She could hear Annie whisper and explain. “There is love between them that is impenetrable. There’s not a chance that anything could come between them. That’s how my Liam is, girls. Eva's pregnant again, about four months now. If ye had a mind, Orla, ye should offer an apology to Eva.”
~~~
Eva and Liam walked away from the crowd to be alone. Liam gave his children a glance, just to know where they were. He spotted Ellen deep in conversation with young Arvid at the shoreline. Liisa was still with her Gran Annie, who had gotten up to escort Liisa back to the water’s edge. He then tended to Eva.
“What's this all about, then?” he asked tenderly. He took her in his arms again.
Eva spoke into his neck, “I … Orla said somptink she tink funny ’bout you. It remind me of vomen givink me bad faces vhen I vit Victor in Finn Hall. Dey say I vas not ’posed to be vit him. I cry for I don’t see back den how much vomen hate me, because I haff man dey vant.”
“Back then wasn’t yer fault. It was a hard place to be for ye. When Orla said that, ye may have felt weak and powerless like ye did back in those days. Ye can get it back. If need be, say what ye said to the group of women ye found me with at the Finn Hall festival.” He paused a moment. “By the way, what did ye say to them? Ye said it in Finnish.”
She sniffed and blotted her nose on Liam’s shirt, looking up with a faint smile. “I say to dem you vere not anytink like my dead husband, so go ’vay.”
“God, that was tough,” Liam said, surprised. “Good for ye, Eva. That’s the way ye need to be every time a situation comes up like that, even if ye don’t ever say it. Just think it.” He hugged her and kissed her head. He started to chuckle silently.
“Vhat you tink is funny?” She looked up at him again, frowning.
“You. Ye’re a tough nugget and ye don’t know it.” He smiled again. “A damn tough wench, ye are.”
“Vhat’s vench?”
“Someone not to be messed with,” he said with soft humor. He scanned for the children again. All was well. “Do ye want to go back to yer chair in the shade?”
“Yes, I go.”
He kissed her on the nose. She kissed him on his chin. They walked back to the shaded area, arms around each other’s waists. “I just thought of something,” he added.
“Vhat?”
“What am I gonna do when some man goes after you? Ye’re beautiful, and some men will go after a married woman, too. Don’t ye remember? I did. I wanted ye.”
“I nefer tink ’bout dat. You can yust punce him in a face. You are good at dat.”
That made him laugh, setting her off in a fit of giggles. He started to lead her back to her rocking chair.
“Vait. I like to have lil somptink to eat,” she announced, still in her giggles. She veered toward the food tables.
“How did that possibility escape me? Of course, ye want somethin’ to eat,” he said, feigning sarcasm. “It’s been an hour since ye last had somethin’.”
She punched him lightly in his ribs, which reminded him of McKay and fighting. Startled at the reminder, he quickly shoved it back into the hole in which he wanted to eventually put McKay. He continued on to the food table as if the thoughts about McKay had never occurred to him.
“You look funny ’gain, like in Dulut. I see it den.”
“Where?” Liam feigned ignorance.
“At fiss boil in restaurant.”
“I don’t remember,” he said. “I think I’m still feelin’ guilt for makin’ ye pregnant again, you bein’ so sick. But I’m very happy ye’re feelin’ better. Now,” Liam rubbed his hands together, changing the subject to Eva’s cravings, focusing on the vast table of Irish food, “what looks good to ye?”
“I tink I like meat, any kind, every kind.” She picked up a fork and a plate from the stack and pierced a piece of meat from each entre. “Mmmm, it looks good. I like bread vit lotta budder. Den I vant piece of cake.”
“Don’t ye think you should have a vegetable?”
“You can haff it,” she said, smiling like Ellen would’ve.
Chapter 3
Two and a half weeks after Ed and Annie's wedding, they barged in on Eva as she was dusting the parlor. They entered without knocking. Their expressions frightened her.
“Eva, it’s Liam,” Ed said. He looked grim. Eva began to wobble and become light headed. Both Annie and Ed caught her and took her to the sofa. Ed left for the kitchen.
“The Sheriff is comin’ to talk to ye,” Annie said. “Liam's been kidnapped—taken.”
