Chapter 6

“Nicole!  You look absolutely stunning!” Angelina exclaimed as she stepped back from fixing Nicole’s hair for the party.  It was 7 o’clock and the guests would be arriving shortly.

“Thank you,” she said and stood up.  She was wearing her pink silk, floor length dress, with a modest neckline and long, flowing sleeves.  “My parents got me this dress when I had my first dance.”

“A finer dress couldn’t have been found!” Angelina exclaimed.

Nicole smiled shyly at the praise.  “You look wonderful in that dress too,” she said admiring Angelina’s light purple, floor length satin dress, with off the shoulder sleeves.

“Why thank you, Nicole,” Angelina said and looked down at her dress.  “Well, let’s go find the men.”

“Alright,” she said and followed Angelina down the stairs.  They saw James and Thomas on the second floor landing, both in suits, waiting for them. 

“Well, I think we get the better end of the deal, Thomas!” James exclaimed, elbowing Thomas in the ribs.  “It was worth dressing up in these suits to escort these beautiful girls!”

“I agree,” Thomas said without taking his eyes off of Nicole.

Nicole dropped her eyes to the floor. 

“Shall we?” James asked as he offered his arm to Angelina.

“Yes, let us!” she exclaimed.

Thomas offered his arm to Nicole.  “May I have the honor?”

“Yes, of course,” Nicole answered, taking his arm, being careful not to meet his eyes.

They all went downstairs to make sure everything was ready. 

“The stereo is set up in case anyone wants to do any dancing, the snacks are out on the table, the refreshments are set out,” Angelina said, checking off everything on her fingers.

“It’s fine,” James said.  “Everything is where it should be.”

“Okay but-” Angelina started.

“No buts,” James interrupted just as there was a knock on the door.  “Besides, they’re here.”

“Oh, they’re here!” Angelina cried.  She hastened to the door and opened it.

“Hi, Angie!” Theresa Thompson said.

“Hi, Theresa!” Angelina said.  “Come inside!  I’m so glad you could come!”

“Thanks for inviting us!  Anne has just been so anxious to meet Nicole!” Theresa said. 

“Well come on in and you can meet her!  She’s in the living room,” Angelina said as she led them in that direction.

Nicole began tensing up when she heard everyone coming in the room she and Thomas were standing in.

Thomas noticed the change in her and whispered in her ear, “You’ll be fine.”

She nodded and tried to relax.   

Angelina came into the living room followed by the Thompsons.  “Nicole, this is Theresa Thomas and her husband Mark.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Nicole said as they shook her hand.

“And this is Benedict, Anne, Matthew, and Brandon,” Angelina said, gesturing to each child as she said their name.

“It’s nice to meet all of you as well,” Nicole said.

Anne came over to her.  “Mama says you are 16, just like me!  I hope we will be able to become friends.”

Nicole smiled.  “I’d like that.” 

“We live about a half a mile down the road.  Hopefully we can see each other often!”

“I have a horse that I often go on long rides with.  I could stop in when I have time,” Nicole said, beginning to feel at ease with Anne.

“You have a horse?” she asked excitedly.  “I wish we could see her.  But with this party dress on I don’t think I’ll be able.”

“Let me ask Angelina,” she said.  She and Anne walked over to where Angelina and Theresa were visiting.  “Excuse me,” Nicole interrupted politely, “is it all right if I take Anne out to see Belle?”

Theresa looked at Angelina.  “If it’s all right with Angelina.”

“It’s all right with me but take Tom and Ben with you.  I would feel better if they were with you,” Angelina said.

“Okay, we’ll ask them.  Come on,” Anne said as she dragged Nicole along with her to find Thomas and Benedict, who were chatting in a corner of the room.  “Hey, boys, would you go outside with us to see Belle?”

“Sure,” Thomas said.

“Wait, who’s Belle?” a bewildered Benedict asked.

“Her horse,” Anne said, halfway to the door already.

“Oh, well let’s go!” Benedict said as they all headed outside.

Chapter 5

Nicole screamed with surprise when she felt the hand on her arm.  “I got caught out in the storm, and I was seeking shelter.  I’m Nicole Hamilton,” she explained as she struggled to get out his grasp. 

“Who is your mother?”

“Maria Hamilton,” she said. 

“Why aren’t you with her?”

“She died two weeks ago.  Please, let me go, you’re hurting me!”

The hand flung her arm away as if suddenly being stung.  “Get out of here and never return!”

