Sarah's Choice (27 page)

Bart shook his head vigorously. “Uh-uh, no way! I’d rather die than go to jail.” Bart lowered his head and barreled right between Mike and Elias, nearly knocking them off their feet. He jerked open the front door and dashed outside.

As soon as Mike and Elias regained their balance, they ran out the door after him.

Elias could see Bart up ahead, racing down the path in the opposite direction of town.

A wagon pulled by two horses came out of nowhere. When Bart ran in front of it, the horses spooked and reared up. One of the horses struck Bart in the head, and he fell to the ground.

By the time Mike and Elias caught up to the scene of the accident, the driver of the wagon was on his knees beside Bart, shaking his head.

“He ran in front of me before I even knew what had happened,” the man said, looking at Mike.

Blood oozed from Bart’s head, and he didn’t appear to be breathing.

Elias knelt down and felt for a pulse, but there was none. He looked up at Mike and slowly shook his head. “Bart’s dead, and what a tragedy. Life is so short, and to waste it the way he did is a real shame.”

“Yes,” Mike agreed, “and now Bart’s life is over, and he’ll never have a chance to make restitution for what he did. Bart’s last words to us were that he’d rather die than go to jail. It’s sad to say, but the poor lost soul got his wish.”

As Elias and his crew headed up the canal toward Mauch Chunk, he kept thinking about Bart and everything that had transpired after he’d been killed. Mike had gone to town to get the sheriff, as well as the undertaker, while Ned and Elias had searched Bart’s boat for evidence. They’d not only found several items that had been taken from Mike’s store, but also Elias’s can, with what was left of his money. Of course, Elias had retrieved his watch from Bart’s pocket before he’d boarded the man’s boat.

“I’m going down to my cabin to put my money away,” Elias told Ned. “Would you take over the tiller for me?”

“Sure thing, boss.” Ned offered Elias a wide grin. “Sure am glad ya got some of your money back.”

“So am I, but I wish it could have been under better circumstances.”

Ned nodded solemnly. “Yeah, it’s too bad about Bart. Wish he coulda found the Lord and turned his life around before he died.”

“There are too many like Bart in our world,” Elias said. “That’s why we, who are Christians, should take every opportunity to witness to others about the Lord—not only through our words, but by our deeds.”

“Yep, you’re right, and that’s just what I’m aimin’ to do.”

Elias thumped Ned’s back. “I’m going below now, but I shouldn’t be long.”

When Elias entered his cabin, he decided that he needed to find a better hiding place for his money than under his bunk. He thought about putting it inside one of the small cabinets in the room, but figured that’d be one of the first places someone would look.

He glanced around, taking in every detail of the small, dimly lit cabin. Finally, his gaze came to rest on the old trunk sitting at the foot of his bunk. It had been Grandpa’s trunk, where he’d kept his clothes and possibly a few other things. Elias had been meaning to go through it but just hadn’t taken the time.

Maybe I could hide my money at the bottom of the trunk
, he thought
. If someone should open it, they’ll think it’s just a trunk full of clothes
.

Elias knelt on the floor and opened the lid of the trunk; then he reached inside and removed a stack of clothes—shirts, trousers, and Grandpa’s old straw hat.

He spotted something black and reached inside again. When he pulled it out, he realized it was Grandpa’s Bible.

A lump formed in his throat. Many an evening when Elias and Grandpa had been on the boat together, Grandpa had shared several passages from the Bible.

Elias slid his fingers along the edge of the leather cover; then he opened the Bible to a place where a piece of paper stuck out. He quickly discovered that it was a letter that had been written to him:

Dear Elias
,

Tears welled in Elias’s eyes as he stared at the letter
. If Grandpa really meant what he said, then I have a decision to make. Should I keep the boat going for as long as I can, or sell it and find something else to do?

H
ow come we haven’t seen Elias in so long?” Sammy asked Sarah one morning in early October.

“I’ll bet he comes by when you’re in school.” Willis poked Sammy’s arm with his bony elbow. “Besides, he don’t stop to say hi to us no more, anyhow.” He looked at Sarah. “Is Elias mad at you, Mama?”

Sarah blinked. “Now what made you ask such a question?”

“ ‘Cause once I heard Uncle Mike say that Ned told him Elias hides out on his boat when he comes through the lock so he don’t have to see you.”

Sarah cringed. For some time, ever since she’d turned down Elias’s marriage proposal, Ned had been the one steering the boat whenever it came through her lock.
Maybe Elias is still

upset with me for turning down his marriage proposal
.
I hope Carolyn explained my reasons to him. I hope he understands
.

Willis tugged on Sarah’s sleeve. “Is Elias ever comin’ to see us again? Is he, huh?”

“I don’t know, son.” She pointed to his bowl of mush. “Hurry now and finish your breakfast. Hortence will be here any minute, and I’d like us to have the dishes cleared away before she arrives.”

