Donovan's Daughter (The Californians, Book 4) (10 page)

Marcail's mouth was dry and her palms were wet.
She felt like some type of small prey that was being
stalked by a larger animal. She told herself she had no
one to blame but herself, as she realized her looking at
Dr. Montgomery had given him the wrong impression.

"Why don't I just rescind that question, Miss Donovan, since I've obviously upset you?"

Marcail's heart broke just a little at the dejected tone in
his voice and the look of resignation on his face, but she
felt she had to be honest.

"I'm sorry." Marcail's voice was soft, and Alex saw
very real regret behind her fear.

"Don't be," he assured her. "It's nice to know right up
front that my suit would not be acceptable." He mustered up a gentle smile intended to ease her guilt and
went on his way. Marcail stood still until he rounded the
house to retrieve his horse and watched as he started
toward home.

Alex stretched his stocking feet out in front of him and
relaxed back in one of the kitchen chairs. The supper he'd just eaten had been filling enough, but he was
feeling a bit empty inside. His Bible lay on the table. He
reached for it, but didn't open it.

"I thought she might be the one, Lord," he said out
loud in the quiet house. "I can't push in where I'm not
wanted, and not until she apologized did I realize how
badly I wanted her to want me. I don't know why I feel
this way, Father, but I somehow think that she needs
me ... that we need each other."

Alex believed that his was the God of all comfort, but
the truth was he hurt right then in a way that he'd never
hurt before. Losing Linette had given new meaning to
the word loneliness, and his hurt over her loss had been
very real. But this was different. This was rejection.

Alex opened his Bible to the book of Genesis. It always
comforted him to read the account of creation and to
marvel again at the perfect, orderly way God had constructed the world. When Alex read in chapter 2, verse 18,
that man should not be alone, he stopped to pray.

With a heart honestly seeking to be the man God
would have him be, Alex committed his thoughts of
Marcail to the Lord. He lay his own desires at the feet of a
holy God and prayed that God in His timing and will
would provide someone special to share his life. At the
moment the only face Alex could see was Marcail's, but
he trusted that God could change his heart and turn this
fresh pain into glory for Himself.

Marcail brushed through her hair with long even
strokes as she sat on the edge of the bed and thought
about Dr. Montgomery. She knew she was being silly,
since he couldn't be nicer, but fears were never logical,
and the truth was that she was afraid of him.

Marcail lay in bed thinking of the humble way Alex
had accepted her rejection. She wondered for a moment
if her fear wasn't causing her to pass up what could be a
wonderful relationship. How would she know either
way? She fell asleep before she could come to any solid
conclusions.

Santa Rosa

December 18, 1881

Marcail beamed across the living room at her sister,
who mirrored her look as though they alone shared a
secret. They were silent for a moment, a relaxed, easy
kind of silence that sisters who are also friends can
share. Kaitlin was the first to break the spell.

"I can't believe how good it is to have you here. It's
been so long."

"That quick hug back in August when the train came
through didn't count."

"You're right, it didn't."

Again they smiled at each other. Marcail had arrived
the day before. Now it was Sunday afternoon, and they'd
already been to church and eaten lunch. Little Donovan
was napping, and the girls were with their dad at their
grandparents' farm. The house was quiet.

"You look good, Marc. You must be happy."

"I am. I mean, the job isn't without its drawbacks, but I
really do love it."

"It's what you've always wanted to do, that's for certain."

"The biggest difficulty," Marcail spoke with a twinkle
in her eye, "is that both you and Mother made it look so
easy."

'And you're finding out different?"

"In a hurry." Marcail spoke-fervent ly this time.

-
"Have there been some problems?"

"Yes, but -I believe I'm handling them."

"Why didn't you write about them?"

"Because I wanted to stand on my own, and if Rigg
had known about the one problem, he'd have rushed to
Willits. I didn't want that."

Kaitlin looked concerned. "Were you in some sort of
danger?"

"In a way I was, but the situation is under control now,
at least I pray it is."

"Want to tell me about it?"

Surprisingly, Marcail did. She told her older sister all
about Mrs. Duckworth, Sydney, and the town's refusal
to stand up to this family. She half expected Kaitlin to be
angry, both at her for not sharing and at Mrs. Duckworth's manipulation. But instead Kaitlin looked very
thoughtful.

