On the Edge of Forever

by Cat Cahill

  ON THE EDGE OF FOREVER

  The Gilbert Girls, Book Six

  by Cat Cahill

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the author at:

  http://www.catcahill.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2020 Cat Cahill

  Cover design by EDH Professionals

  All rights reserved.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Chapter Twenty-four

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Chapter Twenty-six

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-one

  Chapter Thirty-two

  Chapter Thirty-three

  Epilogue

  Books in The Gilbert Girls series

  About the Author, Cat Cahill

  Chapter One

  Cañon City, Colorado Territory - 1876

  Something was wrong.

  James Wright rose from the desk, his paperwork forgotten. It was a scent—roast beef, if he wasn’t mistaken—that infiltrated the sheriff’s office in Cañon City.

  He glanced down at his pocket watch. 7:00. Well past time to lock the door and head upstairs to his supper obligation. He smiled at the thought. As one of two regular sheriff’s deputies in town, he’d been the supper guest of the sheriff and his new wife more than once over the past few months. The taste of the food didn’t always live up to the promise of its scent, but James enjoyed it nonetheless. After all, it was much better than whatever he could scare up himself, and the conversation was far improved from eating alone at the little restaurant across from the dry goods store.

  James pulled the shades and locked the door before making his way to the stairs in the rear of the building. The cells behind the stairs were mercifully empty for the first time in weeks. He climbed the narrow steps to the small living quarters on the second floor where he paused to knock—but the door flew open before his knuckles met the wood.

  “James!” Mrs. Young stood in the doorway, a large wooden spoon in her hand. “You’re just in time.” She left the door open as she disappeared through the room into the kitchen.

  Three plates of meat, potatoes, and carrots sat on the table already, steam curling up from each one. Ben Young, the county sheriff and James’s boss, stood from his seat. “I was about to fetch you from downstairs.” He pushed a chair out, and James took it gratefully.

  “Lost track of time,” James replied. His stomach rumbled, and it took all of his willpower not to grab the fork next to his plate. Finally, Mrs. Young reappeared, a gravy boat in her hands.

  James waited until Mrs. Young had said a prayer, and then gathered up his fork as fast as possible. He closed his eyes at the first bite. It was heavenly—and worlds different from the first time the Youngs had invited him to supper. A satisfied sound escaped his lips.

  “I take it that means you’re enjoying the food?” Mrs. Young asked.

  “It’s perfect,” he replied. “Thank you for inviting me, Mrs. Young.”

  She set her fork down. “For the love of all good things, James, you’re to call me Penny.”

  James nodded uncomfortably as Ben laughed. Mrs. Young—Penny, he supposed—never stood much on ceremony.

  “Anyway, it’s much improved, isn’t it?” Penny smiled at her husband and James. “The girls would hardly believe me if I told them I could cook something without scorching it or boiling all the taste out of it.”

  “Do you see your friends often?” James asked, reaching for his glass of water. Penny had worked as a Gilbert Girl—a waitress—at the hotel in Crest Stone, south of Cañon City, before she married Ben.

  “Not recently. But they’ll come up for church services now that the snow has melted. Although I suppose it won’t be long before Crest Stone has its own church.”

  “When that happens, you’ll have to take the train down for a visit.” Ben smiled at his wife.

  A few months ago, James never would’ve imagined Ben as a married man. And now here he was, easily settled into a new sort of life. It was a life James couldn’t imagine for himself, as appealing as it seemed at times. He had plans for what he wanted to achieve as a lawman, and a woman would only serve to distract him.

  “The town’s growing so quickly, I fear they may need someone like you there all the time,” Penny said to Ben.

  “They’ll elect a marshal once they’re organized enough to consider such a thing,” Ben replied. He sat back in his chair, finished with his meal, and fixed his gaze on James. “But it has been weighing on my mind since that train robbery last month. And now with all the newcomers arriving to help build, I’ve a mind to send someone down there to help keep the peace. James, you’d be the best choice for that. You want to go?”

