Tabitha (27 page)

He said, as much to himself as to Tabitha, “This war will be
fought and won in the air, not merely on the ground. When the British
understand this and provide us with better planes, then Cliff and I will need
to learn to fly them in order to train our pilots on them.”

“How long will you stay and help the British, Mason?”
Tabitha asked. She thought she knew his answer, but needed to hear his response
in his own words.

“I will answer you, dearest, but you must answer the same
question for me. How long will you stay to nurse the war wounded?”

They faced each other and saw the truth in each other’s
eyes.

“Until they do not need me,” Tabitha replied with a shrug to
her shoulders. “Surely this war cannot go on much longer. A year, perhaps?”

He looked away. “I wonder. Initially, we thought weeks. And
then months. Now?” He shook his head. “I, too, will stay and see it through,
but we may both be surprised and dismayed at how long this war lasts.”

After lunch, they wandered along the winding bank of the
river until they reached a picturesque bridge. Tabitha kept watch on the sun,
knowing as it moved farther across the sky, that their time was running out.

Carpenter, too, glanced up. “This,” he murmured, “is as good
a place as any.”

Still holding Tabitha’s fingertips in his hand, he sank down
on one knee. “I did not ask you properly the last time, my dearest, but I would
have this moment, this memory, be special for both of us—this perfect day, this
beautiful place, and this one, special question: Tabitha, will you marry me?”

Tabitha trembled. “Even if I cannot give you children,
Mason?”

He nodded. “Yes. I have been thinking and praying about it.
Perhaps we should seek God’s will for us concerning adoption? But, my love, you
should know: Without you, I would not want a family. You are my only love. Will
you marry me?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “It would be my honor.”

He rose to his feet and there, in front of any watching eye,
they sealed their engagement with a soft, chaste kiss. Tabitha was still
trembling when he opened her hand and pressed something into her palm, closing
her hand around it.

She grasped the warm object and opened her fingers to look
at it. A gold circlet set in blazing green stones winked at her.

“Oh, Mason!”

“It was my mother’s,” he told her. His voice was rough as he
added, “I realize that as a war nurse you cannot marry me at present, and I
know that as a nurse you cannot wear this token of our pledge, so I give you
this
to keep my ring near your heart until this war is over and I place it upon your
hand.”

He took the ring, threaded it through a gold chain, and
clasped it about her neck.

Tabitha fingered the ring and sighed. “I shall wear it
always, dear Mason.” She kissed it and tucked the chain and ring into the
neckline of her dress.

The ring settled just where Mason had intended.

Next to her heart.

~~~

“Nurse Hale, did ye hear th’ news?” Litton, one of the VADs
in her dormitory, demanded.

“No, I do not think so,” Tabitha answered. “What is it?”

“Them bloody Germans sank another of yourn Yank ships, wot,”
she tossed over her shoulder. “Left th’ rag for ye on th’ table.”

Tabitha frowned but, seeing the “rag,” the British
newspaper, lying on the table, she unfolded it. The August 19 headline blared:

U-BOAT
SINKS SS ARABIC
44 DEAD

“Oh!” The headlines swam before her eyes and she sat down
abruptly. When the haze passed, Tabitha skimmed the article, then began at the
top and read it again, slowly. When she finished, she folded the paper and let
her thoughts wander.

A German U-boat sank the
Arabic
off the coast of
Ireland, just south of the city of Kinsale, on a return voyage to the United
States. Despite heaving to and launching lifeboats immediately, forty-four
died, because the ship sank in just ten minutes. Captain Finch survived, but of
the forty-four who died, twenty-five were
Arabic
crew members.

Tabitha, eyes wide, heard the shriek of the claxon and
struggled against the crush of harried passengers as they ran to their lifeboat
stations. She fumbled with the unfamiliar life vest. A crewman helped her to
don it.

“Tie it here and here,” he had said before rushing away.

Did he die, Lord? Did that young man perish? Did the
ship’s doctor go down with the ship?

Tabitha was late to teach her class that morning and was
distracted the remainder of the day.

“
SS Arabic
, early 20th C” by unsigned,
postcard.

Licensed under
Public
Domain
via Wikimedia Commons.

Tabitha wrote the news of their engagement home to Palmer
House, to Claire, and to her parents. The letters she received in return were
filled with joyful congratulations. Rose wrote,

Along with your wonderful news,
we can share some of our own. Pastor and Breona anticipate a blessed event in
the late spring. Our darling Breona! She is shy to talk about her coming baby,
but I know she will be a wonderful mother. Now I covet your prayers! The Lord
must provide us with a new housekeeper.

