by Holly Blake
She laughed to herself as she headed down the stairs to breakfast. Today she and James were meant to spend the whole day together getting to know each other. Last evening Anna’s husband, Brody had stopped by as they were eating and had a plate of dinner himself. Esther smiled, remembering the look on James’s face when Brody informed him that Anna had arranged for Brody to help out at the Inn so James could have the entire next day off to spend with his betrothed.
It had been a look of pure fear and that look was what Esther was laughing at now. How would he be this morning knowing that they would be forced to spend the day together, just the two of them? She thought he might just pass out from fear.
At the bottom of the stairs James waited for her. He was dressed in a suit that must have been twenty years old. He wore a small flower in the lapel and his hair had been molded into the most ridiculous style. He had made such an effort to look good, but it was a look that was so dated that Esther had to stifle her laugh again. There was no fear left in her. She liked this man and appreciated his efforts, but she would have to bring him up to date. He had obviously been living in the untamed west for so long that he had lost any idea of what was fashionable, and yet it was somehow endearing.
“Mrs. Buford, I hope you slept well,” James said holding out his arm to escort Esther to the dining room.
“I slept very well Mr. Halverson, thank you.” She took James’s arm and allowed him to guide her into the dining room and to a lovely table near the window. Brody and Anna Laramie were already at the Inn along with a younger man. They were all working feverishly to serve breakfast to the full dining room. Esther sat on the chair that James had pulled out for her and he sat across the table from her. His eyes darted around the room and he kept twitching as if he would burst out of his suit at any moment.
Anna came swinging out of the kitchen with two plates of breakfast for Esther and James. She set the plates down and chided James. “Do not move from that seat James, you are being served today.” James looked up at the pretty but determined blue eyes and blushing, he slouched a little in his seat. “We have it all under control, even Billy came to lend us a hand, so you are not needed today.” She laughed and turned her gaze toward Esther. “I have taken a tray up to Mrs. Buford and will help her dress once the rush is over, so you have no need to worry on her behalf. I have also taken the liberty of asking Dr. Montgomery to come and check in on her.”
Anna turned but Esther stopped her. “You shouldn’t have bothered the doctor. There is nothing she can do for Mrs. Buford now. She is dying.”
“That may be so, but Dr. Montgomery is one of the best doctors in the whole country and she can at least make sure that Mrs. Buford is comfortable.”
“Thank you so much for being so considerate Miss Anna. I appreciate your kindness and I am sure that Mrs. Buford does also.”
“Oh you are welcome Esther. I just love your southern accent, you sound so much more sophisticated than anyone around here!” Anna smiled and twirled away into the kitchen before Esther could say another word.
“She is right you know. You are far more sophisticated than anyone around here, especially me. Are you sure you will be happy in this….uncivilized place Mrs. Buford? I know you haven’t had much say in all this and I want to make sure that you know that you don’t have to marry me if you don’t want to. I completely understand and wouldn’t blame you at all. And in case you are worried about it, you and your mother-in-law can stay here as long as you want as my guests. Don’t be feeling any pressure on account of me.”
Esther felt the knots that had tied her up for the last few weeks release and disappear as she looked into the earnest and sweet eyes of James Halverson. “Why Mr. Halverson, James, that is strangely the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me.” Esther felt tears of relief come to her eyes, but something else stirred in her depths, something she had never felt before. James Halverson was an engaging, awkward and intensely kind man and these qualities made Esther feel genuine affection for him. Was it love that she was feeling? She didn’t know. She had never felt it before, but she knew that she would be happy to marry this man. It stopped feeling like a duty and started feeling like a choice, and she knew she could back out of the engagement any time. But at this moment, she didn’t want to.
“James, I am happy to marry you, but we have time before our wedding, let us get to know each other better, shall we?” She smiled at James trying to convey her deep admiration. He smiled at her with a grin as big as she had ever seen. It pleased her to bring him such happiness. He took her hand and kissed it gently.
“We shall get to know one another Mrs. Buford, and I hope that we will also become good friends in the coming weeks.”
“James, I think we should be on first name basis as we are promised one to another. Please call me Esther; it would make me so happy if you would.”
“Esther, such a beautiful name, Esther.” James sat back in his chair breathing her name as if it was life itself. He gazed at her with such emotion that Esther could feel herself start to blush. She sighed as that strange feeling came bubbling up inside her once again.
Chapter Six
Three weeks disappeared like the wind. Esther knew that she was in love with James Halverson. He was kind, gentle and sweet. At first he wouldn’t allow her to work at the Inn, but she insisted that it would be her job soon and she would have to learn the ropes sooner or later.
She had introduced the town to Creole cooking in the last week, something her Nanny had taught her while she was growing up in New Orleans. She was also adept at the cuisine of French cooking; however getting those ingredients proved almost impossible in this remote local.
Mrs. Buford had improved in spirit and in form under Dr. Montgomery’s care, and although the doctor kept insisting that she take it easy, Virginia was determined to plan a wedding that would be long remembered for her loving daughter in law. She soon impressed everyone with her new found vigor, and so it came as quite a surprise when one day while finishing an adjustment of Esther’s veil, she fell into a coughing fit brought about a total collapse.
