Chapter 5: APPLES

Struggling to her tired feet, Lily readjusted the string of her bonnet and wiped the sweat that stubbornly clung to her forehead. She arched her back and flexed her arm muscles, exhausted. Having a small luxury vegetable garden in New York and dealing with a family-sized vegetable garden were two completely different things all together. She considered quitting, but she didn’t think Ray would be too pleased with the news, nor would Millie, who knelt in the mud with her hands buried in it as the angry yellow sun beat down on both their heads.

Lily turned from Millie, her gaze traveling the vast land around her. It appeared deserted, weeds swallowing the majority, except for the small portion of land Ray had cleared for her garden.

She tilted her head back and lifted her hand to her forehead to see further down the land. From where she stood, she barely saw anything other than shrubs and tall grasses.

“Millie!” she called, still scanning the land.

“Is it time to go inside yet?” 

Lily shook her head, tearing her eyes off of the land and turning to Millie, who maintained her kneeling position. Her dirty doll, Louisa, sat beside her, covered in mud. Mud stained her dress, an old frilly pink dress that Lily had labored only three days ago to wash. She shook her head, more amused by Millie’s willingness to help, than upset about the bigger mess the four-year-old had created.

“No, darling,” she said, holding her hand out to Millie who immediately sprang to her feet, grabbing her doll with one hand and taking captive Lily’s hand with the other. “I think it’s best if we find out what is on the other side of the farm. There seem to be lots of shrubs and grasses covering the major part, but perhaps if we go further, we might find something useful. Surely, these grasses can’t all be weeds!”

Millie nodded, excitement reflecting in her eyes briefly. But just as quickly, her excitement she became hesitant.

“What’s the matter, darling?” Lily frowned.

Millie shook her head and pointed. “Papa doesn’t want us going far.”

“Perhaps.” Lily nodded. “Your papa worries about your safety and he is right to do so. But you do not have to worry, I’m with you and I’m a grownup.”

Millie grinned then. “And monsters are afraid of grownups.” She bobbed her head, bouncing on her heels.

Lily giggled, leading the child by the hand away from the garden. They made their way down the grassy slope and further away from the house. The desertion of the land stunned her. It was meant to be a farm! Yet, the soil seemed to have been left fallow for many months, perhaps even over a year or two. There was no sign that anything had been planted in many months!

The further they went, the taller the grasses grew until they were towering over Millie. Lily leaned down and picked Millie up in her arms, alarmed because the child weighed next to nothing.

“Did your papa ever grow crops?” she asked, scanning her environment. What sort of man was Raymond?! Why would any man subject his children to hunger when he had a land he could work on?

Millie shrugged, and Lily sighed. Perhaps she should not be interrogating a four-year-old.

They walked in silence, her body weakening after several minutes of having to bear Millie’s weight. But she kept walking, spurred on by her curiosity.

She paused, sighting a tree a short distance away. She resumed her walk, noticing as she neared that it wasn’t just any tree, it was an Apple tree! She muscled her way through the grasses, desperate to get to the tree that held ripe apples, until she was stepping into a clear piece of land, the Apple tree standing in the center.

She gasped, her gaze traveling the clearing, as she leaned down and planted Millie on her feet. Millie scrambled for the tree, but Lily barely paid her any mind, her attention fixed solely on the tree.

Someone was putting in a lot of effort to keep this tree hidden and to keep the land around the tree cleared, she thought, noticing in that second, the lake that stood behind the tree.

Lily placed her hand on her chest to still her beating heart as she forced her feet forward. She passed by Millie and glanced down briefly to find the child nibbling on an apple. She observed the apple in Millie’s mouth, barely shocked to find that it was fresh. They were all fresh! She thought, glancing around. Not a single rotten one amongst them! Someone wasn’t just keeping the grass leveled, someone was riding the leveled ground of rotten apples.

She continued her walk until she was standing before the clear lake and staring at the sun’s reflection in it.

Why would Raymond...?

