Beyond These Hills

by Sandra Robbins

  He’d been disappointed on his arrival to find that Superintendent Ross Eakin was out of the office for a few days, but he’d spent the time becoming familiar with the area. Hiking the trails in the area had introduced him to the wonders of nature in the Smokies, and it thrilled him that he was going to have a small part in its development.

  He climbed from the car and ambled into the hotel lobby. Several men, more tourists no doubt, sat on plush sofas and chairs in the center of the room. They lowered their newspapers as he passed by and nodded. He returned the greeting and headed for the desk at the other side of the room.

  A young man wearing a white shirt with a black tie looked up from the desk as Andrew approached. “May I help you?”

  “I’m a guest here. Andrew Brady, room 10. Are there any messages for me?”

  “I’ll check, sir.” He turned toward the pigeonholed wall behind the desk, reached into the one numbered 10, and pulled out an envelope. “This was left for you earlier, sir.”

  “Thanks.” Andrew turned and sauntered to the side of the room. He stopped in front of one of the windows with a view of the surrounding mountains and ripped the envelope open.

  Dear Mr. Brady,

  I’m sorry I was out of town when you arrived in Gatlinburg. However, I returned today as planned and am pleased to accept your invitation to supper tonight. I will meet you in the dining room of the Mountain View Hotel at 6:00 p.m.

  Sincerely,

  J. Ross Eakin, Superintendent

  Great Smoky Mountains National Park

  Thank goodness. He’d finally returned. Andrew glanced at his watch. Four o’clock. He had some time before dinner to write his father a letter and then read over the information about the CCC camps he’d brought with him. He headed toward the hallway where his room was located but veered back toward the desk before he left the lobby.

  The same young man glanced up as he approached. “Is there something else I can help you with, sir?”

  Andrew cleared his throat before he spoke. “Do you know where I can find the studio of Mountain Laurel Pottery?”

  The clerk’s forehead wrinkled, and he rested his fist on the counter. His index finger tapped on its surface. “Mountain Laurel Pottery?” he said. After a moment he shook his head. “It’s probably one of the local artists, but there’re so many. I’m new in Gatlinburg and haven’t learned all of them yet. I can ask the manager though.”

  Andrew shook his head. “That won’t be necessary. It’s not important. I’m leaving in the morning and won’t have time to visit it anyway.”

  He turned and hurried toward the hallway that led to his room. Once inside he slammed the door behind him and raked his hand through his hair. Why in the world had he asked the clerk that? A chance meeting, that’s all it was. He’d unloaded some boxes, chatted a few minutes, and then left. Nothing else had happened. Nothing.

  He sat down on the edge of the bed, propped his elbows on his knees, and bent forward. He grasped both sides of his head and groaned. Who was he kidding? If it was really nothing, his heart wouldn’t pound like it was hitting an anvil every time he thought of the girl with the long black braid.

  He would give himself a week or so to attend to his mission in Cades Cove, and then he was going to find Mountain Laurel Pottery and the girl he couldn’t get out of his mind. Surely someone in one of the shops in town could tell him where the studio was located. Maybe once he’d seen her again, he could put her out of his thoughts and move on with his work here.

  Smiling, he lay back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. It sounded like a good plan. Get acquainted with the Cove, find the studio, and convince himself how silly his instant infatuation had been.

  Matthew glanced in the rearview mirror of the truck as he turned into the yard of the cabin he and Rani had lived in when they first married. He couldn’t see Willie, who had settled down in the back of the truck when they’d left Gatlinburg. Perhaps he sensed something was troubling his father because he’d been quiet all the way home. Even Laurel seemed lost in thought, and he wondered what she was thinking.

  He pulled the truck to a stop in front of the cabin that now housed Rani’s studio. The minute the truck stopped Rani stepped onto the front porch, propped her hands on her hips, and smiled. His gaze raked over her, and his heart pumped just as it did every time he looked at his beautiful wife. They might have been married for twenty years, but to him she was still the young girl he’d first encountered at the mountain laurel bush when he’d returned to the Cove.

