“I’ll ask Roland or Garrett to tell us when he arrives,” Pearl suggested. “One of them is bound to know. Then they can make proper introductions, and this sort of misunderstanding won’t happen again.”
Amanda picked at the lace on her skirt. “What if they forget?”
“They won’t. I’ll check every day.”
“Then I suppose it’s all right.”
Pearl ended up speaking with Garrett Decker, since she couldn’t get Roland alone. Garrett was the better choice anyway. If he gave Amanda the news, her excitement might bring the two of them together. Yet days and weeks passed without the mysterious third Jacob appearing in town.
Amanda’s disappointment grew, and Pearl tried to focus her attention on the schoolchildren. She did especially well with the younger children, but Sadie was clearly her favorite, and the seven-year-old clung to Amanda’s side whenever they went out of doors.
With the weather growing cooler, the children spent less time outside. Soon their restlessness turned to the usual classroom shenanigans, like the boys picking on the girls by yanking on their hair. Primers got misplaced, and a huge toad ended up in the cupboard. Angela Wardman shrieked when she pulled out a stack of slates and found the toad staring at her. Since no one would confess, Pearl made the entire class scrub the slates and cupboard. She then sent them outside to play and release the pent-up energy.
“I don’t know what’s gotten into them.” She sighed to Amanda as they tidied up the mess left from the cleaning efforts. “Could it be all the noise from the mills or the extra men in town?”
“I don’t think so. Most of the children don’t live in Singapore.” Amanda pondered a moment. “Maybe they miss the kittens.”
With the advent of cold weather, all the cats had been sent to winter homes.
“We can’t keep them here overnight,” Pearl said.
“Perhaps they could visit during the day, one at a time, and the children can take them home at night.”
Pearl was skeptical, but something needed to be done. Even Isaac had begun to misbehave. “It’s worth a try, but I’ll be glad when these lumberjacks leave and things get back to normal.” Amanda blanched, and Pearl realized the callousness of her words. “I’m sorry. Jake is sure to appear soon.”
He did not. The warehouse filled with lumber, and Fiona’s concerts had to be shifted to late afternoon at the boardinghouse, where dozens jammed into the parlor. Pearl and Amanda stayed away during those times, uncomfortable with the crush of men in such close quarters. Generally they walked around town or visited the store, but the first Saturday of November, Amanda suggested they visit Louise, who was doing famously at Mrs. Elder’s house.
“For the most part I’m simply a companion,” Louise said as she served tea. “I read to her and we play the occasional duet on the piano. I’m dreadful, but she doesn’t seem to mind. Her hand has grown so shaky that I write her correspondence for her, but she still signs everything. She does retire early, which leaves me a great deal of time to read and study on my own.”
“You study?” Amanda said with much surprise. “Of your own volition?” Pearl’s friend had always found learning onerous.
Louise babbled on blissfully. “The Elders have a large library, with many volumes on shipping. Mr. Elder was a sea captain, you see, and has collected numerous books on the subject. I find it fascinating. Many ships are lost this time of year. Apparently the winds and the storms are savage here.”
“Interesting,” Pearl said, though she didn’t find either shipping or the weather all that fascinating. “How is Mr. Elder?”
“Very well. He dotes on his wife. They are absolute dears, and I have grown to love them like my own parents.” At that a wistful look crossed her face.
“You must miss your mother and father. Do you plan to return home?” Amanda asked.
Louise shook her head. “My father passed on some years ago, and my mother lives with my sister.” She shuddered.
Pearl sensed a family disagreement and tried to turn the conversation. “Did your husband leave you enough to care for her?”
Louise paled. “Only debt.”
“I’m so sorry.” Amanda squeezed Louise’s hand in sympathy.
Pearl admired her friend’s ability to console and form attachments. Amanda gathered people to her with warmth while Pearl managed to drive them away with ill-timed comments.
By the time they left, Pearl wondered why they’d waited so long to visit. Louise was delightful, well-educated and gracious.
Amanda agreed. “We should have come sooner, but I was afraid she would be like Fiona.”
“I don’t think anyone could match Fiona’s temperament.”
“Fiery.”
“Unlike the weather.” The breeze was cold, and Pearl hugged the cloak tightly around her shoulders. “November has come in with the smell of winter.”
“Just like Louise said it would. You must be glad for your new cloak.”
Pearl had written a note of thanks to Roland the evening he gave it to her and left that note with Charlie weeks ago. She’d expected Roland to at least mention that he’d received it. He could step away from customers that long. Instead, any passing comment had to do with how well Cocoa had fit into the family. Even his brother had grudgingly accepted the little ball of fur, and Cocoa had taken to sleeping on Garrett’s lap. The image of the burly man with a tiny kitten had made Pearl laugh. It was the last joyous moment they’d shared.
Pearl and Amanda had apparently timed their return perfectly, for the concertgoers were just then drifting out of the boardinghouse.
“Can’t wait to head back to the city,” one of the men said to another. “Won’t be long now.”
“Can’t come soon enough. Been working steady since last November,” another replied.
“Hear tell a steam tug’s coming in to haul out the barges. Then we’ll head out.”