She shook her head, refusing to believe a father would deny his children the vitamins that apples would provide. Still, Lily knew it wouldn’t be surprise her to find that Raymond was denying his children of proper nutrition. It was the same thing he had done with the farmland; he had denied it of crops, denying his children of food.

What sort of father was he?! Anger raced through her veins at the thought. Why was he willingly starving his children?!

She turned around sharply, angry tears stinging her eyes.

“Millie, gather as many apples as you can into your pockets!”

Millie glanced up, pleasure filling her eyes as she went about stuffing her small pockets with apples.

Lily removed her bonnet and leaned down, filling it with as many apples as she could.

***

The back door creaked open, the sound announcing his arrival. Raymond knew he needed to put some grease on the hinges of the door, but something more important always turned his attention from it. He knew he could not ignore the door for much longer.

He pulled his hat off of his head and stepped into the kitchen, the hearth in the living room barely lighting up the room. The smell of food greeted him, his stomach churning as he turned his attention to the table where a plate sat covered. He stumbled towards it, grateful for his decision to find a wife, even if his only intent was to use her.

It had only been three days, but he was noticing a few changes in his health and his ability to work for longer hours in the barn. Miss Austin’s cooking was strengthening him, and it was doing the same for his children.

He planted himself on a seat and removed the plate that covered his food. Heat instantly spread across his entire face as his eyes came to settle on it: apple pie! An icy shiver raced down his spine, forcing him to his feet. He glared at the apples, his hand instinctively reaching to rub the back of his neck. His feet backed away from the table, stunned by the abomination that sat before him.

How...

He shook his head, refusing to believe that anyone had dared to go near it! Surely his children knew to stay away! Surely, they knew never to wander off too far—he had made that very clear, for goodness’ sake. He had made it clear, more often than he could count, that they could never go to the lake. They could never go near the tree, and God forbid that they eat of its fruit.

Yet, someone had defied him. Anger coursed through his veins as he headed for the stairs. Someone had defied him and had fed his children with abomination! And he knew in his mind who it was.

Finding his room, he pushed the door open, the door slamming against the wall in response to his fury. His angry gaze scanned the room, but found nothing. Turning around, he began making his way back down the stairs, when he heard soft giggles coming from his children’s room.

Throwing courtesy and caution to the wind, he pushed the door wide open. Hurriedly, he scanned the scarcely furnished room, his eyes shifting from one cot to the other. He didn’t have to look far to find Lily and five other children seated on the wooden floor with several apples in their hands.

His anger was enough to cause him to fly into action as he snatched as many apples as he could and flung them into the burning hearth. His children scampered to their feet and climbed into their cots, and by the time he turned his scalding eyes away from them, one angry female was left standing before him.

Raymond pressed his lips together to keep from cursing, especially considering his children’s presence. He would deal with Miss Austin tomorrow, he decided, turning around.

He had successfully reached the door when her angry voice reached him:

“I was willing to believe you were incapable of denying your children the basic nutrition…”

A growl escaped his lips as his fingers clawed around the doorknob. “You are never to return to that tree.”

“Unless your plan is to restrain me by tying me up with a rope…”

Raymond whirled around, covering the distance between them by grabbing her wrist. He pulled her forward until she was leaning against him, her wrist still trapped in his grip. Fear momentarily clouded her eyes, but he didn’t care. Gritting his teeth, he growled, “You are never to return to that tree.”

His heart raced in his chest, threatening to explode. His veins bulged with fury as angry tears blurred his vision.

He didn’t realize he was tightening his hold around her wrist, most likely cutting off the blood supply, until he saw her face turn white and her eyes bulge.

Releasing his hold around her wrist, he spun, just in time to find his children watching with horror plastered on their faces. Tears streamed down Millie’s face, Josie clutched her pillow, Lexie held her hands to her lips, James watched shaking his head, and Leonard had an angry frown on his face. But it was the look on Scarlet’s face that caused him to stumble out of the room in shame.

Scarlet was terrified of him.