Poor In Heaven

CHAPTER 1

"The lake's embrace"

It was a pretty ordinary morning. Mr. Smith's daughters and their cousins were sitting by the lake and had dipped their feet in the water. The girls often spent their time swimming in the fresh waters of the lake. It was their favorite place. Their houses were only a few meters away from the lake, so it was a pleasure for them to visit it every morning.

The girls had all grown up together, since their ages were not too different, and their houses were next to each other. Mr. Henry Taylor, was a childhood friend of Mr. Smith, and lived with his second wife, who was a sister of Mr. Smith's wife, Mrs. Martha Smith. They were two of the wealthiest families in the area.

Mr. Smith had managed to gain the favor of the townspeople because of his father, who was a wealthy investor and landowner in the area. Matthew Smith and his wife lived in London, until his father died, and he returned to the small town to claim his inheritance.
On the other hand, Mr. Taylor had inherited both his father and uncle, so he had quite a fortune. He invested mainly in textiles. After the death of his first wife, with whom he had a son, he met Alice and they had two more daughters.

So, let's meet the girls.

The older one was Mary-Jane Smith, she was twenty years old, kind, serious, and she was always trying to help others in any way. She wanted to be a teacher and she would soon go to London to study at a good university. Something that made her stand out from the rest was her auburn hair. Many young men had tried to approach her and ask her to dance at church festivals, or at dances organized by the community, but she did not show much interest.

Madeleine, Mary-Jane's sister, was about sixteen. She loved to make pranks and make others laugh. She was quite a free spirit, didn't like rules, and certainly she could never be serious.

Grace Taylor was eighteen and had just finished school. She wanted to become a teacher, like Mary-Jane, and intended to go with her to London, where she believed she would have a better future and could study. Of course, this trip was constantly postponed, which was not so pleasant for her. She was quite ambitious and spontaneous and did not hesitate to speak her mind, even if she was wrong.

Finally, Ruth Taylor was the youngest, around fourteen years old, quite shy, but also good-natured. Sometimes she got angry if Mary-Jane and her sister Grace didn't take her with them to the young ladies' balls. She really wanted to fall in love with someone, but no one had shown interest in her.

They were the most beautiful girls in the area. They had received a very good upbringing, and everyone admired them. They also had great wealth, which made them the most sought-after brides in the town.

Grace was in a bad mood that day, because their trip to London was postponed. She and Mary-Jane had planned to settle there next month, but their families felt there was no rush.

"Oh, how I wish I was in London right now"! Grace said with a sigh.

"Stop whining Grace! We know you don't like it here anymore, but there is no need to keep reminding us!' Ruth complained.

"I wish we didn't have to leave. I never want to leave this place." Mary-Jane said.

"Don't talk nonsense. We may be rich, but even in London we would be considered peasants!'

"Grace, did you just call yourself a country girl?" Madeline told her and immediately they all started laughing.

Grace made a face. She dove in the water, about up to her knees, and started dousing the three girls with water. The girls pushed her into the lake and they all dived in together. They started laughing and splashing.

"Well, you know what? I might want to go to London, but I wouldn't change that for anything!" laughed Grace.

Through their loud laughter, they couldn't hear Michael, Mary-Jane and Madeleine's younger brother calling them out.

"Girls! Girls! Stop!"

Mary-Jane heard him and turned to look at him.

"What is it Michael? Is something going on?"

"Dad and Uncle Henry said to come right away."

"What is the reason? Has something serious happened?" Mary-Jane said coming out of the lake.

"Yes. We have visitors."

"Visitors? Who is coming?"

"Uncle Henry's son, Felix."

"Felix!" Grace and Ruth exclaimed.

The girls turned and looked at each other. They certainly did not expect this visit for anything in the world.