Location: Lexington, Kentucky Setting: Winter's Residence
Although Vivian had exhausted all of her resources trying to convince Sean to reconcile with her and Sean had repeatedly ignored her, she still felt there was hope. She knew that Sean's pride was hurt because he hadn't received a letter from Marita in so long, and she also knew that Marita would be even more hurt that Sean hadn't written her. "Hmmm, maybe they'll just never speak to each other again," Vivian thought to herself. Vivian knew that Marita would be returning soon, and Sean was gone. She had hoped that Sean would return in enough time for her to plant more doubt in him before Marita's return. "Well, I guess that I'll just have to go and find out when Marita is returning," Vivian said to herself. With that, she got up and prepared to go.
Kentucky countryside
"It should be about forty more feet west of this rock. See, I engraved this symbol in it right here," Isaac said showing Sean the symbol. They walked together in silence the forty feet. Isaac broke the silence, "Alright let's start digging." Sean felt a huge knot growing in his stomach, and he noticed that he was sweating profusely. Finally they hit something. "I think this is it," Isaac said. They both pulled the box out together. "Do you have the key?" Sean asked. "Nope, we'll have to break it open." Isaac and Sean went back to the big rock and beat the box against the rock until it broke open and several documents and a fairly large sum of cash fell out. "Here you take these and I'll read these, let me know what you come up with," Isaac said as he handed Sean a few documents. Sean shuffled through and found a birth record. His eyes immediately scrolled down and saw the word "colored" and looked up at Isaac. His heart immediately sunk. He tells Isaac, "It says 'colored.'" Isaac leaned over and looked, "Sean, it does say "colored" but it also says "boy", this is my birth record Sean." Sean looked down and breathed a sigh of relief and continued searching the other documents. Meanwhile, Isaac was reading something and looking at it carefully. "Sean." Isaac said slowly. Sean looked at Isaac. "You found it," Sean asked. "Yep, you ready for this?" Isaac asked. Both men looked at each other with expressionless faces, then Isaac cracked a small grin, "Even though everyone else in the world sees Marita as colored, this birth record says that she's as white as her mother." Both men broke and roared with laughter. "I can't believe this. It finally happened," Sean laughed and hugged Isaac. "So Sean, if you and Marita can get married, have you given any thought as to where you'd live?" Isaac asked. "Yes, I have. Do you remember my Pa's first house?" "Oh yeah, I had totally forgotten about it. That would be great if it's still in good condition," Isaac said. "Yeah, Pa has some of the hands to maintain it, and when Marita and I were there we." Sean cut himself off mid sentence. Isaac looked at Sean, "You and Marita have been there?" "Isaac don't be angry, Marita and I were there," Sean replied. "Was this the night before Marita left?" Isaac asked. "Yes, but I kept my promise. I did not compromise Marita in any way. I just wanted to be with her for a while." Isaac breathed a deep breath. "I guess that I better get used to it. You and Marita may actually get married, so I guess we better head back before Marita gets home. Sean, did she tell you exactly when she was coming?" Sean still didn't want to tell Isaac that he hadn't heard from Marita, but he couldn't avoid it. "Actually Isaac, I haven't heard from Marita." "Since when?" Isaac asked. Sean decided to go ahead and be truthful. "The last letter that I got from Marita was shortly after she arrived in Boston. I've written her numerous times, but she never replied." "Son, maybe the letters got lost in the mail. That just doesn't sound like Marita," Isaac said. "I just hope that nothing's changed. My biggest fear is that Marita would find someone else down there who would be better for her, and someone who she could bring home that you would like." "Sean, you forget that Marita has had numerous opportunities to be with other men, but she has found a flaw in every one of them. I do want you to know that even though I didn't totally agree with you and Marita's relationship, and even though I still feel that it would be easier for her to be with someone of her own color, I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you are the best man for Marita, and I couldn't pick someone better for her than you. We've gone this far, so we middas well finish it." Sean never heard Isaac speak to him like this before, but his confidence was once again lifted as they decided to turn around and go home. It was early morning, and they expected to be in Lexington in the evening.
