Mary Connealy (111 page)

“I’m sure Benny wouldn’t stage a tug-of-war over a real baby like he did with the cross.” Hannah had a brief vision of Benny and Libby doing just that and shuddered. “We’ll think of something.”

“Those were all little things,” Grant said. “The pageant was perfect.” Hannah shook her head.

“I’m never going to convince Wilbur to marry me now,” Marilyn said. “He’ll be scared to death of what might happen to our children.”

A young man Hannah thought had better be Wilbur came up behind Marilyn and hooked his arm around her slender waist. “You’re not getting out of marrying me,” he said, talking into the back of her neck. “I think you’re gonna be about the finest mother who ever lived.” He dragged a giggling Marilyn away.

“I’d better get Marilyn through her books quick.” Hannah turned and smiled at Grant. “I’ve heard Wilbur’s clearing land for his house.”

Grant stepped just a bit closer to Hannah. “I want you to know—”

Megan came up beside them. “Thanks so much, Miss Cartwright.” She put her arm around Grant. “Didn’t know if I’d make it here or not, Pa. Ian kicked up a fuss, but I wouldn’t hear of missing it. You know how Ian is.”

“I know.” Grant nodded. “It won’t be long now.”

“Till you’re a grandpa again.” Megan started laughing and several others around her joined in. Even Hannah had to laugh at Grant, so young, being a grandpa.

Grant crossed his arms and furrowed his brow. “This’n’ll be my tenth grandchild. I’m used to it.”

The whole crowd laughed again.

Gladys had helped arrange for cookies and cider, and the parson said a heartfelt prayer.

The party began winding down and the crowd headed for home.

As they stepped outside, Will held his lantern up to light the way to the hitching post.

Hannah watched them all leave then closed up the schoolhouse, her heart singing with the success of the Easter pageant, despite the fiasco with that horrible Prudence. Her heart still glowed with the kind words and the many thanks.

With a smile, she walked through the quiet night. Her pleasure faded as she let herself into her lonely room. Tomorrow was Easter, a day that was the foundation of her faith. But it would just be another lonely day for Hannah.

Of course Parrish had never made the day memorable. Once she’d escaped Parrish and lived in one hideaway or another with her collection of brothers and sisters, she’d spent Easter focusing on the holiness of the day, but she’d rarely gone to church or had the means to prepare a special meal. At least tomorrow she’d attend services.

She realized as she prepared for bed that she didn’t even have any food in her room. The diner and mercantile were closed tomorrow because of the holiday, so she couldn’t buy any. The pageant and the Brewsters had claimed all her attention for so long that she’d neglected almost everything else. With a sigh, Hannah realized she’d have to go without food on Easter. Well, she’d done without food before. It wouldn’t kill her.

The night had cooled and the diner’s heat had burned away and faded. So she’d be cold as well as hungry. After all she’d survived in her life, she didn’t mind her little room and an occasional day of cold and hunger. She did mind the loneliness though. She’d never been alone on Easter before.

Self-pity grew and she indulged herself in it as the loneliness overwhelmed her. She wept into her pillow even as she knew she was being selfish.

Libby was safe at the Rocking C.

She prayed for her big sister, Grace, and wondered if she’d ever know what happened to her. After the foolish tears were spent, she settled into her cold little bed.

As Hannah walked out of church the next morning, Charlie rushed up beside her. “Miss Cartwright, have you made plans for today?”

Hannah smiled down at him. “No, I haven’t.”

“We’d like you to come out and celebrate Easter with us at the Rocking C. Joshua bagged himself a huge turkey, and the girls have been baking since dawn. A lot of Pa’s grown children are coming and bringing food along. We’re going to have more food than even all of us can eat. We’d like it very much if you could come.”

“Well, I don’t know.” Of course the answer was no, but Charlie looked so hopeful. Hannah decided she’d find Grant to turn down the invitation rather than disappoint Charlie.

