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He shifted his weight. “Look, I don’t have anything against folks praying if they’ve a mind to. It’s just that I don’t believe in asking for handouts myself. I cotton more to the ‘God helps those who help themselves’ way of thinking.”
Callie blinked. Surely she’d misunderstood. “Mr. Tyler, asking for guidance and direction from our Heavenly Father is not the same as asking for a handout.” She saw the skepticism in his eyes and tried again. “Besides which, there is absolutely nothing wrong with humbling ourselves before the Almighty.”
He waved his hand as if to brush her words aside. “Ma’am, you just go right ahead and pray for guidance if that makes you feel better.” Then he folded his arms across his chest and his eyes turned flinty. “But I’m telling you right now, there’s nothing on earth—or in heaven, for that matter—that’s going to convince me to turn any member of my family over to a stranger, no matter how strong that stranger might think her claim is.”
Callie pursed her lips, not trusting herself to respond immediately. It wasn’t about just Annabeth now. All three youngsters deserved to have a proper Christian influence in their lives. It was what their parents would have wanted for them, and it was the right thing to do. Actually, it was the most important thing.
She might not be the best person to fill that role, but God could use even the most flawed vessel to do His work. She was more determined than ever to have a hand in raising these children.
She focused again on Leland’s brother. He seemed to have nothing in common at the moment with the compassionate, generous man she’d come to know through years of correspondence.
Not the praying kind indeed!
Time to try another tack. “Mr. Tyler, I find myself quite weary from the day’s events, and would prefer not to stand here arguing with you. I’d like to meet Annabeth and then find a place to refresh myself, if you don’t mind.”
His eyes narrowed and she wondered for a minute if he would continue to argue despite her request. But he gave a quick nod. “Of course. This way.”
As he offered his arm he gave her a warning look. “Just don’t think this means I’ve changed my thinking. You’re welcome to stick around if you’ve a mind to. But the care of the children—all of the children—is my responsibility.”
We’ll just see about that. After the briefest of hesitations, she placed her hand on his arm, giving him her sweetest smile. “I must admit, your concern for the well-being of the children does do you credit, Mr. Tyler.”
Jack escorted his suspiciously compliant sister-in-law to Mrs. Mayweather’s home. The woman wasn’t fooling him with that winsome smile and those sugar-coated words of hers. He knew good and well she hadn’t given up the battle yet.
Well, she could scheme and plot all she wanted. It didn’t change his mind one jot about his duty to Annabeth, Simon and Emma.
But as they drew closer to Mrs. Mayweather’s home, his thoughts turned from Lanny’s widow to the three children.
What was he going to say to them? He was their closest living kin, but he’d never laid eyes on them before—not since Nell’s oldest was an infant, anyway—and they certainly didn’t know him.
How much had their parents told them about him? Or had the subject of their absent Uncle Jack ever even come up?
How would they react when they met him? How would he deal with their grief when he was still trying to absorb the loss himself?
His free hand clenched and unclenched. How could this woman walking beside him talk about looking to God for guidance when that same God allowed such a thing to happen in the first place? If the Almighty had wanted to take another Tyler, it should have been him. His passing, unlike that of his brother and sister, wouldn’t have left a hole in anyone’s life.
His face must have betrayed some of what he was thinking because Callie cast a questioning glance his way. Luckily, they had finally reached Mrs. Mayweather’s front gate.
“Here we are,” he said, cutting off any comment she might have made. He opened the gate without meeting her gaze and gestured for her to precede him up the flagstone walkway.
Before they’d made it halfway to the porch, a tall, spare woman stepped out to greet them.
Age had definitely not interfered with Mrs. Mayweather’s commanding presence. From the top of her tightly wound, steel gray bun to the hem of her no-frills, severely cut skirt, she still had that force-to-be-reckoned-with schoolmarm look that could quiet a classroom full of rowdy children with just a raised brow.
“Hello, Jackson. It’s good to see you back in Sweetgum again. My condolences for your loss.”
Facing her, Jack felt like a ten-year-old schoolboy again. “Thank you, ma’am.” He quickly turned to Callie. “This is—” He paused for the merest fraction of a second and she immediately stepped forward.
“Callista Tyler, ma’am. I am—was—married to Leland Tyler.”
Mrs. Mayweather nodded. “Yes. Virgil stopped by to explain the situation. Most astounding.” She paused a minute. “I must say, you seem to be holding up remarkably well under what must have been a terrible shock.”
“It’s kind of you to say so, ma’am.” She gave her bonnet a tug. “I’m afraid the full impact of the situation hasn’t entirely sunk in yet.”
