MAIL ORDER MOUNTIES

Bride for Andrew

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CHAPTER 1

 

“Will you at least consider it, Ida?  I’m not the type of woman who likes to meddle…”  The older woman stopped in mid-sentence then started to laugh loudly, shaking her head and slapping her knee for emphasis.  “Oh, who am I kidding?  Everyone knows meddling is my middle name.  But I only meddle when I care about someone and when I believe I can offer them the chance for true happiness.”

 

Ida sat on the settee across from Miss Hazel, the widow who’d opened her home for them when they’d come to Ottawa for her daughter’s surgery.  The woman was just about the kindest and most caring person Ida had ever met, but there were times, like right now, when she wondered if Miss Hazel might be slightly off her rocker.

 

“I appreciate your offer, Miss Hazel.  And I know how well it worked out for Annie.  I saw her fall in love with the Mountie you arranged for her to marry.  But I don’t think that’s an option for me.  I have a daughter to consider, and the truth is, I was married once before and I promised myself I’d never let any man hurt me again.”

 

Ida took a deep breath to slow her pulse down as she thought of the man she’d been married to.  She’d been young, foolish and naive—she’d easily fallen prey to the lies he’d told her.  Growing up in the small Metis village near Reindeer Rock, Ida hadn’t been able to meet many men outside the family she’d always known.

 

When Albert Jacobs had arrived in town, he’d easily fed her lies about how beautiful she was and she’d fallen for his charm.  She cringed as she remembered how foolish she’d been.  Her brother had tried to warn her, but she wouldn’t listen.  Until the day she’d realized she was pregnant and Albert had ridden off into the sunset.  

 

Now she could be glad he left when he did, but at the time, it had hurt.  

 

He’d been gone from her life for years until just a few months ago when he’d stolen money from her brother, then took Lily hoping for even more of a payout.  Thankfully, he’d been caught by the Mounties in Reindeer Rock and she’d been granted a divorce on the grounds of him being a criminal.

 

She was free of him for good.

 

“Mama?  Where are you?”  The sound of Lily’s worried voice broke through her thoughts.

 

“I’m in here Lily.  I’m having a visit with Miss Hazel.”  Ida quickly made her way to the open doorway where she could see her daughter rubbing her eyes while she stood on the bottom step of the large staircase.  “Did you have a good nap?”

 

Lily shook her head and ran over, throwing her arms around Ida’s waist.  “No.  I had the dream about the bad man again.  He tried to take me, and I was so scared.”  Her voice shook as she clung to her mother.

 

Ida kneeled down, placing her hands on Lily’s shoulders and pushing her back to look at her face.  “Sweetheart, the bad man is gone now and you don’t need to worry.  I’ll always keep you safe.”

 

Ida’s heart clenched at the fear she could still see in her daughter’s eyes.  She’d just endured a surgery to fix the cleft palate she’d been born with, which was hard enough for anyone to deal with—especially a young child.  But Lily was also living with the nightmares from being kidnapped just a few weeks before and spending the night outside on her own while she hid from the man who’d grabbed her.  The fact that it was actually her own father who’d done it had never been mentioned to her.  It was something Ida knew she’d have to tell her someday when questions arose about her father, but for now, that was a secret the young girl didn’t need to know.

 

Lily’s eyes were wet with tears.  “And Uncle Hawkeye.  He always looks after us.  He told me he’d never let anyone hurt me ever again.”

 

Ida smiled.  “Yes, Uncle Hawkeye will keep you safe.”

 

Ida’s brother David Hawk, or Hawkeye as everyone called him, had always looked after them.  He’d looked after Ida after their parents died, and now he looked after both her and Lily.

 

The familiar twinge of guilt hit her when she thought of everything her brother had done for her over the years.  He’d had to give up so much to make sure they were cared for.  

 

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, Ida looked up and smiled at Miss Hazel.  “She had a bad dream, but she’s fine now.”

 

Standing back up, she took Lily’s hand in hers.  In a few more days they would be ready to go back to Reindeer Rock, to their lives in the small village where she’d grown up.  They would continue living in the small house with her brother, and he would keep working hard to make sure they were taken care of.

 

There was no way she could earn her own living to support them both.  She’d always helped out as much as she could by doing sewing jobs for others and taking food to some of the elders who didn’t have anyone to care for them.  But the pay wasn’t enough to provide the home and security Lily deserved.

 

Could she really go back and make David spend the rest of his life caring for her?  He deserved the chance to have his own life, and even a family of his own.  But as long as he felt responsibility for her and Lily, she knew he wouldn’t even consider it.

 

Ida looked down at Lily again.  Her daughter needed someone she could trust to keep her safe.  Sometimes a mother had to put the needs of her child ahead of her own.  And, sometimes a sister had to think of what would be best for the brother who’d always taken care of her, all at the cost of his own chance at happiness.

 

Taking a deep breath, she faced Miss Hazel.  She trusted the woman enough to know she wouldn’t send her into something that was dangerous or wrong for her.  She’d managed to match many other women with Mounties, including her friend Annie.  And, even though Annie had found love with her Mountie, Ida wasn’t foolish enough to hope for that for herself.  

 

All she wanted was a safe home for Lily.  A place she could make into their own, allowing her brother to move on with his life.

 

“Miss Hazel, when do you need my answer?”