Sarah's Heart (26 page)

Squaring her
shoulders, Sarah opened the door. She needed to stop worrying about Nathaniel
Gray Wolf Elder. Clearly, he wasn’t part of her future.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Wolf tied his
supplies across Scout’s back and mounted. He’d almost slipped and suggested to
Sarah that he accompany her back to Maggie’s place. Telling his old friend
goodbye in person would afford him more time with Sarah before he left. He
couldn’t help himself where she was concerned. She made him forget who and what
he was, stirred feelings no one else had. Luckily, the clerk’s attitude snapped
Wolf back to reality, serving as a reminder that Sarah deserved better. She was
worthy of nothing less than respect, and she’d never get it in his company.

He nudged his mare
away from the hitching post, scrunching down for one last look through the
window. The sunlight reflecting off the glass made it impossible for him to see
her.

* * *

Sarah took a deep
breath and marched into the classroom. Doubts about her ability diminished her
resolve. What made her think she could teach
?She
had
no idea how many children to expect when school began at eight o’clock, but
she’d come an hour early to get things in order. Breakfast sat in her stomach
like a rock.

 
Shaking off the negative thoughts, she
gathered a stack of primers from the corner and slapped copies atop each desk,
but stopped short of finishing. An important question popped into her mind. Who
got the primers? She glanced at the covers, but they all looked the same.
Surely the older children read at a different level than the younger. She
massaged her brow. What made her think she was qualified for this job? Her time
with the three Indian children paled in comparison to what she faced today.

She dropped the
primers and, with a sigh, slumped down in one of the student’s chairs. Resting
her elbows on the table, she cradled her face. “You can do this, Sarah.”

“Yes, you can!” She
swiveled to see Jonathan, and cringed. Not now of all times. Dealing with him
took more effort than she wanted to expend.

“What are you doing
here?”

“I came to give you
some moral support.” He whisked his derby from his head and stood with hat in
hand.

Sarah rose,
smoothing her skirt then fidgeting with her cuffs. “I appreciate your
intentions, but I haven’t time to visit. I have children…”

“You didn’t look all
that busy when I first arrived.”

Sarah grasped her
neck to hide the warming flush creeping upward. Her jaw tensed at his audacity.
“I was thinking. Perhaps it’s something you should do before you speak and
offend people.”

His lips thinned,
his brow furrowed.
“Point taken.”
He plopped his hat
back on his head and turned to leave.

 
“Wait! I’m sorry, Jonathan.”

He paused in the
doorway, silent, as if waiting for her to beg his indulgence.

She took a step
toward him. “You’ve caught me at a bad moment and I’m taking my worry out on
you. I truly am sorry.”

Once more, he
removed his hat. “I apologize for my rudeness. You had every right to put me in
my place.”

Sarah took a deep
breath. “We were both wrong, so can we let bygones be bygones and see each
other later this evening back at the boarding house? Hopefully, I’ll be in a
better frame of mind by then.”

“Agreed.
I have some business at the bank, and I
really only stopped by to say good morning. I hope you fare well on your first
day of teaching.”

Sarah smiled and
nodded. She hoped so, too.

 
He was barely out the door when she stamped
her foot on the scarred flooring. “Oh, that man infuriates me.”

She had never run
across a cockier person in her life. Her mother once had a bantam that strutted
with the same arrogance and pride. The little rooster was Jonathan but with
feathers. Sarah creased her brow, wondering if his business at the bank had
anything to do with Wolf. She chewed her bottom lip, knowing she could nothing
it if it did, besides hadn‘t Wolf mentioned an extension
?After
checking the time, she frantically gathered the books from the tables. Waiting
until the children arrived might give her a better idea who needed one. She
counted on Maggie’s guarantee that the students would help her understand more
about her job.

“Good mornin’,
teacher.”

Sarah turned to a
tow-headed lad with the biggest blue eyes she’d even seen. He smiled, revealing
a missing tooth.

 
“And good morning to you,
young man.”
Her gaze drifted downward past his overalls to bare feet
wearing a thick coating of dirt.

“My name is Curtis
Johnson. What’s yorn?”

“I’m Miss Collins.”
She looked up and smiled. “It’s very nice to meet you, Curtis.”

He craned his neck
upward and stared at her for a moment. Freckles peppered his nose and cheeks.
“We
ain’t never
had a lady teacher afore. Are you
gonna be mean to us like Mr. Woods?”

Sarah shook her
head.
“No, of course not.
We’ll have rules, but as
long as everyone follows them, things will be fine.” She ruffled his curly
blond hair. “Why don’t you take a seat, Curtis?” Turning, she peered through
the window then looked back to her first pupil. “I believe I see more of your
classmates coming.”

Knots formed in her
stomach as she stood behind her desk. This time she wasn’t just helping with
three little Indian girls, she was actually expected to teach a whole class of
children. She clasped her hands at her waist and smiled at the group as they
entered. “Come in, children, and find your place. We’ll be starting in a few
moments.”

The once-silent room
gradually filled with excited voices, laughter, and chairs screeching against
the plank flooring as the children took their seats. Sarah gazed at the
twenty-odd youngsters and clapped her hands. “Attention, class. My name is Miss
Collins and I’m you’re new teacher. I—”

“Yer
too young and purdy to be teachin’.
I can show ya a better time down by the river.” The rude comment came
from an almost man-sized boy in the very back of the room. He boldly winked.

Feeling tongue-tied
for a moment, Sarah gathered her scattered wits. “Young man, judging from your
poor language skills, your time would be better spent at school.”

His gaze shifted to
his desk, and to her relief, he had nothing more to say. A smattering of
giggles sounded around the room.

