Disclaimer: I own nothing in regard to GWTW
Author's Notes: Thank you for all the reviews and feedback.
Chapter Two
Scarlett contacted Daniel Armstrong about buying the mills. It was all arranged, and he had bought the mills within the week. Scarlett had gotten a fair price. She could have gotten a better price if she had been willing to wait but she wanted them sold immediately. Ashley was not functional right now. Scarlett wasn't sure if he ever would be again. Melanie's death might be the final blow that breaks Ashley.
The appointment had been in the morning when Scarlett had hoped Ashley would be sober. India had come with him. It appeared that India was finally going to have a man to take care of. Mr. Armstrong had taken over management the very same day. Ashley had not been to the mills since Melanie's death.
Scarlett could not help but notice how attractive Mr. Armstrong was. He was a man in his late thirties with brown hair and brown eyes. He had been truly kind and proper. He had been a perfect Southern gentleman.
Scarlett made Ashley put his house on the market when they were at Uncle Henry's office. It was a cute little house. Ashley was asking a fair price. It would sell in no time.
Ashley had made enough of a profit to buy the store. He had enough left over to live on until her divorce was final. Ashley liked the idea of running the store. He liked the idea of visiting with people during the day. Scarlett smiled sadly at him and thought the store would have been a better fit for him. She remembered thinking about making Frank give him a job as a clerk and how she had thought it not good enough for him. She now knew that Ashley had been alone with his thoughts too much of the time at the sawmill.
She hoped running the store would help him through his grief. She hoped he stopped drinking. She suggested that he go to the store every day and Hugh Elsing would start training him on running the store. It would give him a purpose in life. After the sale was final, she would show him what she did.
All she felt for Ashley was pity and kindness exactly what Rhett had said he felt for her. She hoped she was showing it to Ashley a lot more than Rhett had shown it to her. All she had felt from Rhett was anger and hostility.
After Ashley and India had left Scarlett gave Uncle Henry all her jewelry that Rhett had given her and asked him to sell it for her. She even gave him her engagement ring. It made her almost cry because it had always been so special to her. She now knew it had been another of Rhett's practical jokes. He had deliberately bought a ring so big she would be embarrassed to wear it. He had done it to mock her greedy nature when he was just as greedy as she was. She had made herself try to believe that he had cared based on the size of the ring. She now knew that wasn't true. Scarlett had given Uncle Henry everything that Rhett had given her except for the blue pendant necklace he had given her on the birth of their daughter and the emerald ring he had given her on their first anniversary.
She had the jewelry Charlie and Frank had given her. They had given it to her with love. She may not have loved them, but they had loved her. She would give the jewelry to Wade and Ella when they were older.
Scarlett had thought, 'Call me greedy if you want, Rhett Butler, but I need all the money I can get my hands on.'
Scarlett contacted the employment agency about hiring a tutor. The agency sent over three men. Scarlett thought they looked rather young then she had smiled. They were the same age as she was. She felt like she was as old as Rhett. She couldn't wait to get to Tara, but she had to get all this business taken care of first. She interviewed each of the three men. She had liked them all but only one was willing to go to the country with her, so she hired him. She really liked the way he had talked to her. He had talked to her with respect. It had been a long time since anyone had talked to her with respect except Melanie. Samuel Jackson started the next day. He could not live at the mansion because her husband was not home. That was not a problem he had a room over at Mrs. Barkley's rooming house.
Over the next month Scarlett and the children cleaned out the mansion. She had the picture of her in the blue dress burned. It brought back too many painful memories not the least being that she had been pregnant with Bonnie when the picture was painted.
Scarlettworked at being like Melanie Wilkes. It wasn't easy for her, but she would never accomplish it if she didn't try.
When it came time to clean out Bonnie's room both Prissy and Wade tried to do it for her. She had said, "It's the last act I can do for my daughter. The daughter I never knew." Scarlett felt guilt that she had let Rhett have her without a fight. She wished she had another chance with her daughter, but she knew that wasn't possible.
A book was on the floor. She put the book back on the dresser. It was a book of nursery stories that Rhett had read to Bonnie. When she walked to the dresser, she saw something poking out from behind the dresser. She pulled the object out from behind the dresser. She found something that she was told was lost but it appeared that Bonnie had hidden it. It was a rag doll that she had given Bonnie on her first birthday. Bonnie had slept with it until she was four then it had gotten lost. Scarlett remembered when Rhett had told her it was lost. He had said it in such a cruel, mocking way that she had known he had thrown it away. Instead, Bonnie had hidden it so he couldn't. It was worn and had some tears in it, but it was obvious that it had been a much-loved item. Scarlett continued looking behind the dresser. It seemed it had been Bonnie's hiding spot. Scarlett had found a miniature of herself.
She next found Wade's top that had gone missing. She had remembered how proud Wade had been of that top and how he wouldn't let Bonnie touch it. For once Rhett had not given Bonnie her way. He had not made Wade let Bonnie play with the top. The top had gone missing the next week. Wade had accused Bonnie of taking the top. Rhett had made Wade apologize to Bonnie. It seems Wade had been right. Bonnie had taken the top.
She found her hairbrush that had gone missing. Scarlett remembered brushing Bonnie's hair a hundred strokes one night. They had such fun that night and she had told the child that they could do it every night. The child had never come back. Coward that she was she had never gone in search of the child. Maybe coward wasn't the right word. She had been so tired of fighting with Rhett that she tried to avoid those interactions. She had never even thought that Bonnie might have taken her hairbrush.
