Whitaker Scarlett and her mother, Elizabeth, had been living with William’s family for less than half a month, but Aunt Amanda had finally started to see them as part of the family. Treating someone as a family meant sharing heartfelt advice. Aunt Amanda understood that Scarlett was ambitious and wouldn’t spend her whole life living at her uncle’s house. With her current pace of earning money, it wasn’t impossible for her to buy a small house in Greenfield County, even if settling in Harborfield might take more time.
The only thing holding them back was Elizabeth.
Everyone worried that Elizabeth might soften if Chris Whitaker showed up. If she went back to endure the same humiliating life with the Whitaker family, Scarlett, no matter how capable, would be left with a weak spot for the family to exploit. Aunt Amanda could see how devoted Scarlett was to her mother. A daughter who wasn’t filial to her own mother couldn’t be expected to treat her uncle well in the future, could she?
Aunt Amanda’s words made Elizabeth nod as she washed dishes.
The days Elizabeth and Scarlett spent in the Whitaker household were harsh despite the family’s abundant farmland and resources. On paper, they shouldn’t have struggled for food. But the Whitaker matriarch, with her insistence on “family harmony,” refused to let her three sons divide the land. She controlled the harvest and, after paying the communal taxes, decided how the remaining grains were distributed.
The Whitaker household had twelve members, but only four were real laborers.
The matriarch herself, a widow who had raised her three sons alone, never did farm work. The eldest son, Whitaker Albert, had a son and a daughter. His daughter, Rosaline, spent most of the year studying in the county. After starting high school, she was considered a promising student. The matriarch wouldn’t let her precious granddaughter do chores, claiming it would interfere with her studies. Albert’s wife had also moved to the county to care for Rosaline. Their younger son was only ten years old and not yet old enough to contribute.
The youngest son, Whitaker Henry, had three children. His eldest, Helen, was 17 and had stopped schooling after completing middle school. She stayed home with her mother to cook and tend the chickens, avoiding heavy labor. Henry’s two younger sons were still small, with the youngest being the same age as Michael. They were far from being laborers.
That left Elizabeth and Chris as the primary workhorses of the household. Elizabeth, a woman doing a man’s share of work, couldn’t avoid the heaviest and most grueling tasks. Despite being two of the few real laborers, their family always received the smallest share of everything.
This time, when Rosaline got into college, the matriarch demanded that the three families contribute to her living expenses. She openly stated that Elizabeth’s family had fewer people and thus dragged the family down less. With no sons to support in the future, Chris was told to contribute the most money.
And Chris did—he emptied their savings, contributing $300 on his own.
The harvest had already been handed over to the communal granary, so this money came from the odd jobs Chris had taken on.
As Elizabeth thought about this, her eyes reddened.
Rosaline could go to college, but her daughter couldn’t even marry decently? Their family savings were gone. They couldn’t even afford new bedding, washbasins, or kettles—how could they expect to attract a good match? These were thoughts Elizabeth hadn’t dared to dwell on before, tied as they were to her years of passive endurance.
But Aunt Amanda’s constant reminders made Elizabeth reevaluate things.
Rosaline had parents—wasn’t it their responsibility to support her? Albert had only contributed a little over $100, and Henry had begrudgingly added another $100.
Was Elizabeth going to go back to the Whitaker family, continuing to work like a mule for them, handing over her hard-earned money to raise someone else’s daughter while her own child lay bedridden, close to death, with no money for treatment?
Elizabeth wiped her tears with the back of her hand and said resolutely:
“Sister-in-law, I’m not going back to the Whitaker family.”
