Margaret had a bounce in her step as she descended the stairs from the house into the mill yard. She paused for a few moments just to stand and take everything in, relishing the sights and sounds of the activity all around her. Both John and Mrs. Thornton had expressed concerns that the noise would disturb her, but Margaret held no such worries. She greatly looked forward to the day she would come to live in this house, and waken to these sounds every morning.
Margaret smiled and greeted several of the workers as she crossed through the yard. It pleased her that so many people had wanted to return to Marlborough Mills, even leaving jobs at other mills. They all seemed glad to be back at work, where they were paid a fair wage for their labors.
Margaret enjoyed spending time with the workers and getting to know them. She had become very friendly with several of the women, as well as with Nicholas. She was glad to see the reluctant respect and rapport that had developed between John and her friend.
Walking onto the main mill floor, Margaret's steps suddenly faltered. The sight of the tall, dashing man who stood on a high platform, surveying his enterprise, caught her breath in her lungs. He looked so powerful, so commanding… Margaret all at once felt a little lightheaded to think that in a matter of days this incredible man would be her husband.
John's gaze swept across the room, abruptly halting when his eyes landed on Margaret. His serious expression quickly transformed into one of delight, and he hurried down the steps to make his way towards her.
Seeing his approach, Margaret smiled and shook herself from her daze. She turned to walk back to John's office, where they could speak in a more quiet and private setting. As she moved away from him, she noticed John's pace increasing. Giggling, she started moving faster, his following steps also becoming more rapid, until they were both running down the hallway.
At the office door he caught her up in his arms. She turned back to him, laughing merrily.
"Do you dare to run from me, Miss Hale?" John's teasing smile widened as he took in her mischievous expression.
"Why, Mr. Thornton, why ever would I do that?" Her laughter faded and she let herself melt into his arms, exactly where she wanted to be.
"I hope not, Miss Hale. Because very soon you will be unable to run. You will be mine, and I will never let you go."
Margaret pretended to consider for a moment. "Yes, I suppose that will be acceptable. But be warned, Mr. Thornton, that I shall also never let you go."
"Very well, Miss Hale. I accept your terms." John lowered his head and they sealed their agreement to the satisfaction of both parties.
John finally pulled back with a rather reluctant sigh. "Did you have a good visit with Mother?"
"Why, yes," Margaret replied brightly. "We finished arranging all the wedding details, scheduled my final dress fitting, made arrangements for my move into the house, planned every meal for the next six months, and selected our first three children's names." Margaret blushed just a little as she giggled at her last words.
John laughed again. She loved how often he laughed now. "That sounds like a typical morning with my mother. I am only surprised that she stopped at three." He lifted an eyebrow at Margaret, making her blush deepen.
"I only wanted to see you. I cannot stay, I promised Mary I would come by and help her with the children." Margaret had grown to love the Boucher siblings and spent many afternoons with them. Since Nicholas was back at work, Mary had her hands full looking after them all.
"Of course. Give them my best. You will dine here tonight?"
"Naturally. Your mother and I still need to decide the menu for our tenth anniversary party." She flashed a teasing smile at him before sauntering back out the door.
"So the prince took his bride back to his castle, and they lived happily ever after." Margaret closed the book and smiled at the rapt young faces before her. "And then… they ate treats!"
The Boucher children all cheered. They had come to eagerly anticipate the delicious baked goods Margaret always brought on her visits, made especially by her cook, almost as much as her stories. They gathered around her as she retrieved the biscuits from her basket, and enthusiastically proceeded to devour them, down to the last crumbs.
Margaret sat with little Annie on her lap, fondly tousling her soft curls.
"Oh, I thank ye for coming, Miss Margaret. They always love when you and Mr. Thornton come to see 'em. They're good children, o' course, but I do get tired lookin' after 'em by myself. Papa is so good with 'em, they always listen to 'im. Sometimes they're a little much for just me."
"Oh, Mary! Of course you get tired. I would, too, with six children." Margaret smiled at her young friend. She had greatly enjoyed encouraging the shy girl to come out of her shell. She could tell that Mary greatly missed her older sister. Margaret hoped that her companionship in some small way was helping the girl to recover from her loss.
She regarded little Tommy. He was sitting to one side of the room with the book that Margaret had brought. He flipped through the pages, staring with engrossed fascination at the illustrations, and tracing them with his finger.
"Mary, have you and Nicholas considered sending the older children to school?"
"Oh, miss, aye, he's mentioned it, but… well, schools are expensive." She looked rather embarrassed. "And Papa bein' out of work for so long."
"Oh, of course." Margaret immediately regretted her words. She changed the subject and instead shared the latest gossip from the women at the mill. Mary was very interested in hearing about the blossoming romance between a couple of workers. Margaret was glad she could make her friend giggle over the young man's rather awkward attempts at courtship. After a number of initial misunderstandings, happily, his clumsy overtures were now being well received by the young woman.
Margaret smiled to think of her own rapid engagement, and the man she would soon wed. She was profoundly thankful that they had come to understand each other so quickly. How painful it would be to love, and believe your love unrequited! Imagine, if she and John had met under different circumstances… If she had held onto her former disdain for men in trade… they might never have opened their hearts to each other. Margaret shuddered to even think about such a thing. It was too awful to even consider.
