Chapter Two #2
Poppy forced herself to take deep breaths. This was only the beginning of their journey, so she would have to pull herself together. She had God on her side, after all, so things shouldn’t be so difficult.
After a short while, the steady chugging noise of the train relaxed Poppy enough that she forgot about her stress for a while, and she settled into watching Sophie, who was playing with her beloved rag doll.
The doll was worn from heavy use. The once pretty face was almost completely rubbed off, and the faded blue dress was ripped in more places than Poppy could count, but it was still the most precious doll she had ever seen.
Her mother had made it while pregnant with Sophie, not knowing if the baby would be a boy or a girl.
Then sixteen years old, Poppy remembered that her mother had made two sets of clothing for it—a blue dress and a blue suit from the same fabric—and that she had waited to paint the face of the doll according to the gender of the newborn.
When Sophie was born, her mother had painted the prettiest face on that doll and dressed her in the fanciest blue dress before she gave it to her youngest daughter.
Still to this day, it was Sophie’s most prized possession, and Poppy adored it just as much.
After around half an hour into their journey, Poppy actually started to enjoy the train ride.
It was marvelous to see the landscape changing more and more the further they traveled out of Springfield.
Suddenly, there were open fields and small forests, animals and farms, which Poppy found very beautiful.
The more she saw, the more excited she got.
The world outside of Springfield didn’t seem so scary anymore, and she felt silly for being so terrified of it all.
Feeling peckish, Poppy pulled out the small parcel of food Helena had packed for them—a small block of cheese, cornbread, and some dried beef jerky—and began giving Sophie small bites to eat. Just as she’d suspected, the little girl devoured the food.
After they’d eaten, Sophie yawned, so Poppy took her coat off and made a small bed for her on the wooden bench by the window.
As always, the rag doll functioned as Sophie’s pillow.
Then she curled herself into the tiniest ball and promptly fell asleep.
Poppy was almost jealous of Sophie’s ability to fall asleep anywhere.
Poppy finally pulled out Helena’s goodbye letter. Up until then, she hadn’t felt strong enough to read it because she missed her dear friend so much already. She carefully unfolded it and began to read.
My dear Poppy,
You are my best friend, and I will never forget all you have done for me.
I wish for you to be strong, to enjoy this opportunity, and to take it with both hands.
This is your way out. Your mother always said God has a better plan for you, so open your heart to this new chance and live the best life.
And don’t forget to write to me to tell me all about it!
Trust in God. He is with you. So am I in your thoughts, always.
Helena
Poppy’s eyes filled with tears, but they were tears of gratitude.
During the next two and a half hours, Poppy read that note a dozen more times, and every single time, it had the same effect on her. Having a friend like Helena was precious. She pressed the note against her chest and looked out the window as the train began to slow down.
A cluster of willow trees around a small waterfall immediately caught her attention. Neil had said that was her sign to look out for. The next station would be Riverton, and her stop to get off the train.
Poppy rushed to wake Sophie, who had been fast asleep almost the entire time.
Then she gathered all of her belongings, stuffed them in the bag and her satchel, and shrugged into her coat, before she sat back down to wait for the train to stop.
Suddenly, her heart was racing again, and her nervousness had returned in full force.
This was it. She was about to meet her future husband.
As soon as they stepped off the train, Poppy held tightly onto Sophie’s hand, looking around to see if someone was waiting for her.
The other passengers dispersed rather quickly in waiting buggies and on horseback, and when the train finally left the station, Poppy and Sophie were the only ones left.
Once again, panic set in. Poppy hastily pulled out Neil’s letter to make sure that she hadn’t misread the instructions, but there they were, exactly as she remembered them—cluster of willows by the waterfall. So where was he?
Had the man changed his mind already? Would she and Sophie be stranded there, in the middle of nowhere? Poppy swallowed hard. Her mind was racing. What was she supposed to do?
Something moved in the corner of her eye.
A man wearing leather chaps and a cowboy hat leaned casually at a wooden post a small distance away from the train station. He had his arms crossed in front of his chest and watched her for a while without moving. Poppy wasn’t sure what to do.
Was this Neil or just some nosy stranger? Whoever he was, the fact that he was just standing there staring at them wasn’t good. Poppy felt her panic spiraling.
Then the cowboy pushed himself off the post and slowly walked toward them.