Setting: Lexington, Kentucky- Logan House
"Pa! Pa! Alice called as she ran to Ned's office. This telegram just came. It says that Marita is scheduled to come in today!" Alice exclaimed. Ned smiled and stood up from his desk. "Well, I hope that Sean and Isaac make it in time, but just in case, let's go ahead and get prepared to go the station. Please tell Clay and Jeremy to start getting ready. You know they take longer than women to dress, and Alice, please tell everyone not to mention anything to Marita about what Sean and Isaac went for. We'll have to tell her that they went on business. If there's any news to tell, good or bad, I want Sean to be the one to tell her," Ned said. "Okay Pa, I understand. I'll tell Cook to make a special dinner," Alice said as she happily walked out of the office. Just then, there was a knock on the door. Alice turned and went to answer it. "Vivian, good morning, what brings you by here, it's Saturday." "Don't be so surprised Alice. I assumed that your Pa would need some assistance this morning," Vivian said as she made her way inside. "Actually Vivian, Marita is coming home today," Alice informed Vivian. Vivian was almost speechless. "I..I..It seems like she just left. Is Sean here?" "No Vivian, Sean is not here. If there's nothing else, then you understand that I am anxious to prepare for Marita's return," Alice said cordially. Vivian really didn't understand what made everyone love Marita so, but she replied, "Yes, of course I understand." Vivian turns to exit as Lexy breezes by. "Lexy go and get ready, Marita's coming home today," Alice says. Lexy's whole face brightens, "She is! Great, I'll be the first one ready," Lexy says as she bounces up the stairs. "What is it about Marita?" Vivian thought to herself.
Setting: Train
"Lexington!...Lexington!" the attendant shouted. Marita clutched her bag and stood up to exit the train. She briefly looked out the window, but she was so nervous. She wanted to vomit right there, but she knew that she couldn't escape the inevitable. She was one of the last people to get off the train. She looked up and saw Jeremy's blonde hair. Then she saw Ned and Clay and Alice and Lexy, but she didn't see Sean or her father. Lexy ran to Marita and embraced her. "Marita, I missed you so much," Lexy said. Then, Marita continued to hug the rest of the family. "Marita, you look great, a little thin, but you're as beautiful as ever. I know you're wondering where Sean and your Pa are, but I had to have them take care of some important business. None of us knew exactly where you were coming. We just got your wire today, but Sean and Isaac should be home soon." Marita was a little disappointed, but it was so good to be back home. After they gathered her bags, they all went back to the farm. On the way home, Lexy and Alice asked Marita all about Boston. Marita answered their questions, but her mind was preoccupied with Sean. Ned insisted that Marita join them for dinner, but Marita asked that she be dropped at home to wash and change.
Location: Lexington
Alice and Lexy tagged along with Marita. While Marita was emptying one of her bags, Alice decided to pry a little. "Marita, are you alright?" Alice asked. "Yes, I'm fine, I guess I'm just a little tired." Alice smiled and continued, "So, the fact that you haven't seen Sean in months is not bothering you even a little?" Marita stops what she is doing and sits down on the bed near Alice. "Of course, I want to see Sean, we're best friends, but I haven't heard from him in so long." Alice is a little puzzled, "What do you mean, you haven't heard from him. He wrote you letters." "He wrote me a letter," Marita responded. "Marita I saw Sean writing letters all the time," Alice explained. Just then, Lexy entered the room. "So, did you bring me anything back?" Lexy asked. Marita and Alice's attention was deterred. "Of course, I brought you something back. I brought all of you something," Marita said as she searched her suitcase for the gifts. When Alice, Lexy, and Marita arrived back at the Logan house, Marita a little disappointed because things looked exactly the same. She realized that she had only been gone for three months, but she just expected things to be different. However, the different thing was that everyone treated her like a guest. Clay held her chair out for her to sit in, but it felt so cold because Sean's chair was empty. Everyone joined hands but which was awkward because Marita and Clay had to join hands over Sean's empty seat. Everyone kind of ate in silence with exception of a few bland comments. Marita could feel the tension. She knew that there was something that they weren't telling her. Finally Marita spoke up, "Mr. Logan would you mind if I speak to you after dinner." "Certainly," Ned replied.