The crowd was thinning fast, everyone hurrying home to their Easter dinners. Grant was nowhere in sight. She didn’t see his wagon either, or any other of his children.

“Do you know the way through the pass?”

“I know the way.”

“Then I’ll head back. Put your riding skirt on, and I’ll tell Zeb to have any horse but Rufus saddled up for you and waiting out front of the diner.”

Hannah nodded but didn’t answer his question. There was no possible way she could spend the day with Grant.

Charlie headed toward the livery that would, Hannah realized, be closed today. Charlie would figure that out soon enough.

Hannah hurried around the church, searching for Grant to tell him she couldn’t come. His wagon was nowhere to be found. She hurried toward the livery, but Charlie had vanished and the building was locked up tight.

Not sure what to do, she walked home to find a quiet, gentle-looking mare standing, bridled and saddled, right outside her door. “Charlie!” Hannah’s voice seemed to echo down the deserted Sour Springs street. Charlie didn’t answer. With a shake of her head, she admitted she was thrilled to not spend the day alone and rushed inside and ran upstairs to change into her riding skirt.

The horse behaved perfectly and the high trail was clear and dry.

When she rode up to the Rocking C, she pulled the reins so abruptly the horse backed up a few paces. Where had Grant’s little cabin gone?

A sprawling log ranch house stood where the humble home had been. So completely had it been transformed, Hannah could barely remember the other house. The center jutted out nearly twenty feet farther than it had. There were impressive additions on each side and the roof was higher. It wasn’t just bigger, someone had taken the time to make it beautiful. A neat porch with dozens of slender support spindles graced the front. There were shutters on each window, and the land around the house had been leveled with well-rocked paths leading to the barn. It looked like someone had worked himself near to death to make it so lovely.

And the children were all outside. Hannah remembered that Grant had said the children spent all their time outside, and from the looks of things, it was the absolute truth. Libby ran along, keeping up with Benny, her limp a distant memory. They chased after Charlie, whose sullen scowl was long gone. Joshua rode his horse toward the corral. The two older girls sat on the porch steps visiting.

Benny yelled, “Miss Cartwright’s here.”

Joshua tipped his hat at Hannah. “Happy Easter, Miss Cartwright!” Hannah noticed that Joshua carried himself with the same assurance as Grant.

Charlie came over and held her horse. “Glad you could make it, Miss Cartwright.”

“Hannah!” Libby came running toward her, and Hannah swept her little sister up in her arms and had to swallow back tears at the sound of her voice.

Marilyn and Sadie got up and walked toward her with all the poise of women. The air fairly rang with “Miss Cartwright” and “Happy Easter,” shouted by six happy children.

Hannah remembered last Easter, Libby and her alone in a cold, dilapidated shed with only stale bread to eat. The change from last year to this was nothing short of miraculous. She couldn’t remember another time in her life when she’d been welcomed into a family like this.

Regaining her composure, she thanked Charlie for his help with the horse and headed for the house carrying Libby.

“Are you going to help us cook, Miss Cartwright?” There was no missing the fear in Sadie’s voice.

Hannah couldn’t help but laugh. “No, your meal is safe.”

Hannah would have said for sure that a black person couldn’t blush, but Sadie proved her wrong. Then all the children started laughing and the awkward moment passed.

The children thronged around her. Even Joshua hurried out of the barn to join them. Hannah and the children headed for the greatly enlarged house, not a cabin at all anymore. “Do all of you have your own rooms now?”

“Some of us still have to share.” Joshua fell into step beside Sadie. “Pa turned the back room into an entryway like it was supposed to be, although he made it way bigger and stuck two more bedrooms on the back. He tore out the wall to the old bedrooms to make the kitchen bigger and pushed the front wall out a whole bunch. Then he added two bedrooms on one side, plus the loft is three times as wide as it was and twice as high. So we have five bedrooms counting the loft.”

Hannah noticed Sadie steal a glance at Joshua. Had Grant noticed the attachment between these two?

