Chapter 11 – Big Girls Don't Cry
Revenge came precisely one week and one day later and it came in the form of a fall. A very hard fall, Ella would later muse, but a fall none the less. She had been minding her own business that afternoon, sitting at the desk she shared with Alice, calculating how many minutes were left of Sister Mary Stewart's arithmetic class. The nun called her name and she cringed as she always did when she was told to go to the board and complete a problem. As she made her way from her seat at the back of the room, she had no choice but to pass by Margo who was seated in the front. Just as she was about to pass Margo's desk, a shiny expensive boot jerked out in front of her. Ella had no time to react or to sidestep and she found herself falling face first into the sharp edge of the teacher's desk.
Her upper cheek and the corner of her eye were struck first, followed by the side of her head as she tried without success to catch herself. She felt as if time were moving in slow motion as she fell to the floor, her face taking a second blow as she landed. She allowed herself to lay there for a few brief seconds as the pain throbbed in her head and humiliation washed over her at the sound of her snickering classmates. She slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position and dug deep down inside herself to find the strength to keep from crying. It wasn't easy, the tears were already in her eyes but she forced herself to swallow hard and push the emotion away. When she had fallen, the impact had caused her teeth to bite into her jaw leaving the taste of blood in her mouth. It hurt so badly and she couldn't even allow a single tear to fall. She couldn't give Margo that satisfaction.
Sister Mary Stewart tried to quiet the class and then came to Ella's side and helped her stand. Her head spun with dizziness and she had to clutch the arm of the nun to keep from falling again.
"Miss Kennedy, are you alright?" she asked. "What caused you to fall?"
"She tripped me," Ella stated quietly as she gestured to Margo with her hand.
"I did not!" Margo cried. "The clumsy fool tripped over her own feet and she wants to blame it on someone else."
"That's a lie Margo!" a girl named Sarah Wills shouted. "I saw you stick your foot out in front of her."
"Mind your own business Sarah," Margo retorted sharply. "You don't know what you're talking about."
"Sarah's not lying," Alice called out. "I saw her stick her foot out too."
"So did I!" Loretta Baxter called out.
"Margo did not trip her!" Bessie yelled out in defense of her friend. "I'm sitting right next to her, I'd know if she had done it."
"Bessie, you'd lie to the Pope if Margo told you to," Ella stated through gritted teeth as she tried to remain calm.
"How dare you!" Bessie replied in outrage.
"Margo didn't do anything, Ella tripped herself," Caroline Stevens yelled out; establishing that she was on Margo's side.
"Class!" Sister Mary Stewart bellowed causing them all to fall silent. "That will be enough. Miss Callahan please walk Miss Kennedy to the infirmary, she seems a bit unsteady on her feet."
Alice hurried forward and took Ella's arm and led her from the room.
"Are you alright, Ella?" she whispered as they slowly made their way down the quiet hallway.
"If you don't count my face and head then I'm fine," Ella remarked.
Alice gave her a sympathetic look, "I'm sorry, that was a stupid question wasn't it?"
Ella gave her a small smile, "No, it wasn't stupid at all; I probably would've asked you the same thing."
"Margo has to be the most horrid girl in the state of South Carolina," Alice stated with conviction.
"I don't doubt that," Ella muttered before asking, "How bad does it look?"
Alice did a quick study of her face before answering, "It's beginning to swell and it's already starting to bruise."
"Great, that's just what I need. My birthday is in a week and a half and if my mother shows up and sees my face blackened she'll probably drop dead on the spot."
"Maybe you'll be lucky and it won't get any worse than it is now and it will be faded before then."
"I don't seem to have much luck lately, Alice" she replied with a sigh.
Alice sighed too, "Well I guess that's true. Once Margo picked you as her target you were done for."
"It's not over yet," Ella responded.
"Do you have a plan?"
"Not yet but I'll think of something over the weekend. Oh god the weekend! My grandmother is going to have a fit when I show up tomorrow looking like this."