~~~

Carpenter visited Tabitha again before the year ended. They
spent part of Saturday, Christmas Day, together and met for church the
following morning.

“This is Boxing Day,” Carpenter told Tabitha.
“Traditionally, everyone visits friends and family on Boxing Day. What shall we
do?”

“If we were home together, we would be sharing this Sunday
with our friends at Palmer House.”

“And what would our Sunday look like were we in Denver,
sweetness?”

“Oh!” Tabitha waxed bold. “Why, we would attend church with
them at Calvary Temple. We would sing from our hearts to God and Pastor
Carmichael would feed us a hearty meal from the Scriptures. Afterward, I would
hug Breona and feel how her tummy has grown.”

Tabitha’s eyes shone. “Then we would all meet at Palmer
House where Marit and the girls would lay out a wonderful dinner. We and our
dear friends would gather around the table to eat, and we would share our
stories of what God has been doing in us and for us, and Mr. Wheatley would
try
to commit you to a game of checkers after dinner, and—”

She stopped when he burst into laughter. “What? You asked!”

“Yes, and you describe it to a ‘T,’ darling. So, please!
Continue. What would we do
after
dinner at Palmer House?”

“Well, I would grab little Charley and cuddle him until he
squawked, while
you
, my dear fiancé, would allow Shan-Rose and Will to
climb aboard your back for pony rides.”

“What a wonderful picture you paint,” he whispered, “and I
pray God we shall do all of that someday soon. However, since we cannot cuddle
Charley or play horsey with Will and Shan-Rose on this special day, may I
suggest that we do
this
instead?”

“Do what?” Tabitha asked, intrigued.

“Aha! Well, it seems I have arrived in Colchester with two
rather overfull suitcases. Imagine it, my dear! These suitcases are packed to
their limits with the most delectable and imaginative things children could
hope for at Christmas: tins of lollipops, gumdrops, and peppermints; boxes of
chocolates and cookies; little dollies, teddy bears, puzzles, wooden trains,
and tops. New socks, mittens, hats, and mufflers. Cliff and I collected these
goodies and treasures over the past month.”

She stared at him. “Why, whatever will we do with all that?”

He grinned. “I have it on good authority that St. Martin’s
Orphanage, just outside town, is having a party for their children today. That
is,
we
are hosting a party for their children today.”

Tabitha’s eyes widened. “Ohhhh, Mason! You are a beautiful
man—how I love your heart! But how shall we get there?”

“Sister Alistair, who, by the way, happened to tell me of
this orphanage, has lent me her motorcar. She took the train home to visit her
brother’s family and left her automobile for me to use—with the stipulation
that I not drive it on the wrong side of the road, of course. So tell me, Tabs.
Would you care to accompany me to share all these treats with the orphans of
St. Martin’s?”

When they arrived at the orphanage, they found that the war
had swelled the ranks of the motherless and fatherless. Sister Mary Angela
showed them into the room where others in the parish were already serving
around punch and cookies to the children. Nearly one hundred children sat
quietly at tables munching their treats. They stared with curious eyes at Mason
and Tabitha—particularly as Carpenter lugged his overpacked suitcases into the
hall.

He and Sister Mary Angela and the parish rector discussed
how to distribute the candy and other gifts. In the end though, despite their
best attempts, it was a happy riot. The children were so eager that Tabitha and
Mason grabbed from the open suitcases the first thing that seemed a good fit
and handed it to the next child clamoring excitedly at their feet.

All the children received at least one article of clothing, one
small toy, and cookies and candy galore. Their shrieks of laughter and pleasure
left Tabitha and Mason flushed with joy.

Tabitha sighed in contentment on the road back to
Colchester. “What a marvelous thing Boxing Day is, Mason.”

“See anything you liked there?”

“What do you mean?”

He grinned. “I am thinking of when this blasted war is over
and we can be married. I am thinking of filling that empty old house of mine—of
ours—with just the kind of mayhem we witnessed today.”

