Love Finds a Home (Anthologies) (20 page)

“Is that all, Teacher?” Andy asked. “I’d like to get outside and help with the snow fort some of the kids are makin’.”

“Yes, that’s all I had to say. Run along, and tell the others I said to be careful. The snow started to melt yesterday, but now that it’s turned cold again, it will probably be slippery.”

“I’m used to walkin’ in slippery places. Once the ice thaws and the canals open again, there’ll be mud and lots of puddles along the towpath.”

Judith shuddered. Just thinking about the poor boy trudging up and down the towpath six days a week made her feel sad. He was too young to be put to work like that. And then there was Grace left to run around Ernie’s boat with only the supervision of an elderly man.

“Do be careful, Andy,” she said as he stepped onto the porch.

“I will.”

She shut the door and moved over to the potbellied stove. The room had cooled some, and it was time to add more wood to the fire.

On Friday morning, Ernie made a decision. “I’ll be walkin’ with you to school today,” he announced to his children after breakfast.

Andy looked surprised. “How come, Papa?”

“Need to speak with your teacher.”

Grace stared at him with questioning eyes. “Am I in trouble again?”

He reached across the table and took her hand. “’Course not. I need to say a few things to Miss King.”

“Okay.” Grace picked up her spoon and delved into the bowl of cornmeal mush set before her.

A short time later, Ernie found himself on the steps of the schoolhouse one more time, asking the teacher if he could have a word with her. At first, Judith looked undecided, but then she gave him a nod. “Come inside.”

“In the coatroom again?” he asked, looking in that direction.

“That’s probably a good idea.”

Ernie waited until Judith instructed the class on what they should do in her absence. Then he followed her to the back room. Once inside, he had second thoughts about his mission. Being in such cramped quarters with her standing so close, he could smell the sweet scent of the soap she’d probably used this morning. His knees began to knock.

“What did you wish to speak with me about?” she asked.

He shuffled his feet a couple of times, then decided to plunge ahead. “I got your note.”

Her only reply was a brief nod.

“I … uh … want ya to know that there’s no hard feelin’s.”

She smiled. “I’m glad.”

“And … I–I’m sorry for spoutin’ off the last time we talked. I had no call to get so upset.”

Judith opened her mouth as if to say something, but Ernie hurried on before he lost his nerve. “You were right about Grace. She shouldn’t have disobeyed the rules. She deserved to be punished, too.” There, that felt better.

She extended her hand. “I’m glad you understand.”

When his fingers curled around hers, it felt like a bolt of lightning had shot up his arm. He pulled away quickly, and Judith did the same. Then she lowered her hand and smoothed her long gingham dress as though there might be wrinkles. “Thank you for coming, Ernie. I know you have a job to do, so I mustn’t keep you any longer.”

“No, it’s me who shouldn’t be takin’ your time. You’ve got a class waitin’.” He moved toward the door but turned back around. “You’re a good teacher, and I’m glad my kids have been in your class this winter. I’m sure they’ll miss ya come spring.”

“I wish they didn’t have to drop out of school when the canal opens again,” she said. “They’ll miss so much and will probably have to repeat the same grade when they return next winter.”

He shrugged. “I only made it through the fourth grade, and I’m managin’ okay. Besides, Andy will be walkin’ the mules for a few more years, and after that he’ll work on the boat with me. Sooner or later, the boat will be his to captain. He don’t need much schoolin’ for that.”

Judith’s wrinkled forehead told him she didn’t agree, but she never offered a word of argument.

“Have a nice day,” Ernie said, turning toward the coatroom door.

“You, too.”

Ernie grasped the knob and gave it a yank, but the door didn’t open. He tried again. Nothing happened. “It seems to be locked,” he mumbled.

Judith rushed forward and pulled on the doorknob, but it didn’t budge for her, either. She pounded on the door. “Somebody, please open this!”

Not a sound could be heard, and the door remained firmly shut.

“I’ll bet one of those troublemakers who sits near the back of the room decided to lock us in,” she said.

Ernie bent down and squinted, as he peered through the keyhole. “Can’t see a thing. The key must be in there.”

Judith clucked her tongue. “Whoever did this will be cleaning the blackboard until school lets out for the summer.” She folded her arms and released a puff of air that lifted her curly bangs right off her forehead.

Ernie fought the temptation to touch one of those curls, wondering if Judith’s shiny blond hair was as soft as it appeared. Her pinched expression and squinted eyes made him want to laugh. She looked awful cute when she was mad.

“I wish I knew what I’d done to make one of my students angry enough to lock us in,” Judith said.

Ernie rubbed his forehead. He couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to get even with her. Judith was a good teacher, and he’d come to realize that her firmness with Grace had been necessary. The child had gotten over her anger, so he was sure she wasn’t responsible for this.

The key rattled in the hole, and Ernie and Judith bent toward it at the same time. Their heads collided.

“Ouch!” they said in unison.

“You okay?” he asked, reaching up to feel her forehead. The minute his fingers came in contact with Judith’s skin, he wished he hadn’t touched her. An unfamiliar jolt shot through him, and his face grew hot and sweaty.

