Laurel: Bride of Arkansas (American Mail-Order Bride 25) by Carra Copelin Page B

when it passed, the damage to the town was extensive.
    “I made my way back to the house I shared with Aunt Lottie and it was gone. If I hadn’t known it had been there, I wouldn’t have known it existed. The two houses on either side had only minimal damage. We never found Lottie.”
    “Oh good Lord. I’m so sorry, Laurel.” She reached her arms around Laurel and hugged tightly. “But wait a minute, where was your Aunt from originally?”
    “She and my mother were from Boston, why?”
    “I went to school in Boston and was acquainted with a Carlotta Carlisle.” Gwenda smiled. “I remember she had more radical ideas than the rest of us.”
    Laurel returned her smile. “That would be Lottie. She was fiercely independent and a member of NAWSA , the women’s suffrage movement.
    “Well, I’m sorry for your loss. She had some spunk, that one. I’m sure you miss her terribly.”
    “I do, and talking about her makes me realize how much I miss my mother.” She turned to Gwenda, placed her hand on her new friend’s arm. “I’ve been stubborn where my parents are concerned. I thought I needed to distance myself from my father’s domination, but in the end, I’ve only separated myself from the ones I love.”
    “Speaking as a mother who’s lost a child, I can tell you, your mother misses you greatly. You have the power to give her daughter back to her.”
    “I see that, now.”
    “Gwen! Gwen!” Henry came running up to them, panic written all over his face. “Do you smell the smoke?”
    “I hadn’t noticed it, no.” Gwenda stood and sniffed the air. “Perhaps now that you’ve brought it to my attention, I do. Which direction is it coming from?”
    “I’m not sure. The smoke could just be riding under the cloud cover from over the ridge. The clouds will make it hard to see the smoke.”
    “No, they won’t.” Laurel grabbed Henry’s shoulder to gain his attention and pointed in the direction Griffin and Ansel had driven off in. The clouds in the sky to the north had turned black again, which served as the perfect backdrop for the white-gray smoke that billowed heavenward. As she stared at the sky, what she knew to be smoke was accompanied by a red glow, licking across the top of the ridge. They had to get out of here. “The fire is coming toward us. What do we do, Henry?”
    “Get the girls and meet me out back. I’ll hitch the horse to the wagon and we’ll head down to the river. That’s the safest place for us to ride this out.”
    Laurel and Gwenda ran to the back of the house to get Coral and Josie gathered up. The smell of smoke was now more prevalent and clogged the air. Laurel hesitated at the entrance to the small room for a second or two, the memories assaulting her and intensifying her senses. For those couple of seconds, she was back in that room at the mill, with the door blocked and no escape. Josie’s tiny whimper at being woken up spurred her into action.
    As they headed out the back door, Coral asked, “Grandma, where are we going?”
    “We’re going down to the river.” She glanced over at Laurel as they set both girls into the bed of the wagon. “You remember how you like to play along the shore, don’t you?”
    “Uh-huh, but we want our dollies, can’t we have our dollies?”
    “No, darling, we have to go.”
    Laurel looked over her shoulder, beyond the roof of the house, and made her decision. “Yes, sweetheart, I’ll go get them for you.”
    “There’s no time,” Henry shouted. “We have to go now!”
    “I’ll be right behind you.” she slapped the side of the wagon. “Go!”
    Heading back to the house, she understood Gwenda and Henry thought she was crazy and, no doubt, Griffin would be furious with her. Flibberdegibbit, right at this moment, she questioned her own judgement. All she knew was, the world the girls were used to, was frightening at best and she wanted them to have something familiar they could hold on to.
    She ran upstairs to the bedroom