He sighed in contentment equal to hers. “With every child I
looked at today, I had the thought, ‘Why, this boy could be ours!’ or ‘What I
would not give to hold this little girl on my lap and read her bedtime
stories!’”

Tabitha’s eyes filled. “Oh, Mason. How I love your heart.”

~~**~~

After the New Year, the course of the war worsened, and
Colchester Hospital overflowed with patients. Tabitha’s responsibilities
increased as the British Red Cross sent scores of new VAD recruits to them.

“Obviously, we cannot use this many unseasoned VADs, Nurse
Hale, but it seems that word of your program has gotten out,” Matron informed
Tabitha.

“The Red Cross is, understandably, overwhelmed and is unable
to provide the initial—and quite limited—training it usually gives to all new
volunteers. They are now sending raw VADs to us to train.”

Matron tapped her pencil on her desk, thinking. “If we can
manage it without disrupting the hospital, I should like to send
our
seasoned VADs on to new posts. We would keep the raw ones until they, too, are
trained and ready to move on.”

Tabitha squared her shoulders and rose to the task. She
promoted eight of her best VADs to proctor new, smaller cohorts and set them to
teach classes she knew they could handle on their own. Colchester, as Matron
desired, sent twenty trained VADs on to posts where they were most needed. In a
month, twenty more would follow.

As for the nursing sisters, their numbers were increasing
also, but not at Colchester. Yes, newer nursing sisters were posted to Colchester,
but the more experienced nurses were dispatched to form casualty clearing
stations or to staff field hospitals near the front.

Seven of Colchester’s nursing sisters left in February,
including Sisters McDonald and Ingram. Tabitha found herself owning the
responsibility of orienting new sisters to their duties as no nursing sister
could be spared for the task.

“Much like a sergeant will acclimate and educate his
superior officer on the field of battle, we are leaning upon you, Nurse Hale,
to help us acclimate our new sisters,” Matron Stiles informed her.

She hmmed a little and then looked up at Tabitha. “We cannot
say how grateful we are for your service, Nurse Hale. Your professionalism and
your character . . . You are filling a great need for us, and you
are deserving of recognition.”

Tabitha was flustered. “Um, I . . . I do not
know what to say.”

“You do not need to answer. Please just know that, with
appreciative hearts, we thank you.”

Tabitha left Matron Stiles’ office with unshed tears in her
eyes. She sniffed, self-consciously, as she passed Miss Thompson, but her heart
was full.

~~~

Mason came next for Easter. It had been months since they
had seen each other, and Tabitha was struck with how tired he appeared.

“The war is going badly, Tabs,” he whispered. “I would
snatch you up and take the first ship home—if I did not fear the journey or
what my conscience would do to me if I abandoned our brave young pilots now.”

Tabitha clutched his hands. “Tell me what is happening.”

He shook his head, slowly. “Our young men do not last even
two weeks. We train them for a month, send them up, and often on their first
flight across to Belgium or France, they do not return to us. Our most seasoned
pilot at present has exactly five weeks of experience.”

“Mason!” Tabitha could not comprehend it.

“The RFC is sending newer aeroplanes now. Cliff and I and
the other trainers should see them soon. We must learn to fly them and operate
the guns on them. We must learn to fight in these planes, Tabs, what they call
‘dog fights’—shooting at the German planes while diving down upon them or
rolling over and over to escape their guns. The French know how to fight like
this, but they cannot spare us trainers!”

“Please tell me you will be careful, Mason,” Tabitha begged.
“I cannot lose you!”

“Sometimes in life we do not have the choice to be careful,
Tabitha. When sudden events demand our response, we must act and pray we make
the right call.” He sighed. “On that day, I pray I will make the right decision.”

They visited St. Martin’s again together, bringing cake for
the children. The children who remembered them from Christmas greeted them with
shouts of “Hallo!” and “Did you bring presents?” When Carpenter revealed the
three boxes of cake, the children were as pleased as they had been to receive
Christmas gifts.

“You are quite good to us, Mr. Carpenter,” Sister Mary
Angela thanked him softly. “The blankets and pillows were a godsend during the
cold winter months, but not nearly as much as the abundance of heating coal you
provided.”

Tabitha stared at Mason, stunned by Sister Mary Angela’s
revelation, overcome again by the fresh revelation of Mason’s giving heart.

“Thank you, Lord, for this good man,” she whispered.

