Harriet Hall and the Enemy Within (The Harriet Hall Series Book 3) by Sonia Garrett

Author:Sonia Garrett [Garrett, Sonia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2023-05-31T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter eleven

Research, Research, Research

Harriet changed out of her new blouse in the train station washroom and hid her present from Phil under her pillow when she got home. Somehow, she’d have to talk her mom into giving her a ration card on payday. That way, she could pretend she’d just bought it and avoid awkward questions about where she’d gotten an expensive blouse.

When the lights went out, she breathed in deeply, trying to smell the memory of Phil sitting next to her in the theatre. All weekend, Harriet thought about ways she could invite Phil for a meal, a walk in the forest, or to work side by side with him. She even dreamed about Phil—his tall, athletic body, his electric-blue eyes, his calm manner. Harriet dismissed his one moment of rudeness as her being naïvely oversensitive and imagined the first time he would kiss her.

She spent hours in the bathroom trying to make her hair look like Bette Davis and wished she could tell Annie about her new love but remembered the disappointment in her friend’s eyes. Harriet tried to ignore the gnawing feeling in the pit of her stomach. She’d ruined the best friendship she had in Canada. She wished she could make it right again, but she didn’t know when she’d see Annie and whether she’d have the chance to apologise. She forced the thoughts aside. Forget about it and move on.

During Sunday lunch, her mom jolted Harriet from a blissful daydream about becoming Mrs. Phillip Blackman. “A penny for your thoughts.”

“What?” Harriet asked.

“You looked a million miles away,” Harriet’s mom continued.

“Just thinking about the court case,” Harriet lied.

“Why don’t you ride to Willow Farm this afternoon? See Annie,” her mom suggested. “A change is as good as a rest.”

“Maybe next week,” Harriet replied. “I’m tired. I think I’ll just go for a walk.”

“Is anything wrong?”

Harriet shook her head. “No, I just want some time alone. Vancouver is so busy, it’s wall-to-wall people.”

“Don’t leave it too long. I think they’ve nearly finished harvesting. Who knows where they’ll go next?”

“They won’t be farmers forever. We’ll see each other at school, if not before.”

She felt her mom’s eyes drilling into her. She always seemed to know when Harriet wasn’t telling the truth. Harriet wished she was a better liar. It seemed as if there was freedom in being able to keep the different parts of her life separate from each other—her relationship with her mom, the failure at Willow Farm, the expulsion from court, and her new love.

Harriet excused herself and walked to her favourite spot in the forest near Loughlin Lake. It seemed so natural to have this freedom. Leaving for Willow Farm and now working for the Three Mills Gazette had changed her mom’s view about the dangers outside. Or the war had worn her down. Harriet wasn’t sure of the reason, but she was grateful for the change in attitude.

She took off her shoes and socks, picked up a stick, and with her feet dangling in the cool stream, practiced writing her married signature in the mud.

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