Nicole started to run towards the entrance of the cave but tripped on a rock.  She quickly picked herself up and continued running out to Belle.  “Come on, girl.  Let’s go,” she said as she mounted up.  Belle was at a dead run before Nicole hit the saddle.

If she could have seen the voice’s face after leaving, she would have seen a single tear roll down his cheek and drop to the floor.

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

“Where could she be?” Angelina asked James while gazing out the window. 

“Maybe she found shelter and is waiting out the storm,” James replied.  He walked over to his wife and wrapped his arms around her, scanning the horizon for signs of Nicole.  

Thomas came down from his room.  “I just saw her on the horizon.  She’s coming this way at a gallop.”

“Oh thank goodness,” Angelina said. 

A few minutes later they heard the door open.  James and Angelina rushed to the foyer where Nicole stood, drenched from head to foot.

“What happened?  We thought you would have found shelter!” Angelina cried.

“I tried to,” Nicole said.

Angelina looked at Nicole’s wet clothes and said, “James, have Thomas get a towel.”

“I already have one,” he said as he came through the door with a towel in hand.  He handed it to her and stepped back.

“Thanks,” Nicole said as she started shivering.  She dried off as best she could for now she was shaking from the cold.

“James, go make some hot cider,” Angelina said as she led me upstairs.  “We’ll get you into the shower so you can warm up and then into some dry clothes.”

Nicole only nodded.  She was too chilled to say anything.  Picking up some dry clothes from her room as she went by, she made her way to the bathroom.   

When she was done and came out Angelina was waiting for her with a hairbrush.  “Let’s go into your room and I’ll brush your hair out.”

“Alright,” she said, following Angelina to the bedroom.

Nicole sat on the bed and thought about the voice in the cave.  From the masculine sound of the voice and the strength of the hand she could tell it was a man.

“Is something troubling you?” Angelina asked.

“No, I was just thinking,” she said absently.

Angelina was silent for a few minutes before she spoke again.  “The party is planned for the night after tomorrow.”

“How many people are coming?” Nicole asked.

“Well, the Anderson’s and the Thompson’s are coming over.  That’s it.”

“Do they have any kids?”

“The Anderson’s have 4 children, all between 13 and 18, and Thompson’s have 6 children, from ages 8 to 17.  Anne Thompson is your age and Lucy and Bernadette Anderson, who are twins, are also your age,” Angelina explained. 

“I’ll look forward to meeting them,” Nicole said.

Angelina put the brush down.  “Well there you go!  You have such beautiful hair!”

“Thanks,” Nicole said as she stood up.

“Do you want to go downstairs?  I’m sure James has the cider heated up already.”

“Sure, let’s go down.”

“Oh, Nicole.  The party is going to be so much fun!” Angelina said eagerly.

Nicole smiled at her enthusiasm as she followed her down the stairs.

James met them at the bottom with the glass of cider and a blanket.  “I lit a fire in the living room.  We had a little extra dry wood in here.”

“That was a wonderful idea, James,” Angelina said, wrapping the blanket around Nicole’s shoulders and leading her towards the living room.  “Now, you just sit down, Nicole, and drink the cider.”  She handed Nicole the cider and motioned for her to drink.

“This isn’t really necessary,” Nicole said.  “I’ll be fine.”

“Nonsense,” Angelina said, sitting next to Nicole.  “You need to warm up, and warm up you shall!”

Nicole resigned herself to the fact that she needed to get warm, for she was cold.  “Alright, if you insist.”

Angelina smiled.  “I do!”

Chapter 4

“No!” Nicole cried in her sleep.  She quickly sat up in bed and looked around.  “Just a dream.  It’s just a dream,” she kept telling herself. 

She got up and went out to the balcony, hoping to rid some of the nightmare from her mind.  Looking up at the stars she asked, “Why?  Why did they have to go?”  She closed her eyes and let the breeze blow through her hair, letting it blow her troubles away for the moment.

She went back inside and fell into a somewhat restful sleep.

Nicole was just stepping out of her room the next morning when she saw Thomas coming down the hall.

“Good morning,” he said.

“Good morning.”

“Did you sleep well?” Thomas asked, even though he had heard her during the night.

“Well enough.  First night in a strange bed.”

“Yes, I had that too when I first came here.  Shall we go downstairs?”

Nicole nodded and they began walking down the stairs together.

“James told me about your parents.  I’m sorry.”

“Thanks,” she said, not meeting his eyes.  “I still…can’t believe they are gone.”

