“Shuliet! Come quickly girl; don’t keep your mother waiting. “the nanny called again
“Of course I trust you” she responded.
“Then meet me at the church at midnight and everything will be arranged to get married.”
“Now we must depart or both of us will get caught.” She said leaving.
She ran back to the window declaring “I love you Dameo and tomorrow cannot come fast enough. “
Then she went and said goodnight to her parents as they discussed more about Prescott, but her mind was only on Dameo. Then she went upstairs bursting to tell someone, so she told her nanny everything.
“You did what now child? Oh heavens help us! What will your mother and father say?”
“Oh please do not tell them, I can hide him in my room until the time is right.”She pleaded.
The nanny shook her head, but agreed to help the lovesick girl keep her secret.
All the next day the two waited and dreamed of the evening. At Dameo’s lunch break he left the mill to talk to Rev. Lawson to prepare things for the evening.
“I don’t know what to think. Part of me feels that you should not go behind the backs of your parents. I will perform the ceremony though, for I hope you too can bring this feud to an end.” The Rev. Lawson told him.
Dameo thanked him and skipped out of the church so full of happiness that would not last.
That night the two snuck to the church and Juliet found her mother’s wedding dress in the attic and took it with her. She walked down the aisle with her nanny on the bride side, the reverend at the front, and Dameo waiting for her. Not as she pictured her wedding day, but looking into Dameo’s eyes, nothing else seemed to matter. They were married and both snuck into her room for the night.
The next morning Romeo had to sneak out before Mrs. Collinsworth woke up her daughter. Shuliet kissed her husband good bye and went back to bed smiling. Her mother found her just laying there smiling.
“What has you so happy this morning?” her mother asked.
“Oh, the day just seems to be so pretty.” she responded.
“Alright dear whatever you say.”
Shuliet stood by her window almost the entire day waiting for night to fall so she could once again be with her Dameo, but he would not come that night. Dameo was walking home from work when he came across this crowed. He peeked into the circle finding Markus and Timothy fighting. He tried to stop it, but it was too late. Markus was out cold. His temper got the better of him and he chased timothy punching him in the back and then kicked him in the stomach. Soon Timothy laid there unconscious. People rushed them to the hospital and as Dameo ran away Benjamin witnessed everything and had to tell the sheriff. The Sheriff found Dameo and threw him in Jail. The nanny being one of the busy bodies of the town told Shuliet. She fell on her bed crying when her mother walked in.
“Oh honey, I know you are worried about Timothy, but I’m sure he will pull through. We all are worried, but no need to fret, the evil lad was thrown in the cell.”
Shuliet started to sob harder thinking”How could he be so thoughtless? I trusted him and now there is no hope for us to tell my parents.”
“Dear, do not cry so hard, for I bring good news too. Prescott has asked for your hand in marriage and your father has consented.” she smiled
“What? No, I won’t marry him I can’t marry him. I don’t even know him”
“You will get to know him.”
“I refuse mother!” she cried.
“Then you will tell your father yourself” her mother left slamming the door.
Telling her father did not go over well and he threatened to disown her or send her to some distant relative. He yelled and screamed and the whole neighborhood could hear. She ran to her room sobbing, wondering how cruel life could be. Her nanny told her to get a divorce since he was in jail for life anyway. Now she could not even trust her nanny. She had recently read Romeo and Juliet with a similar story. And she wrote a suicide note telling everyone she jumped off a bridge. She left the letter on her bed and went to be with her dear Dameo.
“Sheriff, you have my husband in that cell and if you cannot free him, may I stay in that cell with him?”
Both the Sheriff and Dameo looked surprise. The Sheriff could not believe that the two were married and Dameo could not believe she was there. The sheriff let her in.
The next day they found the note on Shuliet’s bed and cried telling each other how young she was and how they had lost one kid and the other in a hospital bed. A few weeks passed and the two stayed in the cell together and happy has anyone could be. Mr. Muller decided it was time to visit his son in jail and asked his good friend Reverend Lawson to accompany him. When they got there they were shocked to find the two in the cell together since both heard she had died. Reverend Lawson then went to the Collinsworth to tell them about their daughter being in the cell. The parents and her nanny ran the whole way there.
“Mother, father, you see I could not marry Prescott because that would mean cheating on my husband and I am an honorable girl!”
“Your husband?” said her parents and Mr. Muller and the same time.
“Yes my husband. We got married the night after my birthday and we would not like to be separated again. That is why I was sobbing, not because of Timothy. Though I do worry about him, but my husband, after one night, was thrown into a cell and that just broke my heart.”
“Yes, and we hope that you can put your feelings aside of the millers verses the shoemakers and let us live together in peace. If not we will live together in this cell until the day we die!” Dameo added.
The families after a moment of disbelief decided to put their petty feelings behind them and come together so the two would not live in the jail cell for the rest of their lives. That day Mr. Collinsworth paid the bail and set the two free. Then Markus and Timothy pulled through a week later and all became one big family! Yes they still had their arguments, but no more fist fights.
“It did it, it really did it.” Shuliet stated in disbelief.
“What did what?”Dameo asked confused.
“Our love conquered all. It brought two families and two different working classes all together. Our love is so strong it brought peace to the neighborhood.” She smiles.
Then Dameo bent over and kissed his beautiful wife.