by Lois Richer
“So I guess the brothers planned to go, too?” Ben asked.
“Yes, but Jerry contracted scarlet fever. Tillie and Margaret delayed their departure to nurse him at a friend’s home but his recovery was very slow.” As usual, Victoria felt a rush of sympathy for the two couples.
“I’m listening,” Ben encouraged.
“The missions’ society sponsoring the aunts kept pressing them to leave to replace other missionaries due to return to Canada. Jerry and Tom did, too. They wanted the sisters to keep their commitment to the society.”
“Why?” Ben frowned.
“Because as the sons of missionaries who’d served in Africa, Tom and Jerry knew what the mission meant to the Africans. They insisted the aunts shouldn’t break their promise to the society,” Victoria explained.
“Strong men.” Ben sounded approving.
“Very. Anyway, Tillie and Margaret left believing their fiancés would join them later. They were in Africa four months before they learned Tom had had a heart attack rendering him unable to travel. The aunts prepared to return, but the men telegrammed begging them to stay. The men had heard rumors that if left understaffed, the government would probably close the sisters’ Rhodesian mission. They did not want Tillie and Margaret to alter what they believed was God’s will.”
“So they stayed here and built The Haven,” Ben guessed.
“You’re jumping way ahead,” Victoria protested.
“Missionaries get furloughs, don’t they?” Ben asked.
“Yes. A month after Tillie and Margaret returned to Canada, Tom had a second heart attack. And another after that. Everyone feared he’d die.” Victoria could hardly bear to think of her aunts’ distress. “Aunt Tillie told me she and Margaret took turns nursing him until he slowly recovered. The aunts returned to Rhodesia after Tom and Jerry agreed they’d follow when possible. Again they made plans to marry.”
“Even fifty years ago, it must have taken a fortune to buy all the land and build The Haven.” Ben frowned. “The aunts gave up a comfy life.”
“Oh, the brothers weren’t wealthy at first. In fact, they supported their widowed and ailing sister and her two children.” Victoria smiled. “It took years before they became successful. But I digress.”
“They couldn’t go to Africa,” Ben guessed.
“No, because their sister died, leaving them guardians of her daughters. Both were sickly. Tom and Jerry eventually realized that their own poor health would never allow them to travel to Africa.” Victoria saw empathy flash across his face.
“Just shows how our plans can change in an instant,” he murmured.
Boy, did Victoria know about that. She’d never planned to be a single mother.
“Go on.” Ben leaned forward in his eagerness to hear the story. She liked that he was so interested in the aunts’ history.
“Well, after much prayer, the men decided God had planned a different future for them. They raised their nieces in the fresh mountain air, which seemed to help their unhealthy lungs,” she said.
“And then?”
“Tom and Jerry invented a medical item that helped hospitals enormously and made them wealthy. They bought acres of land and built this house, a home for their nieces and for Tillie and Margaret when they finally returned to Canada for good.” She waved a hand. “Tom and Jerry lovingly thought out every detail of The Haven. They were amazing men who truly loved the aunts.”
“But Tillie’s always signed her letters Miss.” Ben’s blue-eyed gaze studied her. “Didn’t they marry after all?”
“I have to tell it in sequence, Ben,” Victoria chided. “The nieces contracted polio and never recovered, dying just weeks before the aunts finally returned here. After a period of mourning, the four again planned their long-anticipated weddings.” Victoria paused in the sad tale, then added, “Tom and Jerry went on a bachelor hiking trip through their beloved mountains three days before the weddings. They were fatally shot by illegal poachers.”
“Oh, no. After all that waiting.” She liked that Ben seemed genuinely moved. Proved he was nothing like stone-cold Derek who felt nothing for his own child. “It must have been hard to accept that, after all their sacrifice, God didn’t give the sisters their own happy ending.”
“Didn’t He?” Victoria tried not to smile, relieved Tillie and Margaret hadn’t heard that. “Tom and Jerry left their fortunes and The Haven to the sisters to, as they put it, continue their missionary work. So the aunts got busy being missionaries in their community.”
