The man looked as if he wanted to say more, but instead just shook his head. He turned toward the door, but stopped and took a step closer pulling her into his arms.
Lost in his giant hug, her cheek rested on the big man’s chest and she heard his words rumble against her ear. “Gertrude and I love you, Aggie, as does our son…our only child. I know from experience how hard it is to let go of someone you can’t imagine your life without, but love will lead the way for all of us.”
Hiram’s father kissed her on the top of her head and gave her squeeze, then released her and left without another word.
Aggie stared at the closed door and wondered at her soon-to-be ex-father-in-law’s cryptic message. “I wonder what on earth he meant by that?”
Two hours later, she made her way down the winding grand staircase to find the Hanover household waiting to say goodbye.
Gladys, Jeffrey, and the rest of the household staff stood in formation in the foyer. Each one of them offered her a bow or a curtsy to show their respect for her. She couldn’t believe she was able to address them all without falling apart. But when she reached the end of the line, Gertrude was waiting.
The sight of Hiram’s mother’s tear-stained face almost shattered Aggie and bit of self-control she had managed to hold on to. She wasn’t sure she could resist if Gertrude tried to convince her once again to stay. Much to Aggie’s surprise, the woman didn’t try. Instead, she handed Aggie a box wrapped with ribbon.
“Aggie darling. I know it’s going to be a long trip to Missouri, and I’ve heard that some of the train’s watering stops don’t provide necessary nourishment for passengers. I had Cook put all your favorites in there. There’s enough to share with…a fellow passenger should you meet someone who loves German food as much as…we do.”
Aggie found Gertrude’s behavior odd. Perhaps it was her way of dealing with the sadness she knew the woman felt. After all, she had lost two grandchildren and now she was losing a daughter-in-law. The whole situation was an unbelievable tragedy of which she hoped never to witness again.
Heartbroken, but resigned to the fact that what she was doing the right thing, she pulled Gertrude into her arms much as Klaus had done to her earlier and hugged her close. “I will always love you, Gertrude. Always,” she whispered.
She held Hiram’s mother close while the woman sobbed uncontrollably. She hadn’t realized just how much Gertrude would miss her. It was heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time.
With one final hug, Aggie stepped away and grabbed up the food box along with her traveling bag. “Goodbye, Gertrude. I shall think of you often.”
Jeffrey opened the door for her; she stepped out of the house and down the walk to the street where the hired cab was waiting.
Tears welled and emotions burned her throat. She wondered where Hiram was right now, but she was glad he hadn’t come to say goodbye. She knew it was better this way.
Twenty minutes later, the hired cab pulled up in front of the train platform and she paid the driver. “Thank you, sir.”
The baggage handlers quickly unloaded her trunks from the cab’s boot and placed them onto the train’s baggage car. She tipped them both a coin each.
“All aboard,” the train conductor yelled from one of the train’s doorways. “All aboard. Train leaves in ten minutes,” the man in the uniform repeated.
Aggie glanced around the platform briefly hoping to catch a glimpse of Hiram, but relieved when he wasn’t there. She prayed in time he would remember her with fondness when memories of her came to mind. She had no hopes he would ever forgive her for what she was doing this day, but she hoped, in time, he would at least understand she had done it for him. She had done it…because she loved him so much.
She shook her head to clear her thoughts. There was no point in dwelling on what might have been. It was done and she had made her decision. Squaring her shoulders, she handed the conductor her ticket and boarded the train. Hiram’s parents had insisted they purchase her a private berth. She had thanked them, and declined their generous offer. She couldn’t justify having Hiram’s parents pay for a pricey private berth when she was leaving their family and breaking their son’s heart.
She chose a seat on one of the benches near the back of the train near the window. Perhaps she would get lucky and no one would choose to sit next to her. She really wasn’t in the mood for polite conversation.
Two shrill blasts from the train’s whistle signaled they were leaving Boston behind. A large cloud of white steam drifted past the windows nearly obscuring the people standing on the platform waving their final goodbyes to their loved ones on the train.
She stared out the window not really seeing anything and certainly not caring. A hard jerk of the train’s engine set the cars into motion. Slowly at first, but the train’s powerful steam engine gathered speed.
Soon, the platform was gone, and buildings and houses passed quickly outside her window. She had gotten what she wanted. Hiram had let her go. Tears burned, but this time she didn’t bother to wipe them away. It didn’t matter anymore. There was no one on this train she had to hide her feelings from. She didn’t have to hide how much it hurt to let him go because there was no one she cared about seeing her tears.
She loved Hiram with her whole heart and soul. She feared she always would. But, she had done the right thing, she reminded herself. She had set him free.
Aggie watched the busy streets of Boston fade into green lush ribbons of forests and farmlands. And homesickness she hadn’t felt for some time returned. She hadn’t realized how much she would miss Boston. And its people. Boston had become her home.
“Is this seat taken?”
Aggie turned at the familiar voice to see her husband’s crystal blue eyes staring lovingly down at her. “Hiram? What on earth…are you doing here? You shouldn’t be here.”
