Hope for Tomorrow
Chapter 41
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Hannah was quite happy with her adventure in town. All the people she met were very nice and greeted her warmly. The ladies she met at Minnie's were friendly and warm making her feel right at home. She even had an opportunity to stay for a short time to join in their Bible study, before she had to leave. It was such a nice surprise by Ned Yost to offer a delivery service for her purchases from the Mercantile so she best be home to receive her order.
Now, for the fun part, organizing the kitchen! Whoever cooked here before, really left it clean which Hannah appreciated, but it was also evident was that both Gunther and Andy did very little cooking. As she unpacked the needed pots, pans, mixing bowls, utensils, kitchen linens, and a complete set of dishes, she was in her element. Hannah enjoyed cooking but doubted the boys, as she referred to them, would start cooking, but if they did, it was there for them. Gunther was looking well fed and she found out they were eating out at Billees or invited over to dinner often at the Grants.
Gunther had told her that she would really like Nathan's mother, Emily as she was German too and loved to cook. In fact, they were invited to come over for dinner, but Gunther didn't know when yet. Apparently, his Sergeant just had a baby boy and with it being Christmas and snowy, causing the family to stay longer than expected, he wasn't sure. Although she was looking forward to meeting the Grant family, she was enjoying helping Gunther out and cooking for the boys.
She put away the food and then went back upstairs to the bedrooms. It was so kind of Gunther to give up his bed for her, but she needed a bit more warmth. She looked in the closet and found a quilt so she added it to the bed.
On Gunther's dresser was a framed picture of his family. Hannah smiled as she tenderly lifted it closer and ran her finger over the faces. Gunther's brother, Gregory, and sister, Heidi, Gunther, Hannah, and Gunther's father, Joseph were all grinning and waving at the person taking the photo. As she held the picture close to her breast, she closed her eyes and reminisced about that day. They were having a wonderful time together having a picnic. Gunther, Gregory, and their father, Joseph, went fishing while Hannah and her daughter, Heidi were relaxing. Hannah had been busy that day teaching Heidi how to embroider. Returning the photo back on the dresser there on Gunther's dresser was the scarf Heidi had embroidered for him two Christmases ago.
With one last look at the photo, it brought a tear to her eye knowing that was the last time they were all together. Shortly after that day, her husband, Joseph passed away. He was working on their house, became dizzy, and fell off the ladder. He seemed all right and after he got his breath back, he went to the outside pump and drank some water. Soon, he was back on the ladder finishing fixing the house clapboards. Later, when he retired to bed for the night, he suffered a stroke. The fall was a warning sign that no one had realized. Hannah was grief-stricken for months.
It was Gunther that helped her by stepping up to be the man of the house. He grew up faster than boys his age providing security for the family by leaving school to work the farm. Gregory was just a year and a half younger than Gunther, so he continued his studies but when he got home he helped Gunther. Once graduated, Gregory married his school sweetheart and the two of them lived on the farm. Knowing Gregory was there and could handle the farm, a few years later Gunther left for Mountie school. When the War began Hannah was afraid that Gregory would go overseas, but they had a baby on the way, so he was able to stay home to Hannah's relief. Meanwhile, her daughter, Heidi had entered a convent and was studying to be a religious nun and was known as Sister Mary Margaret now. Sister tended to the men who returned injured from the war, so after the war, she continued studying nursing. Hannah was very proud of her family and coming to Hope Valley to see Gunther she was happy as a lark!
When she went back downstairs, she used the brown packing paper from her delivery and wrapped the sweater, long underwear, and belt together, tied it with a ribbon, and set it on the dining table. Then she began her peeling of potatoes, onions, and carrots, chopping them up in bite size pieces and pounding some beef to tenderize it and adding them to a pot with some seasoning and water. While her stew was slowly cooking, she made a bread pudding with the old bread she found for dessert. As dinner was simmering on the stove, she picked up her library book and sat down to begin reading one of her favorite stories.
Just as Hannah was beginning to doze, Gunther and Andy came home. Their noses directed them to the kitchen. Andy lifted the lid of the pot and smiled, "Gunther, look at this delicious stew your Ma made!
Gunther was busy looking at all the new items throughout the kitchen, like a child at Christmas. As his eyes drifted to the dining table he spotted a parcel on the table wrapped up. Glancing over to the living room, where, he saw his Ma sitting by the fire holding a book and smiling in delight watching her son's discoveries.
"Ma, what have you been up to?" Gunther asked as he hung up his hat and took off his serge and boots alongside Andy.
Andy was also aware of what had changed and was grinning at her. The two of them walked into the living room, where Gunther greeted his Ma with a hug and a kiss. "Ma, you really have been busy. I can't believe how much you did while we were working. I mean, you spent too much money on all this!"
