Chapter 21

Mira swallowed down a nervous giggle as she went through the door. She needed to quit acting like a silly schoolgirl.

Inside, three women stood around the table, but where were the other women? She was sure more had gone into the house.

One of the women shook her finger at Joseph. "What you doin' in here, Joseph Oran Foster? This here is woman time and we don't need to have no menfolk spoilin' it."

"He ain't much of a man," another woman said.

"I reckon not, but he still needs to get on out of here." The older woman glared at Joseph. "Your ma oughta kept you home in bed. Or did you sneak out without her knowing?"

Joseph backed up. "No'm, Granny Foster. I ain't wantin' to be in here, but Preacher Gordon told me to get something for him."

"Then get it and be off with you."

"The preacher's missus has to get it for me." He gave Mira a look of near desperation.

The cabin felt warm after the cold outside. The women had put more wood on the fire and lit the lantern on the table. Mira's hands and feet ached as they began to thaw. She fumbled at the cabinet door and pulled out the bag of candy. She had wondered why Gordon had bought so much. If it was meant to sweeten up the people and convince them to head home, she hoped it served its purpose.

But the women had shed their wraps and didn't appear to have any thought of leaving. The hard candy pieces clattered as Mira emptied them into a small tin bucket. She searched for a bowl to keep some for the women, but the shelves were bare. She was almost positive a few dishes were there earlier. Why would Gordon have moved them?

"Has you lost something, dearie?" one of the women said.

She sounded amused, but when Mira turned to look at her, no smile showed on her face that looked to have all hard edges. She was so thin her dress hung loosely on her. She had gray hair tucked up in a bun, as did both the other women watching Mira.

"No, no. I was just going to put some of this in a bowl, but I don't see one." Mira held out the candy.

The woman Joseph had called Granny Foster took the bucket from Mira, spilled a few pieces out on the table, and shoved it at Joseph.

"Now get on out of here," she told him. "And be sure you don't do no lollygagging afore you give that to the preacher." She was tall and spare, without the first sign of grandmother plumpness.

Joseph wasted no time doing as she said, although he did manage to pop a piece of the candy in his mouth before he went out the door.

Another woman took Mira's arm. "Come over to the fire, Missus Covington, so's you can warm yourself whilst we talk." She looked more grandmotherly, with a few plump curves and almost white hair.

"Oh please, call me Mira." She sat in the chair the woman indicated and smiled, even though she thought she might have more to worry about in the midst of these stern older women than when she'd faced down the two boys.

"Is that short for something?" The woman stood over Mira, perhaps to be sure she didn't attempt an escape.

"Almira. I was named after my grandmother." Mira sat back in the chair and hoped all their questions would be as easy to answer.

"On your ma's side or your pa's?" the thin, shorter woman asked.

"My mother's. I never met my grandmother, but Mother said she was a good woman."

"It's a fine thing to come from good stock." The woman beside Mira must have decided Mira was going to stay put. She moved away to settle in the rocking chair.

Two younger women came out of the bedroom to join those around Mira. One of them was obviously in the family way. Both had wide smiles. Mira couldn't imagine what they could have found in the bedroom to be so amusing. Or perhaps she didn't want to imagine what they might be thinking.

The expectant woman lowered herself down into one of the chairs the women had pulled over from the table for this fireplace meeting. The larger white-haired woman, who seemed in charge of the proceedings, rocked back and forth as the others found their places. Joseph's grandmother sat in the only other chair they had. The other young woman plopped down on the floor. That left the thin older woman standing. Mira was sure she was the one who had thought Mira might have been nipping moonshine when they were outside.

Mira stood to offer the woman her chair, but with a shake of her head, the thin little woman squatted down, seeming comfortable with that position. None of them showed any sign of leaving. Outside, the noise had died down except for a burst of laughter now and again.

Inside, the women's stares were more than a little unnerving. With their silence twanging in her ears, she tried to think of something to say. Anything. She pulled in a little breath for courage. This was her house, whether it seemed like it or not. Time for her to act the hostess instead of a scared stranger.

