Title: "The Matchmakers"
Author: Andie J.

***************

“The Matchmakers”


Part 1

DISCLAIMER:  
The characters in this story are not my own. They are
from the novel Christy by Catherine Marshall and the
CBS series "Christy." In no way is this story meant to
infringe upon "Christy" rights, as this is purely
nonprofit, unpublished fanfiction. Catherine
Marshall's story of Christy is owned by the LeSourd
Family.  I am in no way seeking profit or credit for
her story. I am continuing the story of “Christy” for
my own amusement only.  Any additions in story line
and characters were invented by the writer. Any
similarities to other works of fanfiction are purely
coincidental. 

I take no credit for any plot, dialogue, etc. taken
from “Christy,” the series.  Credit for Episode 10:
“To Have and To Hold” lies directly with the writer of
that episode, Patricia Green, and the “Christy”
producers.

I tried my best as far as the mountain dialect is
concerned.  Please forgive any mistakes with it. (As
for Neil’s Scottish brogue, I didn’t even attempt it. 
Please use your imagination here.)

I jump back and forth from first to third person
points of view for basically one reason.  The series
was mainly told from a first person point of view
(Christy’s) most of the time.  However, there were
scenes in the show that didn’t involve her. 
Therefore, I took my lead from a typical screenplay
use of narratives and points of view.  Sorry if it
causes any confusion.
  
*The time given at the beginning of the story is my
“guess-timate.”

Author’s note:  This short story takes place
surrounding the events in “Christy” Episode 10: “To
Have And To Hold.” The author regrets any resulting
confusion or discrepancies regarding that particular
episode. 

Tennessee - Spring 1913*

        Ruby Mae Morrison ran up to the schoolhouse one
bright spring morning just achin’ to share the latest
bit of news she’d just heard to her friends waiting on
the steps before her. Zady Spencer, Clarabelle Beck,
Lizette Holcombe, and Bessie Coburn were already
huddled around whispering and giggling. Ruby Mae broke
right into their tight group and declared in a loud
voice, “I got the best bit o’ gossip.”
        The energetic red-haired girl’s announcement brought
every other conversation to a swift halt as more
children suddenly clustered around the group of girls
on the steps.
        “What is it, Ruby Mae? Is it ‘bout Teacher?” Zady
asked, wide-eyed and intuitive like her mother. 
        Ruby Mae nodded vigorously in return and sat down on
the steps in the middle of the group. Since she lived
at the mission house, the children knew she always had
the best gossip concerning the adults in the Cove,
especially one favorite adult of theirs in particular.
        “I overhear’d somethin’ accident’ly at breakfast,”
Ruby Mae said in her most dramatic tone.
        “Accident’ly my foot,” Creed Allen put in
sarcastically. Some of the children snickered.
        Ruby Mae gave him an evil look, but hurried on in her
usual manner, “Preacher and Teacher are meetin’ by the
lake tonight after supper. Reckon ya know what that
means?”
        The girls all giggled, but most of the boys wore
blank expressions. 
        “No and I reckon I don’t wanna neither,” Creed
stated, rolling his eyes. 
        Sam Houston Holcombe elbowed his friend in the ribs.
“Hush up, Creed. I wanna hear what she means.”
        “It means,” Ruby Mae replied excitedly, “Preacher’s
gonna ask ‘er ta marry ‘im.”
        A dozen different conversations erupted
simultaneously at the news, but Creed’s voice hushed
everyone up again. 
        “I knew it was somethin’ sissifi’d like that. That’s
how come I didn’t wanna know in the first place,” he
stated loudly. “It’s somethin’ only girls could get
excited over.”
        “Sissifi’d?” Ruby Mae stated incredulously. “Ain’t ya
never gettin’ married, Creed Allen?”
        “Nope,” he stated confidently. 
        “Wal, won’t ya be happy fer Miz Christy?” she
wondered.
        “Heck no,” Creed put in. “I wanna keep Teacher, not
give ‘er away.”
        “Give ‘er away?” came the startled voices echoing
Creed’s words all around the group.
        “Creed, what are ya talkin’ ‘bout?” Clarabelle asked,
hands on her hips.
        “If’n Teacher goes and gets hitched, she ain’t gonna
be our teacher no more. She’ll be too busy havin’ them
thar babies and fallin’ all over ‘er husband ta care
‘bout us. Or worse yet, she’ll leave the Cove and
ne’er come back,” Creed announced in an angry huff.
        This distressed the children even more than his last
words had and everyone erupted in protesting cries.
        “Teacher ain’t goin’ nowhere, Creed Allen,” Ruby Mae
countered, her voice scolding him. “She’d never do
nothin’ like that.”
        Creed just shrugged his shoulders and walked down the
steps to the outskirts of the huddled group. 
        “Do ya think he’s right?” Sam Houston asked, the fear
evident in his bright blue eyes.
        “No,” Ruby Mae said confidently, but even she was
glancing around doubtfully at the other children now. 
        “Quiet! Here comes Teacher!” Little Burl Allen
announced suddenly. 
        Everyone tried to put on bright smiles, but the
excitement of a few minutes earlier had slowly been
diminished by the fearful words of Creed Allen.

************************************************************************
        “Good morning, children,” I announced brightly as I
broke through a thick mass of them on the schoolhouse
stairs. They all greeted me in return with “howdies”
and “hellos,” but there was a thickness in the air
that I noticed right away. I had the distinct
impression that something had been going on a few
minutes earlier.
        I tried to dismiss the odd glances I was getting as I
started the morning lessons, but by mid-morning I was
becoming more and more suspicious at their
expressions. Some of them were curious, others rather
glum. I wondered what had put them all into such odd
spirits on such a bright day.
        And then there were the mysterious comments and
questions I kept getting. About ten children had
already told me this morning how much they loved me as
a teacher and how they hoped I’d never leave them. And
Sam Houston had directly asked me if I was planning on
the leaving the Cove soon. Creed Allen had looked like
he was going to fall off of his chair at that
question. I had incredulously told the young boy “of
course not,” but the odd comments had continued
throughout the morning. By the time I dismissed the
children for lunch, my curiosity had become too much
to bear.
        “Ruby Mae?” I called to the teenager just before she
excited the schoolhouse. “May I see you for a moment?”
        “Yessum. What is it, Miz Christy?” she asked, her
blue eyes wide as she neared my desk.
        “Do you have any idea what has gotten into the
children this morning? Has something happened that I
don’t know about?” I wondered.
        “No, Ma’am,” Ruby Mae replied, her eyes still wide. 
        I was surprised when she said nothing more. That was
extremely unlike her. I nodded and dismissed her, but
as I watched her quickly exiting the schoolhouse I
couldn’t keep my mind away from the fact that there
was something going on that I didn’t know about. Now
the only question remained, how was I going to find
out what it was?

************************************************************************
        “Ya reckon she was tellin’ us the truth?” Sam Houston
asked the group surrounding him in front of the
schoolhouse.
        “Teacher don’t lie. Ya know that,” Ruby Mae stated.
“I tol’ ya we don’t need ta be frettin.’”
        Sam Houston still looked a little doubtful, but the
rest of the children seemed reassured now that their
teacher would never leave them just because of a
marriage proposal.
        “Wal, I think it’s a mighty fine match. Preacher and
Teacher make a right good pair, doncha think? It’s
just so excitin,’” Bessie stated with a dreamy look on
her face.
        “And romantic,” Lizette added, her face mirroring
Bessie’s.
        “I cain’t wait ta be gettin’ married,” Ruby Mae
added, looking over her shoulder in the direction of
her “beau,” Rob Allen, who sitting with a bunch of the
older boys under a tree in the distance. Well, he
wasn’t really her beau, but Ruby Mae wanted him to be.
        Sam Houston scrunched up his nose in disdain at their
words. “I don’t see nothin’ romantic ‘bout it t’all.
But I reckon if’n Miz Christy wants ta get married ‘n’
all, it should be with the Doc.”
        There were lots of giggles at that statement.
        “Doc’s already married, silly.” Ruby Mae shook her
head, her red curls scattering about her shoulders in
protest.
        “I reckon if’n his wife ain’t ‘round now -- and she
ain’t,” he emphasized, “he ain’t married t’all no
more.”
        Some of the children now nodded in assent with his
line of reasoning, but Ruby Mae shook her head again.
        “That ain’t how marriage works,” she protested.
        “But I like the Doc,” Sam Houston retaliated. 
        Little Burl nodded in agreement. 
        “I like ‘im, too,” Becky O’Teale added quietly.
        “And I seen the way he looks at Teacher when he comes
ta lecture,” Zady put in suddenly.
        Ruby Mae gave her friend a dirty look. “Doncha be no
traitor, Zady Spencer. I thought ya liked Preacher.”
        “I do, but...” she started to say, but was
interrupted by an exasperated Ruby Mae.
        “Yer just seein’ things. Ya kin tell Preacher likes
Miz Christy. Doc don’t act that way t’all. I don’t
have nothin’ ‘gainst Doc ‘n’ all, but he jest don’t
act like no suitor,” Ruby Mae stated matter-of-factly.
        “And how would ya know? Y’ain’t never had no suitor
‘fore,” Sam Houston replied.
        Ruby Mae’s mouth dropped open, but she just said,
“’Cause I know, Sam Houston. I know better ‘n you do.”
        Sam Houston replied by sticking his tongue out at
Ruby Mae.
        “Jest look at yerselves,” Creed suddenly joined the
conversation. “Spittin’ ‘n’ sputterin’ like a pack o’
wolves over this dumb romance-stuff.”
        He had been listening from a distance, but now he
plunged right into the middle of the group, disgust
written on his face. 
        “Ya jest hush up, Creed Allen,” Ruby Mae admonished
him. “It’s yer fault Miz Christy is suspicious-like as
it ‘tis.”
        “Who would you pick fer Miz Christy?” Sam Houston
asked Creed.
        “I don’t want ‘er ta marry no one t’all,” the boy
responded.
        “Ya cain’t stop ‘er,” Ruby Mae put in.
        Creed Allen, never one to back away from a challenge,
just grinned and stated before running off, “Ya wanna
make a bet?”
        As the other children watched his retreating figure,
Sam Houston cried out to Ruby Mae, “Now look what ya
done. Poor Miz Christy’s gonna end up an ol’ maid
now.”
        An idea suddenly sparked in Ruby Mae’s head like a
bright flame when first ignited. “Then, we’re jest
gonna have ta holp ‘er along.” 
        She gestured for some of the girls to follow her and
they ran off talking and giggling, but Sam Houston had
a plot of his own in mind. There was only one question
he had to ask before he could get started and there
was only one person who could answer it for him. He
told a few of the other children to meet him back at
this spot after school and set off in a determined
stance toward the schoolhouse.


Part 2

Summary of first part:  Ruby Mae mentioned to the rest
of the children that David and Christy are having a
“rendezvous,” and she thinks he’s going to propose. 
Creed Allen stirred up fear in them that Christy may
leave them if she gets married.  Christy became
suspicious when her students asked continuous
questions about her leaving the Cove.  Sam Houston
said he’d rather see Neil with Christy which causes a
division among the children on who their teacher
should marry.  Creed wants to make sure Christy
marries no one at all.  Ruby Mae plots to help
Christy’s decision along, while Sam Houston decides to
do a little plotting of his own. 