Hannah, waved his remarks away, "Son when you have a child of your own, you'll understand. I need to, as your mother, make sure even though you're an adult, that your life is as good as can be. So, what's a little shopping? Let me do this for you."
"Ma, how can you afford this? I can pay you back," Gunther nodded.
Hannah put her foot down, "Now hear me Constable Gunther Burmeister, you will do no such thing. If I hear silly talk like that again, I will leave. Hear me?"
"Yes ma'am," Gunther smiled.
"Besides, one day you might be kind enough to 'pay me back' with a grandchild!" Hannah laughed.
Andy howled at that and Gunther shot him a dirty look which only made Andy laugh even harder.
"Now, Andy, what's so funny?" Hannah teased him. They were all laughing.
"Gunther, I have a package for you for Christmas on the dining room table. Why don't you go get it now?"
As Gunther opened his package he found the trousers, long underwear, and belt his mother bought him earlier. "Thanks Ma, mine are very worn. I sure appreciate it."
"I knitted some sweaters and a scarf for you. I put them upstairs in your dresser. I hope you like them," Hannah grinned. Then looking over to Andy she added, "Andy, I will measure you tonight and get busy on knitting some for you too."
Andy looked at Hannah and replied, "Mrs. Burmeister, you have done more than enough for me, just looking at all the kitchen supplies and food. Don't worry about me."
Gunther laughed, "You're not going to win this, so let Ma measure you. I'm sure you appreciate it later this winter!"
Hannah got up and gave Andy a hug, "Just call me ma, ya? C'mon let's go have some dinner."
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James and Fiona arrived at his folk's home in Hamilton very apprehensive. James had talked with Fiona on the train sharing his uneasiness of seeing his father, yet happily excited to see his mother. His mother answered the door right away seeing them walking up. She could hardly wait for James to walk inside and started hugging him on the porch.
"James, I can't believe you're here!"
Fiona happily watched the two embracing and couldn't help but be elated for them. When they walked inside arm in arm, she just followed. James stopped and looked at Fiona with a smile, and while releasing his mother grabbed Fiona's hand and introduced her. His mother gave her kisses on both cheeks and then a quick hug. "Anyone who is a friend of my James is a friend of mine," she added, "Please call me Ruth."
"Thank you for the warm welcome, Ruth. James has spoken of you with much love," Fiona replied.
Standing in the hallway was Robert Scholl, James' father. He waited for the introductions to be over and approached them after inspecting them from afar. "So James, you've decided to show your face here after causing your mother so much grief with your absence. To what do we owe the honor of your presence?"
Ruth looked aghast at her husband and said sternly, "Robert, we have a lovely guest here, must you speak so rudely?"
James looked at his father in disgust, "Dad, we can leave if you prefer."
"You'll do no such thing!" Ruth interjected, "Please James, ignore what your father just said. I missed you absolutely, but I understand why you left."
After a few seconds of silence, Robert came up to Fiona, "Please forgive me, ma'am, I spoke not to you but was addressing our son. To whom do I have the pleasure of speaking to?"
Fiona not sure of Robert's welcome, replied simply, "Fiona Miller sir, a good friend of James."
James quickly interjected, "That's Mayor Fiona Miller, father, and she's as good of a mayor as Mayor Fisher here in Hamilton."
"Well, well, how do you do Mayor Miller? Welcome to our home," Robert nodded while looking directly at Fiona.
The banter ended with that and although James was not happy with his father's dig at him, he left it alone in lieu of peace. The butler took their coats as they followed his parents into the sitting room. Fiona took in all the fancy woodwork and marble as well as the exquisite pictures on the walls and elegant glass décor throughout. James grinned watching Fiona's in awe expressions.
Ruth turned to Fiona and putting her arm through hers showed her a few of the art pieces in the room that she had personally chosen and was obviously proud of. As they made small talk, Robert poured James a glass of whiskey and handed it to him. James accepted the drink while his father asked him how his practice was doing in little Hope Valley.
James told him, "Quite well father, I assure you."
"Are you making ends meet or are you thriving?" Robert asked.
"Father, you sure don't waste any time asking. It's really none of your business, but I am comfortable and the important news is, the people of 'little' Hope Valley are great dependable folks that I've made friends with and we all support each other," James said firmly.
Noticing the quips between the men, Ruth and Fiona both sat down to join them adding their pleasant exchanges of the art to deflect the tension between the men. Ruth addressing Fiona again asked her how she enjoyed being a hairstylist and what her duties were. This broke the ice and soon Robert was directing his attention away from James.