“Understandable.” Mrs. Mayweather tilted her head thoughtfully. “Callista. Unusual name, that. You wouldn’t by any chance be Julia’s friend Callie.”
“Why, yes.” Her smile warmed and some of the tension eased from her stance. “It seems my fame precedes me.”
“Well then, that explains quite a bit.” The schoolteacher nodded in satisfaction as if she’d solved a puzzle of some sort. “Julia always spoke of you in such glowing terms. It’s no wonder Leland turned to you for this special kind of help after she passed on.”
She waved toward the far end of the porch. “By the way, since we weren’t certain how things would sort themselves out, I instructed Virgil to deposit your baggage here for the time being.”
“Why, thank you, I—” The widow seemed a bit overwhelmed by their hostess.
Jack knew the feeling. He stepped forward. “Where are the children?”
“They’re upstairs, digging through an old trunk of mine. I’ll call them down shortly, but I thought it would be best if we had a chat first.”
“Of course.” Jack felt a guilty surge of relief at being able to put off the moment of truth a little longer.
Mrs. Mayweather stepped aside. “Now come on in to the parlor. You both look as if you could do with a cool glass of lemonade, and we have matters to discuss.”
Callie nodded. “Thank you. That sounds lovely.”
Jack removed his hat and followed the ladies inside.
“You may set your hat on the hall table there, Jackson.” She turned to Callie. “Feel free to set your bonnet and handbag there as well.”
He tensed in sympathy. What would Callie do? How would she handle this?
Once again, she surprised him. Though she moved with a sort of deliberate slowness, her initial hesitation was so brief he doubted Mrs. Mayweather noted it.
With steady hands, she loosened the strings to her bonnet and let it fall behind her head.
Mrs. Mayweather studied her for a minute. “A birthmark, I presume?” At Callie’s nod, she pursed her lips thoughtfully. “Yes, indeed. I’m beginning to understand why Julia had such respect and admiration for you.”
Callie was startled by the woman’s words and didn’t know how to respond, so she said nothing. She pulled her bonnet back up, wondering exactly how much Julia had said about her and to whom.
Mrs. Mayweather raised a hand to stop her. “No need to do that on my account.”
Callie smiled, but firmly tied her ribbons. “Thank you, but I’d rather that not be the first view the children have of me.”
“As you wish.” A slight nod accompanied the words. “But I think you would be surprised by how accepting children can be.”
A few moments later, they were seated in the parlor and Mrs. Mayweather was pouring glasses of lemonade.
“I know a man of the world such as yourself would probably prefer something stronger,” she said as Jack reached for his, “but I’m afraid you will have to make do with this for now.”
“This will do just fine, thank you.” He took a long drink, then set the glass down. “So how are the young’uns doing?”
Mrs. Mayweather’s face softened in concern and Callie saw a whole new side of her.
“About as one would expect. They went through such a horrid experience. At least they didn’t have to witness the fire firsthand.”
Callie sent up a silent prayer of thanksgiving. She’d worried…
“As it happens, Simon had taken Emma and Annabeth down to the livery,” Mrs. Mayweather continued briskly. “He wanted to show them a new foal that had been born the day before. When they heard the alarm, they headed back to the café. Luckily, the O’Connor sisters spotted them and had sense enough to keep them from going anywhere near the fire.”
Callie saw past the woman’s businesslike tone. “And so you took them in.”
Mrs. Mayweather nodded. “I had the room and the time to see to them, since school had let out for summer the week before.”
Jack stood and moved to one of the windows. “Still, I’m very beholden,” he said without turning around.
“I just thank the Lord I had the means to step in.” She refilled Callie’s glass. “But back to your question. The tragedy has affected each of them differently. Simon has turned from an active, outgoing boy to one who is belligerent and aloof.”
She waved a hand. “Emma has always been a quiet child, but now she clings to Simon like bark to a tree. She can barely stand to have him out of her sight for more than a few minutes. Simon is taking his role of big brother seriously—too seriously, if you ask me. He insisted I set his cot in the room with the girls when Emma balked at separating from him even in sleep.”
“And Annabeth?”
Mrs. Mayweather sighed. “I’m not certain. Bless her, she was just beginning to move on from the loss of her mother, then this happened. She misses her father terribly, of course. But the child, who’s normally quite the little chatterbox, has barely said a word since the accident, except in answer to a direct question.”
Callie twisted her hands nervously in her skirts. “Do you think she knows? About me, I mean.”
Mrs. Mayweather gave her a sympathetic smile. “If so, she hasn’t given any sign. But, as I mentioned, she hasn’t said more than a handful of words since her father passed. Besides, even if Leland did say something to her, she may not have understood. She’s only four, after all.”