She stretched her neck, suddenly weary. This motherhood thing was taxing.
“That wasn’t enough,” Ben guessed.
“The colonel I mentioned earlier? He knew someone who agreed to provide them with the names of troops they could write to. And thus began the sisters’ letter-writing ministry.”
“Amazing story. Bad turned to blessings.” Ben nodded. “A lot of men in my unit really look forward to the ladies’ letters, you know. I’m one of them. I’ve also heard how they often have veterans visiting here.”
“They often do, but there’s a lot more to my aunties than that.” Victoria grinned.
“Meaning?”
Of course she wouldn’t tell Ben the whole truth about herself, but she did want him to realize how important Tillie and Margaret were in so many lives.
“You met my sisters Adele and Olivia at dinner tonight though I doubt much sunk in. You were hurting pretty badly.”
“I’m sorry I had such poor manners,” Ben said, looking embarrassed.
“They understood. They’re used to hurting people showing up here. All of us are. We were some of them once.” She chuckled at his confused look. “Let me explain. When I was ten and my sisters a bit younger—by the way, we have a fourth foster sister, Gemma. Anyway, we four girls were troublemakers headed down a bad road. We all had the same caseworker and she wanted us away from the gang we were about to join. So she asked the aunts to fund trips to camp for all four of us.”
“You liked it there?” Ben asked.
“We four girls had never met before but being bad apples, we banded together and caused no end of problems in that camp.” How she regretted that.
“I find it hard to believe you were a troublemaker, Victoria.” He frowned.
“Believe it. The camp wanted us gone. In desperation, our caseworker contacted her friends Tillie and Margaret again and, ignoring their ages, asked them to take all four of us for three months. No one else would touch us for a week, so asking for three months was asking a lot.”
“You’re kidding.” Ben’s gaping stare made her smile.
“Not at all. We were all experienced foster brats. We’d all learned how to fool everyone. Except once we got to The Haven, we couldn’t fool Tillie and Margaret.” She chuckled at the memory of their pranks. “Short story—we four girls grew up here with abundant love demonstrated every day. The service men and women the aunts host here made a big impact on us. So did the aunts’ offers to accommodate countless local programs for various charity groups. We grew up seeing missionaries in action.”
“So Tom and Jerry’s Haven has truly become a haven for a lot of people.” Ben’s blue eyes stretched wide. “Quite a story.”
“It is.” Victoria sipped her cocoa thoughtfully. “But I don’t know how much longer that can continue.”
“What do you mean?” Ben’s forehead furrowed. “Are Tillie and Margaret broke?”
“Oh, no. Tom and Jerry invested very wisely.” Victoria exhaled. “It’s more to do with aging. We four girls moved out, pursued careers, got on with our lives. But the aunts are still here, much older and virtually alone, except for Jake, and he can’t run the place alone forever, though he’d argue otherwise.”
“So Tillie and Margaret have to leave The Haven?” Ben asked quietly.
“Not without a struggle.” Victoria grimaced. “Since I’m home for a while, I’m hoping to figure out a way for them to stay a little longer. If Aunt Maggie hasn’t al
ready beaten me to it,” she added darkly.
“What does that mean?”
Victoria bit her lip.
“You don’t want to tell me?” he prodded.
“It’s not that. It’s—my aunts get a lot of ideas.” Sitting here in the twilight, talking with Ben—it wasn’t as bad as Victoria had expected. In fact, maybe he’d have some thoughts on how to keep the aunts in their home. “Some of their ideas are, well, let’s call them outlandish.”
“I see.” Ben’s intense stare made her nervous. And yet it was also somehow comforting to talk out her fears. She certainly couldn’t have done it with Derek. At least Ben didn’t try to make her feel silly or stupid.
“The thing is, even their most bizarre ideas often work. Eventually,” she mumbled, wishing her usual proficiency with fixing things hadn’t suddenly deserted her.
“You think your aunts have a plan for how they can stay here?” Ben asked.
