Everflame (12 page)

Murray pursed his lips and nodded his head. Edgar’s reaction wasn’t quite what he had expected. Murray didn’t say anything for a minute and Edgar began to feel ashamed. Edgar was just about to say that he should probably leave, when Murray spoke again.

“Well, I’m just going to have to convince your mum then. Let’s go.”

Edgar stood up with the puppy in his arms.
“You’re going to come home with me and talk to my mum?”

“Yep,” Murray nodded. “Let’s go.” A smile broke across Edgar's face. He couldn’t believe the luck he had run into today. “Oh, and Edgar.”

“Yes, Murray.”

“You still need to name that dog.”

Edgar and Murray walked silently for the first mile of the trip to the Shein’s farm. The day was beginning to break into dusk and the sky was a mixture of blue and pink. Edgar had hid the dagger on the inside of his shirt. He didn’t want his mother to see it until Murray had talked to her. Edgar held the puppy in his arms and placed a hand in front of the dog as they walked through trees, so as to protect its head from low branches. There was a dirt road that led to the farm but it was only the fastest route while on horseback.  A straight path through the forest was the best route on foot. Edgar worried what his mother would say to Murray. He was already attached to the dog, and even more than that, he didn’t want to lose the blacksmith’s friendship. With Murray on his side, he’d never have to worry about Pritchard Barton again. The puppy looked up at Edgar with his little, blue eyes, panting and wagging his tail, when Edgar, as children usually do, came to an obvious name choice.

“Blue,” stated Edgar.

“What’s blue?”

“I’ve decided to name the dog, Blue.”

“He looks like a Blue. Good name.” Murray smiled but didn’t say much else on the matter. Edgar didn’t feel much like talking anyway. He was too busy thinking of all the things he was going to teach to Blue.

As Edgar and Murray emerged from the forest, a large field of tall grass
spread out before them. On the far side of the field, up on a small hill, was Edgar’s home.  The pair waded their way through the tall grass until they reached the gate to Shein farm. A small, wooden fence that only came up to Murray’s waist, opened with a creak. Edgar could see candlelight coming from the windows of the small, white house that rested on top of the hill. The sky was beginning to show shades of violet as Edgar and Murray reached the porch. Edgar handed Blue over to Murray and instructed him to wait on the porch while he fetched his mother. Murray held the dog up to his face and looked into the dog’s eyes.

“You’re just too cute to say no to, aren’t you? Yes you are. Yes you are.”

Murray cooed at the dog and ruffled the fur on its head, not noticing that Rachael had come out onto the porch.

“What can I help you with, Murray?”

“Rachael,” said Murray, startled and embarrassed. “I- uh- good to see you.”

“Good to see you too, Murray. Edgar said there was something you wanted to talk to me about.”

“Well, actually, it was Edgar that I wanted to talk to you about.”

Murray now noticed how tired Rachael’s eyes were.  She was a small woman with mousy
, blond hair. Too small, Murray felt, to be living out here, all alone, with her husband far away. His heart went out to her as it had for the boy, when he had spotted him out his shop window.

“He hasn’t been making trouble, has he?”

“Oh no, not at all. Actually, it seems as though some bullies in town have been making trouble for him and I was hoping to have a talk with you about it.”

“I know the older children pick on him, Murray, I do. But I’m just too busy to escort the boy around. With Joe gone, I just don’t have enough time.”

“I know that, Rachael, and well, that’s where I wanted to help. You see, I want Edgar to have this dog for protection.” Murray held up Blue. “He’s just a pup now, but he’ll grow and be real loyal. Wolfhounds always are. Plus, every family should have a good dog they can count on.”

“I apprecia
te your concern, Murray, really, I do. But I don’t have the extra food for a dog, let alone the time to spend taking care of it.”

“Well, I can help
with that too, Rachael. You see, I haven’t had too much to keep me busy since Andrea passed away and I was hoping that I could help out with some things. I’m not asking for anything for it. It’s payment enough just to have something to do. And I hope I’m not out of line saying so, but I just can’t bear to watch you with your hands so full when I’ve got extra time on my hands. What with Joe being gone so often.”

Rachael stared at Murray with a sharp look in her eyes and Murray was afraid that he had gone too far. Murray found himself too uncomfortable to meet Rachael’s eyes and briefly let his gaze move past her shoulder. Edgar was sta
nding in the doorway, listening.

“So
, can I keep Blue?”

Murray glanced back toward Rachael and was surprised to see her looking slightly down
ward with a grin on her face. She shook her head and turned to Edgar.

“Edgar, go back inside and put another plate on the table.” Then Rachael turned back to Murray and smiled. “I do expect that you’ll be staying for dinner. You can’t expect me to let you go hungry on my watch.”

Murray couldn’t help but to smile back at her.

“Can’t say no to that.”

Rachael stepped aside to usher Murray in through the door and as he made his way past her, she touched him gently on the hand. He stopped and looked down at her.

“Thank you, Murray.”

Murray looked into her blue eyes and something moved inside of him. All of a sudden, he felt very shy.

“My pleasure, Rachael.”

Edgar, Rachael and Murray talked and laughed as they ate dinner and nobody’s smile shone bigger or brighter than Edgar’s.
How did I get so lucky?
he thought to himself and snuck Blue a scrap of meat from the table. It was obvious that Edgar had taken to Murray and although Rachael was wary that the boy might find in Murray a substitute for his absent father, she just couldn’t do anything to prevent his happiness.

As they finished dinner, Rachael gathered the empty plates and brought them into the kitchen. Once Edgar and Murray
were alone, the boy began his questions.

“Did you ask about the dagger, Murray? I didn’t hear you say anything about the dagger.”

Murray looked at Edgar and winked. “Your mother doesn’t need to be bothered with every little thing, Edgar.”