Jack turned to face them and crossed his arms. “It doesn’t matter whether she knows or not. Like I said, Annabeth is my concern now.”
Callie carefully set her glass down, resisting the urge to retort in kind. Lord, give me patience. Please!
She caught a measuring look Mrs. Mayweather gave the two of them.
The woman stood. “Well, I can tell the children certainly won’t want for family willing to take them in. You two help yourselves to more lemonade while I let them know you’re here.”
Jack’s expression gave nothing away, but she saw him rub the back of his neck. Was he as nervous about facing the children for the first time as she was?
Moments later, Callie’s entire being focused on the sound of footsteps tromping down the stairs.
Simon entered first, looking both ready to take on the world and achingly vulnerable at the same time. His sister, Emma, was close by his side, her arm wound tightly with his, her eyes wide and uncertain.
But it was the third and youngest of the children that captured Callie’s attention. The little girl hung back a bit while still holding on to Emma’s other hand.
Callie would have been able to pick Annabeth out of a ballroom full of little girls. She looked so much like Julia it made her heart ache. The same bouncy blond curls, the same bright blue eyes, the same pink bow of a mouth.
Mrs. Mayweather spoke up first. “Children, remember I told you that your Uncle Jack would be coming?” She made a flourishing movement with her hand. “Well, here he is.”
Then she gestured toward Callie. “And we also have a surprise visitor.”
Annabeth stared at Callie with wide, questioning eyes. Was it possible the child was expecting her after all?
Simon, however, seemed to be the designated spokesman for the trio. He completely ignored Callie as he gave Jack an assessing look. “So you’re our Uncle Jack.”
Jack strode to the middle of the room. “That’s right. And I’ve come to take care of you.” He smiled at the two girls. “All of you.”
None of the three returned Jack’s smile.
“Momma talked about you some.” Simon’s tone hadn’t softened. “And she read your letters to us when they came.” His eyes narrowed. “It made her sad that you never came around.”
To Callie’s surprise, Jack didn’t attempt to make excuses.
Instead he nodded and walked right up to his nephew. “I’m sorry about that—more sorry than you can rightly know. I should have been a better brother to both her and your Uncle Lanny.” He laid a hand on Simon’s shoulder. “But I’m here now.”
Simon didn’t seem appeased. “She said you had to move around a lot ’cause you work for the railroad.” The boy put a protective arm around his sister’s shoulder. “Does that mean we have to travel around the country with you?”
Callie found herself as interested as Simon was to hear Jack’s answer.
Jack took a minute, stepping back and crossing his arms again. “Well, now, I plan to stay right here in Sweetgum for the time being. We’re going to stick together, just like families are supposed to.”
Emma sidled closer to her brother’s side, drawing Annabeth with her. “But where are we going to live? Our house is all gone now.” Her voice was so soft Callie had to lean forward to hear her.
Jack nodded solemnly. “I know, and I’ve been giving that some thought. Your house may be gone but Annabeth’s house is still sound. And I’ll just bet she’d be glad to let us all live there with her.”
Annabeth, who hadn’t yet taken her eyes off Callie, turned to Emma. “Oh, yes,” she said, nodding her head emphatically. “There’s lots and lots of room there. You could even bring Cookie and nobody would care how much he barked out there.”
“There now.” Jack gave Emma an encouraging smile. “You’ve been to Annabeth’s house before, haven’t you? It’s the same house your momma lived in when she was your age.”
Emma nodded, tentatively responding to Jack’s smile.
But Simon was far from won over. “Annabeth’s house is on a farm way out in the country. All of our friends live here in town.”
Annabeth’s face crumpled into a hurt expression. “But Simon, it’s a very nice house. Don’t you want to come live with me?”
Emma gave her young cousin’s hand a squeeze. “Simon didn’t mean anything by that. Of course he likes your house.” She gave her brother a little nudge. “Don’t you?”
Simon gave a grudging nod.
Appeased, Annabeth turned her attention back to Callie. She let go of Emma’s hand and took a tentative step forward, her head cocked at a questioning angle. “Are you going to come live with us, too?”
Callie clasped her hands together tightly, fighting the urge to reach out for the child. She didn’t want to frighten her. “Would you like for me to?”
Annabeth crossed the room and stopped directly in front of her. With pudgy fingers that weren’t quite clean, she reached up and started to push aside Callie’s bonnet.
Callie’s first instinct was to pull back, to stop the child from revealing the hidden ugliness. But something about the hope in the little girl’s expression changed her mind.
Forcing herself to sit completely still, Callie held her breath and waited for Annabeth’s reaction.
Chapter Six
As soon as the bonnet fell back, Callie heard a startled gasp from Emma and peripherally noted the way Simon’s eyes widened.