"Perhaps you could tell her that you need to stay here for the weekend," her friend suggested.
Ella shook her head and instantly regretted the action as another brief wave of dizziness descended upon her. "She'd know something was wrong for sure and she'd come to investigate, so either way she's going to find out."
"Maybe she can do something about all of this," Alice replied.
"I don't think anyone can do anything about Margo. She has the Mother Superior so wrapped around her finger that there's no point in even trying."
"Is there anything I can do for you, Ella?" Alice asked as they paused outside the infirmary door.
"Yes, there is something you can do," she replied.
"What is it?"
"Find out what Margo is most afraid of and tell me as soon as possible."
Alice grinned, "I'll talk to Sarah; she lives next door to the Sinclair's so she'll probably know something."
"I know Sarah defended me but is there a chance she may be friends with Margo since they are neighbors at home?"
Alice shook her head, "No, Sarah hates her. Margo stole her beau and she's never gotten over it."
"Talk to Sarah then, find out everything you can."
Four hours later, Ella was finally back in her room. The nurse in the infirmary had poked and prodded at her cheek and determined that nothing was broken. She then put her in one of the infirmary beds and placed cold compresses on her face to bring down the swelling along with making her drink some type of medicine that had put her to sleep for two hours. She was grateful for that however, for when she woke up her headache and the dizziness were gone. About the time she emerged from her medicine induced sleep, Carreen swept into the room and fussed over her.
When the nurse gave her the okay, Carreen helped her upstairs to her room and then sat by her side. Her aunt looked so distraught that Ella felt guilty for the accident even though it hadn't been her fault.
"Are you sure I shouldn't send for Mrs. Butler," Carreen asked for the third time pulling her out of her thoughts.
"Yes I'm sure. I'll be going to Grandmother's tomorrow there's no need to upset her any sooner."
"I should wire your mother," Carreen stated.
"Good God No!" Ella exclaimed. "Don't even think of telling mother about this."
An exasperated expression flicked across Carreen's face. "Ella, perhaps she should be notified. Who knows what Margo plans to do to you next. It would probably be better if Scarlett came and took you home."
Ella was feeling aggravated and she allowed it to come across in her tone. "No, what would be best is to let me deal with this. Uncle Rhett isn't going to let me come home and quite frankly I have no desire to be run out of here by some high and mighty twit who thinks she owns the world!"
"I only want what's best for you, Ella," she replied not knowing how to react to her niece's attitude.
She sighed deeply, "How do you stand it here, Aunt Carreen?"
Carreen was silent for a moment, "I suppose I was born with more patience than your mother and Suellen."
Ella cast her an unconvinced glance, "It has to bother you sometimes, doesn't it?"
Something flashed in her eyes but it was gone before Ella could distinguish what it was.
"It's the life I chose," she stated with a certain amount of tension in her body language.
"I meant no offense," Ella said quietly.
Carreen gave her a shadow of a smile, "I know you didn't."
"I'm sorry," Ella replied feeling as though she needed to apologize but not sure why.
"There's no need to be sorry, it's a question many people have and I admit it can be somewhat tedious here at times but I figure that is true for anyone regardless of what they are or what they do."
"Of course," Ella murmured as she tried to comprehend her Aunt's odd reaction to her statement.
"I should let you rest," Carreen said; breaking the silence that had fallen between them.
"I rested in the infirmary," she replied. "I didn't get run over by a wagon, I merely hit my face."
Her aunt smiled kindly as she usually did but it didn't reach her eyes and Ella suddenly realized that it most of the time it never did.
"It doesn't hurt to get as much rest as possible," she spoke as she stood and walked to the door. "I hope you feel better tomorrow."
"Thank you, Aunt Carreen," she whispered as she watched her go.