"I enjoy both. Being a hairstylist allows me the time to get to know the folks in our town on a personal level. That in turn gives me guidance as to decisions we need to make for the town," Fiona said confidently.
"That's lovely and it does sound like they complement each other, dear," Ruth smiled.
"What are some of the plans you have implemented Fiona?" Robert asked.
James felt that Fiona was being put on the spot and was ready to come to her defense, but Fiona graciously answered, "It has been wonderful the ideas we have explored. The town comes together for the first annual Summer Family Fest which was a huge success, summer bible camp, baseball for the boys, Girl Guides for the girls, a school band, a new music teacher, monthly dances and motion pictures organized by our young adult group, a community Thanksgiving with a talent show, Christmas tree lighting and caroling, and two churches just combined together for a children's nativity program Christmas Eve!"
"Oh my, Fiona, I must say you are doing a remarkable job. Goodness, you must be so proud!" Ruth said admirably.
James spoke up and added, "Hope Valley has been growing by leaps and bounds, and Fiona has really handled it in stride and quite commendably. She's overseen the construction of the new housing, electricity, our first telephone operator and installer, expansion of the Mercantile and school, and opening of our new gasoline pumping station and automobile repair shop. Plus, she works hand in hand with our Mounties keeping order. I'm very proud of her and that's part of what attracted me," James smiled tenderly at Fiona as he reached over and grasped her hand.
All the while Robert was nodding and seemed impressed which James noticed and helped him relax now that his father was content. Soon the butler announced that the dinner was ready to be served. As they stood up to follow his parents into the dining room, he gave Fiona's hand a tight squeeze which made her blush but feel she had passed the test of his father's approval.
The meal actually became friendly as his mother reminisced about how James was as a little boy in Christmases past, "James was such a tease to his younger brother Carl if there really was a St. Nicholas, but he was also a kind brother. He let his brother have one of his gifts, without telling us, when he knew how much Carl wanted a baseball glove too. We were very happy that he had grown up to be so considerate," Ruth beamed.
"How is Carl?" James asked. Fiona was puzzled, James never mentioned Carl before.
"He's doing great," Robert bragged. "He was on the dean's list this semester, so we sent him to Greece for his Christmas gift. We expect him to graduate with his master's degree with honors this spring, then he'll be joining the esteemed attorney group of Lee and Fitch."
"Good for him. I hope he enjoys his vacation in Greece, he deserves it," James answered.
"James dear, I've suggested to your father that we send you to Greece too or wherever you want, just to relax. What do you think?" Ruth asked.
"Mother, I appreciate the offer, but I've got clients to take care of and I won't leave them for any length of time but thank you," James smiled warmly at his mother.
"Now see James, that is what you are missing. You could be working in a group dental practice and not worry about that!" Robert chided.
"I'm not missing anything important father, I've got everything I need," he looked tenderly at Fiona and kissed her on her cheek.
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Fiona was touched deeply when James kissed her on the cheek and said he had everything he needed. She was thrilled to know he felt the same as her. Her heart was beating fast and she didn't know what to say. She was mesmerized as their eyes locked.
Robert's "ahem" snapped them back to the moment. "I can see that you two are enjoying each other's company," Robert said, "but if you don't mind we'd like to enjoy some dessert. Would you like some coffee?"
"Coffee would be just fine," James answered, then looking back at Fiona, he asked, "How about you, darling?"
Fiona couldn't believe how the conversation became romantic in the midst of a tense exchange between James and his father. It was hard for her to react normally. She was starting to feel giddy. "Sure, coffee would be lovely."
Robert knew he was getting nowhere chiding James, but he was not happy with his son's decision. "Well now, let's just keep our minds open to better possibilities, shall we?"
James decided to let it go. It was no use explaining himself to his father anymore, he would never accept his choice. "Mother, what have you been doing lately?"
Ruth smiled delightfully and told them that she had been busy planning a Valentine's Day ball as a benefit for the local art museum. "Maybe Fiona can give me some ideas to make it special," she said grinning at her.
"Whatever you need, I'll be happy to help," Fiona answered.
As the evening progressed, the atmosphere became civil, even friendly. Ruth and Fiona discussed ideas for the Valentine's Day ball, while James and Robert chatted about sports.
When James was younger his father was the coach for his baseball team and the same with his brother Carl. Robert enjoyed his time with his sons. They also enjoyed sailing in their family sailboat, cruising on their yacht, and flying to tropical places for long weekends away. That time was long ago and although James was very impressed with his father as a young boy, he didn't realize it at what cost it came to his clients. Now, he knew better and didn't want anything to do with his wealth.
"How long do you plan to stay?" Robert asked.
"Well, we were planning on going home tomorrow," James answered.
