Afternoon, all! I hope you had an amazing and safe New Year! Thank you so much for the love so far for this repost!
It was a lady's duty, if her rank and class permitted it, to visit on the poor and elderly within the town or village border that they dwelled in. It was also the lady's duty to visit her tenants in times of great distress or in times of need.
…
September 11th, 1843
Lady Cullen
I would not care if I were seen as above or below my station in life if it meant that I could visit with the Swans.
They were a family of good standing in the neighborhood and would do everything in their power to help anyone else if they could, whether their means permitted it or not. Various residents had told me a number of times how Isabella would go out of her way to feed someone, even if she barely had the means to do so.
The family members were selfless and always stayed true to themselves.
Sadly, poor Renee had been ill again last week, and sweet Isabella had not permitted me entrance into the home, despite the fact that she was a tenant of my husband, Carlisle.
In everyday situations, I would have been affronted by her bluntness, but she had my health at heart, and for that, I was grateful. She did not want to see a lady fall ill under any circumstances, and if she had let me enter, it would have been like walking into a lion's den—her words, not mine.
She was a dear child and had done far more than what God intended, but she still did not rest.
Isabella had a fire in her that could never be put out. She was strong like a man but was also a gentle creature inside.
She worked on the family farm all morn, held a small position at the village school where she helped the littler children, and then studied when she could find the time. Even though no one liked to see an educated girl, I thought it pleasing that although this was the case, she did not care. She knew how to read, her summing up was always correct, and she had a manner about her that pleased everyone, despite the fact that she went against every rule in society's book.
She was also her mother's main companion and caregiver. And to top it off, she was the sole caregiver to her little brother, Charles. He was just four, but he had enough spirit of keeping her going on the darkest of days.
Since their father, Charles Senior, died of influenza two winters ago, Isabella Swan had been the glue to her family. She had kept things moving and would never tire.
I had never been able to carry a daughter to term, much to Carlisle's pain, and I wanted so much to have Isabella as my own. I had born two strong boys but had sadly lost four daughters in my wedded time with Carlisle. He was a good man, both strong and kind to his tenants even as he was proud and loving with regards to his sons, but I knew he craved a daughter.
I was now past the time of my childbearing years, and as much as my grandchildren filled my life with more joy than I could have hoped, I still wanted a daughter. I wanted to share her wedding day with her, talk about anything and everything, but most of all, I just wanted to love her.
And that's where Isabella came in.
I wondered if God were willing if she would glue our family back together.
It would be a long stretch and would take some time, talking, and planning, but I hoped to one day call her my daughter.
"Isabella!" I called out through the farm as I went. Her birthday was in a matter of days, and I wanted to give her something.
Birthdays were normally only recognized with children, but she would be sixteen, and it was certainly an age to make happy about.
"Lady Cullen, what on earth are you doing, walking through all this mud to get to me?" she laughed lightly as she poked her head out of the doorway at the top of the hay barn.
She was covered in dust and hay, but the smile on her face relieved my fears of her being so high up.
"I wished to have a word with you, if I may?" I called back with a smile.
Her head disappeared through the door, and not a minute later, she was walking out of the barn, dusting off her pinafore as she went.
"You should have sent a note with your maid to tell me you wished to speak with me. It will not be fair to your poor maids to wash your skirts once laden down with dirt," she chastised me playfully.
Whenever we spoke, we always laughed about etiquette and social statuses.
Deep down, I knew that she wanted more than the life that she had, but she joked and laughed it off, knowing or thinking that she would never have an opportunity to wear fancy dresses or pretty jewels.
"They get paid to wash the clothes, Isabella, and I would not want to drag you away from your chores solely to talk. I'm happy to talk whilst you tend your duties," I smiled as she gave me a swift nod and walked towards another barn.
"Time to collect the eggs. Charles was supposed to do it this morning, but he has a slight cold," she shook her head as the alarm bells started to ring.
"Isabella, is he okay?" I asked, hardly able to keep the concern from my voice.
"He is fine, Lady Cullen. He just had a swim in the pond and didn't dry himself properly. I blame Master Emmett," she giggled as we walked into the darker barn.
"How many eggs do you get each morn?" I asked as she picked up a basket and proceeded to hunt them down.
