Forever, I Promise (A Northern Woods Novel) Read online

  “I think I see them – about 100 feet further, Nick.” Art pointed toward the trees ahead.

  Nick headed up the driveway. The heavy snow made it difficult for the plow to clear more than a path and by the time they arrived at the house it filled in quickly behind them.

  Nick put the truck in park then turned around to face Wade. “How do you feel? Think you’re able to make it into the house on your own?”

  “Much better; if my phone will work now that I’m near the house, I’ll call Hailey and have her press the remote for the garage door. It wouldn’t work out in the road where the snow blower stalled and I lost sense of direction.” He dialed the house phone. Hailey immediately picked up on the first ring.

  “Wade? Are you okay?” she asked, her voice filled with worry.

  “We’re outside the garage, hon. Push the button on the door opener and we’ll be right in.”

  The three of them entered the garage and shook the snow from their clothes the best they could before entering the house.

  “Don’t know if we’ll be able to make it back to the ranch; may need to wait for the Pinewood Hills Transportation Department to arrive with their plows, which might not be until tomorrow,” Nick added.

  “There’s plenty of room for the two of you here,” Hailey said. “You saved Wade’s life. We would prefer you remain here for the night rather than head back out in the blizzard. Call your wives and let them know you made it here safely. I’ll fix a pot of homemade chicken soup for all of us, the perfect meal for this cold weather.”

  “What do you think, Nick?” Art asked.

  “Sounds like a good idea. The horses were taken care of before we left. Hopefully the storm will slow down enough for the roads to be cleared by early morning.” Nick pulled his phone from his shirt pocket and called Mariah while Art phoned Lillie.

  Once the men finished eating their meal of soup and sandwiches Hailey cleared the dishes from the table while the men remained where they were to discuss what happened.

  “When the snow blower quit on me I knew I wouldn’t be able to fix it with a blizzard approaching along with the wild wind and no tools. I had no idea which direction I’d gone. I thought I’d traveled no further than the middle of the driveway. If the two of you hadn’t been able to arrive I don’t think I’d have made it. Thank you for putting your own lives at risk for mine.”

  “We hit the road the minute your wife called,” Nick said. “She told me you’d been away from the house for a couple of hours so I figured you were in trouble. I was mighty thankful Art was available. It would have been dangerous for anyone to make a go of it alone.”

  Hailey stood behind Wade and rested a hand on his shoulder. “I’d like to thank you also. You saved my husband’s life.”

  Wade looked up at her and lovingly placed his hand over hers. “She’s right, guys. We could never thank you enough.”

  “Why don’t the three of you go into the living room where it’s warm? I’ll bring each of you a hot toddy and you can relax in front of the fireplace. In the meantime I’ll get the guest rooms ready for you.”

  “Good idea,” Wade said, and the three of them pushed their chairs away from the table and stood.

  “You’re mighty lucky your hands didn’t freeze,” Nick stated.

  “My insulated gloves and boots are the best you can buy. I’m glad I caved in and paid the high price for ’em.”

  The men entered the living room and relaxed in comfortable chairs near the fireplace. Wade tossed another log on the fire, turned on the television and the three of them listened carefully to the weather report. All roads were closed for the northern third of Minnesota. The snow was predicted to lighten by the mid-morning hours. They advised everyone to remain indoors until further notice.

  The following morning by seven a.m. the road was cleared enough for Nick and Art to get back to the ranch and check on the horses. “Wade, I want you to stay home, relax and rest up. We’ll see you Monday,” Nick said.

  “Thanks, but I’m feeling okay. You’re going to need help if some of the other men aren’t able to make it in.”

  “We’ll be fine. Art and I have handled the horses on our own before. There were a few times in the past when the workers were unable to travel. You take the day off and rest up. Eat some more of your wife’s delicious homemade soup.”