Her eyes were wide as she slowly nodded. “I–I’m fine. How about you?”

“I’ve got a hard head. I’m sure there ain’t no damage.”

Suddenly, the door swung open, and Grace rushed into the room. “It was Andy who done it!”

Ernie stepped out of the coatroom and sought out his son.

Andy sat at his desk with his head down. “Sorry, Papa,” he mumbled. “I just wanted to make sure you and Miss King stayed in there long enough to patch things up.”

Ernie could hardly believe his own son had been the one to lock the door. “Everything’s fine between me and the teacher,” he muttered, “so the only thing you did is to get yourself in trouble. And now you’re gonna have chalk dust on your clothes for a long time to come.”

CHAPTER 11

A
s she stood on the schoolhouse porch, saying good-bye to her canal students on a Friday afternoon in late March, Judith felt as if her heart would break. She was going to miss them all, especially Grace and Andy, for whom she had formed an attachment that went beyond teacher and pupil.

Judith thought about Ernie and how she would miss seeing him at church and various community functions. Now that he was hauling coal up the canal again, it wasn’t likely she would see him much at all. He was a good father, and she knew his children belonged with him. But the thought of Andy returning to the hard work of mule driving, Grace running around the boat with little supervision, and the two of them going without schooling for so many months made her sad.

If only there was a way they could receive their education during the spring and fall
. Judith turned toward the door, knowing it was time to clean the blackboard and secure the schoolhouse for the weekend. She knew the logical thing was to commit Ernie and his children to the Lord.

As Ernie guided his boat past Parryville, his thoughts went to Judith King. What was she doing right now, and did she ever think of him?

“Why would she?” he muttered. “Even if she knew how I felt, she’d never take an interest in someone like me.”

“You talkin’ to yourself, boss?” Jeb called from the center of the boat, where he stood in front of the small cookstove.

“Yeah, guess I was.”

Jeb grunted and kept stirring the pot of stew he’d started some time ago.

Ernie glanced at the shoreline, and his breath caught in his throat. Judith sat under a tree not far from the towpath. Her long blond hair lay across her shoulders like a ray of golden sunlight. Andy approached her and halted the mules. Any other time Ernie would have hollered at the boy to keep moving, but he was as anxious to see his kids’ schoolteacher as they were.

Judith joined Andy in the middle of the towpath, and a short time later, Ernie had the boat docked near the shore. He’d no more than set the gangplank in place, when Grace bounded off the boat and rushed over to Judith. “Teacher! Teacher! It’s mighty nice to see ya!”

Judith bent over and gave Grace a hug. “I’m happy to see you and Andy, too.” She smiled at Ernie, who now stood beside his children. “Hello, Ernie.”

He swallowed around his Adam’s apple and nodded. “How have ya been?”

She pushed a windblown strand of hair away from her face. “I’m fine. How are you and the children?”

He wiped his forehead with the back of his shirtsleeve, wondering if he looked as dirty and sweaty as he felt. “Fine. We’re all fine. Keepin’ busy, as usual.”

“Papa’s hopin’ to make enough money so’s me and Grace can have new boots for school come winter,” Andy interjected.

Judith smiled. “That’s good. It’s always nice to have something new.”

“What are ya doin’ down here by the canal?” Grace asked, voicing the question that had been on the tip of Ernie’s tongue.

“I thought it would be nice to enjoy a Saturday afternoon near the water. I brought along a picnic lunch and have been watching the boats go by.” She motioned to the wicker basket on the blanket where she had been sitting.

“Wish we could have a picnic,” Grace said with a pout. “I get tired of stayin’ on the boat all the time.”

“Yeah,” Andy agreed. “It’d be awful nice to eat somethin’ besides Jeb’s funny-tastin’ soups and gritty stews.”

“What do you do on the boat?” Judith asked, touching Grace’s shoulder.

Grace wrinkled her nose. “Ain’t much to do ’cept play with the corn-husk dolly Papa gave me. Sometimes I just watch the other boats go past.”

“Isn’t, not ain’t,” Judith corrected.

Ernie shifted from one leg to the other.
I say ain’t all the time. She probably thinks I’m really a dunce
.

“You still usin’ the letter box, Teacher?” Andy asked, changing the subject.

She nodded. “We are, but there aren’t as many unsigned letters as there used to be.”

Ernie wiped his sweaty palms on the sides of his trousers. “Well, guess we’d best be goin’. Won’t get that load of coal hauled up to Easton if we keep on jawin’.”

Judith’s eyes were downcast, and there was a tiny crease between her brows. She was no doubt missing Andy and Grace and probably wished they could be in school all year.

“Aw, Papa, do we hafta go so soon?” Grace whined. “I’d like to visit with Teacher awhile.”

“Same here,” Andy agreed.

Judith placed both hands on top of the children’s heads. “You’d best do as your father says. Maybe I’ll see you sometime this summer.” She turned to face Ernie. “Might you be coming to church in Parryville soon?”