by Linda Abbott
Bessie sobbed. “They’re mean to us because of Captain Maurice.”
“You’re all dirty traitors,” Bobby spit out.
Joe stepped in front of Bobby. “Take that back,” he said.
“Dirty traitor,” Bobby said again, and the others began to chant the two words.
Joe lunged at Bobby. Another boy joined in to help Bobby. Sam tried to pull him off his brother’s back, but soon a brawl broke out between all the boys. The girls yelled while Elsa tried to kick at Joe.
Mother Patrick stormed across the grass to the children. “Stop this right away,” she bellowed. As if a bucket of icy water had been thrown over the children, they froze, entangled in each other’s grip. “Get back to class this minute.”
They moved past the nun in single file, avoiding her eyes. Nellie’s boys stood back and waited for the others to move away. Joe sported a bloody nose. Blood dripped from a cut under Sam’s right eye.
“Wait, you two,” Mother Patrick said when they started for the convent. “Go to the kitchen. Sister Assumpta will take care of those cuts.” She followed the boys inside and made for the classroom. Amid tears and sobs from Elsa and Marie, she got to the heart of the matter. Instead of a severe lecture, as every child expected, Mother Patrick assigned a written page on the dangers of fighting. Sister Thérèse supervised the class while the mother superior set out for Nellie’s house.
Nellie was making bully beef hash for dinner when the nun arrived. “I need a quiet word with you,” she said. Nellie was almost in tears herself when Mother Patrick concluded her story about the fight at school.
“I don’t blame Elsa LaCroix for feeling like she does. It must seem like we’re buddies with Maurice despite what he’s done.”
“Maybe you should have a talk with Mrs. LaCroix and explain why you thought the captain was innocent.”
Nellie went cold all over. “It wouldn’t do any good.” She mashed the bully beef in with the potatoes, her tears teetering on the surface. “I was going to help out the widows with some of the money Ike left me. Now they’ll think it’ll be because I feel guilty about associating with Maurice.”
“Good point,” Mother Patrick said. “I’ll give the youngsters a good talking to after dinner.”
Joe and Sam walked in, followed by Marie and Bessie. Nellie put dinner on the table. “I heard all about the ruckus,” she said softly.
“We saw Mother Patrick leave the house,” Sam said. The skin around eyes was puffy, and signs of bruising were already visible along his upper jawbone. Joe would have two black eyes by morning. Nellie chewed her food and noticed Marie sneaking glances at the others, guilt and shame obvious on her face. She couldn’t scold her boys for defending Marie.
“Why does Elsa think Captain Maurice killed her pa?” Bessie asked, her eyes fixed on the table.
Sam fingered his cut and winced. “She’ll feel different when the truth comes out,” he said quietly.
Joe gave Marie a lopsided smile. “We’ll sort it out.”
The tension lifted from Marie’s face. “This bully beef hash is some good,” she said, and shoved a huge forkful into her mouth.
Nellie marvelled at her youngsters’ wisdom. They had seen Marie’s pain and reassured her with a few heartfelt words.
Joe pushed back his chair. “Come on. We can’t be late for school.”
“See you later,” Nellie said as the four youngsters marched out the door, heads held high. She checked on Annie, who lay under a pile of blankets. Nellie wrote a brief note to say she would be at Ike’s house, transporting the last of her porcelain dolls.
When she returned, Annie sat in the kitchen with a plateful of bully beef hash. Nellie ordered her back to bed after the last mouthful, and told her they were having fried codfish for an early supper. She wanted to settle into Ike’s house before dark.
Annie rested on the chesterfield while the last of the belongings were carted away by the youngsters. “I hate to leave, “ Nellie said. “This has been my home for fifteen years.”
Annie sighed softly. “We’ll make Ike’s house our home for the next fifteen.”
Nellie frowned. “We should stop calling it Ike’s house.”
The door opened and the children ran back in. “All done,” Joe said. “We even chopped wood and cleaned up the backyard.”
