“I keep trying to think of something. The way I see it, either way, Max gets burned. If I do Simon’s bidding and leave, Max will lose his apprentice. If I stay and incur Simon’s wrath, Max will keep me as his apprentice but might lose a whole lot more.”
Max’s cabin appeared ahead of them, and the two walked in silence a few paces. Finally Charlotte said, “I’m glad you told me. No one should deal with this kind of problem alone. I will try to think of something.”
“Thank you, Miss Rose, but please don’t tell Max.”
Charlotte sighed. “It’s not for me to tell him, but I think you should. He’s good at fixing things. He might be able to fix this.”
Tim stopped suddenly, bringing Charlotte’s steps to a halt as well. “Miss Rose, perhaps I don’t need to tell you this, but as tough as Max is, he’s also very kind. He wouldn’t think twice about sacrificing himself for me. He already has, you know. He’s paying Simon for my work, despite also providing my room and board and spending countless hours teaching me everything he knows. He has protected me ever since he knew me, to his detriment. I don’t want him to do that in this situation. I won’t let Simon win here, and I’m determined to figure out a way out of this so that Max doesn’t get the short end of the stick. If I tell Max, he will set in motion a plan to my benefit, not to his own. He still thinks of me as a child, a child he needs to protect, and I want to be the man here and finally do right by him.”
Charlotte listened without interrupting, a lump growing in her throat as she did. The love between Max and Tim was apparent. When she reflected on Max’s gentle and protective treatment of the abused boy, she saw that it resembled his care toward her. Tim and Charlotte were also alike in their need to prove something to Max. Tim wanted to prove he was a strong man, not a scared boy, and Charlotte wanted to prove she was a capable woman, not a foolish girl. She fully understood Tim’s reticence to involve Max in his troubles.
“I won’t tell him, Tim, and I’ll help you however I can.”
Chapter Seven: Charlotte’s Secret
Charlotte’s classes began. The children sat on sturdy new benches and wrote on desks without splinters. Max was able to finish all the work before school started. He even surprised Charlotte by building a brand new desk for her using rich mahogany wood. She entered the schoolhouse an hour before the children showed up on the first day. Her eyes immediately fell on the beautiful desk in the front. She ran to it and opened the top drawer, which contained a pink rose and a note.
Good luck on your first day, Miss Rose. I wanted you to have a little something extra. Love, Max
The gesture was practical and sweet, just like Max, and it brought a huge smile to her face that lasted the entire day, which was a difficult one. She learned that most of the children were a couple of years behind in their education and required more attention than she’d thought they would. Still, she enjoyed the work more and more as the days passed, and she adored the children, most of whom were eager to please and studious in their homework.
After a couple of weeks of teaching, she received her first paycheck, which gave her a sense of pride and accomplishment. Sitting at her desk in her room at the boardinghouse, she struggled to write out a spending plan for the next two weeks. Teaching came naturally to Charlotte, but budgeting did not. She chewed her pencil and wrote down each expense she could think of. Her rent at the boardinghouse cost the most, but she would receive another check before the rent was due and so could use her first check to buy food and other necessities. She also had a little money in savings to fall back on.
It was during this budgeting session that she heard a knock at her door. Upon opening it, she found a lad holding a telegram. “From Tucson, miss,” the boy said.
Charlotte thanked him and returned to her desk to read it. Her heart sank and her breathing became labored upon reading its contents. It was a message from the superintendent.
Miss Charlotte Rose <stop> No funding available for school furniture <stop> Please make do <stop> Thanks for your dedication <stop> Superintendent Ed Haskins <stop>
Charlotte stared at the note for some time, overcome with multiple feelings—anger at the superintendent for denying such a basic need, anger at herself for assuming the need would be met, followed by guilt and embarrassment over asking Max to perform such a large task without verifying the funding to back it up.