Fairchild's 7 Daughters-The 12: Book One

14. Rockwood at Moosehead

Through the journey the girls had learned much about the state. The town of Rockport and Camden and their big bridge dispute, the lime quarries and the kilns. As it turned out Maine had the best lime around. It also had business in ice and shipbuilding. All of this just in Camden and Rockport.

The sun was gone when there arrived at the boarding school in Rockwood. Moosehead Lake could be seen shimmering in the dim dusk not far from the road leading up to the school. Mount Kineo, just across the way could be seen as a powerful silhouette in the approaching moonlight.

"All right, you can hang your boaters here," Mrs. Murphy instructed as they came inside. She hung her own hat on the coat rack then removed her stylish blazer and put it there also. "Flynn," she said going after the man you had brought them there. "Will you please get the luggage bags from the wagon and put Thor away. I'll send Jacobi to help you." She smelled the air. "It smells like Pat has finished Supper." Her heels tapped across the wood floors as she made her way up the hall. "Josie, I'm back!"

Hannah handed her boater hat to Astrid who put it on the coat hanger. She took a deep breath of air and smiled. "Mmmm smells like fish."

"I thought you wanted chicken," Alifair said.

"I do want chicken," Hanna said taking a few steps forward. "But fish is almost just as good. And fish and chicken are both better than...potatoes." She wondered up the foyer into an open room with her sisters following her. The room had large windows in either side with matching tables and vases on them. The balloon curtains fluttered gently in the slightly ajar windows that had bowls of melted ice on their stools. The rose wallpaper gave a hint of the sun in the otherwise dim room and it was easy to see that the room was even prettier in daylight.

The open floor led up to a staircase with a dark cherry banister one way and continued up the hall to the other where the kitchen dining room and parlor where.

Hannah was about to take a step further when she gasped. At the top of the stairs stood three girls. No one knew how long they had been standing there as they whispered among themselves before descending.

"You must be the new girls," the tinniest of them said. "My aunt told me all about you. I'm Josie and this is Imogene and Cathy. Blonde Imogene waved and dark curly haired Cathy curtsied.

"I'm Hannah!" Hannah blurted out and these are my sister. "Astrid, Heloise and Alifair!"

"Well we are happy to have you here in Maine; I apologize for the summah heat."

"Oh this is nothing," Hannah said. "This is considered mild where we come from."

A bell rung from the next room and Josie looked over her shoulder. "That's the dinnah bell. I'll give you a proper tour after we eat. You are going to love it here. I promise!"

/

The girls took their seats at one side of the table and the adults that ran the school and kept the ground took the other. There was Mrs. Murphy who taught etiquette and home economics and Miss Drew who taught English and arithmetic. Mr. Jacobi and Flynn worked the grounds and took care of the animals, then Pat who cooked. It was a small school with only three other students aside from the ones who had already introduced themselves.

A prayer was said over the meal and the residents began to eat. The Fairchild sisters watched the locals and mirrored their movements.

"I hope you girls like fish. It is rather popular here in Maine." Mrs. Murphy said. "These were all caught by Flynn .He loves flounder fishing." She smiled at the man who nodded with his mouth full.