************************************************************************
        I was sitting at my desk correcting some papers
during recess when Sam Houston suddenly stood before
me, one hand on his stomach and a pained look on his
face.
        “Sam Houston? Are you all right?” I asked in an
alarmed voice as I rose from my seat and knelt down in
front of the little boy.
        “Teacher, I ain’t feelin’ so good,” he replied, a
troubled look in his blue eyes. “I reckon I need ta
see the Doc.”
        I felt the little boy’s head, but his temperature
seemed normal. Still, I could not ignore the
distressed look on his face. 
        “Maybe you should lie down a while,” I suggested. I
didn’t want to call for Neil’s help unless it was an
emergency. Perhaps the little boy would feel better if
he just rested a while.
        “No,” came the loud reply. His eyes were pleading.
“Please, I need the Doc real bad.”
        He doubled over then clutching his stomach and I
hurriedly assured him, “All right, Sam Houston. I’ll
have someone fetch Dr. MacNeill. You wait here. I’ll
be right back.”
        I ran hurriedly out the door and toward the mission
house to see if I could find David.

************************************************************************
        Sam Houston smiled as he watched his teacher run down
the schoolhouse steps. 
        “Who says Creed Allen is the only good actor ‘round
here?” he questioned smugly to the air, pleased that
part one of his plan had gone so well. He only hoped
that part two would go just as good.

************************************************************************
        I watched as Dr. Neil MacNeill quietly examined the
little boy, trying my best to stay calm. Sam Houston
had seemed so distressed earlier. I hoped it was
nothing serious. The rest of the children were waiting
outside in case it was something critical and
contagious. To my relief, the doctor finally turned to
me with a smile.
        “I don’t think there’s any cause for alarm,” Neil
stated assuredly, and I gave Sam Houston a happy
smile. I noted his wide eyes were going back and forth
every few seconds from Dr. MacNeill to me. The poor
boy must have been really worried.
        “It’s all right, Sam Houston,” I told him
reassuringly. “Dr. MacNeill says everything’s going to
be okay.”
        The little boy smiled up at me, but Neil turned his
hazel eyes in my direction suddenly. “Miss Huddleston,
would you give me a moment alone with my patient?”
        His eyes were insistent. 
        “Of course.” I nodded and turned away from the two to
join the rest of the children outside. 
        I hadn’t been able to find David and I turned now to
Rob Allen who was leaning on the porch railing looking
exhausted.
        “Thank you for going to Dr. MacNeill’s so swiftly
Rob,” I told him and he shook a curt nod in return. I
then turned to tell the rest of the children that Sam
Houston was going to be just fine.

************************************************************************
As soon as his teacher was outside, Sam Houston looked
up at the doctor with innocent eyes. “I’m sure glad
I’m gonna be fine, Doc. Thanks ‘n’ all.”
        Neil looked down at the boy before him, an amused
look in his hazel eyes. “So am I, Sam Houston. You
were lucky.”
        “I was?” the boy asked incredulously. His blue eyes
were now wide with surprise.
        “If I hadn’t come in time, who knows what would have
happened?” Neil stated, only smiling once he’d turned
his back and started putting his stethoscope back into
his bag. 
        “Really!?!” 
        Neil could contain his laughter no longer. As he
turned to face the wide-eyed boy, his chuckles erupted
in full force. He couldn’t resist teasing the lad any
further. Perhaps, the boy would now learn his lesson.
Neil knew he should have been furious to come all this
way for nothing and away from any possible real
emergencies, but the wide-eyed look on Sam Houston’s
face melted away any anger he might have felt.
        “Oh, yer jest messin’ with me, Doc,” Sam Houston said
finally as he looked up at the man laughing before
him.
        “And I’m not the only one messin’ around here. Now,
what is going on? Why am I really here, Sam Houston?”
Neil asked him.
        The boy looked apologetic. “I’m sorry, Doc. I didn’t
mean ta cause no trouble or nothin’, but I just had ta
know.”
        Puzzled, Neil sat down across from the little boy
with questioning eyes. “What is it you just had to
know, lad?”
        “How ya feel ‘bout Teacher,” came the innocent and
extremely serious reply.
        Neil’s head snapped up at the boy’s words. Had he
heard right? 
        Sam Houston took a deep breath and then asked, “Ya
like Teacher, doncha Doc? I mean, ya think she’s a
pretty fine teacher ‘n’ all?”
        Neil paused and stared at the boy in front of him in
confusion. He’d been dragged all the way out here for
this? Sam Houston wanted to know if he thought Christy
Huddleston was a good teacher? 
        “Well,” Neil stuttered, then said truthfully, “Yes,
Sam Houston.”
        The little boy smiled. “I thought so.” He paused a
moment, then said, “If’n she was ta go away, ya’d miss
‘er, wouldn’t ya?”
        Neil was so caught off guard by the barrage of odd
questions coming from the boy that he didn’t know what
to say. Then, an idea struck him. Was Christy leaving
the Cove for some reason? It would explain the strange
questions. But if she was leaving, wouldn’t she have
said something to him about it? Or wouldn’t he have
heard about it from someone? Uncle Bogg surely would
have been the bearer of such news. 
        Neil looked down at the boy before him questioningly.
“Is Miss Huddleston going somewhere, Sam Houston?”
        “Not if Creed and I kin holp it, but his idea’s
different from mine,” came the reply. Then, he lowered
his voice to a hush and leaned forward as if he was
telling Neil a secret. “Ya see, yer part o’ my plan.”
        Neil looked at the boy in further confusion. He
didn’t see at all. What plan? Neil wondered silently.
What in the world was this boy talking about?  
        “Kin ya come look at a batch o’ arrowheads tomorrow
‘n’ we kin talk some more? I reckon Teacher’s gettin’
mighty onery with us jest sittin’ in here like this,”
Sam Houston said before Neil could get another word in
edgewise.
        “I’m sorry, lad. I’m going to Low Gap tomorrow. When
I return, we’ll talk,” Neil promised the boy when he
saw the disappointed look on his face. 
        “If’n ya’d be missin’ Miz Christy somethin’
fierce-like if’n she left, I reckon she’ll be missin’
ya, too, if’n ya be leaving tomorrow ‘n’ all,” the boy
offered suddenly with an innocent smile.
        “I’ll only be gone for a few days, Sam Houston,” Neil
stated, one eyebrow raised suspiciously. 
        “That don’t matter if’n...” 
        Sam Houston was about to say something more when they
were suddenly interrupted...

************************************************************************
        I entered the schoolhouse again after a couple
minutes. “Is everything all right?”
        Neil looked at me with a smile, but there was an odd
look emanating from his eyes.   “Yes, Miss Huddleston.
Everything is fine.”
        I smiled in relief. Sam Houston jumped up suddenly
and gave me a big grin before running outside to join
the rest of the children. 
        “Well,” I said, amused, “it looks like he’s made a
swift recovery.” 
        Neil laughed, too, but didn’t offer an explanation.
Instead, he slowly gathered up his medical bags and
then finally turned to face me. The odd expression was
still alighting those hazel eyes. 
        “What is it, Neil?” I asked, concerned at his sudden
grimace.
        Neil paused a moment, as if contemplating something,
then he asked, “Are you taking a trip, Miss
Huddleston?”
        My mouth gaped open in surprise. 
        “Not you, too!” 
        He gave me a curious look, so I explained, “The
children have been asking me all morning if I’m going
somewhere. I don’t understand where this is coming
from.”
        “So you’re not leaving the Cove, then?” Neil asked,
his eyes deliberately searching my face.
        “No, of course not,” I stated. I noticed the relief
that seemed to come to those hazel eyes then. 
        “I don’t understand,” I said, sitting down on the
edge of my desk now.
        “Something has obviously given the children the
impression that you’re leaving Cutter Gap,” Neil said,
sitting next to me then, his eyes questioning mine.
        “Or perhaps, someone?” he added quietly after a
moment.
        I shook my head uneasily, not knowing what to say. I
didn’t know what had caused this talk of my leaving
all of the sudden, but Neil was right. Some rumor had
obviously gotten started somehow. 
        “I’m happy to hear the rumor is false,” Neil said, as
if reading my mind.
        I smiled in his direction, looking at him intently
for only a moment before turning away from his intense
gaze. Feeling flushed, I stood abruptly and placed
some distance between myself and the doctor. 
        There was a moment of awkward silence then.
        “Well, I suppose I’ll check on Lundy since I’m out
this way,” Neil finally stated.
        I merely nodded, giving him a small smile before he
turned and exited the schoolhouse. Sighing deeply, I
then gestured for the children to return inside to
their seats so we could resume the rest of the day’s
lessons, hopefully without any further interruptions.


Part 3
Summary:  The children have chosen sides over the
Neil/David debate, except for Creed.  Sam Houston
faked a stomachache to get Neil to come to the
schoolhouse and answer a question for him.  Christy
cleared the air to Neil about a “rumor.” 


************************************************************************
        Ruby Mae caught up to David Grantland just as he was
exiting his bunkhouse that evening and heading for the
pond to meet Christy. She took in his appearance with
gawking wide-eyes, and David had to quench the urge to
turn and run.
        “Mighty fine suit, Preacher,” Ruby Mae stated with a
knowing smile. “I reckon Miz Christy’ll be fallin’
o’er her feet.”
        David merely smiled politely at the young girl. The
fact that Ruby Mae knew he was planning on meeting
Christy this evening wasn’t a big surprise to him.
Just how she always managed to find out these things,
though, he had to wonder. Either Christy had told her,
which he doubted, or the girl was a bigger and more
skillful eavesdropper than he’d previously thought.
        “Was there something you wanted, Ruby Mae?” he asked
the red-headed girl who was still gawking at him. 
        “I reckon we kin holp ya a little, if’n ya want our
holp ‘n’ all,” Ruby Mae said, her blue eyes gleaming
mischievously.
        “We?” David wondered. It was only then that he
noticed a huddled group of girls peeking out from
behind a tree whispering and giggling raucously. He
turned back to look at Ruby Mae with his dark brows
raised.
        “Ya see,” she hurried on, “I hear’d Miz Christy say
she likes Lord Byron in school ‘n’ all, and I figured
maybe ya might like ta take a looky here at this
book.”
        David’s hands were then holding a worn-out volume of
poetry as Ruby Mae thrust the book at him suddenly.
Poetry? he wondered. He looked up at the girl
curiously again.
        After a moment, Ruby Mae realized he was not getting
the point and wondered how men could be so dense.
         “Fer recitin,’” she finally said. “Wimmen jest love
when a man recites poetry ta her. Miz Christy tol’ me
so.”
        Actually, Christy had said no such thing, but that
wasn’t the point. Ruby Mae had to do everything she
could to convince the preacher that this was a good
idea or her plan would fail. And she just couldn’t let
that happen.
        David looked at the girl again skeptically, but had
no time to say anything more. He shooed Ruby Mae away
from him and tucked the book into his pocket as he saw
Christy running down towards the pond. He’d have to
sprint now to beat her there, but sprint was what he’d
do. There was no way he was going to be late for this
particular date.

