At the sound of a car pulling up in the driveway, Christine hurried to answer the door. Elizabeth was right behind her.
Henry was unfolding his long legs from the car’s interior. Christine was glad to see he was alone. She was looking forward to having him all to herself for one last time and hoped it was not selfishness on her part.
He walked toward them, heavy overcoat flapping in the afternoon wind, broad grin lighting his face. “Well, look at this. Two of my favorite women.”
“Yes,” Christine laughed. “We’re glad we’re still on your list!”
Elizabeth pushed past Christine to claim him first. She lifted her arms to pull him down so she could plant a kiss on his cheek. “How were the roads?” she asked as soon as he straightened.
“Fine. A few little drifts here and there—but nothing major. I had no trouble at all getting through.”
She patted his cheek and backed away so Christine might also embrace Henry.
“Ready?” Henry asked.
“Everything is right here at the door,” she informed him.
“Good.”
“You’re coming in, aren’t you?” asked Elizabeth in alarm. Surely he wasn’t going to turn right around and head back was her unspoken meaning.
“For a few minutes. Not long. We need to get going before the roads—”
“I thought you said they were fine.” Elizabeth held the door for Henry to enter.
“They were okay—but a wind is starting to come up. The roads can drift in quickly if it starts to blow.”
Elizabeth frowned. “Perhaps you should get started, then.”
Her voice revealed her reluctance. She hated to let them go.
Henry must have sensed her discomfort and changed course. He removed the heavy overcoat and hung it in the closet. “Thought Aunt Mary might have one of her good cups of coffee ready.”
“She has just rushed to the phone to call Jonathan. He said to let him know the minute you arrived. He’s coming right home.”
“Oh, he shouldn’t do that. I can’t stay long.”
“He said a little break will do him good.”
Henry nodded. “So how has your time in the city been?” he asked.
“Delightful,” exclaimed Elizabeth. “I’ve soaked in the tub every night.”
Henry laughed loudly. “You come to the bustling city of Calgary and sit in the tub?” But his teasing elicited no response from his mother except a little wave of her hand at him.
“And you?” He turned to Christine. “Did you get a chance at the tub?”
“Well, I haven’t spent as much time in there as Mother, but yes, I’ve had my turn.”
When Mary burst through the door, Henry rose to greet her. “Your uncle Jon will be right home. It only takes him a minute. My—I think you get taller every time I see you. I have to stand on tiptoe just to reach for a hug.”
Henry wrapped long arms about his aunt and gave her a warm embrace. “It’s awfully good to see you, Aunt Mary.”
“I have enjoyed Christine so much. We’ve had such fun together. And I’m so glad to have this special time with your mother. We’ve had so much to talk about. I just wish there weren’t so many miles separating us. It really doesn’t seem fair that our country is so big. Now sit. I’ve got Lucy bringing the coffee. I know you’ll be in a hurry to get back before dark. Wish we could keep you here for a few days, but I know that’s impossible.
“How are Amber and Danny?” Mary rushed on. “Is she getting
new-bride’s nerves
yet? It’s getting awfully close, isn’t it? Are things going smoothly with the plans? I’d love to help. Wish I was closer. I said to Jon that I’d just love to bake the wedding cake or help with the decorations. Does Amber like that sort of thing? Maybe she doesn’t even need help. She certainly looks like she has things together. What about Danny? Is he excited about having a new daddy?”
Henry hardly knew which question to answer, so he merely nodded his head and let his aunt keep talking.
Mary eventually stopped abruptly when Lucy arrived with a tray bearing a steaming coffeepot and a number of cups. The tray also held a plate of beef sandwiches and a lemon sponge cake.
“I thought you might be a bit hungry after your long drive. I don’t want you to go away without something in your stomachs.”
“It looks and smells delicious, Aunt Mary.”
“We’ll not wait for Jonathan. He never eats between meals. He’ll just want coffee.” And the sandwiches were passed first to Henry and then to Christine.
“You’d better eat up,” Henry warned her. “Who knows when you’ll get the chance again? Not many restaurants between here and my place. And not much in my cupboards either.”
