"That's all anyone could ask of thee, Barbara," Molly said smiling her warm smile again. "I will recommend to Ministry and Oversight that thee is accepted into the Meeting. I know that Paul will as well. "We're having a Meeting about this and some other things later this afternoon. I'll make sure this comes up. It will be brought before the Meeting as a whole next First Day. Is thee ready?"
"Yes, I'm ready," I said gratefully. "Thank you."
Later that day, Molly addressed the committee members. She told them she truly believed my conversion was real and my desire to be a Friend was genuine and strong. Paul, when asked, verified that he had witnessed my acceptance of Jesus and believed it to be real and lasting. He also recommended I be accepted as a member of the Meeting. It was approved by the committee. They decided it would be brought before the Meeting by Molly the following First Day. Paul jubilantly returned home with the news as the family was gathering for evening worship.
"If all goes as planned," he said, drawing me aside after worship. "Thee will be a member of the Meeting next First Day."
"What did you tell them?" I asked, hoping he hadn't mentioned all our discussions before I accepted Christ.
"I told them I felt thy desire to be a Friend was real and I had witnessed thy acceptance of Jesus as thy Savior."
"Nothing about all our talks beforehand?"
"Barbara, one seeking as thee was is entitled to come to a few wrong conclusions now and again. Besides, thee made it clear those talks were only between God and us." "What did Molly O'Connor say?"
"Thee made a good impression on her as well. She likes thee and said as much. She said she thought thee would be an asset to the Meeting once thee starts using thy gifts." "What gifts?" I was surprised.
"I don't know. Thee will know before I do, I imagine. But when thee does, we all will."
I laughed a little. "Paul, you aren't making much sense,"
"I am making perfectly good sense. Thee will understand when thee comes to know what thy gifts are."
I became a member of the Meeting the following First Day. Amy had the McIntires and the Hansens over to celebrate after Meeting. Andrew went down to Newport earlier in the week to tell Alan his presence was desired at this celebration. He did not tell him what we were celebrating. Alan was waiting at the farm when the families returned from the Meetinghouse.
"Thee should have come to worship with us," Andrew told him as he dismounted from his horse and greeted Alan warmly.
"I thought about it, but wasn't sure I'd be welcome so I decided to come here instead."
"Thee is always welcome in worship," Amy informed him. "And always welcome here. Come inside and get warm." We all entered the house. Alan asked what we were celebrating.
My face was full of a new radiance as I answered him. "I have just become a member of the Society of Friends and of this Meeting." I said happily. "I don't think I ever remember being this happy before, Uncle Alan."
"I'm very glad for you then, Barbara," he said hugging me for a moment. "I'll not tell your Aunt Sheila."
"If it comes up, you may tell her. It wouldn't be good to lie about it."
He said he would wait and see what happened. The day was a typically cold January day. The families spent it gathered around the sitting-room or kitchen fires, talking, laughing and enjoying each other's company. I noted that Paul still missed Betsy. No one in Fair Hill had heard from her or her family since they had left the Meeting that day before Christmas. I wondered as I watched him, what Betsy had finally decided to do.
I found out a week later. It was announced in Meeting that Betsy and Sean had been married in Newport yesterday. They had taken up residence on the Murphy farm. they were both in Meeting as if nothing had ever happened. Andrew still felt that they ought to be read out of Meeting.
"I don't think very many people would agree with thee," Amy said sadly. "There are many folks here who don't recognize a bad situation even when it's staring them in the face."
Andrew brought it up during the next Meeting for Business. The consensus was that Sean and Betsy should be allowed to remain in the Meeting. It was hoped that the Meeting could have a good influence on their lives and eventually, they would change.
There were those in the Meeting who objected to this line of thinking but they agreed to accept the sense of the Meeting.
Meanwhile, my life continued to change. One afternoon, emerging from the dispensary, I found the coachman from my aunt's house in Newport waiting for me with a carriage.
"Your aunt wishes you to return to Newport," he told me as I gazed at him in surprise. "She sent me to bring you home."
