Loving Lizzie Finn

12. Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

B yron assisted his father from his bed. “Are you sure you want to join us at the table?”

“I’m tired of lying in this bed, and I’m feeling more energetic today. Let’s go.”

Byron kept hold of his father’s arm as they slowly made their way out of the bedroom.

“You’re looking better today,” Ruby commented as she helped their mother put food on the table, the savory scent of roast pork making Byron’s mouth water.

Their father nodded. “I’m feeling a bit better.”

Their mother glanced from Byron to his father. “Maybe if you travel to the sanitorium in Germany, you’ll feel better every day,” she grumbled.

Byron’s gut clenched. He’d told his mother the trip would have to wait, that the funds weren’t available at the moment. She’d been patient and hadn’t brought it up again, until now.

His father smiled. “There’s no need for me to go anywhere. I’d rather spend what time I have left with my family, not off in some foreign country with strangers.” He patted Byron’s arm. “Your mother told me that you’re having money problems. Is everything all right?”

“Of course. Don’t worry.” Byron’s stomach churned at the lie. While he didn’t want to upset his father, he wouldn’t be able to keep their financial problems a secret for much longer. The loan was due in a matter of weeks. As much as filing for bankruptcy put a bad taste in his mouth, he might be left with no other option. If that did happen, Greeley & Company would likely have to close its doors.

His father patted his arm again. “If you need to talk, let me know.”

Byron pulled out a chair for his father. “I will.” He just hoped to God he wouldn’t have to have that conversation.

His father sank onto the chair while Gabe attempted to get his sons to their seats. “Boys, come to the table.”

As if they hadn’t heard him, Jesse and Lewis continued to chase each other in the sitting room.

“You’re a prosistute,” Lewis yelled.

“No, you’re a positute,” Jesse called back.

Gabe and Ruby exchanged horrified looks. Byron held in a groan. Ruby, what have you been discussing in front of the boys?

“Jesse! Lewis! Quiet down and come to the table for dinner,” Ruby shouted, her voice strained.

“What did the boys say?” their grandmother asked.

“Nothing,” Ruby insisted, adjusting the basket of bread on the table. “Sometimes they make up words to call each other.” She sent a warning glare at her sons, who took their seats at the table.

“No. I’m fairly sure I heard them say prostitute.” Their mother turned her attention to her grandsons. “Where did you hear that word?”

Both boys darted looks at their mother and father then sheepishly gazed at their grandmother.

“Lewis. Tell me,” Byron’s mother demanded the older of the two boys.

Ruby sighed and grimaced. “Let me explain.”

Before Lewis could reply, Jesse blurted, “Uncle Byron is going to marry a positute.”

Byron closed his eyes and wished himself anywhere but here. He hadn’t fully decided when to bring up Lizzie to his parents. Guess it would be now.

When he opened his eyes, as expected, everyone was looking at him. “The woman I’m interested in isn’t a prostitute. She’s never been a prostitute.” He took in the shocked expressions of his father and mother. “I do want to marry someone. Her name is Lizzie Finn, and she’s beautiful and brave.” He sent a pleading look to his sister. “Ruby has met her.”

Ruby nodded. “Yes, I have. She’s kind and good with a needle and—”

“Why did Jesse call her a prostitute?” their mother asked.

“Her mother was a prostitute.” Byron swallowed hard as he studied his parents’ reactions. “Lizzie grew up in a brothel for a time.”

His mother’s eyes widened.

“Now she lives with her aunt and uncle in a fine house,” he hurried to explain.

“Lizzie Finn. I’ve heard that name before,” his father muttered. His stare darted over to Byron. “Mr. Teague’s niece?”

“Yes,” Byron admitted.

His father frowned. “I heard rumors about the girl some time back. I felt sorry for her and all that she’d gone through.”

Perhaps he’d also felt sorry for her because of who her uncle was. What did his father think of Teague? On one hand, the man had given them a loan when they’d needed one. And now … well thankfully, his father didn’t know what was happening with Teague, or perhaps that would be another strike against Lizzie.

“It’s surprising the Teague family had a relative in such a circumstance. Don’t they take care of their own?” his mother scoffed.

“It seems Lizzie’s mother and aunt didn’t get on well,” Byron offered.

