McKenzie

by Penny Zeller

  ***

  Put off, Zach let his hand fall at his side. He’d pictured someone not unlike the woman standing before him when McKenzie had talked about her mother, but he’d expected her to be a bit more eager to meet her son-in-law for the first time. After all, he’d been enthusiastic about meeting her someday, as well as meeting McKenzie’s father, who evidently hadn’t made the trip.

  “We’ve come to take you home, McKenzie,” Florence announced.

  Take her home? But she is home! Zach thought.

  “Mother…?” McKenzie looked nervous.

  “You don’t have to pretend, McKenzie. He won’t be able to hurt you anymore,” Florence said, glaring at Zach. What had he done?

  “W-what do you mean, Mother?” McKenzie stammered.

  Just then, Davey skipped up to the group. “Ma, is this your mother?” he asked McKenzie.

  “Yes,” McKenzie said, shooting a quick glance at her mother, who looked enraged.

  “‘Ma’? How can you ask what do I mean, McKenzie? Surely, you remember the letter you sent to your father and me.”

  McKenzie gasped.

  What letter? Zach wondered.

  “That means you’re my grandma!” Davey ran toward Florence and gave her a big hug.

  “Boy, stop that this instant!” Florence said, pushing him away.

  Zach fought the urge to yell at her in Davey’s defense.

  “But, you’re my grandma! Don’t grandmas give hugs? Grandma Rosemary does,” Davey said, his lower lip trembling, as if he were about to cry.

  “I am not your real grandma. I don’t even know you. Now, get away from me, boy. You’ll soil my dress with your filthy little hands.”

  Zach pulled Davey to him in a protective embrace. “Davey, why don’t you go inside and play? I’ll be in shortly,” he said, trying to ignore the pained look in his son’s eyes.

  “Okay,” Davey said, then trudged inside.

  Without as much as a word of apology for how she’d hurt Davey, Florence continued her tirade. “Now, McKenzie, we are going to return you to Boston while the weather still holds. Go pack your things. We’ll leave first thing in the morning.”

  “But, Mother—”

  “No arguing, McKenzie.” Florence held up her hand, as if to dismiss her daughter, then turned to Zach. “And you, Mr. Sawyer! How dare you make demands on my daughter? How dare you make her live in this sorry excuse of a home?” She nodded toward the house. “How dare you treat her with anything less than the respect and privileges she deserves? You are a pitiful excuse for a husband. She deserves much better than the likes of you, and had it not been for her determination to rescue her sister, she would not be here. As it is, McKenzie has had to deal with the likes of you for far too long. You are an abusive and hateful man, and the sooner I remove my daughter from you, the better.”

  Florence paused long enough to catch her breath. “My husband told me to let it go, like we did with Kaydie—whom she married was her decision, and if she was being provided for, she was no longer our responsibility. But, I will not allow my daughter to be mistreated and lowered like this. I can’t help Kaydie, but I can help McKenzie. I won’t stand to have another daughter stolen from me.”

  “I’m not sure I understand, ma’am,” Zach said, deeply confused and hurt. Wasn’t McKenzie here with her parents’ blessing? Hadn’t she come to make a life for herself because they could no longer afford to support her?

  “You’re not sure you understand?” Florence fumed. “Are you an imbecile?”

  “Mother, please,” McKenzie interjected, but Florence cut her off.

  “Hush, McKenzie. Believe me, I wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t convinced your father to let me come for you. You are his favorite daughter, you know, and the thought of you living in these conditions was unbearable to him. So, he allowed me to come here, accompanied by Lawrence. I see now that I should have come sooner.”

  “But, Mother, you don’t understand—”

  “I understand perfectly. Your marriage charade with this boorish stranger is about to end. You said it would be temporary, and the time has come to make good on your plan. Just look at you, dressed like some peasant girl! What type of frock is that? And your hair! Why, it looks a wreck! Your father didn’t work as hard as he did to give you a life of ease just so you could throw it away for an impoverished existence. If marriage is what you want, we’ll find you a suitable match in Boston—a man with a social status and upbringing more befitting to yours.”

  McKenzie stared down at the ground and kicked a small pebble. “Mother, we were having a picnic, and we went swimming in the river afterward.” Her voice wavered slightly.

