Laura's Second Chance (Widows of Virginia Book #2)(14)

Mercy nodded as Elizabeth handed her an envelope.

“Thank you,” The woman whispered and quickly left.

Mercy folded and tucked the envelope inside her skirt pocket, just as Mrs. Grayson walked into the room. Mercy immediately tensed. The pastor and his wife might have raised her, given her home and now a place to work, but that didn’t mean she got special treatment. And while the mild-mannered pastor spoiled all the kids, his hot headed wife was known for her discipline and temper.

Teresa raised a thin eyebrow at Mercy. “Who was that?”

“Mrs. Grayson?” Mercy tried to avoid the topic.

The older woman crossed her arms and frowned at Mercy. “I saw a young woman here a minute ago. What did she want?”

But before Mercy could answer, Mrs. Grayson had thrown her head to the ceiling and said, “Lord, have mercy! It was one of those mail order brides, wasn’t it? And what did she want, for Father Hector to give his blessing?” She shook her head. “He is far too kind.”

Mercy stood, unmoving, beside her table, content with letting the older woman answer her own questions. Mail order brides weren’t as scandalous as they were three decades ago, but some still weren’t sold on the idea. Like Mrs. Grayson. Fortunately, her husband, the pastor, was more open-minded.

The woman shook her head and turned around.

“Oh, Mrs. Grayson!” Mercy went up to the nun and handed her some coins. “I have another small donation to the orphanage, by the way.”

The pastor’s wife looked at the money. Her brows furrowed, but she took it anyway with a hurried “God bless.” She contemplated Mercy, from her well-kept dark curls to her faded boots. After a brief pause she relaxed and seemingly remembered something. “One of those Catholic Sisters who donate and volunteer for us, what was her name… Ah, Sister Bernadette, said you plan on becoming a nun?”

Mercy smiled, cheeks tinted pink by the woman’s scrutiny.

“Yes, I want to work at the orphanage without being a burden to you and the pastor. It’s the only home I’ve ever known. I don’t - well, there aren’t really any suitors, there aren’t many paid jobs, and I’m already eighteen years of age…”

Mrs. Grayson sighed and nodded. “…so you can’t stay living here much longer.” For a moment Mercy thought she caught a note of sadness in Mrs. Grayson’s voice. “I’d change the rules Mercy, if we weren’t already bursting at the seams. Don’t know what we’ll do in the winter…”

“God will show us the way Mrs. Grayson. That’s why I thought about the nuns. I could do so much good…”

Mrs. Grayson sighed heavily, even after all those years she still didn’t fully approve of the catholic neighbors. “You’ve got such a pure heart, Mercy. I’ve yet to see anyone as generous as you. Don’t give up on your faith yet. You said it yourself – The Lord will show us the way.”

Mercy blushed. It wasn’t every day that Mrs. Grayson gave out compliments, but when she did, she meant it. The woman left and Mercy took out the envelope. It was time to get her job done.

*



Mercy sat bolt upright awoken by the pounding on the bedroom door. She draped herself in a shawl she grabbed of the nightstand and struck a match to light the lantern hanging by her bed. Enid and Ramona, who shared the tiny room with Mercy, mumbled awake.

Mercy opened the door to find a distraught Sister Bernadette on the other side. The woman, only a few years older than Mercy, wrung her hands.

“What happened?” Lord have mercy! Please, let it not be bandits.

“It’s an emergency, Mercy,” the woman whispered. The Sisters were always the first ones to help the orphanage in need, and not just because they live right next door. She looked over Mercy’s shoulder at the other children who were watching from their beds. “Do you still have room in there? I’m afraid we’re going to have to share beds tonight.”

“What happened?” Mercy repeated, opening the door wider. “Outlaws? Where’s the sheriff's posse?”

Sister Bernadette shook her head. “No, no, it’s not the bandits, but there was a shipwreck and we’ve got around a dozen or so poor orphaned children right now who need a new home.”

She turned around and gestured to her right. Three small children, a boy and two girls shuffled towards Mercy. Sister Bernadette smiled at them. “This is Miss Mercy. You’ll be staying with her tonight.”

The little girl cried into her rag doll. “I wanna see my Mama!”

“Oh, no, don’t cry, Amy!” Sister Bernadette threw Mercy a panicked look.

Mercy crouched in front of the girl and smiled. “Amy?”

The girl looked up at Mercy with puffy, red eyes.

“I’m Mercy. It’s very nice to meet you.” The girl only hugged her doll tighter in response. “I know you miss your parents very much, but Sister Bernadette and I will take care of you. You must be tired.”

She looked at the other girl and boy.

“Are you kids tired?”

They nodded. Mercy glanced at Sister Bernadette, who sighed, before smiling back at her. “Thank you, Mercy.”

“C’mon, let’s get inside where it’s warm.” In truth, it wasn’t. The air was usually freezing and the blankets course and thin. But company always drove the cold away. “Enid, Ramona, say hello to our new friends!”