The Boxcar Children Beginning: The Aldens of Fair Meadow Farm

  “Maybe the car part won’t work,” whispered Jessie to Meg. “Maybe the car won’t start.”

  Meg smiled.

  “That would be nice.”

  Betty walked into the barn and came over to where Meg stood. Betty nosed Meg’s shoulder, rubbing her long face there.

  Meg’s eyes filled with tears.

  “I’ll miss this old cow,” she said. “And you can’t put Betty in a jar for me to take along.”

  Jessie put her arms around her.

  “We will always be friends,” said Jessie.

  “We will always be family,” said Meg.

  Suddenly there was the sound of a car starting outside. Henry and William looked up and stopped working. Meg and Jessie looked at the barn door.

  Violet stood there.

  “Jake fixed the car,” she said sadly.

  Chapter 10

  Not Good-Bye

  The children slept late the next morning, almost as if they were sleeping so no one would leave. William and Meg wouldn’t get into the car. No one would wave good-bye. Everything would stay the same.

  Jake and Sarah, Mama and Papa were at the kitchen table, drinking coffee. They were quiet.

  There were several suitcases by the front door, and some boxes.

  “Who wants cocoa?” asked Mama. “We have pancakes, too.”

  William sat down at the table. He shook his head.

  “I’m not hungry,” he said. “Thank you,” he added.

  Meg and Jessie and Violet sat down. They looked at one another and shook their heads, too.

  “I’m not saying good-bye,” said Benny, getting up on his chair.

  There was a silence. Then Benny smiled.

  “Not good-bye,” he said. “It is a not good-bye day!”

  Everyone looked at him.

  “And I’m hungry for pancakes,” he added.

  “Benny,” said Papa, “that is a brilliant idea!”

  “It is?” said Benny.

  “It is,” said Papa. “You’re the smartest person here.”

  “I am?”

  Benny looked amazed.

  “Papa’s right,” said Henry. “We won’t say good-bye because we’ll see each other again soon. I’m hungry, too!”

  “Me, too,” said Meg.

  “Me, too,” said the others.

  “Well,” said Mama, “let’s have a very splendid breakfast.”

  “And we won’t say good-bye!” said Violet.

  “And remember,” said Jessie, “Jake and Sarah, Meg and William are in the cookie jar!”

  “Joe, too,” said Benny.

  “And Joe!” said everyone.

  The breakfast was long and noisy, with lots of laughter.

  And when Jake and Sarah packed up the car, and Meg and William packed their things, Henry showed William and Meg where they were going to live on the turn-around globe.

  “There,” he said. “You’re only this far.”

  He held out his fingers to measure.

  “Only this far. Three inches away.”

  “Not good-bye,” said William and Meg outside.

  “Not good-bye,” said everyone.

  It was Joe who now looked sad, walking to the car with Meg and William, turning to look back at Benny as if waiting for him.

  “It’s all right, Joe. Not good-bye, Joe,” said Benny, his eyes beginning to fill with tears.

  “Remember the cookie jar,” called Sarah, waving.

  And they were gone.

  Chapter 11

  Summer

  It was very quiet at Fair Meadow Farm. Everything seemed to move more slowly, silently.

  Henry and Jessie missed their walks to school with Meg and William. Benny missed Joe.

  “I’d like to have Joe,” he told Mama.

  “Well, Joe belongs to another family,” she said. “Maybe when we have enough money to feed a dog, we’ll get one.”

  “When I am grown up, I will have twenty-seven dogs,” said Benny.

  “That’s a lot,” said Mama.

  “Twenty-seven,” said Benny proudly.

  Now, at night, Benny slept with Bear.

  School ended and it was a hot summer.

  Other people who’d lost their jobs and houses came by the Alden farm. A family lived out in the meadow in their tent for a while. A man and his wife stayed in their car for a week. The man had a guitar, and some summer evenings at dusk, they would hear his soft music.