After dinner Ned guided Marita into his office. Marita looked at her desk and saw how things were rearranged. Ned saw Marita noticing the changes. "It was Vivian. She imposed herself into my office since I couldn't find anyone to replace you. "Oh," Marita said plainly. "Mr. Logan, it seems that something is being hidden from me. It seems that everyone wants to tell me something but refuses. Is everything okay with my father? Is he ill or something?" "No! of course not, we would have told you," Ned said emphatically. "Okay," Marita said as she accepted Ned's response. Ned waited patiently but since Marita didn't asked, he jumped in. "You want to know about Sean, don't you?" Marita didn't even blink or move. "Marita, he's fine. He and Isaac really did have some business to take care of and they really didn't know when you were returning. When they get back, there are some things that we all will need to discuss," Ned said expressionlessly. He really wanted to tell Marita everything, but he didn't want to ruin Sean's surprise if there was one, and he didn't want to upset Marita, if Sean's trip was worthless. That night Marita stayed at the Logan's house after Ned, Alice, and Lexy insisted. Marita hardly slept a wink at all because she was so worried her situation with Sean and what Ned had to talk to them about. The night was going by so slowly. Marita tried to count sheep, take deep breaths and everything, but all to no avail. Finally, she turned on the lantern and pulled the Bible off of the night table. She read less than two chapters, and then sleep quickly crept in.
Sean and Isaac had finally made it back to Lexington. It was just before dawn. Isaac turned off to go to his house. Sean walked into the Logan house, crept up the stairs, and slid into bed into a deep sleep.
Ned noticed that Sean had made it home and despite the fact that Isaac would be tired, Ned decided to go and tell Isaac that Marita was home.
Marita woke up shortly after Ned left and decided to go to her house before everyone woke up because she knew that they'd insist that she stay until Isaac returned. She quickly dressed and crept down the stairs and out the door. When she finally made it to her house, she saw someone coming down the road on horseback. She knew that it was a male, and even though she couldn't make out the face, she knew that it wasn't the face that she was waiting to see. So, she decided to go ahead and proceed into her house. When she walked in, she saw Ned sitting in the chair and she heard footsteps running in the back room. Then she heard his voice yelling. "Ned, you mean that Marita came home yesterday, and you didn't even tell me?" Marita laughed lightly. It was good to hear her father's voice. Ned walked over to Marita and hugged her. "It's so good to have you back. Isaac, there's someone here that I think that you'd wanna see." Isaac walked out of the room with one boot on and the other in his hand. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Marita, then he smiled at his baby girl, and Marita smiled back at her father and ran to him, and they embraced for few long seconds. "Honey, I didn't know that you were coming home. It's so good to see you. I missed you so much. Didn't they feed you anything down there? You're as skinny as a rail," Isaac went on and on, hardly giving Marita a chance to respond. Marita was truly delighted to see her father, but if her father was back, that means Sean was back also. But, where was he? Ned sat back while Isaac and Marita talked and about her whole Bostonian experience. Finally, Ned interrupted. "Marita, Isaac, why don't ya'll come out to the house for breakfast. I know that there's some things that we need to discuss," Ned said as Isaac gave Ned a knowing nod. Marita noticed this, and it made her really nervous, but she agreed to quickly change and go to the Logan's for breakfast.
While Marita washed and dressed, she noticed that that knot suddenly appeared in her stomach, and her hands were trembling. She knew that she was nervous because she would probably see Sean today. She knew that within a few seconds of being with him, she would know if things were still the same or if his feelings had changed. Marita came out of her room in her pretty lavender dress. With her recent weight loss, this was one of the few dresses that still fit her perfectly.
Just as Marita and Isaac entered the Logan house, Marita saw a face that seemed all too familiar to her.
