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

by Zoe Matthews

  Katrina went and stood next to him. Joshua looked down at her with a possessive smile and grasped her arm to pull her close to him, yet he did not talk to her and continued the conversation he was having with Mr. Porter. Katrina tried to pull away when his hand held her too hard, but he grasped even harder until she stopped pulling away. Then Joshua briefly looked at her as if to say, “You must do what I want, and I want you right here next to me.” She knew that she would have some bruises on her arm, he was holding her so tightly.

  Katrina closed her eyes and quietly prayed, “Please God, help me to pretend that I like being near him. I have to play this charade if I have any chance of getting away.”

  She felt a calm feeling come over her and she made herself smile at him. She must have looked convincing because he soon released her.

  “Dinner is ready, ma’am,” Mrs. Coleman announced at the doorway.

  “Come,” Mrs. Porter said. “Let’s have dinner. Please dear, no more talk about work. Let’s make the plans we need for the engagement party.”

  Therefore, for the next two hours, that is what they did. The party was to be as elaborate as possible for a party that would be held in a small Texas town. They would be inviting some important people from the surrounding towns and a few men from the nearby city. Katrina held her tongue and pretended to agree with all the plans. The only time she voiced her opinion was to make sure that nothing would be said about the plans of the engagement until her birthday. She did not want the news to get out around the town. The less people who knew about it when she left to go to Montana, the better.

  Thankfully, Mr. and Mrs. Porter felt it would not be appropriate for Joshua to stay at their home and arrangements were made for him to stay at the boarding house that was run by two spinster sisters.

  At least I will not be constantly running into him, Katrina thought to herself, though she made sure she showed no emotion over this decision.

  Finally, Katrina was allowed to retire to her room. She tried to leave quickly before Mrs. Porter changed her mind.

  “Wait, Katrina,” Joshua demanded of her and she had no choice but to turn and face him. He stood and came towards her.

  “I would like to request your presence tomorrow about 2:00. We can go for a walk to the park,” Joshua told her.

  “What a delightful idea,” Mrs. Porter purred. Katrina waited for her to offer to come as chaperone, but she did not.

  “That will be fine,” Katrina agreed and tried to smile as if she liked the idea of meeting him. “Shall I meet you at the Mayor’s office?”

  “No, of course not,” Joshua looked at her in suspicion. Katrina knew she would need to be very careful around him. “I will come by and collect you. Please be ready on time.”

  “I will,” Katrina agreed, making sure she smiled even more, trying to show that she was delighted she would be seeing him tomorrow. She then bid everyone good night and left the dining room, trying very hard to move gracefully as Mrs. Porter had taught her and not run like she wanted. The next few weeks were going to be the hardest she had ever gone through.

  ****

  The walk with Joshua the next day actually was not too horrible. Katrina learned quickly that when Joshua was out in public or in the presence of his uncle and aunt, he acted appropriately, as if he cared for her. Because Mrs. Porter was very big on propriety, they were rarely alone. Either Mrs. Porter was with them or she would send one of their maids to accompany them. Joshua always was present for Sunday dinner, but other than the once-a-week meal and the few times Joshua would collect her to walk around the park, she rarely saw him.

  About a week before she was to leave with Serena, Katrina started to carefully pack some of her belongings. She knew that she needed to be careful of what she took. She could not pack too much or it would alert the household of her plans. She had found an old carpetbag in the attic and had hidden it in her closet. It was only large enough to hold a few dresses. She made sure the letters she had from Anna were tucked inside, along with some of her favorite books, including the old Bible from her birth mother. She really wanted to take some of her books for teaching, but she knew she would not be able to carry the bag if it was too heavy.

  Most of the funds she made from teaching had been deposited in the family bank account, but she had been able to secretly save a little bit of the money she received each month. She now hid these bills between the pages of her favorite book. She did not take anything else. She did not want to be accused of stealing, even though all of her things had been given to her by the Porters.

  After she tucked the bag in her closet behind some dresses she had outgrown, she went downstairs to wait for Joshua as he was taking her for their biweekly walk around the park. She went into the parlor to wait for him. Mrs. Coleman was in the room dusting a shelf full of knick-knacks.

  Katrina greeted the housekeeper. She had grown fond of the older woman. Mrs. Coleman had always shown acceptance of her from the first day she had arrived from the orphan train. Her husband took care of the grounds around the home. Mrs. Porter always felt the help were to have their own place and not be familiar with the family, but when Mrs. Porter was not around, Mrs. Coleman was very kind to her.

  “Mrs. Porter has asked me to accompany you today,” Mrs. Coleman informed her. “She has given Molly some other tasks to do today.”

  Katrina nodded her understanding and sat on one of the sofas to wait. She glanced at the clock that was on the fireplace mantel and noted that she was a few minutes early. That should please Joshua. The last time he came, she had not been waiting for him even though she appeared as soon as she knew he had arrived, and she could tell he was displeased.