“It’ll take time,” he said.

James met them on the second floor.  “Good morning, you two!  How’d you sleep?”

“Fine.”

“Okay.”

“Good!  I don’t know about you guys but I smell bacon and coffee!” 

“We’re right behind you, uncle!”

They reached the kitchen where Angelina was making bacon and eggs.  “Good morning everyone!  You are a little early.  I still have to make the eggs.”

“I can do that for you,” Nicole said as she stepped up to the counter.

“Alright, thank you Nicole,” Angelina said as she handed her a bowl and a carton of eggs. 

Within five minutes Angelina and Nicole had breakfast on the table.  “Come and eat!” Angelina called.

Everyone sat down and, after saying the meal prayer, began to eat.

“So, Nicole, what are you doing today?” James asked between bites of bacon.

“Well, I thought I would ride Belle and help Angie when she needed it,” she replied.

“Take as long a ride as you want.  There’s not really that much work to do at the moment,” Angelina said. 

“The weather man said that there’s a 70 percent chance of a thunderstorm in the late morning to early afternoon so just be careful,” James said.

“I will, don’t worry,” Nicole said as she finished her breakfast.  “I’ll help you with the dishes before I leave Angie.”

“You don’t need to.  Tom will help me.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.  Go enjoy your ride.”

“Alright, thank you,” Nicole said.  She went out to the barn to tack up Belle.  “We’re going for a long ride today!” 

Nicole mounted up and lightly touched her heels to Belle’s side.  “Giddy up!”  They took off at a run.

“Well, there she goes,” Angelina said from a window in the kitchen.

“She’ll be fine, don’t fret,” said James.  “I’m headed off to work!”

“Alright bye, sweetheart!”

Nicole had only gone a few miles when she noticed dark clouds in the sky.  “Looks like the weather men were right about that storm, Belle,” she said as raindrops began to fall.  She looked around in an attempt find shelter and spotted a rock over hang close by. 

Nicole kicked Belle into a gallop.  They reached the rock right before the rain began to come in torrents.  

“Come on, girl,” she said as they went back as far under the rock as they could.  She noticed there was a hole in the rock, barely visible, covered by vines.  “Stay here,” she said to Belle as she pulled the vines away and peered inside, seeing a deep cave. 

Slowly she crept inside because of the rough and uneven ground.  “H-hello?” she called out, a little scared.  “Is anyone in here?”  When she heard no reply she relaxed.  She was about to sit down on a rock nearby when someone grabbed her arm. 

A masculine voice came to her in the dark.  “Who are you?  What are you doing here?”

Chapter 3

Nicole ran up to Belle.  “I can’t believe it!  Oh! Thank you so much, James!”

James smiled.  “So you like it?”

“I love it!”

“I’m glad!”

She stroked Belle and asked, “I never told you about Belle.  How did you find out about her?”

“Your neighbor who was taking care of her is a friend of mine.  He heard about you coming to live with us and told me how much you love Belle.  I decided to bring her home before you arrived and surprise you.”

Nicole beamed.  “I can’t thank you enough!  Would it be all right if I rode her around for a little bit?”

“Of course!  Your tack is in that room right over there,” he said as he pointed towards a slightly open door.

Nicole walked into the tack room and saw her English and Western tack sets.  She grabbed her Western tack and took it out to Belle.  She put the blanket, saddle, and bridle on and mounted up.  “It feels wonderful!”

James said, “I’ll let you have a ride.  I’m going to go back into the house.”

“All right.  I’ll be back shortly!” she said.  She nudged Belle into a gallop and took off over a hill.

James smiled to himself and went inside.  He went to the kitchen where Angelina was working on supper. 

“How did she like the surprise?” Angelina asked.

“She loved it!”

“Is she happy?” Angelina asked, a little worriedly. 

“Her face lit up like the sun.  Her expression told me that she missed her horse very much.”

Thomas came into the room.  “It smells good, Aunt Angie!  What is it?”

“You’re favorite, lasagna.”

“Lasagna!” he exclaimed.  “That’s why my mouth is watering!”  He looked around.  “Where’s Nicole?”

“She went for a little ride before supper,” James said.  “She should be back shortly.”

Thomas looked out the window.  “There she is riding up now.”

They all moved to the window and watched as Nicole guided Belle to a fallen tree and put her into a fast gait. 

“Is she going to jump?” Angelina asked.

“It looks that way,” James said.  “I hope she knows what she’s doing.”