“I hope Elias is at church this Sunday,” Sammy said. “I sure do miss him.”

I miss him, too
, Sarah thought with regret. Her gaze came to rest on the letter she’d placed on the counter. It was from Carolyn and had arrived yesterday at Mike’s store, which also served as the local post office. Carolyn had told Sarah some interesting things about Easton and mentioned how things were going with the students in her class. But she’d made no mention of Elias at all.

Willis nudged Sarah’s arm. “Sure hope that mean blacksmith’s not at church this time. I don’t like it when he sits on the pew between us, Mama.”

“Patrick is not mean. He’s a nice man, and you shouldn’t talk about him that way,” Sarah said with a shake of her head.

“He’s mean to Bristle Face,” Helen spoke up. “I seen him kick at our dog once when you wasn’t lookin’.”

Sarah flinched. Even after all these months of Patrick coming around, the children—and the dog—still didn’t care for him. She hadn’t given him an answer to his proposal yet, and with the children feeling the way they did, she didn’t know what to do. Would things be better for them if she married Patrick? Would the children learn to accept him as their stepfather?

Sarah took a sip of her tea and contemplated things further.
If I don’t marry Patrick, how will I get my family away from the canal?

She didn’t have near enough money saved up in order to open her own bakery and she might never have enough. With winter coming, the only money she’d make would be from the bread she planned to sell in Mike and Kelly’s store. As far as she could tell, her family’s future looked hopeless. Maybe her only choice was to marry Patrick.

A knock sounded on the door, and a few seconds later, Hortence entered the kitchen.

“You don’t have to knock every time you come over,” Sarah said, smiling at Hortence. “You’re like one of the family now.”

Hortence smiled in return. “I realize that, but as Mother always says, ‘You don’t want to ever forget your manners.’ ” She motioned to the table. “I see you’re still eating breakfast. I must be early this morning.”

Sarah shook her head. “You’re not early. We’ve just spent more time visiting than usual.”

“We was talkin’ about Patrick and how much he hates our dog,” Willis said.

“Before that it was Elias we was talkin’ about,” Sammy added.

Hortence pulled out an empty chair at the table and sat down. “Speaking of Elias, did you know that he sold his boat and left the canal?”

Sarah’s mouth opened wide. “He did?”

“That’s right. Mother heard it from Mavis Jennings, and Mavis said she heard it from Freda Miller.”

“Where’d Elias go?” A sense of sadness settled over Sarah like a heavy blanket of fog. “Did he move back to Easton?”

Hortence shrugged. “I’m not sure. I just know he’s gone.”

Sammy jumped up, nearly knocking over his glass of milk. “That’s not fair! If Elias sold his boat and went away, we’ll never see him again!” Tears welled in his eyes, and he started pacing.

“Calm down, Sammy. You’re getting yourself all worked up.” The truth was, Sarah felt pretty worked up herself, but she couldn’t let the children or Hortence know that. Oh, how she wished things could have worked out for her and Elias, but under the circumstances, it was probably for the best that he was gone. If he’d stayed any longer, she might have weakened and changed her mind about marrying him. For her children’s sake, she couldn’t allow that to happen—not with him being a boatman.

Sammy stopped pacing and stomped his foot. “Wish I knew where Elias was. If I did, I’d go after him!”

Sarah reached out and pulled him to her side. “Elias must have had a reason for leaving. We need to accept his decision.”

“Maybe he went back to Easton to work in his father’s newspaper office,” Hortence said. “Hauling coal up the canal means long, hard days, and he probably got tired of it.”

Sammy cast Sarah an imploring look. “Can we go to Easton and see if he’s there? Can we ask him to come back here, Mama?”

Sarah blinked against the tears clouding her vision. “No, son. We need to let him go.”

“But I love Elias, and was hopin’ he’d be our new papa someday.”

Sarah’s heart felt as if it would break in two. “It’s not meant to be. Someday, if it’s God’s will, I might get married again.”

At that moment, Sarah made a decision. As soon as she saw Patrick again she would give her answer to his proposal.

As Patrick headed for Sarah’s place, he thought about what he was going to say to her. He’d given Sarah several months to make up her mind, and he was tired of waiting. Well, she’d better give him an answer today, or he might tell her to forget it. Sarah wasn’t the only fish in the canal, and if she didn’t want him, he was sure he could find someone who did.

He stepped onto her porch and rapped on the door. When it opened, Willis stood there with that scruffy terrier, who immediately began to bark and growl.

“Can I speak to your mama?” Patrick asked the boy, making sure he was talking loud enough to be heard.

“I guess so. She’s in the house.”

“Could you ask her to come outside? I’d like to speak to her in private.”

Pulling the dog with him, Willis disappeared into the kitchen.

A few minutes later, Sarah showed up. “Good morning, Patrick. I was just thinking about you.”

He smiled. “You were?”

“Yes, and I think we should talk.”