~~~

When Mason arrived in Colchester midsummer for his next
visit, he begged her, “Please say we can marry now, Tabs. I know you cannot
leave your duties and responsibilities and I will not ask you to. But is there
no way we could marry anyway? Then I could dream of you at night knowing that
you are mine and that we have a future together. Do say you will ask Matron,
Tabitha?”

Tabitha, too, was thinking along the same lines.

For a long time after coming to Jesus, the idea of being
with a man—
any man
—had angered her. Repulsed her. But her love for
Carpenter was something she had never known. It was holy, good, and safe. She
longed to be held in his arms, to belong fully to him, and he to her.

“Yes. I will speak to Matron. I do not know what she will
say or what rules could be turned, but I will ask.”

“So you will marry me? Now? As soon as we can?”

She swallowed, her happiness overflowing. “Yes, Mason. I
would have us married at Palmer House, with our friends as witnesses, but I
know they will understand.”

Tabitha requested an interview with Matron Stiles the
following day. “Matron, you are acquainted with Mr. Carpenter?”

“Yes, Nurse Hale. Sister Alistair tells me good things about
him regarding St. Martin’s.”

Tabitha’s voice sank to a whisper. “Mr. Carpenter and I
became engaged last year. In the fall.”

“I see. I congratulate you,” Matron Stiles replied, but
Tabitha thought her response measured, reluctant. “Does this mean we shall be
losing you soon?”

Tabitha understood.
Ah! Lord, she thinks I will be
leaving.

“No, Matron; that is, not if I can help it. You see, we wish
to marry soon, but we are both deeply committed to our work—his in Yorkshire
and mine here.”

The older woman relaxed. “I see. So . . . you
are asking to marry, but you hope to continue on here? It would be something of
a long-distance marriage?”

“Yes, Matron. I know the rules state that nursing sisters
cannot be married, and the VADs are also to be unmarried, but
perhaps . . . an exception could be made?”

“Yours is an interesting case, Nurse Hale.” Matron steepled
her fingers and thought for a moment. “Would you allow me to consult Sister
Alistair and, perhaps, Lady Perth-Lyon?”

“Of course, Matron.”

Two days later, Tabitha stood again in Matron’s office. Sister
Alistair was also present. “Nurse Hale, may I reconfirm your intentions? You
wish to marry Mr. Carpenter but retain your position with us?”

“Yes, that is correct, Matron.”

Matron cleared her throat. “Lady Perth-Lyon, Sister
Alistair, and I agree that for you to marry and remain at Colchester would,
perhaps, send a damaging message to the VADs. High morale and complete
dedication are, during these hard times, difficult to maintain.”

“Yes, Matron. I understand.” Tabitha felt her heart sinking.

“However . . .”

Tabitha glanced up. “Yes?”

“Sister Alistair has proposed something of a solution.”

Tabitha looked to Sister Alistair.

Sister Alistair’s expression was enigmatic. “My brother is
the rector of Farring Cross, a small seaside village about fifty kilometers up
the coast from here. Would you be willing to take the train to Farring Cross?”

“Are you saying what I think you are saying?”

“Yes. My brother would be willing to marry you and Mr.
Carpenter. Quietly.”

Tabitha glanced with hope toward Matron Stiles. “We could
marry if we kept it a secret?”

Matron inclined her head. “Lady Perth-Lyon agrees it would
be the best solution. We would grant you a three-day pass to travel there by
train . . . and to spend two nights before returning.”

She looked away. “You are a great asset to us, Nurse Hale,
but even darker days are ahead, I am afraid. More of our sisters will be posted
to the front soon. I am convinced that sending well-trained VADs with them will
be vital to our meeting the challenge.”

Turning in her seat as though her muscles ached from sitting
many long hours, Matron added, “We need your services to prepare the VADs for
service at the front and to train their replacements. Are you willing to marry
privately but keep your marriage undisclosed until such a time as wisdom allows
us to acknowledge it?”

Tabitha hesitated. “I will have to ask Mr. Carpenter if he
is amenable to your suggestion.”

“Certainly.”