He took the seat next to her and grinned at her.
“You shouldn’t be here. You are not going to talk me out of this. I told you I can’t stay.”
He kept that silly grin on his face, but he surprised her with his response. “I know. You’ve made that point quite clear. And, just so you know, I’m not here to talk you into staying.” Hiram placed his arm on the back of her seat pulling her against his body.
“Then…I don’t understand. Why are you here? On this train?”
“I think you would agree that I’m a very good attorney, would you not?” he seemed to be teasing her. She didn’t know if she should be angry or glad he was here.
“A good attorney? Well, of course you are a good attorney. One of the best. But what has that got to do with—”
“A good attorney knows when to change tactics when he is losing his case, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Change tactics?” She turned to study her husband closely. Was his grief causing him to lose his mind? She certainly hoped not. “Whatever do you mean, Hiram?”
“When I realized that all of my persuasive abilities could not change your mind about leaving me, I knew that I must change my tactics. I needed to make a different choice if I had any hopes of keeping my beautiful wife by my side.”
She watched his eyes drop to her lips and she thought he was going to kiss her. She realized in that moment that she wanted nothing more than for Hiram to kiss her. One last time, she reminded herself. But…he didn’t.
“When I realized I couldn’t change your mind about staying, then I knew I couldn’t stay either. So, I chose to go with you wherever that is we are going. Last I heard, we were going to your cousin’s in St. Louis. Is that still our destination?”
Aggie was having a hard time wrapping her brain around what was happening. “But, Hiram. You can’t just leave—”
“That is where you are wrong, Aggie, my love. I may not have the power to keep you in Boston, but you can’t stop me from following you wherever you have decided to go. It’s a free country, remember?”
“But, Hiram, you can’t be serious. I mean…you can’t go. Yo
ur mother will be heartbroken if you leave Boston. And what about your law practice with your father? He’ll be lost without you.”
Aggie tried to make sense of what was happening. She was so sure she had accounted for every possible scenario. But she had most definitely not accounted for this.
“Aggie, don’t you understand? It will be my heart that’s broken if you leave me. Besides, it was my mother and father who told me to get my rear end on this train and go with you.”
Aggie couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “They told you to go? With me? But—” Wait. Now, it all made sense. “Your father said something to me earlier that I found quite odd at the time, but now I understand what he meant.”
Hiram pulled her hand into his and kissed her palm sending shivers of delight up her spine. “And what did my father say to you that was so odd,” he whispered as he moved to her earlobe, grazing it with his teeth. Goosepimples dotted her skin at his touch.
“Um,” was all she managed to say. Finally, surfacing through a cloud of desire she managed to answer. “He said that he knew from experience how hard it was to let go of someone he couldn’t imagine his life without, but that love will lead the way for all of us.”
“And how is that so odd? I find I agree with his sentiment one hundred percent.” Hiram leaned into her and kissed her fully on the lips in front of God and everyone on the train. She found herself not caring one whit who witnessed their breach of propriety.
“I didn’t understand what he meant then, but I do now. He was trying to tell me that he was letting you go because you…couldn’t let me go.”
“Is that a fact?” Hiram grinned at her again and kissed her lips once more.
Another thought ricocheted through Aggie’s head. “And your mother. Now I know what she meant about sharing the food. She was talking about you. She knew you would be on this train with me and she packed enough food for the both of us.” Aggie exclaimed as the realization hit her fully.
“Well, my mother does understand my love for her cooking, and—”
“Oh, Hiram. Your parents love you so much they are willing to let you go to be with me?” Aggie’s emotions bubbled over and a tear slide down her cheek.
“And I love you so much, my beautiful Aggie, that I am willing to follow you to the ends of the earth.”
Aggie looked into her husband’s beautiful eyes and wept. Hiram pulled her into his arms and held her close. She could hear his heart beating in his chest: Strong. Steady. Just like the man himself.
“But we are no longer married, Hiram. Your father brought me the divorce papers, and I… signed them.”
“I have them right here,. How about we tear them up together?”
He leaned in and kissed her with all the passion of a husband for his beloved wife. A grateful tear slid down her cheek. She didn’t bother to wipe it away.
“Is there a problem here?” a voice behind them spoke. “Is this man bothering you, miss?”
Aggie and Hiram turned to see the train’s conductor studying them beneath a furrowed brow.
Hiram raised his eyebrows to her in question. “Well? Am I bothering you, Miss?” He asked her with a hint of humor, but the uncertainty she saw in his eyes made her aware that he waited on her answer too.
She hesitated for a second then jerked the papers out of his hand. She turned to the conductor and haughtily replied. “That’s Mrs. Hanover if you please, sir. And no, this man is most certainly not bothering me.” She ripped up the papers and threw them into the air. “He’s my husband.”
The confused conductor simply tipped his hat and turned away leaving her and her husband alone.
Aggie turned to her husband. “Let’s go home.