His mother shook her head. “You can’t marry someone like that.”

Byron’s chest tightened. “Mother.”

“Lizzie can’t help where she was born or who her mother was,” Ruby pointed out.

“A sullied past like that will affect her future and the future of everyone close to her,” their mother declared. “I can’t approve of a marriage that will harm my son, my future grandchildren, and this entire family.”

He couldn’t guarantee that people wouldn’t continue to gossip about Lizie and them by association. “If you’d like, once we’re married, we can distance ourselves from you. You can tell everyone that I ignored your wishes when I married her. Maybe that would reduce the effect we have on you.”

His father raised a hand. “Byron, that won’t be nec—”

“You would turn your back on your family for a prostitute’s daughter?” his mother bit out.

“I wouldn’t be turning my back … I’d still help you in any way I can, in any way you’d allow, but I love Lizzie. I can’t imagine spending my life with anyone but her.”

Ruby crossed her arms over her chest. “This isn’t right. Should Lizzie and Byron be punished for a past they had no hand in?”

“I have to agree with Ruby,” their father put in. “Once we get to know her, we may find that this Lizzie is worth any criticism we may receive from others.” He gave Byron an encouraging smile. “I trust Byron’s judgment.”

Their mother stayed silent as the seconds ticked by, then she sat down, grabbed a slice of bread, and passed the basket to their father. “Enough talk. The food is getting cold.”

Knowing his mother, she needed time to think things over. Attempting to persuade her now would be a waste of breath.

Byron took his seat, as did Ruby who mouthed the words, “I’m sorry.”

At least he had a couple of allies who could help him convince their mother to accept Lizzie. Then again, he wouldn’t give Lizzie up even if she didn’t.

Lizzie entered the clothing store Byron had indicated, her nerves a jittery mess. Today she would meet Declan Finn, her supposed father, and the person who’d abused her mother. Byron had offered to ask Mr. Finn whatever questions she had, but she’d rather look into his eyes and ask those questions herself.

As she walked to the back of the rather large store, a clerk approached her. “Miss Finn?”

At her nod, he gestured for her to follow him. “This way.”

He escorted her through a back door and up a flight of stairs. Byron and an older man sat inside a small sitting room reserved for fittings. Byron had arranged with the store’s owner to use this room, believing it to be the safest place for a private meeting away from her uncle’s prying eyes.

Both men stood when she entered the room, and her gaze swept over Declan Finn. In her mind, she’d envisioned a disheveled sot, but the person before her was clean-shaven and clear-eyed. Still, if his worn suit and weathered features were any indication, his life hadn’t been an easy one and likely still wasn’t.

He stared hard at her and blinked a few times as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. She’d been told she looked a good deal like her mother, and here was further proof.

Under his steady regard, she approached him and sat in a chair, her chin high. “You’re Declan Finn?”

“Yes,” he said a bit breathlessly. He took his seat, and Byron sat across from them.

“You were married to Caroline Bates?” she asked.

He swallowed. “Still am as far as I know.”

“You haven’t heard? My … Caroline Bates passed away.” Then again, how could he have known? He’d been chased away long before her mother’s death.

Mr. Finn’s eyes dulled with sadness. “How did she die?” he rasped.

The misery he supposedly felt grated. She refused to give this man any sympathy. “She was killed five years ago protecting a friend from an abusive customer.” How ironic. Her mother had gone to Maude’s House to escape a brute only to die at the hands of another.

He heaved a heavy sigh, and his shoulders slumped.

“So you did have some feelings for her,” she couldn’t help muttering.

“Of course I did,” he admitted. “We were husband and wife.”

Rage scorched through her, and she jumped to her feet. “You beat her!”

He cringed. “I shouldn’t have laid a hand on Caroline. I know that.” He rubbed a hand over his brow. “Creditors were after me day and night. Sometimes I would drink to escape my worries. I would drink until I couldn’t remember anything.”

Byron came to stand next to Lizzie. “That’s no excuse for hitting your wife.”

Declan hung his head. “I regret what I did.”

“Regret means nothing.” It didn’t change the past. It didn’t ease her mother’s suffering.