************************************************************************
        Creed Allen watched the scene before him in disgust.
He would never understand grown-ups and all this
fussin’ over romance and marriage. There were Preacher
and Teacher only a few yards away from him all dressed
up and grinning at each other as if someone had stuck
sticks in their mouths. Creed edged a little closer to
the scene from the tree he was hiding behind so he
could hear their words. He could just make out
Teacher’s voice complimenting Preacher on his tie, but
now they were moving away again.
        Creed darted across to the tree nearest the trellis
where the preacher had obviously set up a little
“tea-party.” The whole scene was enough to gag the
little boy, but he had to keep quiet lest they
discover him. He waited a few moments, peeking out
from behind the tree every so often to see what was
going on, but he could hear their words clearly here. 
Peering around the tree again, he could only see his
teacher’s face, but she wasn’t smilin’ no more. She
was looking a little dumbfounded at the preacher’s
words. 
        Now the preacher was getting down on one knee. Ruby
Mae was right! the little boy thought in dismay. Now
all he had to do was wait for his cue. 
        Where were the words? 
        “Christy, will you marry me?”
        There!
        Creed backed up a dozen or so yards from the tree to
get a running start so it would to them like he’d come
from the mission, and then he sprinted down to the
gazebo as fast as his little legs would carry him.
        
************************************************************************
        “Preacher! Preacher!”
        I heard the voice and turned, startled to see the
little boy running towards David and me, his arms
flying wildly over his head.
        “Creed Allen? What is it?” I asked, rising from my
chair in alarm.
        The little boy stopped near David’s side, out of
breath. Finally, he spurt out, “Preacher, ya gotta
come quick!”
        “What is it, Creed Allen? What’s wrong?” I repeated,
kneeling down in front of the frightened boy.
        “Preacher, ya gotta come ta the mission quick!” Creed
said, his eyes pleading.
        “Is someone hurt, Creed?” I asked him. 
        Then a thought hit me. Maybe it was Lundy!
        Creed just shrugged. 
        “Ruby Mae tol’ me ta find ya right quick, Preacher!
Tol’ me ta run fast as I could ta find ya and I did,”
the boy stated humbly.
        “You did fine, Creed,” I assured him as David stood
up now.
        “I’d better see what the trouble is,” he said,
sighing, and rushed off toward the mission house. 
        I started to follow, but Creed tugged on my hand.
        “Teacher, I’m plumb tired out. Could ya walk me
home?” the boy looked up at me with wide, innocent
eyes.
        I hesitated. What if it was an emergency and they
needed my help at the mission? 
        Creed, obviously sensing my reluctance, put in then,
“Please Teacher. At least walk me part o’ the way? I
don’t mean ta be no bother, but I gotta be home right
shorely or my paw’ll tan my hide.”
        I looked at him skeptically. I couldn’t imagine Bob
Allen “tannin’” any of his children’s “hides”, but I
didn’t say so to Creed. His face looked so genuinely
sincere that I gave him the benefit of the doubt, even
though I knew better when it came to him. 
        “All right, Creed,” I told him with a smile. I
couldn’t resist one of my children’s faces, even if it
was one of the devil in disguise.
        As we set off for the Allen cabin near Blackberry
Creek, Creed started rambling away as usual about his
pet raccoon and his adventures with Sam Houston among
other things. 
        After a while, he suddenly blurted out, “My paw ain’t
none too happy ‘bout ya housin’ Lundy Taylor.”
        “Lundy’s sick. He needs our help,” I explained. 
        I knew the blood feud between the Taylors and the
Allens would not just go away over night, but if I
could reach the younger generation about the futility
of feuding, perhaps there was still hope for the
future. 
        I stopped walking and knelt down beside the little
boy. 
        “Creed, Lundy is a scared boy. The mission is here to
help people, and that’s what we’re doing. Lundy has
been all alone for months now. How would you feel if
you didn’t have a home or a family who cared about
you?”
        “I reckon it would be right lonely,” Creed admitted. 
        “That’s right. It would be,” I agreed.
        We continued walking then and Creed turned his face
up to me. “Teacher, yer miles away from yer family and
home. Y’ever get lonely, too?”
        I smiled down at the young boy. “Sometimes I get
homesick,” I admitted. “But this is my new home. I
have you, the rest of the children, and my friends at
the mission. You’re my family now.”
        Creed smiled back at me. “And ya got the Doc, too.”
        This statement surprised me. I stuttered over my next
words. “Yes, Dr. MacNeill is my friend, too.”
        After a few moments of silence, Creed looked up at me
again with wide eyes, “Teacher, ya reckon the Doc gets
lonely, too?”
        I didn’t know how to respond to that question, so I
simply said, “Everyone gets lonely sometimes, Creed.”
        “But the preacher’s got God, and you got us. The Doc
don’t got nobody t’all,” the boy stated after what
looked to be a long contemplative look.
        We walked for a little ways further in silence before
Creed finally turned to me and said, “Thanks Teacher,
I kin make it the rest o’ the way myself.”
        “Are you sure?” I asked him. 
        Creed nodded in reassurance. We were only a short
distance from the Allen cabin now and I decided to
trust the little boy. Besides, I knew I’d better start
back to the mission if I wanted to get home before
dark. But as I walked back towards home, I couldn’t
get Creed’s surprising words about Dr. MacNeill out of
my mind.



Part 4

Summary of previous part:  Ruby Mae gave David some
romantic advice.  Creed Allen interrupted an important
moment and gave Christy something to think about.
************************************************************************

        Ruby Mae was walking on air the next day.
Christy had confided in her just this morning about
the preacher’s proposal, but to her dismay she wasn’t
allowed to tell anyone about it. Teacher had made her
swear to secrecy and Ruby Mae was having the hardest
time keeping it inside. Well, she was inwardly
gloating, but she felt it wasn’t fair that she
couldn’t tell everyone else she’d been right. There
was only one thing bothering her. She couldn’t figure
out why Miz Christy hadn’t said “yes” to the reverend
right away. If Ruby Mae had been asked such a thing,
she’d have jumped at the chance. She just didn’t
understand her teacher’s reluctance on the matter.
Then again, perhaps Miz Christy hadn’t had the proper
chance to reply to him, she thought with disgust. 
        With this thought in mind, Ruby Mae strode over to
Creed Allen and stated in her most authoritative
manner, “Creed Allen, I got a bone ta pick with ya.”
        Creed just gave her an innocent look.
        “I know what ya were tryin’ ta do last night, but it
ain’t gonna work. It’s only a matter o’ time now,” she
said in a hushed whisper so that the other children
wouldn’t hear her. She intended to keep her promise to
Christy, but at the same time she just had to speak
her mind to Creed. 
        “I don’t know what yer blabberin’ ‘bout,” was all
Creed said in reply.
        “Oh yes, ya do. Preacher come runnin’ at me like his
boots were on fire. He tol’ me ya said I called fer
‘im. Ya know I didn’t do no such thing. Wal, it don’t
matter. Miz Christy’s gonna marry ‘im, anyway. Ya wait
and see,” she spit the words out in a huff and then
spun on her heels and ran over to her friends.
        “We’ll jest see ‘bout that,” Creed said to the air, a
mischievous look on his face as he watched the group
of girls run off whispering and giggling. 

************************************************************************
Little Burl ran over to Sam Houston excitedly. 
        “Did ya jest hear that?”
        Becky and her little sister, Mountie, also huddled
around the two boys with wide eyes. They’d been
watching the encounter between their teacher and the
doctor intently, but Burl had been the only one close
enough to hear their words.
        “What’d they say, Burl?” Sam Houston inquired.
        “Wal, first they was talkin’ ‘bout marriage and Doc
tol’ Miz Christy not ta let the talkin’ get too
serious ‘n’ all,” Burl said and the faces around him
looked disappointed. He quickly added, “Then he done
tol’ ‘er he’d be away fer a couple days and asked if
she’d miss ‘im while he be gone.”
        Sam Houston grinned at those words, asking
ecstatically, “What’d she say?”
        “Wal, she jest sorta looked at ‘im funny-like and
said, ‘What?’ He jest tol’ ‘er ta take care o’ Lundy
while he be gone, but they shorely did grin at each
other ‘fore he left and she jest stared after ‘im fer
a while with an odd-like look on ‘er face. I’d say it
was plumb encouragin,’” Burl said with a smile.
        The others smiled, too, but Sam Houston turned to
look in the direction of Ruby Mae and her group of
girls. He’d noticed them watching Teacher and the Doc,
too. Now they looked like they were hatching a devious
plot, that was certain. Suddenly, Ruby Mae noticed him
staring at them and walked away, pulling the group
along behind her, after giving him a very dirty look. 
        Sam Houston thought deeply for a moment, then looked
down at Burl before him.
        “What we need is a spy. I reckon yer so good at
listenin’ ‘n’ all, ya got the job,” Sam Houston told
the little boy before him. The two girls nodded in
agreement.      
        “Okay,” Sam Houston continued on in a hushed
whisper, “here’s what we gotta do...”

************************************************************************
        Burl didn’t like this spy stuff. It was hard work,
but it did have some amount of excitement to it.
Still, he didn’t know if he was the right man for the
job. Granted, he was little and therefore less
noticeable, but he sure didn’t like sitting still like
this for so long. The grass in the field was itching
at him, but he quenched the desire to sneeze. He had
to inch a little closer to the bush in front of him
before he could make out the words of the girls
standing a few yards away from him putting on a mock
“marriage.” And then, he had to make sure Mrs. Spencer
and Miss Alice didn’t see him, either. They were only
a few yards beyond the girls pruning some trees.
Little Burl again wished Sam Houston had elected
someone else for this job. But he didn’t have time to
think about that right now, for he was close enough
now to make out the girls’ words between the giggling.
        “I’m gonna be the perfect bride,” Ruby Mae was saying
as the others were putting a piece of lace on her head
to serve as a makeshift veil. “Ya reckon Rob’ll find
me beautiful?”
        Burl nearly choked at the sound of his older
brother’s name, but he somehow stopped the noise
before it erupted from his throat. He was too close to
them now. They’d hear him for sure if he made the
slightest peep.
        The girls were giggling as Ruby Mae continued, “Maybe
Miz Christy’ll let me be in ‘er weddin’. Rob’ll
shorely notice me then.”
        “Ya don’t know if’n she’s gettin’ married or even if
Preacher asked ‘er yet,” Clarabelle said.
        Ruby Mae just smiled inwardly. She was still keeping
Miz Christy’s secret, but all this wedding talk was
making the other girls suspicious. And she’d almost
blown it earlier when Teacher had overheard her
telling the other girls that she had a secret. And
then they’d gotten a lecture about marriage from
Teacher which had been promptly interrupted by the
doctor. She liked the Doc and all, but she wasn’t sure
what to make of him and she just didn’t think he liked
Teacher the way Preacher did at all. Obviously Sam
Houston thought otherwise. She had seen his little
group plotting at recess, but Ruby Mae had concocted a
plan of her own to help her teacher’s decision along a
bit.
        “Wal, it don’t matter if’n he’s asked ‘er yet anyhow.
What I think Preacher and Teacher need is some time
alone together without any int’ruptions, and then
we’ll see what happens,” Ruby Mae stated, thinking
about Creed’s ploys of the previous evening.
        “What do ya have in mind, Ruby Mae?” Zady asked,
wide-eyed.
        “Wal, I figure somethin’ like this...”
        Little Burl listened closely to the girls’ words, and
as soon as they parted their separate ways, he sneaked
quietly away and took off in a run to tell the others
what he’d just overheard. 

