The Uncharted Beginnings Series Box Set

by Keely Brooke Keith

  “What if Mr. Cotter already knows?”

  “He doesn’t. I know Teddy and he wouldn’t let his wife steal.”

  “What if she denies it?”

  “We will take her before the elders.”

  All hope for justice dissolved into discouragement. Her shoulders slumped. “That will take weeks.”

  “No, it won’t. This will be over today. I’m going to become an elder here someday, and you will have to trust me to take care of the business God has given me. Just as this settlement trusts you to do the work He has given you.” He let go of her hands and glanced into the window at his waiting siblings. “Go and teach the children. I will take care of Mrs. Cotter.”

  She’d told him the truth and he wanted to help her. She stepped toward the door. Her warm breath flowed freely in wispy white puffs. He’d said her impairment wasn’t her fault. As she reached for the handle, she realized he hadn’t said if it had changed his feelings for her. She swallowed hard and glanced back at him. “Are you disappointed in me?”

  A slow grin reached his eyes. “No, never. I would have preferred if you told me all of this from the beginning, but I understand why you didn’t.”

  “I mean about my word blindness. You deserve someone perfect.”

  “You are perfect for me.”

  “But I’m not perfect.”

  “Nor am I.” He tilted his head. “True perfection awaits us in eternity, Liv. Nothing here will come close.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Olivia grabbed Christopher Vestal’s sleeve, halting him before he climbed the chapel’s stone steps. “I can’t do this.”

  He stopped with one foot hovering over the bottom step. “You must. We must.”

  She checked the empty road behind them. “I should wait out here for Gabe.”

  “He asked me to see you inside the chapel while we wait for him and Reverend Colburn to escort Mr. and Mrs. Cotter here. They won’t be long.” He pointed his thumb toward the arched wooden door at the top of the chapel steps. “The rest of the elders are already in there.”

  “I know. That’s why I can’t go in yet. I need to know what happened.” Though the air was cold, she fanned her sweaty face with her hands. “How did Mrs. Cotter react when you and Gabe confronted her?”

  Christopher glanced around the churchyard. He kept his volume low. “She denied it, and when her denial turned to throwing insults, Gabe and I took the matter to the reverend.”

  “What did the reverend say?”

  “He asked me to gather the elders while he and Gabe went to get Mr. and Mrs. Cotter.” Christopher gently took her arm and walked her up the stairs. “And to have you seated before Mrs. Cotter arrives. Something isn’t right about Cora these days, and for some reason, she is blaming you for her problems. We will keep you safe. Come inside with me now, please.”

  As her hand passed over the wooden railing, she remembered the fire on the first day of school. She had stood at the top of these steps and watched Benjamin Foster run to the grove to hide. He had been blamed for starting the fire, and she’d been blamed for it happening while she was in charge. She stopped Christopher once more. “You said it was too early in the morning to start a fire with a magnifying glass.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Pardon?”

  “The morning of the fire. Benjamin Foster was blamed because everyone saw him by the lumber pile. He had a magnifying glass and we assumed he started the fire, but I remember you saying the sun wouldn’t have been high enough. Benjamin never answered questions about it, but you told me it wasn’t him.” She remembered seeing Mrs. Cotter on the road watching the blaze. “She was there… Mrs. Cotter. She had sent Jane and Conrad to school but kept the other children home because they were working for her. I remember thinking it was odd that they were too busy with work to leave the house, but she was in the village that morning. Do you think she did it?”

  “Possibly. But that is not why we’re here.”

  “If Benjamin was falsely accused, we need to apologize to him.”

  “We will. Let’s get through this first.”

  She followed Christopher to the front pew in the lamp-lit chapel. He held an open palm to the seat and waited politely for her to sit first. As she sat, she studied the faces of the men who were waiting to hear the case against Mrs. Cotter.

  Olivia’s father watched her with solemn eyes. Doctor Ashton leaned across the pew and gave Christopher’s shoulder a supportive squeeze. Jonah and Henry sat in the pew behind the elders, both wearing grave expressions unsuitable for men so young. Mr. McIntosh glanced continually out the window, waiting to see Gabe and Reverend Colburn return with the Cotters.