  He heard Willie scramble from the back of the truck. “Hey, Mama,” he yelled. “Where’s Charlie?”

  “At the barn. He said for you to come help him with the milking when you got back.”

  Willie waved to them and dashed off toward the barn in the distance. Matthew smiled at his wife and turned to Laurel. “I’ll get the crates out of the back and take them inside for your mother. You can drive the truck on up to the house.”

  Her eyes grew wide, and she cast a quick glance at her mother. “You’re going to let me drive the truck in front of Mama?”

  He reached over, chucked her under the chin, and winked. “It’s about time she learned I’ve been teaching you to drive. But try not to hit a tree on the way to the house.”

  Laurel’s face turned crimson, and she swatted at his hand. “Oh, Poppa, quit teasing. You make it sound like the house is miles away instead of a few hundred feet. I think I can handle this.”

  “I know you can, darling.”

  Matthew planted a swift kiss on his daughter’s cheek and climbed from the truck. Within minutes he’d pulled the crates from the back and stepped back as she slid into the driver’s seat and headed toward their house.

  He turned toward Rani, whose surprised gaze followed the retreating truck. She faced him as he walked up the porch steps, stopped beside her, and set the containers down. “Is there something you haven’t told me?”

  He laughed and nodded. “I’ve been teaching Laurel to drive, and she’s really good. When are you going to learn?”

  She moved closer to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Her dark eyes stared up at him. “Why would I want to drive when I have you to do that for me?”

  His arms circled her waist, and he pulled her closer. “That’s what I’m here for, to take care of your every need.”

  She smiled and tilted her head to one side. “And you always have.” Her arms tightened around him. “Have I told you today how much I love you?”

  He closed his eyes and breathed in the scent of her. She smelled of wet clay and paint, and it stirred his senses. “I think so, but I never get tired of hearing you say it.” His lips brushed hers, and he sighed. “Some nights I still dream that I’m back in the railroad camps and I’m beating some poor soul senseless. I wake up drenched in sweat with my heart pounding, and then I hear you breathing. I reach out and touch your cheek just to make sure you’re beside me, and only then can I relax. I still don’t know what I ever did to deserve you, Rani.”

  She reached up and traced her finger down the side of his face. “I knew how special you were the first day at the mountain laurel bush.”

  “And I’d never seen a more beautiful woman in my life. I couldn’t believe it when you finally married me.”

  She pulled out of his arms and reached down to pick up one of the crates. “Our life has been good here, Matthew. But for how much longer? Did you see the lawyer?”

  He picked up the other container and headed inside the cabin. Rani followed behind. When they were inside, he set the crate down and faced her. “I saw him, but it wasn’t good news.”

  Rani clenched her fists and took a step toward him. “What do you mean? We’ve already won our lawsuit.”

  “The suit that Simon and I brought saying the government had no right to our land was only upheld in our local court.”

  Rani nodded. “I know that.”

  “The state appealed it to the Tennessee Supreme Court, and they’ve overt
hrown the decision.”

  She sucked in her breath and frowned. “So what do we do now?”

  Matthew blinked and glanced at her. “Now?”

  Rani narrowed her eyes. “Surely we’re not going to roll over and play dead just because the government wants to take our land. This is our land. You were born here, and so were our children. I was born in the cabin where my parents live. We can’t just throw up our hands and give up.” She clenched her fists at her side and took a step closer. “There must be something else we can do.”

  “There’s one more thing. The problem is I don’t think it’s going to do anything but buy us a little more time here.” He rubbed his hand across his eyes and exhaled. “Mr. Smith wants us to file a countersuit saying that our land is worth more than what the government has offered. It’ll be tied up in court for a while. If they win that, we’ll file another suit.”

  Rani nodded. “I think that’s a good idea. Did you tell him to go ahead?”