“Something Aunt Margaret said before she went to bed makes me think the two of them have come up with a new scheme.” Victoria read his face and chuckled. “You think that’s good. It might be. It might also turn out to be totally, utterly impossible. In which case,” she explained, leaning forward so he’d understand, “my sisters and I will have to gently disabuse them of the notion.”
“Having met the two ladies, I’m guessing that won’t be easy.” Ben tried and failed to smother his amusement. Suddenly he sat up straight. “Was that Mikey calling? Since we, er, found his parents’ bodies, he’s had nightmares and—”
“Being afraid is probably normal for all little kids sometimes. But I have a monitor in Mikey’s room, Ben.” She pulled it out of her pocket. “Listen.” She held it up. All that transmitted was the sound of smooth, even breathing. “He’s fine, but I can go check on him if that will make you feel better.”
“Do you mind?” He glanced at his foot. “I’d do it but that spiral staircase is daunting.”
“I take it you’re happy with your main-floor room down the hall, then?” She chuckled at his forceful nod and rose. “Back in a jiffy.”
Snugging her ancient and tattered velvet robe around her waist, Victoria scooted up the stairs. Mikey was fast asleep just like her aunts who were snoring. There were no sounds from the room Olivia shared with Adele so Victoria padded down the stairs in her fluffy slippers and reentered the salon.
“Everything’s good, Ben.” She scanned his tense face. “But I don’t think you are.”
“It’s my leg. I need to elevate it. I’d better get to bed.” He rose slowly, using his crutch. “Thanks for checking on Mikey and the cocoa and the talk, Victoria. I’ll pray about The Haven’s future though I’m not sure it will do much good. I’m pretty new at the whole praying thing.”
“New Christian or old, doesn’t make a difference to God. ‘The Lord has set apart the redeemed for Himself. Therefore He will listen to me and answer when I call upon Him,’” she quoted. “That’s what David said in the fourth chapter of Psalms.”
“That’s a verse I need to memorize,” he murmured thoughtfully. “So often I feel like God doesn’t hear me, especially when I see the heartache and devastation in my job. To know that God always listens—that’s comforting.” He stared directly into her eyes. “I’m impressed that you can quote the Bible so easily.”
“Part and parcel of living with Tillie and Margaret.” Victoria smiled. “The Bible is an intricate part of their lives and, by association, those around them.” And you’ve failed to live up to their and your own Biblical principles. A chill ran up her spine. Soon she’d be telling him all of it—“Good night, Ben.”
“Good night.” He continued to study her for several moments. Then he awkwardly wheeled around and thumped across the oak floor, toward his room down the hall.
Victoria waited until she heard his door close before resuming her seat in the armchair, her brain whirling with questions.
How was she going to help the aunts stay at The Haven?
How was she going to raise a baby on her own, with no visible means of support? How was she going to stand seeing the disappointed looks on her aunts’ faces when she told them? She’d already caused them so much heartache when she first came here. Maybe they wouldn’t even want her anymore.
Just how much could their love endure?
Her fingers splayed over her midsection.
God, are You mad at me?
She’d just assured Ben that God always listened, but deep inside her heart, Victoria felt a void, an emptiness she’d never known before. She knew why that was. She’d disregarded the principles she’d been raised on. Maybe God was now leaving it up to her to handle having and raising this baby alone. She was no weakling, but being strong enough for that scared Victoria to her core.
*
The next morning, Ben savored the delicious breakfast Adele had prepared.
“Olivia and I have to get back to work,” she’d explained as she shrugged into her coat. “Since Jake plowed out the road last night to take you into the doctor this morning, we’ll get an early start. Olivia has to catch a flight to Ottawa. She works there for the military. I live in Edmonton and I have a catering job scheduled for tomorrow so I have to go, too.”
“Have a good trip,” he said with a smile.
“Thanks. Vic’s still sleeping. I left a note telling her we’ll text later.”
“I hope we see you and Mikey again, Ben,” Olivia added.
“Me, too,” he said, and meant it.
After hugging their aunts and promising to return soon, the two left. Then Jake appeared and said he’d be driving Ben to town. Conscious of his lack of mobility and wearied by the physical strain of getting in and out of the doctor’s office, Ben was glad to return to The Haven.