"Does my uncle know you have come?" I asked, still forgetting from time to time to use plain speech.
"No. She told me not to tell him."
"What if I don't choose to go?" I asked, wishing Doc Wilson would come out of his dispensary and help me.
"She told me that if you refused, I must bring you by force. I don't want to have to do that, but I will. You can keep that from happening if you come peaceably."
I decided if I went with this man, my uncle would bring me back to Fair Hill once he knew I was in Newport.
I went toward the carriage, then had another idea. "I must stop at the farm where I was living and get my things," I told him, hoping that there, I could enlist Andrew's aid to remain. He helped me into the carriage but instead of driving to the Becker farm, I found myself heading back to Newport. Why should he take me back to the farm? Sheila wouldn't care if I had my things or not. I hoped the Beckers would come looking for me when I didn't arrive home as usual that evening. I wondered why Aunt Sheila was so vehemently against my becoming a Friend. She didn't care about me. Our brief encounter of a few months before had told me that. So what difference did it make to her? I guessed I would find out when I reached the mansion. When I reached it, I was told that I should go to my room. Sheila would send for me later. I was shown to a guest room upstairs. It was all done in yellow lace. I found many fine clothes hanging in the wardrobe. I was told to put on a different dress. Sheila would not see me in Quaker dress. I did as I was told, feeling very disloyal to my true self, then waited until the maid returned to say my aunt would see me in the library. When I entered the library, Sheila was seated there alone. Alan was not to be present at our meeting then. I remained standing until Sheila commanded me to be seated immediately. My reluctance to do so was not lost on my aunt.
"You have learned impudence up there from those horrible people," Sheila said angrily. I wondered if my aunt ever felt anything other than anger.
"I have learned who I really am, Aunt Sheila," I answered firmly.
"No, you have learned who they think you are. I have arranged for you to live elsewhere. You will leave in the morning to go to New York City. There, you will be properly educated. If I had my way, you'd be put into service right here. But I know that To protect the family from disgrace, I must get you away from Fair Hill." She said these last two words as if they were profane. Your uncle thinks you're still up there. I have not told him you were leaving. He's out of town for a couple of days. He will not be told until after you have gone."
"Aunt Sheila, I don't wish to leave Fair Hill. I want to go back."
"What you want and what is best for you are two very different things now. I will hear no more about it. You may return to your room. Dinner will be brought to you there as will your breakfast in the morning. The dress you are wearing and the others upstairs in your room will go with you when you leave. You will not take anything that you wore from Fair Hill with you. Do you understand?"
I said yes and left the room without another word. If I ever needed Jesus to help me it was now. I had to think of some way of escaping Sheila's plans for me. My only hope was that either Andrew or Paul would come looking for me and persuade Sheila to allow me to return with them to Fair Hill. But this was unlikely. Andrew had a visit from the coachman before he went to the dispensary. He had told Andrew that Alan had sent him to fetc
h me for a short visit. He said he would bring me back soon. Andrew had asked if I needed any of my things and was told no. The Beckers, therefore, didn't expect me home that evening. They went about their usual routine as if nothing were amiss. I spent a restless night, unable to sleep. My mind too full of concern and anger to allow me to rest. I couldn't believe this was happening. When my life changed, it changed fast, I thought the next morning as I prepared for breakfast. I had been told the previous night to dress for travel. There was a traveling suit in the wardrobe. I now waited for the tray. It arrived on schedule. I ate in silence, remembering the chatter I knew would be going on now in the Becker kitchen. When I was finished, a maid came and took the tray while another maid packed my things in a trunk. When she had packed everything in the wardrobe and dresser, she told me to follow her downstairs. We found the coachman waiting at the bottom of the stairs to take the trunk and carry it to the waiting carriage. Sheila was nowhere to be found but her orders were being swiftly and efficiently carried out. I was helped into the carriage and whisked away to the train station. The train was just taking on passengers. I was taken to a first class compartment that I would share with no one. Sheila was making sure I would tell no one the circumstances of my trip. When I arrived in New York City, a servant waited for me to take me to the school in which Sheila had enrolled me. My education had begun.
