"If that's all we had to worry about," Mary said. "I could pay Louisa and the others a salary from my monthly allowance."
"No!"
"Lee, be reasonable…" Mary began.
"I'll support you, Mary. I don't want you to use your money on Maddy or Judah, the house, or to pay the help. Your money was meant for you to spend on yourself." Lee didn't understand why it was so important for him to support their household, but it was. He didn't want Mary using her share of the Jordan-Alexander fortune on the upkeep of Ettinger House. Besides, she might need it later…
"Lee, the money I inherited from Reese's father belongs to both of us now," Mary insisted.
"No, it doesn't. It belongs to you. Mary Alexander."
"I'm not Mary Alexander any longer," Mary reminded him. "I'm Mary Kincaid. We took vows, remember? For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer."
"Nevertheless," Lee insisted stubbornly, "I'll support the household."
Mary threw her arms out in exasperation. "With what?"
"With the income from the silver mine," Lee answered. "The mine doesn't bring in a whole lot of money, but I'm sure it will provide enough to support us."
"No, it won't," Mary stalked over to the bed and sat down on the edge of it. "The mine is closed."
"What?"
"According to Louisa, the mine's been shut down for over a year and all the miners have gone to other mining towns looking for work. Utopia is practically deserted. There's only a handful of men left in town—including Judah and yourself. The rest of the population is women and children."
"But Tabby's letter…" Lee thought back, trying to remember everything Tabitha had written.
"That's another thing we have to talk about," Mary got to her feet and began to pace the room. "Tabitha's letter."
"What about it?" Lee was immediately defensive.
"I don't know what it says, but it's apparent that she didn't see fit to mention that the mine was closed."
"Christ, Mary, Tabby was on her deathbed!" Lee burst out. "Her concern was for Madeline. She wanted to make sure that Maddy was provided for. The rest of her responsibilities, the mine and the house, Tabby left to me."
"Tabitha left you more responsibility than you thought. Did she mention that Judah was one of those responsibilities? Did she tell you in her letter that Judah Crane lives in Ettinger House?" Mary studied Lee's stunned expression. "No? Well, she didn't tell you about the mine closing either, or make mention of Louisa, Nan, Birdie, or Katrina. So you can't possibly know that the reason we now have a cook, two maids, and a laundress is because Tabitha made a deal with them. She agreed to provide meals in exchange for services."
"What's wrong with that?" Lee demanded.
"There's nothing wrong with exchanging meals for services," Mary said. "I think it's a wonderful idea. I'm impressed by Tabitha's ingenuity."
"It won't break us to feed Judah or Louisa, Nan, Birdie, or Katrina and their families, Mary. If they're going without, it's the very least we can do, especially when they're going to be working with us." Lee answered.
"I agree."
"Then where's the problem? Why are you so upset?" Lee moved away from the door, crossed the room and halted Mary in mid-stride by placing his hands on her shoulders.
"I'm upset because Tabitha didn't give you a choice. This arrangement involves more than just Maddy or Judah or even Louisa, Nan, Birdie, and Katrina. It involves the entire mining town population. Come morning we'll be sitting down to breakfast with nearly every man, woman, and child in Utopia. We provide the food, and not just for breakfast, but for dinner and supper, too."
"What?" Lee was beginning to get the picture and he didn't like what he saw. Oh, it wasn't that he minded feeding the town of Utopia. He didn't. And he was certain Mary felt the same way. What he objected to, and what he realized Mary objected to, was Tabitha's manipulation of him. Of them.
"But don't worry, Lee," Mary was saying, "because Tabitha thought of you," she said quietly. "Tabitha provided you with a helpmate. In fact, I'll bet she demanded you have one, and worded her will in such a way that you couldn't possibly refuse. It was either take Madeline or have her grow up in a foundling home. I'm upset because Tabitha manipulated you, Lee. It was for a good reason—the best of reasons. I know she did it out of love for her daughter, but still, she arranged your life and mine. Because Tabitha didn't leave all these responsibilities to you alone. She left them to you and your wife, didn't she, Lee?"
Lee didn't answer. He simply stood there looking at Mary. He didn't want to reveal the terms of Tabitha's will. But above all, he didn't want to hurt Mary. And Lee knew the truth was going to hurt.
"But you didn't have a wife, did you, Liam Gordon Maclntyre Kincaid? So you had to get one. Within what… thirty days or so?" Mary paused. "I'm just guessing, but I'm willing to bet that getting married within a certain amount of time was one of the terms of Tabitha's will, wasn't it?"
Lee remained silent.