  “Of all the unscrupulous things! Swimming in the river? Have you no common sense, McKenzie? Have you no recollection of the things your Father and I taught you? Or has this miserable husband of yours made you forget all proper training and etiquette?”

  “Mother, please. I wanted to go swimming—”

  Florence put her hand up in front of McKenzie. “Please. I don’t want to hear it.” She reached up and straightened her hat. “Now, then, have you found Kaydie?” The question sounded like an afterthought.

  “No, Mother, I haven’t found her yet, but Zach and I were able to find out some information recently in Canfield Falls,” McKenzie said, looking dejected rather than jubilant at the progress they’d made. After a moment, she reached for Zach’s hand. “This has all been a big misunderstanding, Zach.”

  Zach couldn’t take McKenzie’s hand until he’d figured out what was going on. He was stunned. What had Florence meant by calling their marriage a charade? A temporary situation? What had prompted her to accuse him of mistreating her daughter? “What did you say in your letter, McKenzie?” he asked, his voice devoid of emotion.

  ***

  “Zach, I can explain…” McKenzie began, but then she stopped, not sure of what to say. How could she tell him that she’d meant for their marriage to last only as long as it took her to find Kaydie?

  When a minute or two of silence had passed, Zach gave a disgusted sigh and then looked at her mother. “You’re welcome to stay here for the night. There are no hotels in town.”

  “That’s a shame,” she said. “I guess we have no other choice, though.”

  “Lawrence can stay in Davey’s room, and you can stay in the spare room, Mother,” said McKenzie. Perhaps, if she was able to stay in her and Zach’s room for the first time, she’d be able to explain to him the reason for the unexpected chaos, even if it took all night to do so.

  “I’ll stay in the barn tonight,” Zach offered.

  “Zach….” McKenzie again reached for his hand, and again, Zach pulled away. She could see the tears in his eyes—tears that she’d convinced herself she’d never see. Her heart felt heavy, and tears stung her own eyes. “Zach….”

  ***

  “How could you, McKenzie?” Zach asked, then lowered his voice so that only McKenzie would hear him. “I loved you.” With that, he turned and, with long strides, set off toward the fields. Never had his heart felt so broken, and never had he been so hurt and angry at the same time.

  Zach tried everything in his power to shoulder McKenzie’s disloyalty without the outward appearance of tears. But the betrayal was too much for him to bear. The promise of marriage he had made would now be broken. He tried to convince himself that he didn’t care, that it was for the best, since McKenzie had married him only to use him. But it was hopeless. He did care. He loved McKenzie. Davey loved McKenzie. And, now, they both stood to lose her forever. His anger burned at how she’d manipulated him into believing she cared and wanted to marry him because she had feelings for him. “This is no small thing, Pa!” Zach shouted when he was alone in the middle of the field. “No small thing at all!”

  ***

  After she’d shown her mother and Lawrence to their rooms, McKenzie ran to the barn. If her mother wouldn’t listen to her, if Zach wouldn’t listen to her, then she knew who would. “Jona
h, will you please saddle Sugar for me?” she asked.

  Jonah looked up from his task. “Are you all right, McKenzie?”

  “Yes—I mean, no. Jonah, please, could you just saddle the horse? And could you keep an eye on Davey, too? He was inside, but I think he’s out back, now, playing with his frogs.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  McKenzie watched as he prepared Sugar’s saddle. “Here you are, McKenzie,” he said, handing over the reins. “May I ask where you’re going?”

  Without answering, McKenzie put her foot in the stirrup and climbed into the saddle. Nudging Sugar gently in the flank, as Zach had instructed her, she rode Sugar out of the barn and toward Rosemary and Asa’s. As she neared the house, she nudged Sugar to go a little faster and hung tightly to the reins as the horse began to canter.

  When she arrived at the house, she dismounted and tethered Sugar to a tree in the yard. “Rosemary!” McKenzie called, walking toward the open front door.

  A moment later, Rosemary emerged with a towel in her hand. “Whatever is the matter, dear?” she asked. “It’ll be dark soon. What are you doing out and about by yourself?”