************************************************************************
        “How nice it was of Ruby Mae to offer us this fine
job,” David said sarcastically as he guided Prince
along the narrow woodland trail.
        I laughed behind him as I led Theo in Prince’s
tracks. “And here I thought you’d jump at the chance
to be alone with me.”
        “Under any other circumstances, yes,” he shot back.
“Traveling seven miles to El Pano in this mud is not
exactly what I would have had in mind, though.”
        I laughed again. David’s attitude today was a far cry
from his lover’s recitation of Lord Byron’s “She Walks
In Beauty” the other night, but under the current
circumstances I couldn’t blame him. 
        Ruby Mae had insisted that we go to the general store
in El Pano in her place since she claimed she wasn’t
feeling well. Her trip there once a month to buy
supplies for the mission was one oftentimes
accompanied by the other children of the Cove who
liked to get out and “see the rest o’ the world.”
David went with her most of the time, but today Ruby
Mae had insisted I go in her place. I had been
surprised at her insistence that we go today of all
days. The heavy rains from the day before had created
quite a mess throughout the Cove. This was not the
ideal day to be trekking through this sludge, but I
thought Ruby Mae was going to cry if we refused her.
There was some new “miracle” beauty bar of soap that
the store was supposed to get in today that I just had
to pick up for her. I had just shaken my head to see
where her vanity had taken her, but David and I had
reluctantly agreed to go anyway. Now, we were both
thinking we’d made a mistake.
        We rode quite a while in silence, the thin trail
making conversation nearly impossible.  
        Then, suddenly Prince reared up nearly throwing David
from the saddle, and I had to pull hard on the reins
to stop Theo from colliding with them. There was an
odd piercing silence for a moment, and then I heard a
scream.
        I jumped down from the mule as David simultaneously
leapt off of Prince, grabbing him by the reins to calm
the horse down and prevent him from moving any
further. I jumped in front of David and saw why this
was necessary.
        “Burl!”
        “I didn’t see him,” David cried in alarm, looking at
the small boy curled up at his feet.
        “Little Burl, are you all right?” I said, kneeling
next to the small boy’s huddled form. He appeared to
be conscious but severely shaken by what had happened.
He was clutching at his leg in pain now. I wondered if
he’d gotten trampled. I looked up at David in alarm.
        “I’ll go for MacNeill,” he announced quickly,
remounting Prince in one swift movement and riding off
before I could say a word in return.

************************************************************************
        “That weren’t the plan,” Sam Houston gaped in horror
at the scene before him.        
        The preacher had gone for the doctor (that
part was supposed to happen), but Teacher was now
leaning over Little Burl who was holding his leg in
pain. 
        “He coulda got hisself kilt. He weren’t s’posed ta
run out in front o’ the horse like that!”
        Becky and Mountie were crying quietly by his side.
Sam Houston felt terrible. Had they taken their plan
too far this time? 


Part 5

Summary of previous part:  Ruby Mae and Creed
exchanged some words.  Little Burl overheard a
conversation between Neil and Christy.  Sam Houston
appointed Little Burl their group’s spy.  Burl
listened in on Ruby Mae and her friends.  David and
Christy headed to El Pano for Ruby Mae.  Sam Houston
and his group were horrified when there was an
accident.

************************************************************************
        I left Little Burl where he lay, not touching him as
I waited for Dr. MacNeill and David to return.
Glancing up at the sky, I realized that this would
surely delay us too long. There was no way we were
going to El Pano today. But that didn’t matter. Ruby
Mae would understand after I explained what happened. 
        I looked down at the little boy before me and smiled,
trying to hide my worry from him. I had been talking
to him in a random manner to calm us both and pass the
time. He smiled up at me bravely in return, but I
noticed he was watching my every move. 
        Suddenly, he said, “I’m sorry, Teacher. Kin ya
forgive me?”
        “Little Burl, there’s nothing to forgive. This wasn’t
your fault,” I assured him, but he didn’t look
satisfied at my words.
        Finally, I heard approaching hoofbeats and rose to my
feet, scanning to find the two men approaching. When I
looked back down to reassure Burl that the doctor was
coming, I was shocked to find him no longer at my
feet. 
        “Burl?” 
        I whirled around to see the flash of a worn-out coat
and little hat in the underbrush a few feet away, and
then he was gone.

************************************************************************
        “I cain’t believe ya jest did that,” Sam Houston told
the little boy quietly. “I shorely thought ya were
kilt.”
        Becky and Mountie nodded in agreement.
        Little Burl smiled up at them. “Guess actin’ runs in
the family.”
        Sam Houston patted the little boy on the head
affectionately, and then they all turned back to look
at the scene in the distance. From here, it was
impossible to make out their words, but it was easy
enough to see their reactions. Teacher just kept
shaking her head over and over, throwing her hands up
helplessly into the air. Preacher and the Doc both
looked steaming mad and appeared to be yelling at each
other.
        “Doc weren’t s’posed ta be mad at ‘er,” Little Burl
whispered.
        “He ain’t mad at ‘er. He’s mad at YOU,” Sam Houston
explained, pointing at the little boy next to him.
        Burl looked alarmed at that, but Sam Houston patted
him on the shoulder in reassurance. “Don’t worry none.
He’ll git over it.”
        Burl wasn’t appeased by that answer. 
        They watched as the Doc remounted his horse and rode
off in a fury. Teacher looked at Preacher
apologetically, and then they, too, mounted their
rides and headed back in the direction of the mission
house.
        Sam Houston looked at the others with a big grin.
“Mission accomplished.”

************************************************************************
        Neil MacNeill was no longer angry, but confused as he
rode his horse, Charlie, toward the Allen cabin later
that evening. He’d just finished visiting his real
patients for the day and decided he had one more
important stop to make. Something was going on here,
and he wanted to know what it was. It seemed he was
having a bout of phony patients all of the sudden.
Neil knew the Cove children well enough to know there
had to be something behind it, and he had no doubt
there was a connection between Sam Houston’s fake
stomachache the other day and Little Burl’s run-in
with Prince earlier.
        “Mary,” he greeted Mrs. Allen as he pulled Charlie to
a halt and dismounted.
        “What kin I do fer ya, Doc?” Mary replied.
        “Uh oh,” Little Burl said under his breath as he
poked his head out the cabin doorway and saw the
doctor standing there.
        Neil saw the little boy peeking out the doorway and
tried to hold back his amusement as he explained to
Mary, “It seems Little Burl had a run-in with a horse
today, and I’ve come to check up on him.”
        “I didn’t hear nothin’ ‘bout no horse,” Mary said and
turned toward the cabin. “Burl, git out here son!”
        Little Burl walked slowly out the door and down the
steps as if he was coming to face his doom. Neil had
to suppress his laughter.
        “Burl, is what the Doc says here true?” Mary asked
him.
        Burl nodded, but reassured her in a small voice, “I’m
fine, Ma’am.”
        “I’ll be the judge of that,” Neil said, eyeing the
boy sternly as he swept him up in his arms. “Mary, I’m
going to examine him inside, if you don’t mind?”
        She nodded in assent and Neil carried Little Burl
inside and over to a chair by the dining table.
Kneeling in front of the little boy, he asked, “How’s
the leg, Little Burl?”
        “Fine, Doc.” Burl managed a smile.
        Neil did a quick check over the boy just to be sure
and found his suspicions confirmed. There wasn’t a
hair on the lad’s head that had been misplaced. Burl
was still smiling innocently at him.
        “Burl, why did you run out in front of the reverend’s
horse and pretend to be hurt?” Neil asked him after a
moment. When the little boy didn’t respond, Neil gave
him a half-smile. “It’s all right. You can tell me.”
        “Yer not mad at me?” Burl asked in a low voice.
        “No, lad. I’m not mad at you. But I am a bit
confused. And alarmed,” he added. “What you did was
dangerous. You could have really gotten hurt, not to
mention Reverend Grantland and Miss Huddleston could
have been hurt, too. They were really worried about
you, ya know? Promise me you won’t do anything like
this again.”
         Neil got a guilty look and somber nod in return from
Little Burl. 
        “Now, I know you well enough to know you don’t play
these kinds of pranks on people. So what were you
doing?” Neil asked gently.
        “I never meant ta hurt nobody,” Burl said, head hung
down in shame now.
        “I know you didn’t, lad,” Neil said reassuringly.
“You were all lucky today. Now, why don’t you tell me
what’s going on?”
        “I had ta stop ‘em, Doc,” Burl insisted.
        “Stop who?” Neil wondered.      
        “Preacher and Teacher. I had ta make YOU show up,”
the boy said.
        Neil raised his eyebrows at this statement. “Why is
that?”
        “I cain’t tell ya, Doc. It’s a secret,” Little Burl
said insistently. “Sam Houston wouldn’t like it none
if’n I said somethin’ ta ya ‘bout it. It would ruin
everythin'.”
        Neil’s suspicions had been right. Sam Houston did
have something to do with this, but that boy wasn’t a
prankster either. However, Neil knew someone who was.   
        “I see,” Neil said with a smile. “I suppose Creed
would be angry with you, as well.”
        “Oh no,” Burl shook his head. “Creed don’t know
nothin’ ‘bout this. He ain’t part o’ our plan. He
didn’t wanna have no part o’ us.”
        Hmmm... Neil was really curious now. He wanted to
know who the rest of “us” was, but he knew the little
boy wouldn’t intentionally tell him anything more. No,
there had to be another way of finding out just what
was going on around here. Unfortunately,
Neil wasn’t sure just how he was going to do that.

