Charlotte nodded. “I’ll let you get back to whatever you were doing.”

  “I was just carving.” He picked up the wooden cross he had just finished carving.

  “Oh, Will. It is just beautiful.” Charlotte ran her fingers across the roses he had carved into the cross. It stood on a base, where he had carved 1 Corinthians 13: 4 -5. “Love is patient and kind.”

  “That’s right. But it also says that love doesn’t boast and more importantly it doesn’t keep record of wrongs. Every day start with a clean slate.”

  “Is this for me?” she asked, holding the sculpture to her chest.

  “It is. I was hoping you could look at it and it would remind you of what we both need to do in life.”

  Charlotte gave Will a kiss on the cheek. “I will cherish this always. Thank you.”

  Will watched Charlotte leave and then he picked up another block of wood. He felt the heaviness of it in his hand. He grabbed a chisel off the bench and started shaving the corners of the wood. He didn’t know what he was going to carve, but he knew something would take shape.

  As he continued to carve, he thought about his pending visit to see Pastor James. He was hoping that they could marry without delay.

  Charlotte was in the dining room having breakfast the next morning when Milam came in holding a letter.

  “This was just delivered for you, Miss Charlotte.”

  “Thank you, Milam.” Charlotte looked at the letter. State of Oregon Assessment Office it said on the outside. Why would the state be writing to her?

  Charlotte used her knife to open the letter and pulled out the piece of paper. She scanned the paper and let out a little gasp.

  April 19, 1900

  Dear Mrs. Daniels,

  In updating our records, it came to light that there was an error in accounting for your property tax on your home at 7 Main Street, as well as the undertaker studio located at 6 Cedar Street for the years 1898 and 1899.

  The error was brought to light when the clerk was recording your husband’s death and closing out accounts.

  As such the taxes for 1898 and 1899 need to be paid. You are hereby requested to pay the amount of $327.84 no later than May 15, 1900 to cover the two previous tax years.

  An agent of the state will be in touch with you by May 1, 1900 to arrange payment.

  If you are not able to make the payment of $327.84, both properties will be seized for forfeiture within 30 days.

  Mr. James Talbot

  Office of Taxation and Assessment

  The State of Oregon

  That letter was written before the fire. She didn’t even know anything about taxes. She knew there were expenses, but Harris always took care of everything. Prior to his death she had no desire to learn. She didn’t know where his ledgers were. She read the letter again.

  She had less than 5 days to come up with how she was going to pay it. She needed her bank book to verify how much she had in her account.

  She sighed. It was just one more thing to add to the list of what she need to do. A headache started to form. She’d get dressed and go see Mr. Richards immediately.

  Chapter 8

  There was a line at the bank, and it took a short wait before she was up at the counter. She handed Tilde her bank book. “I need to verify the amount in my account, please.”

  Tilde took the book and went into the room in the back and pulled out a deposit card. “It looks like your record is off. You have $253.46.”

  “But I thought I had more than that.”

  “It appears you forgot to record a $54 payment.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can you tell me when that payment was?”

  “Can you hurry up?” a voice asked from behind her.

  Charlotte turned around. “I waited my turn, you can wait yours,” she said to the small crowd. She looked back at Tilde. “Can you tell me when that payment was?”

  “Do you need some help, Tilde?” Mr. Richards asked.

  Tilde looked at her husband. “I’m fine. Mrs. Daniels was just trying to get a balance on her account.”

  “Is everything alright, Mrs. Daniels? We have quite a few customers.”

  Charlotte took a deep breath and started again. “I need to find out exactly what my balance is.”

  Mr. Richards looked over his wife’s shoulder. “It appears that you have $253.46 in your account.”

  “Yes, but my bank book is $54 more than that. I’m just trying to figure out where the money went to.”

  It was so soft she almost didn’t hear it. “Perhaps you spent it on that laudanum you like so much.”

  “Who said that?” she turned and looked back at the people in line. These were all new faces. She didn’t recognize any of them. How did they know about her disease? “Who said that?” she demanded again.

  No one came forward. She felt her ears turn red and suddenly she was very hot. She pressed her hand against her cheeks to try to cool them down.

  “Are we done here, Mrs. Daniels?” Mr. Richards said, handing her the bank book.

  “No. I need $327. I received a letter from the tax assessment office.”

  Mr. Richards made a noise. “It appears, Mrs. Daniels, that you need to strongly consider what I said before.”

  She leaned over. “About marriage?” she whispered, hoping no one would hear her.

  “Precisely.”

  “She’s marrying me.” Will came through the crowd and took Charlotte by the arm. “Come on Charlotte, let’s go.” He nodded to the people behind the counter. Tilde looked at them with her mouth open. “Mr. Richards, Mrs. Richards, have a good day.”

  Charlotte took the bank book from Mr. Richards’ hand and allowed Will to guide her from the building.

  “Care to share what that was all about?”

  Charlotte moved the toe of her shoe in some dirt that was on the sidewalk. She watched it move back and forth with the movement of her foot. “Not really.”

