Harriet's Hope (The Alphabet Mail-Order Brides Series Book 8) Read online

  Now, she just needed to write the letter, which was easier said than done. She sat quietly at her desk, staring at the blank piece of paper in front of her, as if in doing so, it would write itself. With a sigh, Harriet stood from the desk and made her way to the large door leading to Imogene and Glory’s room.

  She knocked softly, and the door creaked open, revealing a smiling Imogene.

  “I need your advice,” Harriet explained, stepping inside.

  Imogene nodded, sitting down on the edge of her bed. “What is it?”

  “I’m trying to write my letter to the ad I selected, but I don’t know how to go about it. What do you think I should do?”

  “Just write what comes to you. Don’t second guess yourself. Start it off simple, by introducing yourself and telling him what things you enjoy doing.”

  Harriet looked down at her hands, nodding slowly. “Should I…should I mention you know…”

  “Your leg? Harriet, I really don’t think you need to worry about someone not liking you because of it. You’re perfect the way you are, and if this man is truly a good person he won’t care. Mention it if you feel you should, but otherwise I wouldn’t. After all, it doesn’t change who you are as a person.”

  “Oh, Imogene.” Tears welled in Harriet’s eyes as Imogene stood and pulled her into a hug.

  “Now go, you have a letter to write.” Imogene smiled, reaching for the door.

  “Thank you, Imogene. I think I know how to start it now.”

  “Good, and if you want, I can read it over for you afterward.”

  Harriet nodded, and walked back into her room. “I’ll get you to read it once I’m finished. Thanks for your help.”

  She waited until the door was shut before turning to where the blank piece of paper remained on the table. Harriet now knew just what to write, and she also knew she wasn’t going to mention her limp. What Imogene had told her was right—it didn’t change who she was as a person, and if this Mr. Anderson was truly a good person, he wouldn’t care.

  Trying to keep that in mind, Harriet began to write.

  Dear Mr. Anderson,

  My name is Miss Harriet Wigg, and I have chosen to respond to your mail order bride ad.

  Harriet sighed, crumpling the paper up and throwing it behind her. Obviously, he knew she had chosen to respond to his ad. Harriet pulled out another piece of paper, realizing this may be a little harder than she thought.

  Her letter was folded up in the envelope now, ready to be posted tomorrow morning, and Harriet was relieved that she had finally finished it. Albeit, a few crumpled papers later.

  Now, she sat quietly browsing through her sketchbook as Fae came in the door.

  “Glory and Imogene are going to come visit with us for a while—I invited them.” Fae walked to her side of the room, and readjusted the pillows sitting on her bed.

  “That will be nice.” And Harriet knew it would be. She’d spent countless hours with her three friends, after the school day’s work was over, and the children had gone to bed. Sometimes, even a few of Harriet’s other friends would come and visit, including Vera Mae and Yetta. It was always such fun laughing and talking with her friends, and Harriet wished she didn’t have to go separate ways with them all. She told herself she would see them again, but she often wondered if that were really true.

  And even if she did, she knew it would be different being with them in a new place. It wouldn’t be the same.

  Tears stung her eyes, but she blinked them away and set her sketchbook down gently beside her.

  A soft knock sounded on the door, then it was pushed open, and Glory and Imogene smiled as they came in.

  “Did you get that letter written?” Imogene teased, sitting down next to Harriet.

  “Yes, I would have gotten you to read it over, but I didn’t want to end up second guessing myself. I wrote nearly six copies of that letter.”

  Imogene grinned. “Oh, Harriet. I’m glad you got it done, though.”

  “Me too.”

  Glory slowly sat down on the bed and smiled. “Where does the man you wrote to live?”

  “He’s from a small town, which I forget the name of, in Wyoming.”

  “I’m sure he will be very nice. I hope you hear back from him soon.”

  Harriet laughed lightly, absently running her hand across the brown leather of her sketchbook. “I’m not so sure I want to hear back from him. That way I can just stay here.”

  “Now, Harriet, you may think that, but with all of the rest of us leaving, you would find it very different than it is now.” Fae smiled from where she was brushing out her long, red hair in front of the mirror.

  “I know that, Fae.” She paused, looking up at her three friends. “It’s just so weird when I know this is going to be one of our last times doing this. Being all together, you know?”

  Imogene nodded solemnly, her eyes meeting Harriet’s. “I know, it’s hard to imagine leaving all of you, but we will write to each other, and you never know, we might see each other again someday.”

  Harriet nodded, but she wasn’t so sure about this whole idea. What if things didn’t work out? What if she got hurt? Or one of her friends did?

  And what was so wrong about teaching at the school their whole lives? Why did some people seem eager to leave?

  Harriet bit her lip, bringing herself back to the room where Fae was laughing about something one of her students had done that day. She wanted to enjoy herself this evening, and not think about having to leave, but even still, it was always in her mind.

  Chapter 4

  Harriet held on to her small bag tightly in her lap as the train began to slow, the brakes squealing. The whistle blew a few times, eventually coming to a complete stop beside the platform, which was filled with many people eagerly awaiting its arrival. Her hands trembled as she looked out the small window. Somewhere down there, was the man she had agreed to marry.