************************************************************************
        Creed Allen was glad he’d been hanging around the
mission house on this particular day. Where was there
a better place to hear the latest gossip than from the
gossip queen of Cutter Gap herself? And today, Ruby
Mae Morrison had not disappointed him. 
        As Creed neared his intended destination, he thought
back to what he’d overheard at the mission. Ruby Mae
had been ranting and raving after the preacher and Miz
Christy had returned to the mission house. Creed had
laughed at the story of his little brother and the
horse. Burl and Sam Houston were doing okay, he
thought, but he also figured they could use a little
help. After eavesdropping on Ruby Mae’s new plan as
she’d divulged it eagerly to her little group of
girlfriends, Creed had dashed off with an even better
plan in mind. There was only one thing he had to make
sure of first.
        Creed ran up the porch steps of the cabin and knocked
on the door, hoping that the doctor was home. Creed
had thought a lot about his conversation with his
teacher the other day. He figured if Miz Christy had
to be with someone, then Dr. MacNeill was the
lesser of the two evils. After all, the doctor was
always eager to listen to his stories and go places
with him and Sam Houston, and since the man was
already married, he couldn’t marry Teacher. They could
just keep each other company, Creed figured, and then
neither of them would be lonely anymore. 
        Neil opened the door at the insistent knock and found
an out of breath Creed Allen standing on his porch.
        “Well, hello Creed. I just returned from visiting
your brother,” Neil said as he invited the boy inside.
        Creed just grinned at the doctor in return. Neil knew
the full meaning of his words had not been lost on the
young face before him.
        “Doc, ya plannin’ on goin’ ta the weddin’ tomorrow?”
Creed asked suddenly.
        “Wedding?” Neil raised his eyebrows. 
        “Fer Miz Ida ‘n’ Mr. Sweetwater,” the boy explained. 
        Oh yes. Neil suddenly remembered he’d been invited to
that. The whole Cove had, but he wasn’t sure if he was
going yet or not. He figured he’d decide that in the
morning, assuming no emergencies arose between now and
tomorrow afternoon.
        “I don’t know, Creed,” Neil told him honestly.
        “Wal, ya jest have ta go, Doc,” Creed went on, then
added sweetly, “Teacher’ll be thar. She’ll be right
lonely if’n ya don’t come t’all.”
        Neil raised his eyebrows again at that statement, but
couldn’t suppress an amused grin. Again, this was all
about Christy Huddleston. Neil wasn’t sure what the
children of the Cove were up to, but now he was
convinced that it definitely had something to do with
her... and oddly enough, himself. 
        “Is that so, Creed?” Neil played along with him,
hoping the boy would reveal more.
        But Creed was too smart and caught on. He paused a
moment, then looked up at the doctor with a devilish
grin, “’Course if’n ya don’t come, I reckon she’ll
have ‘er hands full with the preacher.”
        Neil was about to respond to that statement when
another knock suddenly came at the door. Sighing, the
doctor went over and found it to be a patient of his
from Raven Gap.
        “Jarvis, I didn’t expect to find you visiting today,”
Neil told the man as he shook his hand. 
        “I jest stopped by from visitin’ with Ellie’s sister
and thought I’d pick up more o’ her medicine and save
ya the trouble,” the man explained with a small, shy
smile.
        Creed watched intently as Neil took a key out of the
pocket of a jacket hanging by the front door and
unlocked a padlock on another door nearby. After a few
moments inside the room, Neil returned to the main
room, locked the door behind him again, slipped the
key back into his coat pocket, and started heading out
the front door with the man.
        “This is gettin’ better ‘n’ better,” Creed said
inaudibly under his breath. 
        “Creed, I’ll be right back,” Neil said and exited the
cabin.
        Creed wasted no time. Going over to the doctor’s
coat, he quickly took the key out, unlocked the
padlock, and placed both items in his own jacket
pocket just before the doctor came back into the
cabin.
        “Uh, I gotta git goin', Doc,” Creed announced, flying
past the doctor and through the open door.
        “Creed?” Neil called to the little boy who was
already down the porch steps and heading into the
woods.
        Creed paused a moment before turning around and
saying, “Remember, Doc. Ya gotta come tomorrow.” Then
as an afterthought, he added, “Oh -- and she likes
ties.”
        The little boy was gone before Neil could even think
to form a reply.

************************************************************************
        Sam Houston was surprised when Creed Allen showed up
at his family’s cabin with Little Burl tagging along
behind him. Then, they made a quick stop over at the
O’Teale’s to fetch Becky and Mountie before heading
off to a secluded clearing in the
woods. Everyone looked at Creed in anticipation as
they huddled closely around him.
        After a long, dramatic silence, Creed took the big
padlock out of his pocket and announced in a loud
voice, “I got a plan.”



Part 6
Summary of previous part:  Little Burl’s “accident”
accomplished one mission and ruined another.  Neil
made a visit to the Allen cabin and Creed made a visit
to him.  Creed announced to Sam Houston and his group
that he has a plan. 

************************************************************************
        The day of the wedding dawned bright and clear, but
by mid-afternoon puffy white clouds had covered the
sky. The atmosphere was jovial as everyone gathered
around the meadow in front of the schoolhouse eating,
dancing, and chatting away. The ceremony had been
beautiful as David’s voice rang out clear and
bell-like for the large group of guests to hear. Miss
Ida and Mr. Sweetwater seemed very happy as they took
their vows to love, honor, and cherish one another for
the rest of their lives. For one brief moment, I had
found myself wishing I had accepted David’s proposal,
instead of just the opposite, and I had imagined the
beautiful scene of my own wedding to David. But that
scene had shattered as swiftly as it had come when
Neil had suddenly stood beside me, looking quite
handsome in a suit and tie. From that point on, the
rest of the ceremony had started to blur.
        I blushed now thinking about the way Neil had looked
at me so intensely, the hazel light in his eyes
burning bright as he’d smiled at the wedding scene
before him and then down at me. Something about the
way he had looked at me lingered on in my mind, but I
could not quite read or understand what that look had
meant. As usual, Neil MacNeill was a mystery to me,
his walls impenetrable and higher than ever. But there
had been a softness in his eyes at that moment and a
gentle curve to his mouth...
        “Well, Miss Huddleston, what did you think of the
ceremony?” came the Scottish brogue to my right, and I
turned to look at Neil as my thoughts broke apart.
        “It was beautiful,” I told him with a shy smile. “I
can’t imagine a more lovely setting for a wedding. The
mountains make a magnificent backdrop.”
        He grinned at me. “I agree. Although, this wasn’t
your usual mountain wedding, you know? There are some
traditions that Ida and Mr. Sweetwater definitely
won’t be abiding by. Just wait until you’ve attended a
real mountain wedding.”
        I looked down at the punchbowl in front of me to stop
the blush from creeping into my face. I had heard
about some of the customs regarding real mountain
weddings, ones that I didn’t particularly want to
discuss with the doctor. Trying desperately to
change the subject, I regarded the bowl sitting before
me. I had been designated the punch server for the
reception and thought now to offer some to Neil. 
        He politely declined. 
        I fidgeted uneasily for a moment, hating the wall of
silence that lay between us then.
        Fortunately, Neil was the first to break that
barrier. 
        “You’ll have to come out from behind that bowl for a
dance or two.”  
        I wasn’t sure if that was an invitation or if he was
just making conversation. 
        “I’ll try,” was all I said in reply. I looked at him
intently for a moment. Then, for some reason I had the
urge to compliment him and stated, “By the way, I like
your tie.”
        He smiled back at me with a satisfied grin, but said
no more because at that precise moment we were
interrupted by a familiar face...

************************************************************************
        Ruby Mae turned away from the girls beside her to
look at the scene a few yards away from her in horror.
There was Teacher and the Doc, talking and smiling
away at each other. It wasn’t time for her plan yet,
but she had to do something about this. And
right quick.
        Going over to the preacher, who was standing and
talking with his sister and her new husband, Ruby Mae
broke in, “Preacher, would ya be kind enough ta get me
some punch?”
        David looked down at the girl smiling up at him
flirtatiously and batting her eyelashes. Sighing
inwardly, he nodded at her before turning to see
Christy and MacNeill talking rather intimately to one
another by the punchbowl. 
        Striding over to them, he cut in suddenly, “Miss
Huddleston, may I get you something to eat?”

************************************************************************
        I smiled at David, but noted the annoyed look on
Neil’s face at that moment. 
        “No thank you, David. I’m fine.”
        David looked disappointed. Neil folded his arms and
glared off into the distance. The silence was awkward
and stiffening between the three of us. I had to think
of anything to break away from that tension. Then, I
noticed Jeb Spencer rosining up his bow for
another tune. 
        “Dr. MacNeill and I were just talking about dancing,”
I said finally.
        Neil turned his face back toward me with a surprised
smile and offered his arm immediately. I was about to
take it when David stepped between us.
        “What a fine idea, Doctor. Christy, may I have this
dance?” David asked, though his gaze was fixed on
Neil’s reaction the whole time.
        “Of course,” I said, but as I took David’s arm as he
led me away, I tossed an apologetic look over my
shoulder to Neil. 
        Neil smiled good-naturedly at me, but his eyes were
hard and glazed with bitterness toward David.
        The first dance went by quickly, but I could feel
Neil’s eyes on me the whole time. As the second tune
ran into the first one, David kept me in his arms, but
I saw Neil was about to walk over and cut in when
suddenly the music stopped altogether and I heard
Miss Alice’s loud voice.
        “Friends. It is time to bid farewell to the happy
couple.”
        
************************************************************************
        “That’s our cue. Come on,” Creed Allen said to the
group of children surrounding him.      
        Creed headed off to his designated position and the
other four took off in a sprint toward the mission
house while nobody was watching them.

************************************************************************
        I was so lost in the scene of David saying goodbye to
his sister and Mr. Sweetwater that I was surprised
when Ruby Mae came up behind me. 
        “Miz Christy, I need yer holp,” the girl stated
impatiently.
        “What is it, Ruby Mae?” I asked curiously, not taking
my eyes off the scene before me.
        “Miz Alice asked me ta fetch the rest o’ them thar
pies ‘n’ cakes from the mission now, and I thought ya
could holp me,” she stated as she tugged on my arm. I
turned to look at her then. 
        “Right now?” I inquired, glancing again at the
farewell scene, hoping Ruby Mae would get the hint
that now was not the right time. 
        “Yep,” she said, tugging even harder now.
        Apparently, I had no choice. 
        I followed her in exasperation. Luckily, I had
already said “goodbye,” but I was still a little sour
at not being able to see the couple off properly with
the rest of the Cove. But it was too late now. Ruby
Mae had already dragged me halfway to the mission
house. 
        Sighing, I followed in Ruby Mae’s footsteps, but my
mind was still back on the scene we had just left.
However, when we reached the front porch and Ruby Mae
walked right on past it, I snapped to attention.
        “Ruby Mae? Where are you going? I thought you said we
were fetching pies and cakes?” I asked her, but she
just continued walking on ahead of me. I followed her
in confusion. 
        She stopped in front of the shed and opened the door.
I looked at her incredulously. 
        “Ruby Mae, what is going on? There aren’t any pies in
the shed.”
        As I was speaking, I hadn’t noticed the others
surrounding me, and before I knew what was happening,
I was being pushed into the shed, the door closing
abruptly behind me.
        “Ruby Mae! Ruby Mae!” 
        I pushed and shoved on the door, pounding my fists
against it as hard as I could. It wouldn’t budge. I
was trapped! 
        I heard giggles in reply to my cries, and then,
retreating footsteps. 
        Surely, they weren’t going to just leave me in here? 
        It was dark in here. I hated pitch darkness! And it
smelled dank and stuffy. Fear started to well up
inside of me.
        Just as I was about to panic, the door swung wide
open again, and I saw with relief the shadow of a
little boy in the bright light.
        “Sam Houston?” 
        “Come with me, Teacher,” the little boy commanded as
he tugged on my arm.
         I was so dazed and happy to get out of that dark
shed that my feet obeyed him. He led me into the barn
where I saw Becky O’Teale and Little Burl Allen. They
rushed at me, crying and wailing, leading me over to
the small tack room in the corner where the mission
kept its horse supplies. 
        “It’s Mountie,” Becky wailed. “She done got hurt in
thar.”
        I looked into the little room where the small girl
was curled up into a tight ball on the floor.
        “Mountie? What happened? You know you shouldn’t be
playing in here.”
        I hurried over to the little girl and knelt down at
her side. As soon as I did it, something tugged at the
back of my mind and I realized I’d been duped again.
Mountie jumped up and ran out the door as soon as I
was a safe distance away from it. I stood
back up quickly, but it was too late. 
        I was trapped again!
        “What on earth is going on here?” I cried
incredulously to the air, but the only reply I
received was silence.