  Will lifted her chin. “Hey. I got you.” He looked around the town. “I’d take you to the café to get some lunch, but unfortunately it isn’t around any longer.” Charlotte chuckled. “And I heard about this great tea shop, with all kinds of tea and sandwiches and cakes.” He gave her an exaggerated frown. “But it isn’t open yet.”

  Charlotte linked her arm in his. “How about we go back to my house and I’ll make us up some tea sandwiches and a pot of the best black tea I have.”

  “Sounds wonderful.” He kissed the tip of her nose.

  “You always make me feel better, Will.”

  “It’s what I do,” he smiled, leading her down the road back towards her residence.

  When they arrived at her house Charlotte went to put the kettle on then remove her wrap. Will went to the sitting room. Charlotte joined him after putting away her wrap.

  “The kettle will be just a few minutes. Milam left a note, she went with Tess to take the babies for a walk.”

  “So, what happened that disturbed you so much?”

  “I got this letter this morning. I owe a large amount of money and I went to see if I could take care of it immediately.” She pulled the letter out of her purse and handed to him.

  She sat down on the chaise lounge while he read the letter. She loved the lounger because she could sit there and look out the window into her garden. Her roses were just starting to bud.

  Milam must have left the window open as the curtains billowed into the room. It wasn’t warm enough to leave the windows open, and that side of the house was in the shade anyway. She closed the window as Will let out a low whistle. He handed her back the letter.

  “That is a lot of money. What are you going to do?”

  “Well I need to find a way to pay for it. I can’t lose the house. I honestly don’t know what I am going to do. Even if I send them everything I have, there won’t be anything left to live on.”

  “What would happen if you forfeit on the business?”

  “I don’t know.” It sounds like they would sell it for the tax value. Nothing is owed on it, so I don’t know how much it would be.”

  “Perhaps I can go see Luther Garrison? He’s a lawyer and might be able to let us know what we can do.” Charlotte nodded. She heard the kettle steaming and rose to go towards the kitchen.

  She handed the letter and her bank book back to Will. “Can you put them in that drawer with my journal? I’ll go make us some tea and lunch.”

  Will nodded and Charlotte left the room as she heard him open the drawer.

  It hurt Will to see Charlotte so upset from the events of the day. He had been walking by the bank when he heard the man call out to someone in the bank about a laudanum addiction. He knew it must have been Charlotte. He recognized the man but didn’t know his name. He would make a point of finding out the man’s name and stressing to him the importance of manners.

  He hadn’t planned on telling the Richards that he was marrying Charlotte, but when he saw her being berated, he knew he had to step in.

  At least she was allowing him to help her. He forgot to tell her that Pastor James was out of town, so they needed to wait to be married until he returned. Abby said it would be within the week.

  He folded up the letter and put it inside her bank book so he could place them in the drawer. It took a few tugs for the drawer to partially open. It was as if something was blocking its way.

  He slid his fingers underneath the space where the drawer fit until he felt what was hindering the drawer from opening.

  It was a glass bottle and the edge was just matching up with the table. He used his fingers to move it to one side and the drawer came open. After placing Charlotte’s papers in the drawer, he picked up the bottle.

  A familiar feeling started to build in his belly. He ran his thumb over the glass bottle. It was the right size. There wasn’t a label on it, but Will had no doubt as to the contents.

  He rocked the bottle back and forth in his hand, feeling the weight of it. Temptation was great, but he said a quick prayer for strength. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name… forgive us our trespasses… lead us not into temptation… deliver us from evil… forever and ever. Amen.

  He didn’t want to believe it. He couldn’t believe it. He wanted to think that if Charlotte was having trouble and was feeling the calling to take laudanum again, she would reach out to him. It was the promise they made to each other. Anger replaced the feeling of desire that had been growing in him.

  He heard Charlotte returning. “I just made some cold chicken sandwiches. I thought that would be the easiest. Will?” Charlotte put the tray down on the coffee table and sat on the chaise facing him. “Will, whatever is wrong?”

  Will laid the bottle out in the palm of his hand. “Is there something you want to talk about?”

  Will watched as Charlotte looked from the bottle back to him. She had a look of fear on her face.

  “I don’t know what that is.”

  “Don’t deny it, Charlotte. It was right here in the drawer with your journal.”

  “I honestly don’t know where that came from. It wasn’t there when I left the house this morning.”

  “Then how did it get here?”

  “I don’t know.” Charlotte looked frantic. “I honestly don’t.” She pressed her fingers to her lips.

  “Charlotte, we promised that if temptation ever got too much, then we would rely on each other. You must not trust me if you felt you couldn’t come and speak to me about this.

  “No. I’ve never seen that bottle before. Milam must have put it there.”

  Will stood up. “I cannot believe you would blame Milam for trying to sabotage your progress.”

  “It is the only thing that makes sense.”

  He wrapped his fingers around the bottle tightly. “Explain to me how that makes sense.”

  “I went to bed the other night right after we talked. Milam was the one who suggested I look at selling the house. Do you know what it means if I sell this house? It means she is without a home.”

  “That doesn’t make any sense. You think she is sabotaging you, so she doesn’t have to move? Charlotte, if you go down this path you are going to lose everything and not have anything left to move with.”