  Though Olivia wanted Mrs. Cotter to be held accountable for her crime, she never thought she would be a witness in Good Springs’ first trial. And the person she had to testify against was an unstable woman who probably knew her secret. She clenched her nervous fists.

  Christopher looked at her hands then up at her eyes. He leaned close. “Have courage. The truth will set us all free.”

  They were thinking of two different matters; he was focused on testifying against the thief, but she was filled with dread of being exposed for the sham of a teacher she was. She forced her hands to open, but they tingled deep inside. “Yes… the truth.”

  The few whispers in the room ceased when Reverend Colburn entered the chapel with Mr. and Mrs. Cotter behind him and Gabe behind them. Mr. Cotter took off his felt hat and wrapped his arm supportively over Mrs. Cotter’s back. He probably had no idea how much his wife had stolen and for how long.

  Gabe closed the door, sealing them all inside. Olivia glanced at the window and briefly considered jumping headlong through the windowpane. Bits of glass would cling to her dress as she ran across the meadow toward the grove. Perhaps she would find poor Benjamin Foster hiding in the grove too. He was always being accused of something, and she feared she was about to be judged for something she couldn’t control. Perhaps they could start their own settlement for scapegoats. They could welcome all of Good Springs’ misunderstood, misinformed, and miscreants.

  Gabe reached the pew, snapping Olivia from her fantasy of running away. Christopher scooted down for him to sit beside her. Gabe took her hand and didn’t let go. He knew about the word blindness and hadn’t rejected her. If he could boldly face the elders knowing Olivia’s flaw might be exposed, she could too.

  Teddy Cotter stood at the front of the room beside Mrs. Cotter. His sad eyes scanned the faces of the men he’d trusted since they all had planned their migration, fought the sea to survive, and settled the new land. He cleared his throat. “I understand you all know Cora has been accused of theft. They say she has been taking food from neighbors and milking their cows in the middle of the night.” He glanced briefly at Olivia then pulled Mrs. Cotter close to his side as he continued. “It is not true. My wife works hard for our family. She can cook like a miracle worker, but that is no reason to accuse her of wrongdoing. If there is a thief among us, we must root him out. But my wife is no thief.”

  Reverend Colburn leaned against the side of the lectern and closed the cover of his Bible. “Thank you, Teddy. Unfortunately, several families have reported waking up to cows already milked. Yesterday morning my wife discovered an emptied shelf in our root cellar.”

  Mrs. Cotter’s glare was fixed on the door at the back of the room. Her wiry hair stuck out around the edges of her brown bonnet. Her lips twitched intermittently, but she didn’t say a word or look at Reverend Colburn.

  The reverend nodded and motioned to the front row. “Olivia, Christopher, please stand.”

  Olivia’s stomach dropped.

  Reverend Colburn looked at Mr. Vestal. “Christopher, please tell the elders what you witnessed.”

  Christopher folded his hands calmly in front of his body. “When I realized someone was milking our cow, I started leaving the dog outside at night. Nights I did, we would have milk the next morning. My suspicion grew and just over a month ago I
decided to lock the barn one night and watch to see who it was.”

  “And who did you see?” Reverend Colburn asked.

  Christopher looked at Mrs. Cotter. “It was Cora. She came onto the property alone, holding a milk pail. She tried to get into my barn. There was a full moon that night, so I had a clear look at her face. Teddy, you know I would do anything for you and Cora. Susanna loved you both very much. I would have given you every drop of milk we had if you asked. Still would. I never wanted to testify against you, Cora, but I must tell the truth.”

  “And Christopher didn’t witness this alone.” Reverend Colburn said, looking at Olivia. “Miss Owens was with him that evening. Miss Owens, tell us what you saw.”

  Olivia swallowed hard and kept her focus on Reverend Colburn. “It was just as Mr. Vestal said. I’d stayed late at the Vestal house because we suspected the thief would come if he kept the dog inside. I saw Mrs. Cotter walk to the barn. She tried to get in, but it was locked, so she went to the chicken coop.”

  Mrs. Cotter snapped her gaze away from the door and pointed at Olivia. “She doesn’t know what she saw!”

  Mr. Cotter gently pulled his wife’s pointing hand back down and asked her, “Did you go to the Vestals’ barn at night?”

