Rose wiped the sweat off her forehead and sat up on her knees in a pile of weeds. There had been no notice, no letter saying she was now Rose Castle and no longer Rose Walker. She needed the attestation of divorce. She wanted to have all ties with Cade severed permanently and officially. Shrugging, she pushed the thought aside and went to the kitchen where she found Meg laughing so hard she was clutching her sides. When Rose walked in, the breathless cook tried to say hello, but continued to laugh and pointed a wobbly finger at the twins as if in explanation.
“Impressions,” she managed to stutter between laughs.
Bill smiled innocently. “We were being roosters,” he said with Frank laughing behind him.
“They are amazing at it,” Meg said, wiping her eyes. “They did cows and cats and dogs and roosters just now, but the most humorous one was the impression they did of me.”
“Did you like it?” Bill asked eagerly.
“Immensely,” Meg answered. “Now that we have had our laugh, let’s get back to kneading the dough.”
Rose took a step forward. “Actually, gentlemen, I was wondering if I could steal Meg for a bit.”
Meg frowned. “Is something wrong?”
“Oh no, I wanted to show you the baby cows. We have an injured one who can finally stand on its own and the other is thriving. I thought you might like to see them.”
“They are awfully pretty, Miss Meg,” Frank added. “Mr. Jeffries let us go see them last week.”
Meg nodded eagerly. “Do you two mind if I take a break?”
They answered that they wouldn’t and Meg pulled off her apron and skipped over to Rose. “I have never seen calves before.”
“They are one of God’s prettiest creations, in my opinion.” Rose led her out of the kitchen.
“I heard two were found. They had been taken by rustlers? The workers have been talking about it.”
Rose nodded. “One was better off and luckily we found the owners. It is thriving being back with its mother from what I have heard. The other we have no idea where it came from, but it is blind in one eye with a docked tail and is still healing, the poor thing, which is why we haven’t let it go out to pasture yet.”
“It is awful when little things are hurt by others,” Meg shook her head angrily. “Makes me sick. Babies are precious whether in cow form, cat form—any baby.”
Rose nodded, pressing her lips tightly together. “Yes, they are.”
Upon arriving, Meg let out a gasp of delight when she laid eyes on the baby cows. The velvet nosed calf looked at her with its legs spread out like a triangle. One eye was halfway shut, and the heifer beside it seemed to sense its disability because her movements were slow and gentle.
“The other is nursing still, but you can touch this one. Our heifers are extremely tame and used to us touching their babies.” Rose opened the stall with one hand, balancing Daisy on her hip with the other. “We named him Rocky, since Sheriff Ben found him in the mountains.”
Meg tiptoed hesitantly into the stall. The heifer lazily chewing cud gave her a patient glance before returning to her food. The calf lifted its nose as Meg held out her hand.
“Hello precious,” Meg whispered, feeling like she was on sacred ground. She touched the ears, and the calf lifted its head eagerly. Meg laughed and knelt down to be at eye level with it. She ran her hands down the neck talking softly. “I am sorry about your poor little eye and tail.” She nearly choked on her words as a wave of compassion washed over her. “It wasn’t fair, was it?”
It wasn’t fair, but I still love him.
The words were so strong that they were almost audible. Meg’s lips parted as a feeling of overwhelming love for the little cow settled over her. She suddenly knew without a doubt that God loved this baby cow, and that He was aching for the pain and injustice done to it. This calf was His, and no one had the right to hurt it. But God did not control people like a puppet master. He allowed them to make choices, and because people were broken, broken things happened.
Yet the feeling of love was so strong that Meg felt like her chest might burst. God’s mercy was shown when the calf was found, when it could nurse and be tended to. God would not force anyone, but His love was in control. And He loved this calf deeply.
How much more do I love you? Meg’s eyes filled with tears. How often did she feel like this little calf—left alone, a victim of another’s brokenness? But that did not mean God did not love her. It meant that Charles Lars was a cruel man, that her mother was weak. Yet she felt—she knew—that it was God’s love who sent Rose, and brought her to Tall Pine.
“Meg?” Rose asked when Meg let out a shaky sigh etched with emotion. “Are you alright?”
Meg nodded, not turning around, but rather pressing her head against the calf’s. “Yes Rose, I am very much alright.”