  “I know… but I went to the kitchen to get something to drink after we talked. It was late and I was ready for bed. She had made me a cup of warm milk to help me sleep.”

  “Does she normally do that?”

  “Sometimes. Normally she asks first. But it was there. So, I took it upstairs and drank it. It had a bitter taste, but not like laudanum. I didn’t think anything about it at the time.”

  “So, you are saying Milam poured laudanum into your milk.”

  “It wasn’t laudanum, Will. You have to believe me. It was something else.”

  “I need to leave, Charlotte. I cannot believe that you would blame your house servant of how many years?”

  “Nearly 20,” Charlotte whispered.

  “Nearly 20 years of attempting to sabotage your recovery. People fall, Charlotte. You admit it and seek help. I thought that you were stronger than that.” He walked towards the door, the bottle still clenched in his grip. “I need to leave. I’ll be back later. But remember Charlotte, if you can’t trust me with those types of secrets, then I don’t know if we have a future.”

  Charlotte sobbed as he took his leave. He was beyond angry. He felt his muscles quiver and his jaw tighten. It didn’t matter how much he loved her, until she admitted she was relapsing he couldn’t help.

  He strode purposefully down to the workshop where he lived. He looked at the town as he walked. People were still cleaning up from the fire, even though it had been a week ago when the flames incinerated a good portion of the town.

  He had grown fond of Silverpines since he had arrived there nearly seven months ago. It was a cool day in October when Dawson hired him. The winter was bitter cold, and he was thankful he could rent the apartment over the medical clinic. But when the weather turned warmer, he returned to the workshop. It was warm enough at night, cool enough during the day and most of all the price was right.

  He saw Tess and Milam walking from the park up towards him. He didn’t want to cross the street to avoid them, but he wasn’t sure what he would say either. He didn’t have to say anything as Tess called out to him.

  “Will! Are you coming from Momma’s?” Tess asked. Her voice reminded him of a melody. She was constantly smiling.

  “Yes. I was visiting with her for a bit.” He looked at Tess and decided it was better to ask than guess. “Has she seemed alright to you?”

  Tess looked at Milam. “She’s been distracted the past few days, but that isn’t anything new.”

  Will thought for a moment. “Has anything odd happened? Something that wouldn’t be normal behavior?”

  Tess shrugged. “Not that I’m aware of.” She adjusted the blanket over one of the babies.

  “Miss Charlotte got out of bed awful late the other day.”

  Tess nodded. “That’s right. We had gone on a walk and when we returned, I found her in the kitchen in her wrapper. It was nearly noon if I remember.”

  “That ain’t normal for Miss Charlotte. She is always dressed first thing in the morning. She normally has her hair done, and that watch pinned to her blouse.”

  Tess looked at him. “Why are you asking, Will?”

  Will sighed. “I found this in her sitting room.” He held out his hand with the small glass bottle in it. Tess gasped. He saw her nostrils flare and her face turn the color of berries in the summer sun.

  “That can’t be Miss Charlotte’s,” Milam said. “She said she would never use laudanum again.”

  “Do you think someone gave it to her?”

  “I can’t imagine who would do that,” Tess insisted.

  “Milam, were you up when Charlotte went to bed the other night?”

  “No, sir. I told her about 8 o’clock that she needed to go to bed. It had been a long day with Miss Fannie’s funeral. She was writing in that book she carries around. I don’t know what time she finally retired.”

  “What time did you go to bed?”

  “Right after I said goodnight to Miss Charlotte.”

  Will thought for another minute. “Did you make her warm milk before you went to bed?”

  “We were out of milk. Mrs. Green’s cow ran dry. I couldn’t get any more milk until this morning.” The baby started to cry softly. The cries woke up the other baby and the cries began in earnest.

  Tess looked at Will. Her jaw was set firm and she had such a tight grip on the buggy her knuckles were turning white. “We need to get back home. Oscar and Rosie need to be fed.”

  Will nodded. “Can you just let me know if you see anything out of place?” Tess agreed and the small party headed back up the street.

  Will headed into the workshop and placed the bottle on the counter. It sat there silently taunting him.

  He grabbed the bottle and was about to throw it at the wall when the door opened, and the Marshal walked in.

  “Woah,” Alex said, ducking under his arms. “It’s just me.”

  Will dropped his hand, releasing the bottle back on the counter.

  “What’s this?” Alex asked, walking over to pick up the bottle. He looked at the glass container and rocked it in his hands, watching the dark liquid move within the walls. “Is this what I think it is?”

  Will nodded. He couldn’t speak. Alex opened the vial and sniffed the contents. “Where did you get this? Is it yours?”

  Will sighed. He wasn’t about to let Alex know it was Charlotte, so he said the only thing he could think of to say. “It’s mine.”

  Chapter 9

  Charlotte hadn’t moved since Will left. She couldn’t believe that there was another bottle. One was curious, two were suspicious.

  Will looked so angry when he left. Charlotte knew it would take quite a bit for him to come back.

  She heard the front door slam and the sound of the babies crying. Tess’s footsteps reverberated across the floor and she pushed open the door to the sitting room. She walked right up to Charlotte and swung her hand back, letting it fly into her mother’s cheek.