Epilogue
Boston, Massachusetts
June 14, 1866
Aggie and Hiram stood just inside the front door of their namesake facility and Boston’s newest orphanage, The Hanover School for Homeless Children.
The Hanover Foundation, funded by Klaus and Gertrude, Hiram and Aggie, was where every orphaned child within the city limits of Boston could find every advantage that money could buy.
It had been one year to the day since Aggie and Hiram’s babies had died and they wanted to celebrate their memories in a way that brought peace to their grieving hearts. What better way than to be in the midst of a room full of laughing, playing, happy, safe, and well-fed children.
The school’s chancellor, Mrs. Lavinia Albright, tapped her ruler against the glossy wooden desk to gain the children’s attention.
“Good afternoon, everyone. Quiet, children. Please. We have some very special guests with us today and I’d like you to meet them. Quiet, children. Gather around.”
Aggie watched the children scramble to find a place near them as they gathered around. Soon, every child of every ages looked at them expectantly.
“Everyone, I’d like you to meet two very special people. This is Mr. and Mrs. Hanover. Children say hello to the Hanovers,” Mrs. Albright instructed.
“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Hanover,” the children recited in unison.
Hiram squeezed her hand and grinned. “Say hello to all of your children, Aggie.”
“Oh, Hiram. This was such a lovely idea. I can’t think of a better way to honor our children on what would have been their first birthday than to visit our school. Thank you so much for thinking of it.” Aggie smiled a grateful smile to her husband.
Hiram offered her a sad smile, and she knew he too was remembering their tiny son and daughter. “They can all be our children, Aggie. Yours. And mine.”
Aggie beamed with pride as a little girl about three years old pulled on her skirts. “Well, hello there, little one.” She allowed her gaze to caress the little girl’s blonde curls.
She reached down and lifted the little girl into her arms and settled her on her hip while all the other children gathered around them.
“We are blessed, you know.” She said as she watched the other children returned to their play.
“I know I am truly blessed, my beautiful wife. I could not manage this world without you by my side. But tell me, why do you feel we are blessed?” Her husband’s curiosity was evident on his face.
“God has blessed us beyond our wildest dreams. He may have taken the two precious children I bore, but look at how many more he has brought into our lives, Hiram. It is clear to me now, that had our children lived, we would have been distracted by our love for them. We would have focused only on them and this beautiful school would never have been built.”
“And now we have hundreds of adorable children, of all ages, who depend upon our love and care. Is that what you mean” Hiram asked.
“Yes, what better calling for two people who adore each other as we do, and have unlimited love to give, than to be the benefactors of a school created for the sole purpose of caring for all these children?
“And think of it, Hiram. Some day, we may learn that these children we are helping have grown up to be adults with remarkable lives worthy of admiration.”
“Yes, it would be wonderful to know that.” Hiram smiled at her growing excitement.
“They could be teachers, or doctors, or farmers, maybe a tradesman, or an architects, or even a politicians who helps guide this country to grow strong and independent.”
Aggie’s joy at the possibilities for the future helped crowd out the pain of her losses.
“I think we should celebrate this day every year, not as a day of great tragedy, but as a day of new beginnings. What do you think, my darling?”
She turned to see her husband watching her with eyes bright with all his love for her shining in those beautiful blue eyes she adored.
“I think that is a most brilliant idea, my love for I know that we shall have many years to celebrate our blessings.”
She leaned over the head of the little girl she held and sealed their promise with a kiss.
More books in the series…
To read more about the residents of Cre
ede, Colorado, look for these other books in
The Brides of the Rio Grande Series
Grace-Book One – Available now on Amazon
Faith-Book Two – Available now on Amazon
Hope-Book Three – Available now on Amazon
Charity-Book Four – Available now on Amazon
Mary-Book Five - Available now on Amazon
Aggie-Book Six - Available now on Amazon
Olivia’s Obligation - Available now on Amazon
Peggy McKenzie & Friends
BRIDES OF THE RIO GRANDE
Grace – Book One
Faith – Book Two
Hope – Book Three
Charity – Book Four
Mary – Book Five (Feb 2020)
Aggie – Book Six (March 2020)
The ALPHABET MAIL-ORDER BRIDES
Olivia’s Obligation-Peggy McKenzie-Book 15
And Twenty-Four other authors
Available at Amazon.com
LANGLEY’S LEGACY SERIES
Finn’s Fortune – Book One – Kathleen Ball
Patrick’s Proposal – Book Two – Hildie McQueen
Donovan’s Deceit – Book Three – Kathy Shaw
Aidan’s Arrangement – Book Four – Peggy McKenzie
Heath’s Homecoming – Book Five – Merry Farmer
Colin’s Challenge – Book Six – Sylvia McDaniel
ANGEL CREEK CHRISTMAS BRIDES SERIES
2018
Charity – Book One – Sylvia McDaniel
Julia – Book Two - Lily Graison
Ruby – Book Three – Hildie McQueen
Sarah- Book Four – Peggy McKenzie
Anna – Book Five – Everly West
2019
Caroline - Book One - Lily Graison
Aggie Page 15