She was taken to the clinic and made as comfortable as possible. Esther rushed to the clinic and stayed with her all night. Dr. Montgomery sadly informed Esther that it would not be long until Mrs. Buford would be with the angels. It broke Esther’s heart to know that she was about to lose the woman who had given her a life, not once, not twice but three times.
She gave Esther her first husband and did all she could to make that life bearable. Then she took Esther in when she had lost everything after the war. And now, once again she had found Esther a new life with a man so good that she couldn’t help but love him.
Sitting by Virginia’s bedside Esther began to weep. “Oh child, don’t cry for me.” Virginia’s voice was barely a whisper. “I have loved you as if you were my own daughter and I have always wanted you to be happy. I have seen the sparkle return to your eye. Seeing that has warmed my heart. I know that marrying my son was not your choosing, but I am so glad that it at least brought us together.”
“I grew to love Harry.” Esther insisted but Virginia shook her head.
“No, you never really loved him, not as a wife should love her husband. But that is all in the past. My dearest wish for you now, is to marry James and find true happiness, a happiness that you more than deserve.”
She began to cough violently. Esther felt so helpless. She looked around but there was no one there, and nothing anyone could have done anyway. Virginia squeezed Esther’s hand hard as she pulled her coughing under control.
“I love you Esther and I am so glad that you have fallen in love with Mr. Halverson. You have my blessing and my heartfelt gratitude for all the many things you have done for me and my family over the years. I only have two regrets in my life. I regret that I have not heard from Darby in all these long years. I miss that boy; and I regret that I won’t be at your wedding.”
Virginia looked deeply into Esther’s moist eye
s. She felt like Virginia was taking in her very soul and, finding it good, she settled back onto her pillows.
“I have one more thing I must tell you Esther, before I cannot speak again.” Virginia took a shallow breath and spoke with determination. “In my dresser at the Inn you will find a letter addressed to yourself. In it, you will find instructions that I need you to follow. I sent a letter to my lawyer in North Carolina a week ago. He had hired a man to find Darby for me but he has reported back that Darby is most likely deceased. There is no trace of him as of two years ago, when he boarded a ship from Spain heading to Africa. The ship was lost and we believe he was on it.”
Esther froze and new tears sprang to her eyes. She had tried to find Virginia’s estranged son Darby herself when Harry passed away. Harry had never spoken to Esther about him but Virginia spoke of him often, telling stories of what a rebel he’d been. Darby was a good twelve years younger than Harry, and had run off to see the world long before Esther had been betrothed to Harry.
“I’m so sorry I couldn’t find him for you. I tried so hard to get him to come home for Harry’s funeral.”
“I know dear,” Virginia said, squeezing Esther’s hand. “I appreciate all of your efforts, I really do. But I don’t think Darby ever wanted to be found. I don’t think he cared to see either his brother or his old mother ever again.”
“And it was entirely his loss,” Esther said bitterly. “I just don’t like that he has caused you such sadness and regret.”
“Everyone has regrets, dear. All we can do in life is be the best we can and be satisfied with that.”
Then Virginia smiled weakly. “Could you go and fetch me a glass of water dear, I am so thirsty.”
“Of course, I won’t be but a moment.”
“I love you dear, always remember that. You have such a kind heart.”
“I love you too Miss Virginia, and am grateful for all the things you’ve done for me.” Esther stood and slipped out of the room to get a glass of water. She heard Virginia sigh as she stepped through the threshold.
Quickly, she found a glass and filled it with water from the pitcher in the medication room. It was the coolest room in the clinic so they always kept some cool water here. Suddenly Esther felt a chill move through her and she nearly dropped the glass of water. She turned and half ran to Virginia’s bedside.
Mrs. Virginia Buford was gone. Her pale skin had gone slack but there seemed to be a small smile on her lips. Esther sat the water on the side table and sank down on the chair beside the bed. She took Virginia’s cold hand in her own and began to weep. Her weeping soon turned to heart wrenching sobs and she was glad that the clinic was empty.
She cried for her lost youth, for her father and mother, for Harry and even for the estranged Darby. She cried for hours and when she was done, she folded Virginia Buford’s soft hands upon her chest and pulled the sheet over her lifeless face. Esther took her handkerchief and dried her eyes. She straightened her dress and smoothed her hair. Then, standing just a little bit taller than she had in a long time she walked out of the clinic and back to the Inn. She would not search for Virginia’s letter, not today. She would wait until her heart had healed just a little bit more, and then she would lean on James for the strength she would need to fulfill Virginia’s instructions, whatever they might be.
Chapter Seven
Two days had gone by since Virginia had passed away. James stood beside Esther at the funeral of the woman who had meant so much to his fiancé. He held her in his arms as she wept. Rain had begun that morning, not an oppressive rain, just a light mist that seemed appropriate to the sad activities of the day. When the pastor finished his prayer Esther place a single flower on Virginia’s casket and stepped back leaning against James. She wept and held him, burying her face in his chest.