  * * *

  The next day Hailey stomped through the deep snow along the driveway to retrieve the mail. When she returned to the house she handed a brown letter-size envelope addressed to Wade. “This is for you. It’s a bit odd, though. It doesn’t have our address or a return address – only your name. It doesn’t even have a stamp.” She set it on the table next to him. He picked it up and glanced at the sloppy print of his name. When he opened the envelope a small piece of notepaper fell to the floor. Hailey bent down to pick it up and read it aloud: “YOU MADE A BIG MISTAKE YOU WILL SOON REGRET. Oh my God, who could have written this?” She handed it to him.

  “I have no idea. It was probably kids playing pranks. Being a snow day and schools closed they probably have nothing better to do.” Or perhaps it was the jerk who had wanted my job, Wade thought to himself.

  Chapter Ten

  Christmas had come and gone and spring finally arrived. Hailey was in the greenhouse finishing up an arrangement of flowers for a June wedding when Mariah peeked in the window then knocked on the door. Hailey motioned for her to come in.

  “Good morning.”

  “My goodness, Hailey. The wedding bouquets are gorgeous!” Mariah exclaimed when she stepped through the doorway. The bridal bouquet was made of white roses surrounded by purple delphinium, the bridesmaid bouquets of white lisianthus, and a basket of white rose petals for the flower girl. “They’re absolutely perfect for the month of June.”

  “Thank you. So what brings you here so early?”

  “I dropped Nicky off at the bus stop and decided I was due for a Starbucks. Would you like to come along?” She glanced around the room then focused on a long table filled with orders that were waiting to be delivered. “My goodness, I see your customers are keeping you busy. Can you even spare the time for a coffee break?”

  “Sounds like fun, but I have several deliveries to be made before noon. We could take my company van and drop them off at their destinations then continue on to the Starbucks in Huntington.”

  “Great! I’ll help you carry them out to your vehicle.”

  Hailey’s Garden had been successful over the winter months, with Christmas, the New Year celebrations and Valentine’s Day along with weddings, anniversaries and birthdays. Wade surprised Hailey on March 20th, the first day of spring. He talked her into going for a ride then drove into the parking lot of a car dealer to purchase a company van. Wade recommended the vehicle to be a dark color, easy to be seen if it was driven on a snowy winter day. She chose her van to be red rose and hired an artist to paint both sides of the van with beautiful flowers that surrounded her company name of Hailey’s Garden. There was also a large white rose painted on the hood. It was beautiful and she was very proud of it.

  “Okay, we’re ready to go. It won’t take long to make the deliveries then off to Starbucks. It’s been a while since I’ve had a white chocolate mocha.”

  * * *

  They sat at a table in front of a Starbucks window; each munched on a large chocolate cookie with their coffee.

  “Look, isn’t that cute?” Mariah pointed out the window. There was a woman riding a bicycle near the side of the road, pulling a baby carriage behind her.

  “I saw a woman riding with one on State Route 2E when Wade and I took a ride to Bemidji last week. It seemed unsafe to be riding a bicycle that close to a fairly busy road, but pulling a baby carriage appeared to be quite dangerous. She seemed to be in a hurry.”

  “Perhaps taking the baby out for a bike ride was her way of losing all the weight she gained while pregnant.”

  Hailey slowly looked up at Mariah.

  “Oh, I’m s
orry, Hailey. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”

  “That’s okay… I’ve gotten used to the fact that there will be no babies for me and Wade.” Hailey sadly pushed a few cookie crumbs around on the table with her finger. “My garden and flower shop keep me so busy I don’t think much about it anymore.”

  “That’s good.” Mariah placed her hand on Hailey’s arm. “You’re doing a wonderful job, and keeping me busy also. I love working with you from time to time.”

  “Yes, and you’ve been a lifesaver during the hectic months.” She smiled and looked at her watch. “Are you about ready to go back? I have a bit more work to do yet today.”

  They picked up their purses and hurried out the door. While Hailey clicked the button on her key to unlock the van she found a note on the windshield. I’d like to order flowers for my mother’s funeral. Please call me ASAP, and left a phone number.

  “What’s that all about?”

  Hailey handed her the note. “I’ll need to get at this right away.”

