Threads of Love (30 page)

“Get your coat, Addie,” he said, motioning toward the hall closet. “You, too, Tessie. It will be chilly by the time we return,” he informed her.

Addie skipped ahead as the two of them walked toward Charlie’s carriage. “I think we’d better take the buggy. By the time we get through skating, we may be too tired to walk home,” Charlie advised laughingly, although Tessie was almost positive that he was correct.

Tessie was glad there weren’t many people at the skating rink to observe her uncoordinated attempts at roller-skating. Charlie was busy trying to keep Addie upright while Tessie spent the first hour slowly circling as she held on to the railing whenever possible. Soon, Addie was making her way around the rink on her own, and Charlie took the opportunity to glide over toward Tessie just as she let go of the railing. His attempt to stabilize her proved an effort in futility. Instead, they both landed on the floor while Addie skated in a circle around them.

“Maybe I should give you lessons,” the child laughed, gazing down at the couple sprawled on the floor.

Charlie gave her a look of mock indignation as he returned to an upright position and held a hand toward Tessie. “Please, don’t pull me down,” he chided, placing his arm around her waist. After several trips around the rink with Charlie at her side, Tessie decided that the skating rink had been an excellent idea.

“Thank you for a wonderful evening, Charlie,” Tessie said, bidding him good night at the front door.

“You are more than welcome,” he said. Before she knew it, Charlie had gathered her to him, his breath now on her cheek. “I think I love you,” he said, leaning down and kissing her softly on the lips.

“Charlie, Addie will see you,” she reprimanded, avoiding his declaration.

“There’s nothing wrong with a young girl seeing two people who care about each other kissing good night,” he defended.

“Perhaps not, but it’s getting late, and I need to get Addie into bed,” she told him.

“I’m planning on escorting you to church in the morning, if that’s all right?” he asked.

“That will be fine,” she answered, closing the door.
He loves me
, she thought to herself, walking toward the spare bedroom in a daze.

A noise on the front porch shortly after she had gone to bed startled Tessie awake.
Probably just a cat knocking over a flowerpot
, she decided and drifted back to sleep.

The next morning Charlie arrived at ten thirty and was instructed to wait in the parlor while Tessie struggled with the ribbon in Addie’s hair.

“I don’t know what’s wrong this morning,” she said aloud. “Nothing seems to be getting completed on schedule. We’d better get going, or we’ll be late,” she told Charlie. “Just let me get our coats.”

“This letter was in the door when I arrived,” Charlie told her as she and Addie passed through the parlor on their way to the hall closet.

“Just leave it on the table. I’ll read it after church,” she replied, pinning her hat in place.

“Would you like to eat at the Harvey House?” Charlie invited as they walked toward church.

“I’d love to, but I’d like to stop off at the house first and read that letter you discovered, if you don’t mind. My curiosity’s beginning to get the best of me.”

“Not at all,” he said, each of them grasping one of Addie’s hands as she skipped along between them.

Tessie and Addie had become regulars at church, and Charlie was always with them on the Sundays he was in Florence. Addie made a few friends, but remained most comfortable sitting between the two of them, leaning her head on Charlie’s arm.

“Where did summer go, Charlie?” Tessie asked as they returned to the house. “It seems only yesterday that I was tending my roses, and now winter is almost upon us,” she said, pulling her collar tighter.

“They say that’s what happens when you get older. You lose all sense of time,” he teased, opening the front door.

“We’re going out to dinner shortly, Addie, so please stay neat,” Tessie told the youngster, who nodded in agreement.

Tessie sat down on the sofa and tore open the envelope, quickly scanning the letter. Automatically her eyes looked toward Addie, who was sitting in the rocking chair stitching on her quilt. She handed the letter to Charlie, who slowly read the contents.

“How are you going to tell her?” he asked sympathetically.

“I’m not sure,” Tessie answered, glad that he didn’t say “I told you so.” Lydia hadn’t fooled Charlie, not for a minute.

“Do you want to be alone with Addie while you tell her, or would you like me to stay?” he asked.

“Please don’t leave. I need all the help I can get with this,” she answered, feeling desperately inadequate.

“I’m hungry. Are we going to eat now?” Addie called.

“Come here, Addie. I need to talk to you,” Tessie responded, holding her hand out toward the youngster.

Addie slid onto Tessie’s lap. “What?” she inquired when Tessie said nothing.

“When Charlie arrived this morning, he found a letter in the door. It’s from Lydia,” she began.

“Why did Lydia write you a letter? She can just walk over and talk to you. That was silly, wasn’t it?”

“She wrote the letter because it was easier than talking to us. Last night Lydia and Floyd went away to get married,” Tessie explained.

“When is she coming back?” the child asked, her eyes wide with surprise.

“She’s not planning on coming back right away. She and Floyd are going to live in another town, but Lydia has agreed that you can stay with me. It makes me very happy that she’s going to allow you to live here,” Tessie concluded as enthusiastically as possible, hoping to soften the message.

“I guess she must love Floyd more than me,” Addie responded. “Do you think she’ll ever want to see me again?” she asked, her voice quivering.

