Orphan Train Romance Series: Five Books in One! (Clean Western Historical Romances)

by Zoe Matthews

  Lydia felt strongly that they needed to know their story so they could help both boys adjust better. When they signed the papers that Mrs. Carver gave them, she had given them a folder that included a brief history of their lives, but there was very little information in it and most of it was of their history at the orphanage.

  The papers had shown that their parents were dead. Their father had died in a factory accident and their mother had died while giving birth a few years ago. After their father died, the boys had been taken care of by an aunt who eventually placed them in the orphanage. If their mother died from childbirth a few years ago, did that mean there was another sibling? Why did the aunt give them up? Lydia felt they needed to know so they could help the boys move on, especially Joseph.

  After a lively breakfast, Mrs. Young willingly walked James to the barn to allow Lydia and Clinton time alone with Joseph.

  Clinton started the conversation out with Joseph. “How do you like living here?” he questioned the boy. “Do you and James have everything you need?”

  Joseph nodded. He was sitting in his chair in a defiant position, his hands clutched in front of him, his eyes looking down at the table. He was not happy he was not allowed to go to the barn with his brother.

  “I thought we could try horseback riding again,” Clinton tried to continue the conversation. “You did a great job that first time. Would you like that?”

  Again, Joseph nodded, although it looked like he was agreeing because it was expected of him. Lydia reached out to touch his arm.

  “I love to ride, Joseph. I ride a lot in the hills nearby,” Lydia told him. “After you have had a few more lessons, maybe we could go on some horseback rides together.”

  This time Joseph did not respond, but kept his eyes on the table.

  Lydia decided that since small talk was not getting them anywhere, they might as well approach the real topic.

  “Joseph, we would like to ask you some questions about your parents and your aunt. Would that be okay?”

  “I don’t want to talk about them,” Joseph muttered.

  She ignored his comment. “We would like to know what happened to them.” She pushed the papers that Mrs. Carver had given them toward him. “It says here both your father and mother are dead. Is this true?”

  Joseph stared for a long time at his hands, but after a few moments, Lydia thought she saw a slight nod.

  “What happened to your father?” Clinton asked.

  “He worked in a factory. There was some type of accident. He went to work one day and I never saw him again. I don’t know what happened. Aunt Katherine took care of us when pa was working, and we never went back home after pa died. We stayed with her.”

  “I’m sorry, Joseph,” Lydia whispered to him. “I am sure that was hard.” She waited a few moments, and then asked, “What about your mother?”

  “Ma died after Lizzy was born.”

  “So you have a sister?” Clinton asked.

  “Yea, Aunt Katherine kept her.”

  Lydia and Clinton looked at each other in disbelief.

  “Do you mean your aunt kept your sister but sent you and James to the orphanage?” Lydia asked, trying not to sound angry at the idea.

  Joseph nodded, still keeping his eyes down at his lap.

  “Do you know why your aunt didn’t keep you boys?” Clinton asked him.

  Joseph shrugged his shoulders. “I guess we were too much trouble. She was always yelling at us for making messes and not staying clean.”

  “How old is Lizzy, Joseph?” Lydia asked.

  The boy shrugged his shoulders again. “Maybe three.”

  “Is your aunt married? Do you have…?” Lydia started to ask, but Joseph shook his head at the question, then suddenly sat up straight and looked Clinton right in the eyes. “I don’t want to be adopted. I had a ma, I had a pa. I don’t need new ones. When I’m old enough, I am going back to New York to take care of my sister.” He got up and ran out the kitchen door to the outdoors.

  Lydia stood up as if to follow him in concern, but Clinton touched her arm. “He’ll be okay. Let him go. Sit down. We need to talk about this.”

  Lydia sat back down with a sigh. “Well it sure explains a lot. James seems happy to be here. Joseph is here until he is old enough to leave. I wonder why James isn’t as angry as Joseph is.”

  “Joseph is protecting his brother. That’s what big brothers do.” Clinton leaned towards Lydia and looked into her eyes. “I am not sure how you will feel about this, but I would like to hire a private investigator and find out about their sister. We need to make sure she is being cared for.” He took her hand and Lydia grasped it like a lifeline as she nodded.

  “I think that is a good idea,” Lydia nodded. “She shouldn’t have split them up like that.” It made her sick to think a woman would give up her own kin like their aunt had done. She hoped that if they ever found out the real reason, it would make sense.

  Lydia stood and started to pace the kitchen floor. “How long do you think it will take before you can find someone to help us?”

  “I know of someone already who lives in New York. His name is Bill Quinn. I am sure he can help us. I will write a letter at once and send a ranch hand to town today to mail it. I will also contact the orphanage and see if they know their aunt’s address.”