"You know my name. I'd like to know yours." Smiling, she looked at Joseph's granny. "Are you Mrs. Foster?"

"Effie Foster." No lift of lips softened her face. "Joseph belongs to my oldest boy."

"I reckon telling names is a good place to start." The woman in the rocking chair leaned forward. "I'm Nicey Jane Callahan."

With her smile even brighter, Mira turned to her. "How nice to meet you. Gordon told me how helpful you've been to him."

"I just do what the Lord leads me to do." An answering smile slipped out and settled in comfortable lines on Miss Nicey Jane's face.

The thin, little woman squatted down by the fire spoke up next. "I'm Hallie Shelton. Glad to have you here with Preacher Gordon."

"Mrs. Shelton. Is Vernon your son?" When the woman gave a little nod, Mira went on. "He told me you sing daylight to dusk. I hope you will teach me some mountain songs."

"That Vernon is a talker." She narrowed her eyes and peered at Mira. "Is you a singer?"

"Not a good one, but I enjoy singing hymns at church. And children sometimes learn more quickly if you set something to song." Mira sang the first few letters of the alphabet.

From the puzzled look on her face, she wasn't sure the little woman had ever heard them before. She should have sung a is for apple, b is for bread, and gone from there. She had so much to learn. Not just about the children but about the adults too.

The woman sitting on the floor smiled at the older woman. "That's the alphabet Miss Mira will be teaching our young'uns." She turned toward Mira. "I'm Mathena Brown. My husband, Frank, and me live just over the way from you."

"Oh yes. Joseph said he got some coals from your husband to start our fire. Thank you. The house was really cold when we got here."

"Folks are good to share what they can," Mathena said. "Joseph told us about Preacher Gordon showing up with a schoolteacher and wife. We wanted a teacher something awful, but it come as some surprise he married to get one."

Mira just smiled. She wasn't about to tell these women how right Mathena was.

The woman went on. "You and Preacher Gordon know each other for a spell?"

"We went to school together years ago." Nothing but truth in those words, even if they did skip over quite a bit about how well they knew each other.

Mira turned toward the other young woman who looked decidedly uncomfortable in the cane-bottomed chair. She had her hands cupped around her unborn baby. "Are you all right, miss?"

"Me?" The woman let out a long sigh. "I will be if'n this babe ever decides he wants to be born."

Mathena reached over and patted her friend's belly. "He's liking it in there." Then she looked at Mira. "This here is Dottie Slade. She's done got one young'un."

"Is Ada June watching Emmy Lou?" Nicey Jane asked.

"No. Luther come in. He's back at the house with my little one." She went on quickly before any of the other women could say anything. "He weren't wantin' nothing to do with serenading, he said, and Emmy Lou, she sleeps the best. Never wakes up once she's tucked in till mornin' comes."

"I saw Ada June across the valley tonight. She looked so alone. I wondered why she didn't come over to be with the other children." The women looked at Mira as if she'd said something odd, perhaps because they wouldn't know she'd met the girl. "She came by the house earlier."

"Ain't no wonder about any of that," Dottie said. "She don't get on with other kids so good. But the girl does set quite a store by Preacher Gordon, and she's been pinin' for a schoolteacher. Never knowed anybody to want to read so bad."

"That could be because she won't talk to nobody," Nicey Jane said. "Leastways not so much."

"She'll say something now and again," Dottie said.

"To you. Not to the rest of us," Mathena said. "Where is she tonight? You didn't leave her up there with Luther, did you?"

A shadow seemed to settle over the women when Mathena said that.

"No, no. She don't come around much when he's about. The two of them don't gee-haw."

A whisper of relief went through the women.

"Awful cold for her to sleep in the woods tonight," Effie Foster said.

"I 'spect she's down there with Elsinore, poor girl. She can't get over the baby doldrums," Dottie said.

"How old's her Selinda now?" Mathena answered her own question. "Three months, I'm guessing. Plenty old enough for Elsinore to pull herself together."

"The baby blues can grab a woman and hang on," Effie said. "Missing Benny like she does makes it harder."

