A Mail Order Bride for the Undertaker (Love by Mail #1)(11)

“No, I’m fine, Mercy.”

“Let me go with you, then. I’d like to offer my support to the family.”

Claire linked her arm with Mercy, and their shared warmth battled the cold. “Won’t Cole be looking for you, though?”

Mercy shook her head. “He’s back at the workshop and won’t be back till dinner time.”

They got to the Haynes’ house in a few minutes, and a young girl, around fifteen or so, let them in. Her eyes were red and swollen. “They’re upstairs,” she whispered as if the house itself was already a graveyard.

They went up the stairs, where a door to a dimly lit room was opened. Through it they saw Pastor Shepard hunched over a small, still figure on the bed. Claire stepped inside and the pastor took the basket. He turned to the man and woman beside him.

Mercy walked inside and stifled a gasp. The child lay on his back, eyes closed, and chest unmoving. She crossed herself.

The woman to Pastor Shepard’s side let out a loud sob, and she fell to her knees. Her husband tried to get her to stand up with Claire’s help. When the mother was finally back on her feet, she clutched Pastor Shepard’s arms.

“How will we bury him?” She asked. “We have no money for the funeral.”

The man rubbed her back, “Maybe we can borrow money somewhere.”

“It’s winter season, Clarke,” Mrs. Haynes sobbed. “Everybody’s saving for the cold.”

“You don’t have to worry about that,” Mercy suddenly found herself saying. They all looked at her, and she gulped. “I – I’m Mercy Elk-Beckett.” She still got the name wrong sometimes. “I’m sure my husband, Cole –” her cheeks reddened in the candlelight “—would gladly build your boy a casket for free.”

The woman blew into a scarf and turned to her husband, who looked at Mercy with doubt. She chewed on her cracked lips and turned back to Mercy. “He – he would do that?”

“Of course.”

“The Lord will provide,” Pastor Shepard said, clasping the man’s arm. “I don’t know any other undertaker who will do this for free. Cole Beckett is a man with a big heart.”

“Thank you,” the woman said, swallowing Mercy in a large hug. “Thank you.”





Chapter 6


The smell of salty sweet venison greeted Cole the moment he stepped foot inside the house. He smiled. Mercy had set the table as soon as he got inside.

“Smells good,” he said, smiling back at her.

She blushed and took a seat beside him. “How was your day?”

“Tiring, but worthwhile. I didn’t get a lot of commissions today, but I was able to sell a cabinet I had worked on last week.”

“Was that the one you painted white?”

Cole nodded, and closed his eyes at the scent of the meal in front of him. “This smells absolutely heavenly.” He took a spoonful and placed his hand over Mercy’s. “If I had known this was for dinner, I would’ve raced home an hour ago!”

Mercy laughed. “I know you’ve been working hard, and I wanted to repay you.”

“You don’t have to repay me,” Cole began, eating his meal. “I’m your husband. We’re one family now.”

In a few minutes, they had finished their meal in between small talk. Cole stretched out his arms, while Mercy took the dishes to the sink. He glanced at her small frame, and felt a surge of pride looking at his wife.

Mercy had to leave her town and everyone she knew to meet and marry him. On top of that, she had to put up with the people in Angel Creek. She was married to a strange undertaker, not exactly a young woman’s dream husband.

But she had stood by him, tried to make friends, and continued to be thankful and faithful. He didn’t know what he did to deserve her. His eyes subconsciously sought out the cross hanging over their doorway. He recalled their misunderstanding at the funeral, and felt guilt at his angry words.

“Um, Cole?” Mercy wiped her hands on her apron and sat beside him. “I met Claire Shepard this afternoon. Pastor Shepard had been called to the Haynes’ household. Their little boy, Carl…”

Cole straightened up. “What is it?”

“He succumbed to pneumonia.”

Cole shook his head and rubbed his face, thinking about the other burial they had just visited in the next town. “Another child? I should give them my condolences tomorrow.”

“I also offered them something.”

Cole doubted her pastries, however delicious they were, would’ve alleviated their grief, but he kept that thought to himself.

“I told them you would help with the funeral for free.”

“That was very kind of you – wait, what?”

Mercy took his hands in her smaller ones. “They didn’t have any money, and Pastor Shepard said that no other undertaker would offer a similar service.”

“So you volunteered me?” He took his hand from her and stood up abruptly. “Winter’s upon us, Mercy! How on earth can we buy our food if I don’t get payment for work?”

Mercy clasped her hands together, and looked up at him with wide eyes. Cole reigned in his anger. He clenched his fists at his side and lowered his voice. “I’m sorry, but I can’t work for free.”