"Well, we have nigh on seven and forty hens, so a fair few," she smiled as she started picking up stray eggs. I watched in wonder as she went about the large space, knowing exactly where each egg would be.
"So, what did you wish to talk to me about?" she asked after a time when I had failed to begin.
"Oh, I was wondering if you be kind enough to accompany me to town next month? I know you are extremely busy, but the ladies with who I had luncheon with yesterday absolutely loved your berry preserve and wished to meet with you to try and coax the recipe from you," I laughed as she shook her head.
"That recipe is mine and mine alone. I do not mind making some jars for them, but I will not hand out the recipe. And besides, I do not like town. I hate the hustle and bustle of it all," she stressed.
"Isabella, why do you not like something that you have never seen before?" I asked as she came to sit down next to me. To my knowledge, she'd never been to town, only to our village, and that she only permitted herself to do if the need arose and no one could go in her stead.
"You would like me to be honest?" she asked quietly, and I nodded in reply to her.
"I like living the quiet life." I raised a disbelieving brow to her in challenge. "Fine, I accept that the life I live is not exactly quiet, not with the farm and the farms hands, or Charles for that matter, but here I am comfortable. I do not have to worry about whether my dress is clean or in fashion, no one cares if my hair is perfect or if I show my ankles," she grinned as she said the last line and I smiled too. "Here I can be myself. If I go to town, I would not like to see ladies looking down their noses at me. I know you would never treat me like that, but you are an exception to the rule," she smiled kindly at me as I took her hand.
"Those ladies in town are only like that because of how they were raised. We, Isabella, were raised differently. And of course, if you wanted to, there would be no stopping you going to town in a fancy dress," I smiled widely as she shook her head.
"No, I do not belong in that world, Lady Cullen." Her words disheartened me and firmed my resolve to prove her wrong.
I left Isabella soon after she refused my invitation and while it was hard to accept, I could not and would not force her to venture out with me until she was ready of her own accord.
On the way home, I thought about the up-and-coming village dance that our family had been invited to.
Maybe, if I were pleasant and encouraging enough, I could persuade Isabella to come with us or at least come and stay for just a little while to meet with other young minds. Being the only person in her family to do everything, she very rarely had the opportunity to meet with people of a similar age to her and that was not a good thing. She needed to see what was beyond the borders of the farm and that not everything had to be work-related. She needed some enjoyment in her life.
By the time the carriage drew up at the house and my darling Carlisle came to meet me, I already had a plan in place.
"How was she, my love?" he asked as soon as Betsy served up tea in the sitting room and we were comfortably sat.
"She is fierce and headstrong as always, but I fear that she will tire soon. She does so much, Carlisle, and I am scared beyond belief that it will take its toll on her. One of her farmhands had to leave because of a family illness and that only leaves her with Thomas and Emmett. And let's not forget that young Charles is ill, not majorly, but enough to warrant Mrs. Cope to make a visit with a poultice for his chest," I sighed deeply as he passed me a small sandwich.
My appetite had dwindled in the minutes that I had spent thinking of Isabella. I wished so desperately that she did not have so much stress in her life, but she was a family girl through and through and would in no way ask for help.
"Maybe I could arrange some work hands from here to help her through the rest of the harvest. I could pay them directly," he offered and smiled a soft, loving smile.
"She would never agree, even though you are her landlord. She is too independent for that and would insist that she pay out of her own pocket," I replied with a tight smile as he started to think again for a solution.
I watched as worry lines appeared on his handsome face as he thought of a solution and then a beaming smile appeared in their place.
"I wonder how she will react the day she turns eighteen and realizes that I have banked away every shilling she has paid in rent since Charles's death?" He mused with a humorous chuckle, and I could not help but join in with him.
I could imagine her reaction quite clearly and all and any argument that was sure to follow.
After tea, we spent the rest of the day in the nursery with our grandchildren until it was time for their bed.
Even when we too were in bed and the candles had been stubbed out, I was still thinking of young Isabella and in what way we could help her.
There had to be a solution and the only one I thought could help me was our eldest son, Edward.
I absolutely love the relationship between Isabella and Esme. It gets stronger as the story continues.