Thomas was quietly watching Nicole.  Such a graceful rider, he thought to himself.

Nicole positioned herself to jump just as Belle was about to push off with her back legs.

Angelina cringed as she watched. 

Nicole cleared the jump and turned Belle’s head towards the stable.

“Well she made it!” James said.  “I’m sure she’ll be in soon.”

A few minutes after he had said that they heard the door open.  Nicole quietly came into the kitchen where everyone was just putting the finishing touches on supper.

“How was your ride?” Angelina asked. 

Nicole beamed.  “It was wonderful!  It felt so good to be back on Belle again!”

“Good!  Well, we can sit down to eat now!  Everything is ready!”

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

“Thanks for the help with the dishes, Nicole,” Angelina said after supper was over.  “They went really fast with you helping!”

Nicole smiled.  “You’re welcome.” 

“Are you okay?” Angelina asked.

“I’m fine.  Just…”

“Missing your parents,” Angelina finished for her again. 

Nicole nodded.  “I wanted to thank you and James for taking me in.  My parents had only known you a few weeks before they…” She couldn’t finish.

“It is true we only knew each other for a short time, but your parents told us that they felt so strongly that if anything ever happened to them we were to take care of you.”

Tears began running down Nicole’s face.  “I wish the accident never happened.”

“There’s lot of things we wish for, but once it happens, we can’t change it.  Everything happens for a purpose.  Sometimes it just takes a lot of time to see why.  But you will know, maybe not in this life, but you will know.”

“Thank you, Angie,” Nicole said.  “Is it all right if I go up to my room?”

“Of course.  We understand.”

“Thank you.”

Chapter 2

Nicole took her riding habits out of her garment bag.  One was an English jumping suit, and the other, a Western outfit.  They brought tears to her eyes, remembering all the medals and ribbons she had won in them along with her horse, Belle. 

She hung them in her closet and went back to take out her silk dress.  She was hanging it up when she heard a knock on the door.  “Come in,” she called.

Angelina stepped inside.  “Do you need any help?”

“I don’t think so.  I’m almost done with my clothes.”

She saw the dress Nicole had just put in her closet and gasped.  “Oh, this is just lovely!”

Nicole gave her a small smile.  “Thank you.”

Angelina thought for a minute.  “Would you mind if we had a party?  Have a few friends over?”

“I don’t mind,” Nicole said.  “It would be fun.”

“You must wear your dress, though!”

“Alright.  It would be nice to wear it again,” Nicole said and began working on the next suitcase of clothes.

“Well, I’ll go make a few phone calls and let you get back to unpacking,” Angelina said as she headed towards the door.

“Thank you, Mrs. Dexter.”

“Call me Angie,” she said and left. 

Nicole finished unpacking and sat down on the edge of the bed.  “Why did this have to happen to me?” she asked herself. 

She began remembering the day 2 weeks ago when she said goodbye to her parents as they were leaving for a friend’s house.  Her mother said they would be home late but she decided to stay up for them anyway.  When the clock chimed 4 o’clock in the morning she knew something was wrong. 

At the crack of dawn she saddled Belle and rode along the road she knew her parents had taken.  She was rounding a bend when she saw a car overturned in the ditch.  Her heart began to beat faster than Belle’s hooves on the ground.  She jumped off and looked through a window, where she saw her parents, both dead. 

The next week and a half was a blur to her.  Her parents had arranged that if anything was to happen to them James and Angelina Dexter were to be her guardians until she was of age.

She came back to the present and began crying.  “Why?  Why did they have to be taken?   They never did anything wrong!”  She soon composed herself and went in search of James or Angie. 
Nicole got down to the main floor and looked around.  “This is a really big house.”  She turned to go down a hallway when she ran into someone.  She felt hands on her arms steadying her.

A deep voice said above her, “Are you okay?”

Nicole nodded.  “Yes, I’m fine.  I’m sorry.”  She looked up at the person who she ran into.  A young man, no more than 18, stood there.  He had dark, wavy hair and blue eyes. 

“I don’t believe we’ve met,” he said as he dropped his hands.

“Oh, I’m Nicole Hamilton.”

“I’m Thomas Dexter.”  He stuck his hand out.

She shook it and said, “Nice to meet you.”

James came up to them and said, “I’m glad you two met!  Thomas, how was your trip into town?”

“It was good! I was able to get what I was looking for,” Thomas said.  “Well, I need to drop some things off in my room.  See you later!”  He turned and went up the stairs. 