Amanda gasped and then raced ahead of Pearl to catch up to the men. “Aren’t any more lumberjacks coming to town?”
The men paused long enough to notice how pretty Amanda was. Pearl caught up and stood by her friend’s side.
“Miss Porter is looking for a man named Jake who is two years older than her. Do you know him?”
One of the men peered at her. “I seen him upriver, but he didn’t come down on the log drive.”
Amanda clutched Pearl’s arm until it ached. “Where did he go?”
“Up Allegan way.” The man shrugged. “Don’t know where he went from there. Might’ve taken a train to the camps up north.”
Pearl could feel her friend’s strength crumble. “Thank you, sir, and good night.”
The men resumed their conversation and drifted away. The conclusion was clear. The torrid pace at the mill would soon draw to a close. Young Jake would never arrive. Men would leave, and construction on the site of the glassworks would resume.
“I’m so sorry.” Pearl wrapped an arm around her friend and searched for something to cheer her. “Tonight at the prayer meeting could you ask Sadie to bring her kitten to school on Monday?”
Maybe seeing the little girl’s joy would bring back the light in Amanda’s eyes.
* * *
Roland eyed Garrett’s determined stride toward him along the river’s edge. No doubt his brother was upset about something. For some reason, he wore his best suit and an ill-fitting black hat. He looked like a preacher about to give his first sermon.
“Aren’t you going to the prayer meeting?” Garrett huffed when he arrived. “It’s already past supper time.”
Roland turned his attention back to the four men laying planks on his new dock. “This has to be done tonight. Go on without me.”
Garrett didn’t budge. “What’s more important to you? This project or God?”
He sa
id it as if some great calamity would befall Roland.
“I’m sure God understands. I will be at services tomorrow morning.” Roland lifted a sledgehammer. “I have some spikes to drive.”
“Pearl’s been asking about you.”
That drove a jolt of curiosity up his spine. “What does she want to know?”
“First off, she probably wants to know when you’re going to call on her again.”
“I’m busy,” Roland growled. It still stung that she hadn’t said another word about the cloak. In spite of his protests otherwise, giving it to her had cost plenty. One little word of gratitude would go a long way, but she seemed to avoid him whenever she entered the store.
“Too busy to answer her note?” Garrett said, needling him.
“What note?”
“Amanda says that Pearl left a note for you at the store.”
Roland shook his head. “She must be mistaken. I never received a note.”
“Humph. Seems to be a discrepancy somewhere.”
Roland eyed his brother. “Trust me, I wouldn’t have forgotten any note that Pearl sent my way.” The ringing of a handbell meant that the prayer meeting was about to get underway. “Shouldn’t you be getting Isaac and Sadie up to the school?”
“Miss Amanda took them.”
Interesting. That was the second time he’d mentioned Amanda Porter. Moreover he’d used her given name, and he’d entrusted his children to her care. Maybe his brother was finally developing an interest in her.
Garrett nodded at Roland’s work crew. “Maybe they’d like to attend the meeting.”
“I don’t think they’d be accepted in work clothes.”
“The Lord accepts all of us as we are.”
“The good congregation is a bit less tolerant.”
Garrett grunted his displeasure yet again, but this time he gave up the cause and trudged up the hill to the school. Roland watched his brother, feeling more than a little guilty. He should attend this special gathering, but the dock would be needed soon to store the loaded barges until they were ready to be towed out onto the lake.
Pearl walked past, alone, and her gaze naturally drifted toward him. When she saw that he’d spotted her, her gaze snapped back to the path in front of her. What was that about? The easy banter between them had suffered over the past month, but his gift of the cloak had seemed to smooth things over.
Judging from her reaction, it no longer did, even though she had no problem wearing the cloak.
“You can go on up to the meeting, Mr. Roland,” Evans said.
Roland hadn’t realized his foreman had joined him. “There’s work to be done.”
“The men could stand ta rest a spell.”
Roland surveyed the men, who were indeed looking tired. He’d pushed them since before sunup. With darkness closing in, he might as well put a halt to the workday. Maybe he could get them here early Monday morning.
“All right,” he said, relenting. “Ask the men to be here at dawn on Monday.”
Evans touched a finger to his cap. “Thank you kindly.”
“I’ll expect extra effort.”
“Yes, sir. If you hurry up, you might catch her.”
“I’m not trying to catch up to anyone.”
Evans grinned. “Yes, sir. Whatever you say.”
Apparently no one believed him. Roland would set Evans and everyone else straight.
“I am not courting Pearl Lawson,” he yelled.
* * *
Pearl froze at Roland’s bellowed statement. If she’d needed confirmation of his recent coldness toward her, she’d just received it. She straightened her back and marched on.
Inside the schoolhouse, the benches were already filled. Amanda had joined Sadie and Isaac and Garrett. Pearl found a spot standing beside the cupboard. The door opened again, ushering in the roughly clad construction workers and Roland, looking just as sweat-stained as his men.
He glanced in her direction, and she quickly looked away. She could hear the men moving and silently pleaded Roland wouldn’t stand near her.
