Hannah: Bride of Iowa (American Mail Order Bride 29) Read Online Free
Author: P.A. Estelle
Tags: Fiction, Romance, Historical, Saga, Western, Short-Story, Religious, Christian, Secret, Inspirational, Daughter, Bachelor, Marriage of Convenience, Faith, Iowa, widower, victorian era, Forever Love, Single Woman, farmer, Fifty-Books, Forty-Five Authors, Newspaper Ad, American Mail-Order Bride, Factory Burned, Pioneer, Single Father, Three Year-Old, Cherish, partner, Twenty-Nineth In Series, Devastate Future
impatience.
“I’ll be right there, Thomas.” She laid a large envelope on the bench beside Maddie. “My name is Hannah Brown and I will never set foot in Iowa. Take this envelope and this train ticket and go to Iowa. You become Mrs. Samuel Morrison. All you need to do, is be me.”
Chapter THREE
The train traveled through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, and would soon be pulling into Iowa City, the stop where Maddie would meet her future husband. In the envelope Hannah had left for her was a letter of introduction from Samuel Morrison. He was twenty-eight years old and had been married before, but his wife, Martha, died in childbirth three years ago. Lizzy, short for Martha, was the name of his three-year-old daughter.
Samuel lived in Iowa, near a town called West Liberty. His farm was not one of the largest around, eighty acres, but his crops, along with the hogs and cattle he raised, gave him a comfortable life.
He wrote about the life to expect in Iowa. Winters were long and it sometimes seemed as if the snow would never stop. Summers were humid — could almost take a drink right out of the air. But the evenings cooled off. Many spent sitting on the porch watching stars twinkle for as far as you could see and fire flies blinking and dancing across the yard.
In a wife, Samuel expected a partner. Someone to stand and work by his side and be a mother to his daughter. He would protect and keep her safe and hoped love would come in time. Lastly, he wrote life would sometimes be hard but he would do all he could to make his wife happy.
Maddie re-read his letter for the fifth time. At every train stop, she was ready to get off and find a job to start her new life, but something kept stopping her from doing just that. Expects a partner…work by his side…a mother to his daughter…make her happy. It was everything she wanted.
The train whistle blew and she saw black smoke from the window. Maggie jolted forward as the train slowed. “Iowa City,” the conductor yelled.
Mind made up, she waited to disembark. Maddie died that very moment. Hannah Brown gathered her bag and guitar, squared her shoulders, and readied herself to meet her new family.
* * * *
She wore the nicest of her three dresses. A dark blue, long-sleeved wool dress, with a white collar and white cuffs adorned her painfully thin body. Her long light brown hair was pulled up on the sides and soft waves flowed down her back, stopping just above her waist.
The train depot was crowded with people. Women and men, some dragging children behind them, hurried to the ticket windows, or to catch their train. She could see three sets of tracks come into the depot; surprised Iowa City was such a bustling town. Wagons of all sizes were being pulled in the road. One and two-story buildings lined the street. Just from where she stood, she saw a hotel, an attorney’s office, a bank, a hotel and two dining establishments. The smell from the restaurants drifted her way, making her mouth water and stomach growl. When did she eat last?
A tap on the shoulder made Maddie jump, quickly turning around and bringing her hand to her chest. “Excuse me.” Her shoulders visibly dropped. An older gentleman was standing there grasping a straw hat.
Though he had a pleasant enough look about him and kind blue eyes, she couldn’t help by wonder how this man could have a three-year-old child?
He smiled as if reading her thoughts. “I didn’t mean to startle you. Are you Hannah Brown?”
She swallowed hard, nodding.
“I called your name a few times but I guess you didn’t hear me.”
“Oh.” Her eyes got enormous. “I’m sorry. There is so much
“I’ll be right there, Thomas.” She laid a large envelope on the bench beside Maddie. “My name is Hannah Brown and I will never set foot in Iowa. Take this envelope and this train ticket and go to Iowa. You become Mrs. Samuel Morrison. All you need to do, is be me.”
Chapter THREE
The train traveled through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, and would soon be pulling into Iowa City, the stop where Maddie would meet her future husband. In the envelope Hannah had left for her was a letter of introduction from Samuel Morrison. He was twenty-eight years old and had been married before, but his wife, Martha, died in childbirth three years ago. Lizzy, short for Martha, was the name of his three-year-old daughter.
Samuel lived in Iowa, near a town called West Liberty. His farm was not one of the largest around, eighty acres, but his crops, along with the hogs and cattle he raised, gave him a comfortable life.
He wrote about the life to expect in Iowa. Winters were long and it sometimes seemed as if the snow would never stop. Summers were humid — could almost take a drink right out of the air. But the evenings cooled off. Many spent sitting on the porch watching stars twinkle for as far as you could see and fire flies blinking and dancing across the yard.
In a wife, Samuel expected a partner. Someone to stand and work by his side and be a mother to his daughter. He would protect and keep her safe and hoped love would come in time. Lastly, he wrote life would sometimes be hard but he would do all he could to make his wife happy.
Maddie re-read his letter for the fifth time. At every train stop, she was ready to get off and find a job to start her new life, but something kept stopping her from doing just that. Expects a partner…work by his side…a mother to his daughter…make her happy. It was everything she wanted.
The train whistle blew and she saw black smoke from the window. Maggie jolted forward as the train slowed. “Iowa City,” the conductor yelled.
Mind made up, she waited to disembark. Maddie died that very moment. Hannah Brown gathered her bag and guitar, squared her shoulders, and readied herself to meet her new family.
* * * *
She wore the nicest of her three dresses. A dark blue, long-sleeved wool dress, with a white collar and white cuffs adorned her painfully thin body. Her long light brown hair was pulled up on the sides and soft waves flowed down her back, stopping just above her waist.
The train depot was crowded with people. Women and men, some dragging children behind them, hurried to the ticket windows, or to catch their train. She could see three sets of tracks come into the depot; surprised Iowa City was such a bustling town. Wagons of all sizes were being pulled in the road. One and two-story buildings lined the street. Just from where she stood, she saw a hotel, an attorney’s office, a bank, a hotel and two dining establishments. The smell from the restaurants drifted her way, making her mouth water and stomach growl. When did she eat last?
A tap on the shoulder made Maddie jump, quickly turning around and bringing her hand to her chest. “Excuse me.” Her shoulders visibly dropped. An older gentleman was standing there grasping a straw hat.
Though he had a pleasant enough look about him and kind blue eyes, she couldn’t help by wonder how this man could have a three-year-old child?
He smiled as if reading her thoughts. “I didn’t mean to startle you. Are you Hannah Brown?”
She swallowed hard, nodding.
“I called your name a few times but I guess you didn’t hear me.”
“Oh.” Her eyes got enormous. “I’m sorry. There is so much
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