Love's Story (41 page)

“That was for standing by me and giving me a home.”

“Rachel, I told you when you came to Searsville that I would always be your friend.”

“Maria, you just don't know what that means to me right now,” Rachel said. “Often those words represent nothing more than a hollow gesture, but you and Robert have shown that's not true in this house. Thank you.

“Unless you need my help,” she continued, “I'm going to go get unpacked. Then I'll be back to finish up dinner so you can get off your feet.”

“You go right ahead. I've put Seth down for his nap in our room, so he won't be in your way.”

Rachel walked down the hallway to the rear of the house and entered the right bedroom. There were two small beds with matching oak frames. One was decorated with brightly colored bedding and the other a soft rose quilt. Rachel's trunk stood at the foot of the rose-draped bed, and Rachel assumed it was hers.

Although she was thankful for the Lathrops' hospitality, she was still upset that she had been asked to move from the elegantly feminine room at the Hoppers'. She already missed her calming periwinkle-blue bedroom and her view of the lake. Now she would have to share a room with a toddler; it was just too humiliating. This was all Marshall Winsome's fault! What kind of place had her stepfather sent her to? Every town Rachel had ever been in that had a schoolhouse provided a private home for a schoolteacher.

Rachel shook her head in disgust and then decided it was time to get on with her unpacking. She opened the case and saw her Bible lying on top of her things. The sight of it brought back all of the recent events, making her instantly irate and causing her to lash out in silent fury.

Where are You now, God? Where were You when those women accused me of having a child out of wedlock or talked about Maria falsely? Where were You when I gave my heart to Chase, only to find out he was just like all the rest of the people in this godforsaken little town? It seems obvious that You've abandoned me. My family was always so committed to You, and how did You repay us? You took my father when I was only sixteen and left us all alone in the rugged gold country. But that wasn't enough for You, was it? No, You had to have my mother, too. Now she's living at the top of Knob Hill with a pompous man who won't even accept his wife's own daughter. Well, God, You may have my family, but You won't have me. I'm through with this Bible, the church, and with You!

Rachel took her Bible and flung it carelessly onto her bed.

Chase arrived in Redwood shortly before supper. He didn't remember any of the ride, he had been so caught up in worrying about leaving Rachel in Searsville. Seeing his weary horse when they arrived at the livery, he knew he must have ridden hard. Chase paid a man to water and feed his horse and walked next door to the American House.

“Chase Dylan, it's been weeks. Where ya been?” The outstretched arms of Joseph Williams came toward him.

“Chase. We were beginning to wonder if you'd hauled off and got yourself married. You haven't been around for my cooking in so long…” Mrs. Williams wore a gay smile, and she wiped her hands on her apron before reaching out for a hug.

“I was just trying to close things up at the mill for the winter. I wanted to be free to help you with the renovations for as long as you need me.” Chase momentarily forgot all his troubles as he basked in the warmth of his old friends.

“Well, you just come over here and see what we got planned.” Mr. Williams walked behind his heavy wooden counter and pulled out a tightly rolled set of building plans from behind it. He flattened the sheets and held them down with two large, polished rocks. Chase noticed there were dents in the counter where the rocks had been placed many times before. “This here is going to be the missus's new kitchen, and this here is a suite, and over here…” The hotelier continued to ramble, and Chase found himself pleasantly diverted from his earlier concerns.

T
hree weeks passed and autumn began to appear in Searsville. Very little happened to mark the season's appearance. There were no brightly colored leaves or bitter chill in the air, but the sky often remained cloudy throughout the day and a few light rains soon came.

To the delight of most of Searsville's residents, but to the farmers' dismay, the heavy downpours stayed away. The ranchers met at Davenport General Store and complained about the statewide drought that was now in its second year. The plight of their crops and livestock was now of great concern, and praying for rain became a central topic of discussion.

As the seasons changed, Rachel was relieved that only four, rather than the earlier eight, older boys came to school. Two of them, John and Joseph Duncan, were completely enamored of their beautiful teacher and did their best to please her. The other two, however, were troublemakers from the very first moment they stepped into the schoolroom. They were more concerned with establishing leadership over the other students and impressing the young girls.

Aubrey Dawson was a bully who, at fourteen years of age, stood well over six feet tall. His partner in calamity was Dennis Shine, a short, stocky boy of fifteen. The two boys would typically start their day by placing some type of live critter on the chair of their once unsuspecting teacher. Their particular favorite was the banana slug.

Miss Phillips had accommodated the pranksters for a few days, but after that decided it was time to take action. After school, she asked the two boys to remain for a short discussion. The boys chuckled and smirked, whispering to their classmates that Miss Phillips wanted to declare her love for them both.

