Love Blooms in Winter (33 page)

The line tightened and she slowly started to ascend. She couldn’t feel her hands through the heavy gloves.
Please don’t let me lose my hold
. Someday she would look back on this horrendous day and know that God had not failed her.

She could only pray that all of the townspeople had made it to the river. Pauline was safe, Jeremy was safe, but was Tom safe too?

She had to find the man who owned her heart.

Mae joined the crowd as they searched through the smoldering ruins. Her breath caught as she stared at the carnage. The Dwadlo she knew no longer existed. The train station was a pile of lumber. The General Store was gone. Shiny pieces of the mail cage were scattered about the area like children’s toys. Her house was destroyed.

She frantically searched through the store wreckage, tears rolling down her cheeks. The overturned pickle barrel reeked of vinegar, but the brine was a better smell than the heavy smoke filling the air. Dale’s office chair sat atop a heap of rubble with one leg missing. A hundred yards beyond what had once been the town, the engine lay on its side, steam still rolling from its stack. Boxcars lay flattened on their side. The distinct odor of fish mingled with the stench of fire and oil. So much for Joanne Small’s happy wedding. So much for life in Dwadlo.

When Mae caught sight of Tom’s coat, hanging on a shredded hunk of metal, her heart nearly stopped. Grabbing it, she held the garment to her chest, breathing deeply of his scent. Hot tears rolled down her cheeks, and she slumped onto a pile of rubble.

Pauline came to sit beside her. “You can’t know that sonny’s not safe. ’Pears to me he’s a purty smart man, and so is Fisk. They are not gonna stay aboard a runaway train.”

“Tom would.” Mae could barely choke out the words. “He would be so involved in fixing the valve that the town would be upon him before he’d give up.”

“Well.” Pauline sighed. “I could have told ’em something like this would happen, but that young whippersnapper wouldn’t listen. If they’d put the station on my land, they could have run the line straight through to Pine Grove, but they were stingy. They refused to pay me what I wanted, so they bought Dale’s land instead, and now look what happened. The station sets in a swamp hole. That train had nowhere to go but in the ditch.” She shook her head. “That’s a pure shame. Guess I’ll get what I’m asking now. Might even up the price.”

Mae shook her head. Whoever had thought Pauline was a fool had another think coming. Her memory might hinder her waning years, but the lady still had a pirate’s heart.

L
il approached, wiping her nose with a less-than-clean handkerchief. Apparently, even the tough hog farmer couldn’t bear the sight. Mae stood up and hugged her friend. “Oh, Lil. There’s nothing left!”

“Don’t have a come apart.” Lil stiffened, stepping back and squaring her shoulders. “We can rebuild. Weren’t no one hurt, so we should be praising instead of grumbling. Accidents happen in a world where everything’s changing faster than a cricket’s yodel.”

Nodding, Mae understood the reasoning. Not so many years ago Dwadlo was nothing but a spot in the road. The town would rebuild—had to rebuild. Homesteaders depended on the community for supplies and mail service. Her eyes scanned the steaming wreckage. Poor Joanne. Her herring now decorated snow drifts and more wreckage than anyone wanted to look at.

Mae looked again down the road into town. If Tom had jumped clear of the train, he’d have had plenty of time to walk back by now. He wouldn’t give up until the last moment. But more than an hour had passed since the train derailed, and there was still no sign of him or Fisk. Lil seemed to read her mind.

“He jumped, Mae. Wouldn’t you?”

“Yes, but I’m not that dedicated to my work.”

“No one’s that dedicated.” Lil put her hands on her hips. “He jumped, I’m tellin’ ya. So did Fisk. They had to.”

Nodding, Mae stiffened. “We should ride down the road, Lil. It’s possible they are out there lying in a snowbank and freezing to death. Maybe he broke a leg when he jumped. Same with Fisk.” She struggled to stand upright. “Have Esau lift me onto his back—”

But the words had no sooner left her mouth when she saw them. Four men striding toward town, three of them with ripped and dirty jackets and one without a coat. Suddenly her ankle didn’t hurt at all. With a cry of relief, she took off running toward them. Fisk had a missing boot, and Tom’s hair stuck out in all directions. When she lunged at him he caught her in his arms and hugged her so tightly the air left her lungs. Cold lips searched and found each other, and instant warmth flared between them. Mae couldn’t get enough of Tom Curtis or the thrill that shot through her when he pulled her closer and deepened the kiss.
Thank You, God!
Tom was alive and well! The thought made the day’s horrific events seem petty.

When lack of breath finally made them come up for air, Mae stroked his wind-chapped cheek. “It’s…it’s good to see you, Mr. Curtis.”

“Same goes for you, Miss Wilkey. I’ve been worried half out of my mind about you. I wasn’t sure you’d made it to safety.”

“We all did. Everyone is accounted for. No lives were lost.”

Tom eased her to the ground, his gaze on the devastation, and he groaned. “We lost the town, not to mention another locomotive.”

She pressed her fingers against his lips. “But you’re alive. That’s all that matters.” No longer would she hide her true feelings for the man who still held her.

“I hope the railroad sees it that way.” Arm in arm, the two started for the rubble after Fisk, the engineer, and fireman.

