Maude's Trials (Widows of Virginia 1)

by Christina Ward

  “I think I found it.” Maude called Esther rummaging at the other end of the room.

  The woman walked up to her and glanced over Maude’s shoulder. “Yes. That is it. Thank the Lord we found it, I was starting to get worried.”

  She turned towards the ladder. “Let’s take it downstairs, where we can read it all in peace. And with better light.”

  Maude nodded and they made their way to the parlor. Once seated, Esther put on her glasses and lifted the first dusty and yellowed page.

  “Hmmm. My eyes aren’t what they used to be, my child.” She let her hand down. “Even with my glasses on, the letters have faded quite a bit. You might need to go through these yourself, while I make sure we have some cake.”

  Maude grabbed the page eagerly. “Thank you so much, mother Esther. You’ve already helped us more than you can imagine.”

  The older woman smiled at her and got up. Her dress rustling as she rushed to check up on her servant’s baking.

  Maude leaned forward and begun studying the document. Page by page, she looked through the familiar words. It was all in there, just like in Claire’s copy. This page is new… Maude paused and checked over the paper in her hand again. Over time she also found a few discrepancies in the wording of the pages that otherwise seemed to match.

  “You have to excuse an older woman taking her afternoon nap.” Esther walked back in a few hours later. “Did you find anything, child?”

  “I think this is exactly what Raymond needs.” Maude waved with a page. Once Esther sat down she handed the documents over and pointed out what she had found.

  “Claire must have redacted her copy.”

  “You’re right. How disgraceful. Then again, her father always liked to stack the odds in his favor too. I never liked those Ashtons much.” Esther frowned. “We’ll make all this right, I’ll see to that.”

  Maude held Esther’s hand in her own. She couldn’t thank her enough. “Mother Esther, I don’t know what we’d do without you.”

  “It’s alright my child. I wish we thought of this earlier. Would have spared you that horrible ordeal. I know how hard it can be in a new town, even without all this hassle.” Esther smiled.

  “Oh?” Maude looked at the woman surprised.

  “I was a mail order bride too you know. It’s a tough choice.” She leaned back and half-closed her eyes. “But from what I’ve heard, you’ve made yours for all the right reasons.”

  Maude blushed. “I… I haven’t decided yet…”

  “Really?” Esther leaned forward “And there I was hoping to meet your children soon.”

  Maude chuckled. “They would tire you out.”

  “They’d bring my youth back.” Esther countered. “I miss having kids around. So there’s another selfish reason I have for you staying.”

  “Well, how could I say no to that?” Maude said and they both laughed.

  Esther sent Fidelis with the good news and the two women relaxed over tea.

  Thank you, God, for answering my prayers, and for being with me all through. Maude leaned back in her chair with a piece of fresh cake.

  Chapter 10

  “I don’t have the words to express my gratitude, Maude.”

  Maude greeted Raymond with her smile. She had just came from church with Esther and didn’t expect to see him back from the lawyers for a while. He had been in a nerve wrecking week of arguments with Claire in the local court.

  “Don’t you think I’ve caused you more trouble than I spared you from?”

  “I would have had to deal with it soon or later. But without you I would have lost it all.”

  But it was Maude who always lost her words in his presence. She blushed. “It was mother Esther, really. You have her to thank.”

  “She’s always been like a mother to me.” Maude didn’t doubt that. Raymond and Byron acted more like brothers than friends.

  “Raymond, there is something I need to ask…”

  “Yes?”

  “Why did you go for a mail order bride?” Maude almost regretted asking him that given the silence that followed.

  “Why do you ask?”

  “Well… You’re single, handsome…” She blushed again. “With a big, prosperous ranch to your name you’re quite a catch. It’s not like Claire is the only woman around. You could’ve had your pick. Why me?”

  Raymond laughed.

  “The ranch might look grand, but I’m not as rich as it may seem. And that’s exactly why I looked for a bride like you. Someone to love me for me, not for the money I may or may not have.”

  Maude looked down and twiddled her thumbs. “But I did reach out to you for the money,” she said in a quiet voice. “I wrote to you saying I needed support for my family.”

  “You, dear Maude, did it for the right reasons. And that’s why I fell in love with you from the very first letter I received. I wanted a family, a wife, a good Christian woman, neither vain nor wanting.”

  He cleared his throat. “Most marriages around here are like business contracts.”

  “Oh…”

  That time he looked down at his shoes looking shy and sweet.

  “I know you’ve been through much these recent weeks. And I understand if after all that you decide to go back home and never see me again.” Raymond moved closer to her. “But I do hope you decide to stay.”

  Maude’s heart raced. That was the closest she had been with him. Well, maybe except that time when he carried her out of the silo… He made her nervous as he looked deep into her eyes and took her hands into his.

  “I love you, Maude Lafayette. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you be my wife?”

  Maude held her breath as joy rushed through her body.

  “I love you too, Raymond.” She said, watching his lips curl into a smile.

  “I’m so glad to hear that! I have talked to mother Esther. We can get married tomorrow if you’d like.”

