Will and Mabel had decided that it was time for Mary to start earning her keep. She was old enough and strong enough, they reasoned, and it shouldn’t be too hard to find her a position. Well-to-do families like the Pineos or the Clays in Pugwash were always looking for good, respectable girls, so there’d be no need for her to return to Rockley School.
“She’s got her grade nine,” Mabel said to John one evening. “That’s a lot of schooling for a girl. More than is needed, truth be known.”
“We really can’t afford to keep her, with her not contributing nothing to the household. More reading and writing’s not going to help her anyway,” Will agreed.
Mary didn’t want to go to a stranger’s house to work. And she didn’t want to stop going to school, since Smith was to be the schoolmaster.
“I plan to be a doctor someday,” he’d told Mary one evening as they followed along behind the cows. “That means going away to Halifax for a long time. I want to start next fall, at Dalhousie.”
“You’re so smart, you’ll do it,” she replied.
“I’ve been going with Doc Creed sometimes on his rounds, learning as much as I can. He says I can work with him when the time comes. But I’ll need to teach school for a year to save some money. My parents just can’t afford to pay for everything. Room and board are high down there.”
He stopped in his tracks and, blushing, grabbed Mary by the arm.
“Do you think that you might like to live there some day?”
“In Halifax? I don’t know. What’s it like?”
“It’s grand. Lots of people around and so many buildings. They’re wonderful to see. The best is the statue of the lion commemorating two Crimean War soldiers. I’ve been to Halifax twice and spent a lot of time looking at it while Ma and Pa were calling on friends. It’s just up the street from the Waverley, a new inn where we stayed the last time we were there.”
“I wish I could see it someday,” Mary said.
“Per—perhaps I could show it to you,” Smith offered. “Someday maybe we could visit it together.”
“Maybe.” Mary smiled up at him, then quickly lowered her head.
“I’ll be a long time studying medicine.” He was still holding on to her arm.
“We need to get these cows home before they come looking for us,” Mary said, slipping out of his hold and continuing along the path.
They walked along in silence for a few more minutes.
“You’d better start back now,” she said, just above a whisper. “We don’t want Daddy to see you. It’s Friday and he might get back early from work.”
“I don’t care if he sees me or not. I’m not scared of him and I’m tired of just meeting you here. I want to court you proper. He’s going to have to know some day.”
“You might not be scared, but I am. I’m afraid of what he might do if he ever caught us walking out together.”
“He’s got a mean streak,” Smith said.
“He’s got a bad temper and yells a lot.”
“Does he yell at you?” Smith asked, reaching for her hand again.
“Sometimes.” Mary grimaced.
“I’d better not hear him do it.”
“He’s my father, he can do as he likes with me.” Mary blushed and turned away.
“No, he can’t. He’s not allowed to be cruel, as much as he wants you to believe he can,” Smith said. “Doesn’t your mother stand up for you against him? Ma lets Pa go only so far to discipline us.”
“Mumma just started to talk to me again after months of ignoring me,” Mary said.
“Why’s that?”
“Oh, we had a misunderstanding a while back and she never spoke to me for a long time. She was so mad at me.”
“But why?”
“It was…I just told her something she didn’t like. Now, you need to go, we’re getting close to the house,” Mary warned him.
“All right, I’ll go. But I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“Yes.” She smiled up at him. He bent down and kissed her.
Mary turned and ran down the hill.