Although Vivian had exhausted all of her resources trying to convince Sean to reconcile with her and Sean had repeatedly ignored her, she still felt there was hope. She knew that Sean's pride was hurt because he hadn't received a letter from Marita in so long, and she also knew that Marita would be even more hurt that Sean hadn't written her. "Hmmm, maybe they'll just never speak to each other again," Vivian thought to herself. Vivian knew that Marita would be returning soon, and Sean was gone. She had hoped that Sean would return in enough time for her to plant more doubt in him before Marita's return. "Well, I guess that I'll just have to go and find out when Marita is returning," Vivian said to herself. With that, she got up and prepared to go.
Kentucky countryside
"It should be about forty more feet west of this rock. See, I engraved this symbol in it right here," Isaac said showing Sean the symbol. They walked together in silence the forty feet. Isaac broke the silence, "Alright let's start digging." Sean felt a huge knot growing in his stomach, and he noticed that he was sweating profusely. Finally they hit something. "I think this is it," Isaac said. They both pulled the box out together. "Do you have the key?" Sean asked. "Nope, we'll have to break it open." Isaac and Sean went back to the big rock and beat the box against the rock until it broke open and several documents and a fairly large sum of cash fell out. "Here you take these and I'll read these, let me know what you come up with," Isaac said as he handed Sean a few documents. Sean shuffled through and found a birth record. His eyes immediately scrolled down and saw the word "colored" and looked up at Isaac. His heart immediately sunk. He tells Isaac, "It says 'colored.'" Isaac leaned over and looked, "Sean, it does say "colored" but it also says "boy", this is my birth record Sean." Sean looked down and breathed a sigh of relief and continued searching the other documents. Meanwhile, Isaac was reading something and looking at it carefully. "Sean." Isaac said slowly. Sean looked at Isaac. "You found it," Sean asked. "Yep, you ready for this?" Isaac asked. Both men looked at each other with expressionless faces, then Isaac cracked a small grin, "Even though everyone else in the world sees Marita as colored, this birth record says that she's as white as her mother." Both men broke and roared with laughter. "I can't believe this. It finally happened," Sean laughed and hugged Isaac. "So Sean, if you and Marita can get married, have you given any thought as to where you'd live?" Isaac asked. "Yes, I have. Do you remember my Pa's first house?" "Oh yeah, I had totally forgotten about it. That would be great if it's still in good condition," Isaac said. "Yeah, Pa has some of the hands to maintain it, and when Marita and I were there we." Sean cut himself off mid sentence. Isaac looked at Sean, "You and Marita have been there?" "Isaac don't be angry, Marita and I were there," Sean replied. "Was this the night before Marita left?" Isaac asked. "Yes, but I kept my promise. I did not compromise Marita in any way. I just wanted to be with her for a while." Isaac breathed a deep breath. "I guess that I better get used to it. You and Marita may actually get married, so I guess we better head back before Marita gets home. Sean, did she tell you exactly when she was coming?" Sean still didn't want to tell Isaac that he hadn't heard from Marita, but he couldn't avoid it. "Actually Isaac, I haven't heard from Marita." "Since when?" Isaac asked. Sean decided to go ahead and be truthful. "The last letter that I got from Marita was shortly after she arrived in Boston. I've written her numerous times, but she never replied." "Son, maybe the letters got lost in the mail. That just doesn't sound like Marita," Isaac said. "I just hope that nothing's changed. My biggest fear is that Marita would find someone else down there who would be better for her, and someone who she could bring home that you would like." "Sean, you forget that Marita has had numerous opportunities to be with other men, but she has found a flaw in every one of them. I do want you to know that even though I didn't totally agree with you and Marita's relationship, and even though I still feel that it would be easier for her to be with someone of her own color, I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you are the best man for Marita, and I couldn't pick someone better for her than you. We've gone this far, so we middas well finish it." Sean never heard Isaac speak to him like this before, but his confidence was once again lifted as they decided to turn around and go home. It was early morning, and they expected to be in Lexington in the evening.