In the silence of her room she analyzed what she had learned about her aunt in the short time she had known her. It was becoming clear that her aunt had her own secrets and that the smiles she forced upon her face at any given moment was nothing more than a mask. Carreen had already confessed to her that she was lonely, that she missed her family and that at times the convent was tedious. The question was how did she help her? Ella wasn't even sure of how to help herself let alone her aunt who had chosen the lifestyle she was living. Her head was beginning to hurt again just thinking about all of it. A soft knock at the door stirred her from her thoughts.
"Who is it?" she called, praying that it wasn't the Mother Superior.
"It's me," Alice called; "and Sarah," another voice echoed.
"Come in," she answered as she forced herself to sit up and swing her legs over the edge of the bed.
The two girls entered the room and hurriedly shut the door. Alice sat down at the desk and Sarah sat on the Ella's trunk at the foot of the bed.
"How are you feeling?" Sarah asked.
"I'll feel better when I have an idea of what to do to Margo."
"I hate her," Sarah said, her tone serious.
"So do we," Alice replied.
Ella nodded, "Since we're all in agreement on that we'll call this the first meeting of the 'I Hate Margo Sinclair Club'."
Alice and Sarah giggled. "Since you're the one with a bruised face you can be President," Sarah told her.
"I accept the job," Ella answered with a wry smile.
"I told Sarah that you want to know what Margo fears most," Alice stated.
Ella rubbed her hands together and turned her gaze to Sarah. "Do you have an answer to that question, Sarah?"
Sarah grinned, "Oh yes, I know what she's afraid of."
"What?" Ella asked her eyes gleaming.
"Snakes," Sarah answered. "She is absolutely terrified of snakes."
Ella filed the information away in her mind for future reference but she frowned slightly. "That might be hard to work with, do you have anything else."
"Margo hates anything slimy and she hates any kind of insect."
"That could be something," she stated her mind working to come up with an idea.
"She's also obsessed with keeping her shoes in perfect condition, no scuffs, no scratches and no dirt anywhere but the soles."
"Really?" Ella and Alice asked at the same time.
"Really," Sarah answered. "One time I saw her throw fits until her father carried her to the carriage so she didn't have to step in puddles."
"And he actually did that?" Ella asked.
Sarah nodded, "My father saw it and he looked at me and said I better never even think about asking him to do something like that or I'll find myself sitting in a puddle."
The girls laughed at the thought. "She really does think she's something special doesn't she?" Ella stated amid giggles.
"She thinks she's the center of the universe," Sarah responded with a laugh but she then turned somber. "She stole my beau, I loved him, I intended to marry him but she came along and stole him away. She doesn't want anyone having something that she doesn't."
"I'm sorry, Sarah. I know how you feel in a way, I didn't get to marry my beau either," Ella replied.
"Jesse wrote to me, he says he's sorry and that he still loves me," Sarah told them. "He wants another chance."
"Are you going to give him one?" Alice asked.
She shrugged, "I don't know; who's to say it won't happen again and besides I'm not sure I want him knowing that he's been tangled up with Margo."
"Maybe he really is sorry, maybe he wants to make things right," Ella said.
"A part of me wants to believe that and another part of me doesn't. It's all so complicated."
Ella and Alice nodded in sympathetic agreement.
"What about your beau, Ella? Have you heard from him?" Sarah asked.
Ella shook her head, "No, I wrote him right after I came here but I haven't had any mail yet."
"The mail will be coming in tomorrow," Alice told her. "Maybe there will be a letter from him for you."
"I hope so," she replied. "I miss him, and I still love him."
"What about you Alice? Do you have a beau?" Sarah asked.
Alice blushed shyly, "No, I wish I did but the boys never seem to like me as anything more than a friend," she said with a sigh.
"Someone will come along for you, Alice," Ella told her softly.
Tears welled in Alice's eyes. "I don't know about that, I'm not as pretty as other girls and half the time no one even notices me. The two of you have already had marriage proposals and I've had nothing. I'll probably end up an old maid!" she cried.
"No you won't, Alice" Sarah spoke with reassurance. "You'll find someone."
