Dillard Beach Mystery – 84

Rebekah stood back, holding the door open, and stared at the figure of her husband. It took a moment to fully realize who it was she was looking at.

“I can hardly believe it is you.”

“It is myself, finally returned home.”

His hat and coat were wet and his boots were caked with mud. “You must be soaked to the very skin. Come in, and sit by the fire.”

Edward nodded. “More than soaked through, I fear.” He shook his head and cold water dripped from the corner of his felt hat and ran off his raincoat, leaving puddles on the wooden floor.

Rebekah stood staring at him, unsure of what to do next. It was Ezra’s cry that finally caused her to move.

“Papa!” Ezra called. “Papa!” The boy reached for the Captain and the two embraced. 

“Ezra, my boy.” Chapman grinned at the child. “You are glad to see me?”

“Yes, Papa!” Ezra’s joy at seeing his stepfather could not be contained. 

Rebekah took a step closer. Edward stood, turned towards her, and asked, “And you Rebekah, are you happy to see me as well?”

Rebekah paused before answering. “Don’t be daft. Of course I am grateful you are home and safe, husband,” Rebekah answered.

“You were not worried for my safety were you?” He teased. “You might have thought I was lost at sea?”

Rebekah shook her head. 

“You are too good a seaman to be lost in the waves. But, I admit, I worried over you just the same.” She studied his face. “Why did you not send word? We expected you several weeks past. Even Mr. Curwen at your warehouse was becoming concerned. When we did not hear from you he believed your journey north had failed. Why did you not send word?”

Her questions fell over themselves one after the other, allowing the Captain no chance to answer.

Edward stepped back and untangled himself from Ezra’s grasp. “Give me time and I promise to answer all your questions.”

Rebekah reached out and touched his arm. “It is hard to believe you are really here with us. For your part, your journey might not have seemed so long a time, – just a few weeks, but for little Ezra and for myself, it seemed endless. I missed you.”

Chapman smiled at his wife. 

“But that is the very nature of my occupation… unexpected situations happen all the time.” He turned and looked about the great room. Philippa and her husband William were seated near the hearth. 

“William, you are master at the Aptuxcet Post. You understand trading matters, do you not? Please, tell my wife, delays and unexpected opportunities that take you far afield are part of the life of a trader.” He turned and looked at Rebekah. “I am sorry for causing you distress, my dear. I promise to do better in future.” 

“Better in causing distress? Or in avoiding delays?” Rebekah asked.

Chapman laughed out loud. “Now, tell me, where can a ship’s captain find some grub at this hour? I have not had a morsel since dawn.”

Jacinda stepped forward and declared there was food waiting for the Captain in the keeping room. “Come with me, Edward, I will see you are fed properly.”

Jacinda began to lead the Captain out of the great room. Little Ezra, followed close on their heels. “I come too,” the boy declared.

“Ezra,” Rebeca warned her son, “Leave the Captain be. It is getting late, and time you were in bed. The Captain will still be here in the morning. You can see him then.” Rebekah turned to her husband. “You are staying here tonight?”

“Of course, where else would I be?”

“I thought perhaps you would return to your ship.”

Edward looked at his wife and smiled. “No. I am staying here in the main house. I believe you and I have unfinished business to attend to.  Do you not agree?” He did not wait for Rebekah to answer. Instead, he turned and began to follow Jacinda down the hall towards the Keeping Room. ”I will only be a little while, and Ezra, pay attention to your mother. It is past your bedtime.” 

Rebekah waited in the great room with Philippa and William. All three sat quietly, listening to the crackling of the fire until the clock in the hallway chimed eleven. William shifted in the oversized wing chair. “No need to add another log at this late hour,” William declared. “It is nearly time for us to retire.” He looked at Rebekah and yawned. 

Philippa rose from her chair and grasped the long handle of the warming pan that hung on a wall hook next to the fireplace. She opened the cover and using the tongs, added a few coals from the fire to the pan. “On such a night as this, a warming pan is a blessing.”

Philippa stood up and gave Rebekah a knowing smile. “I expect you will not be needing a warming pan this night Rebekah.” 

Rebekah felt her face flush with heat and knew it had nothing to do with hot embers in warming pans. “Good night Philippa,” she said. “I will see you in the morning.” Once they had departed, Rebekah returned to sit in one of the wing chairs. She sat in the chair closest to the door, then stood up and sat on the bench against the wall. A moment later, she stood up and straightened her skirts then sat down again. 

“There is no reason to be nervous,” she berated herself. “You are an experienced midwife – and a mother, after all! Then why am I a bundle of nerves? It is not as if I am a virgin without experience. I know what the marriage bed is all about. There are no surprises, after all.” She looked down at the ring on the third finger of her left hand: a gold circlet with a single red stone surrounded by small clear stones. Chapman told her it had belonged to his grandmother and was quite valuable. Afraid of losing it, she seldom wore the ring and preferred to display it on a chain around her neck when working as a midwife. But for tonight, she had taken the ring off the chain and slipped it on her finger. It was her wedding night, after all.

She heard footsteps in the hallway and listened as they stopped just outside the door.

“Rebekah?” Edward whispered.

“I am still here.”

“I am sorry it took so long. Jacinda wanted to show me how she had organized the keeping room.”

“And it was important to do so tonight?” Rebekah could not help a touch of sarcasm.

“She thought it so.” He paused, then continued, “Let it go, Bekah. Jacinda is just being thorough.”

They sat in awkward silence for a few minutes, listening to the crackle of the fire, the rain against the windows and the wind blowing across the chimney.

Finally, Edward reached out and took his wife’s hand.“ I want you to know, Rebekah, I am very pleased to be your husband. While I was away I had time to consider our situation and realized I never took the time to share my thoughts with you.”

Rebekah said. “It all happened so quickly. We wed and then you were gone.”

“I know our courtship has been unusual. Some might think it more of a convenience. You secure your home in Dillard and I find myself owner of a valuable shoreline. If that is all it was, I would not have agreed. For me, it is more than that. I should have said… I am unsure if you know this… We never spoke our true feelings… But I do love you, Rebekah. I want you to know that.” He took her hand and brought it to his lips. “Do you believe me?”

“I want to believe you, Edward. You have done me a great service, securing my home for me. You are kind to my son and I am sure you will be a wonderful father. Ezra loves you, of that I am certain.”

“And you? Do you have any love for me?”

“Of course. I am very fond of you. How could it be otherwise?”

“But love? Do you love me?”

Rebekah looked at her husband and smiled. “This word, ‘Love’? It is important that I use that particular word to describe my affections for you?”

“It is important to me. Love is a strong word, with deep meaning. I am glad if you are fond of me, but I would rather you declared you loved me.”

“The word I use makes such a great difference to you?”

“How could it not? It is the truth I seek, Rebekah.”

She looked at Edward and sighed. “Then let the word be “love”, Edward. For, after all that can be said, that is the truth of it.”

She reached out to him and touched his face, softly tracing the line of his jaw with one finger. He smiled, and kissed her gently on the lips. “Come then, wife, it is time we two make good on our contract.“ He took her by the hand and led her upstairs to their bedroom.