Christine followed his advice. They were still enjoying the repast when Jonathan arrived. After hearty greetings, he accepted the cup of black coffee from his wife and settled into the chair next to Henry.
For the next few moments it was man-talk that flowed in the parlor. Christine noted Henry’s eyes lifting to the face of the grandfather clock now and then. The hands were busily ticking away the minutes, and Christine knew Henry was anxious about the time. She decided to aid him in the matter.
“I’ll just get my wraps from the bedroom and join you in the hall.”
He nodded, his eyes thanking her for her understanding.
There was the usual flurry of last-minute cautions and embraces. And then they were in the car and moving off through the city streets toward the open highway. Henry looked intent on getting out of the city and onto the highway, so it was several minutes before either of them spoke.
“How has your visit been?” asked Henry finally.
“Good. We bought the material and Mother did a great job of sewing the suit.”
“Mother always does.”
Christine nodded. “I hope Amber likes our choice.”
“Amber will love it.”
“Oh, so we speak for her now, do we?” teased Christine.
Henry grinned. “You know what Scripture says. ‘They shall become one.’ ”
“But you’re not one yet.”
“No—not yet. It seems every day drags just a little bit more. I never knew time could pass so slowly,” Henry groaned.
Christine knew he was teasing, but she couldn’t keep from casting him a sideways glance. “So you haven’t had second thoughts?”
“Every day I am more convinced.”
She nodded. “That’s good.”
“What about you?” he asked after a moment’s silence.
“Have you had any second thoughts?”
“About Boyd, you mean? No. No second thoughts. It was the only thing I could do. But . . . but I do worry at times. I wonder. If . . . if I had held to my Christian standards, could I have done more to introduce him to Christ? He’s in the air force, you know. I sometimes think how awful it would be if his plane was shot down—with him not having made peace with God.”
Henry nodded, his face serious.
“There are a lot of them in that circumstance, I’m afraid. Marching off to war with no hope should they die in the trenches. It’s scary.”
“Calgary was full of them. Everywhere you looked—uniforms.”
“I know. I saw them when I drove in.”
The wind had indeed picked up. Snow scurried across the road ahead of them in wavy shivers. Henry held the wheel firmly to keep the car headed straight.
“Have you—did you ever think about—I mean, did you ever have any thoughts about enlisting?” Christine finally found courage to ask.
“Many thoughts. And doubts. And struggles.”
“You did?”
“I did. I don’t remember wrestling in prayer as much over any other matter.”
Christine could feel her throat constrict. “Have you decided? You’re not going—are you?”
“I planned to. I even drove in to headquarters to hand in my resignation to the Force. But I was talked out of it.”
“Talked out of it? Amber?”
“No—not Amber. We had talked it over—many times, actually—and she knew it had to be my decision. No, it was my superiors. They said there are two jobs to be done in wartime. Some need to go. But there is also a job that needs to continue being done at home—to keep stability. To hold things together so those who have gone will have something to come back to. We need a strong, secure base. Our boys need that.”
Christine let her breath out slowly. Henry would not be going off to war.
“So you are—you feel at peace about it all now?”
“I do. Oh, it wasn’t just the conversations. It was a scripture I read when I was searching for the answer. It seemed to speak to me directly. It talked about ‘staying by the stuff.’ I realized that was an important part of the job too. It’s not a case of copping out. Not when you take your duties seriously.”
“Amber must be relieved.”
Henry smiled. “She is. But she would have let me go if it had turned out that way. She said that God must govern my life—not a wife.”
Christine remained silent. That was something else to think about.
They were thankful to climb from the car in front of Henry’s small house. The roads had gotten increasingly difficult. The last few miles of drifts caused concern, though Henry tried not to let on. He only had to get out the shovel once, but Christine felt that was once too often.
The first thing Henry did was to phone Amber. “We’re here—safe and sound. No . . . no, they weren’t too bad. A little tricky in spots. Is Danny sleeping? Give him a kiss for me. I’ll see you in the morning. I’ll drop by the shop. And I’ll bring Christine over later. Okay. Right. Sleep tight. Me too.”
Christine wondered what else would have been said had she not been waiting, suitcase in hand.