  She blushed. She wanted that, yes, but…

  “Come with me. I have a surprise for you.” He took her hand.

  “A surprise?”

  “Yes.” He ushered her into a horse carriage. It reminded her of the first time she met him. They rode back to the ranch.

  “I missed this place.”

  “It’s been sometime. But nothing changed. Come this way.”

  Maude followed him to the house. He opened the door and ushered her in.

  “Ooh my goodness! Adella, Alexander…” She couldn’t believe it.

  “Mommy!”

  Maude opened her arms to hold her children. She didn’t believe she was seeing them once again.

  “We missed you so much.”

  “I missed you too. I missed you so much.” She couldn’t get enough of them. She finally had her children in her arms.

  “Thank you so much, Raymond.”

  Maude couldn’t ask for more. All her sorrows were over, and her wishes had come true. She spent the rest of the evening catching up with her children and her mother who had come too.

  The next morning was not a usual one. She couldn’t wait for the day to start. Esther came early to help her get ready for the wedding. Someone knocked on her door and Maude jumped, she wasn’t expecting anyone.

  “You look so beautiful, Maude.” It was Rachael.

  Maude stayed quiet, not sure how to react. They hadn’t seen Raymond’s sister since the fateful day. She had stayed with family a few towns over all this time.

  “I’m sorry Maude.” Rachael wiped her tears. “I’ve made up with Raymond. He’s forgiven me, and I truly hope you’ll find it in your heart to do that too. I know I caused you so much pain. I don’t want to lose my family.”

  Maude looked into her teary eyes. She really seemed to mean her words. How could she not forgive her husband’s sister?

  “It’s alright Rachael. I forgive you.” Maude opened her arms and the two hugged both sobbing.

  “Thank you so much.”

  “It’s really alright.” M
aude whispered into her ear. “You came just at the right time. I need your help here.”

  “Where do I start?” Rachael smiled and looked to Esther and Maude.

  * * *

  The church was full of strangers all eager to see the mysterious bride. Maude trembled before she made her entrance. This was so different from her first wedding. Yet it all felt so right. “Thank you Lord for bringing us together,” she whispered as she began to slowly make her way to the altar. Raymond looked so handsome in his wedding suit. He couldn’t stop smiling, his eyes fixed only on her.

  As she came close he stretched his hand and helped her up the step. They stood together, hand in hand, facing the priest.

  “Today is a day to reckon, as it will mark the union between Raymond Garret and Maude Lafayette.” He cleared his throat. Maude felt a light sweat trickling down her face. “If anyone is against this marriage, they should speak now or forever remain silent.”

  The church went silent for a while. Maude held her breath in fear that Claire might bust through the church doors to ruin the moment. But no such thing happened.

  “Raymond Garret, do you take Maude Lafayette to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?”

  Raymond turned to face Maude, and squeezed her hands. “I do.”

  “Maude Lafayette. Do you take Raymond Garret to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do you part?”

  Maude had never been more certain. Yes she wanted to be with him. She didn’t feel like a mail order bride who was desperate to have just any husband. Maude loved this man who saved her in so many ways.

  “I do.”

  A round of applause echoed through the church.

  “You may now kiss the bride.”

  Raymond gently lifted the veil covering her face. He took his time to admire her, before planting a kiss on her lips.

  Thank You!

  Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this story. I would really appreciate it if you could take a few minutes to leave a review for the book (on Amazon, GoodReads, or even your own blog and social media). God bless You for helping spread these positive love stories!

  And if you’d like to read more Mail Order Brides please check out the rest of the books in this or my other series. :)

  Laura’s Second Chance

  Newport News, Virginia, August 1830

  A grieving heart sees the skies grey,

  The ocean brown with mud,

  The trees dull and lifeless,

  The shadows haunting.

  A strong spirit lives,

  It makes a cloud blue,

  The water boundless,

  And the trees swaying with the wind.

  Rekindle your spirit with faith,

  Strengthen it with prayer.

  Laura smoothed the creases on the paper, its edges yellowed with age. She read it once more, just for good measure, before stowing it away in the farthest corner of the bureau drawer. She lifted her head up and came face to face with her late husband’s photograph. The morning sun seeped through the small window lighting up the picture. Laura looked away, a hot band tightening across her chest.

  Every day, she would look over her shoulder, as if expecting Anton to weigh in on her decisions, to squeeze her hand, to caress her back. But he would never do that again. How could she live on without the one she’d vowed to spend the rest of her life with? The poem was her only source of strength, but she had to hide it away from prying eyes.

  “Laura?” A familiar voice called out from behind the door.

  Laura closed the drawer and wiped her hands in the apron she wore over her yellow dress. She didn’t want to dirty the clothes Anton had given her as gift a few years back. With a sigh she stood up and crossed the room to open the door. Her sister-in-law and best friend leaned in the door frame, a white envelope in her hand.

  “A letter came in for you.” The plump girl paused. “It’s from Robert.” Although there was no bite in her voice Laura sensed Susan’s disapproval.

  It was the fourth letter from Robert since... Even though it had been over a year, even in her thoughts Laura still struggled to mention what had happened to Anton.