All of these things made her heart sing because her daughter had loved her and had known that her mother loved her. Scarlett took the hair and wrapped a ribbon around it. This, the miniature, and the rag doll went with her treasured possessions. The top she would give back to Wade. She was going to work harder to be the mother that Wade and Ella deserved. When she left the room with her prized items, she was singing a lullaby she had sang to Bonnie the few times she had gotten to rock her.
Scarlett went to Wade's room and handed him the top. With a happy smile on her face, Scarlett said, "It seems we had a thief in the making. She stole my hairbrush also."
Wade smiled and said, "I knew she had taken it."
They both laughed. It was one of the first times they had laughed together. Scarlett hoped it wasn't the last.
Scarlett asked Pork to clean out Mr. Rhett's room. He came back in five minutes. He handed her two miniatures. One of Wade and one of Ella. Pork said, "That's all that was in the room."
She smiled. She knew where Bonnie had gotten the miniature of her. From Rhett's room. He had taken the miniature of Bonnie but left the ones of Scarlett's children. This confirmed he would never be back. He was making a clean break with her and everything to do with her.
She stopped for a moment and wondered if he had even wondered where her miniature had gone. Probably not. He probably thought it had fallen behind the dresser. By that time, he had not cared enough about her to look for the picture. She stopped where her thoughts were going. She was going to find some peace and happiness.
The mansion was cleaned out. A lot of stuff went to Tara, more stuff went to charities and a few belongings were left at the mansion. The furniture was still there. Uncle Henry came by with Mr. Peter Whitaker to look the mansion over. He offered her fifteen thousand. She countered with eighteen thousand. They agreed on sixteen five and both sides thought they had gotten a good deal. The price was below what it was worth but what did she care what Rhett had paid for it. She just wanted to be done with it. The deal would not be concluded until the divorce was final, and she had the legal right to sell the mansion. She had sold them the furniture for another five hundred dollars.
The first week in October they were on the train to Tara, Scarlett, Wade, Ella, Beau and Mr. Jackson. When they got to Jonesboro, the carriage with Big Sam was waiting. Scarlett smiled at Big Sam. Just seeing him made her feel like she was home. As they drove to Tara all Scarlett could see for miles and miles was cotton.
They would stay at Tara until her divorce was finalized. Beau had not wanted to go home. Ashley couldn't handle him right now. India had her hands full with Ashley and Aunt PittyPat. Scarlett would keep Beau for a while, but Scarlett was going to make Ashley take responsibility for his own child.
When they had arrived, Scarlett had apologized to Suellen for marrying Frank. She didn't defend herself or justify her actions. Scarlett had just told Suellen that what she had done was wrong and she shouldn't have done it.
Suellen had said, "I would have had Frank paid the taxes on Tara."
Scarlett said, "I wish I had been more trusting then, but I had to be sure which meant not trusting anyone but me. I'm sorry," Scarlett had smiled a simple smile at Will and then said to Suellen, "Will is a better husband than any of mine ever were."
The apology and the compliment did a lot to lessen the strife between the sisters. That and Scarlett no longer wanting to engage in a verbal battle with her sister. Scarlett had her fill of verbal battles after having lived with Rhett for six years. She didn't want to fight with anyone ever again.
Suellen stopped making snide comments to Scarlett because it wasn't any fun if Scarlett didn't fight back. Scarlett spent some of her time conferring with Will about planting, clearing acreage, harvesting the cotton, and finding laborers.
She talked to Mammy and listened when Mammy gave her sage advice. Mammy told her, "Let Mr. Rhett go you have already hurt each other enough."
Scarlett told Mammy, "Rhett said he had loved me for over twelve years."
Mammy said, "He sure didn't act like he loved you."
Scarlett played with her children and the Benteen girls. She read to the children before bedtime. She had Wade and Beau sleep in the guest bedroom. Ella slept with the Benteen girls, and she seem to enjoy having someone to sleep with.
One day Scarlett and Ella were sitting on the porch in the rocker in the middle of the afternoon. It had been nice weather since they had arrived at Tara. The fall in Georgia was usually pleasant weather.
Ella had asked Scarlett, "Why did they have to die?"
Scarlett pulled Ella on her lap and said, "They made unwise choices."
"They died because they chose the wrong thing."
"They chose to do the wrong thing. Both Bonnie and your Aunt Melly were fearless. They both thought that with their will they could make something happen. I used to think I could will things into being but I know now I can't."
"Because of Aunt Melly and Bonnie dying."
"Yes. When you are making a decision, it is best to listen when people try to tell you what to do especially people older than you. They are usually wiser than you."
"Yes Mother."
Yes, Scarlett had always thought that if she wanted something, she could make it happen just by her will alone. She had never listened to the naysayers who were trying to deter her from her path of success. If she had listened to the naysayers, she would not have been able to big her sawmills into the money-making business that it was. If she had listened to the naysayers, she would not have been the belle of five counties. If she had listened to the naysayers, she would not have wasted twelve years of her life. From now forward she would hear the naysayers out and seriously think about what they had said. She would make a well thought out plan which was based less on what she wanted and more on what was reasonable. She would listen to trusted advisors.
Scarlett smiled. She had trusted Rhett's opinion on everything but Ashley Wilkes. After they got married, she stopped trusting his opinion on anything. She really wondered why.
Scarlett sat there with the child on her lap for a long time. She was enjoying loving on Ella. She would never forgive herself for that awful thought she had right after Bonnie died about wishing Ella had died instead of Bonnie. Her grief had been so great she had been a little bit crazy. She would never forgive herself for calling Rhett a murderer. She had felt such shame, but she still had not been able to apologize because of her pride.
After a while Scarlett said, "Let's go shuck some peas."
Ella had jumped off her mother's lap and had started talking about what she and the Benteen girls had done the day before. Scarlett thought, 'Maybe she is simple, but she is comforting to have around.'