Mark’s news weighed heavily on my heart.
All weekend, I watched the Pratt children with anxious eyes, bereft at the thought of losing any of my little ones. The knowledge made me indulgent. I found it difficult to refuse any request.
Dorcas burst into the kitchen on Monday morning dragging Delilah behind her. “May we walk with you to the village?”
“Indeed, yes. I should like the company.”
I packed the last few items in a pail and covered it with a cloth. Jedidiah had lessons at the tutor’s house this morning, and it fell to me to deliver his meal. Deborah coveted this chore—and a glimpse of the much-admired Jacob Worth—but she would forfeit the errand today. Her mother had displayed an uncharacteristic passion for teaching her the art of spinning.
Dorcas and Delilah ran ahead, skipping and holding hands. Had we been walking at a normal pace on the most direct route, we would reach the village in a few minutes. But we weren’t interested in a quick trip. It was a beautiful day, worth enjoying, and we did everything in our power to lengthen the journey. First, there was a detour through the woods to pick blackberries amid a vicious array of thorns. Next we stood on the sturdy bridge over Rocky Creek to watch the water bubbling past. Then we managed a stop by the well to cool our scratches before wandering through the shade at the side of the lane.
As we passed the Widow Drake’s house, a figure appeared in the open doorway.
“Hello,” Mary Whitfield called with a wave. “What brings you to town?”
“I’m taking a meal to my master’s son.”
“May we talk a moment?”
“I’d like that.” I turned to the little girls. “Shall we play here?”
“Oh, yes,” Dorcas said. Delilah agreed with a nod. The two ran to a tree and promptly stomped around it in circles, Dorcas in the lead.
I joined Mary in the shade of the porch. “How do you like working with Mrs. Drake?”
“She’s very kind. She teaches me to spin at present. Once I have it mastered, I shall try weaving.” Mary held up reddened, calloused hands with a laugh. “They do look a sight.”
“Indeed.” I slid my fists into the pockets under my petticoat. My scarred hands looked far worse. “Have you seen much of the village?”
“The people are very kind.” She rocked on her heels, the tips of her boots peeking in and out from under her petticoat. “Have you met the cooper’s apprentice?”
“Reuben Elliott?” I eyed her speculatively. Was Mary interested in him? “Indeed, I have. A nice man.”
“Is he promised to anyone?”
“Not that I’ve heard.”
She nodded. “I find this village charming.”
“Indeed.” How many years did she have left on her contract? Would Reuben wait? Perhaps Mrs. Drake would release her early. I hoped it went well for them. “I shall see you at church on Sunday, Mary.”
“No doubt.”
I tramped down the steps and into the lane, calling Dorcas and Delilah to come with me.
The tutor had four students. From the window, we could see the boys bent over their papers, quills scratching. I circled to the rear of the property and knocked on the kitchen’s door. The tutor’s wife scowled as she took Jedidiah’s pail.
The girls scampered ahead of me, down the dusty lane winding past the half-dozen buildings at the center of town. When they came to the place where the lane forked, they stopped.
“How long does it take to get to your mother’s property?” Dorcas said, pointing down the road heading east from town.
“If you stay on the Raleigh Road for a twenty minute walk, you will come to my mother’s farm.” “Who else lives with them?”
“No one.”
“What do they grow?”
“They have a small garden, a horse, a cow, and chickens. The rest of the land is rented by another farmer.” I shooed the girls forward. “It’s nearly time for our meal, little ones.”
“Shall we visit Papa first?” Dorcas asked.
Not waiting for my reply, the sisters ran through the narrow stand of trees hiding the mill from the rest of town. I followed at a distance.
When I arrived, I stuck my head in the door of the mill. It was quiet—an empty kind of quiet. Both millstones, the old one for grinding corn and the new one for grinding wheat, were extraordinarily clean. There had been no business here today.
The girls rushed past me, peeking around corners and down the stairs. As the emptiness penetrated their enthusiasm, their giddiness faded.
“He’s not here.” Dorcas huffed a mournful sigh. Delilah mourned, too.
“Perhaps he’s running an errand.”
“We can play hide and seek while we wait.”
I shook my head vigorously. “This is a poor place to play a game.”
Dorcas cupped a hand around her mouth and whispered in her little sister’s ear. Both girls giggled as they darted through the door we had just entered.
“Girls, come back.”
Their laughter ended abruptly.
I stood in the threshold, scanning the mill yard. “Girls, I am not amused. Come at once.”
Silence greeted my calls.
Irritation didn’t improve my seeking skills. I took a calming breath as I circled around the yard carefully, glancing behind the obvious hiding places. They weren’t here. Had they run to the back?
I walked around to the opposite side of the mill and stood, hands on hips, surveying the area. Where might two little girls be?
Could they have reached the forest so quickly? I didn’t think it likely.