“The doctor said you’ll be fine?” Margaret nodded when he repeated the diagnosis of rest. “Good. You and Mikey can stay and relax.”
“Thank you. And thank you for watching him while I went into town.” He sipped his coffee, glad the boy had slept in until a few minutes ago.
“I wish the girls could have stayed a little longer.” Tillie cuddled her coffee mug in her hand. “It’s so much fun when they’re here.”
“Maybe, with the right incentive, they’ll come back.” Margaret wore a quirky smile that Ben thought was somewhat cunning.
“What’s the right incentive, Auntie?” Victoria stumbled into the kitchen, trying to smother a gigantic yawn and failing. Ben thought she looked awful.
“My dear, are you ill?” Tillie rushed to Victoria’s side and ushered her to a chair at the table. “Your face is positively gray!”
“I slept in too long. Maybe that’s why I feel a little off this morning,” Victoria admitted.
A little off? Not the way Ben would have put it.
“Coffee might help,” Margaret suggested.
Perhaps he was the only one who saw Victoria almost gag.
“I’ll wait a bit, thanks, Auntie.”
“I’m sorry if rescuing us caused you to be ill,” he apologized.
“It didn’t.” Victoria avoided looking at him. As if to divert attention from herself, she asked Mikey if he’d slept well.
“I had a good sleep,” his nephew said with a grin. “When I waked up, I saw your little light.”
“Auntie Margaret gave me that light after I came here to live.” Victoria smiled at her aunt. “I was older than you are, Mikey, but I still had bad dreams. Auntie said that when I woke up afraid, I should look at the lamp and remember that Jesus was right beside me, protecting me.”
“Like you said to me!” Mikey exclaimed. “I did an’ it worked. I didn’t get ’fraid.”
“I’m glad. Excuse me.” Victoria suddenly burst from her chair and bolted from the room.
“Oh, the poor dear.” Tillie put on the kettle. “I’ll make her some peppermint tea.”
“I’ll get some crackers.” Margaret frowned as she set the packet on the table. “The child is so thin. It’s not hea
lthy.”
“It’s the fashion now and she’s hardly a child.” Tillie smiled as Victoria returned, looking, in Ben’s opinion, even more pasty-faced than before. “All right, dear?”
“Just a flu bug.” She studied his sling. “That doesn’t look like my work.”
“This morning, Jake drove me in to see the doctor who checked it then redid it. He said your work was very professional.” Ben couldn’t help wondering if Victoria actually heard him. She looked as if she was thinking about something else.
“That’s nice.” She smiled wanly before tearing open the crackers. “Too bad the girls had to leave.”
“Yes, it is.” Tillie exchanged what Ben thought was an odd look with her sister.
“We never had a chance to tell them our idea,” Margaret murmured.
“Your—idea?” Victoria suddenly went still. She glanced from one senior to the other before asking in a hesitant voice, “What’s your idea, Aunties?”
“To make The Haven a—a spa. Is that the word, sister?” Tillie looked to Margaret for clarification.
Ben watched Victoria’s eyes widen. She seemed to scramble for a response.
“A spa is a—good idea, Aunties,” she managed to say. “The Haven has a wonderful location. But—well, we don’t have any pools or hot tubs or mud baths or masseuses. You know,” she continued when the aunts looked confused, “the usual spa things that draw people.”
“Oh, no, dear. Spa’s the wrong word.” Tillie frowned at Margaret. “Can you explain?”
“Think retreat,” Margaret clarified. “A retreat for kids. Troubled kids. Foster kids. Like you were, Victoria.”
Ben immediately saw the potential. Acres of land for hikes to wear kids out. Wild animals to observe, room to relax and allow nature’s peace to calm tortured hearts.
“For kids?” Victoria frowned. “But there’s nothing here for kids!”
“There was for you,” Margaret reminded tartly.
“Yes, but that was years ago, Auntie. Today’s kids are techies, constantly connected. They’d need organized activities—” She stopped, no doubt aware of the sisters’ growing irritation.