  “I did. But all the way home I’ve wondered if I did the right thing.”

  “Why would you think you’d made a mistake?”

  His shoulders drooped, and he raked his hand through his hair. “We can keep them tied up in court for years, but in the end it’s not going to do any good. They’re going to win, and we will have to sell our land. The park is a reality, and the government’s not going to let a few farms remain in the middle of it.”

  Rani’s face turned crimson. “What are they going to do? Pick us up and move us out by force?”

  Matthew tilted his head to one side and flashed one of the exasperated looks that he reserved for his wife. “Rani, I don’t think it’s going to come to that. But we have to be realistic. Your father is sixty-five years old, and he’s not in good health. I’m afraid the stress of prolonging a lawsuit will take its toll on him. Do you want that?”

  Her dark eyes filled with tears, and she studied him for a moment before she responded. “I can’t stand the thought of our court case harming him—or you either. If something happened to you because of this…I…I don’t know what I’d do.”

  He gathered her into his arms again. “Don’t worry. I won’t let it come to that. We’ll have to pray that God will show us what to do.” Matthew rubbed his hands down his wife’s back and sighed. “He knows what’s in the future, but it sure is hard waiting for it to happen. We’ll just have to hold on to our faith.”

  She was quiet for a moment, then she pulled back to stare into his eyes. “Ten years ago the park supporters assured us that the people in Cades Cove would be allowed to keep their farms and we could live within the park. Were we foolish to believe them?”

  Matthew sighed. “It looks like we were.”

  Her arms wrapped around his neck, and she smiled. “Do you remember how we thanked God on our wedding day for the blessings He was already sending our way?”

  He smiled. “I do.”

  “Then I guess we’ll just have to continue to do that. No matter what happens, He’s going to take care of us.”

  He pulled her close again, and his lips brushed hers. “You always help me see what’s important in life. Thank you for that.”

  She laughed and kissed his cheek. “I thought you did that for me. Now why don’t we go round up our children and get ready for supper?”

  He smiled and released her. “That’s the best idea I’ve heard all day long.”

  Hand in hand they exited the small cabin and headed toward the house in the distance. As they passed the mountain laurel bush his father had planted, Matthew pulled Rani to a stop and gazed into the distance. The setting sun’s rays cast a warm glow over the house he’d built for his family. To its left some distance away stood the lodge he and Simon had constructed.

  He circled her shoulder with his arm. “Do you remember the first day we stood here? I told you I had a dream to build a lodge for tourists who wanted to come to Cades Cove to hike and fish and just enjoy the beauty of the mountains.”

  She snuggled closer. “I do. That was the day you kissed me for the first time.”

  He smiled at the memory. “I know. All I ever wanted was to come back to the Cove and live among people I knew. Then I met you, and I wanted you more than anything else I’d ever dreamed of.” He glanced down at her. “God gave us what we wanted, but it may be time for us to pass on this beautiful place to other generations.”

  “I think that sometimes too, but then I push the thought out of my head,” she whispered.

  Matthew sighed and hugged her closer. “I guess time will tell.”

  They gazed out for a few more moments before they trudged toward the house they’d shared for years. Matthew tried to shake the thought from his head, but something told him that the way of life he’d known for decades was slipping through his fingers. Trying to be brave for Rani and his children was beginning to wear on him. If the government did take their land, he didn’t know whether or not he could survive somewhere else. And would he be a failure to his family if he let their home slip through his fingers—just as Pete and Laura had?

  That question kept him awake many nights, and he doubted if tonight would be any different. In the meantime, he wanted to enjoy every moment with his family here in the place that had sheltered them for years.

  Andrew chewed the last bite of his roast beef and studied the man sitting across the table from him: J. Ross Eakin, the man who’d been chosen to be the first superintendent of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. With his short, stocky build, round face, and bushy eyebrows, Superintendent Eakin looked like he would be more comfortable hiking through the mountains instead of having the responsibility of shaping a wilderness for others to enjoy. But in the hour since Andrew had first sat down with him in the Mountain View Hotel’s dining room, he had discovered that a sharp mind resided behind the man’s quiet façade.