  “Rosemary, c-can I p-please—please s-speak—w-with you?” McKenzie struggled with the words and tried desperately not to cry. Like her heart, her language was broken.

  “Yes—please, come inside.” Rosemary led McKenzie inside the house. “Asa is still in the field, so we are alone. Please, tell me what’s going on.” She pulled out two chairs at the kitchen table, and she and McKenzie sat down.

  McKenzie flung her arms around the older woman, who returned her embrace. “Now, now,” Rosemary said, patting McKenzie’s head. “Is Zach all right?”

  When McKenzie nodded, Rosemary continued, “Is Davey all right?”

  “Yes, they’re fine—at least, they aren’t hurt or sick. Oh, Rosemary, I’ve made such a mess of things!”

  “Whatever do you mean, McKenzie?”

  “With Zach—I—I—”

  “Now, slow down. Everything is going to be fine.”

  “But it’s not going to be fine. It’ll never be fine again.” McKenzie let out a moan and buried her head in Rosemary’s shoulder.

  “Please, try to explain it to me, so I can help you,” Rosemary said as she smoothed McKenzie’s hair with her fingers.

  “You won’t be able to help, Rosemary. Nothing will help. You see, I—I sent this letter to my parents in Boston. I wrote it when I first arrived here, right after the wedding. I was so lonely and miserable then. It was the day Zach gave me a foal for my wedding present. I was so frustrated because things were not going the way I wanted them to.”

  “Tell me what the letter said,” Rosemary urged her gently.

  McKenzie thought about the letter and tried to recall the exact words that had prompted her mother’s trip to Pine Haven—and provoked her fury. “I—I wrote that I was miserable, and that Zach failed to treat me kindly and made me live in a poverty-stricken state.” McKenzie began to sob. “I—I wrote that he made ridiculous demands on me….”

  Rosemary drew in her breath but continued to listen quietly.

  “You see,” McKenzie continued, “the reason I married Zach was to get help finding my sister, Kaydie. She’s married to this horrid man named Darius, who mistreats her. When my mother read my letter, she must have feared that Zach was like Darius, and she decided to come and get me. She’s here now, and she wants to take me back to Boston tomorrow. Oh, Rosemary!”

  “Let me make sure I understand,” Rosemary said calmly. “You married Zach so that you would have somewhere to stay and someone to help you find your sister?”

  “Yes. Isn’t that awful? I didn’t see how appalling it was then, but I see it now.” Another sob racked McKenzie’s body. “Anyway, I hated it when I first came here. I didn’t even like you, Rosemary. Remember that first night, when I treated you like a servant? And then I vowed I would never, ever like you.”

  “Now, now, McKenzie. I forgave you before you even apologized over what happened at dinner. How were you to know? Besides, I wasn’t too fond of you at first, either.”

  McKenzie suddenly sat up in her chair. “I’m so sorry, Rosemary. I’m getting tears all over your dress.”

  Rosemary pulled up a corner of her apron and dabbed gently at McKenzie’s tear-streaked cheeks. “It doesn’t matter to me at all that you’re getting tears on my dress. I am here for you, McKenzie. Pour out your heart, if it helps.”

  McKenzie didn’t know what to say. Rosemary had every right to hate her after what she had done. Zach was as dear to her and Asa as a son, and the thought of someone knowingly hurting him would undoubtedly hurt them, as well.

  McKenzie stared at Rosemary. Her own mother had never comforted her in the way Rosemary vowed to do. When she’d been upset as a child, she’d always run to Nellie, and then to Kaydie, when she’d gotten older. Kaydie hadn’t been around when Louis had broken her heart, and so Nellie had sat patiently and listened to McKenzie as she’d spouted her sadness. Yet, her comfort and care had scarcely been as genuine as Rosemary’s. Nellie had never hugged her or reassured her; she’d merely listened out of duty, since she was paid to do so. “Rosemary, you don’t realize how awful I have been,” McKenzie moaned.

  “You deceived and betrayed Zach, and that was wrong of you; he didn’t deserve that. But you’ve changed, McKenzie. You’ve changed since you wrote that letter to your parents. You must make your mother see that.”