Margaret took a fond leave of Mary and the Bouchers, and began her walk home. Her thoughts dwelled on Mary's comments about schooling for the children. It seemed so wrong for any child to be denied an education. She could not stop picturing little Tommy, so enraptured by the book's illustrations.
With a sudden decision, she turned around and changed her course. She made her way through the streets of Milton, paying little attention to her surroundings, caught up in the ideas that were rapidly taking form in her mind. She soon found herself knocking on the door to Mr. Taylor's office.
Mr. Taylor greeted her warmly as she was shown in. "Miss Hale! How lovely to see you. My wife has been asking after you. She has grown very fond of you, you know. You have certainly been busy since your arrival here in Milton. And my sincerest congratulations on your upcoming nuptials! My wife and I very much appreciated your invitation to the wedding. We are greatly looking forward to it."
Margaret smiled and blushed a little. "Yes, I thank you. I am very happy."
Mr. Taylor gave her a friendly grin and nod. "So, how can I help you, Miss Hale? Does any particular business bring you here today?"
"Yes…" Margaret struggled to organize the new ideas that were just developing in her mind. "Well, I was visiting with some of the workers, and I was just thinking… So many of them cannot afford to send their children to school, so that they might have an education, and better opportunities, and it doesn't seem right to me. I think I should like to use some of my money to pay for their schooling, perhaps a fund… a sort of scholarship fund, so that they could attend school."
She glanced up at Mr. Taylor, who nodded, encouraging her to continue. "And I have that unused property, do I not, on New Street? The building that is empty. Perhaps that could be used as a school. Perhaps… we could start our own school." Her eyes lit up, imagining the possibilities.
"That is an admirable notion, Miss Hale. And yes, that property is vacant. I believe if you truly have a mind to do it, it is definitely possible." He smiled kindly. "Would you like me to draft some proposals to lay out the details?"
"Yes, that would be splendid." Margaret was rapidly becoming very excited about the prospect. "Thank you so much, Mr. Taylor."
"It is no trouble, Miss Hale. I wonder if Mr. Bell had any notion that his heiress would become quite the philanthropist." He smiled as he rose and crossed to a cabinet at the side of the room. "Speaking of Mr. Bell… I am glad you came in today. I was planning to call on you tomorrow morning. I have something to give you."
He removed an envelope from the cabinet and held it out to her. On the front of the envelope she read the name, "Miss Margaret Hale."
"I apologize for holding onto it this long, but Mr. Bell's express instructions were to give it to you only when you had either been living in Milton for a year, or a week before your wedding. And since you wasted no time on the wedding part…" He gave her a genial wink. "I will give you some privacy to read it." He stepped out into the hallway outside his office.
Margaret stared down at the envelope in her hands. Another letter from Mr. Bell? After everything he had already given her… And only to be read upon her marriage – what on earth could it mean?
Her hands trembled as she broke open the seal.
My dearest Margaret,
I pray you will never have to read these words. If you are, it means I was unable to relate all of this to you in person. However, it appears my time is growing short.
If you are reading this, you are either well established now in Milton, or you are about to be married. Margaret, if you are about to marry that Henry Lennox… Don't. I beg you to reconsider. My provisions for you will have made such an action unnecessary financially, and Mr. Taylor will assist you if you are under any pressure.
However, I have faith in my goddaughter, and I do not believe you will have made such a choice.
And now, the reason for this letter.
I am leaving you my beloved home in Oxford. Oh yes, are you surprised? I do own a lovely home there. It is a picturesque cottage, encircled by tall trees. It sits right along the river, in a beautiful, secluded spot. It has been my own private heaven on earth. I trust even my nature-loving Margaret will be delighted by all the greenery surrounding her there. I hope you will love my home and come to treasure it.
Why, you might be asking, have I kept this from you for this long?
Well, my dear, forgive me, but I wanted to give you the chance to discover yourself in Milton. You have been stifled in London. Your spirit has been suffocated by grief, by the expectations of others.
There is a strength in you, Margaret. I believe you may be able to find it in Milton. I hope you will find joy. Despite my love of Oxford, I will always have a fondness for my hometown, and strangely I believe it will somehow suit my Margaret.
If you have been living in Milton for a year now, and are ready to move on, I encourage you to take up residence in my Oxford home, with my fondest blessing. Find yourself a handsome young scholar, have plenty of babies, and live a wonderful life.
But, dear Margaret, a peculiar intuition tells me you may be reading this on the cusp of your wedding, and perhaps a wedding to a particular mill master… Now, if these are the foolish ravings of a dying man, please forgive me, and think no more on it.
But if I am correct… Know I am well pleased. I wish you every happiness, my darling girl. I believe you have made a wise choice, and you will be just what each other needs.
I wish the best for you, dear Margaret, whatever you choose. Know that I will be with your father looking down on you, always, with all my love.
Your devoted godfather,
Adam Bell
Margaret stared in wonder at the words she had read. She wiped her tears onto the back of her hand. How could Mr. Bell have known? Her heart swelled in renewed gratitude and love for the man who had done so much to look out for her.
Behind the letter she found the documents for the home in Oxford. As she looked over the papers, an idea came to her mind.
She opened the door and Mr. Taylor came back into the office.
"Are you all right, Miss Hale?" He looked concernedly at her tear-streaked face. "I understand it must be distressing."
"No, Mr. Taylor, I am fine. I am quite well." She smiled at him. "If you don't mind, I should like to ask you for a favor."