by Danni Roan
Birch laid his hand over Xenia’s where it rested on his heart. “You do?”
“Yes. The question is what are we supposed to do about it? I understand if you need to go home to your father, but I can’t. Now that I see what needs to be done I have to do it.”
Birch lifted her hand kissing each of the calluses along her palm. “Honey, my father will understand. He’ll just be glad to find out I’m not dead. When I tell him I’m getting married, he’ll be thrilled.”
Xenia laughed. “You’re getting married?” she asked innocently.
“I plan on it as soon as we make shore.”
“Who’s the lucky lady?” Xenia said still smiling.
“There’s this girl I know. Her name’s kind of funny, and she’s very difficult, but I’m rather crazy about her.”
“I see. And will you ask her as soon as you make land fall?”
“No, I think I’ll ask her right now.” He leaned forward whispering in her ear that sweet little question that would change his life.
“Yes,” Xenia whispered back a moment later right before Birch kissed her.
“You two got things worked out down there?” Barnaby called down the stairs a few minutes later. “Time to get back to the big boat.”
Chapter 24
As they made anchor in the San Francisco Bay Xenia was overwhelmed with the vision that greeted her.
Rows upon rows of sailing ships sat at anchor a midst a forest of masts that nearly blocked out any view of the wharves and warehouses that made up the port.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Xenia said standing next to Barnaby as the anchor was dropped.
“Yes you have,” the old sailor said. “You’ve just never seen it from this side.”
Xenia looked at him a question in her eye.
“You’ve seen the docks in New York, and they’re much the same.”
“But look at the hills,” Xenia said. “They seem to rise right out of the sea.”
“You just keep close and don’t wonder off on your own.” Barnaby said giving her a harsh look. “It’s a rough place out there, and there’s more vice, crime and graft than you’ll find almost anywhere.”
“But it’s beautiful too,” Xenia said.
“That it is,” Barnaby agreed. “I hear that up in those hills there are little farms and ranches that sell food to the city, but much is still carried in by ship.”
“It must be beautiful up there,” Xenia agreed. “Perhaps we’ll get a place up there with a view of the sea where we can find a little peace.”
“That’d be nice. You’re sure you want to go through with this?”
“I am and so is Birch,” Xenia said hiding a blush by dropping her head.
“I think you’d best stay aboard and let the rest of us deal with the low lives that attacked us. I’ll go ashore as witness then see if I can hear of anything that will suit our needs.”
Xenia nodded reluctantly; even she had the sense to avoid being carted off to another ship or somewhere even worse. She’d seen enough hard luck cases in New York to know that life could be hard for a woman caught on her own in the wrong part of town.
“Zeke!” Xenia wheeled as the Captain Havertly called her then hurried across the deck toward his quarters. “I’ll ask you to tidy my quarters while we row ashore,” he said.
“Aye,” Xenia replied stepping inside.
“You’d best stay inside while we’re gone,” the captain continued closing the door behind them. “I’ll leave you the key, and if there are any signs of trouble, make the door fast and stay quiet.”
“Do you think there will be trouble?” Xenia asked taking the key she was offered.
“Most likely no, but we don’t know if Gobbs and that lot had friends. I’d rather err on the side of caution.”
Xenia nodded slipping the heavy key into her pocket and clearing the table while the crew was still on board.
“Captain,” she paused at the door. “Can I ask a favor?”
The graying man nodded.
“Can I keep the cats?”
Captain Havertly lips twitched turning up in a smile. “I think it might be best,” he agreed with a chuckle. “The beast is rather off putting.”
***
Xenia was dumbfounded when within three days the cargo had been unloaded and both ships sold, leaving her with a pocket full of money and nowhere to go.
“I’ve got good news,” Barnaby said on their third day in port. “I’ve heard of a place outside the city that might work for us.”
“Really?” Xenia asked, looking to Birch hopefully. “What do we do next?”
Barnaby shrugged. “This is your bailiwick.”
“Have the other sailors already gone?” Birch asked gazing around at the empty crew quarters.
“All paid off and gone,” Barnaby confirmed.
“Then it’s just the three of us and the Captain,” Birch said with a grin.
Xenia looked up into his handsome face and smiled. After months of close living, she would have thought that all shyness would have evaporated, but she could feel her stomach flutter with anticipation of their new life.
“I’m going to see the captain,” Birch said leaning over and kissing Xenia on the cheek then dashing up the stairs.
“I’m going to change,” Xenia said smiling. “After all this time I can honestly say I’m looking forward to dressing and living as myself.”
Barnaby patted her cheek. “I’ll see you on deck.”
Xenia pulled the rumpled dress from the bottom of the wooden box shaking it out as best she could then quickly stripped and washed herself using a pot of hot water from the galley.
In all the years of laughing and planning with her sisters in love Wendi and Vera, she never once dreamed that her wedding day would look like this.
Slipping into her simple everyday dress and forcing her feet into her small, overly tight boots, she combed out her hair pinned it in place as best she could and made her way on deck.
Captain Havertly smiled sadly at the young woman who ascended the stairs of his hold to stand before him.