That left the millpond and Rocky Creek. Tension showered over me like a cold rain. Did their silence have a more ominous source?
They could be hiding near the wall beside the sluice. I never approached it willingly, so strong was my fear of the water roaring down its chute. But if the girls had strayed too close, I had to check. Nerves prickled along my arms as I took hesitant steps nearer.
Something thumped near the sluice. I crept closer, gripped the wall, and peered behind.
My master glanced up with surprise. “Susanna?”
“Sir.” I bobbed my head.
He picked up a shovel, stamped a bald spot of earth with his boot, and walked around the wall. “Have you come to visit with me?”
It was such an absurd question, I would’ve laughed if fear had not had me in its grasp.
“No, sir. We took Jedidiah’s pail to the tutor’s house. Dorcas and Delilah insisted we visit here on the return journey.”
“Where are they?”
I had to choose an answer carefully. If he knew they hid from me, they would be punished and so would I. Even now, I could only hope they were wise enough to remain out of sight.
“They are hungry and have run ahead.”
“Why are you not with them? And why have you come near the water?”
“I am not so very close to it.” I clamped my lips shut.
He studied my face at length, until the scrutiny made me uncomfortable. “You haven’t lost your fear of the water, have you? Not in all the years since your father passed.”
“I am fine.” I dropped my gaze to the ground, thinking hard. Were the girls safe? Did I risk their lives to avoid a few lashes of the switch?
No, truly, Dorcas was too clever. She must be hidden nearby, muffling Delilah’s giggles, watching me and her father. I wished to spare her punishment for her disobedience.
But what if I was wrong?
My master moved closer to me and grasped my chin in his hard fingers, forcing me to look at him. “Do you often allow Delilah and Dorcas to run about Worthville without you?”
My mouth went dry as my mind sought a plausible reason. “They are nearby. I thought to catch my breath in the shade before following them home.”
The intense stare continued, but his fingers released me. I gave a perfunctory curtsy and turned to leave.
“Susanna?”
“Yes, sir?”
“I want you to stay.”
I hesitated. “Right now?”
“In October. I’m accustomed to you. Don’t leave at the end of your indenture.”
Not leave? Was he mad? I shook my head, too stunned to respond.
“We’ll pay you a fair wage once your contract ends.”
I shuddered. Could he not discern how deeply I longed to flee his house?
“I must decline your offer. I shall leave on my birthday as planned.”
“You won’t find a better position.”
I bit back a laugh at his foolish claim. Despite being nephew to our town’s magistrate, no sane villager or farmer in the area would apprentice their children to the Pratts. A worse job was not possible.
“I do not worry about my chances.”
A brooding darkness settled over his features. “Is that so?”
His expression made me nervous. Backing away from him, I said loud enough for two little listening girls to hear, “I am heading to the house.”
“Your plan to move to Raleigh is sheer madness. No one will want a girl of your age with no references.”
Was he right? I didn’t think so, but I couldn’t be sure. “It is a risk I am willing to take.”
“You won’t find a welcome at your mother’s home, either.”
I frowned. “How can you know such a thing?”
“Mr. Shaw will marry your mother this fall. Once he moves into her farmhouse, there will be no room for you or Phoebe.”
“When did he tell you this?”
“Yesterday after church. Your mother has convinced him that Phoebe shouldn’t tend children. He will bind Phoebe out.” Mr. Pratt smiled—a mean smile, like a snake about to strike at its prey. “If Susanna Marsh must leave our house, perhaps Phoebe Marsh will take her place.”
A shrieking giggle pierced the air. Delilah erupted from the shadows behind the wood pile and ran toward us. “Papa, I should like for Phoebe to live at our house.” She stopped at his side and looked up, beaming. “I was hiding from Susanna.”
Dorcas plodded into the sunshine, her face flushed crimson. With wide, panicked eyes, she stared at me. There was no way to comfort her.
“You hid, did you, Delilah?” His fingers tousled her curls while his furious glare latched onto Dorcas. “I suppose you proposed the game to your little sister.”
Dorcas nodded slowly, her lower lip trembling.
“After supper, you will await me behind the kitchen for your punishment.”
Delilah looked from her father to her sister, let out a wail, and rushed to me, slamming into my legs, rubbing her face against my petticoat. I patted her shoulder absently. Her cries couldn’t change the outcome that her ill-timed words had started, but it did hurt me that she recognized what lay ahead.
“And you, Susanna,” my master said, in a conversational tone, “do you often lie about the disobedience of my children?”
“Yes, sir.”
“You, too, may join me after supper.” He smiled tightly. “Perhaps you should deliver Dorcas’s punishment.”
“I shall not.” I lifted my chin, firmness in my response. He could threaten to beat me unconscious, but I wouldn’t thrash Dorcas.
“Very well. It will be enough to have you watch.”