Meanwhile, an unfamiliar and rather scruffy man walked to the front with Mr. Calloway. The congregation murmured, some not so quietly. Pearl hazarded a glance to see where Roland stood. He was opposite her. Their gazes met, and something tangible stretched between them. Though his gaze did not waver, she looked away.
Mr. Calloway hushed everyone with a shrill whistle. Once they’d quieted, he said, “We got ourselves a real treat this evening. Brother John’s come down the river on circuit and before we settle down into prayer, he’s going to give us a message.”
Pearl stared. Mr. Calloway couldn’t mean that the wild-haired man dressed in a ragged coat and patched trousers was a preacher. Yet, the wiry stranger nodded vigorously with every word.
“If Miss O’Keefe would lead us in ‘My Faith Looks Up to Thee,’ we’ll get started,” Mr. Calloway said.
He joined Mrs. Calloway as the congregation stood. Fiona stepped to the front opposite Brother John and waited for Mr. Calloway to give her a note on his harmonica. She then launched into the song. The congregation joined in, and Brother John sang with utter abandon. The words flowed off Pearl’s lips, requiring no thought. She’d sung this hymn so many times that each word was stuck in her memory.
“Take all my guilt away,” she sang, and her conscience pricked.
Was she guilty of causing the rift with Roland? Had she spurred that declaration of disinterest in her? The coolness of his gaze sent shivers up her spine. She turned back to the hymn but heard none of the remainder.
Lord, show me where I have failed.
The prayer did not take away the churning in her stomach.
When the last word had been sung, the congregation sat, and Brother John stepped to the pulpit.
“Brothers and sisters in Christ.” His voice boomed through the room, sufficient to overwhelm any growling machinery. “What did you think when you first saw me? A ne’er-do-well? A pauper?”
Pearl shrank against the cupboard.
“You all know the story of the Good Samaritan, but let’s turn to that story again in Luke, chapter ten, beginning with the thirtieth verse and look at it with fresh eyes. What did the priest and Levite see that made them walk past? What assumptions did they make?”
Pearl opened her Bible and tried to hide behind its pages. Every word of Brother John’s message seemed written specifically for her. Had she not judged Roland without listening to his side of the story when he had to turn the church back into a bunkhouse? This very evening she’d judged him irreverent for working instead of coming to this meeting. His lack of a response to her note might have been due to being busy at work. He might have declared he wasn’t courting her to protect her position at the school. He knew that marriage would cost her. Why shouldn’t he allay gossip with the truth? He wasn’t courting her. He had shared nothing more than kindness.
By the end of the message, she had to fight back tears of shame. During the prayers that followed, she poured out her heart to God. As the congregation sang the closing hymn, she came to a decision. She must take the first step.
Roland had slipped to the back of the classroom, doubtless so he could leave the moment the benediction was given. She tucked her Bible under her arm and edged toward him. In spite of her efforts, the hymn ended before she could reach him.
Roland and his crew ducked out of the church.
Pearl slipped around those standing between her and the door. She bounded outside. The wind had picked up and now sent the fallen leaves dancing across the ground in the light of the nearly full moon. Pearl hurried down the steps. Roland was already headed down the hill.
She ran after him. “Roland!”
The wind carried her cry back up the hill. She cupped her hands a
round her mouth and tried again.
This time he stopped and turned around. For a second something like delight crossed his face. Then one of his men said something, and his expression turned to stone.
What was going on? She pulled the cloak tight, lest the wind wrest it from her shoulders and closed the gap between them. Each step brought more uncertainty. What should she say? Every practiced phrase evaporated under his scrutiny.
Lord, give me the words.
She drew a breath.
“Is there something wrong, Miss Lawson?”
Not Pearl. No smile. No hint of camaraderie. All traces of friendship had left their relationship.
She battled panic and fear. “No.” Nothing else came to mind.
“Then why did you stop me?”
She glanced at the men trailing back toward town. Roland clearly wanted to join them.
Please, Lord.
Then she recalled that the Good Samaritan had extended grace when not expected. That’s what she needed to do.
“I just wanted to thank you. Again.” She looked into his eyes and her resolve wavered. “This cloak, your kindness, it all means so much to me.”
Could a man tremble? If so, Roland had for a brief moment.
Then he composed himself and his mouth twisted into a wry smile. “I’m sorry, but the construction will begin again Monday. We’ll have to burn the debris and then begin digging the foundation.”
What had she expected? For him to rush into her arms? Of course he wouldn’t, not in view of every man, woman and child who’d attended the meeting. What a fool she’d been to think otherwise. He’d meant every shouted word. He was not courting her now, nor would he do so. He couldn’t. Neither could she.
She swallowed the bitter disappointment. “We will manage.”
He nodded curtly and hurried after his men. She watched him go and tried to salvage what was left of her pride.
Chapter Nineteen
The winds increased all day Sunday and through that night so that by Monday morning several ships had taken refuge in the river. From her perch on the boardinghouse porch, Pearl counted three sailing ships moored to the docks lining the waterfront and two steamboats at the wharves heading upriver. The barges, loaded with lumber, had been tied to the outside of the schooners. None would sail in this howling gale.
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