  “Hard times,” Henry said to Jessie.

  “I hope the hard times end,” said Jessie.

  But they didn’t that summer.

  And one day a man and his wife stopped, looking for the hospital. His wife was about to have a baby.

  “The hospital is in the next town over,” said Mama. She looked closely at the woman.

  “What’s your name?” she asked.

  “Milly,” said the woman. “My husband’s Matt.”

  “Well, Milly, I think you’re not going to make it to the hospital. You’d better come into the house.”

  And that night, in Mama and Papa’s bedroom, a baby boy was born. His name was Thomas.

  Benny was happy to have someone younger than he was. He sang to Thomas and told him stories.

  “Could Thomas sleep with me?” he asked Milly.

  Milly smiled.

  “I wish he could, Benny,” she said. “He’s a little young for that.”

  “And Thomas isn’t a dog,” said Violet.

  “I wish you all lived with me,” said Milly. You are the very best family in the world.”

  “You are,” said Matt.

  “When Thomas is older I will tell him about that wonderful place where he began his life,” said Milly.

  “I could be Uncle Benny,” said Benny.

  “You are Uncle Benny,” said Matt.

  After a week, Milly, Matt, and Thomas left. And it was quiet again.

  Rubin came over and cut the first crop of hay, and when it dried, Henry and Jessie and Papa gathered it for winter storage. He gave Rubin half for his work.

  The next day, when Papa came back from town, he had a letter from Meg and William.

  Dear Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny,

  We are here! The car worked. Papa is a great fixer. We live in a house big enough for all of you, with our aunt and our grandfather.

  You’re invited to come anytime. Remember, we are only three inches away. And we are family. Papa has some work as a handyman, and William is working at a farm for the summer. There is a nice cow there that the farmer won’t let Meg ride.

  We miss you! And tell Benny that Joe will be very happy when Benny comes to visit. He likes sleeping with Benny more than us. He told us so in woof talk.

  Love to all,

  William and Meg

  PS Kiss Betty on the nose for Meg.

  “William and Meg like their new place,” said Jessie.

  “It must have been hard to leave their old place, though,” said Henry.

  “I wouldn’t like to leave here,” said Violet. “They’re brave.”

  “I wish we had a grandfather to visit,” said Benny.

  No one said anything.

  “You will one day,” said Papa. “You will.”

  There was another silence. Mama looked at Papa.

  “Will he get me a dog?” asked Benny.

  Papa smiled.

  “He might do that,” he said.

  “We’ll go visit William and Meg sometime,” said Mama.

  “Sometime,” said Papa. “But it is a long way.”

  “Three inches only,” said Violet.

  “Three inches is much longer in real life than it looks on the globe,” said Mama.

  “And I will not kiss Betty on the nose!” said Papa, making them all smile.

  Chapter 12

  A Spool of Thread

  “Summer is almost over,” said Henry in the barn. “School will start soon. I smell fall.”

  Jessie laughed.

  “I
remember you saying the same thing about last spring,” she said. “And then it snowed.”

  “I did say that,” said Henry. “And you stretched out your neck like Betty and said you smelled it, too.”

  Jessie stretched out her neck and smelled.

  “I don’t smell fall yet. I think there’s more summer to go.”

  Papa tooted his funny-sounding car horn for Mama.

  Mama carried trays of cookies and biscuits out to the car to deliver. Papa opened the door for her, and she set them on the backseat.

  “We’ll be back this afternoon,” she called. “Do you want anything in town, Lambs?”

  Henry and Jessie smiled at each other at the word lambs.

  “Nothing for us,” called Henry.

  “I need some brown thread, please,” called Violet.

  “A dog,” called Benny.

  Mama smiled her big smile. Papa waved.

  “Take care of one another,” called Mama. “You know how to do that.”

  And they were off.

  Waves of summer heat rose off the land. Henry and Jessie watched them over the big meadow.

  “No. Not fall yet,” Jessie said.