  At first, Laura thought nothing of the letters. Just another friend sending his condolences. She wrote back, like she did to the others, thinking that was it, but Robert kept up the correspondence. And Susan did not let her forget that he had been Laura’s former suitor.

  “Oh…” Laura took the letter, and placed it in her pocket. “Thank you, Sue.”

  Susan folded her arms over her ample bosom. “You’re not going to read it now?”

  “Huh?” Laura looked up. “Oh, I’ll read it later. I still have to tend to the shop.”

  Susan nodded, her sharp dark eyes scanning the room as if seeing things for the first time. Finally she looked back at Laura, it took her a moment to say out loud what she must have been ruminating on for a while.

  “Not to pry, but...” Susan hesitated. “Is Robert courting you?”

  Laura gasped.

  “Sue!” Anton’s face flashed to the front of her mind. “I’m still grieving!”

  Susan cast her eyes down.

  “Sorry. I was just - I was just curious, with so many letters... You can’t blame me for wondering what he writes about.” She sighed and took Laura’s hands in hers. “People are talking. The couriers talk and... Well, you know how fast rumors travel.”

  Laura did know. But while Robert had been sending letters, she hadn’t been responding save for the first time when she thanked him for his sympathies.

  “Don’t listen to them. Those ol’ biddies don’t have anything better to do than gossip, you know that.”

  “Of course, of course.” Susan nodded and released Laura’s hands. The wrinkles around her dark blue eyes reminded Laura of Anton. But if she were honest, everything in the house, town even, reminded her of Anton.

  “I have to go,” Laura said. “Mrs. Dunne might come by for a fitting.”

  Laura left her room, heart heavy with guilt. Why hadn’t she shared Robert’s letters with Susan? There was nothing indecent in them, but they were too personal. She hadn’t responded to Robert’s letters, although she had been tempted to do so many times. He was once her confidant. She wasn’t sure, though, if it would be right to rekindle that old friendship.

  She shut the door to the house behind her leaving Susan busy in the kitchen. She walked through town and almost without looking or thinking she headed straight for the small mercantile shop she ran in an alley near the marketplace. Laura barely glanced at the mannequins in the window display, draped with the unsold dresses she had sown that month. She didn’t exactly dread going to work, but in her heart Laura knew it wasn’t the job for her. Laura thought back to the catering business she had to close after her husband died. She did her sowing as much to make money, as she did to keep herself busy. With her mind on the threads and sequins and fine materials at least she wasn’t thinking about Anton.

  Laura turned the key and opened the door to a haze of dust floating in the sunlight that streamed through the windows. Situated just off the busy street, her little shop always looked dusty and stuffy. The humid August weather drew many of her rich customers away to more temperate destinations for the summer.

  She stepped inside to retrieve a broom so she could do some cleaning while waiting for a client. But the mindless task meant she kept thinking about Robert’s letters. Should she tell Susan, after all? Although it might allay Susan’s fears - there was absolutely nothing in the letters to indicate his intentions of courting her - it would also betray Robert’s thoughts and feelings to an outside party. Laura didn’t want to do that to him.

  When the dark mahogany floor was once again clean,
Laura went to her spinning wheel in the back room. She wished someone would come in and make an order, but business did not flourish. In fact in the recent months she’d mostly had commissions for repairing and stitching dresses and shirts by hand. And there was no point for her to spin another dress for the shop window… Her mind wandered back to the letters, to the women in the West Robert described. Only one person in the whole town had a spinning wheel! Everyone else did everything by hand.

  Finally she settled behind a small desk by the window, picked up patches of cloth from the pile beside her, and began stitching. She preferred dressmaking to repairs, but the bills had to be paid and it provided a way to pass the time as she waited for a customer.

  A few hours passed, yet no one came. Not even Mrs. Dunne.

  * * *

  Night had fallen by the time Laura got home. Susan had almost finished preparing their meal. Laura greeted her, but the smile on Susan’s face didn’t quite reach her eyes. She had loved her brother dearly…

  “Samuel, not back yet?” Laura leaned in to check if Susan’s husband sat in his favorite armchair with the evening paper.

  “Not yet. He’s working late tonight.”

  “Need any help?” Laura asked.

  “Oh, no.” Susan shook her head and stirred the pot with a ladle. “You go freshen up, dinner is almost ready.”

  Laura nodded and turned to the hallway. Despite not being much older than Laura Susan had always been motherly towards her. On some days it made Laura want to rebel against being treated like a child, but on others she welcomed the affection.

  She passed her old room, the one she used to share with Anton, and headed for the one beside it. She couldn’t sleep on that bed, now cold and empty. In that room she was constantly reminded that it was meant for two people. Laura found the small guest room a welcome respite from the memories of her late husband.

  She sat in front of the dresser to unlock one of the drawers. The latest letter from Robert weighed heavy in her pocket. She hadn’t dared open it earlier – not knowing what he wrote she couldn’t risk someone seeing her reaction. Laura sighed and took out a roll of parchment and a quill. If her silence hadn’t deterred him it was probably time to respond.