Read Online McKenzie by Penny Zeller - Free Book Online Page A

and she was growing more and more concerned about Kaydie’s safety and well-being.
    McKenzie reached for the decorated, wooden box on her desk. She opened the lid and carefully placed Zach’s letters inside. She then knelt down on the floor and slid the box under her bed until it was pressed flush against the wall. No one would ever think to look there.
    So far, it had been somewhat easy to keep her correspondence with Zach Sawyer a secret. Biddie had kept her promise of hand-delivering any letters to McKenzie as soon as they arrived, and McKenzie made sure that her parents never knew about the envelopes she received from the Montana Territory.
    The next day, McKenzie spent the afternoon Christmas shopping with Helen. “I will carry in your parcels, Miss McKenzie,” Lawrence announced as he helped McKenzie down from the carriage when they returned to the Worthington residence after driving Helen home.
    “Thank you, Lawrence. You may bring them up to my room, please.” McKenzie reached for Lawrence’s hand and stepped carefully out of the carriage. Holding up the corner of her dress, she made her way up the porch steps and opened the front door.
    Her mother came out of the sitting room. “Finally, you’re home,” she said, her voice flat with apparent frustration.
    “Hello, Mother. I was just shopping with Helen. Is something wrong?”
    “What is the meaning of this letter?” her mother asked, rushing toward McKenzie and waving an envelope in her hand.
    “What—what do you mean, Mother?” McKenzie held her breath. She recognized the blue envelope and wondered how her mother could have acquired possession of it.
    “I mean this letter here,” her mother said, her voice rising in pitch.
    “Oh, how nice! I received some mail?” McKenzie smiled with feigned surprise. She reached out and attempted to retrieve the letter with all the ladylike assertiveness she could muster.
    “Oh, no, you don’t,” her mother warned her. “You’re not getting this letter until you tell me what this is all about. Why would you be receiving a letter from someone in the Montana Territory, of all places?”
    “The Montana Territory?” McKenzie asked. She racked her brain to come up with a reasonable explanation for the letter. If she told the truth, her mother would forbid her to continue corresponding with Zach, which would ruin McKenzie’s plans to meet him—and to rescue Kaydie. The only thing left to do was lie. Quick, McKenzie, think of something. McKenzie willed her mind to think of a convincing excuse that would quell her mother’s concerns. She reached up to twirl a tendril of hair between her thumb and forefinger. Thankfully, Zach hadn’t written his name in the return address but had written only, “Pine Haven, Montana Territory.” That left McKenzie with more room for creativity.
    “You sound as though you’re surprised to be receiving a letter from a place that’s far enough away to be on the other side of the earth,” her mother fumed.
    “Mother, may I look at the envelope?” McKenzie asked, making her voice sound syrupy sweet.
    Her mother paused for a moment, then relented and handed McKenzie the letter. McKenzie stared down at the envelope, eager to remove herself from this uncomfortable confrontation with her mother and even more eager to read Zach’s latest letter. “Was this letter just delivered?” McKenzie asked, confused as to why Biddie hadn’t kept it for her to read in secret.
    “About twenty minutes ago,” said her mother. “I nearly opened it myself because it seemed as though you would never return.”
    McKenzie nearly let a gasp escape her lips. What if her mother had opened the envelope? McKenzie didn’t allow herself to imagine the consequences that would have come, had her mother been any more impatient.
    “Where’s Biddie?” McKenzie asked. She should have known better than to have trusted Biddie with something so important. While she liked the maid, McKenzie also knew that