  Henry and Jessie took cool water to Betty and Boots.

  “I could swim in a nice pond,” said Henry.

  “I could eat a nice sandwich,” said Jessie.

  When they went inside, Violet was feeding Benny.

  “Mama made fresh bread. Three loaves,” said Violet.

  “Is there chocolate?” asked Benny.

  “You wish for good things, Benny,” said Jessie.

  “I always wish for good things,” said Benny.

  “Even when they aren’t there,” said Violet with a smile. “Let’s go write a letter to William and Meg, Benny. You can draw a picture.”

  “I drew a picture of Betty,” said Benny. “Meg misses Betty.”

  Henry grinned at Jessie when they were gone.

  “Have you seen his Betty picture?” he asked.

  Jessie shook her head.

  “It is part horse, part cow,” said Henry.

  “That’s our Betty,” said Jessie.

  There was the sound of a car in the driveway.

  Henry went to the window.

  “Jess? It’s Sheriff Bowen,” Henry said slowly.

  The sheriff got out of the car. Rubin got out of the driver’s side.

  “Something’s wrong,” said Henry in a low voice. “You stay with Violet and Benny.”

  Jessie looked out the window, too.

  “No,” she said. “I’ll go out with you.”

  Henry took a deep breath.

  “Okay.”

  They walked out of the door and across the yard.

  “Hello,” said Henry.

  “Hello, Henry,” said the sheriff. “Jessie.”

  His face was very still.

  Henry and Jessie looked at each other.

  They knew.

  They knew in that moment.

  It was Rubin who told them.

  “There’s been an accident,” he said. “A bad accident.”

  He touched Henry’s arm.

  “They are gone,” said Rubin, beginning to cry.

  Henry didn’t cry because Rubin was crying.

  Jessie made a small sound that caused Henry to reach for her hand.

  Sheriff Bowen cleared his throat as if it was hard to talk.

  “It was a car accident,” he said. “A truck went through a stop sign.” His voice trailed off.

  “Someone has to take care of you,” he said.

  Henry looked quickly at him.

  “What do you mean?”

  “A relative,” said Sheriff Bowen. “A family member. You must have someone.”

  Jessie and Henry didn’t say anything.

  “Otherwise …” Sheriff Bowen stopped for a moment. “Otherwise …”

  “Tom!” said Rubin. “We’ll solve this without that. I can stay with them.”

  “You’re not family, Rubin,” said Sheriff Bowen. “The court wants family.”

  “Belle and I will stay with them,” said Rubin in a strong voice.

  “Wait,” Henry said softly.

  A little wind came up. Jessie’s hair blew against her cheek.

  “We have a grandfather,” said Henry.

  Jessie looked quickly at Henry.

  “I’ll contact him today,” said Henry.

  “We can do that for you,” said the sheriff.

  “What is his name? Where does he live?”

  “No,” said Henry firmly. “I want to do it. They were … They are our parents.”

  Sheriff Bowen sighed.

  “All right, then. I’ll stop by tomorrow afternoon to make sure he’s coming to get you.”

  “We’ll watch over them tonight,” said Rubin.

  The sheriff nodded and started to walk to his car, then turned.

  “I’m awfully sorry, Jessie, Henry. I am so, so sorry.” His voice was soft.

  “Thank you,” said Jessie.

  Henry nodded.

  The sheriff reached into this pocket and walked back to them.

  “I forgot. This was found in the front seat of the car.”

  He handed Jessie a small object.

  It was a small spool of brown thread.

  The wind had stilled. The sun was over the far meadow. Rubin had gone home, promising to come back later with dinner. Jessie and Henry had watched him leave. He reached out over the fence to stroke Betty, then Boots. He looked back at them once. His eyes were sad and dark.

  “What will we do?” whispered Jessie.

  She didn’t know why she whispered. Maybe it was because all that had happened was too sad to talk about out loud.

  “We aren’t calling Grandfather,” said Henry.

