Mail Order Bride: Redeemed Mail Order Brides Box Set - Books 16-18: Redeemed Western Historical Mail Order Bride Victorian Romance Collection, #6

By Kenneth Markson

Now available as a Box Set, books 16 - 18 in the Redeemed Mail Order Brides Collection. 
** A Western Historical Mail Order Bride Victorian Romance Novelette Collection** 

Mail Order Bride: The Disfigured Bride
A terrible accident in Cleveland suddenly leaves pretty, dark haired parlormaid Connie disfigured. Edward is a lonely Texas rancher looking for a wife. Connie departs Ohio for Texas. Some think they're not strong enough to succeed. Are they wrong? Will true love prevail?

Mail Order Bride: The Battered Bride
An abusive stepfather forces pretty young Val to leave Shreveport. She decides upon a fresh start to become a mail order bride to a rancher in a small Texas town. But all is not what it seems. Mack, a handsome bounty hunter, passes through by chance. Can the town's evil be stopped? Will love triumph in Texas?

Mail Order Bride: The Spring Bride
A lascivious crime boss forces pretty young Amy to leave Omaha and travel to Cheyenne, Wyoming. Evan, a lonely, handsome rancher yearns for a wife of his own. With nowhere to turn, Amy decides to become a mail order bride. But, that is only the beginning. Will evil pursuers get their way, or will true love win?

If you enjoyed these stories, you may also enjoy Kenneth's other Box Sets in the Redeemed Mail Order Brides Collection, or in the Rescued Mail Order Brides Collection, or the Mail Order Bride And Western Romance Box Set.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kenneth Markson
• Release date: Feb 10, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386868415

Kenneth Markson

While an English major at college, I wrote a column which was published weekly. I have been writing ever since. The old West and Los Angeles in the forties are eras which lend themselves to tales of romance, courage, and fast paced adventure. I particularly enjoy writing stories about the mail order brides who fearlessly took a chance and traveled West, hoping to find love and a better future. Many of the locales that I write about are places that I have either traveled through or actually lived in. I try to make my works richly accurate. My desire is to provide you with an entertaining and fun read. When I'm not writing, I enjoy spending time with my wife and two children.

Book preview

Chapter 1

Connie Lawson completed her morning task of finishing cleaning the front reception areas of the Middleton mansion.  For the past three months, she had been employed as a parlormaid in the house of Horace and Joyce Middleton.  Horace Middleton was one of Cleveland's most prominent bankers.

The Middleton home was worlds away from the poor section of the city where Connie had resided with her grandmother up until her death.  Her parents had died when she was very young, and she had been raised by her grandmother.  Until she obtained this job, she and her grandmother had lived together in a cramped, rented space in an old house.

The size of the place had never mattered to Connie.  It was the love within that counted.  Not a day went by since her death, that she didn't think of her grandmother and miss her.

She moved down a long hallway past a set of curios which contained numerous sterling silver and gold artifacts, as well as collections of fine china.  At the end of the hallway was a small room which the housekeeper had designated as her office.  Connie knew the dour middle-aged woman with the hard eyes as Winnifred.

She apparently had a big hand in raising the lady of the house, Joyce Middleton, who referred to her as Winnie.  No one else dared address her as anything other than ma'am.  Those hard blue eyes of the housekeeper glanced at her as she approached.

Yes, what is it? a voice snapped.

I've completed my morning chores, ma'am, Connie replied, and I'd like to take my lunch break.

The housekeeper grudgingly acknowledged, with an air of annoyance, that Connie had the right to have some time for lunch.

Alright, she responded in a forced tone, but take care to be back here in half an hour on the dot.  The mistress needs you to serve tea and dessert in the reception room to her guests, early this afternoon.

Understood, ma'am, Connie said in a compliant manner.  Thank you, ma'am, she continued, and then she headed towards the front entrance.

There were moments during the day, Connie reflected, as she grabbed her lunch and a shawl to put around her shoulders, when she would have liked to have given the old battle-axe a swift kick in the shins.  But, she needed this job desperately.  It provided her with room and board, and a small compensation which she had just begun to save.

Carrying her lunch, Connie went past the front gate on to Euclid Avenue.  This area of Euclid Avenue between East 20th and East 40th Streets was known as Millionaire's Row.  This section of the city housed the large estates of Victorian mansions, with ornate architecture, and immense landscapes. 

These massive Victorian homes came with gables, towers, and tall windows set back from the sidewalk.  The street itself was lined with large elm trees, giving  passersby the feeling of being in the countryside rather than in the heart of the city.  Connie walked by these immense homes seeking the nearby park, where she would enjoy a quick lunch.

Humming to herself, she proceeded past the residences of some of the most influential families and wealthiest industrialists in the country.  It was not by chance that Euclid Avenue had become the home of some of the wealthiest families in America.  The land nearby had been discovered to be rich in iron ore.

The Ohio Canal provided the means to bring raw material into the city, which was then processed and refined.  Cleveland's great industry was iron and steel.  Steel mills and refineries were continually being built throughout the city.  The people who profited from this burgeoning industry, built their palatial homes on the very street where Connie was walking.

Chapter 2

Connie was glad that she brought a shawl along.  It was just early spring, and a cool breeze caused her dark hair to flutter in the wind.  She was a tall, pretty young woman with soft brown eyes.

She chose a bench at the other end of the park to sit and quickly eat her meager lunch.  The surrounding area contained many small businesses and markets where ordinary people liked to shop.  It also was a location where numerous immigrants from several different countries resided.

Connie found this section of the city far more colorful and exciting than Euclid Avenue with its ornate mansions, and she enjoyed her daily walk through there.  Knowing that she most definitely had to be back on time, Connie spent no more than a few minutes resting on the park bench, and quickly ate the small prepared sandwich.  She smiled at a young family that walked past her, as she proceeded into the market area.

Let's see what new sights and delicacies are on display today, she thought to herself, as she walked through the area.  Little did she know at that moment, that her life was to change forever this very afternoon.

Connie was looking at an open stand of fruit, when she heard a loud clattering coming furiously up the street.  She turned and saw in dread that a runaway carriage was proceeding quickly towards her direction.  There was a look of fear on the inexperienced driver's face, as he was trying desperately to control a racing horse.

Connie saw to her horror that a young girl had suddenly darted out into the street, right in the path of the runaway carriage.  There was not a moment to think.  In a few seconds, the child would be trampled to death.

Without hesitating, Connie dove after the little girl, seized her dress, and shoved her out of harm's way.  The young girl escaped injury, but Connie was not to be so fortunate.  A flailing hoof from the charging horse struck her hard across the side of the face, knocking her to the ground. 

The last thing which she remembered, before she lost consciousness, was a man's voice crying out.

A lady's been hurt! the man yelled.  She needs to be treated right away!

Connie had a vague recollection of being taken to the hospital, but everything was muddled at that time.  All she could remember clearly was the terrible pain on the right side of her face, where she was holding a cloth that someone had given her, to stem the bleeding.  She was eventually treated in a ward at the City Hospital of Cleveland, where the poor and needy were taken for medical treatment. 

Connie found herself resting on a mattress in a large ward, which contained numerous other patients that were also being treated.  A short, kindly looking, middle-aged doctor with wire rimmed glasses and thinning hair, came up to her as she laid in her bed.

I'm Doctor Everhaus, he smiled pleasantly.  What is your name? he asked as he glanced at his medical papers. 

Connie sat up when he approached.  I must have been unconscious when they treated me, she thought to herself.  There was a large bandage covering the right side of her face.

I'm Connie Lawson, she replied.

The older doctor smiled again.

In some ways, young lady, he continued, "you were