  She’d known from the beginning of her journey, what she was coming out west to do, but it wasn’t until this moment that it fully hit her. She’d never really left the safety of the school, where she was able to hide from the stares and judgments of the world, so going this far had already felt like more than enough time.

  It had been a long journey here, and she was glad to finally have arrived, even if she was nervous. She thought of what she would’ve been doing right now if she had stayed at the school. She certainly wouldn’t be about to limp off a train and meet the man she was supposed to marry. At the school, she had never felt judged for her disability because of the wonderful people there.

  When she’d written her last letter to Mr. Anderson, she spent an hour trying to decide if she should mention the disability in her leg or not, and in the end, she chose not to. Now, though, she wished she would have. That way she wouldn’t have to see the surprise and disgust that would be sure to show on Mr. Anderson’s face. Harriet had only hoped he could look past her disability, and like her for who she was. As if it were that easy.

  The train’s whistle blew once more, and Harriet was pulled from her thoughts as she joined the slow-moving line of people getting off the train. After having sat for so long, her leg was more stiff than normal, and made her limp more obvious than it usually was.

  Before embarking on this journey, she’d made a promise to herself that when she was off the train, she would hide her limp as best she could. It wasn’t in her nature to lie, but perhaps if anything was mentioned, she could brazen it out about the long train journey and stiff muscles or twisting her ankle along the journey. But her hands still trembled as she stepped down onto the platform.

  It was a lovely day. The sky was a bright blue, and the sun shone brightly above Harriet as she squinted up to see the new sky. She reminded herself that the sky wasn’t different from the one she was used to back home. It just felt different to her. Maybe it now seemed bigger out west, or maybe she had just never paid much attention to the world above her before.

  She carefully walked i
n the direction of the city sign she was told to meet Mr. Anderson by. The bold letters were high above the heads of the crowd. Oakensville.

  She was finally here. Her ankle felt like it was on fire, and that it would give out at any moment, but she continued on despite the pain. She wouldn’t dream of letting Mr. Anderson see her disability. Not in the beginning anyway. Although she tried to conceal the limp, she knew it was still slightly noticeable. No matter how hard she tried, it was always there. She hoped he’d be a gentleman and assume she’s been clumsy on her journey.

  Harriet searched through the crowd of people near the sign, but she realized she had no true idea what he looked like. And he had no idea what she looked like. Her heart began to pound heavily in her chest, as she spun around as if this would really help her find him.

  “Ma’am? Would you happen to be Miss Wigg?”

  Harriet turned to where the voice had said her name, and looked up at the man in front of her. He had lightly ruffled, dark blond hair, and the brightest blue eyes Harriet had ever seen. She nodded, swallowing hard. Surely, he wasn’t Mr. Anderson.

  Chapter 5

  He realized it was her the minute he noticed her spinning around frantically under the Oakensville sign. And the shocked look on her face reassured him that it was truly her—the mail order bride—he had paid to bring out here. Matthew wasn’t really sure what he thought about Miss Wigg, after all, he didn’t really want to get married.

  No. He had seen how awful marriage was, and all the heartbreak you went through. He would never put himself through that.

  She was a pretty woman for sure, with her long, brown hair hanging neatly over her shoulders. Matthew forced himself to look down at his hands, as he reached for her bag. “I’m Mr. Anderson. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

  “You…you too. How did you know it was me, though?”

  “You were the only one spinning around in circles. Everyone else continued moving on from the noon arrival train.”

  She blushed, and looked down. “Oh.”

  “Well, you must be exhausted from your journey here. Let’s get out of the station.” He smiled lightly as he began walking in the direction of where he’d left his wagon. She walked silently beside him as they pushed through the crowd.

  “I do have some bad news, although it’s only temporary. The minister has been taken ill and can’t perform our marriage at the moment. But as soon as he’s well again, he will. You’ll be chaperoned at the house by my brother, so we won’t be living alone. I hope you’re okay with those arrangements?”

  “Oh. Yes, of course. How much farther?” Her voice sounded desperate, as if she was afraid. He realized the news had probably unsettled her. Or maybe she didn’t like crowds and had come from somewhere without lots of people. Although he’d heard New York City was big and busy.

  “We’re almost to the wagon. Just down the street here.”

  She let out a relieved sigh, as they continued to where Matthew had left it. When they reached the wagon, he took her hand and helped her up onto the seat before climbing up beside her, carefully setting her large bag down in the back.

  “The children are so excited to meet you.” He smiled as he grabbed the horses’ reins and started the wagon rolling forward.

  “The children?”

  He nodded. “My brother’s children.”

  “Oh right. I’m sorry. I forgot you mentioned them in your letter. I’m just so tired I’m not thinking straight.”

  “It’s all right. I’m sure coming out here has been very tiring for you.”

  He didn’t know what else to say. What was there to say? He focused on the road ahead of him filled with the busy lunchtime carriages and wagons driving past him.

  “How far is your place from here?”

  “About five hours. Not too far.”

  She tilted her head as her light green eyes met his. “So, it’s not close to here at all?”