“So what do you think of Thomas?” 

“I think your son is very nice.  I’ve really been only introduced to him, so can’t give you an accurate account of what I think of him yet.”

James chuckled.  “He’s not my son, he’s my nephew. 

“Oh.  I didn’t know.”

“It’s alright.  It is kind of confusing, since we have the same last name.  He was orphaned at 6 when his parents died of cholera.  I’m his guardian.”

“Kind of like you are mine.”

“Yes.”  He led her toward the door.  “I have something to show you.”   

Nicole followed him outside to where he took her to the barn behind the house that she hadn’t seen earlier.

“Just wait here,” he told her at the door.  “And close your eyes.”

Nicole did as she was told and soon heard a “thud, thud” against the dirt floor.

“Okay.  Open them!” he called to her.

When she did she gasped.  “Belle!”

Chapter 1

“Here we are!” James Dexter announced as he parked the car.

The 16-year-old girl in the car with him stuck her strawberry blond head out the window and looked at the three-story house.   Nicole Hamilton gazed in awe at the house, which was painted white with a large balcony on the second story along with a smaller one on the third story.  “This is your house?  It looks more like a mansion!”

“It is big,” James agreed.  “Come along.  Angelina is waiting for us inside.”

Nicole got out of the car.  So begins the next chapter of my life, she thought and followed him into the house. 

“Nicole!  Oh, Nicole!” she heard someone say as she stepped into the foyer.  Nicole turned to see Angelina coming toward her with open arms.  She wrapped Nicole in a hug and said, “I’m so glad you are finally here.  How are you doing?”

“Okay,” Nicole answered, a sad expression on her face.

Angelina placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.  “It will all turn out.”

Nicole nodded, trying to keep the tears from running down her face.  “I know it will, but…”

“It’ll take time,” Angelina finished for her.  “I know.  I was there too.”  Four years ago Angelina lost both her parents to influenza.  Both her and her husband were close to her parents and grieved their loss for a long time.  She changed the subject.  “Shall we find a room for you?”

“Sure.”

James turned to go outside.  “I’ll go grab everything.” 

“Thank you, James!” Angelina called as he went out the door.  She turned to Nicole, “Which floor would you like to be on?  We have bedrooms in the basement, on the main floor, and both stories.  You decide!”

“Well, at home I was on the top floor.  Would you mind if I was on the third story?”

“Not at all!  Let’s go look at the bedrooms.”

They went up the stairs and down the hallway with rooms on each side.  “We’ll look in all of them, and then you can decide!”

As they went along Nicole discovered that each room was color-coded.  There was a red room, a blue room, a gold room, and a pink and purple room.

When they finished Angelina asked, “Find any you like?”

“Well, I liked the pink and purple one,” she answered, pointing to the room at the far end of the hallway.

“Do you want to use that one?”

“If it would be alright I would like to.”

“Of course!  Why don’t you go explore it a little more and I’ll go tell James where to bring your things?”

“Okay,” Nicole said, and moved towards the door as Angelina went down the stairs.  She stepped inside the room and looked around more closely. 

The walls were a lavender color with the ceiling painted a light pink.  On the floor was a soft, crème colored carpet.  Opposite the door there was a full size four-poster bed with a pink comforter, purple pillows, and a light pink canopy.  Along side the bed was a nightstand with a lava lamp and an alarm clock on top of it.  To the right were glass doors leading out to the balcony she had seen earlier.  There was a full-length mirror in the corner along with a chair in the other corner.  To the left of the door leading out to the hallway there was a dresser and a desk, along with a walk-in closet.

“Wow,” was all she could say as she took it all in.

“What do you think?” she heard someone ask behind her.

Nicole started and spun around to see James in the doorway with her things.  She had been so caught up in the wonder of the room she didn’t even hear him come in.

“Sorry to scare you,” he apologized when he saw how much he had startled her.

“It’s okay.  I wasn’t paying attention.”

“It happens to all of us.  Here are your things.  I need to get the boxes yet.”  He set her four suitcases down.  “How do you like it?”

“It’s lovely!  I’ve never seen a room so fine.”

James smiled.  She is such a precious girl, he thought.  “Well, I’ll let you unpack and get settled in.

“Alright, thank you.”

He touched her arm and left.

The Locket

This is my first story/book that I've finished, which was last spring.  I hope you enjoy reading it!  Feel free to comment and offer suggestings!  I will post it chapter by chapter!