For Love or Country: The MacGregor Legacy | Book 2 (28 page)

Mrs. Tyra Morgan breathed deeply as tears filled her eyes, but she took a defiant step forward and shoved her hands on her hips. “What have you gone and done now, Charlotte? Why can you not walk?”

“Where did you find her?” Charlotte’s father’s asked, stepping forward to take her.

“In the ocean.” Conrad handed her over to her father, knowing the man was still in fine health and could handle her weight. “She has cut her foot on a shell and we needed to clean sand out of it. I think she will be fine.”

“Hugh, take her in and set her on the couch so I can see if she needs stitching,” Mrs. Morgan said.

“Thank you,” Hugh said, his gray eyes meeting Conrad’s. “Is there anything else we should know? Other injuries?”

“No, I am fine,” Charlotte said. “I am sorry, I did not mean to worry everyone. I only needed to be alone. You all know how I find solace at the sea.”

“Since we just buried Emma this morning, it would help if you would think of someone else besides yourself once in a while.” Scott, her oldest brother scolded her.

Someone cleared her throat and the whole family parted, creating an aisle for Charlotte’s grandmother. She walked forward, leaning on a cane, as she approached Charlotte. Unlike the others, a smile lit her wrinkled face, but moisture gathered in her blue eyes as she reached over and cupped Charlotte’s cheek.

“Lass, ye remind me so much of yer mother when she was yer age, strong-willed and stubborn. And Emma was more like me when I came from Scotland.” She turned and stared up at Mr. and Mrs. Morgan. “This family has had enough sadness for one day. There is no place for anger in a grieving family. ‘Tisn’t unusual for Charlotte to go running off. She is back now. Let us take comfort in that and in each other. Right now, there is much to be decided for Emma’s children.”

***

Charlotte sat on the couch in the parlor and listened to her family’s chastisement for disappearing after Emma’s funeral. Painful memories flashed through her mind. Staring down at her twin’s cold, empty body, felt like she stared at herself in that coffin. As identical twins, she and Emma shared more than their looks, a bond that was beyond anything she could ever hope to explain. The moment she held her sister’s hand and watched her breathe her last, something inside her snapped and a deep loneliness engulfed her. She had forced herself to endure the funeral, including all the nods and condolences of their friends, but afterwards, she could no longer cope and fled.

Little Davie came over and crawled onto her lap. At five years old, she could only imagine what must be going through his mind. While he seemed to understand that his mother had died and would never come back, did he really comprehend death when Charlotte continued to struggle with it at a score and three years? Did he feel like his mother had abandoned him?

“Auntie, I thought you left like Mama.” Davie swung his tiny arms around her neck and squeezed so tight that he cut off her breath.

“No, I only went for a walk to the ocean.” She hugged him back, resting her chin on his brown head. Not once had it occurred to her that he might think of her dying as well. The idea of hurting him was more than she could bear. The muscles in her chest closed in on her lungs, nearly suffocating her. She closed her eyes as she kissed the top of his head. Fresh tears squeezed past her eyelids and crawled down her face as the ache in her heart and chest deepened.

David couldn’t take the children away. At less than a week old, Ashlynn wouldn’t know any better, but Davie would. His reaction to her brief disappearance proved it. Besides, she had made a promise to her sister, and as she had told Conrad, she intended to keep it.

“While I am still living and breathing, I will never leave you. I promise.” Charlotte stroked the back of Davie’s head. His wide hazel eyes blinked up at her as a slow grin spread across his face.

“I love you, Auntie!” Satisfied and reassured, he gave her another big hug and scooted off her lap to go play.

Charlotte took a deep breath and used the back of her hand to wipe the tears from her face. She glanced over at Grandma Lauren rocking little Ashlynn to sleep in a wooden rocker that Grandpa had made her before his death two years ago. Grandma understood her grief. She once told Charlotte that everything reminded her of Grandpa Malcolm. Now, everything would remind Charlotte of Emma. There was a childhood memory lurking in each room, lingering in every corner, all the places in town would haunt her, even her own face each time she looked in the mirror.

Throughout the afternoon families dropped by to express their condolences and brought dishes of food and baked desserts. While it was a strain on her family to keep up the fake smiles, the trivial conversations, and their true feelings at bay, it was expected. Their distant cousins from the Baker family were the last to leave.

Charlotte’s father closed the front door in the foyer. A moment later he walked back into the living room and paused to clear his throat. “David, it is my understanding from your brother that you are being transferred to the Great Lakes. I would like to know what you have decided to do about the children. Who will care for them during the long months that you will be serving aboard a naval ship?”