Sarah clasped her
hands together, assuming a pose far more relaxed than she felt. “Now, class,
where were we? I believe I was about to assure you that I’m here to help you
learn. I’d appreciate your assistance in return. I have no idea where your
previous teacher left off in your primers, who used them, and who is still
learning to read. If we work together
respectfully
, I’m sure we’ll all
profit from the experience.”

A dark-haired girl
with big chocolate eyes raised a waving hand high in the air. “Teacher,
teacher, I can help.”

“And what’s your
name, young lady?”

“I’m Emily Potts.
I’ve been coming to school the longest, and I know almost everyone here.”

“Very well, Emily.
I’d really appreciate your help. But before we begin with our studies, I’d like
everyone, in turn, to tell me who you are. It will help me, and classmates who
may not know you, learn your name.” Sarah pointed to the girl sitting next to
her eager assistant. “Let’s start here.”

After introductions,
Sarah felt a bit more relaxed. Still, the two boys in the back worried her.
Horace Givens, the one who’d made the rude suggestion, and his brother, Henry,
were the oldest and largest of the group. Their demeanor and sagging postures
indicated trouble. She’d already put Horace in place once, but there was no way
she could match his size and strength. Henry was smaller, but obviously
mimicked his brother. Words of wisdom from her late father rang in her ears.
“Don’t ever let the opposition see your fear.”

“Cross that bridge
when you come to it.” She mumbled so no one heard and picked up a sheet of
paper from her desk. A nervous smile quivered on her lips. “Children, I’ve
prepared a daily schedule, and since reading is the foundation for learning
everything, we’re going to start with that. Emily, would you please pass out
the primers to those who use them?”

Watching as the
young lady hurried to distribute the books, Sarah readied a pencil to make note
of who received one. The seating chart she prepared during introductions
already made her feel more organized.

 
Emily finished and turned with a smile on her
face. “Do you want me to have the younger children take their chairs to the far
corner and work with them on reciting their letters? That’s what our other
teacher did.”

“Why yes, Emily.
That would be most helpful.” Sarah breathed a sigh of relief and, while the
noisy move took place, she made note of those accompanying her newfound helper.

With everyone
settled, Sarah sat and opened her own book, the one she’d found in the desk
drawer. She turned to the page with the corner turned down and raised her gaze
to the anxious faces before her. “Now, if you’ll all turn to page twenty-two,
we’ll begin.” A rustling of pages followed.

She lifted her eyes
and scanned the room. “Horace, would you please read the first paragraph
aloud?”

He remained slumped
in his chair, his eyes narrowed.
“I aint readin’ no
paragraphs.”

Sarah wasn’t
surprised at his response. After all, she’d embarrassed him in front of
everyone.

“How
about you, Henry?”

He sat upright, but
looked to his older brother. When Horace shook his head, Henry meekly slid back
down in his seat. “I ain’t readin’ nothing neither.”

Clearly, Horace’s
bad attitude influenced his brother. But Sarah saw disappointment on Henry’s
face rather than defiance. At least by asking the two, she’d learned something
about their relationship; but rather than engage in a war of power, she moved
on. Checking her list, she smiled. “Okay, then, Ruby Faye, please….”

* * *

Sarah cleared her
desk of papers from the morning schedule, sat back and took a deep breath.
She’d so enjoyed teaching that the morning flew by. Lunchtime came before she
realized it and the children hurried out for recess. Enjoying the respite, she
opened her bottom drawer, pulled out the meager lunch she’d packed and munched
on her ham sandwich while pondering the first half of the day.

The morning had gone
relatively well, save the continued foot dragging of the Givens boys. The
children were clearly at various stages in their academics, but most seemed
eager to learn. She thanked her lucky stars for Emily Potts—a godsend. Sarah
had never expected twenty-three children to show up, after she’d been told to
expect a scant showing because of planting time. Judging from the occupied
chairs, it seemed she had a full house already.

The excitement of
the upcoming afternoon dimmed her appetite. Sarah tucked the remainder of her
lunch away, rose and walked to the window. The scene outside was typical of
what she remembered from her own school days. Some children sat and ate in the
shade while others played on the seesaw and swing. A group of girls had joined
hands and circled around another in the center, their sing-song chant hardly
audible through the glass.

Beyond the outhouse,
she caught a glimpse of Horace Givens and his brother. She pressed closer to
the glass and strained to see. Horace stepped aside, his hand raised in a
menacing manner over the head of young Curtis Johnson. The youngster tried to
walk away, but Horace snagged his arm, wrenching him back. Anger heated Sarah’s
blood. “How dare that bully pick on such a small boy?”

Sarah hurried for
the door, hiked her skirts at the stairs, and marched across the yard. “Horace
Givens, you release Curtis this instant.”She squared her shoulders and shot him
an imperious look.

Horace glared back.
“Whadda you gonna do if I don’t? Give me a whipping?”

Sarah strode over
and placed herself between him and Curtis. “I’m sure you realize that isn’t
something I could or would even consider, but I
can
take other actions.
How would your parents feel about learning that their son picked on someone a
fraction of his size?” She turned to the frightened little boy behind her. “You
go play, Curtis.” Her icy gaze scanned Henry but returned to her biggest
challenge. “Well, how would they react?”

“We don’t have a ma
and pa anymore. We live with our grandpap, and he didn’t raise me to be no
sissy.”

A pang of sadness
plucked at Sarah’s heart. She knew the heartache of losing parents, but she
needed to make him understand his bad behavior would not be tolerated. Planting
her hands on her hips, she peered up into his defiant eyes. “I doubt he raised
you to be a bully either. If you want to fight, find someone your own size, but
make sure there’s a reason for it. It’s a brilliant man who picks his battles
wisely.”