Clean and in a dress, he barely recognized the waif that had masqueraded as a member of his crew since leaving New York.
Barnaby straightened a red kerchief around his neck and tried to smooth his mutton chop whiskers into place, but Xenia’s had eyes only for Birch.
Birch stood before her, his clean shaven face and neatly cropped hair accenting his bright smile. He had donned the clothing he’d been taken in, and the gray suit, though creased and dusty looked good stretched across his broad shoulders.
Xenia made her way to Birch taking the hand he offered and smiled back at him. Perhaps men had meant for evil their capture, but somehow it had come to good.
Birch squeezed Xenia’s hand. There was still a part of him who wanted to bundle her off to the train station and see her safely home to the loving arms of one Madam Wigg of the Wigg School and Foundling Home New York, New York, but he knew that the reason he loved her was the reason she had decided to stay.
Her stubborn determination in the face of an unfair obstacle was what had drawn him to her in the first place.
“Shall we proceed?” Captain Havertly asked his eyes bright with hope.
Xenia nodded and was soon speaking the words that would bind her to Birch for the rest of her life. When Captain Havertly pronounced them man and wife, telling Birch that he could kiss his bride, Xenia yelped as her new husband pulled her close and kissed her deeply.
“I’ve been waiting an awfully long time to do that,” he said with a grin as he stepped back leaving them both breathless.
“I’m truly sorry for the way my men treated you,” the captain said as he shook hands with Birch and kissed Xenia on the cheek. It was not my intention but …”
Xenia laid her hand on the man’s arm. “Go home to your family,” she said. “Go home and tell them that two mismatched travelers found love when they were thrown together unexpect
edly.”
“You goin’ ashore sir?” Barnaby asked as he gathered the crate full of cats and his old haversack.
“No, I’ll wait for the new crew and come ashore with them.” Captain Havertly said waving them off. “Good luck.”
Chapter 25
“Mrs. Oakem?” a boy in the front of the class piped up. “Did I do it right?”
“I’m sorry Joe, what’s that?” Xenia had been so far in the past she had nearly forgotten her class.
“My sums, did I do ‘em right?”
Xenia made her way to the desk and nodded. “You’re doing very well,” she said checking the clock. “I think that will be all for today,” she added, smiling at the class. “Please mark down any questions you have for tomorrow’s lesson.” She looked up at the older men. “I’ll expect you to show me how far you’ve gotten with your letters tomorrow as well.”
“Ready for lunch?” Brandy asked Xenia a few minutes later when she entered the kitchen.
“Yes, I think so. I’m very tired today and hungry.”
Brandy smiled knowingly. “That’s normal for a woman in your condition.”
Xenia smiled looking down at a slightly rounded belly. This was her first child, and she couldn’t wait to love it.
A sleek looking Bonnie, wrapped herself around Xenia’s legs as she took a seat at the table with a smile.
“How did lessons go today?” Brandy continued getting lunch on the table and pouring Xenia a cup of tea.
“Very well but I’m afraid I was a bit distracted. With everything going on lately, I’ve been thinking back to the voyage that brought us all here.”
“You’ve done a good thing,” Brandy said serving soup and hot bread fresh from the oven. “Between what you, Birch and Barnaby put together, and the money that Mr. Oakem sent to help with the fixin’ up the school, you’ve made good progress.”
Xenia smiled. “I hope so.”
“Haven’t I seen it myself,” Brandy stated placing a hand on her hip. “All of these men are making a new start, and them boys will be able to do more than just feed themselves by selling things on the wharf with what they’re learnin’.”
Xenia nodded. It was true. Shortly the men who were currently training with her and Birch, would be leaving to start new lives. Only today she had been helping Andrew write a letter to pastor George Jones who had agreed to help each sailor find a new job through his connections somewhere in the wide open spaces of the country.
“I expect we’ll be hearing from Pastor George soon,” Xenia said. “I’m told he’s a very resourceful man who will be able to find places that each of the sailors are suited for.”
“Who’s finding what?” Birch asked walking into the dining area with several men on his heels.
“Pastor George,” Xenia said accepting the peck on her cheek her husband offered. Every day she loved Birch more and even after nearly four years together, she never got tired of simply spending time with him.
“Mrs. Oakem,” each of the sailors greeted as they took their places with a bowl of soup and plenty of bread.
“How was the job today?” Xenia asked. “You’ve all worked so hard helping to fix this place up and learn new skills.”
Eli lifted a hand showing the red burn of a rope across his palm but there was a bright smile on his face. “I’m about able to catch a stump now,” he joked making the other men laugh.
“You’re coming along just fine Eli,” Birch said with a grin. “You’re able to milk a cow, or a goat, and they don’t ever try to kick you.”
“Maybe but I’ve got no skills with a chisel and a saw at all.”
“How about you Andrew?” Xenia turned to another man.
“I enjoy the fine work,” Andrew replied, “but the rough work not so well.” His dark eyes were kind and his English accent smooth. After dinner, Andrew would probably want to play something for them on the fiddle or mandolin, and she looked forward to it.
“Tomorrow, we’re going to learn barrel making,” Birch said. “The blacksmith from last week is coming along with a cooper from town and will show us how it’s done.”