  “But you said—” Jessie began.

  “I know. We need time. We can’t rely on Grandfather taking care of us.”

  “Even after what Papa said? That we would see him one day?” Jessie asked.

  “We don’t know if he would want to take care of us now. We don’t know him. Rubin can’t take care of us. The law says.”

  Henry looked at Jessie.

  “And I don’t want to think about what the sheriff meant by ‘otherwise,’ and Rubin wouldn’t let him say.”

  “Do you know what he meant?” asked Jessie.

  Henry nodded.

  “The children’s home,” he said. “For orphans.”

  Jessie stared at him.

  “We have to take care of ourselves,” Henry said. “We know how to do that. Remember? Mama said.”

  Henry’s voice cracked a bit.

  Jessie thought for a moment.

  “We’re going to leave,” said Jess.

  “Yes.”

  Slowly they walked to the house.

  Suddenly Jessie stopped.

  “What?” said Henry.

  “We have to tell Violet and Benny,” said Jessie, beginning to cry for the very first time.

  Chapter 13

  Secrets

  “What will we do?” asked Violet.

  “It’s a big, big secret,” said Henry. “Can you keep a secret?”

  “I can,” said Violet.

  “We’re going on a journey,” said Henry.

  “A journey?”

  “Yes, we’re going to find a safe place for us away from here. A place where we can all be together.”

  “Do we have to leave here?” asked Violet, tears sitting in the corners of her eyes.

  “Yes,” said Jessie.

  “Then it will be an adventure,” said Violet.

  “Remember, Henry? You once wanted an adventure.”

  Henry swallowed.

  “I remember.”

  “Travelers,” Violet said quietly.

  Benny was sleeping, clutching his brown stuffed bear. No one was sure if Benny really understood what had happened. But what he did understand had made him tired.

  “We’ll have to take sp
ecial care of Benny,” said Jessie. “He’s so little.”

  “We’ll have to pack some clothes for him. And food. Just a few toys,” said Violet.

  “I’ll have to carry him sometimes,” said Henry. “We’ll be walking.”

  “Henry?” said Jessie suddenly. “What about Betty and Boots?”

  Henry looked out the window.

  “I’ll go see Rubin right now. We have to trust him.”

  “Want me to come?” asked Jessie.

  Henry shook his head.

  “Benny will need you when he wakes up.”

  And Benny did.

  After Henry left, Benny came out of the bedroom, carrying Bear. He climbed up on Jessie’s lap—so silent, no words. Just laying his head on Jessie’s shoulder.

  Jessie didn’t say anything, either. She just held him, the afternoon light coming through the open door, the house as still as night.

  “Rubin?”

  In the field, Rubin turned and walked over.

  “Henry.”

  Rubin put his arms around Henry and they stood quietly in the grasses.

  “Want to come in and see Belle?”

  Henry shook his head.

  “Not now,” he said.

  Rubin nodded.

  “What about your grandfather?”

  Henry sighed.

  “I don’t want to lie to you, Rubin.”

  Rubin smiled a small smile.

  “Then I won’t ask,” he said.

  “I came to ask you to please take Betty and Boots,” said Henry, “if you can.”

  “I can do that. I owe your Papa for hay, too,” he said.

  “The money isn’t as important as the cows,” said Henry.

  Rubin nodded.

  “I’ll take care of them.”

  “Until we get back,” said Henry.

  “Get back,” said Rubin.

  It wasn’t a question.

  “Thank you,” said Henry.

  Henry turned to leave, then stopped. He just looked at Rubin for a moment, as if trying to remember how he looked.

  “You’ll miss their funeral,” said Rubin.

  Henry nodded.

  “I know that you will say good things about them,” Henry said. “You loved them.”

  “I did,” said Rubin.

  “We loved them, too,” said Henry. “They knew that.”

  Henry looked at his feet in the meadow grasses for a moment. Then he looked at Rubin.