Lil approached riding Esau. She met the blacksmith’s defiant glare. “What happened to you? You look like you’ve been hit by a train.”

“Ha-ha. My sides are splittin’ with laughter,” he growled.

“Suppose I cain’t offer you a ride?”

His gaze traveled the animal and then rested on a pair of scuffed red boots. “How would I git up there?”

“If’n you’re asking to climb aboard, I’ll get you up here.”

He kept his eyes fixed on the road. “Don’t need your help.”

“Good enough. How far have you walked?”

His pace slowed and he appeared to rethink the offer. He glanced at his frozen sock and then up at her. “How do I get aboard?”

A shout went up when Esau’s long trunk encompassed Fisk’s waist and swung the man up onto his back. Mae burst out laughing at the look of fear that crossed the blacksmith’s face. Terror softened into a slow grin.

When Esau let go of Fisk, he wrapped his arms around Lil. Mae glanced at Tom. “I don’t believe it.”

“Neither do I.” He laughed and kissed Mae on the cheek. “We have work to do.”

With his arm around her to give her sore ankle some support, they walked beside the elephant and listened to Fisk and Lil discussing the situation above them.

“Well now, this ain’t half bad,” Fisk said. “ ’Pears to me like you been trainin’ the animal to snag you a man.”

Flashing a smug grin, Lil agreed. “ ’Pears that way.”

Mae bit back her own grin. Maybe blessings came in bunches and love bloomed in winter. Fisk, until now, had refused to ride the animal, but today—well, today was a new beginning not only for her but, God willing, the entire town. Lil glanced down at the fireman and engineer. “How about you two? There’s room for all.”

The men started backing away, each holding up a protective hand. “Thanks, but no thanks, ma’am,” the engineer said. By then the fireman was well on his way down the road.

Mae smiled up at Lil. “You two go on. It looks as though you have a full load to me.” After Fisk’s wife passed, Mae had wondered if they would get together. This might be just the push they needed.

The entourage slowly walked up Main Street, and Mae felt Tom tense at the sight. Folks milled about, searching through the rubble as they tried to salvage any belongings they could find. Tears of sadness for the material losses were shed, but tears of joy mingled with the knowledge that the good Lord had spared every life.

Tom’s tone was sober. “This is worse than I imagined, but there is good news for these folks, besides the fact that there were no injuries or deaths.”

“What’s that?”

“The railroad will pay for everyone to rebuild. Everything will be brand new.”

Mae thought about what he’d said. They could rebuild bigger houses and more businesses. Life might be changed, but that didn’t necessarily mean it was all bad.

She continued clinging to him until she spotted Jake standing on the sidelines. Her conscience hurt. He must have seen her passionate reaction to finding Tom. She had embarrassed Jake in front of friends and clients. Squeezing Tom’s hand, she whispered, “I’ll be back in a minute.”

She caught up with the lawyer as he walked to the large elm they had carved their initials in when they were in grade school. Today the branches were torn and broken, fragile and bare, a mute memorial of their childhood love. Her gaze traced the crooked heart with the initials JM and MW scratched in the wood.

Sitting down beside him, Mae huddled deep into her cloak, longing for a way to ease his hurt, and for the first time her situation struck home. She, Jeremy, and Pauline were homeless, and Jake was too, and all they shared would be a faded memory. Crushing reality settled over her. “I’m sorry you witnessed that kiss. I was…I was just so relieved to see him.”

He didn’t look at her but instead fixed his gaze on the falling snow. She couldn’t read his expression, but knew she had caused him great pain. His ways were different than hers, but she still remembered long summer afternoons of sunshine and swimming in the creek. Summer nights when they walked and talked about dreams of a future together.

“I’ve come to ask your forgiveness, Jake.”

“For what? Falling in love with another man?”

“For not being completely honest with you. Do you remember the day we met?”

He nodded. “I remember. Fourth grade. My family moved here from Charleston. Father survived the war, and he and mother tired of city life and moved to the area. I’m not sure what brought them to Dwadlo or what eventually led them to Pine Grove.”

“Do you recall that we had the same dreams, the same wants in life?”

Leaning back against the tree, he faced her. “I do. You wanted six children and a big garden.”

She smiled, recalling carefree days when nothing happened that a warm hug, a couple of cookies, and a glass of cold milk couldn’t cure. “You wanted to plant potatoes. That was your dream. Planting potatoes.”

“I couldn’t get enough of them when I was a kid.”

She took his hand. “I think we’ve both changed.”

“I agree. I eat all the potatoes I want at the café now. I’ve become a successful lawyer. I’d say that I’ve done quite well for myself.”

“I’d say that too, but I’d also say that love is a seed, a very delicate seed that needs watering and nurturing. True affection can’t bloom without care. It becomes dormant—or dies. Love blooms most when both parties work to make it a beautiful thing.” She eased the burdensome ring off her finger once again and placed it in his hand. “I’m afraid we make terrible gardeners, Jake. We haven’t cultivated our love. We permitted it to die.”

He took a deep breath. “Yes, I suppose you’re right. I’ve known it for a long time, but I didn’t want to face the truth.”

She shifted, bracing against the elements. Where would she sleep tonight? How would she keep Pauline and Jeremy warm? “I don’t know how or when it happened. I didn’t mean to fall in love with Tom. It just happened.”