Wings of a Dream Read Free Page A

across the kitchen floor, almost as a command to listen to the words that followed. “She’s all alone in the world, Margaret. Except for us.”
    Mama plunged her hands into the water-filled tub. I watched her scrub a pot, rinse it, and scour it again.
    Daddy stood, his presence filling the small room. “I expect you’ll do right by her. She’s your kin.” Three steps and the screen door slapped shut behind him.
    Mama’s hands stilled. I held my breath, reveling in Arthur’s safety—and Will’s, too. My face warmed as I realized a telegram about Arthur wouldn’t have come to us anyway. It would have gone to his mama.
    The clank and splatter of Mama’s dishwashing began again. “I guess you could go.”
    At first I wasn’t sure I heard the words at all. Maybe they were in my head, the words I wanted her to say. Even if I was nineteen now, Mama wouldn’t like the idea of me traveling alone. I stared at her stiff shoulders. Her hands never abandoned their activity. Yes, I must have imagined the words. I reached across the table to pick up Daddy’s plate.
    “Could you do that, Rebekah?”
    My attention jerked back to Mama. “Do what?”
    Her shoulders curved in an uncharacteristic slump as she wiped dripping hands on her apron. “Go to Texas and take care of your aunt.”
    Texas. Where Arthur zipped across the endless skies. My breath stuck in my chest. Only the Lord could make Mama willing to send me to Texas, to Arthur, right now. Arthur was my God-ordained future. This could mean nothing else.
    “By myself?” My voice squeaked a bit, but whether from excitement or nerves, I couldn’t quite tell.
    Mama leaned against the Wilson cabinet and folded her arms across her chest. “Yes.”
    I wanted to shout and dance my acquiescence, but I didn’t think she’d appreciate that. “I’d do my best, Mama.”
    Her lips lifted in a small smile, as if she approved of my answer, but she seemed to consider me for a long time afterward. I didn’t look away. I wanted her to know I was old enough and mature enough to go to Texas. I longed to take on the challenge and a change of scenery, just as my brother had. And if such an adventure took me a closer to Arthur, all the better.

    By evening, my suitcase and handbag stood at the door, ready for our pre-sunrise departure for the train station. Mama had spouted off more instructions for the journey than I could hope to remember, but I knew my stop was Prater’s Junction, Texas. Mama figured someone there would be able to direct me to Aunt Adabelle’s place.
    I had no idea of the distance between Prater’s Junction and Dallas, but trains went everywhere these days, didn’t they? Maybe Arthur could hire a team and buggy, or even an automobile, and come to me. We’d manage it somehow, I felt sure.
    Long after the lights were extinguished, I crept downstairs, avoiding the squeaky place on the fifth stair and along the well-trod hall. In the parlor, I fumbled to ignite the wick of the smallest lamp. It finally glowed a tiny circle of light.
    The October air seeped through my nightdress as I sat at the writing desk, the pen’s nib poised over the blank page. A tiny prick of black escaped, blemishing the pristine paper and overcoming my inhibitions.
I’m coming to you, my darling Arthur. Tomorrow night I will be in Prater’s Junction, Texas, at the home of my aunt, Adabelle Williams. Please address your letters to me there. I wait with great anticipation to see your face again.
Your forever love,
Rebekah Grace Hendricks
    I rubbed warmth into my chilly fingers before addressing the envelope. Stamp affixed, I extinguished the lamp, groped my way to the kitchen, and slipped the letter into my handbag. I’d mail it tomorrow, along the way. Then I would wait. Arthur would find me soon, by letter or in person.
    With careful steps I crept back to my bedroom, but I didn’t sleep. Instead, I spent the night at my window, my chin resting on the low sill, my gaze following the