Nellie took one last look around the room. The square patch of paint where the wedding portrait had hung was a stark contrast to the faded walls. “I believed I would live here for the rest of my life,” she whispered. “Your coach awaits,” she said to Annie. “I asked Steve to come by with his cart.
Annie turned up her nose and marched past Nellie. “Then he’ll have wasted a trip.”
Steve was nowhere in sight. “If he says he’ll be here,” Nellie said, “he’ll be here.”
“I can’t wait all night,” Annie said, and started down the path with Nellie.
A third of the way to the new house, Steve caught up. “Evening, all,” he said, and smiled at Annie with his usual charm. “I’m surprised you didn’t wait for me.”
“Well now, Mr. Marsh. You’ve come all this way. I might as well do the neighbourly thing and accept a ride.”
Steve had tea steeped on the stove and three cups on the table when Nellie arrived. “I don’t mean to poke my nose in where it doesn’t belong,” he said after the children scurried to their rooms, “but have you heard the talk ’round the community about Marie and the French captain?”
Annie slurped her tea. “I for one don’t like him, but he’s Marie’s grandfather.”
Steve sucked on a tooth. “It’s a nasty affair,” he said. “My missus was yakking with Mrs. LaCroix this afternoon. She gave Elsa a tongue banging for causing a brawl at school.”
Annie leaned her elbows on the table. “I feels some bad for her. She’s rearing ten youngsters with little to no money coming in. Now we’re chummy with the man she thinks took her husband away.”
Nellie explained to Steve why they’d agreed to let Marie associate with Maurice.
“To be honest, b’y,” Steve said, “I don’t see how that will make one iota of difference to the widows.”
Nellie sat up straight. “One good thing, anyways, is that Maurice doesn’t live here.”
Steve slapped his hat on his head. “Well, if I stays much longer, my missus will think me and Winnie rode into the harbour. Good night, ladies.”
“I’m off to bed,” Annie said. “Don’t want Dr. Fitzgerald harping on me for overdoing it.”
“Me too,” Nellie said. “It’s been a long day.”
“Try not to worry,” Annie said as they climbed the stairs. “Everything will work itself out in the end.”
“Sleep tight, Annie,” Nellie said, and proceeded down the hallway. Her new room was twice the size of the one she’d shared with Harry. She turned up the wall lantern next to the door and studied her surroundings. The room contained a large brass bed with a hand-carved oak table with curved legs, shipped over from France. A wardrobe and bureau were nestled together against the side wall and a settee sat in the corner. Green velvet curtains, which matched the bedspread, draped the large bay window.
She crossed the room to the bed and stared at her wedding portrait, which she had hung over the bureau. “Oh, Harry,” she moaned, “I’m in some pickle.” She took the wooden seal out of her pocket and caressed it. “What am I s’posed to do about Maurice now?”
Give it time, love. The answer will come.
Nellie undressed and climbed into bed. Big and comfortable though it was, she longed for the familiarity of their bed. She ran her hand along the side where Harry would have slept, the familiar indentation in the mattress missing. The last physical evidence of her husband’s presence had been abandoned to the past. She bit her lip.
Nellie heard
a soft creak and looked toward the door.
“Ma,” Bessie said. She sniffed and wiped her nose with the sleeve of her nightgown. “Can I sleep with you tonight?”
Nellie threw down the blankets. “Of course, sweetie.”
Bessie crawled into bed and snuggled next to her mother.
“Have a bad dream?” Nellie said.
“No . . . I felt Pa around me in our old house. He’s not here.”
Nellie pulled Bessie closer to her. “That’s because all your memories of him are there. You keep your pa in your heart, right?”
Bessie nodded.
“Then he’s in this house because you’re here.” Nellie kissed the top of her head. “Your pa will always be with you no matter where you go.”
Bessie looked up at Nellie with Harry’s blue eyes. “I miss Uncle Tommy. Do you?”
“He was like my little brother.”