  “I have an idea.” Lydia turned toward Clinton with a light in her eyes. “Why don’t we see if their aunt would be willing to move here, on the ranch? We could give her a job and help her care for their sister. Then the boys could still live with us, but they wouldn’t be separated from their sister.”

  “That is a good idea,” Clinton nodded. “I am sure there is something I could come up with for their aunt to earn some money. Part of it could be room and board.”

  “There is that old house the foreman used to use. We could fix that up for her.” Lydia was starting to get excited.

  “It’s a bit small, but I think we could make it work.” Clinton stood up and walked to where Lydia was pacing.

  “Lydia, don’t allow yourself to get too excited. We don’t know all the circumstances as to why she gave the boys up. She might not want any contact with them. She might not agree to come. We might not even be able to find her.”

  She nodded her understanding and tried not to feel too discouraged at his words. “I know this is the right thing to do. Maybe if we at least are able to stay in contact with their aunt, Joseph will accept his new situation better here. Do you think we should let Joseph know what we are planning? Maybe we should wait until we know for sure what the circumstances are.”

  Clinton shook his head. “I think we need to be honest with him. He trusted us enough to tell us. Now we need to show him our trust.”

  CHAPTER 13

  That evening at dinner, Clinton explained to both boys their plan. For the first time, Lydia saw a full smile that lit up Joseph’s face.

  “Do you mean it?” he questioned them as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “You’re going to find our aunt and Lizzy?”

  “Yes,” Clinton said. “If we can find your aunt, we are hoping she will want to come live here. Then you boys can be reunited with your sister.”

  “I don’t know if she will want to come,” James said in a quiet voice. Aunt Katherine didn’t like us too much.”

  Joseph slugged his brother in the arm. “She has to come. I want to see Lizzy again,” he protested.

  Don’t hit your brother,” Lydia automatically chastised Joseph as she watched James rub his arm. “James could be right. She might choose to not come.”

  Does this mean you won’t adopt us?” Joseph questioned, redirecting the subject off himself.

  Lydia felt sadness at his question, especially because he sounded so happy about it.

  “No,” Clinton answered him. “Your aunt gave up her rights to you. We have papers that you both are our sons. But we think it will be good for you to still have contact with your other family.”

 
; Joseph hesitated then nodded his head in understanding. “When do you think she can get here?”

  “It could be a few months down the road,” Clinton explained. “I sent a letter off to a private investigator today who lives in New York and to the orphanage you both lived in. All of this will take awhile.”

  Dinnertime that evening was one of the best they had had together since the boys came. Joseph started to open up and gave them more information about their sister. Lydia marveled that he did not show a lot of anger toward his aunt for making the decision she had made, but continuously expressed happiness at the prospect of being able to see his sister in the future.

  ****

  The next month was some of the happiest times Lydia had had in a very long time. Now that Joseph had told them his story and heard about their plans for his aunt and sister, he allowed himself to relax and started to enjoy living at the ranch as much as James did. Joseph learned how to ride a horse very quickly and he was soon riding all over the ranch with Clinton. On some days, he would leave early in the morning when Clinton did and stayed out all day.

  James preferred to stay close to the ranch house. He started to spend a lot of time with Clinton’s mother, Isabelle, visiting her every day in her rooms. She was bedridden by this time and had officially turned over the running of the house to Lydia. She would read to him and tell him stories about her early life in England, how they came to America and started the ranch. James started to call her grandma which delighted Isabelle.

  Lydia started to feel like her days were well spent. She didn’t have as much time to ride in the hills on Comanche like she used to and she missed that, but she enjoyed her new responsibilities of running the house and taking care of the boys. She also spent some time quilting a little bit each day, developing her skills in the art.

  One day, Lydia asked Mrs. Young to make fried chicken, potato salad and rolls. She had decided it would be fun to have a picnic and spend the day at her favorite place away from the ranch with Clinton and the boys. When she suggested her idea at breakfast, both boys shouted with excitement. At first Clinton looked like he was going to argue, but then backed down and seemed as excited as the boys were.

  After Lydia had collected the picnic lunch, she went to the barn where she found Clinton and the boys saddling the horses. Comanche had already been saddled and he was waiting by the fence with Clinton’s horse. She put the lunch in a saddle pack and then watched as Clinton taught James the last steps in saddling Butternut. She enjoyed watching him with the boys. She saw James turn and jump on Clinton’s back and watched Clinton turn around to grab him and did some “guy punching” with the boy. Joseph was standing a few feet away watching them. He included himself in the mock fight when Clinton lightly punched him on the shoulder.

  She had always felt a deep regret at not being able to give him a son, but now they had two. Clinton was a good father. He had been able to accept both boys as if they were his own and insisted everyone do the same. When he introduced them to others, he would let them know that they were “his sons” and he would say it with pride in his voice.