Setting: Lexington, Kentucky- Logan House
"Pa! Pa! Alice called as she ran to Ned's office. This telegram just came. It says that Marita is scheduled to come in today!" Alice exclaimed. Ned smiled and stood up from his desk. "Well, I hope that Sean and Isaac make it in time, but just in case, let's go ahead and get prepared to go the station. Please tell Clay and Jeremy to start getting ready. You know they take longer than women to dress, and Alice, please tell everyone not to mention anything to Marita about what Sean and Isaac went for. We'll have to tell her that they went on business. If there's any news to tell, good or bad, I want Sean to be the one to tell her," Ned said. "Okay Pa, I understand. I'll tell Cook to make a special dinner," Alice said as she happily walked out of the office. Just then, there was a knock on the door. Alice turned and went to answer it. "Vivian, good morning, what brings you by here, it's Saturday." "Don't be so surprised Alice. I assumed that your Pa would need some assistance this morning," Vivian said as she made her way inside. "Actually Vivian, Marita is coming home today," Alice informed Vivian. Vivian was almost speechless. "I..I..It seems like she just left. Is Sean here?" "No Vivian, Sean is not here. If there's nothing else, then you understand that I am anxious to prepare for Marita's return," Alice said cordially. Vivian really didn't understand what made everyone love Marita so, but she replied, "Yes, of course I understand." Vivian turns to exit as Lexy breezes by. "Lexy go and get ready, Marita's coming home today," Alice says. Lexy's whole face brightens, "She is! Great, I'll be the first one ready," Lexy says as she bounces up the stairs. "What is it about Marita?" Vivian thought to herself.
Setting: Train
"Lexington!...Lexington!" the attendant shouted. Marita clutched her bag and stood up to exit the train. She briefly looked out the window, but she was so nervous. She wanted to vomit right there, but she knew that she couldn't escape the inevitable. She was one of the last people to get off the train. She looked up and saw Jeremy's blonde hair. Then she saw Ned and Clay and Alice and Lexy, but she didn't see Sean or her father. Lexy ran to Marita and embraced her. "Marita, I missed you so much," Lexy said. Then, Marita continued to hug the rest of the family. "Marita, you look great, a little thin, but you're as beautiful as ever. I know you're wondering where Sean and your Pa are, but I had to have them take care of some important business. None of us knew exactly where you were coming. We just got your wire today, but Sean and Isaac should be home soon." Marita was a little disappointed, but it was so good to be back home. After they gathered her bags, they all went back to the farm. On the way home, Lexy and Alice asked Marita all about Boston. Marita answered their questions, but her mind was preoccupied with Sean. Ned insisted that Marita join them for dinner, but Marita asked that she be dropped at home to wash and change.
Location: Lexington
Alice and Lexy tagged along with Marita. While Marita was emptying one of her bags, Alice decided to pry a little. "Marita, are you alright?" Alice asked. "Yes, I'm fine, I guess I'm just a little tired." Alice smiled and continued, "So, the fact that you haven't seen Sean in months is not bothering you even a little?" Marita stops what she is doing and sits down on the bed near Alice. "Of course, I want to see Sean, we're best friends, but I haven't heard from him in so long." Alice is a little puzzled, "What do you mean, you haven't heard from him. He wrote you letters." "He wrote me a letter," Marita responded. "Marita I saw Sean writing letters all the time," Alice explained. Just then, Lexy entered the room. "So, did you bring me anything back?" Lexy asked. Marita and Alice's attention was deterred. "Of course, I brought you something back. I brought all of you something," Marita said as she searched her suitcase for the gifts. When Alice, Lexy, and Marita arrived back at the Logan house, Marita a little disappointed because things looked exactly the same. She realized that she had only been gone for three months, but she just expected things to be different. However, the different thing was that everyone treated her like a guest. Clay held her chair out for her to sit in, but it felt so cold because Sean's chair was empty. Everyone joined hands but which was awkward because Marita and Clay had to join hands over Sean's empty seat. Everyone kind of ate in silence with exception of a few bland comments. Marita could feel the tension. She knew that there was something that they weren't telling her. Finally Marita spoke up, "Mr. Logan would you mind if I speak to you after dinner." "Certainly," Ned replied.