"Sarah's right, when the time is right you'll find the person who will love you," Ella told her.
"I hope your right," Alice sniffed as she brushed away a tear that had fallen.
"Of course I am, if anyone's going to end up an old maid it will probably be me with the way my step-father wants to run off my beaus," Ella commented.
"I'll probably be one too if Jesse doesn't marry me," Sarah replied. "He's the only boy who's ever been interested in me."
Alice laughed softly, "I guess we can always be old maids together."
"That's right!" Ella exclaimed. "We'll get a big house and a couple of cats and be miserable together."
They laughed at the thought and then Sarah spoke once more. "If we can't find husbands than I am sure Margo won't, we're much better than she is!"
Laughter rang through the room once more.
"I feel sorry for whoever she traps into marriage," Ella replied.
"Me too," the other girls echoed.
"Do you have a plan for revenge yet?" Alice asked.
"Not yet but it will come to me, I'll think about it over the weekend. Can I count on you two for assistance if I need it?" she asked with a gleam in her eye.
"I'm in," Sarah replied.
"Me too," Alice told her.
Before leaving for her grandmother's house the next afternoon, Ella crowded into the office with the other girls to collect her mail. Once the small stack was in her hands she hurried outside to the waiting carriage. As she traveled down the road to Eleanor Butler's home she braced herself for the torrent of questions that would be thrown at her once her grandmother saw her bruised face.
Stepping down from the carriage she caught sight of Rosemary's son Thomas running in the back yard, his golden retriever puppy at his heels. She waved to him and then hurried inside, anxious to get her grandmother's reaction out of the way. She dropped her books and mail on the table in the entry way and hung her bonnet on the peg. She could hear Eleanor and Rosemary's voices in the parlor and she moved in that direction to greet them. She didn't get the chance to say anything however, for when she stepped into the room Eleanor and Rosemary looked up in her direction and they both gasped.
"Good god Ella! What's happened to you?" Eleanor exclaimed as she leapt to her feet.
"I fell," Ella answered as she moved to one of the wing back chairs and sat down.
"On your own or with help?" Eleanor asked.
"It depends on who you ask," Ella replied.
"I'm asking you," she said, her tone on edge.
"I definitely had help," she answered figuring it would do no good to lie to her grandmother and she didn't really want to anyway. "Unsolicited help."
"Who?" Eleanor demanded to know.
A bitter laugh escaped Ella's lips, "Why the lovely Margo Sinclair of course."
"Sinclair?" Rosemary spoke. "Is she the daughter of Joseph and Maureen Sinclair?"
Ella shrugged, "I don't know, Grandmother says they're Yankees."
"That's them," Eleanor told Rosemary as she moved to Ella's side to examine her face. "They came here from New York."
"They need to go back," Rosemary stated. "That Maureen Sinclair is the nastiest person I've ever known. When we were having a fundraiser for the widows of the Confederacy she had her nerve to say that if we would have just done what Mr. Lincoln wanted we wouldn't have to worry about supporting the wives of our fallen boys."
"It appears those traits have rubbed off on her daughter," Eleanor commented as she continued to poke and prod at Ella's face. "Did you see a doctor about this?" she asked.
Ella tried not to wince as her grandmother pushed gently on her cheek bone. "I saw the nurse in the infirmary, she said nothing is broken."
"Perhaps I should call for a doctor just to be sure."
"That's really not necessary, Grandmother. It looks worse than it is."
Eleanor sighed and retook her seat, "Was the girl punished?"
Ella laughed, "Of course not, I couldn't prove that she did anything. The Mother Superior is a stickler for absolute proof in the case of Margo."
"I don't like this Mother Superior, first she starves you and now she allows someone to blacken your face!" Eleanor exclaimed.
"I don't like her either but there doesn't seem to be anything anyone can do; even Aunt Carreen told me that."
"We'll see about that," he grandmother murmured.
