A Preacher and His Wife

Chapter Fourteen

When I had made my peace with the idea of settling, I walked back to where Grace and Anders and Mr. Thomas were sitting. I told Grace I wished to speak of something, and she came to me, and I asked her what she thought of settling where we were in Alston.

At first, she kept herself frank and spoke only logically. "They are without a preacher?" she said.

I nodded.

"And you've prayed on it?"

I nodded again.

"And you've thought it over, and you feel it is a good choice?"

I nodded a third time and said, "But I would like also to know what you think."

She was quiet for many moments. "And if I say to you that I like the idea?"

"Then we will settle here."

Her emotion came on strong. She put a hand over her mouth for a few moments in disbelief. She moved her hand over her heart, and I felt her trying to slow her breathing as her legs began to move, seemingly without her consent. She paced as she thought, turning back to me each time she spoke.

"And then we won't be living on a cart no more?"

This made me smile. "No," I said.

"And we won't be sleeping in the grass with the snakes no more?"

I laughed. "No."

She did not give me her answer, but I knew it all the same. She was partly laughing and partly crying as the relief washed over her.

Grace was a strong person and kept the expression of her misery on the road to a minimum. Of course, I'd known it was there, but I don't think I understood the depth of it until I saw her experience its end.

She turned away from me and Anders and Mr. Thomas, I think to hide how much she was crying. She took a few steps before she was brought to her knees.

That night we would still sleep in the grass with the snakes, as the man I should speak to about getting the rights to some land was in a trapping camp to the north. Anders told me that either someone would be going up on the morrow or the man would be coming back, so it would not be a long wait.

As well, the boy said something sweet when he heard that I was a preacher and we were to be staying. He said, "So ye'll be wanting te' build a church then?"

And I said, "Yes." Though there was a great flood of worry that came over me when I said this, as I didn't know anything about building churches.

The boy said, "I can help ye on Tuesdays after midday and Saturdays, Sir."

And this filled me with hope and joy and the sense that God was with me and was going to help me see this through.

Later in the evening, a sad thing happened. One of those things that takes you by surprise and leaves you knowing that you're going to feel guilty for a long time. When we had been lying quietly in our makeshift bed for a bit, Grace spoke up.

"Mr. Moore?"

"Yes?" I said.

"It is a small thing, but earlier today, you told Mr. Thomas I was from Galway," she said. "I did live there for many years, and that is where you first met me, but I'm from Raphoe in Donegal."

I was silent with remorse for many moments. "That is not a small thing," I said finally. "Please forgive me."

*

I met with a man named Robert Clarke the following morning. He worked for the Hudson's Bay Company, and they owned Rupert's Land, and he was the man who could make up deeds for the territory Alston was in.