Edgar smiled and lifted Blue onto his lap.

Later that night, after Murray had left for the village, Edgar lay wide-awake in bed, going over the day’s events in his head. He was so happy. He couldn’t remember any other time in his young life that he had been this happy. He pet Blue and the puppy returned the affection by licking his arm. Edgar looked out his bedroom window and found the biggest star in the sky. Then he made a wish that Murray were his father.

Chapter 10:
A Storm

Over the next few weeks, Edgar’s happiness continued to grow. Murray had fulfilled his promise and was spending a lot of time helping out on the farm. There was nothing he wasn’t a great help with. He worked in the vegetable garden at a speed that neither Edgar nor Rachael could dream of matching, even on their best days. He was able to keep the barn in much better order, mostly due to his ability to lift heavy objects, that previously, only Joe had the strength to tackle. He was handy with repairs and had fixed two drafty windows as well as some loose boards on the porch. He even spent time teaching Edgar how to hunt in the forest. All this, and he was still able to keep his smithing business in operation.

Also, Blue seemed to be growing at an exponential rate and the dog’s affection for Edgar hadn’t waned. He and Edgar were inseparable. All of Edgar’s free time was spent playing fetch with the dog and teaching him tricks. Blue had quickly mastered the art of rolling over and shaking hands and was now tackling speech on command. Murray was greatly impressed with Edgar’s ability to train Blue.

“It won’t be long before Blue will be able to accompany us on hunting trips,” Murray had told Edgar. “Then he’ll be a dog able to earn his keep.”

Edgar was thrilled with the prospect of hunting with Blue. At night, Edgar would tell Blue stories he had made in his head of how their hunting adventures would unfold. He would weave wild stories of giant deer with ten sets of antlers that could breathe fire and fly. The dog would sit calmly and listen to everything. He was the best friend Edgar could have ever hoped for.

Edgar wasn’t the only Shein that had found a greater happiness since Murray’s arrival. Rachael was finding that her life had become easier, and she now had time to enjoy the little things again. She was able to spend more time teaching Edgar reading and writing. Their clothes were now properly mended in a timely manner, instead of days in tatters. Her dinners, as she now had more preparatory time, were all the more sumptuous and the house was something she was once again becoming proud of. In fact, there were times in the evening when she sat on the porch in the rocking chair and knit, as relaxed as could be, while Murray, Edgar and Blue roughhoused in the field. She marveled at the seemingly endless reserve of energy that Murray possessed. The man was truly a blessing from the Holy.

There were many times when Edgar would go into town, early in the morning, to help Murray in the shop. Murra
y would teach the boy his trade as he would complete his work. After only two weeks of helping at the shop, Edgar had presented his mother with a crudely made, but nonetheless functional, fork.

“I made it for you, mum,” he beamed.

Everything seemed to be going perfectly for Rachael and Edgar. Though, at night, Rachael would toss and turn in bed, unable to fall asleep.  She couldn’t help but worry over what Joe would think of this situation when he returned from his mission. Would he understand that she had desperately needed the help, or would he be angry with her that she was unable to fulfill her duties as his wife? Would he be upset that another man was spending such a large amount of time with his son? Would he be jealous? Would he have faith that this arrangement was innocent, or would he think that he had been cuckolded in his absence? Rachael worried about all these things, although, her worries would often manifest themselves into frustration and then hostility toward Joe. How dare he be upset, she would think. It was he who was gone so often, causing her and Edgar to have so much on their plates. What sort of father was he to Edgar? What sort of husband was he for her? She thought back to when she had first met Joe. She had been so young; so impressionable. She had thought he was such an important man. After all, he worked for the Holy.

Through her youth, men who worked for the Holy had always been able to provide greatly for their families. They were always the most respected families in the village. Rachael didn’t feel respected by her community, she felt pitied. The men in her youth were not missionaries, they were prea
chers, and they never had to leave the village. They could provide for their families and still be there for them. Joe was only able to do the first of those two things, and lately, he was having a hard time with that.

In the beginning of their relationship, Joe would come back from his missions with ample compensation, m
ore than enough for the family. That was not the case anymore and Rachael was finding it harder and harder to make ends meet. There were many times she had implored him to take a stationary position. She was even willing to uproot her life to another village, if that were necessary. Joe always rejected the requests, for one reason or another. He liked where they were living. He was only suited for missionary work.  Whatever excuse he could find. She had tried everything to make it work, so why should she feel guilty?

However, whenever she arrived at this question, she knew why she felt such guilt. She didn’t want to go back to the way things had been before Murray. She didn’t think that she could go back. It had been so much work…and it had been so lonely. She couldn’t deny it. Murray was taking away her loneliness.  She would lay in bed and think of the way that Murray would smile at her, the way he was always trying to please her and look
out for her. Just like he was…

She cursed herself for her thoughts. She was married to Joe. She had taken a sacred vow. Yet, she could not deny her feelings for Murray and those feelings were growing stronger and stronger every day. She would watch him in the garden sometimes or watch him when he was in the field, playing with Edgar, and find herself imagining that this was her family and that Joe wasn’t part of the equation. Imagining that Murray was her real husband and imagining that Edgar was her real son.

She could remember that night so vividly. Joe had returned from one of his missions with a tiny child. An orphan, he had said. He had saved the child after savages had murdered its parents. The boy was no infant, yet too young to understand anything. She had sworn to Joe that she would raise the boy as if it were her own and love it just the same. And she had…she did. Edgar was Rachael’s whole life, she couldn’t imagine living without him. She would never do anything to jeopardize his happiness, and regardless if she was using this to justify her own feelings or not, she would not send Murray away. She knew that he was making her boy’s life better. She knew Murray cared and that was enough justification for her.