“Sometimes I don’t feel sad. Then other times I want to cry all the time. Like the time Shelly Drake brought cupcakes to school. Uncle Tommy made the best cupcakes.” Bessie’s eyelids drooped. “Joe cries when he thinks no one’s around.”
Nellie gave a sharp intake of breath. “Does he know you see him?”
“No,” Bessie mumbled. “Boys should cry. It makes you feel better.”
Nellie felt her daughter’s body go limp as she drifted to sleep. She pondered Bessie’s words and realized that children were far wiser than adults gave them credit for. At dawn, she carried Bessie back to her bed and checked on the others. Wide awake now, Nellie knew sleep was out of the question. She dressed and went downstairs. Joe and Sam had filled the wood container to capacity, and she lit the stove. Blueberry pancakes would be a nice treat for their first breakfast. The smell of cooking soon wafted into the hallway.
Annie ambled into the kitchen. “I came down early to make breakfast,” she said. “Didn’t expect you up this early.”
“Bessie missed her old room and spent the night with me.”
“From the dark circles under your eyes, I’d say you didn’t get a wink.”
Nellie poured another batch of pancake mix into the frying pan. The familiar sizzle made her long for Harry and her former life. “It’ll take me a while to get used to the change.” She passed Annie the teapot. “You, on the other hand, look fitter than you have in days.”
“I didn’t stir the whole night. That darn concussion took the good clear out of me.” Annie sipped a cup of tea. “I’ll take over. You go get some sleep.”
Too exhausted to argue, Nellie went to her room and lay down on her unmade bed. The sun peeked through the sides of the curtains and warmed her face. Would she ever consider this house a home? She was vaguely aware of the children’s footsteps tramping down the hall.
Chapter 22
Marie chewed on a hard-boiled egg. “The two weeks are up,” she said. “My grandfather should be home any time now. I can’t wait.”
Nellie didn’t feel hungry anymore.
“He promised to bring me back a surprise,” Marie continued.
Bessie smiled. “I bet it’s gonna be a porcelain doll. He knows how much you loves them.”
Nellie pushed her plate away. She glanced at Marie, then at each of her youngsters. She knew they’d all be devastated by the truth about Maurice.
“Whatever the surprises are,” Annie said, “I won’t stand for him spoiling either of you girls.”
Nellie went to the stove for the teapot. “Annie’s right. Now get off to school with the lot of you.”
Marie waltzed out the door with Bessie. Sam trailed after them with a shake of his head. “Girls are some foolish.”
Annie cleared the plates off the table. “What was all that about?” she asked.
Nellie filled the sink with water and feigned ignorance. “What?”
“Come on, Nellie. It’s me you’re taking to. You became crooked as hell when Marie blabbered on about the French captain.”
“It’s been grand not to have him around. Even if he didn’t scuttled the Marion,” Nellie hastened, which only added to the skeptical look on Annie’s face. “I don’t like him.” Nellie realized that she’d better learn to hide her resentment of Maurice.
Annie sponged down the table with a wet cloth. “He ain’t my favourite person in the world either.”
The sun played across the kitchen and the wind rattled the window. “It’s a perfect day to hang out clothes,” Annie said. “I’ll get right to the washing.”
“I’ll do it,” Nellie said. “Scrubbing clothes is too much for you yet.”
“I’m not gonna sit on me arse all day and do nothing.”
Nellie lifted her hands out of the soapy water. “You do the dishes, then.” She lifted the corner of her apron to dry her hands.
Annie face grew pale as she looked at the floor by Nellie’s feet.
Nellie looked down. “Dear Jesus,” she moaned, and snatched up the wooden seal.
“Where . . . How did you get that?” Annie’s voice sounded thick.
“Sit down first,” Nellie said, frightened by Annie’s pallor, and tried to lead her to the table.
Annie pulled away. “Harry never went anywhere without that seal. He had it with him on the Marion.”
“Annie, try to calm down.”
“I’m not a child. Tell me where you found that.”
Nellie took a deep breath to steady her nerves. “In Captain Maurice’s house.”
