Chapter 12
"Mama," Rose asked as she ran into the house. Rob had dropped her off at five o'clock and said he'd be back tomorrow. "Where's Papa? Rob wants to talk with him."
"Outside," Laura answered, looking out the window. "I think they found each other." She looked at her daughter.
"Come on, sit down. Royal, Jenny and Jeb are out back. Little Jeb's asleep." They took seats at the long wooden table in the center of the room. "Did you tell him?"
Rose nodded. "He said he still wanted to see me the rest of the time that we were here. He really didn't mention anything about getting married, but he took a long time answering me when I told him that I wasn't ready."
Laura smiled. "At least he understands now. I'll tell you something that I haven't told anyone, not yet anyway. I never thought that I'd be a farmer's wife, Rose, but here I am. And I'm not regretting any of it. I've always loved your father and I vowed that I'd make him see me as a woman someday and I have. In some ways, it's like a dream come true."
She placed her hand on top of her daughter's. "Did you know that I asked the Reverend Hardwick to leave out the word "obey" in the marriage ceremony? Your father agreed to it and he's been holding up his end of the bargain ever since. Your papa and I have gone through lots of hard times, but we pulled through and managed, especially after we moved to Missouri." She smiled. "I've grown up here and I never thought that I'd be happy anywhere else."
"Mama," Rose asked, "Did you know that Robert has a brother buried right here at Walnut Grove Cemetery? He says his parents lived here some time ago and moved right before the town was razed. Do you remember them?"
Laura frowned. "Where did they move to?" she asked quietly.
"Some place called Redwood Falls," she said.
Laura covered her mouth. "Ginny and Peter Miller and their six year old boy Robert," she said as if in a dream. "We paid them a visit. There was an epidemic of smallpox in Redwood Falls. You came down with it three weeks later."
She laughed, taking her hands away from her mouth. "You two used to play together all the time. He watched over you like a big brother. We all used to talk about it. Ginny would say it was some kind of sign."
Now it was Rose's turn to frown. "How old was I?"
"Two and a half," Laura remembered, "Almost three."
"Was Jenny there too?" Rose asked.
Laura smiled. "Jenny used to help us out in the kitchen, but she'd be there for you when Papa and I needed her to be. Jenny was a perfect little lady, as she is now."
The door opened and Almanzo walked in with Robert. He looked at Laura. "He's stayin' for supper, Beth. We'll need an extra plate." He looked at Rose. "Go on you two; take your walk, but don't go too far."
"Thanks, Papa," she said, standing up. She kissed him on the cheek.
When they both left, Almanzo sat down next to his wife.
"Do you know who he is?" Manly said, that little shy smile forming on his lips.
"Yes, I just realized it myself," Laura said. "When she told me he had a brother buried here."
Almanzo's smile became wider. He shook his head. "The way he used to watch out for her. The things that they'd do sometimes." He took her hand. "It's a small world isn't it?"
Laura nodded. "They were fated to meet. Ginny was right all along about them."
"Beth," Almanzo said, losing the smile, but he kept his hand on hers. "Maybe we should tell Rose about her younger brother. What if she sees the stone? She'll come home askin' all kinds of questions. You know how curious she is?"
"You're right, Manly. We should have told her a long time ago. We'll take her down tomorrow after you get home."
"We can take Rob with us," Almanzo said, "Maybe pay some respects to his older brother."
"Did he tell you about Ginny and Peter?"
Almanzo nodded. "Still in Redwood Falls. We should pay them a visit too, as long as we're here. Take the kids with us."
"Oh, now it's alright for Rose and Rob to be seeing each other."
"He's not expectin' anything. He told me about their conversation. He felt somethin' for her, but didn't know what." He looked at her. "I've just got to learn to let go," Almanzo said, squeezing her hand tighter. "She won't be with us forever. She'll get married someday too, even though she thinks she won't."
"It won't last, Manly," Laura said, "she's way too independent." They both laughed. "I'll get supper, she said getting up.
"And I'll get Jenny, Jeb and little Royal."
"You look so different," Jenny said as they sat around the table. "I wouldn't have even recognized you."
Rob grinned. "I don't know if that's good or bad." He turned to Rose. "I hardly recognized this lovely little lady."
"He was so overprotective, Jeb," Jenny said, shaking her head. "Wouldn't let anyone go near Rose whenever we'd visit."
She turned back to Rob. "How are your parents doing?"
"They're fine," Rob answered. Actually, I phoned them yesterday. I told them about you, Rose, and they explained about your parents. They want to see you again, all of you. I know that they've missed you."
Almanzo smiled. "Well, we can get an early start tomorrow, I guess. I think I can get a replacement for a day."
He looked over at his niece. "Can you make it, Jenny? Are you strong enough?"
Jenny nodded. "I'm feeling a lot better, Uncle Manzo," she answered.
"We can stop off and see Albert on the way."
"Sounds good to me, " Laura said.