  When Mrs. Cotter didn’t answer her husband, he glanced nervously between her and the reverend. “Maybe she had a good reason to go to his barn. They didn’t see her steal anything. Right, Cora?” His voice faltered as he scrambled to defend his wife. “Why did you go to the Vestals’ barn? Perhaps you needed to borrow something and didn’t want to wake them. Was that it?”

  “It’s her fault,” she hissed and pointed again at Olivia. “She doesn’t know what she saw because she has a demon—a monster that haunts her and keeps her from teaching our children properly.”

  Mr. Cotter’s countenance fell. Reverend Colburn drew his head back in surprise. Mrs. Cotter’s eyes widened and her volume rose. “That’s right! Olivia Owens is tormented by a demon that blocks her vision. She told my Peggy all about it. Ask her yourself! Ask her!”

  “That is enough, Cora,” Teddy said, trying to calm his wife.

  Reverend Colburn held up a hand, demanding silence. “Cora, have you been stealing food from the other families?”

  Mrs. Cotter peeled her cruel gaze away from Olivia. “I have a family of nine. We will die here in this godforsaken land. There is nothing here. Nothing to eat. Not enough. We have to go home.” Her shoulders slumped. “It’s nonsense to build a schoolhouse as if we are going to live our lives here. We need to build a ship and go home.”

  The reverend angled his head a degree. “Cora, you are home. This land is our home now. And we have plenty to eat.”

  Mrs. Cotter flung her wrist to her forehead and began to weep with dramatic sobs.

  Mr. Cotter drew her close. “Forgive her, gentlemen. And me. I am truly sorry. I didn’t know, but I will make full restitution. Christopher, Olivia, I am sorry.”

  Compassion filled the reverend’s voice. “Cora, you must not steal again.”

  She nodded and pulled a lace-trimmed handkerchief from her sleeve.

  It wasn’t the confession Olivia had hoped for, but it was a step back from lunacy. Everyone watched in silence, waiting for Mrs. Cotter’s repentance. She wiped her tears, then squared her shoulders and eyed Olivia coldly. “You must be pleased with yourself. Look at you standing there full of haughty satisfaction! Did the evil spirit that controls your vision compel you to turn everyone against me?”

  Teddy released his supportive grip. “Cora, don’t.”

  Mrs. Cotter’s dark eyes bore a hole through Olivia’s heart. “A monster controls you. That’s what you told my Peggy. Didn’t you? A monster hides words from you and that is why you cannot read.” She looked past her husband at the reverend. “You are entrusting our children’s education to a demon possessed teacher who cannot read.”

  Gabe shot to his feet. “She is not demon possessed. If anyone here has an evil spirit, it is you!”

  “Enough!” Reverend Colburn removed his spectacles and rubbed one eye with the back of his hand. Silence fell upon the room as he laid his glasses on the lectern and drummed his fingers on his Bible. “Cora, your theft has caused division in our community. I understand the human desire to defend yourself by lying and denying the charge, but the truth is clear. In your heart you know what is right and what is good. We want you restored to this community, and that cannot happen until you repent.”

  Mrs. Cotter tried to point at Olivia again, but this time her husband caught her arm before she could raise it. She lifted her chin toward Olivia. “What about her? She has been fooling us all.”

  The reverend looked at Mrs. Cotter over the gold rim of his spectacles. “We will not consider your accusations unless you first confess your sin.”

  She lowered her chin a notch. “I took what my family needed. My Teddy works his fingers to the bone for this settlement, and I had to keep my family fed.”

  Mr. Cotter furrowed his brow at her. “Cora, we have plenty. God has provided abundantly for all of us.”

  “It never feels that way.” Her shoulders began to shake. “I disappointed you, Teddy. Forgive me.” Her tears returned, this time with sincerity. She panted between sobs and crumbled into the pew.

  Mr. Cotter dabbed his wife’s red face with his handkerchief and waved Doctor Ashton over. Whatever had made Mrs. Cotter fear for her family’s survival had driven her to theft and had finally overcome her nerves. She hadn’t been the same since they had endured the voyage. Though they had plenty, she had become stuck in an unnecessary fight for survival. They had all experienced the same journey and toil, but instead of it increasing her faith, she had given in to fear. And now it had suffocated her life.