Annie’s big hands balled into fists. “The murdering sea scum! All sweetness and kindness to our Marie.” Spittle fell on her chin and red blotches covered her face. “I’m gonna rip his scrawny head from his shoulders and feed it to the sharks!”
“Believe me, Annie, I know how you feel, but we have to think this through.”
Annie thumped a hand on the table. “There’s nothing to think through. We take the sculpture to the authorities.”
“What’s that gonna prove? They’ll say Harry dropped it in St. Pierre and Maurice found it. I’ve thought about nothing else since I found the seal.” Nellie sighed. “I keep coming back to how this is going to affect Marie and the youngsters.”
“That’s why you turned crooked when Marie brought up the devil’s name. I knew something was up.”
Nellie placed the wooden seal on the table. “I have to hide it away from the youngsters.” She wiped a tear from her cheek. “Part of me wishes I never found it.”
“It’ll be safe in my house. Heaven help the little rat if he comes near me.”
“I’ll go, and you get dinner started,” Nellie said. She waited for Annie to cool down, which took several minutes. “Will you be all right while I’m gone?”
Annie nodded.
Nellie grabbed her coat from the hall closet and rushed to Annie’s house. If Maurice ever discovers the seal is missing, what then? No, she thought. You don’t have anything to hide. He’s the one with the awful secret. She reached the convent and turned for Annie’s house.
“Mme. Myles,” Sister Thérèse called out, interrupting her thoughts. “I was just on my way to see you.”
“Is one of the youngsters hurt?” Nellie asked.
“Non. Mother Patrick wanted you to know that le capitaine Maurice is here.”
Nellie’s first instinct was to rush inside, but she controlled herself, thinking about the consequences for Marie if she didn’t behave like everything was normal. Her heart thudded as she followed Sister Thérèse into the convent. She felt the weight of the seal tucked deep in her dress pocket when she entered Mother Patrick’s office.
The captain rose. “Bonjour, Mme. Myles. I have only now returned from my trip and stopped off to see Marie before heading home to St. Pierre.”
Nellie smiled. Her cheeks hurt from the effort.
Mar
ie held out a box wrapped in blue paper tied with a white ribbon. “It’s a late birthday gift,” Marie said.
“That’s lovely.”
“Grandpa said I’m not allowed to open it until I gets home.”
“Proper thing,” Nellie said, and noticed sweat glistening on the captain’s forehead. He rubbed his hands on his knees as though they were clammy. His breathing had become heavy, shallow.
“My crew is waiting.” Maurice swayed and grabbed the back of his chair.
“Are you unwell?” Mother Patrick said.
“I have missed a meal, that is all.”
“Would you like something to tide you over?”
“Non, merci.” He kissed Marie on both cheeks. “À la prochaine, mon petit chou,” he said, and hurried from the office.
“What did he say to you?” Nellie asked.
Marie stared at the pretty box. “Goodbye, until the next time,” she said. “Mon petit chou is another way of saying sweetie.”
“Back to class, young lady,” Mother Patrick said.
Marie gave the present to Nellie with an exaggerated frown. “It’s gonna be a long morning,” she said.
“I wonder why Maurice took off like that all of a sudden?” Nellie wondered aloud, once Marie had left the room.
“One thing’s for certain,” Mother Patrick said. “He’s a strange little man.”
“I must go,” Nellie said. She dashed to Annie’s house and hid the seal under a loose floorboard in the living room. She made it back to the house in time to help Annie with dinner.
Annie eyed the blue box. “What’s that you have there?”
“Captain Maurice came to the convent and gave Marie a late birthday present.”
“He’s got some gall.”
“We can’t let on to the captain that we changed our minds about him.”
“I allow he’ll come and go here as he pleases without a thought for anyone but himself.” Annie clenched her teeth. “He doesn’t deserve to be alive.”
Later, Marie ran into the kitchen and snatched the box from the table.
“Open it. Open it!” Bessie said. “I can’t wait a minute longer.”