"Mother had a problem like that once."

"She did?" Marcail was astounded.

"Urn hm. In Hawaii. You were probably too young to
recall. One of the leaders in the village wanted his son
schooled, but without the slightest bit of correction. And
believe me, this boy needed to be disciplined."

"How did she handle it?"

"She wouldn't allow him into the schoolhouse. He ran
home to his father, who stormed over to Mother in a fury,
but she stood up to him. When he left he took not only
his own son, but every child who was related to him by
blood or marriage. Half the school was missing."

"What did Mother do?"

"She taught the children who remained," Kaitlin
stated serenely, obviously agreeing with her mother's
choice of action. "Within a week's time, all but the one
boy were back in school. It took another month before we
saw him again, but there was never any trouble after
that."

Marcail was silent as she digested this new picture of
her mother. Their situations were not identical, partly
because of the position of respect and admiration her
parents always held in the villages, but Marcail did
see similarities. She wasn't completely sure she'd have
handled it the same way.

True, most of the children had come back within a
week, but what if they hadn't? How long would Mother
have let the children go without their schooling before
trying to find another solution? It was a question only
Theresa Donovan could have answered, and she was no
longer there to ask.

"I'm not saying that you should do the same thing,
Marc." Katie's voice cut into her thoughts. "Please don't
think that. You have to follow your heart. At least you're
able to talk with Sydney and reason with him. Unless I
miss my guess, you see him as a mission field."

She smiled at how easily Katie could read her. Marcail
did see Sydney as a freshly plowed field, just waiting for
planting, and she prayed every day that God would help
her sow the seeds of truth. He was a little boy much in
need of a personal relationship with Christ Jesus, and
Marcail's constant prayer was to be used of God to that
end.

Donovan cried then, and Katie went to check on him.
Once alone, Marcail's mind wandered to her last day of
school and the lovely lace handkerchief Sydney had
given her. Most of the children had brought her something, and she was grateful for every gift. But none of the children had sported Sydney's look, a look that begged
her to find him as special as his gift.

Well, he was special, and Marcail took time right then
to pray for him as the new year approached. She also
prayed that she would return, renewed in spirit and
body for the remainder of the year. She didn't know what
tomorrow would bring, but she believed it was in God's
hands.

The weeks Marcail spent at home for Christmas were
some of the best that year. She loved Willits and Visalia,
but Santa Rosa had been home for such a long time that it
was hard to think of it in any other way.

Free from the cares of the classroom and lessons,
Marcail felt like a schoolgirl once again. Her father,
thinking she would be in Santa Rosa more often, had
brought most of her dresses from Visalia when he came
for his Christmas visit. Marcail dressed in her best to go
out with friends on drives and to dinner, enjoying the
time of her life.

Christmas was like old times, even though everyone
was sorry that Sean and Charlotte weren't able to leave
the mission in the Hawaiian Islands to be with them.

The girls loved the dolls their Aunt Marcail had brought,
and she was thrilled with their reaction. Marcail herself
said she made out like a bandit, with more lovely gifts
than she'd ever received before.

It was great fun to sit around and catch up on all the
latest news, the most wonderful of which was Rigg's
brother Gilbert's decision to go into the pastorate. With
his gentle manner and love for God's Word, it was no
surprise to Marcail. His mother, May, also told her he'd already met someone special, and it looked like her last
son would soon be leaving the nest.

Mr. Parker and his son.. Joey, special friends of the
family, also filled a part of her time at home. Joey had
been in Katie's class when she first taught in Santa Rosa.
He and Marcail were the same age, but the difference
between them had been marked. Joey's father had been
drunk whenever the coins in his pocket had allowed, and
Joey had been one of the most neglected children Kaitlin
had ever encountered.

Kaitlin's heart had been instantly softened toward this
boy and his father. With the help of Rigg's family, they
were brought into the circle of their fellowship.

Joey had come to Christ in a very short time, and the
family had watched with awe and praise as he grew
stronger in the Lord with each passing month.

Mr. Parker had only recently made a decision for
Christ, but their ten years of friendship, years when the
family helped him overcome painful obstacles such as
illiteracy and alcoholism, had given them a bond that
transcended most other relationships.