"Took me a while to get back on my feet after Emmy Lou," Dottie said. "That's how come we took in Ada June." She kept stroking her belly. "And I didn't have no worries about Luther going off and forgetting the way home like as how Benny must have done."

"That boy ain't never coming back. He's done gone on to meet his Maker or I miss my guess," Mathena said.

"It's hard when a woman don't know for sure one way or the other." Hallie Shelton shook her head. "I hear Horace Perry is hanging around her place, hoping he might get invited in."

"He's a mite old for her," Dottie said.

"But a good man," Nicey Jane said. "A woman in need can't always be picky."

A woman in need. Those words poked Mira.

"Come, come, girls." Effie Foster frowned. "We aren't here for gossiping. We're here to give Miss Mira a good start."

Hallie grinned at Mira. "You ain't already in the family way, is you?"

The warmth heating Mira's cheeks had nothing to do with the fire. Before she could answer, Nicey Jane spoke up. "Now, Hallie, you know better than that. We're talking about the preacher here."

"He's a man, ain't he? And appears to be still full of vinegar." Hallie laughed. "I'm thinkin' the first song I might need to teach you is a lullaby, Miss Mira."

"I'd love to learn that lullaby, Miss Hallie," Mira said.

"You can teach one to me, Hallie," Dottie said.

"We better wait on the song teaching and get on with things here, else the morning sun will be in our eyes going home," Effie said.

"True enough." Nicey Jane pointed toward the door. "Mathena, will you fetch our bundles over there?"

"Do you need help?" Mira started to get up.

"I can get them." Mathena waved her back to her chair as she got to her feet and headed toward the door. She came back holding several cotton sacks and a bundle. She handed them around to the women.

Nicey Jane took charge again. "You go ahead, Dottie, so's you can get on home if'n you need to."

Dottie handed Mira a small newspaper bundle. "I didn't have much time to get anything together since, as Mathena said, we weren't expectin' Preacher to show up with a bride, but I'm hopin' you'll have some need for these blossom seeds. I collected them from my patch last fall. Mostly zinnias. Not much good for anything but lookin'."

"I love flowers, Miss Dottie." Mira took the package, careful not to let any seeds spill out. "Thank you so much. I hope you'll help me know when to sow them this spring."

Dottie's face bloomed with a smile. "I'd be pleased to do that, Miss Mira. Now I reckon I'd better head on up the hill."

"If Ada June ain't out there to walk with you, you tell Billy Ray I said for him to see you there," Effie said.

"Ain't no need in that," Dottie said.

"You do as she says," Nicey Jane ordered. "We ain't wantin' to be worryin' about you stumblin' and fallin' whilst you're baby carrying."

Effie followed Dottie out to make sure her son went with her. Nicey Jane nodded toward Hallie. Without a word, she jumped up to hand one of the bags to Mira, then ignored the empty chair to squat by the fire the same as before.

"I hope there are songs in this bag," Mira said.

"Ain't no way to put them in a poke," Hallie said, but she was smiling. "But could be it'll sweeten up yore voice."

Mira pulled out a quart jar of honey. "Oh my. This is wonderful."

"You can thank my young'uns when school commences. Them bees left some stingers in the boys."

"I will be sure to thank them. What a special gift." Mira held the jar out. The light from the fire made the honey glow.

Effie came back from the door. "I guess I'm next. I told Nicey Jane we might oughta wait until later when we had more time to get things together."

Nicey Jane shook her head. "Wouldn't have been no serenade that way. Had to be tonight to make sure to give the preacher's bride a proper welcome."

"I ain't saying you weren't right, Nicey Jane, but it did make for a scramble to come up with a proper gift." Effie looked irritated for a second before she shrugged. "But here you go, Miss Mira." She reached into her bag and pulled out a jar to hand to Mira. "Some more sweetening."

Mira set down the honey and held up this jar. "Blackberry jam?" When the woman nodded, Mira went on. "That's wonderful. My favorite. And I suppose you picked the berries yourself and made it."