“Lydia loves you very much, and I’m sure she’ll be back one day to see you. It’s just that she’s ready to start a new life with Floyd and thought you’d be better off here,” Tessie replied, pulling the child closer and issuing a silent prayer for guidance.

Suddenly, Addie pushed herself away. “When you and Charlie get married, who are you going to leave me with?” the child asked, looking back and forth between the couple.

“You would live with us, wouldn’t she, Tess?” Charlie quickly responded, ignoring Tessie’s reproving look.

“Charlie and I don’t have plans to get married,” she explained.

“But when we do, we’ll tell you right away. We would want you to live with us when that happens,” Charlie stated.

“We’ll discuss this later,” Tessie told him when Addie was looking away.

Disregarding her comment, he gained Addie’s attention. “Are you still hungry?”

“Yes,” she responded dejectedly.

“Well then, I think we should be on our way to the Harvey House. Maybe we’ll have some chocolate layer cake for dessert,” he added, watching as Addie gave him a fleeting smile.

“She’ll be all right,” Charlie informed Tessie. “With our love and God’s help, things will work out.”

“I know…‘All things work together for good to them that love God.’ I’m just not sure Addie knows that.”

N
ovember arrived, bringing several inches of snow and frigid temperatures. Charlie, Tessie, and Addie were well bundled as they left the opera house, their stomachs overly full. It had been a splendid Thanksgiving dinner, and the opera house had served as an excellent community dining room for the annual feast.

“Mr. Banion…Dr. Wilshire, come quick! There’s a fire at the depot, and a couple of people are hurt pretty bad,” came the cry of Lawrence MacAfee, racing toward them on his large stallion.

“Let me take your horse,” Charlie ordered. “Take Dr. Wilshire to her house. She’ll need to get her medical bag. Check to see if your wife is willing to come over to Dr. Wilshire’s and look after Addie. We may be a while.”

After the instructions were issued, Charlie urged the horse into full gallop toward the railroad yard.

Tessie rapidly checked her black bag, adding several salves, clean sheets, and bandages. Confident she had those items that she might need to aid any victims, she hurried back to the carriage. Lawrence and Addie sat patiently waiting, their eyes riveted toward the heavy smoke spiraling ever upward, casting a smoggy glow over the surrounding area.

Tessie had barely made it into the carriage when Mr. MacAfee snapped the reins, commanding the horses into action and throwing both passengers backward against the seat. The horses scarcely had an opportunity to reach their speed when Lawrence pulled back on the reins, bringing them to an abrupt halt not far from the station.

“I’d better not get the horses any closer to the fire, or they’ll spook on us, Doc. I’ll take the little gal home and be back to help just as quick as a wink,” he said, giving Addie a reassuring grin.

Tessie didn’t bother to reply, her mind now fully focused toward the task at hand. It appeared that total chaos reigned throughout the area until she made her way a bit closer. Charlie had strategically placed himself in the midst of activity, shouting orders and assembling men in bucket brigades to douse the flames from every possible angle and as quickly as humanly possible. Spotting Tessie, he motioned her toward him while continuing his command post, mindful of each new sputter of flames threatening to ignite out of control.

“We’ve moved the injured to the depot. The fire broke out in one of the passenger cars. I’m not sure what happened, but it looks like there are only a few people needing medical care.”

“If you keep pushing your men at this rate, you’ll have me caring for a lot more,” Tessie reprimanded him. “They need to trade off. Move some of the men that are closest to the fire farther back down the line and switch them about frequently. Otherwise, they’ll drop from heat exhaustion,” she ordered.

He smiled at the brusqueness of her order but knew she was right. He should have thought about that himself. Immediately, he ordered the last ten men to exchange places with the first ten, while he watched Tessie hurry off toward the train station. He smiled as she stopped momentarily to check the hand of a firefighter before motioning him to follow her into the depot.
That’s quite a woman
, he thought and then quickly forced his mind back to the conflagration, knowing that any stir of wind could impede their progress.

Tessie entered the station and found there were only three patients awaiting her, not counting the unwilling young man she had forced from duty.

“It appears you’re all doing fairly well without my assistance,” she said, giving them a bright smile, which quickly faded upon hearing the muffled groans from the other side of the room.

Her eyes darted toward the sound, just as one of the men offered, “That one over there, he’s hurt pretty bad. I’m not sure how it happened, but it looks like he’s got a few broken bones.”

“Do you know who he is?” she inquired, walking around the wooden benches toward the injured man.

“He was a passenger who came into town on the train earlier. One of our men went over to the Harvey House looking for volunteers for the bucket brigade—don’t think he had been on the fire line long before collapsing. Charlie had him down the line quite a ways since he wasn’t a railroader. Besides, he was dressed in those fancy duds.”

“Are the rest of you all right for now?” she inquired, kneeling beside the man.

“Sure thing, Doc. We would have stayed out there, but Charlie wouldn’t hear of it. Heat got to us, but we ain’t burnt or nothing. Okay with you if we head back out?”