Mr. Maitland came through the door, nearly brushing his broad chest
against Laura’s shoulder. He shut the door and stood inches from Laura,
looking down at her.
She stared up at him, studying his eyes, wondering what she had to say or
do to convince this sober, unrelenting stickler for the law to bend the
rules this one time so she might keep Angelina with her in Heart Junction.
“Shall we sit down?” he asked in a coarse, husky voice.
Laura blinked and gazed up at him a moment longer. Would charm work?
Scolding? Intimidation?
Seduction?
Her cheeks burned. She looked away. “Yes, let’s sit.” Just the thought
of how far she may or may not go to keep Angelina warmed her whole body.
Mr. Maitland grasped Laura’s elbow and led her to one of the chairs
opposite the large wooden desk. He
sat in the chair next to her.
“I’m sorry, Miss Windsor, about our rules, but my hands are tied.”
She shook her head. “No. There is something we can do. We just haven’t
thought of it yet.”
“I’m afraid there is nothing we can do. Our city council very clearly
states that Orphan Train children can be placed only with married
couples.”
Laura bolted to her feet. “This is 1912, Mr. Maitland. We’re more than
a decade into the Twentieth Century. Things are changing. While we
waited to speak to you this morning, a horseless carriage trudged through
the street where only horses, men and stubborn mules have tread. Back in
Iowa people are putting up telephone lines like telegraph lines. Even
Aberdeen your neighbor has had a switch board for more than a decade, as I
understand it. I dare say the telephone will soon arrive in Heart
Junction as well. One person can talk on a phone in Iowa or South Dakota
while another listens in an eastern city. If the way we talk to each
other can change with the telegraph and the telephone when barely fifty
years ago our fastest communication came from the Pony Express, then
surely you and I, one man and one woman in a quiet office in the middle of
a vast prairie can effectively solve a problem full of old fashioned
ideas.”
Mr. Maitland stood and looked down at Laura. “Are you a barrister, Miss
Windsor?”
“Certainly not.”
“You’re an impassioned person, eloquent, effective.”
“I’m a mother. I’m fighting for my daughter.”
“And I represent Heart Junction and its laws. I’m afraid I have no
choice but to enforce them. I can’t place
Angelina with you.”
Laura pushed her hand into a pocket of her sapphire wool coat. She
pulled out a pocketbook and opened it. “What will it take, Mr. Maitland?”
Mr. Maitland grabbed the pocketbook from her hand and shut it soundly.
He pushed the small clutch back into Laura’s pocket. “I’m going to forget
you’re attempt to bribe me because I know you are in a desperate way.”
Laura reached for the lapels of Mr. Maitland’s coat. She gripped them
hard and stared up at him. “I’ll do anything, Mr. Maitland. I can’t send
Angelina back to the orphanage. I lived in one of those orphanages for
three years myself. The day I left New York was the happiest day of my
life. My head was filled with dreams. I was sure I’d come west and find
love, with a family or with a man, someone to take care of me. I’d lost
everyone I loved when I was only thirteen years old. At sixteen I felt
like my life was beginning again. I did find a new home in Iowa, but the
people I was placed with didn’t want a daughter. They wanted a servant.
I obliged them until I turned eighteen, then I left to take care of myself
as I’d done in the orphanage in New York.
“I worked as a servant girl and a seamstress, and I became very good with
a needle and thread. I can do wondrous things. My life prospered, but I
could never forget my life at the orphanage in the city or the friends I
left behind or all the lost love. I vowed to make things better for at
least one of the little ones who’d lost love the way I had. I promised
I’d find a little girl to love the way I myself wanted to be loved. It is
my destiny to be Angelina’s mother.” She let go of his lapels and stepped
back. “You can’t fight a force as strong as destiny.”
Mr. Maitland stared down at her. If she knew him better, perhaps she
could interpret the odd look that filled his eyes. “You speak as though
you believe God himself has commanded you to take in this little girl.”
“I make no such claim. I say only that I am destined to be Angelina’s
mother. It is written upon my heart.”
He cleared his throat. “Have you lived in Heart Junction long? I don’t
remember seeing you before.”
“Only a week. I bought the Sudemeyer building for Angelina’s and my home
and my garment business.”
“Do you expect your business to gain momentum quickly? It often takes
new businesses time to make a profit.”
“I opened my doors three days ago. I have already received enough work
to keep me busy for a month.”
His brows rose slightly and his lips edged upwards. “Impressive. You
must have impeccable references.”
“My work speaks for itself, Mr. Maitland. Women like fine quality in
their clothing.”
“And you intend to make Heart Junction your home?”
“I do. This is a growing town, Mr. Maitland, the fastest growing in the
area, besides Aberdeen. I did my research before I moved to Heart
Junction. I’m quite thorough, except...”
“You didn’t check our local laws about orphan placement.”
Laura shrugged and plopped back into her chair. “It never occurred to me
that things wouldn’t be the same here concerning placements as they had
been in Iowa.”
Mr. Maitland sat next to her. “Laws are different, and we have to live
with them.” He paused thoughtfully.
“You’re gainfully employed, then, my next question is rather personal.”
He paused and swallowed hard. “Do you have any prospects for a groom in
your near future?”
Laura blinked at him and gave him a blank stare.
“What I mean,” he said, clearing his throat, “...you are an attractive
woman, Miss Windsor. Surely, there must be someone...I think I could
convince the mayor and councilmen to bend the rules if you had plans for a
husband in your near future.”
Laura lifted her chin and narrowed her gaze. “Are you making me an
offer, Mr. Maitland?”
He tugged at his starched white collar. “That isn’t what I meant.”
Laura enjoyed his discomfort a long moment before she replied. “I am not
engaged to be married, and I have no plans to become betrothed to anyone.
I’ve concentrated all of my energy on building a nest egg and a future I
can offer to my little girl. More importantly, I have focused on sharing
love with a daughter who needs to be loved.”
“And on finding love yourself as a mother.”
“Yes.”
“Perhaps you should look for love with a man before you seek it in a
child.”
Laura had no response. She’d been so focused on her business, her bank
account and becoming a mother, she’d really never thought of finding love
with a man. The men who had crossed her path had never been men capable
of love. They’d only wanted to take advantage of the poor orphan girl,
the second class girl from the city who surely would take clandestine
walks and dole out kisses freely to whatever man might show an interest in
her.
“What did you say?”
“Don’t you believe a woman should be married before she becomes a
mother?”
“I believe that it is usually a good idea to be first a wife, then a
mother, but life doesn’t always follow a rigid plan. Certainly there is
more than one way for a woman to live her life.”
Mr. Maitland stood. He took Laura’s hand and tugged her to her feet.
“Miss Windsor, I am convinced that you are sincere in your desire to take
this sweet child into your home and give her a fulfilling life, but my
hands are tied.”
Laura shook her head. “You can’t take her away from me. We’ve only just
found each other.” She splayed her hands just below her collar bone.
“Angelina belongs with me.”
“No, she doesn’t.” Mr. Maitland stretched to his full height. “But that
doesn’t mean you are totally without hope.”