* * *
Uncle Alan returned from his business trip a few days later. Aunt Sheila told him of her actions over breakfast the morning after he returned home.
"You just took her out of Fair Hill and sent her to New York without even giving her a choice in the matter?" He was completely caught off guard. Usually, he kept his feelings to himself, knowing that Aunt Sheila didn't care how he felt and wanting to placate her. But this time, he was openly angry.
"I did exactly that. She's in the finest school in the city. After that, she'll go to college. It's already planned. She'll realize I've done her a very large favor once she comes to her senses."
"She'll find a Quaker Meeting there, Sheila," he warned.
"Barbara is not allowed to leave the campus of the school. When she finishes, she will have forgotten that."
Uncle Alan not only doubted she was right but hoped she wasn't. He went to the Becker farm to tell them what had actually taken place. Andrew and Amy were enjoying an infrequent cup of tea together when he arrived. Paul was in the sitting-room, giving his parents time to themselves. The younger children were in school. Paul answered Alan's knock on the door.
"My parents are in the kitchen. Did thee bring Barbara with thee?"
"No. What were you told about her?" Alan asked, taking the offered chair.
"That she had gone to Newport for a few days' visit with thee and thy wife. I wondered how thee had convinced thy wife to have her there."
"I didn't. I had nothing to do with Barbara's leaving Fair Hill. She's not in Newport. She's in New York city at a girls' school."
Paul was taken aback. "Why did she go?" he asked in disbelief.
"Barbara was taken against her will." Alan explained what had happened.
When he finished, Paul was silent for a time. Then, rising slowly, he spoke. "I think thee should go and get her and bring her back."
"I intend to go and talk to her," Alan told him. "I came to let you know what had happened and to see if there were any messages from here."
"Just that she's welcome to come back whenever she likes. I'm sure my family would agree with that. I'll tell them what thee has told me." Paul said, knowing that Alan was a busy person. "Also," Paul continued remembering something suddenly. "We have a bank draft that belongs to Barbara. She gave it to my father when she arrived here and we've kept it for her in case she needed it in the future. Does thee want it now?" This was the money I had left unused after selling my parent's farm.
"I didn't know she still had money left from her father. No, she doesn't really need it now and might need it later.
I'll tell her it's safe here in Fair Hill and is waiting until she needs it. She can send word to you if she ever does."
"Yes." Paul agreed. He knew that if I ever decided to do anything that displeased Aunt Sheila, I might very well need the money to support myself. Alan left and Paul went to tell his parents the news. They were just as surprised as Paul had been. It was agreed, that they had done all they could. They could only wait and see what news Alan brought back with him.
Uncle Alan arrived at the school two weeks after I started my classes there. He told me of his conversation with Paul and expressed his anger at Aunt Sheila for having sent me away. "This isn't what I would have wanted," he told me as we sat in my room at the school.
I smiled and hugged him to let him know I understood who had been behind my leaving Fair Hill. "I had the feeling at the time thee knew nothing about any of this," I told him quietly. I had clung to my plain speech, even though I no longer was allowed to wear plain dress. Aunt Sheila might force me to wear these fancy clothes, but she couldn't tell me how to talk or act.
"Then you still consider yourself a Friend?" he asked in some surprise.
"Aunt Sheila cannot tell me what to believe, Uncle Alan. Yes I am still a Friend and shall remain one."
"Good for you," He said genuinely glad. "Paul misses you a great deal. I could tell. He would have come with me if he'd known I was coming to see you."
"He's in love with someone else, Uncle Alan," I answered, feeling sadness because I knew all too well this was true.
"Yes, but didn't you tell me she was married to another man?"
"Yes, but when Paul feels something he feels it deeply and I don't think his feelings have changed for Betsy just because she married Sean to please her father."