“She says to give you her love.” Henry turned from the phone and took the suitcase from Christine. “Right this way.”
“But this is your room,” Christine objected.
“I moved my stuff into the lean-to,” he said matter-of-factly.
“But it’ll be cold.”
“No, I put in a little heater. It gets too hot at times.”
Christine did not argue further.
“Want something to eat?”
“I ate loads of Aunt Mary’s sandwiches. I think I’ll just crawl in.”
“Me too. It’s been a long day. Anything you need, just holler.”
Henry was poking around in the potbellied stove. “Good. There’s still a bit of fire. I just have to bank it for the night or we’ll both be icicles in the morning.”
“Doesn’t the town have gas heat?”
“The town does. I don’t.”
Christine stifled a yawn. “You’ll call me?”
“For breakfast. Promise.”
“Good night, then.”
Christine moved to go, still yawning.
“Chrissy,” Henry called after her.
She turned slowly.
“It’s good to have you. I’ve looked forward to this.”
“Me too,” she answered with a smile. She had never meant anything more sincerely.
They shared a simple breakfast together. Then Henry rose and began to gather up his heavy coat and gloves. “I need to get down to the office. You’ll be okay?”
Christine nodded. “And you need to stop by the barbershop,” she teased him. “Don’t forget.”
Henry grinned. “I’m not likely to forget.”
“Is there anything you’d like me to do?”
“Nothing special. We’re going over to Amber’s for supper tonight. We’ll talk things over then. I thought you might like to walk over to the office about noon, and we’ll go for lunch at the café.”
“The café? That sounds like fun.”
“Well—it all depends how heavy Jessie’s gone on the spice can today.”
Henry flipped on his Stetson and turned to go.
“I’ll see you later, then,” called Christine as the door closed on his tall form.
If he weren’t my brother, I might fall for him,
she mused with a smile. He was so good-looking in his uniform.
Christine busied herself washing up the breakfast dishes. There really wasn’t much in Henry’s small home that needed attention. He kept things remarkably orderly and clean for a bachelor. Christine did find a recent magazine she had not previously seen and loafed away the morning with some reading.
She kept one eye on the clock. At fifteen to twelve she wrapped up and took to the street. Henry had given careful directions to the office, only a few blocks away. Sure enough, the small building with its sign,
Royal Canadian Mounted
Police
, soon came into sight. She had been familiar with such stations all her life, so she felt no trepidation as she pushed the door open and stepped inside. Her eyes roamed quickly over the interior. It was much like the offices her father had occupied— yet different in some way.
Three desks were scattered about the room. Only one was occupied—and that not by Henry. She looked beyond, where two doors led off the main room.
“You Christine?” a male voice asked as the young man in uniform stood to his feet.
Her glance turned back to him. He was not as tall as Henry and a bit stockier. His hair was very dark and his eyes even more so. At the moment they seemed a bit puzzled.
Christine nodded.
“Henry said
kid
sister,” he muttered half under his breath.
found her tongue. “Where
is
Henry?”
“Well, he got called out—unexpectedly.”
“Out? To where?”
“Some farmer had him a problem. Henry didn’t explain. Just said he’d be back as soon as he could.”
Christine shifted slightly, wondering what she should do next.
“Was . . . was I supposed to wait for him here?” she asked, feeling awkward and childish.
The young Mountie’s face reddened. “Well—that wasn’t really the plan. I mean . . .” He looked down at his highly polished boots. “Henry said, ‘My kid sister’s coming. I told her I’d take her to the café. If I’m not back in time, will you take her on over?’ I said, ‘Sure.’ ”
“I . . . I see,” stammered Christine.
“So if you don’t mind, I’d like to keep the agreement with my boss.”
He was still blushing.
“You must have work to do.”
“A man has to eat.”
“Yes . . . I guess so,” Christine said, feeling a bit annoyed with Henry for putting them both in this awkward predicament.
The man reached for his Stetson. “So. . . ?” he asked.
Christine managed a smile. “So . . .” she responded. “Let’s go eat.”
He seemed much relieved. “I have to warn you,” he said as he held the door for her, “Jessie likes the spices.”