  “Mrs. Porter has told me of your plans to become engaged to the young Mr. Joshua Porter. I would like to express my congratulations.” As she said the words, she watched Katrina’s face closely as if looking for something.

  Katrina smiled slightly and glanced at her lap. “Thank you.”

  “She told me you will be married right before Christmas,” Mrs. Coleman continued.

  “Yes,” Katrina nodded her head. “We will marry and then Joshua wants to take me on a honeymoon trip to Massachusetts to meet his family. Then we will return and he will run for the mayor position.”

  “Are you…” Mrs. Coleman stopped when a knock was heard at the door. “I hope you will be happy,” she said instead.

  “Please don’t tell anyone,” Katrina asked her. “I don’t want anyone to know our plans until my birthday when we will announce it.”

  Mrs. Coleman again looked like she wanted to say something, but then went to answer the door.

  “Welcome, Mr. Porter,” Mrs. Colman greeted him formally as she let him in. She led him into the parlor and Joshua smiled when he saw Katrina was there waiting for him.

  “Good, I am glad I don’t have to wait for you this time,” Joshua told her without greeting her. “I don’t have very much time today and I have something we need to discuss.”

  Katrina nodded her agreement and took his offered arm, allowing him to lead her out of the house, with Mrs. Coleman walking discreetly a few feet behind them.

  The trip to the park did not take very long. Katrina tried to enjoy the walk because it usually was one of her favorite places to be. It was full of large shade trees with benches placed strategically under them in various places. A rough path had been worn from walking around the perimeter of the park. There was a small area for children to play in. She loved the park because of the shade trees and flowerbeds, but she also liked it because she would meet Anna and Serena here after church every Sunday.

  This time, as with the other times she had gone to the park with Joshua, she could not enjoy it. She hoped this would be the last time she would need to come on these expected walks since she was scheduled to leave within the week. Serena was to have already purchased their tickets and she also mailed a letter to Paul and Luke to let them know when they were going to be arriving in Montana.

  �
�We are going to need to marry sooner than December,” Joshua told her, not bothering to ask her what her opinion was. “My parents have decided to come and bring some of my other family members to the wedding. They want to be back in Massachusetts by Christmas and they want us to travel back with them.”

  Katrina did not know what to say. Was he going to insist they announce their engagement now? “When does the wedding need to happen?” she finally asked.

  “I get the definite idea you do not want to marry me, but you do not have a choice. Mr. Porter wants me to have control of the money you will be inheriting. He does not feel you will be able to make wise decisions with the money. When we have children, the funds will go to them. You do know you should either agree to what we are planning or I will make your life miserable when we marry. We can have a pleasant marriage if you do as you are told. If you do not….” He did not finish the sentence, but she knew what he was implying.

  “I have agreed to the marriage. Can we marry in November?” Katrina asked, trying to keep her voice as calm as she could, although deep inside she was shaking like a leaf. What if he discovers her plans to escape? She knew that if he discovered her plans, he would insist on marrying her immediately, and she was certain that the Porters would agree to it.

  “It is now the end of August. I would like to announce our engagement as soon as possible and marry sometime in October.” Joshua sounded like he was asking her if she agreed, but she knew he was insisting it would be so.

  “What if we become engaged a week from Sunday?” Katrina suggested, hoping that Serena had been able to purchase the tickets as they had planned. If she had, they would be gone by then.

  Joshua nodded his head. “I knew I would be able to get you to see reason.” He immediately grasped her arm and turned her around. “Since we have made this decision, I will escort you home, and then I will let my uncle know the new plans.”

  Katrina looked back at Mrs. Coleman. “Our housekeeper can make sure I get home. Why don’t you go ahead and find Mr. Porter? It will save you time.”

  Joshua looked at her, as if trying to see if there was another reason Katrina wanted him to leave, but then he nodded at her suggestion and turned her over to Mrs. Coleman. He quickly walked towards the town hall where the mayor’s office was located.

  Katrina sighed in relief and watched him walk away. She was starting to feel so scared. What if her plans didn’t work out? What if she really was going to be forced into marrying him? She did not know if she would be able to handle it. For the first time, she wished she had not gone on that train to Maple Grove. Then she wouldn’t have been adopted by the Porters. Although if she had not come, she would probably have lost touch with Anna and Serena. And who knew where she would have ended up in New York when she would have had to leave the orphanage when she turned 13?

  Mrs. Coleman stepped beside her. “If you are not okay with this marriage, you need to say something.”

  “I have already tried,” Katrina told her. “I don’t feel I can. The Porters are pretty insistent that I marry him.”

  “I feel I should tell you that I saw the bag you have hidden in your closet. Do you have plans to leave?”

  Katrina was surprised at Mrs. Coleman’s words and did not know what to say. If she told Mrs. Coleman the plans she had to go to Montana, would she be able to keep them a secret?