Rachel sat behind her desk primly after the other students had left. “Dennis and Aubrey, your behavior in this classroom is completely unacceptable. If I do not see a marked improvement by tomorrow, you will both be sent home for the day.”

Dennis and Aubrey laughed out loud. “Our pas would only bring us back. Miss Phillips, we don't mean no harm. We get sent to school so Ma don't have to feed us and put up with us all day. We don't need no educatin'; we're sawyers. Alls we need to know is how to strip a tree of its bark, quick like. We's just trying to have a little fun,” Aubrey explained confidently.

“Is that what you two want to do forever, be barkers for the rest of your lives?”

“I'm gonna be a bullmaster,” Dennis stated proudly.

“Yeah, and I'm gonna own my own mill,” Aubrey offered, not to be outdone.

“Very well, boys. I will see you tomorrow and we'll talk in detail about your plans.” Rachel had an idea, and she was determined to prove to these boys that intelligence was a necessary and integral part of the logging business. As soon as the idea came to her, she found herself wishing she could confer with Chase about the particulars of the logging industry, but knew that would be impossible. He had made his intentions toward her obvious; going to Redwood without saying good-bye had made that clear.

The door to Seth and Rachel's room remained closed for the entire evening following supper. Rachel had come home with an armload of books and paperwork and was scratching frantically upon her desk. A light knock broke her concentration.

“Yes? What is it?” Rachel asked without opening the door.

“It's Maria. I need to talk with you.”

Rachel cracked the door and looked suspiciously at Maria.

“We can sit in the kitchen. I've got a lamp burning there,” Maria said.

Rachel looked back at Seth to be sure his sleep hadn't been disturbed and then quietly exited, shutting the door behind her. The two women walked to the pine table where Maria had placed two cookies and a cup of coffee at Rachel's place.

“Is this going to take long? I've got quite a bit of work to do…” Rachel crossed her legs, swinging her foot nervously.

“That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I'm concerned you're becoming too consumed by your work. You come home from school in the dark, barely offer us a hello, and shut yourself up in that room all night. If it weren't for little Seth, we might never hear your voice. I miss my friend Rachel.” Maria's eyes filled with tears, but the sight had no effect on Rachel.

“Maria, I'm sorry you feel that way, but I'm really busy with lessons. We'll have time come summer.” Rachel patted her friend's hand and rose to leave.

“No, Rachel. There's more.” Maria motioned for Rachel to return to her seat and Rachel did so unwillingly. “I've noticed that you put your Bible in the closet when you moved in. I haven't seen you use it since. I'm concerned what you're teaching the children from the Bible. Robert and I made it clear that we wanted His light to shine in our school and we want to make sure that's happening.” Maria's gaze was intense and Rachel shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Maria had never chastened her before, and the sweetness in her voice made it hard to take.

“Maria, the children read out of the Bible every day during quiet time. What more do you want?”

“I want the children to know about Jesus in a personal way, to know that it's a relationship with their Lord and Savior that provides salvation. I thought we understood one another when you came to work for us,” Maria said firmly yet sweetly.

“Fine, I'll make a lesson plan.” Rachel wanted to add that she ought to be able to teach what she saw fit, but caught herself before saying it. “I'm sorry, Maria. I just have a lot on my mind right now. The older boys have returned and I really have my hands full. We'll talk about this later.”

Rachel walked back to her room without touching her cookies or coffee, while Maria bowed her head in prayer.

The morning roads were wet from a light rain. Rachel arrived in her classroom at the break of dawn to begin preparing for the day. The conversation she'd had with Maria was upsetting her, and she'd had a restless night's sleep. She straightened up the classroom and swept the floor before sitting at her desk to review her plans for the day.

“Miss Phillips.” Gretchen Steele stood in the doorway dressed uncharacteristically in black.

“Mrs. Steele, what a surprise.” Rachel tried to sound gracious, but inside she seethed at the sight of the woman.

“Henry will be missing school next week. The railroad is running in Redwood and I've promised to take him to see the engines. I'm sure it will be quite educational for him. Do you have any work you'd like him to take along to keep up with the class?” Gretchen approached the desk and let a white handkerchief drop onto its surface. Rachel saw the initials “C. D.” and knew Mrs. Steele's real intentions in Redwood. She was going to see Chase.
Rachel's
Chase.

She picked up the linen and handed it back to the widow, pretending not to have noticed the show so callously performed for her. “Henry will catch up. Have a wonderful time in Redwood.”

Rachel was relieved to see the children now filing into their seats. She was excited about her lessons this morning and was not going to let Mrs. Steele ruin it for her or the children. She had spent the previous evening in a detailed study of the logging industry. She was determined to show her class troublemakers that an education was important, particularly now, after the state's rapid growth from the gold rush and the railroads.