“Vhat it mean?”
As Annie sat with Eva on the sofa, holding her hand, Ed came back with a glass of water.
Annie continued, “We have somethin’ to confess. Both Ed and I know what this is about. It has everythin’ to do with Liam’s life before he came here.”
Annie told Eva everything as Eva cried. She included the story of Liam seeing one of McKay’s thugs in Duluth.
“I see hees face,” Eva said. “Somptink vas bad. He don’t tell me.”
As Eva heard the explanation, the Sheriff arrived. Ed let him in. The Sheriff had Liam’s medical bag with him and put it off to the side.
“Mrs. Dady, we’re doing everything we possibly can to find your husband,” he said. “Mr. and Mrs. Murphy have been giving us excellent information, along with Mack Jackson, the cabbie who works near the hospital. I’ve wired the big cities in the region. Minneapolis authorities say they have wind of Sheridan McKay’s syndicate working the area. That’s where they would take him. McKay takes risks and it’s more than likely he’s there.”
“How you know vhat happen today?” Eva asked Ed.
“I—we—had men watchin’ and keepin’ track of what was goin’ on. They’ve been watchin’ you and the children, the house, Liam, the train station. McKay's men slipped into town, and my men missed intervening. They ran to me at the fountain when McKay's thugs took Liam.”
Eva could barely keep up. She heard Annie speak again, saying it would be best if the girls went to Huttunen’s with Saimi Laivo, out of town and out of the way.
“I’ll help ye pack some things for them, Eva. The sheriff’s deputy will take them in his carriage.”
“How lonk he been gone?” Eva asked the sheriff, still barely able to stand, she was shaking so hard.
“Mack the cabbie and Ed’s friends saw something around one o’clock. We found his doctor’s bag in the street.”
Eva looked at the bag, then the clock. It was almost four. It terrified her, making her cry again.
"They would’ve taken him on the two o’clock train if that was their mode of transportation to get him to McKay in Minneapolis.”
~~~
Sometime mid-day, Liam left the hospital to get to an urgent visit at a home outside of town. As he stepped outside the hospital, he couldn’t find a cab. He knew one would show up any second. He looked up to see what he thought was a cab and hailed it. When the vehicle arrived, two men jumped out. They were wearing leather vests.
“Ye finally found me”
“Hello, Dady. Who’d a thunk you’d be a doctor. You were a wreck of a man last time we saw you. McKay’s been wonderin’ where you’ve been all this time.” He shoved Liam. “Get in the fuckin’ carriage.”
Liam had no choice. One of them had a gun. He dropped his doctor’s bag in the street as they pushed him to the floor. One of them got into the back with Liam. The one with the gun hopped in the driver seat and drove off. As the carriage drove north, the man holding Liam to the floor said, “It looks as though your look-outs are a little late. They just missed us.”
“They’ll be lookin’ for me as soon as they report it, which means just minutes.”
“If someone tries to rescue you, we’ll kill them.”
It seemed to Liam that they were going in a big circle, staying out of town, perhaps going back to the train station. “Are ye takin’ me to McKay?” he asked.
“He wanted to kill you. He’s in Minneapolis, waitin
g with bated breath for you to get there. You holler anything at the train station, Dady, and we won’t just kill you, we’ll kill the innocent bystanders. Don’t think you’ll fight your way out of it either. Bullets beat fists every time. I see yer knuckles are still scarred though.”
McKay’s men didn’t bluff. Liam remained cooperative, for now.
~~~
The train was about fifteen minutes down the train tracks to Duluth when Liam decided to put an escape plan into motion. He was wondering if McKay’s men would be dumb enough to fall for it. He had no choice but to try.
“I need to take a wicked piss. Will ye let me go?”
“Sure, why not. It’s not like there’s any windows big enough ye can jump out of,” the thug said.
