No Journey Too Far (McAlister Family #2) - Carrie Turansky Page 0,11
be glad to help.”
Garth released a deep breath, relieved his request had been made and that Andrew was agreeable. “Thank you.”
Mum’s eyes lit up. “Perhaps you can deliver a letter and packet to the man in Toronto who is overseeing the search for Grace.”
Garth straightened. “I’d be happy to.” If he could somehow help in the search to locate his younger sister, he was more than willing.
“But I hope you won’t leave right away.” Mum laid her hand on his arm. “We’ve missed you so much.”
Garth smiled, warmed by his mum’s kind words and gentle touch. “Rob and I would like to stay for at least a week or so. It will take that long to make our arrangements for the trip.”
Mum patted his knee. “That’s not very long, but I’ll try to be grateful and enjoy each day.”
Garth slipped his arm around Mum’s shoulders. “Thank you, Mum. I hope you know how much I love you and all the family.”
“I do, son.” Her eyes glistened with unshed tears, and she quickly blinked them away. “You’ll always have a special place in my heart.”
Gratefulness flowed through him like a warm wave. His mum had waited so many years for his return to England, and she’d covered him in prayer all that time. He would make the most of these days and show her how much she meant to him.
It would be hard to leave them all, but he couldn’t ignore the urgency he felt to return to Canada. He would deliver the packet to the private detective overseeing the search for Grace and then look into what was required for his veterinary training. But first he had to keep his promise to Emma and make sure she knew how much he cared.
Belleville, Ontario
Emma Lafferty knelt on the kitchen floor of the Hazelton Boardinghouse and dipped her scrub brush in the bucket of cold gray water. She wiped her sleeve across her damp forehead, then pushed the brush over the next few feet of pine planking. Her light-brown hair fell forward, and with a weary sigh, she tucked it behind her ears.
Her shoulders and knees ached from all the tasks she’d done that day, but her heart ached more. Why hadn’t Garth replied to her letters? That painful question cycled through her mind every day as she tackled the cleaning and laundry at this drafty old boardinghouse.
It had been four months since she’d received Garth’s last quickly scrawled note, dated 5 November 1918, from Armentières, France. The war officially ended a week later, and with each passing day, the possible explanation for why she hadn’t heard from him grew from a nagging worry to a dreaded fear.
Garth couldn’t be gone!
Even after everything else that had happened to her in the past few months, losing him would be the worst blow of all. No one else loved her the way Garth did. And few seemed to care what happened to her since she’d fled Mr. Gilchrest’s farm in mid-December.
The memory of the frightening events that sent her running through the night tightened her throat. She swallowed hard, trying to hold back tears, but a sob escaped. Oh, Garth, where are you? Why don’t you come? Every day with no word strains my heart near to breaking.
Was she a fool to hold on to the hope that he still loved her and would make it home from this terrible war? He’d told her that his duty, caring for the regiment’s horses, kept him out of the trenches and away from the line of fire, but that didn’t mean he was never in danger. Even now, he could be injured and languishing in some military hospital in France or England.
She closed her eyes. Please, Lord, if he’s been hurt, watch over him and restore him to full health. Send some word. Let me know he’s still alive.
Could there be some other explanation for his silence? Had her letters to him been lost? If that were the case, then he wouldn’t know that the terrible flu epidemic had sickened her and claimed Verna’s life. He wouldn’t know she’d run away to save herself from Mr. Gilchrest’s terrible threats and vile intentions.
Emma shuddered and dipped her brush back in the bucket. After she’d found her way to Belleville and made an agreement with the owner of the boardinghouse to work in exchange for her room and meals, she’d written to Garth again and told him what had happened, and she’d continued writing every week.