  “Thank goodness it’s from a customer and not a parking ticket,” Mariah said, and they both laughed as Hailey backed out of her parking space.

  “I think it’s going to be a busy summer – which means I’ll most likely need your assistance if you’re available.”

  “Anytime, Hailey; just let me know. Bess will be around to care for the children. I’ve enjoyed helping you out now and then.”

  Hailey pulled into the driveway and they both hopped out of the vehicle.

  “Will you need a hand with the new order?”

  “No, I’ll be fine. I have exactly what she needs and it won’t take me long at all.”

  “Good – I should get home before Nicky returns from school, and I still need to take something out of the freezer for dinner. This is Bess’s day off with her niece.”

  “Okay, talk to you soon,” Hailey said with a wave and headed toward the greenhouse, although she thought better of it; she turned and walked to the house. Poor Holly hasn’t been outdoors for quite a while. She hurried in and brought her outdoors to the kennel run before she set about completing the urgent order.

  Two hours later Wade entered. “I see you’re busy,” he said with a smile.

  “Oh!” She placed her hand on her chest. “You scared the living daylight out of me! You’re off work already?”

  “I’m sorry, I thought you heard the door open, and yes, it’s six p.m. Do you have much more to do?”

  She glanced at her watch. “I’m sorry, honey. My work kept me awfully busy today. Dinner never even crossed my mind.”

  “Finish up here and I’ll take you out to eat.”

  “Wonderful! I’m just about ready to close shop. I’ll be in shortly. I’d better feed Holly before we leave.”

  “I’ll take care of her as soon as I wash up and change.”

  “Thank you,” she said and smiled up at him. “I love you.”

  “Would you like to go to Applebee’s?” he asked.

  “Yes, that would be nice. I’ll be right in.”

  She cleaned off the counter, removed her apron, and carefully inspected the area to make sure everything was put away before she closed and locked the door.

  She walked in through the sliding door and saw Wade walking down the hallway dressed in clean clothes. “I’d better change my clothes, also.”

  “You look fine, honey.”

  She looked down at her navy blue slacks and light blue blouse with mid-length sleeves. “I guess my outfit is decent enough. I made a few deliveries around noon. Mariah road along and after I completed the drop-offs we went to Starbucks.”

  “Okay, are you ready? I’m starving.”

  She nodded. “I’m pretty hungry myself.” She grabbed a sweater in case of a wind chill by the time they return. “Bye Holly, we’ll be back in a little while,” she said, and bent down to scratch the dog behind her ear before she curled up on her bed.

  They were immediately seated at a table and as soon as the waitress took their order Wade filled in the time with talk of his workday.

  “It’s hard to believe the twins are already five years old. Bess’s niece came to visit this week. Being from Kentucky, she owns a few equine of her own and she took the girls for a ride on one of the few gentle horses on the ranch. They had a blast. Now they’re trying to talk Nick into purchasing a pony, one for each of them.” He chuckled softly.

  The server took their orders then returned with their coffee. Twenty minutes later she delivered their dinner of prime ribs, baked potato and a Caesar salad. When the server left, Hailey looked down at her plate. “I ordered breaded shrimp with fries, but that’s okay.”

  “Would you rather have the shrimp? I can call her back if you’d like.”

  “Actually this looks better than the shrimp anyway.” She smiled and dug in.

  They chatted, she told Wade how her day went and toward the end of the meal she also mentioned the woman and child she and Mariah noticed riding down the street where Starbucks was located. “I’m sure she was the same person we saw on our trip to Bemidji last week.”

  “I doubt it, Hailey. That would’ve been an awfully long ride, especially with a baby being towed.”

  “Well her face looked a bit familiar when she passed by.”

  “Familiar? How? You couldn’t have seen much of her face from the car. After all, we were traveling at fifty miles per hour.”

  “I meant she looked familiar when she passed by the window at Starbucks. Oh well.”

  “Perhaps she was someone you knew in your class at Lake Superior College.”

  “Hmmm… I’ll have to think about it.”