Liam was left alone in the cramped bathroom. It just so happened that the toilet was simply a hole that dropped to the ground along the tracks. After Liam quietly locked the door, he immediately grasped the plank with the hole in it and tugged at it a few times until it came off in his hands, leaving a hole big enough to climb out and drop to the ground. The tricky part was to stay out of the wheels. As if on cue, the train slowed, probably for a slow freight train carrying iron ore on the tracks in front of them. Taking advantage of the slowing train, Liam slipped through the opening, landing on the ground and rolling out of the way. He hurt his shoulder on the gravel track bed, and moments later he realized his forehead was cut. In spite of his injuries, he ran as fast as he could through the woods and bushes at the edge of the track, heading back to Eva.
Liam made his way to a farm house about a mile up. He happened to know the family from a recent house call and told them his plight, and that he needed to get to town as fast as possible. They were more than glad to help him, even though it was getting late.
~~~
With Annie’s help, Eva and Saimi got the girls off to Huttunen’s farm by six. Ellen didn’t want to go. She wanted to help find her Pappa.
“Darlin’,” Annie spoke sweetly to her. “We need to get ye out of harm’s way. The men who took yer Pappa are not very nice. We’ll get him to ye soon. Liisa needs you, and Ed and I will take care of things at the boardin’ house with yer Mamma.”
Eva, her panic barely controlled, kissed her children and off they went with Saimi and the armed deputy.
“Eva, come into the kitchen with me while I find something to cook for everyone’s supper,” Ed said. He brought in the rocker for her. She couldn’t sit for very long and got up to pace often. He got her a hot cup of chamomile tea.
Annie found some ham to fry. She peeled some potatoes and cleaned some baby carrots new from the garden, then put them to boil. In half an hour, everyone was ready to sit and eat, except for Eva. She did not come to the table. She stayed at the parlor window, vigilant for Liam’s return. She heard Annie call her and went to the kitchen.
Standing at the stove Annie said, “Eva, you need to eat. Liam will not be happy to hear ye’re not eating when he comes—”
As Annie said the words, the front door burst open. He was dirty, his suit coat was missing, and his shirt had a huge rip along the shoulder seam. He had a bloodied forehead and scratches on his face and several abrasions on his knuckles.
“Thanks be to Jesus and Mary, Liam, ye’re safe,” Annie breathed.
“Where’s Eva?” Liam was out of breath.
“Liam! I vas tink you dead.” Eva started to move towards him from the doorway to the kitchen but began to collapse.
Liam ran to her and caught her as he fell on his knees. In spite of his condition, he scooped Eva into his arms and carried her to their bed.
“Liam,” Annie said. “She hasn’t had a thing to eat. She was distraught with the news of your disappearance.”
“Yust let me hold you, den I eat. Come to me, Liam.” Eva held her arms out to him from the bed. He came to her immediately and sat on the edge of the bed with Eva in his arms.
Annie and Ed stepped out and closed the bedroom door to give them privacy.
Eva began to have a panic attack, crying uncontrollably.
Liam held her and whispered, “I’m here, darlin’,” and, “Shhh, sweetheart.”
“Vhat happen?” she asked in her panic.
“My past has caught up with me, but we’ll get through it. I need ye strong, though. Do ye hear me? I need ye strong to help me, sweetheart.”
She looked at him with incredulity. “Vhat is happen, Liam? I don’t understand.”
“Well, before I met ye, I was fightin’ and got into some trouble with a very bad man …” He spent the next five minutes explaining his life between Dolly’s death and his arrival in Virginia. “I know I should’ve told ye,” he said. “I just didn’t want you to worry.”
“It same tink vhen Victor made us leef Finland.” Her crying abated.
“What do you mean?” Liam looked puzzled.
“Ve haff to leef Finland. Victor haff argument vit pastor who hate Mattsons and hees die. Church vant to blame Victor and put him in prison. Our Constable give us time to get out. Leef Finland.” She began to cry again, speaking through wails, “It break my heart to leef my family. I hate—” she started to shout but she stopped.
“You were gonna say you hate Victor for making you leave yer family. Oh, Christ, Eva. Now I’m doin’ it to ye.” Liam began to cry.
“I vas nineteen, Liam. If ve haff to leef here, I go vit you. You are my family. I luff you, and you don’t cheat on me. Dat’s vhat I angry vit Victor about. I yust didn’t know it den.” She was leaning on Liam and speaking into his dusty clothes, his sweaty neck and shirt collar.