"Perhaps not, but while she is married, there's hope for you." Uncle Alan pointed out. I felt some hope at these words. My feelings for Paul were very strong. Amy had been right about that. I missed him now even more than I missed any of the others in Fair Hill. I decided I would try and get Lisbeth to talk to him about writing to me. "I wonder if thee would take a note to Lisbeth for me, Uncle Alan," I ventured to ask after a pause.
"I'll be glad to," He agreed. So I sat and wrote a note to Lisbeth, asking her to ask Paul to write and to tell me herself how things were in Fair Hill. Uncle Alan spent a couple of days with me in New York and then left, promising to keep in touch and to take my warmest regards to Fair Hill. I watched him out of sight and then returned to my rather solitary room. I was not popular with the other girls at the school. They disliked my Quaker speech and, I felt, were somewhat jealous of the good grades I managed to earn though I was not happy there. I was determined to do well even if I couldn't remain in Fair Hill. While I waited for a letter from Lisbeth, life went on in Fair Hill. It was common knowledge in late February that Betsy and Sean were expecting their first child. Paul said nothing about the situation to anyone. It was much too painful to think about, much less to discuss. Lydia and Mike were planning an April Meeting for marriage. Amy spent many hours helping Ruth McIntyre with the sewing of Lydia's Meeting for marriage dress. It was to be simple enough to be used for First Day Meeting for Worship after the Meeting for marriage. While these preparations were going forward, Doc Wilson appeared at the Becker farm one windy March day with a letter in his hand. It was addressed to him and carried no return address. "I thought you might enjoy reading this," he said, handing the envelope to Andrew and taking a cup of tea from Amy. "It's from Barbara. “Andrew took the letter and opened it to read it aloud to the assembled family. "Dear Doc Wilson," He read slowly. "I thought I should tell thee why I am no longer in Fair Hill. Please pass this letter on to the Beckers. I owe them an apology for suddenly disappearing after all they did to help me. My Aunt Sheila took me out of Fair Hill by force. She has enrolled me in a school here in New York. I am expected to attend college after finishing here. I intend to become a nurse. I will return to Fair Hill as soon as I can to help thee. I am not allowed to attend Meeting. Ask all the Friends
in Fair Hill to keep me in prayer and assure them that I will be praying for them. Thank thee for thy help. In the Light, Barbara Scott."
"I thought you might feel better knowing she hadn't forgotten you," Doc said as Andrew handed the letter back to him.
"She's still using plain speech," Amy noted. "I don't imagine that's too welcome there at the school."
"I believe Barbara is truly convinced of the Friends' vision," Andrew said with certainty. "I don't think she cares too much whether it's welcome."
"Does thee think any of us could write to her, Doc?" Lisbeth wanted to know.
"She didn't give us an address," Doc said, looking at the envelope. "If I hear from her again, I'll try and get one from her."
"I have another idea," Paul said after a pause. "Perhaps her uncle could tell us where she is. Then thee could write to her, Libs."
"Does thee think he'll come up here again?" She asked.
"If he doesn't, thee could go down to Newport and ask him. Go to his office where Mrs. Scott would not keep thee from seeing him," Paul suggested.
"I think that's a good idea. You shouldn't wait to see if he comes back to Fair Hill." Doc sounded interested. "I'll even go with you if you like," he offered, knowing that Andrew would not want his daughter to go out of Fair Hill alone. Lisbeth agreed to go with him. They made plans for the following afternoon. She went to his dispensary after school the next day. When they reached Alan's office, they were told they couldn't see him without an appointment. "We've come from Fair Hill," Doc told the young clerk. We want to see him before we go back. Tell him we're here and see what he says." The clerk went reluctantly to Alan's office and informed him of his waiting visitors.
Alan came back with him and greeted them warmly. "From now on," he told the clerk firmly. "Anyone who comes from Fair Hill needs no appointment to see me. If I'm in the office at all, I'll see them." He took them to his inner office and closed the door behind them. "I've come to get an address at which I may write to Barbara," Lisbeth told him as he seated her in a comfortable chair near his desk.
The Secret of Fair Hill: A Refuge in Fair Hill Book 2 Page 11