After dinner Ned guided Marita into his office. Marita looked at her desk and saw how things were rearranged. Ned saw Marita noticing the changes. "It was Vivian. She imposed herself into my office since I couldn't find anyone to replace you. "Oh," Marita said plainly. "Mr. Logan, it seems that something is being hidden from me. It seems that everyone wants to tell me something but refuses. Is everything okay with my father? Is he ill or something?" "No! of course not, we would have told you," Ned said emphatically. "Okay," Marita said as she accepted Ned's response. Ned waited patiently but since Marita didn't asked, he jumped in. "You want to know about Sean, don't you?" Marita didn't even blink or move. "Marita, he's fine. He and Isaac really did have some business to take care of and they really didn't know when you were returning. When they get back, there are some things that we all will need to discuss," Ned said expressionlessly. He really wanted to tell Marita everything, but he didn't want to ruin Sean's surprise if there was one, and he didn't want to upset Marita, if Sean's trip was worthless. That night Marita stayed at the Logan's house after Ned, Alice, and Lexy insisted. Marita hardly slept a wink at all because she was so worried her situation with Sean and what Ned had to talk to them about. The night was going by so slowly. Marita tried to count sheep, take deep breaths and everything, but all to no avail. Finally, she turned on the lantern and pulled the Bible off of the night table. She read less than two chapters, and then sleep quickly crept in.
Sean and Isaac had finally made it back to Lexington. It was just before dawn. Isaac turned off to go to his house. Sean walked into the Logan house, crept up the stairs, and slid into bed into a deep sleep.
Ned noticed that Sean had made it home and despite the fact that Isaac would be tired, Ned decided to go and tell Isaac that Marita was home.
Marita woke up shortly after Ned left and decided to go to her house before everyone woke up because she knew that they'd insist that she stay until Isaac returned. She quickly dressed and crept down the stairs and out the door. When she finally made it to her house, she saw someone coming down the road on horseback. She knew that it was a male, and even though she couldn't make out the face, she knew that it wasn't the face that she was waiting to see. So, she decided to go ahead and proceed into her house. When she walked in, she saw Ned sitting in the chair and she heard footsteps running in the back room. Then she heard his voice yelling. "Ned, you mean that Marita came home yesterday, and you didn't even tell me?" Marita laughed lightly. It was good to hear her father's voice. Ned walked over to Marita and hugged her. "It's so good to have you back. Isaac, there's someone here that I think that you'd wanna see." Isaac walked out of the room with one boot on and the other in his hand. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Marita, then he smiled at his baby girl, and Marita smiled back at her father and ran to him, and they embraced for few long seconds. "Honey, I didn't know that you were coming home. It's so good to see you. I missed you so much. Didn't they feed you anything down there? You're as skinny as a rail," Isaac went on and on, hardly giving Marita a chance to respond. Marita was truly delighted to see her father, but if her father was back, that means Sean was back also. But, where was he? Ned sat back while Isaac and Marita talked and about her whole Bostonian experience. Finally, Ned interrupted. "Marita, Isaac, why don't ya'll come out to the house for breakfast. I know that there's some things that we need to discuss," Ned said as Isaac gave Ned a knowing nod. Marita noticed this, and it made her really nervous, but she agreed to quickly change and go to the Logan's for breakfast.
While Marita washed and dressed, she noticed that that knot suddenly appeared in her stomach, and her hands were trembling. She knew that she was nervous because she would probably see Sean today. She knew that within a few seconds of being with him, she would know if things were still the same or if his feelings had changed. Marita came out of her room in her pretty lavender dress. With her recent weight loss, this was one of the few dresses that still fit her perfectly.
Just as Marita and Isaac entered the Logan house, Marita saw a face that seemed all too familiar to her.
