t fully recovered from the accident. Her arm had hurt all night, and she’d counted the passage of time by listening to the grandfather clock in the lower hall tolling the hours. It had been past four o’clock when she’d gone to sleep. Noting that it was only seven o’clock, she rolled out of bed and slipped into a robe as she hurried downstairs. She looked through the peephole before she opened the door.

  Betty!

  “What’s wrong?” she said breathlessly, as she admitted Betty St. Claire to the house.

  “Eddie’s sick.”

  Alice stumbled into the living room to the right of the hallway. She dropped heavily into an antique chair and motioned Betty to sit down.

  “Is it his heart again?”

  “The doctors don’t think so, but the malady is hard to diagnose. It’s a bacterial infection of some kind. He got sick at school the day after you left. Whatever it is, it’s really sapped his strength.”

  “How bad is he?”

  “Bad enough that Mark wanted me to come and get you. He didn’t think he should leave.”

  “Dr. Zane warned us that Eddie would be more susceptible to sickness than other children. His condition must be serious.”

  “I went to the hospital to see him last night, and I think he’s in a coma.” Alice gasped at Betty’s words.

  “Poor Mark! How’s he taking it?”

  “As strong as an oak tree! He’s reacting the way he did the ten years he served our church. Strong in his faith and an encouragement to everybody around him. Even though he’s worried sick about Eddie, he’s being a tower of strength to everyone—even Dr. Zane, who’s so concerned because he doesn’t know what else to do.”

  “I’ll leave as soon as I can dress. Thanks for coming to tell me, Betty.”

  “Do you want to go back with me? I don’t like to have you driving alone.”

  “No, I’ll be fine.”

  The hundred-mile drive usually passed quickly for Alice, but in her anxiety for Eddie, she thought the trip would never end. Adding to the mental strain was the certainty that Mark and his family faced a situation now that she couldn’t fix. Had she been guilty of considering her money a panacea for everything? If she had, Alice knew now that all her money wasn’t sufficient to save Eddie’s life. If the best doctors in Richmond were stumped, there was nothing Alice Larkin could do. “When all else fails, pray.” Was she the type of person who believed that? Did her security depend upon the fortune John had left her?
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  “God, forgive me,” she muttered aloud. “I can’t be Miss Fix-It anymore. I admit defeat— I can’t make Eddie well, but You can. Please keep Mark from suffering the death of his son.”

  Admitting her own inadequacy and turning Eddie over to God calmed Alice’s fears. She turned on the tape player and listened to the words of the Bible that she always played when she traveled alone. The narrator read from the book of Luke, and after listening for a half hour to the miraculous works of Jesus, she took particular note of the words, “But Jesus…healed the boy and gave him back to his father. And they were all amazed at the greatness of God.”

  Was this her assurance that Eddie would recover? Alice didn’t know, but she had learned a needed lesson. Alice Larkin was a finite person who had little power to do anything; only God could be called great!

  Alice had passed Richmond Children’s Hospital several times during the months she lived in the city, but she hadn’t been inside the building. The receptionist was helpful, and soon Alice stood before the closed door behind which she would find Eddie. Her hand trembled when she turned the doorknob and walked in without warning.

  Eddie was lying, eyes closed, still as death, in the bed—his body small and frail under the thin sheet. Mark knelt by the bed, his head in his hands; Kristin and Gran sat nearby, their hands clasped.

  When Alice saw how terrible Eddie looked, she started sobbing. Mark lifted his head, saw her grief, and rushed to her side.

  “Oh, sweetheart, don’t cry. He may get well—we can’t tell yet,” Mark said, and Alice sensed Mark’s strength that Betty had mentioned. No faltering, no indecision anymore. Mark Tanner had recovered his faith in God and his purpose in life.