Ella gave her a panicked look, "Tell me you are not wiring Uncle Rhett."
"No dear, I promised you I'd let you handle things on your own and I meant it."
Ella released a relieved breath, "Good, I think I'll go upstairs and change now," she told the women. She was eager to get away before Eleanor changed her mind.
Once Ella was out of ear shot Eleanor turned to Rosemary.
"I believe I need to pay a call to the Mother Superior."
"Ella won't like that," she daughter answered.
"She doesn't have to know."
"How are you going to pull that off?" she asked.
"Quite simple my dear, you and I will leave saying we have to run an errand and we'll ask Ella to keep an eye on Thomas while were gone."
"I take it we're going now," Rosemary said with a grin.
"There's no time like the present," she answered as she stood and left the room.
She called for Ella and when she came down the stairs she explained to her that she and Rosemary had an errand to run before dinner and asked if she would mind watching Thomas."
"Of course not, Grandmother" she answered.
Eleanor smiled and patted her unbruised cheek, "That's my girl; I knew I could count on you. Thomas is the back yard with his puppy, we'll be back shortly."
Ella saw the two women off and then moved to the back yard with her cousin.
Thomas greeted her excitedly, "Ella, guess what I found under the hedge!"
"What?" she asked with a laugh at his anxious expression.
"A snake! A dead snake!"
Ella's eyes went wide and a smile graced her face. "Really, Thomas?" she asked, it seemed like an answer to her prayers.
The nine year old boy nodded "It's a black one."
"Is it big?"
He thought for a moment, "It's longer than a ruler."
"Perfect," she whispered. If the Mother Superior wasn't on her side at least god seemed to be.
"Tommy how would you like to earn a nickel?" she asked.
"What do I have to do?"
"Get that snake out from under the hedge and put it in a bag for me," she told him.
"What for?"
"I need it for school," she replied.
He gave her a skeptical look, "And you're going to give me a whole nickel just for putting a dead snake in a bag?"
"Yes, will you do it?"
"Give me the nickel first," he stated with a mischievous grin on his face.
"Are you saying you don't trust me to give it to you afterwards?" she asked pretending to be offended.
"That's what I'm saying," he replied.
"Alright," she answered. "You go get a box and I'll go get the nickel."
"Deal," he answered as they went off in separate directions.
Eleanor and Rosemary were shown into the dark paneled room that served as the Mother Superior's office. The nun was intently studying her papers, her reading glasses perched on the tip of her nose. Eleanor cleared her throat to gain the woman's attention but the nun was not hurried in greeting them. Finally she sat aside her papers and removed her glasses and gave the two women an assessing stare.
"Yes?" the Mother Superior stated with an air of annoyance.
"I wanted to speak with you about my granddaughter, she is a student here," Eleanor answered, returning the woman's glare.
"Who might you be?" the nun asked.
"I am Eleanor Butler and this is my daughter Rosemary Kingsley."
A flicker of recognition flashed across the Mother Superior's face and she raised an eyebrow as she asked, "And your granddaughter is?"
"I think you already know who my granddaughter is," Eleanor stated.
"What makes you think that, Mrs. Butler? I am a nun not a mind reader."
Eleanor's face hardened, "The look on your face tells me that you know."
The Mother Superior smirked as she narrowed her steel colored eyes, "I may have an idea but tell me anyway so we can be sure."
Eleanor and Rosemary sat down in the wooden chairs in front of the desk even though they hadn't been invited to, causing the Mother Superior to wrinkle her nose in distaste.
"My granddaughter is Ella Kennedy."
The nun's lips twitched into an evil looking smile. "Ah yes, Miss Kennedy. What would you like to speak of in regards to her?"
Eleanor gave the woman one of her own lethal looks before replying. "I want to know why the person who tripped my granddaughter and caused her injury hasn't been punished."
The Mother Superior let out a deep sigh of aggravation. "Mrs. Butler I interviewed the students that were in the class, some of them say Miss Kennedy tripped over her own feet. I have no proof that she was purposely tripped by the girl that she accuses so therefore I could not render any punishment."