  “You can trust me, Katrina.”

  At the housekeeper’s words, Katrina knew she could trust her. Mrs. Coleman had never given her a reason not to trust her in all the years she had been with the Porters.

  “Yes, I have plans to leave with Serena. She is going to Montana to marry the brother of the man Anna married. I have been offered a job to teach school on their ranch.”

  Mrs. Coleman smiled. “I think that is a fine idea. I am relieved you have some concrete plans and you weren’t just planning on leaving to go to any old place.” She tucked her hand into Katrina’s arm. “My friend, Esther, saw Serena purchase two train tickets today, and I wondered if you were making other plans.”

  Katrina nodded. “We are supposed to leave in a few days. We should be gone before the engagement is officially announced.”

  Mrs. Coleman continued. “I will help you. What do you need?”

  “Well, I would like to take some of my school books. I just don’t think I can carry them in that bag.”

  “I have a small trunk you can have. We can pack what books you want and then I will have Mr. Coleman take the trunk to the train station. Don’t worry. He will be discreet. He is not fond of Joshua and will be glad you are not going to really marrying him. We have all been very concerned. Joshua is not a kind man.”

  Katrina stopped and hugged the older woman. “Thank you so much,” she said with tears in her eyes.

  “I will help you finish packing,” Mrs. Coleman told her as she returned the hug. “But please promise me that if the job does not work out in Montana, you will let me know. I was going to offer that you could go live with my sister in Oklahoma. She needs a companion and would be willing to take you in.”

  “I promise,” Katrina said as she hugged her again.

  CHAPTER 5

  Katrina sighed with relief as the train pulled out from the final stop before they arrived in Pine Valley, Montana. She had been very nervous the entire trip. She knew Serena was wondering what was going on, but Katrina still did not dare tell her. She felt that the less Serena knew, the better, just in case something happened and the Porters discovered she had left earlier than she had planned they would. She had snuck out of the house early in the morning to make the train which left at 5:30. She was glad that Mr. and Mrs. Porter never got up before 7:00. Mrs. Coleman and her husband had helped her get to the station.

  She knew it would have been impossible for anyone to follow her at first, but she also knew that with their money, the Porters could have somehow caught up with her. She did not leave a note, but she knew that they would probably be able to guess where she had gone. They knew Anna had gone to Montana and they would easily find out that Serena had left as well. She hoped that Mrs. Coleman and her husband would not lose their positions with the Porters, but when she expressed that fear to them, they both indicated to her that if that happened, they would be fine and would be able to find other positions.

  At the last stop, they had to stay the night at a hotel because the train had some emergency repairs that needed to be done. Katrina had been unable to sleep the entire night. When they left the hotel to board the train for the last part of the journey, she half expected someone to be waiting for her to keep her from boarding the train, but luckily no one was there.

  Katrina leaned back against the hard bench and closed her eyes with relief. Only a few more hours and they would arrive at their destination. She would be able to see Anna again after over a year. She felt excited at the thought of seeing her good friend. She was glad that they would be able to live near each other and continue their close relationship.

  She talked with Serena for a while, commenting on the scenery that they saw passing through the grimy train windows. They could see large mountains in the distance. It was the most beautiful sight she had ever seen. She could see that some of the tallest mountains had snow on the tips, even though it was only the beginning of September. Parts of the mountains looked almost purple in color.

  Are you nervous about marrying Paul?” Katrina finally asked Serena as the train chugged along.

  “I am a little bit,” Serena admitted. “I have gotten to know him through our letters, but what if he is different than what he portrays himself? I keep telling myself that Anna would not have suggested that I marry him if she did not feel he would be good for me.”

  “I have been thinking the same about teaching. I know teaching on a ranch will be different. I probably will be lucky if I have more than ten students, but Anna would not have suggested it if it wasn’t going to work.”

  “Boy, we are sure putting a lot of trust and faith in Anna, aren�
��t we?” Serena asked with a smile.

  “So I guess if it doesn’t work out for us, we can blame her,” Katrina joked. “Seriously, I accepted the job because I felt good about it and I needed to leave Maple Grove. I know you feel good about marrying Paul.”

  “Why haven’t you told me why you are really leaving Maple Grove?” Serena asked all of a sudden with a hurt voice. “I know that something was going on, especially when you changed your mind so quickly about coming, and then you didn’t want to leave until now, wanting me to put my plans to marry Paul on hold. “

  Katrina sighed. “I wish I could tell you, but I want to make sure we are safe first.”

  “Safe from what?” Serena asked with fierceness in her voice. “Does this have to do with the Porter’s nephew?”

  Katrina hesitated and then slowly nodded. Surely, by now it was safe to tell her friend. It had been very difficult to keep this to herself through the entire ordeal. She had only done it because she really believed the less people who were aware of the situation, the better.