  He was a good man and she felt blessed to be married to him. For the first time, Lydia was able to admit to herself that she was glad she had listened to her father and married Clinton. She had felt unhappiness for so long, she had almost forgotten what real happiness felt like. She was starting to realize that she had a good life. Yes, she had had many losses, but she loved living in Texas on this ranch. She loved Clinton very much. She made a vow to herself right then and there that she would put her past behind her and focus on her future with Clinton and the boys.

  Slowly she walked towards Clinton. At that moment, Clinton saw her and slowly stood upright, with each boy’s head under his arms. He let them go as she walked right up in front of him. She put her arms around him and gave him a hug, lightly kissing his cheek. He stood still for a moment, and then hugged her back tightly.

  “That is the first time you have done that,” he whispered to her.

  “Done what?” she was confused at his words.

  “You have never hugged me on your own. You have never initiated it before.”

  At first, Lydia didn’t know what he meant, then it dawned on her what he was saying. She only hugged or kissed him when he came to her first. What he was saying was true. She started to say something, to apologize, when she noticed Joseph and James watching the two of them very intently.

  “Are you ready to go on our outing?” she questioned them. They both nodded and soon all four of them were on their horses and heading towards her favorite place.

  It was a great day for all four of them. They took their time riding to the stream because James was still learning how to control a horse, but it was relaxing. Lydia was able to see both boys were enjoying the outing, especially Joseph.

  When they arrived at the spring, they tied their horses to some trees nearby. The boys immediately started to play in the water. Clinton spread a blanket on the grassy riverbank and both he and Lydia settled down next to each other. Lydia eventually became drowsy and took a short nap. When she awoke, she noticed that Clinton had taken off his boots and rolled up his pants. He was in the river and looked almost as wet as the boys did. Lydia enjoyed watching them. She wished this day would never end. She wished she knew what the future would bring.

  Lydia noticed that James needed a haircut. His dark blond hair fell in his eyes, the hair curling at the base of his neck from being wet. James looked up at Clinton with joy and trust in his eyes. He seemed to have a unique ability to adapt to whatever situation he was in, to just enjoy it, to have fun. He was a very trusting boy.

  Joseph was different in that he did not trust easily. He had been through too much, losing his mother, then his father, then his aunt giving him and his brother up for whatever reason, but choosing to keep his younger sister. She wondered what went through his mind when he thought about his aunt’s decision. Was he angry with her or was he just angry at the entire situation?

  Soon the boys and Clinton came over and collapsed on the blanket, pretending to complain that they were starving and when was Lydia going to feed them? She just laughed and got out their lunch. They enjoyed fried chicken, the potato salad that Mrs. Young was famous for, along with rolls, fruit and some cookies for dessert.

  After lunch, the boys started to explore the land around them while Clinton sat with Lydia on the blanket. James kept returning to them to show a neat looking rock he found, or wanting to know the name of a plant he had picked. Joseph explored until he got too far away and Clinton had to call him back. Finally, Clinton suggested it was time to return to the ranch. Lydia wanted to protest, but knew he was right. It would take a while to get back to the ranch and she knew Clinton liked to be around for the evening chores.

  CHAPTER 14

  When they returned to the ranch it was late afternoon, and Clinton suggested Lydia go ahead to the house, that he would care for her horse. She accepted his offer and walked to the house. The boys had stayed in the barn with Clinton and Lydia decided she had some time to do some quilting before dinner would be ready.

  When she entered the kitchen to make sure her help was not needed, Mrs. Young greeted her, and handed her a thick letter.

  “This was delivered from town a few hours ago,” she explained. “It looks like it is from the investigator you hired.” Mrs. Young was aware of their plans to find the boys’ aunt.

  Lydia held the letter in her hands and sat down on a kitchen chair. “He must have some information about their aunt. I better let Clinton know.” However, she did not get up right away. Mrs. Young sat down beside her and grasped her hand.

  “I know this is hard for you, but you are doing the right thing,” Mrs. Young said softly. “It is good to get the truth. Their aunt cannot legally take the boys from you, not when she voluntarily gave them up.” Lydia nodded and the two women sat together for some time in silence. Eventually, Mrs. Young stood to make her some tea, and Lydia sipped
it gratefully, enjoying the strong flavor of a mix of peppermint and other herbs that they grew in their gardens.

  “Thank you for the tea,” Lydia finally said as she got up from the chair with the envelope in her hand and headed outside towards the barn. When she arrived, she found Clinton easily with Joseph and James. They had just finished taking care of the last horse and she waited until she knew Clinton was done, keeping the envelope behind her back. She wanted to talk to Clinton about it privately, before they gave Joseph the information that they would learn.

  Clinton turned and saw her. He greeted her with a smile, but the smile faded as he saw her expression. “Is something wrong, dear?” he asked.