His mother heard that and quickly stopped talking to Fiona in order to speak with James. "James, I was so hoping you could spend a few days here with us. I haven't seen you in a long time. Why so soon?"
James looked at Fiona for help, but Fiona knew they could stay another day, but it was up to James so she didn't volunteer anything to the conversation. "Mother, we both have businesses to attend to," James answered.
"Surely, you don't have any dental appointments now so close to Christmas," Ruth questioned.
"No, I don't but I do have paperwork as I gave my receptionist off to visit with her family while her sister was home for the holidays," then trying to change the subject he addressed Fiona, "Darling where are the Christmas gifts we brought for my parents?"
"The packages went with the butler when he took our coats," Fiona answered.
"Father, please see if the butler will bring the gifts here for you and mother to open," James requested.
This was buying James some time. He was relieved that the butler retrieved their gifts so quickly. Handing the packages to James, James gave the top gifts to his mother first.
"You didn't have to do this James," Ruth smiled.
"Mother, it was Fiona's idea and of course, I agreed wholeheartedly. We had a Christkindlmarkt in town and there were many unique gifts to choose from. It's just a little something for you to think of us by."
As Ruth opened her gifts Fiona was hoping she'd appreciate them being that she was surrounded by fine art, glass pieces, and the like. Ruth was tickled with the intricate Irish lace linens and the hand-painted Polish ornaments.
"Oh, my dears, how elegant! I am so tired of all the fancy paintings and glass décor that these are more precious to me because they are from you!" she exclaimed as she blew kisses to both Fiona and James.
James followed with one big box for his father and handed it to Robert. "Again, Father, these are for you to think of us now and then."
Robert nodded in appreciation and opened his gift. Inside was a German beer stein with his initial's "RS" carved inside on the bottom. A warm grin grew across Robert's face. This gave James an opportunity to tell him that he had to special order the stein just for him.
"My you outdid yourself son, thank you," Robert smiled at James and Fiona.
"Fiona my dear, we do have a little something for you," Ruth announced and handed her a box.
Surprised but delighted, Fiona opened the box and inside were chocolate candies and perfume, both from France. "Gosh, I didn't expect anything at all, nevertheless these heavenly gifts. Thank you very much!" Fiona got up and walked over to Ruth, giving her a hug. She hesitated hugging Robert so she just verbally thanked him too.
"Dear me, James we were hoping you'd like to join your brother in Greece, so we don't have a gift for you to open," Ruth said regrettably.
"Not to worry," James laughed it off. "I'm fine."
His mother still wanted him to consent to stay another day and went right back to the question that remained unanswered to her. "James, now whatever is so important that you cannot stay with us just one more day?"
Seeing that his mother wanted a better explanation he answered, "Mother, there is a New Year's Eve party in Hope Valley that I will be singing for."
"Surely, they have others who can sing, don't they?" she asked Fiona.
"Yes, there are others," Fiona said biting her lip, "but I am the mayor and should be there." She hoped that would help James out of quandary looking at him sympathetically.
"Oh, fiddlesticks," Ruth sighed.
"James, really, you needn't disappoint your mother again!" Robert began.
Taking a deep breath, James finally admitted, "I also have another engagement after I sing at the town New Year's Eve party. I am scheduled to sing with my partner, Diana Starr at the Benson Hill's clubhouse."
He held his breath waiting. He knew very well that his father was against him singing and assured him that was no way a Scholl would make any money or notoriety.
"Oh, good heaven's boy! Haven't you given up on that notion yet?" Robert was flustered.
James was embarrassed and could no longer hold back, "Father, it is not a notion! I enjoy singing and others enjoy it too. We pack in a crowd every time we're there. Now, you may not approve of my choice, but I feel fulfilled when I sing."
"Will singing pay the bills? How do you intend to support a family on that?" Robert thundered.
Ruth stood up and firmly addressed her husband, "Stop Robert! It's not our decision, James is not a boy, he is a man, a good man, and he is using God's gift. It's darn well time, you accept the fact that your son can make up his own mind."
Walking over to James, she held his hands, "I know in my heart that you have a special gift that is bringing joy to many. Follow wherever it leads you and don't you worry any more about coming here. This is your home too and you are always more than welcome."
Then walking over to Fiona, she held her hands too, "My dear, you and James make such a lovely couple. I so appreciate you taking the place next to my son. I no longer can. He belongs to you. And, I do hope to come to your town of Hope Valley this summer if I may?"
Fiona glowed with those words of encouragement and understanding. "Thank you, I'll do my best." Fiona looked at James as they exchanged loving glances.
"So now, it's been a long day, especially with your train trip and having to leave tomorrow. I have two bedrooms awaiting you both. Let's call it a night." Ruth prompted with a wink.