At Byron’s urging, she sat on the nearby sofa, and he took the seat next to her. She reined in her anger. They’d only get the answers they sought if they had a civil conversation.

Mr. Finn’s hands clenched into fists. “It didn’t help that I knew she didn’t love me. She was only using me.”

“Using you?” she scoffed. “Because of your wealth? Because of your high social standing?”

Mr. Finn’s stare turned cold. “To run away from an unwanted suitor.”

“What are you talking about?” Byron asked.

“She’d told me she loved me, but she became more desperate to be with me once she met her sister’s fiancé.”

“Eldon Teague?” Byron provided.

“That’s the man.” Mr. Finn nodded. “Once he laid eyes on Caroline, he wanted her.”

Dread settled like a stone in her chest, and she reached out to clutch Byron’s hand. “How do you know this?”

“I overheard him talking to Caroline. He told her he planned to end his engagement. He wanted to marry her instead,” Mr. Finn said. “She turned him down, but he was insistent.”

He was going to call off his engagement with Aunt Margaret?

“To avoid his suit, Miss Bates convinced you to marry her?” Byron prompted.

He shook his head. “Before Teague could end things with her sister, Caroline told her father about us.” He scowled, his tone bitter. “I was shocked. I did love her, but I never believed we’d end up marrying.” He threw his hands in the air. “I was a stable hand for heaven’s sake, and she was the daughter of Silas Bates, a wealthy scholar.”

Lizzie’s stomach churned. Had her mother truly wanted to marry Mr. Finn? Or had she forced the matter?

“What happened?” Byron pressed.

“As expected, Mr. Bates didn’t approve of our relationship. He dismissed me from my post and had me escorted from the premises.” He shook his head again. “I honestly hadn’t expected Caroline to come find me, but she did. She told me she loved me and that she wanted to marry me. She insisted her father would relent once we were man and wife and he could no longer stop us from being together.” He leaned back in his chair. “I loved her, so I agreed,” he conceded before giving a harsh laugh. “Mr. Bates didn’t budge an inch. Instead, he demanded she leave and never come back.

“I lost my job and had another mouth to feed. I couldn’t find work, so I began to get desperate and depressed. I drank and became someone else … I barely remember that year.”

Mr. Finn dragged his hand through his graying hair. “I searched out Teague and asked him for money. I figured if he cared for Caroline so much, he would give me the funds to support her, although by that time she’d already left me. But he didn’t need to know that, or so I thought. He gave me money … in exchange for telling him where we lived, or rather where Caroline lived, and I was left with no choice but to reveal she’d gone to Maude’s House.” He frowned. “Needless to say, Teague didn’t give me any more money after that, not that I didn’t ask.”

His frown deepened. “When he grew tired of me, he had some thugs beat me within an inch of my life and warn me away. I was never to contact him or Caroline again.”

And so ended a relationship that should never have been, one that may have resulted in her. “Did you have any children with Caroline?” Had her mother been pregnant when they’d parted ways?

“Who are you? Why are you asking all these questions?” Mr. Finn stared hard at her. “You look so much like Caroline. Are you my daughter?”

If she admitted she didn’t know, would he insist he was her father then demand money from her as he had Uncle Elden? “Answer the question.”

“I don’t think so, although I can’t say for sure. I wasn’t allowed to see her once she entered Maude’s House.” He leaned forward. “You must be her daughter. Do you believe I’m your father?”

“Honestly, I don’t know, but even if you are, I’ll never acknowledge you as such. My mother suffered through too many hardships when she was married to you.”

Mr. Finn averted his gaze and nodded. “I don’t blame you. I regret all the misery I caused her.”

Blast. She was no closer to determining who her father was. Worse, she’d learned that her mother had destroyed Declan Finn’s life as well as her own because of Uncle Eldon. Why? For Aunt Margaret’s sake? How sad if that were the case considering how Aunt Margaret spoke ill of her.

In the end, her marriage with Declan Finn had failed, and Uncle Eldon had still been in her life. Had he eventually won her over? Had they had an affair? No, her mother had rejected his offers to help them time and time again. Why would she do that if they were together? Was it to keep the truth from her?

Agh. She squeezed Byron’s hand, and he squeezed hers back. At least she had him to help her navigate this mess.