“I have my own room,” Benny bragged. “I have the loft to myself, and it’s huge cuz Pa made the kitchen huger’n ever.”

Hannah’s eyebrows arched. “It sounds like he’s been busy.” He’d never come again after he’d built the risers, until last night. She’d noticed because she’d been wondering if he might steal another kiss. Not that she wanted one, but a girl could wonder…couldn’t she?

“We all helped.” Benny rammed his shoulder into Charlie, and Charlie smiled and slung his arm around his little brother’s neck. The two looked like they’d become best friends in the months since Hannah had found Benny bleeding from Charlie’s assault.

“Marilyn and I have been sharing a room so we decided to stay together,” Sadie said.

“Especially since I’m getting married soon,” Marilyn added with a shy smile.

“You’re planning to finish school first, aren’t you?” Hannah asked with a stern frown.

Marilyn nodded. “With spring work, Wilbur might be awhile finishing the cabin. I’ll be through all my books by the end of this term.”

Hannah studied the girl. Marilyn was telling the truth, but Hannah had seen a determined light in Wilbur’s eyes last night. Hannah decided to push Marilyn through her books fast.

“And I’ve already filed a homestead claim.” Joshua shook his head at the new house. “We’ve got this great big house after all these years. Pa’ll rattle around in it with the two of us gone.” He glanced at Sadie again and the two smiled at each other.

Hannah subtracted another child from the house very soon because Sadie wanted to be with Joshua, and though she was young, she was a mature young woman who knew her own mind. That left Grant with three children in this sprawling home.

“I’ve got the biggest room.” Benny puffed out his chest.

Sadie sniffed and gave her little brother a gentle shove. “You might have the biggest room, but ours is the warmest cuz it’s closer to the fireplace. And it’s the prettiest. It doesn’t matter how crowded it is when we sleep. We never go inside ’cept for bedtime and meals anyway. I think Pa’s gonna need more kids. It’s gonna be lonely with only four of us, plus Pa.”

“Only four children…what a tiny family.” Joshua shook his head and smiled down at Sadie. “I want lots more kids than that.”

Sadie shoved him sideways, and he pretended to stagger and nearly fall.

The whole group started laughing.

“It’s a good thing he made the kitchen huge because Will’s family is coming today and a bunch of our other brothers and sisters,” Benny added. “We have the biggest and bestest family get-togethers of anyone.”

“Ian and Megan can’t come,” Sadie reminded them. “Ian’s too nervous.”

They all laughed over that. High holiday spirits nearly burst out of them as they dragged Hannah toward their new home. Then Grant rode into the yard.

Hannah only had to look at him for a second to see he had no idea she was coming for dinner.

She turned a dismayed look on Charlie.

He smiled at her and held the door open to the ranch house. He leaned close enough to her to whisper, “Trust me.”

Although it made absolutely no sense, Hannah did.

G
rant turned away from the celebration in front of him the minute Hannah went in the house surrounded by his children. Riding his horse into the barn, he got down, his movements uncoordinated. He pulled the leather off his horse with unsteady hands and gave it an extra bit of grain to avoid going inside for a little longer.

“What is she doing here?” He asked the question directly to God. With no excuse not to go in, Grant turned toward the house and came to a dead stop, afraid of what he’d say if he had so much as a second alone with her. And he knew what he’d promised God and the desperate need of all the orphaned children in the world.

“God, why did You let her come here?” Grant heard no thunderous voice. No finger of fire carved answers like commandments on stone. No burning bush spoke to him. No still, small voice whispered to his heart.

He was so alone in his barn, with his family all surrounding Hannah in his house, that his ears almost echoed with the aloneness. Grant knew that somehow the answer to all his aloneness was in that house and in that woman.

Grant, alone in the empty barn, asked, “What about my promise, God? What about all the children who need me?” Grant ran his hands over his face, trying to wash away the temptation to be selfish away. “I had a good reason for that promise. There are still orphans suffering.