************************************************************************
        Sam Houston watched in the bushes as Ruby Mae and the
other girls pushed David Grantland into the shed and
shut the heavy board down across the doors to hold him
inside. He had to repress his laughter as the giggling
girls then walked promptly away. If only they knew...
        The boy then ran back to the party to find Creed
Allen. Everything was going perfect, Sam Houston
thought with grin. Just perfect!


Part 7
Summary of previous part:  Neil and Christy talked at
Ida’s wedding.  David interrupted them after prompts
from Ruby Mae and asked Christy to dance.  Creed and
his group waited for their “cue,” while Ruby Mae put
her plan into motion.  Christy was first shut up in
the shed, then promptly locked in the barn.  Sam
Houston laughed as Ruby Mae and her friends pushed
David into the shed not knowing that his group had
intervened. 
************************************************************************
        Neil MacNeill was surprised when he turned back from
waving “goodbye” to the happy couple to find Christy
no longer there. She’d been standing nearby just a few
moments earlier. Neil wanted to have that dance now
that the reverend was nowhere in sight, but as he
scanned the crowd for Christy’s familiar face, he
realized she was no longer even at the reception. Then
a thought hit him and his heart plummeted to the
ground. Both Christy and David were missing!
        Sighing, Neil pushed through a crowd of giggling
girls intending to leave the reception as well when
Creed Allen was suddenly standing before him. 
        “Not now, Creed,” he told the young lad. 
        The boy before him grinned. “If’n yer lookin’ fer
Teacher, I know where she is. She said she wanted ta
talk ta ya. This way. Follow me.”
        Neil hesitated for a moment, but Creed had already
sprinted off ahead of him. He shrugged and decided if
he was going to catch up to the boy now, he’d better
get moving.
        By the time they reached the barn, Neil was a little
out of breath. Creed, still full of energy, gestured
at him excitedly.
        “She’s in here. Come on!” 
        Neil followed Creed into the barn, and before he knew
what was happening, he felt many little hands shoving
at his back and pushing him inside a small room. 
        Creed quickly slammed the door shut behind him and
clamped the padlock down on it with a satisfied grin.

************************************************************************
        “Neil?”
        My eyes had finally adjusted to the dim light of the
tack room, but the sudden blast of bright light from
the doorway blinded me before the room then returned
to its dim hue. The door had been slammed shut again,
and I now saw a bewildered Neil MacNeill
standing before me. Luckily, this room had some light
and fresh air compared to the dank, pitch darkness of
the shed. I may have only been in the shed a moment,
but that moment had been long enough. This space was
at least faintly lighted by a small window high up
on the two story wall and was large enough for two
people to reside in comfortably since it appeared I
now had a cellmate.
        “Christy?” 
        Neil walked over to me, confusion littering those
hazel eyes. He stared at me for a moment in silence
and then glanced about the small room with a sweeping
look before turning his eyes back to me, finally
saying, “What did you want to talk to me about?”
        “What?” I asked, dumbfounded. 
        “You didn’t want to talk to me about something?” came
the hazy reply.
        “No,” I assured him. “And if I did, I certainly would
have picked a different location.”
        His eyes still held confusion, but awareness was
slowly creeping into them. He turned toward the door,
his mouth wide open.
        “Don’t bother,” I told him before he even uttered a
word. “I’ve already tried. The door is locked and the
children won’t answer your calls. Everyone else is at
the party.”
        He turned his eyes back to me, disbelief planted in
them. 
        “Well, at least this is better than the shed,” I told
him with a wry grin and explained to him about my
earlier experience.
        His eyes held full awareness now as he slowly took in
my words. He nodded then. “It looks like we’ve been
set up.”
        “And we’re stuck here until they decide to let us out
or until someone discovers that we’re missing,” I
added.
        I knew it could be hours before that happened. The
party could drag on all night. And people might assume
that Neil had simply gone home. But surely someone
would notice I was gone? David surely would or Miss
Alice. But Miss Alice would be busy with the guests
and the food. She might not. David, I decided
confidently, would come looking for me. He had to. But
as I glanced back at Neil again, I wondered suddenly
what would happen to us if he didn’t?

************************************************************************
        Ruby Mae broke away from the party, dragging Zady
along behind her. They’d been periodically checking up
on Preacher and Teacher, but so far they hadn’t heard
a peep from either one of them. Now as Ruby Mae and
Zady crept quietly up to the shed, they perched their
ears out to listen. 
        “It shorely is quiet in thar,” Zady said in a hushed
whisper.
        Ruby Mae gave her a wide grin in return and they both
burst into giggles, moving away from the shed again.
They suddenly ran into Sam Houston as he burst out of
the bushes.
        “Watch where yer goin’, Sam Houston,” Ruby Mae chided
him and then gave a knowing look to Zady.
        Sam Houston picked up on the look right away and
asked slyly, “Whatcha doin’?”
        “None o’ yer business,” came Ruby Mae’s reply as she
and Zady ran off, bursting into even louder giggles.
        Sam Houston laughed whole-heartedly at them as he
took off happily in the other direction.

************************************************************************
        I was sitting on the floor, leaning up against the
wall when Neil suddenly handed me something. 
        “Penny for your thoughts,” he said as he sat down
across from me. 
        My feet couldn’t touch the opposite wall, but his
boots rested soundly against the wall beside me. I
smiled at him in amusement, but shook my head in
exasperation.
        “I can’t believe the children would do this. This is
an elaborate prank even for Creed Allen’s ingenious
mind,” I stated glumly, tossing the penny back at him
playfully.
        He caught it in one large palm and slipped it back
into his pocket. He eyed me steadily before saying,
“This is more than an elaborate prank, you know?”
        I looked at him curiously. “What do you mean?”
        “I mean the children had more in mind than a silly
prank on their teacher and the old doctor,” Neil
stated with a small smile. 
        I stared at him, not comprehending for a moment, but
as his gaze lengthened on mine I suddenly realized
what he was implying. His eyes swept over me as his
smile got even larger and I looked down, blushing to
my roots.
        “Surely you’re not suggesting...” I trailed off.
        Neil moved over to sit next to me then and I had to
fight the urge to move away. Where would I go anyway?
With his nearness to me, I could smell the pipe
tobacco and lye soap emanating from him as well as the
faintest hint of cologne. I didn’t even know he
wore cologne. I glanced up at him for a moment, my
eyes searching his and found his gaze fixed intently
on me. His eyes looked brighter in this dim light or
maybe it was because he was so close that they
appeared so bright, but I had the sudden urge to touch
his face, to brush his tousled red-blond hair out of
his eyes... 
        Breaking that gaze, I fought the urge to stand up
even when every muscle in me was telling me to escape.
But there was nowhere for me to escape to. Perhaps,
Neil was right. Perhaps this had been the whole point,
after all.
        
************************************************************************
        Creed Allen and Sam Houston were keeping busy telling
people every so often that they had seen Miz Christy
here or Doc MacNeill there, and once in a while they
mentioned the preacher, just so folks wouldn’t get
suspicious. Becky and Mountie were also doing their
best to distract people away from the fact that these
three prominent people were missing from the party.
And they were all doing their best to stay as far away
from Ruby Mae and her group of girlfriends as
possible.
        At one point, Sam Houston pulled Creed aside and
whispered, “Ya reckon we should let ‘em out yet?”
        Creed looked around to make sure no one was listening
in on them and then said, “No, not yet. It’s too soon.
They need more time.”
        Sam Houston nodded his head, but he secretly wondered
exactly how much time that would be and how long
before people got too suspicious? He didn’t know the
answers to those questions, but he did know they were
all gonna be in a right heap o’ trouble when that time
was suddenly up.


Part 8
Summary of previous part:  Neil followed Creed into
the barn and was promptly locked inside the tack room
with Christy.  Sam Houston laughed at Ruby Mae and her
friends for thinking their plan was succeeding.  Neil
and Christy figured out they’d been “set up.” Sam
Houston and Creed warded off suspicion at the party
while pondering how much time a certain doctor and
teacher needed to be alone.

************************************************************************
        Time passed slowly. Dr. MacNeill and I chatted for a
while, but surprisingly we both soon ran out of things
to say. I was glad that we weren’t arguing for once. I
had thought the stillness would be stiff and awkward
between us, but I soon found it to be pleasant and
relaxing as we slipped into a comfortable silence. I
found my eyes growing weaker and weaker, and I could
feel sleep overcoming me. It had been an exhausting
week, I thought with a sigh. Between pondering David’s
proposal, planning Miss Ida’s wedding, Lundy and his
father, and the children’s antics, I realized that I
had the right to be tired. 
        Suddenly, a thought occurred to me.
        “Neil?” I asked, turning my face up to look at him. 
        He smiled down at me curiously. 
        “Would you mind too much if I just rested against
your shoulder? I’m feeling awfully tired all of the
sudden.”
        Neil looked surprised at my words, but said, “Be my
guest, Miss Huddleston.”
        I couldn’t believe I had asked him such a thing, but
at this point I was much too tired to care. I rested
lightly against him at first, but found his shoulder
to be warm and inviting. I could feel the tension
slowly draining away and relaxation overtaking my
body. As I allowed myself to lean a little further
against him, I felt a smile coming on as I slipped
suddenly into a light, peaceful sleep.

************************************************************************
        Alice Henderson was beyond confused after she’d
circled around the entire party at least three times
now. The Quaker missionary woman hadn’t seen Miss
Huddleston in hours and wondered where the girl could
have possibly gone off to. And every time she
asked someone if they’d seen her, she kept getting the
same sort of responses:  “Creed Allen saw ‘er talkin’
ta Miz Spencer;” “I believe she’s gettin’ punch fer
Little Burl;” “Becky and Mountie saw ‘er talkin’ ta
the Doc;” “I think Sam Houston saw ‘er dancin’ with
the preacher.” But Fairlight hadn’t seen Christy for
hours, she hadn’t been anywhere near the punchbowl
since before Ida and Mr. Sweetwater left, and the
doctor and the preacher were also nowhere to be found.
And every time Alice followed another lead, it always
ended up being a dead end. By this time, Alice was
getting more than a little suspicious.
        Catching Creed Allen by the sleeve, she asked him
sternly, “Creed, has thee seen thy teacher lately?”
        “Miz Christy?” the boy looked up at her with innocent
eyes, but Alice knew better. “Last I saw she was
talkin’ over thar with Mountie.”
        Alice looked around until she spotted the little
girl, all the while keeping a firm grip on Creed, and
saw what she expected to see. Miss Huddleston was
nowhere near Mountie O’Teale. Alice looked down at the
little boy with a stern look. 
        “Wrong answer, Creed Allen.”
        Just then, Fairlight Spencer came over to them with
an odd expression on her face, toting her husband
behind her. 
        “Miss Alice, have ya seen the preacher anywhere? I
been lookin’ fer ‘im a while now and I ain’t the only
one who ain’t seen ‘im lately,” she said as she
gestured toward the rest of the party crowd. They were
all now looking around and whispering fiercely at each
other.
        “And I’ve been lookin’ fer the Doc, but nobody’s seen
‘im fer a spell neither. I know he ain’t gone home
‘cause his horse is tied up over yonder,” Jeb said,
his eyes darting in the direction of Neil’s horse,
Charlie.
        A small group was now starting to form around the
quartet as everyone seemed to be wondering on the
whereabouts of the elusive doctor, preacher, and
teacher.
        “Creed Allen,” Miss Alice looked down at the little
boy. “I think thee has some explaining to do.”