"I see," Eleanor stated an angry edge present in her tone. "Than can you tell me why you punished my granddaughter and her friend for sneaking food?"
"It was reported to me that Miss Callahan took food to Miss Kennedy while she was to be observing a fast."
"But did you have proof that Miss Callahan did this?" Eleanor asked.
"The report came from a reliable source," she answered.
"But did you see my granddaughter eat anything during the time when she wasn't supposed to?"
"No, Mrs. Butler; I did not!" the nun stated sternly.
"Then you had no right to render punishment to those girls."
"That is for me to decide, not some meddling grandmother."
Eleanor smirked, "I don't approve of you starving my granddaughter and I don't believe her parents would either."
"Her parents left her in the care of the school so therefore I will punish her as I see fit," The Mother Superior stated her voice laced with tension.
"It's a shame you don't feel that way about all your students, Mother Superior. Some appear to be more privileged than others in your eyes."
"What are you implying, Mrs. Butler?"
"I'm not implying anything other than what is obviously a known fact. You show favoritism towards certain students and they are allowed to do as they please. That isn't fair, Mother Superior and you of all people should know that, after all, aren't we all created equally in the eyes of god?" Eleanor said as she stared the other woman down.
"I have never shown favoritism towards certain students! The truth is, Mrs. Butler, is that Ella Kennedy is nothing but a troublemaker. She's obviously been spoiled and allowed to run wild. She must have never been disciplined and I find her manners lacking. Perhaps if her parents had taken her in hand long ago she wouldn't be where she is now."
"Are you saying that my son and daughter-in-law don't know how to raise their children properly!" Eleanor exclaimed her face flushed with anger.
The nun smiled and her eyes sparkled with meanness. "That's exactly what I'm saying, Mrs. Butler; but of course it should come as know surprise that the girl behaves as she does after all she's been raised by your son who is known for his disreputable conduct ranging from gambling to dueling and everything in between and lets not forget that your own husband disowned him and then there is the girl's mother who has been married multiple times and has gone out of her way to make a spectacle of herself over the years."
Eleanor gave her a rage filled glare, "For someone who is supposed to be hidden behind these walls and closed off from the outside world you sure do know a lot about other people's private business."
She leveled her gaze on Eleanor and spoke, "I make it a point to know the family background of each of my students and the fact remains that your family's exploits are public knowledge, Mrs. Butler."
"I've never claimed that any member of my family is a saint, Mother Superior, in fact we are all far from that but everyone has a past, including you."
"Your point, Mrs. Butler?"
"The point is, perhaps it's time to dig into your past and see what skeletons are hanging in the closet next to your habit, Mother Superior!" she exclaimed.
"Is that some sort of threat?" she asked with a bitter laugh.
Eleanor smiled, "No, it isn't a threat it's a promise. You see when you hurt a member of my family you answer to me."
The nun raised an eyebrow, "Give it your best shot, Mrs. Butler; you'll be the one looking foolish in the end."
Eleanor stood, "Never make the mistake of underestimating a Butler, Mother Superior, you'll soon find that we are not people to be trifled with."
Eleanor than motioned to Rosemary and they left the room leaving the Mother Superior glaring at their backs.
Later that evening after Ella and Thomas had been excused from the table, Eleanor turned to Rosemary's husband Samuel.
"I want the Mother Superior of the Sisters of Mercy Convent investigated," she told him. "I want to know her connection to the Sinclair family."
"That will take time," he replied.
"The best things in life are worth waiting for," she replied determination in her voice.
She'd allow Ella to take care of Margo, but the Mother Superior would meet her downfall at the hands of Eleanor Butler.
Authors Note: Margo will get her surprise in the next chapter and we'll find out if Johnny has written to Ella. I didn't want this chapter getting to long so I saved those things for the next one! Thanks for the reviews.