"That is how it's done," Effie said. "Come July I'll tell Joseph to show you some patches where you can pick some and make your own jam."

"I'd love that. I hope you'll share your recipe."

"You need a recipe to make jam?" Hallie gave her a look. "Kin you cook at all?"

"Some, but I've never cooked in a fireplace."

"Don't you worry none, honey," Nicey Jane said. "We been more or less feedin' Preacher Gordon since he come to Sourwood. We'll keep on helpin' you some till you settle in."

"That's the best gift yet," Mira said. Being called "honey" warmed her heart too.

"We got a couple more." Mathena looked at Nicey Jane. "You wantin' to go last?"

"No matterance to me," Nicey Jane said. "You go on ahead."

"Well, I didn't rightly know what you might need, but here's some butter I just churned and some sorghum from the cook-off last fall." Mathena smiled. "Looks like as how we're all trying to sweeten up Preacher Gordon for you."

"Or you for Preacher Gordon," Hallie said. "Guess as how it's yore turn, Nicey Jane."

"Here you go." Nicey Jane handed Mira a brown crock bowl. "Every bride needs a good mixing bowl, and I had an extra from them Riley brung in after his ma passed on."

"This is too kind." Mira fingered a small cloth bag in the bowl. "And still more."

"Hickory nuts. They make a fine pie."

"Preacher Gordon does love pie," Effie said. "Don't know how he stays skinny as a beanpole."

Mira's eyes filled with tears as she looked at the women. "I can't thank you enough for making me feel so welcome."

Hallie stood up and gave her a look. "You is a puzzle, Miss Mira. Laughin' when you oughter be crying and crying when you oughter be laughing."

Mira brushed away her tears. "Maybe I'll get things straight soon enough with your help. But all this." She motioned at the gifts on the floor beside her. "All this might be worth that wheelbarrow ride."

That made the women chuckle as they grabbed a couple of pieces of candy off the table and headed for the door.

Nicey Jane looked around before she went outside. "Don't you worry. We'll get this party done with and send the preacher in out of the cold."

Mira stood in the doorway and watched the people drift away. The serenade was over without a single song.

Gordon came up the porch steps to stand beside her. "Why the smile?"

"Nobody sang. Strangest serenade ever."

He laughed. "Come on. It's cold out here." He put his arm around her and turned her back into the cabin. He shut the door and pulled the bar down to keep it closed.

"There won't be any more carrying on tonight, will there?" Mira said.

"I think not, but we'll keep the door barred just in case." He went to lay another log on the fire. Then he looked at Mira for a long moment. "Shall we try to get a few hours of sleep before preaching time?"

"Yes." Mira's heart beat a little faster.

He blew out the lamp. Moonlight through the windows, along with the fire, gave light to see their way into the bedroom. The shadows were darker there, but Mira could still see well enough to avoid running into anything. Gordon turned his back to her to take off his shoes and pants.

Mira slipped off her robe and peeled off her stockings. She felt her petticoats. Thank goodness, they had dried out while she sat by the fire with the women. She pulled in a breath and started to crawl into bed. She gasped and jerked back out from under the covers when her feet hit something hard and cold.

"What is it?" Gordon asked.

"There's something in the bed."

He pulled the covers back and started laughing. The dishes and pans from the kitchen were piled under the covers at the end of the bed. "I think the women played a rusty on us."

"Rusty?" she said and then remembered. "Oh, a joke."

"I'll wager they're all snickering even now thinking about us finding their booby trap." He picked up an iron skillet and put it on the floor.

"That's what Mathena and Dottie were up to. They came out of this room when I came inside." Mira laughed too as she picked up the bowls she'd been looking for earlier. She stacked them on the chest.

Once they cleared everything away, Mira was still smiling as she got in bed. Somehow the women's joke took away her nervousness, but walking around on the cold floor had her shivering again.

When Gordon pulled her close to warm her, it felt right. Later, before Mira drifted off to sleep, she sent up a thankful prayer that she could be a wife to a good man. There were all different ways to be serenaded on a woman's honeymoon night.