TheMary Elisehad been offloaded of coal and the hold cleaned so they could take on grain. Just after the hold was swept clean, the crew was surprised with an inspection by the Board of Lake Underwriters. TheMary Eliseeasily passed with an A1 rating. Her hold was solid and showed no cause for concern. Elise was relieved, as she knew her father had some concerns about a particular area. One of the things he had planned to work on that winter was that area, which seemed likely to develop rot.
The grain loading was once again delayed, however. There was some sort of trouble at the grain elevator, but Elise had no idea what had happened. She was, however, glad for extra time to spend with Nick. When he was free later in the morning, they met for a long walk around Duluth.
She took pleasure in his company, as well as in showing him the places she knew. They took the short ferry ride from the Minnesota Point side of the canal, then continued the tour in Duluth.
After a bit of a walk, Elise pointed to a church building. “That’s the church we attend during the winter months. PastorJohnson and his wife have only been here for a couple of years, but already the congregation loves them. They’re good people, and he teaches solidly from the Bible.”
“That’s a blessing. So many people have been led astray by pastors who don’t preach the Bible.”
“Yes, that’s true.” Elise led him to the train depot. “Mr. Cooke, a wealthy banker, was responsible for seeing that Duluth got the railroad.” They continued to walk parallel to the train tracks. “That building over there—the big white one—is the Northern Pacific Immigrant House. There are hundreds of immigrants who were hired by the railroad. I’ve heard this building will hold over seven hundred men. They live there rent-free, so long as they are working for the railroad. There is another immigrant house on Sixth Avenue at Michigan Street. It’s brand-new, in fact.”
“You seem to know quite a bit about Duluth.”
“I’ve lived here in the winters for over ten years. Caroline and I used to visit all the shops. Of course, there weren’t very many then. Not like now. Things are really growing. Every time I come here, I’m surprised to find more people and stores. I heard from my friend Mina that there are now three jewelry stores. Who could ever need that much jewelry?”
They turned a corner, and she continued. “It’s still not a very pretty town, but I have hope for it. Once they clear all those tree stumps and get more grass planted in the yards of those new houses on the hill, it’ll look a whole lot better. I’m going to plant a bunch of flower bulbs when we get back next trip. The accident made me forget about my plans, but Aunt Martha promised me bulbs from her garden’s abundance.”
They slowed their pace a bit, and when a small restaurant came in sight, Nick pointed. “Why don’t you let me buy you lunch?”
Elise glanced at the café. “All right. I am getting hungry.”
They made their way inside Freda’s. The café advertised the best fried fish in town. Elise decided to give it a try, along with an iced tea, as the day had warmed up considerably. Nick did the same, then gave Elise a smile that caused her to lose herself in his gaze for a moment. He grinned as if knowing the effect he had on her.
Desperate not to betray her growing feelings for him, she asked the first question that came to mind. “Do you really believe yourself cursed?”
His smile faded, and his brows knit together in a look between worried and dismayed. “Who said that?”
“Booker Duran. Last night as I was bringing you your supper, I ran into him. He told me you believed yourself to be cursed.”
Nick leaned back in his chair as the waitress delivered their teas. He took a sip and put the glass down before answering. “I don’t know. I sometimes feel that I might be. My father abandoned me, my mother died. My siblings care very little for me, and of course, there’s what happened on thePolaris.”
When he didn’t elaborate, Elise considered asking for details again but remembered his promise to tell her when he was ready. Instead, she said, “I don’t believe Christians can be cursed.”
“No, I suppose I don’t either, not when I really consider that I belong to God—that He directs my steps and forgives my sins.”
“How did you come to the Lord?”
The waitress approached with two white plates steaming with food. The fried fish smelled heavenly and was served with peas.
“Shall we say grace?” Nick asked.
“Of course. Please do.” Elise bowed her head, wondering what kind of prayer Nick might offer.
“Father, thank you for a safe journey and for this food to nourish our bodies. Amen.”
She looked up and smiled, meeting his blue eyes. “Amen.”
They each sampled the fish. Elise nodded. “It is very good.”
“I’ll bet yours is better,” he teased.
“I use different seasoning, but I can’t fault this meal.” They continued eating as other customers filled the restaurant.
“I learned about God at my mother’s knee,” Nick said after a few moments of quiet.
Elise was glad he’d remembered her question and was willing to answer it. Sometimes people didn’t like to talk about their personal experiences with God. For her, it was something precious and worthy of discussing, but for others, she’d learned it was often difficult.
“My mother was a God-fearing woman, while my father was more focused on business. We attended church, of course, as most of our society did. It was expected, and my father wasn’t a man to do something that might harm his acceptability in society. But Mother was devout and believed the Bible was the only truth. I was reading it before I knew what the words meant.” He grinned. “How about you?”
