| |
David held Maddie’s hand firmly in his as he helped her board the train car. This time the tracks would take them together back the way they’d come, back to the place they’d first met in Shoshone. From there they’d travel west. David wanted to introduce her to his dearest friends, Jonathan and Kat Winthrop, and Boise City would be an interesting place to spend their honeymoon.
Maddie settled back into the seat while David tucked their bags overhead. When he was seated, she snuggled into his shoulder. The train started with a lurch. The passing landscape triggered memories, both painful and surprising. So much had transpired in these past few months, changing her forever from the foolish girl she’d been when she’d boarded back east. Seasons change. People too. Perspectives alter. The terrain that had seemed so cold and hostile held a beauty for her now.
With a secret smile, David shifted, pulling an envelope from his pocket. He handed it to Maddie, wrapping his arm around her shoulders as he did. “Lena asked me to give this to you.”
Maddie read the return address. It was from Boise City, the lettering in a woman’s fine handwriting. She looked for an answer in David, but he’d drawn his features into an enigmatic expression. She rather liked that she couldn’t read him so easily. Some mysteries were best kept as such.
"Open it, if you’re curious," he said.
The envelope was addressed to Lena, but the letter inside was addressed to her. She took in a sharp breath as she read the signature. Mary Hallock Foote.
The letter was brief, not as she’d expect to find from the pen of a writer. But the words were carefully chosen to convey much meaning. It was an invitation to dine at her home in Boise City. She wrote that having read a rough draft of Maddie’s short story about Jessie and the colorful characters of Ketchum, Mrs. Foote wanted to offer her assistance in opening doors into the publishing world of New York.
Maddie looked up, astounded. "How? Did you?"
David shook his head, his dimples deepening. "I wouldn’t presume. It was Lena’s idea, but I did help find an address. It required a little detective work." He grinned, his eyes sparkling with mischief.
Maddie lifted her hand and caressed his cheek with her fingertips. "You dear man."
David kissed her forehead. "I believe in you, Maddie."
Pressing the letter to her breast, she leaned her head against David’s chest. To be believed was a wonderful thing. Not to hide. Not to disappear. To be her true self was all she ever wanted.
The End