************************************************************************
        Neil looked down at the sleeping form of Christy in
his arms and wondered how he’d gotten so lucky. He was
going to have to thank the children for this, after he
got done scolding them, that is. Part of him was angry
at all their antics, part of him amused, and part of
him was just plain content as he looked down at the
beautiful woman leaning against him now. She had
drifted closer to him as she’d fallen asleep and her
head had slowly made its way from his shoulder to his
chest. At that point, he’d brought his arm around her
to hold her there against him so she didn’t fall right
into his lap. Her face looked peaceful, her smile a
reflection of the contentment he felt, as he gazed
down at her in wonder. Her hair was glowing a soft
amber in the dying light of the sun that was peeking
through the window above them. He could feel the light
rising and falling of her deep breaths against him as
her warm body was nestled close to his own. Looking
down at her, he couldn’t help but smile.
        Yes, Neil thought as he held her small form tighter
against him, he couldn’t have been more content at
that precise moment than he was right now. He thought
for certain that he must be in heaven.

************************************************************************
        David Grantland was far from being in heaven! 
        He gingerly sat up and rose one hand to his throbbing
temple, trying to get his bearings. The events of the
last several hours were unclear to him. He remembered
Ida’s wedding, dancing at the reception with Christy,
saying “goodbye” to his sister... 
        After that, the images started to blur. What had
happened to him? And where was he now?
        David rose to his feet and felt his head strike a low
ceiling. It was too dark, wherever he was, and he
groaned as he felt his head again. What was going on? 
        And then suddenly, he remembered... 
        Ruby Mae had said Christy had wanted to speak with
him, led him away from the reception, and then thrown
him into the shed. As he felt the bump on his temple
again, he realized he must have struck his head on
something when he’d been tossed in here like a rag
doll. He hadn’t realized what was going on, hadn’t
heard the other girls surrounding him until it was too
late...
        When I get my hands on that girl, David thought with
such a fierce fury that he almost forgot he was
trapped (and that he was a preacher). 
        Trying to retain a grip on his sanity, David reached
out for the door and slammed against it a few times,
but it wouldn’t budge. The large plank holding the
outside shut would never move by his weight against it
alone. He’d built it so that animals couldn’t get
inside. David never thought he’d ever have to try to
get out. 
        Feeling around him, he pushed against the walls to
gauge their strength and then searched around the shed
on his hands and knees. There had to be something in
here he could use. 
        Then he felt the handle of an axe. It was too small a
space to swing it properly, but somehow he would
manage. It would take a little longer than he’d hoped,
but somehow he was going to get himself out of here.

************************************************************************
        Creed Allen was saved from having to answer Miss
Alice’s question when someone suddenly cried out,
“Looky, here comes the preacher!”
        Everyone turned startled and gaping to see David
Grantland running toward them. His neat black suit was
covered in dirt and he had a furious look on his
handsome face.
        Creed moved discreetly away from Miss Alice as her
grip on him loosened, but he stopped when he saw
David. 
        “He’s got a pump-knot the size of a baseball on his
head!”
        “Ruby Mae!” David yelled fiercely, running toward the
startled, wide-eyed girl. She looked scared to death
at his expression. When she tried to flee, he caught
her in a firm grip by the shoulders and yelled, “What
is the meaning of this? Where is Christy?”
        The girl just stared up at him in shock. “Ya mean,
she ain’t with ya?” 
        “Does it look like she’s with me?” David yelled back,
releasing her. 
        Miss Alice moved over to him, concern written all
over her face. “David, what has happened?”
        “I’ve been locked up in the shed all night, knocked
out! That’s what’s happened. And she put me there! Her
and her little cohorts,” David continued to yell,
glancing around at whom he guessed to be the other
culprits.
        “The shed?” Miss Alice asked, alarmed. She turned to
Ruby Mae.
        The girl had started to cry now along with several
other girls. 
        “I’m sorry, Preacher. That ain’t what was s’posed ta
happen t’all,” Ruby Mae whimpered.
        “Zady Spencer, do ya know somethin’ ‘bout this?”
Fairlight asked her daughter sternly.
        “I’m sorry, Mama. Ruby Mae’s right. It weren’t
s’posed ta be like this,” Zady cried softly.
        “I should tan yer hide, girl,” Jeb put in firmly. 
        Several of the other parents looked like they wanted
to do the same thing as they looked at their children
suspiciously.
        “What exactly was supposed to happen here?” Miss
Alice asked, holding up her hand to quiet down the
group. There was silence for a moment, then Alice
turned to look at Ruby Mae again questioningly.
        “We jest wanted Preacher and Teacher ta have some
time alone, unint’rupted,” Ruby Mae explained,
glancing evilly in Creed’s direction.
        There were a few chuckles from the crowd at that
statement, but Alice and David were still looking at
her firmly.
        “But where is Christy, Ruby Mae?” David wondered, his
voice a little softer as he suddenly realized the
girl’s intent. “She wasn’t in the shed with me.”
        “I don’t know,” Ruby Mae shook her head. “We put Miz
Christy in thar first.”
        “But she wasn’t in there, Ruby Mae,” David told her
again insistently. 
        “I know where she is,” came a loud voice suddenly.
        “Creed Allen!” Miss Alice turned and stalked over to
the little boy with David right on her heels.
        Creed looked up at them sheepishly as Sam Houston
joined his side. 
        “I guess the jig is up,” Sam Houston stated solemnly,
and Creed shook his head in agreement as they prepared
themselves to face the stern looks that were now
surrounding them from every side.


Part 9
Summary of previous part:  Christy fell asleep.  Alice
and the others wondered what was going on.  Neil was
in heaven, while David was not.  David shocked
everyone at the party, and the kids had some
explaining to do.

************************************************************************
        I awoke groggily to find myself looking at something
smooth and black. As my senses gradually came back to
me, I realized it was a soft material that I could
feel underneath my fingers. Not my quilt, I thought as
my eyes rose a little higher. A red flower gracing a
black lapel came into view, along with a gray and
black tie, a light gray shirt, a white collar... 
        Then I remembered as I sat up suddenly. I had been
sleeping against Neil’s shoulder. 
        He was wide awake and looking at me with interest as
my eyes met his. I could feel one of his arms draped
around my back, and I flushed furiously as I realized
I must have shifted during sleep. Neil was grinning at
me whole-heartedly.
        “Good morning, Miss Huddleston,” he stated softly.
        Morning!?! It was morning? No one had come for us?
The children hadn’t let us out?
        Neil laughed at my alarmed look and said, “I’m
teasing. You haven’t been asleep very long.”
        I swatted at him playfully and moved a little away
from him, relieved to find that it wasn’t morning. The
small distance made me a little more comfortable, but
a chill ran through me at the sudden loss of his warm
body next to mine. 
        “Do you have any idea what time it is?” I asked,
looking up at the window and trying to gauge for
myself. The light coming through the window was much
dimmer than it had been before.
        “Sometime after sunset,” Neil guessed. 
        “I can’t believe they haven’t let us out yet. I can’t
believe no one has come for us,” I stated
incredulously. 
        Why hadn’t anyone come? Why hadn’t David come? I
wondered in disappointment. Perhaps no one, not even
David, had missed me at all.
        I stood suddenly, angry that Neil and I were still
locked up in this horrible little space. “They can’t
keep us in here forever.”
        Neil raised one eyebrow and said with a smile, “Not
that I’d mind if they did.”
        I looked at him for a moment in silence and then
placed my hands on my hips. He was teasing me again. 
        “You’re not helping at all, Neil MacNeill.”
        “Well, what do you want me to do?” he asked as he
rose to his feet as well, still grinning at me
playfully.
        I looked up at the window curiously. It appeared to
be just big enough for me to crawl through, I wagered.
If Neil could somehow hoist me up, perhaps I could
climb out. The drop to the ground wouldn’t be that far
and then I could unlock the door for Neil. I looked
back at him, and it was as if he had read my thoughts.
        Neil nodded, but the look in his eyes was
skeptical as he took off his jacket and tossed it on
the ground. He removed the stiff collar from his shirt
and tossed it as well. He then loosened his tie and
rolled up his shirtsleeves. 
        “All right,” Neil stated, moving over to stand
beneath the window and motioning me over to him. “If
you don’t mind, I really don’t want those shoes
digging into my shoulders.”
        “Oh,” I said, startled and quickly brushed off my
momentary daze to take off my shoes. Neil gentlemanly
turned his back to me so I could take off my stockings
as well, for without the shoes I had to have something
to grip with. It would be too hard to keep my balance
in my slippery stocking feet. As Neil turned to face
me again, I tried to quench the embarrassment I felt
at my bare feet and ankles in Neil’s full view, but
then I had to remind myself this was not the city, he
was a doctor, and most people around here went
bare-footed anyway. And this wasn’t exactly an
ordinary situation, either. It certainly wasn’t a time
for modesty. The ground would no doubt hurt my feet
when I fell, but it was better to try to get out of
here than just sit and wait all night. What if no one
discovered us until morning? The thought of spending
the night here with Neil was too much for me to think
about and I convinced myself again that I was doing
the right thing.
        Neil knelt down as low as he could before me and I
placed my hands on his back to steady myself. Placing
one foot gingerly on his shoulder, I hesitated. Maybe
this wasn’t the best idea after all. But Neil
reassured me by gripping my ankle tightly in one hand.
Placing my other foot on him, Neil grasped me tightly
and directed my actions as we slowly rose to our feet
simultaneously. I placed my palms against the wall in
front of me to steady my balance before looking up. I
then reached out for the small windowsill, but I had
gauged my distance wrong. Even if I could somehow open
the window, which looked to be sealed tightly shut
anyway, there was no possible way I could hoist myself
up and out of it. I shook my head in dismay. 
        “It’s no use, Neil,” I called, looking down at him.
        “Don’t look down,” Neil warned, but it was too late. 
        My one quick glance down had disoriented my balance
and I found my feet slipping from Neil’s shoulders.
Neil was quick in reacting, releasing my feet
immediately to let me fall at will. If he had held me,
I was sure my head would have struck the wall
before me. I fell quickly and Neil caught me with
strong arms extended beneath me. I was now gathered
tightly against him, clutching at him in terror.
        “It’s all right, Christy. I’ve got you,” Neil
reassured me in a soothing voice.
        I was dazed for a moment, grasping at Neil like a
child wanting to be comforted. Then, my senses flooded
back and I realized Neil was holding me in his arms. I
glanced up into his eyes and found his gaze to be soft
and concerned.
        “Thank you,” I exhaled lightly, trying to catch my
breath. But my heart was in my throat as Neil was
gazing intensely at me. I couldn’t say anything more.
We were frozen for a moment, neither of us moving as
we looked at each other.