James felt for the woman that he loved. He had gotten to know Virginia a little since she had accompanied Esther to Wyldewood and through the letters they had exchanged, but the telling evidence of the woman’s good heart was in the letter that she left in her dresser for Esther to be opened upon her death.
It was filled with love and concern for Esther and her future. She spoke of how she had watched the young girl who had been forced to marry her son grow into a strong and graceful woman. She spoke of her heartbreak when Harry Buford had died without making Esther a mother and herself a grandmother. But her greatest sadness of all was that she would not be privileged to see Esther marry for love and have the happy life she always deserved.
Also in the letter was something that neither James nor Esther could have foreseen. Virginia had left Esther a tidy inheritance that would make the two of them very wealthy. The trust with the money had been intended for Darby, but as he was nowhere to be found, it was now Esther’s. The arrangements for the transfer of the estate from Darby to Esther had already begun, starting with a large sum of cash and finishing with a generous income from Virginia’s holdings. The lump sum was to be used to fix up the Inn and make it the nicest place in the country with an extension to the living quarters to make it as comfortable as Esther’s childhood home.
James had already begun the arrangements and some of the work with the aid of Brody and Billy Laramie. He couldn’t believe his good fortune. He was truly blessed to have such a wonderful bride-to-be and now they would also be wealthy beyond his dreams. What had he done to deserve such tremendous blessings?
As James listened to the pastor give his eulogy, he felt the warmth of Esther’s soft embrace. Her weeping had slowed and she was listening to the pastor now. The rain fell like tears around them, creating a mist in the air that made the edges of everything look fuzzy and soft. James looked around the graveyard; he had so many friends buried here. And just beyond where the pastor stood, over by the sprawling willow tree was his own dear Theresa. He knew in his heart that she would be happy for him and she would have liked Esther very much.
As his eyes swept over the graveyard, James suddenly caught movement out of the corner of his eye. He tried to crane his neck for a better look but the shadowy form darted quickly behind a tree, as though he had seen James looking at him.
Esther sensed his change in demeanor and looked up at him concerned. He smiled into her dark brown eyes and squeezed her tighter. She looked back at the pastor.
Assured that no one else had seen the stranger beyond the graveyard, James squinted to get a better look. He saw a faint shadow of a tall man, well over six foot. He was standing behind the tree and watching the small group of mourners. James didn’t recognize this stranger and the man was dressed somewhat strangely for these parts. James decided that there was no use trying to get a better look now, he would wait until the service was over and go and check things out.
Throughout the remainder of the service James kept steeling glances toward the tree. The man behind it never stepped out again. The congregation of mourners where heading back to the Inn for a luncheon that had been prepared there. As people milled by offering Esther their condolences and thanking the pastor for a lovely service, James asked Anna to take Esther back so that he could check on something.
“What is it James, you have been acting strangely for the past half hour.” Esther said.
“It’s nothing dear, I just thought I saw something amiss at the back of the church and want to make sure it isn’t a broken shutter or an open window. We can’t let the rain get into the church now can we?”
“Of course dear; I will see you back at the Inn shortly.” Anna took Esther’s arm and the two women walked back together as James headed over to the tree.
He looked back toward Anna and Esther who had stopped to watch him. He waved to them and made a bee line for the back of the church. In a moment he glanced back but the women were gone. He looked toward the tree. The shadow had also disappeared. James walked over to where he had seen the man, half convinced it was a ghost he had seen, but ghosts don’t leave footprints. Embedded in the muddy ground were a circle of a man’s footprints. He had bee
n behind the tree and moving around for some time. The impressions he left where deep and many. James followed the footsteps to where a patch of horse hoof prints were also visible. The tracks from the horse led away from town, into the woods.
“How strange,” James thought. Why would someone come to the funeral of a woman who had only recently come to these parts, and then hide in the trees? She didn’t know many people here and those she did know were all at the funeral. James reasoned that it must have been someone from her home town, but who? The only family she had left was Esther. Would a friend come all the way from the east and not stay at the Inn or come to comfort Esther? James shook his head as he peered as far as he could into the forest.
Then something tickled the back of his mind. He shook his head. “Impossible,” he thought. “Darby, Virginia Buford’s estranged son had been lost at sea, or was he? There was a possibility that the young man had left the ship before it was lost, or even survived the storm that had taken it. But why would he not have come sooner? They had been looking for the boy for years and could never find him. The ship had been lost two years ago; Esther had told him all of this. There had been trouble in the family but surely the boy would not have held a grudge for so long? James shook his head, no it could not be the boy, it was impossible.
Chapter Eight
The extension and repairs to the Inn were well underway. It was amazing how fast things where moving. It seemed that as soon as folks in the area heard that Esther was cooking Creole lunches for all workers and James was feeding everyone Italian food for dinner, the volunteers just kept coming out of the woodwork. Even Sheriff Grover Wright turned up to help paint the porch that had been added to the front of the Inn.