“That sounds interesting.”
“Most men are more interested in what you can fit into a barrel then making one.” Barnaby spoke up tearing off a piece of bread and dipping it into his soup. “Should be an interesting change putting one together.”
Xenia smiled looking around the table. There were ten men all together if you counted Barnaby and Birch, plus herself and Brandy. It certainly wasn’t the life she had expected, but it was a good life with a chance to help others.
Looking down at her rounded form, she wondered what the next chapter in her life would bring, and if she would ever see the women she thought of as sisters again.
“Is there still vittles?” a boy of about seven asked scampering through the door with three others.
“We done all our chores,” another older boy called.
“Soup and bread is on the stove,” Brandy replied. “Don’t make a mess.”
Xenia sat back watching everyone sharing a meal and a sense of new hope. Each of the men was so different despite the fact that they had spent many years sailing the open seas.
Now they were looking to a new start and a chance to live their own dreams. She wondered what would happen to each of them. Would they find joy in those dreams? Would they make new friends or even find a love of their own?
When dinner was over, and everyone had made their way to their own quarters, Xenia took a lamp and settled at her desk as she began to write while Bonnie dosed by the fire in the hearth.
Epilogue
Xenia placed her baby daughter, Agnes, on a blanket on the floor in a pool of sunlight with a smile and sighed.
She was more content than she could ever remember being. Only a few short months ago, she and Birch had traveled to Wyoming to meet with Wendi and her husband Ambrose when they visited Pastor George.
They had spent a week catching up on everything that had happened after Xenia had disappeared and getting to know each other’s spouses. Xenia had been amazed at Wiggie’s decision to have each of the teachers become mail-order brides and travel west to start their own schools, but felt as if in her own way she had lived up to Wiggie’s vision.
Placing a kiss on her sweet daughter’s cheek Xenia moved to her desk and picked up a pen watching as Bonnie stalked in and perched on the very edge of the baby’s blanket.
“Are you babysitting again?” Xenia asked waggling her fingers at her cat who only winked at her knowingly.
Putting pen to paper Xenia began her next letter to Pastor George. He and his wife Joan had wonderful ideas on how to place the sailors who were finishing their training.
“I brought you some tea,” Brandy said carrying a tray with a cup and teapot in and setting it next to her.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” Xenia chided. “You have enough work to do every day.”
“I just thought with Birch taking Andrew to the station today, and you bein’ on yer own, you’d enjoy a bit of a treat.”
“You’re a gem,” Xenia said, half rising as Agnes rolled toward the end of the blanket only to be blocked by Bonnie’s large frame as the cat pounced stopping the baby’s momentum.
“If that cat don’t beat all,” Brandy said. “You’d think she knew what was going on.”
Xenia laughed. “Maybe she does,” she teased. “She’s heard enough of my secrets over the years.”
Bonnie closed her one good eye and began purring as the Agnes rolled back into the middle of the blanket.
“Did Birch say when he thought he’d be back?” Xenia asked.
“No,” Brandy said her eyes big as she excused herself.
Again Xenia turned back to her letter. She was trying to write to Wiggie, but she wasn’t even sure where the founder of the Wigg School was now.
Xenia was so absorbed in her letter that she didn’t hear the wagon pull up to the barn or the door open.
“Xenia, what have you gotten yourself into this time?” A familiar female voice snapped Xenia to her feet.
“Wiggie!” Xenia cried racing into the open arms of Madam Wigg.
“Hello my dear,” Wiggie said squeezing her girl tight. “Now let me look at you,” she grumbled pushing Xenia away. “You look wonderful.”
Xenia hugged Wiggie again. “ I can’t believe you’re here,” she said with a sniffle. “Please come in and sit, we have tea.”
“Never mind about the tea,” Wiggie said. “Give me that baby.”
Xenia turned lifting Agnes who was still being guarded by the oversized cat who stalked to Wiggie’s feet sniffing toes of her elegant pointed shoes.
“Oh, hello darling,” Wiggie crooned making her way to a chair by the cold fireplace.
Birch walked over to Xenia who stood still in shock that Madam Wigg was sitting in her tiny office.
“Surprise,” he said leaning over and pecking her on the cheek.
Xenia wheeled grabbing him tight and squeezing him hard. “Thank you Birch, thank you.”
“That will be enough of that,” Wiggie said. “I think I’ll have that tea now.” She added with a smile.
Xenia poured the tea then sat down with Wiggie who was still cooing at their daughter.
Wiggie settled Agnes in the crock of her arm and took her cup.
“Wiggie what are you doing here?” Xenia finally asked as Birch settled on the arm of her chair.
“Didn’t you know that I’ve been traveling the country visiting all of my girls and their schools?”
“Yes, but I never thought…” Xenia dropped her eyes. She hadn’t been at the school when Wiggie had discovered her ailment and had started sending her students out to start schools of their own.
“It’s alright dear,” Wiggie said. “I know who you are, and your story has brought you exactly where you were meant to be.”
Xenia smiled. “How did you ever put up with me?” she asked. “I must have added most of those gray hairs over the years.”