  Reverend Colburn closed his Bible. “Teddy, perhaps you should take her home.”

  Mr. Cotter nodded. He and Doctor Ashton helped Mrs. Cotter stand. They slowly walked one on either side of her, supporting her shaking body. She passed the first pew then stopped and turned back. “I have confessed my sin. Now please, for the sake of the children, test this girl. She shouldn’t be teaching something she cannot do. She told my Peggy she cannot read. My Peggy doesn’t lie.”

  Olivia’s breath caught in her lungs. Peggy’s lies had crippled her confidence as a young girl and almost ruined her relationship with Gabe. She opened her mouth to say as much but stopped her tongue when Reverend Colburn lifted his Bible from the lectern.

  He held the book out to her. “Miss Owens, please read a passage so Mrs. Cotter can go home and rest.”

  Gabe leaned in. “You don’t have to do this.”

  “Yes, I do,” she said as she took it. She read the Bible’s cover to herself. The letters were perfectly clear. She thumbed the Bible’s pages in half, and it fell open to the Psalms. She began reading the chapter on the right hand page. “Psalm One Hundred Thirty-nine. Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.” Confidence filled her voice as she easily read aloud. This was the voice she hoped to have in class Monday. “Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off…” She read another verse and another and felt Gabe relax beside her. She could see clearly all the way to the tenth verse and then the eleventh. It felt as if she were running at full speed, barely touching the ground. Maybe she’d been healed. Maybe she’d only needed to confess her affliction for it to go away. She had told Gabe, and he still loved her. Maybe that was her cure.

  She boldly read verse twelve and even glanced up at the reverend between stanzas. Then as her eyes moved to the next line, verse thirteen disappeared. Only little scratch marks were left. They resembled bird prints in the sand more than letters on a page.

  She closed her eyes and imagined the rest of words in that Psalm. When she opened them again, she recited the next verse from memory. “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”

  She was fearfully an
d wonderfully made.

  The flaw God had allowed her to live with only made her stronger. It was the reason she wanted the children to have a good education. God had a purpose for her condition. She handed the Bible back to Reverend Colburn then rubbed her sweaty hands on her skirt.

  “Thank you, Miss Owens. There,” the reverend said to the elders, “Miss Owens can read just fine. Mrs. Cotter, you must drop this matter. Teddy, please remind your daughter that God doesn’t tolerate lying and neither will we.”

  “Wait.” Olivia couldn’t hide the truth any longer. “Peggy didn’t lie. Not this time anyway.” All eyes were on Olivia, just as she’d always dreaded. She swallowed her fear. “I am able to read. I enjoy reading. I love to teach children to read. It wasn’t easy for me to learn though because the words don’t always appear for me. And yes, as I told Peggy, when I was a child I imagined a monster held its hand between my eyes and the page.” She glanced at Doctor Ashton, who supportively nodded once. “The doctor assured me it was no such thing and that my vision was fine. I don’t know what causes the words to disappear for me or when it will happen, so I memorize the lessons the night before I teach. I did read the first part of that Bible passage from the text. When I could no longer see the words, I spoke from memory.” She looked at Reverend Colburn. “This doesn’t mean I can’t teach. It simply means I must work twice as hard as any other schoolteacher to prepare, just as I had to work twice as hard as the other children to learn when I was a student. But I did it. God has a purpose for this in my life. He gave me these eyes and this desire to teach.”

  No one spoke.

  Gabe gently took her hand. A grin lit Doctor Ashton’s face, puffing his bearded cheeks. Her father tilted his head, gazing at her with kind eyes.

  Reverend Colburn slowly slid his Bible back onto the lectern. “Miss Owens, God gave you the strength to accomplish all that you have. We are blessed to have such a woman willing to teach our children.” He gazed at each person in the room the way he did during his sermons. “We must all accept the circumstances God has given us. He has proven His faithfulness many times, and we are wrong to ever doubt Him. If we don’t constantly acknowledge what God has done for us, we will allow fear to take hold. Each of us must rely on His strength through the challenges and use the talents He has given for His purpose—even when those talents come with difficulties.”