  “But—but she won’t listen to a word I say. Besides, Zach will never forgive me for what I have done.” McKenzie relived in her mind the terrible moments when she had first introduced Zach to her mother. “Mother wouldn’t even shake Zach’s hand or give Davey a hug when she met them.”

  “There, there,” Rosemary said in a soothing voice.

  “Zach—he sees marriage as a vow, an unbreakable promise between two people. He sees it as having trust, not deceit,” McKenzie whimpered. She could still see the tears in his eyes—tears she had never seen in a man, let alone a man she loved.

  “Zach also knows that issues will arise in a marriage, and that God is faithful to see husbands and wives through those issues.”

  “But how could he forgive me for this, Rosemary? It was all a lie—at least, that’s how it started, until I fell in love with him. I’m not sure how I expected my plan to turn out, but it seems as awful as could be! And, since I complained about Zach, my mother thinks he’s a monster, like my sister’s husband, Darius. Yet nothing could be further from the truth!”

  “Then, you must make that truth known to her,” said Rosemary.

  “But she won’t listen. I kept trying to tell her. Then, I saw the hurt in Zach’s eyes, and I knew things would never be the same. He was crying, Rosemary. I’ve never seen him cry.”

  “His heart was broken beyond measure because he loves you, McKenzie. Surely, you can understand his pain.”

  “He told me he loved me, implying that the feeling is past,” McKenzie said dejectedly.

  “He said that out of hurt,” said Rosemary, grasping McKenzie’s hand. “We all say things we don’t mean when we are hurt. You have to believe that God can heal your marriage, but you have to want Him to do so.”

  “I do want that, Rosemary. I never thought I would say this, but I want to be married to Zach. I want to live here in Pine Haven. I know that sounds odd, but it’s true. I would be a fool to leave him.”

  “Yes, you would,” Rosemary said. She paused for a moment. “You see, when Zach loves, he loves deeply.”

  “I know,” said McKenzie. “And he’s the last person I would ever want to hurt. I have come to love Zach with all my heart, but it took the thought of actually leaving him to make me realize that.”

  “Let’s pray that you will have the chance to tell him, and that he believes you,” Rosemary said, then bowed her head and began to pray aloud.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  Have you seen McKenzie?” Zach asked Jonah. He’d just come bac
k to the barn after a long walk to clear his head.

  “She asked me to saddle Sugar and keep an eye on Davey. Then, she rode off. I’m not sure where,” Jonah said. “She seemed pretty upset.”

  Zach stared at the floor. “I reckon she was,” he said, his voice barely audible, even to himself.

  “You know, Zach, it’s none of my business, and I don’t want to pry, but is everything all right?”

  Zach sighed. “No, Jonah, it’s not. McKenzie came here to be my wife under false pretenses. She wanted to locate her missing sister, and she needed a place to stay, someone to help her, and financial resources for her operation. I can’t believe it took me so long to put two and two together and figure that was why she answered my advertisement for a mail-order bride. It’s not every day a woman of her class and social standing would leave all of that behind to move to the Montana Territory. But I was blind. I thought—” Zach stopped himself. It didn’t matter what he thought. What was done was done. McKenzie didn’t love him, and their marriage had been a cruel joke. Once the town found out, there would be no shortage of pity for him—pity he neither wanted nor felt he could handle.

  “I don’t understand,” Jonah said.

  “McKenzie wasn’t looking for a husband any more than you’re looking for a wife. She wants to find her sister, and it seems she’ll do whatever it takes to accomplish that goal—even get married. From what I understand, when she first arrived here, she wrote to tell her parents about the ‘horrible conditions’ here. She complained that I was treating her unkindly and making unreasonable demands on her, and that’s why her mother decided to travel here. Mrs. Worthington had no shortage of words to let me know just how she felt about a man who would treat her daughter the way I was supposedly treating McKenzie.”

  “I’m sorry, Zach,” Jonah said. “You know, I’m not an expert about marriage, and I’m especially not an expert about women. You know my background. After my ma left, my pa filled my head with all the negative parts of marriage; all he did was complain. But, I will tell you something, Zach. What you and McKenzie share—I’m not talking about when she first arrived here; she was different then. But now, she’s changed; you have to admit that.”