  Superintendent Eakin glanced up at him. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here to welcome you when you arrived. I’ve been at several of the work sites in the park for the last few days and couldn’t get back until this afternoon.”

  “I understand, sir. I took advantage of the time to hike some of the trails around here and introduce myself to the area.”

  “Good. I’ve been a lot of places, but I must say I’ve never seen anything to equal the beauty of the Smokies.”

  Andrew nodded. “I agree. But I wanted to ask you about something. What’s the story of the buildings on the property next to the hotel? The first time I went down the footpath that runs from the hotel to it, I was amazed to find a school and a clinic and all kinds of other buildings.”

  Superintendent Eakin smiled. “That’s a settlement school. It was founded as a literacy project in 1912 by Pi Beta Phi Fraternity for Women. The organization started Gatlinburg’s first school there, but they also wanted to make an economic impact on the mountain people. For years they’ve been helping the people get their crafts to markets outside the mountains, and they started Gatlinburg’s first hospital too. Their nurses have done a great service to the people in this area. Now doctors and dentists come from Knoxville regularly to help them out. That group has been a real blessing to these mountains.”

  Andrew shook his head in amazement. “I knew from all the activity I saw over there it had to be something important. And you say there’s a hospital there too?”

  Superintendent Eakin laughed. “Well, I’m sure the Jennie Nichol Health Center isn’t as well-equipped as the hospitals in Washington, but it serves its purpose here in the mountains.”

  Andrew dropped his gaze to his plate and laid his fork down. “There’s so much history in this area, and I can’t wait to learn more about life here. But I know you’d rather be home tonight after returning from your trip than having dinner with me and orienting me to my new surroundings. I do appreciate your meeting with me before I head out to Cades Cove.”

  Superintendent Eakin wiped his mouth on his napkin and cocked his head to one side. “No problem. I thought it important that we get together. E
verything’s arranged for your assignment here. You’re to stay at the CCC camp in the Cove. Lieutenant Gray, the superintendent there, will help you with any needs you have.”

  Andrew smiled and nodded. “Thank you. I’m sure I’ll make it fine. From what I’ve heard around town, the men at the camp are doing a great job.”

  “They are.” Superintendent Eakin pushed his plate away and leaned back in his chair. “They’ve been working on constructing hiking trails, especially the one up to Gregory’s Bald, and they’ve also cleared and built some fire control roads. Fires are one of the things that we have to be very watchful for. Even though the land has been bought from the lumber companies, they’re still logging in certain areas. That, along with the increased tourist traffic, makes fires more likely to occur.”

  “We’re fortunate to have the CCC workforce to help with the park construction.”

  The superintendent nodded. “That’s right. But I didn’t meet with you to talk about park construction. I’m more concerned right now with the assignment you’ve been given. Do you think you can handle it?”

  Even though the room was warm, a slight chill rippled down Andrew’s spine at the unexpected question. His eyes grew wide, and his throat constricted. “That sounds like you may have some doubts about my abilities. Is that right?”

  Mr. Eakin studied Andrew’s face for a moment as his fingers tapped on the white tablecloth. “Let me be honest with you, Andrew. Right now the government has bought up nearly all the land needed for the park with the exception of the holdouts in Cades Cove. When we requested a new negotiator to come here and convince the Cove residents to sell their land, I never dreamed it would be somebody just out of college. You’re young, and rumor is you got this job because your congressman father pushed for you to have it.”

  “But, sir…”

  Superintendent Eakin held up his hand to stop him. “I want you to understand that this project is important to me. We’ve accepted the challenge of taking on an 816-square-mile wilderness in Tennessee and North Carolina to preserve it for generations to come. I can’t afford to let anything endanger what has taken us years to get approved. Now I’ll ask you again. Can you handle this job?”