“I love ye, too.” Liam held Eva for many moments. “Where are the girls?” he asked.
“At Huttunen’s vit Saimi. Sheriff took dem.”
“That’s where we need to go as well. We’ll eat quickly, take some clothing in a bag, and make some plans in the next day or two. Ed and Annie can help us with two steamer trunks of essentials.”
They joined Annie and Ed for supper in the kitchen.
“Liam, I have extra men at the train station,” Ed said. “And there will be hidden watches along the road to the farmhouse.” He was eating quickly. “That doesn’t mean ye should be out dancin’ in the road. Stay out o’ sight. They’re damned sneaky. My boys missed ’em when they got ye.”
“I hear ye. Thanks, Ed. Come out tomorrow morning to Arvid’s, you and Annie.”
Liam hugged and kissed Annie goodbye. Liam and Eva got into the covered carriage with Dandy pulling. Eva had a bandana covering her hair and Liam had overalls like a farmer, with a big straw hat pulled down to cover as much of his stubbled face as possible, especially when they passed the train station on their way out.
~~~
Late that night in a second-floor spare bedroom at the Huttunen’s farm house, Eva and Liam lay side by side. Liam knew that Eva was still traumatized by the events of the day, but he was glad she had calmed. He took a deep breath and exhaled.
“Ve are not sleepink,” Eva whispered.
“No, we’re not. I’m keyed up. My shoulder hurts. I landed on it when I jumped out of the train through the shit hole.”
“I don’t vant to know ’bout it,” she declared.
He rolled toward her to cuddle, putting his hand on her nearly five-month belly.
“You can feel baby lil bit,” she said, guiding his hand to the small hard ball low in her belly.
He absentmindedly began to rub around it, wondering if it would be a boy or a girl. It would be a Christmas baby, a sweet gift for all of them, wherever they would be. His mind began to race. We’ll have to be mum on the real direction in which we’ll be heading, planting incorrect information with certain people, possibly the boarders, hospital workers, and Ellen’s teacher. Only Andersen, Saimi, and Annie and Ed will know the real destination. They can wire information. Then later on, they’ll be able to ship more belongings to us. As soon as McKay knows I’m not here anymore, they’ll go.
All the while that Liam was d
eep in thought, he continued rubbing Eva’s lower belly. He was brought back to the present when she moaned, pulling her nightgown up and off. She rolled to him, taking his flaccid penis into her hand.
“I didn’t know rubbing yer belly like that aroused you.”
She kissed his mouth.
“I’ll take that as ‘Aye, it does’,” he quipped as her kiss ended. He hardened, climbed in between her legs and rode away with Eva to a pure, pleasure-filled, earthy expression of love.
Afterwards, they lay together, sweaty and exhausted.
“I think the bed bounced and squeaked enough to wake the dead,” he said chuckling. “I seem to remember some sort of noise as I was swept away by yer feminine charm.”
“Vhat dat mean?”
He laughed silently in the now quiet night. The windows were open but the air in the room was hot.
“Ye made me sweat, Eva.”
“It verdy hot.” She got up and opened the door to get cross ventilation, then climbed back to bed.
“So are you.” He pulled her close and kissed her.
As they were chatting, he realized he was sticking to her sweaty body. They started to giggle when he tried to pull away, creating a sucking sound loud enough to wake the dead, again.
“I think we made the peepers and crickets outside fall silent.” He started to silently giggle again. “Hear them now? They’re starting up again.”
He was trying to stay as quiet as he could, but the laughter took over. He hooted and guffawed uncontrollably into his pillow. In turn, she began to giggle at him. It was a grand way of releasing the fearful stress of the last day. They calmed a short while later and finally fell asleep after the clock struck four.
~~~
Liam woke startled as Ellen and Liisa came into their room at six thirty in the morning. The girls were steeped in their own stress, mostly Ellen. Liisa clamored into her mamma’s arms, settled in, and stuck her thumb in her mouth. As they all sat on the creaky, iron double bed, Liam, with Eva's help, did his best to explain what was going on. The sun had been up since five and was already beginning to heat the small upstairs room that hadn’t cooled enough from the several hot days before.
Eva and the Irishman Page 58