************************************************************************
        Creed Allen led a small pack of people into the barn
without having explained a word to them. Miss Alice
had convinced most of the party guests to stay put at
the reception, but a few of the adults and children
had followed behind her, David, Ruby Mae,
and Sam Houston, with Creed leading the way.  
        He stopped suddenly before the door to the tack room.
        “She’s in thar, but I kinda lost the key ta the
padlock,” Creed said sheepishly as he
looked at the others.
        Miss Alice was about to say something, when David
suddenly grabbed the boy.
        “Creed, if this is another one of your stunts...”
        “It ain’t Preacher, honest,” Creed assured him,
crossing his fingers over his heart.
        David sighed and looked at the others for a minute.
“I’ll be right back.”
        As soon as she saw David’s figure exiting the barn,
Miss Alice turned back to Creed with a confounded
look. “Creed, what in the world possessed thee to lock
thy teacher in the barn?”
        Creed looked sheepish again and Sam Houston came to
the rescue, “We just wanted ‘em ta get a chance ta be
alone, too.”
        “Them?” Miss Alice asked, eyes wide.
        Ruby Mae’s eyes snapped open even wider as she
suddenly understood.
        Someone in the crowd wondered aloud, “Wal, if’n the
preacher’s out here, then who’s in thar with Miz
Christy?”
        They all looked at each other wide-eyed and Sam
Houston quenched the urge to turn and run.
        David returned suddenly with an axe in his hand and
motioned everyone aside. They all watched intently as
he broke padlock and flung open the door.
        

Part 10 - Final part
Summary of previous part:  Christy had a not so
brilliant idea, but Neil came to the rescue. Everyone
was poised outside the tack room door as David broke
the lock and flung open the door.

************************************************************************
        Neil and I snapped back to our senses at the sound of
voices outside the door. He dropped me to my feet and
backed away, turning to face the door after one last
intense look at me. I smoothed my skirts at my sides
and peeked around his shoulder at the sudden loud
sound of something breaking apart. Then, to my
surprise, the door swung wide open and a dozen gaping
faces were staring at Neil and me.
        “Miss Alice!”
        I was so relieved to finally be free of our prison
that I brushed past Neil and into Miss Alice’s arms,
letting the strong woman embrace me tightly for a
moment. Then, I saw David’s face peering out from
behind the door and smiled at him. I even smiled at
the children’s faces before me, too happy at my sudden
freedom to be angry at them any longer. 
        Then, I remembered Neil.
        I turned around to find him collecting his jacket and
my shoes and stockings in his arms. He handed my
possessions to me as I tried to ignore the odd glances
and curious looks I was getting at my bare feet. I
wasn’t in the mood to explain it to them. 
        Neil turned to look at Creed with his jaw set
sternly, but I noticed the softness that was also
apparent in his eyes. “Creed, you have some explaining
to do, lad.”
        “And I believe Creed’s not the only one,” I added,
glancing toward Ruby Mae in front of me and Sam
Houston, Little Burl, Becky, and Mountie who were
standing at the edge of the crowd. They all gave me
sheepish smiles, but Creed looked proudly up at Neil
who was now giving the boy a whole-hearted grin in
return. Curious, I was about to say something, but
Neil’s gaze then turned to the other side of the room.
        “So that’s where my padlock went to,” he said, his
gaze returning to Creed for a moment and then finding
its way to me. “It isn’t the first one I’ve had to
replace.”
        I smiled at him, remembering my first intrusion into
his “secret room” and my surprise at finding a full
blown medical laboratory.
        “Well, I believe it is time we hear the story, the
whole story,” Miss Alice added with a grin as she
ushered the group out of the barn and toward the
mission house.
        I stopped for a moment, leaning against the frame of
the doorway to put my shoes back on. Everyone had
exited the barn except for David. He came to stand
before me. 
        “I’m sorry this happened,” David said, and I looked
up at him in surprise.
        “It’s not your fault, David,” I told him, rising as
soon as my feet were safely hidden again. I then
wadded my stockings into a ball and stuffed them in my
pocket. 
        David looked at me, his dark brows raised
questioningly. He was obviously curious about what had
transpired in that little room. He started to comment,
but I cut him off before he had the chance to say
anything. 
        “I’ll explain later,” I assured him. “It’s not what
it looks like. Believe me.”
        “And what does it look like?” he asked quietly, his
eyes glancing out into the dark night. 
        I stared at him a moment, not knowing how to respond.
        “David, everyone will be wondering where we are.
Please, let’s not talk about this right now,” I
pleaded finally. 
        David’s eyes turned back to me. 
        “I’m sorry. This wasn’t your fault either,” he
apologized, offering me his arm and smiling at last. 
        As we exited the barn and headed for the mission
house, he added, “I’m just sorry you got holed up with
MacNeill all that time. It must have been bad.”
        My small smile was lost in the night. 
        “It wasn’t that bad, David. I can definitely think of
worse things.”
        “So can I,” he admitted sheepishly, fingering the
large bump on his head now. He then started in on his
long tale as I listened in horror. 
        
************************************************************************
        Back at the mission, the largest group of people I
had ever seen in the Cove was gathered into every
crevice of the mission’s front rooms to hear the
story. What had started out as a courtroom-like
atmosphere had quickly turned into a theatrical
showing as each child stood to tell everything he or
she knew about the events of the past few days. Or at
least, I gathered it was the whole story. Something in
Creed Allen’s eyes was telling me that there was a
piece or two missing. I knew Ruby Mae had divulged
everything concerning her side of it, and Sam Houston
was totally honest in his telling. It looked like the
rest of the children had been mere pawns in the game,
getting caught up into the competitive-like atmosphere
of a well wrought challenge. But I seriously doubted
that Creed had told the whole story.
        After scolding and lectures from the parents, Miss
Alice, and David -- (Poor David. I had been abhorred
at his story of being locked in the shed and decided
that I’d gotten the much better end of the deal. Dr.
MacNeill had examined his head and determined that he
was going to be fine, but the swelling would probably
last for a couple days.) -- the children solemnly
promised that they would do no more matchmaking and
that they would leave these things up to the adults. 
        Neil, like me, remained relatively quiet during the
whole altercation. A serious look was planted on his
face, but I could see the amusement emanating from
those hazel eyes. Every once and a while, his gaze
turned to me and the room seemed to light up.
        I was touched that the children had been so concerned
about my leaving them if I was to get married, but
disappointed that Ruby Mae’s gossiping had started the
whole thing in the first place. I was flattered that
the girls had gone to so much trouble to get me alone
with David as equally as I was confused and surprised
that the other children would rather see me with Neil
(a married man, no less). 
        Neil was my friend surely, but beyond that... 
        Well, it was something I was trying to dismiss as
some silly idea of the children’s, each of whom
couldn’t possibly understand the ways of adults. But
deep down, the questions were coming at me strongly
and I secretly wondered if perhaps the children saw
things more clearly after all. 
        Dismissing that idea, I decided the best thing for me
to do was to shrug the whole episode off and only
think about it when I was in need of a good laugh. 
But I also knew I couldn’t ignore those deep, abiding
questions forever. However, I wasn’t prepared to face
them quite yet...
        The parents were collecting their children one by one
now and exiting the mission house. I said my
“good-byes,” told a teary-eyed Mountie that “of
course” I would forgive her, and hugged my students
who still needed reassurance. 
        Ruby Mae came up to me suddenly. “I reckon I didn’t
do a very good job o’ keepin’ yer secret, did I?”
        “It’s all right, Ruby Mae,” I assured her. “I know
you tried.”
        “Do ya think ya cain’t trust me no more? I don’t
reckon Preacher will fer a long time,” she said, her
eyes looking worried.
        I smiled at her. David had gone to his bunkhouse
earlier because of a screaming headache from the bump
on his head. 
        “Of course, I still trust you. And David will forgive
you. Don’t worry. Just don’t go pushing him into the
shed again anytime soon,” I joked.
        She smiled at me gratefully and then headed up the
mission steps to bed. Just as she reached the top
step, she turned and said, “The shed shorely was a bad
idea. I’m sorry. I fergot yer afraid o’ the dark ‘n’
all. Reckon next time I’ll come up with somethin’
better.”
        Next time?
        “Ruby Mae,” I called after her sternly, but she had
already darted out of sight.
        Sam Houston was the next in line to see me. He
grinned up at me apologetically. “I’m sorry, Teacher,
fer causin’ so much trouble. I thought I was doin’ the
right thing.”
        “I know you did, Sam Houston,” I assured him with a
smile.
        “Ruby Mae was jest goin’ on ‘n’ on ‘bout you and the
preacher. I reckoned I couldn’t stand it if’n I didn’t
put my two cents in,” he said, glancing at Neil who
was standing in a corner talking to Creed Allen. 
        I looked in their direction, too, and just caught
Creed’s words to Neil, “I tol’ ya she’d like the tie.”
        “I like the Doc,” Sam Houston announced, as I was
still looking in Neil’s direction suspiciously, before
he added in a sure voice, “And besides, he done tol’
me he likes ya, too.”
        I looked down at the little boy before me in surprise
as his words finally registered.
        “Sam Houston, Dr. MacNeill told you...”
        He broke in with a hearty grin, “He said ya was
pretty fine fer a teacher.”
        With that, the little boy turned and ran over to the
waiting arms of his family. 
        The mission was nearly empty now as I glanced about
the room from my view on the stairs. 
        Thinking about Sam Houston’s words, my head snapped
up to look at Neil again. His eyes turned toward me at
that exact same moment, freezing me in place for an
instant. I was about to head over in his direction
then when Miss Alice suddenly stood before me.
        “Miss Huddleston,” she sighed, shaking her head and
smiling at me. She, like me, had obviously not taken
in the crazy events of the whole evening yet either.
        “I wish I could avoid disaster for more than a few
hours at a time,” I told her with an amused grin.
        She hugged me then briefly before turning her eyes
toward the little boy who was being escorted out the
door now by Dr. MacNeill.
         “If Creed Allen will let thee,” she stated with a
smile before climbing the mission stairs behind me. I
laughed in return and was about to follow in her
footsteps when I was suddenly stopped by a familiar
voice.
        “Miss Huddleston,” Neil said as he held out a hand
before me. I hesitated only a brief moment and then
grasped it steadily with my own. “It was an
adventure.”
        Neil winked then and turned to head out the door. 
        “Neil?” my voice stopped him. I paused a moment and
then asked, eyeing him suspiciously, “You didn’t know
anything about all of this, did you?”
        He simply gave me a sly grin, a mischievous twinkle
reminiscent of Creed Allen apparent in those hazel
eyes, before he turned suddenly and was gone.

The End.   ;-)