  “No, I just come here once in a while for supplies that I can’t get where I live. The town I live by is called Burchcreek. I guess I never mentioned it in my letters, but I live just outside the town on a small farm, and I think you’ll quite like it there.”

  “Oh, I’m sure I will, Mr. Anderson.”

  Matthew couldn’t help but think of his father as Miss Wigg said his name. He smiled, looking down at her. “I’d much prefer if you would just call me Matthew. Mr. Anderson seems more distant, don’t you think?”

  She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and nodded. “All right, and you may call me Harriet.”

  They were soon out of the city, and Matthew instantly felt the silence settling in. The only sound was the wagon wheels running along the worn dirt track and the horses’ hooves pounding on the ground.

  He tried to focus his attention on the road in front of him, but it was hard not to notice the deafening silence.

  Matthew looked to where Harriet was sitting beside him. She sat upright, her hands folded neatly in her lap as she looked around at everything there was to see.

  Scratching the back of his neck, Matthew urged the horses to go faster as he searched his mind for something…anything to say.

  Chapter 6

  Harriet had never seen such open land before. She had never seen anything other than the city where the Wigg School and Foundling Home was. But out here, there wasn’t many trees around them, or buildings for that matter. The grass surrounding them was long, and even had some lovely flowers in it. The wagon rolled along a dirt track, and jolted Harriet every which way.

  She was used to the comfort of the city. When she had dared to venture outside the school, she would ride on smooth cobbled roads, or even walk sometimes.

  The thought of home filled her heart with sadness. Thinking about where all her closest friends were now, terrified her. They were all spread across many different places, so far away from each other.

  She thought of Fae, one of her dearest friends. Fae had always dreamed of being swept off her feet by a handsome prince, and Harriet prayed that she had found a true prince wherever she’d gone.

  Her stomach churned, and she looked down quickly. She was so hungry because she hadn’t had lunch yet. She’d slept in, missing breakfast. And all she’d had was a jam sandwich that was packed for her, courtesy of the boarding house she’d stayed overnight in.

  Five hours seemed like a long time to Harriet. Especially with how hungry she was. And how tired.

  She looked up to where Matthew sat with the reins gripped tightly in his hands. They hadn’t said anything to each other in a while, and Harriet was starting to feel uncomfortable. Perhaps he’d noticed her limp as they were walking, and was only trying to be polite in the beginning of their journey. Maybe they would stop somewhere, and Matthew would leave her behind because she wasn’t what he had wanted.

  Harriet pushed the thoughts out of her head, as she took a deep breath. “It sure is beautiful here. I’ve never seen such open land before.”

  “Really? What would you have seen in New York?”

  “Buildings upon buildings really.”

  He smiled. “What about the outside of the city?”

  “Oh, I never really strayed too far from my home. I had no reason to. I was taken in as a baby at the Wigg School and Foundling Home, and never really went far. Although on the train, my journey began with some large hills and endless amounts of trees, and as I neared here, the trees spread out and the land levelled.”

  “Indeed, welcome to the prairies.”

  They were silent again for a few minutes before Harriet thought of something she’d never really established yet. “Do you live with your brother and his children?”

  “Yes, my brother and I farm together. I used to live in a small cabin with room for just one person, but I moved in with them when his wife passed away.”

  “What are the children’s names?”

  “Isabella, George, and Kate.”

  She smiled at the thought of them. “They’re lovely nam
es. I’m sure they’re wonderful children.”

  “Yes, they are.” He paused, before continuing. “Did you have lunch yet?”

  “No, not yet.” Harriet’s stomach seemed to ache more at the thought.

  “You should have said something earlier. Isabella made me some sandwiches for the journey. Let’s stop and eat.”

  Harriet grinned as Matthew turned the wagon in the direction of a small clearing of trees. They rolled to a stop, and he jumped down to tie the horses to a tree, before coming around the side of the wagon. He held out his hand, and Harriet carefully climbed down. She stood still for a few seconds as Matthew reached up into the wagon.

  Not moving had made her leg stiff. Trying to conceal the limp, she sat down on the grass immediately, and Matthew sat next to her.

  He smiled, unwrapping some damp cheesecloth and handing her a sandwich. “It’s minced chicken and cream cheese.”

  Harriet waited for him to begin eating before she took a bite of her own meal. She smiled as her stomach was slowly relieved of its aching hunger.

  They ate quietly, and Harriet realized just how quiet it was out here away from the city. When the wagon was stopped, the only sounds were the singing of the birds. There had to be hundreds of them around here.

  Matthew stood as she took the last bite of her sandwich. “We best keep going if we want to be home in time for supper.”

  Harriet nodded as she walked carefully to the wagon, where she took Matthew’s hand and climbed up to her seat.

  They soon were moving again, in what direction, Harriet didn’t know. What she did know was that she couldn’t wait to be there, so she could finally say she’d made it.

  Chapter 7

  Relieved to be home, Matthew stopped the horses outside the barn. “We’re here.”

  Harriet smiled at him, just as the front door of the house swung open, revealing three very excited children. Matthew grinned, jumping down from the wagon, as the children ran toward him. He wrapped his arms around them, as they all squealed in excitement.