Tabitha, with Matron’s permission, used her telephone and
asked the operator to place a call to Mason. She then waited impatiently in
Matron’s antechamber for the call to go through and the operator to call her
back.

What if Mason cannot be reached? What if he cannot leave
his work to take the call? I cannot wait here all day, either. I have work to
do. And what if he disagrees with my superiors’ suggestion? Will he ask me to
give notice? Oh, but I cannot! I am needed here, more now than ever.

For perhaps a half hour, Tabitha fretted and worried over
the situation, becoming first anxious and then fearful. As the minutes ticked
by, though, she realized that the Holy Spirit was trying to speak to her.

Peace,
that sweet voice whispered.
Stand in the
peace that Jesus promised you. Do not be moved . . .

Peace
I leave with you,
my peace I give unto you:
not as the world giveth,
give I unto you.
Let not your heart be troubled,
neither let it be afraid.

“Oh!” Tabitha sighed.
How can I expect
to live and act in God’s will if I disregard his admonitions? Lord, I am sorry.
I do trust you. In all things, I trust you—even in this. Please help me to wait
in your peace for Mason’s call. And I commit this situation to you, for you
know what is best for Mason and for me.

Miss Thompson must have heard Tabitha’s
sigh. She lifted sympathetic eyes. “Is everything all right, Nurse Hale?”

Tabitha shook her head and laughed low in her throat. “Yes,
Miss Thompson. Everything is fine.”

Minutes later, the phone on Miss Thompson’s desk rang.
“Colchester Hospital. Matron’s office.” She paused. “Miss Hale? Yes. One
moment.”

She looked to Tabitha with some surprise. “It is for you.”

“I am to take it in Matron’s office,” Tabitha answered. She
knocked on the door and, when Matron bid her come, slipped inside.

“I will step out for a cup of tea whilst you speak with your
young man,” Matron murmured. She patted Tabitha’s shoulder as she passed by.

“Hello?” Tabitha breathed into the telephone’s mouthpiece.

“Call for Miss Tabitha Hale. To whom am I speaking?”

“This is Miss Hale.”

“Please go ahead.”

Tabitha waited until she heard the sharp click indicating
that the operator had disconnected from the call. “Mason? Are you there?”

“Yes! What is wrong? Tabitha, are you all right?”

“Yes, yes. I am sorry I worried you. I
just . . . I needed to speak with you right away
about . . . our wedding.”

“Wedding? Did they say ‘yes’?” He was as excited as she was.

“They did, only . . . only they wish us to
marry and not make it public just now. Sister Alistair has a brother who is a
rector in the little village of Farring Cross not too far from here. He would
marry us quietly.”

Mason said nothing for a moment, so Tabitha hurried on.
“Lady Perth-Lyon and Matron Stiles are in favor of us marrying, but they are
concerned that discipline and morale among the VADs might suffer if it were
known. The VADs are not allowed to marry while in service, you see, but, well,
I am not a British volunteer, and they need me terribly. I could tell that
Matron and Sister Alistair were worried I would give my notice.”

He was still quiet, so Tabitha asked, “You won’t ask me to
give notice, will you, Mason? You know how important what I do is?”

He sighed. “Yes, I do, indeed. So they are asking that we
marry but keep it secret. Hmm. Well, you and I had already agreed we would not
give up our work until the war ended. I suppose—”

“They will give me a three-day pass, Mason. Farring Cross is
about fifty kilometers from Colchester by train. We can meet there and spend
two nights. Together.”

“I like the sound of that, Tabs. When?”

“So you will agree to keep our marriage to ourselves for a
time? I am certain that we can tell our friends at home and explain that I will
be keeping my maiden name for the time being.”

He growled. “Yes, I agree, but the instant we can tell the
world that you are Tabitha
Carpenter
, I will shout it from the housetops!”

Carpenter wrote with two proposed sets of dates, dates when
his superiors agreed to grant him three days of leave. Tabitha, with Matron’s
approval, chose the second range of dates: September 20-22.

“Sister Alistair will write her brother, and ask that he
marry us on the evening of September 20,” Tabitha reported.

“I shall make all the arrangements for dinner and hotel,”
Mason promised, “and meet you on the Farring Cross train platform the afternoon
of September 20.”

That evening Tabitha wrote a letter to Rose.