Silence filled the room as the air thickened with anticipation. Like the rest of her family, Charlotte watched David’s reaction, hoping he would be willing to let the children stay where she could better care for them. They were familiar with their home here, their grandparent’s home, and the city of Wilmington. Here, familiar faces surrounded them in love, comfort, and security.

Fear clutched her heart as she glanced around the somber room. The bottom half of the walls were made of dark paneling encased in carved squares and thick molding, while the upper half of the walls were painted beige. As the sun’s light diminished through the windows, someone lit candles around the room.

Charlotte’s mother sat on the couch beside her, mopping at her damp face with the handkerchief her father had given her. Melanie, her older sister at a score and five years sat on Charlotte’s other side, no doubt charged with the responsibility of watching over her in case Charlotte decided to disappear again. She favored their mother with fiery red hair and green eyes. Her Husband, Rob McCauley, was outside with their toddler son, making sure the older children behaved. He claimed to be out there to watch the kids, but Charlotte knew it was because he smoked his pipe.

Her oldest brother Scott and his wife Caroline sat on the settee by the window. He was named for their uncle, Scott MacGregor, who had fought and died in the War of Independence. At the age of three score, her brother now had four children, who all chased lightning bugs outside with their cousins. Like Emma and her, he had blond hair favoring their Grandma Lauren, but unlike them, he had the same deep blue eyes as their grandmother.

Her brother Duncan stood beside his wife, Elizabeth, seated in a wood chair by the pianoforte. Duncan was named for their great-grandfather from Argyll, Scotland. At a score and seven years, he was the second oldest with dark brown eyes and black hair like their father. During their seven year marriage, they had a six year old son and a three year old daughter.

“David, we know you do not feel like discussing these decisions right now, but we have to find a permanent nursemaid for Ashlynn.” Uncle Callum’s deep voice carried across the room as he walked to stand beside Charlotte’s father. After Grandpa Malcolm passed away, he now ran The MacGregor Quest estate and took over as the patriarch of the MacGregor family. “Mrs. Brown has agreed to come over and feed her for the night, but only this one night. We need to hear your plans so we can help you, lad.”

David stared at the wood floor where he sat in a chair in a dark corner. His eyes were red and swollen with shadows beneath them testifying to his lack of sleep. He had not shaved, so brown whiskers now graced his face and neck. Kneeling forward, he placed his elbows on his knees and rubbed his chin with a weary sigh.

“I promised Emma that I would be a good father, and I cannot do that if I abandon my children and leave them here. They have already lost their Mama. I cannot allow them to lose their daddy, too.” His voice broke and he looked away at the wall.

Charlotte closed her eyes as familiar pain sliced through her chest. Even though Conrad had already told her their plans, a small part of her still hoped David would change his mind. She glanced over at Conrad leaning against the wall near his brother. His warm hazel eyes locked with hers as he remained silent. Doubt flickered in his eyes. Did he doubt his brother’s decision, but felt honor-bound to stand by him? Her unease grew.

“But David, have you considered how dangerous it would be to travel with a newborn infant?” Mama asked, disbelief thickening her tone.

“I have already spoken to the doctor and will wait a fortnight as he suggested before we leave.” David brushed his hand through his hair leaving a small gap on the side. “Once we arrive and get settled in Cleaveland, Ohio, I plan to hire a nursemaid to stay with the children.”

“A complete stranger?” Mama pressed the heel of her hand against her forehead. “I cannot believe this. Besides, you will need a nursemaid for the journey. You cannot wait until you arrive.”

“I am sorry, Mrs. Morgan,” David blinked back tears. “But I am their father, and war or no war, I will not abandon my children. My mind is made up. They are coming with me.”

“It will be hard finding a nursemaid who is willing and able to travel with you.” Charlotte’s father crossed his arms with a frown wrinkling his forehead. “However, I shall endeavor to do my best to find someone.”

“Hugh! You cannot be serious?” Mama scooted to the edge of the couch, ready to battle all of them for the care and safety of her grandchildren. “The country is at war with England once again. And dare I suggest the worst? David will be fighting on a battleship. What if he cannot return to them? The children will be all alone in a strange place.”

“I made a promise to my twin.” Charlotte stood, her chin trembled and tears threatened to choke her, but she swallowed them back. “For as long as they need me, wherever they go, I will go. Unlike the rest of you, I have no husband, no children, and I am available.”