  * * *

  The next morning Hailey was awake by five. Wade was almost ready to head off to work. He dressed in a pair of jeans, a plaid short-sleeve work shirt then pushed his feet into his cowboy boots and slid his arms into the sleeves of his Levi’s jacket. The air was still cool this early before the sun rose. Hailey dressed in her blue jeans and a light-weight short-sleeve blouse. She planned to be working out in the sun most of the day; she had a lot to do in her three acre outdoor garden. The weather service predicted a mostly sunny day with a high of seventy-five degrees – a perfect temperature for examining and weeding each and every one of her flower beds.

  At seven a.m. she brought Holly out for a short walk then returned for a cup of coffee before she began her gardening. Holly was lying on the kitchen floor next to her feet while Hailey sat at the table and set in to read the Pinewood Hills Tribune. She picked up her coffee and took a sip when she abruptly heard a strange noise. She peered through the sliding glass door and moved her eyes slowly as she searched beyond the deck, though she saw nothing in particular. She glanced at Holly but apparently the pup heard nothing at all. She was sound asleep. If Holly heard nothing it must have been my imagination. She poured one more cup of coffee and continued to read.

  Thirty minutes later she glanced at the clock over the stove. It was nine a.m., the perfect hour to begin her work before it became too warm.

  “Come, Holly. You can sit by my side for a little while.” Holly followed her outdoors and down the stone walkway. They stopped near a grassy area where she, with the help of Wade, had placed a marble bench for visitors to sit and admire the beautiful three acres of floral brilliance. The flowers had bloomed and the grass beyond was deep green. Working in her garden always filled her with peace and contentment.

  She knelt in the grass beside the edge of the terrace and was sorry she hadn’t made use of her kneeler. She expected the morning sun to have dried the grass by now, but it was still damp from the rain that had fallen during the early morning hours, leaving a wet print on the knees of her jeans. As she reached forward to remove a few weeds that appeared around her rose bushes, Holly abruptly began to bark.

  “What’s the matter girl?” she asked, and Holly took off down the stone walkway, then stopped and looked back at Hailey. She barked again before she turned and continued to run. What’s goin
g on? Hailey promptly pushed herself to her feet and dusted off her jeans. Brushing a strand of hair away from her face she followed Holly. When she came to the end of the path she stopped in her tracks. “Oh my…”

  Chapter Eleven

  Hailey was surprised to see a baby carriage. The type she and Mariah viewed when they sat and reminisced at Starbucks – a child carrier which would attach to the back of a bicycle.

  She looked around the garden. “Hello?” she called out. “Hello?” She searched in all directions but saw no one. The baby began to fuss. She glanced into the carriage to see an infant with a cute cherubic face encircled by a pink bonnet. The color suggested it was a baby girl; one side of the bonnet had slipped down and displayed a bit of light brown fuzz on her little head. She appeared to be approximately eight weeks old. Unbelievable. Who would leave an adorable eight-week-old baby in her garden?

  Hailey noticed the carriage was a trailer and stroller in one. The arm which connected to a bicycle had a small wheel attached. The baby began to cry and Hailey slowly moved the stroller back and forth, and once again called out, “Hello? Your little one is crying for you.” There was still no answer. The infant continued to cry and Hailey reached into the carriage and felt her diaper. It definitely needed changing. She bent down and reached for the child when a bright pink sheet of paper tucked into the baby’s blanket caught her eye. It was evidently a handwritten letter and Hailey quickly snatched it from the bedding before she gently lifted the infant from the carrier. Holly brought her nose to the baby’s toe and sniffed, then sat quietly, while she kept her eyes on her.

  Hailey slowly rocked the child in her arms and thankfully the crying stopped. She read the letter:

  Dear Hailey,

  I need your help. My daughter’s name is Tara Leigh Carson. She was born on April 14th and will soon be nine weeks old.

  I know you’ve always loved children and I hope you will be able to care for her. At the moment I am unable to safely keep her by my side. I beg of you. Please treat her well, love her, and protect her. I will return when possible. I love her dearly.