  James paused in the middle of chewing his meat. This was the first Ben had mentioned of such an idea. He swallowed and lifted the napkin to his lips before responding. “You wouldn’t need me here?” He forced himself to sound neutral to the idea, when in reality, he wanted to jump at the opportunity. He’d been a deputy here for going on two years; he’d saved up enough experience that he was more than ready to strike out on his own, be the sheriff or town marshal somewhere. Maybe this was that opportunity, coming to land in his lap without him even needing to lift a finger.

  “I’ve got Harry, and if we need, I can always deputize Eli Jennings again. Heaven knows he’s always asking,” Ben said.

  Penny landed a stare on her husband that would’ve melted a lesser man. Ben cleared his throat and apologized to her for his choice of words, but with a smile so James couldn’t tell if he was entirely sorry or simply appeasing his wife.

  “In that case,” James said, “I’m happy to go as soon as possible.”

  “I must admit I’m a bit jealous that you’re going to see the town grow. Just don’t fall in love with any of the Gilbert Girls.” Penny aimed a mischievous grin at him.

  James laughed, even as he could feel his neck go red. “I won’t have time for anything such as that.”

  “Ben didn’t either.” Penny laid a hand on her husband’s arm as she gave James an appraising look. “You could use a good woman.”

  James shoved a last piece of meat into his mouth. That was the last thing he needed right now.

  Ben shook his head. “Leave the man be,” he said before turning his attention to James a
gain. “I’ll wire the hotel so they’ll know to expect you.”

  They spent the remainder of the meal discussing the growth of the town with lively interjections from Penny. When he left, Ben took a moment in the office downstairs to gather his thoughts before stepping out into the night to find his way home. This opportunity was exactly the sort for which he’d been waiting. Recently, he’d thought he might need to go seeking it out, but he’d been loath to leave a good position here in Cañon City for the unknown.

  Now it appeared he might be headed toward what he really wanted. Taking this work in Crest Stone was the logical next step. Were his uncle still alive, he would’ve slapped James on the back in congratulations and then told him not to mess this up.

  James smiled at the thought as he pulled on his coat. Uncle Mark had understood him in a way his own parents never could. He was the reason James had left the dull security of the family farm in Kansas for the uncertainty of life in the Colorado Territory. If James could be half the man his uncle was, he’d feel like he’d accomplished something good in his life.

  He’d go to Crest Stone and do the man’s memory proud. And maybe by this time next year, he’d be Marshal Wright.

  Chapter Two

  Crest Stone, Colorado Territory

  Edie Dutton snuggled deeper into her coat as she closed the book she’d borrowed from Mrs. McFarland’s small library. The hotel manager’s wife, who served as the bookkeeper, was still kind enough to lend Edie books when she delivered dessert to Mrs. McFarland each evening. Although Edie didn’t know why, she was grateful. In fact, most everyone at the hotel was friendly and kind to her, which was puzzling. She thought on it from time to time, but hadn’t yet settled on why exactly. After all, it wasn’t most folks who would continue to take kindly to a young woman who stole from their place of business, even if she had been blackmailed. As much as she could figure, it was simple Christian charity.

  She laid the book on the little garden table and scanned the trees that lined Silver Creek, which ran the length of the valley. It was early May, and spring was evident all around even though the mountains that rose high above the creek were still a snow-covered white, almost blinding in the afternoon sun.

  Edie sighed. It wasn’t often she felt entirely contented, but when she did, she wanted to seize the moment in the hopes it might last forever.

  “Oh, thank goodness!” a harried voice sounded from behind her, interrupting the fleeting peace.

  Edie turned and spotted Adelaide, who at sixteen was one of the youngest Gilbert Girls at the hotel. Edie herself was only a couple of years older, but her own life at sixteen had been so different from the one Adelaide was living.

  “I must go to the mercantile, and Mrs. Ruby says I can’t go alone given all those new men who have arrived, but everyone else is either working or otherwise occupied. Please, will you come with me?” Adelaide held up her hands as if in prayer, her big eyes sparkling in the sun.

  Edie might have laughed if she was given to such reactions, but instead she smiled. “You’ve found me at a good time. I’ve only just finished my book, and I’m not scheduled to work this evening.”

  Adelaide clapped her hands together. “Oh, thank you! I’m all ready. I’ve left my coat in the kitchen.”

  Edie gathered her book and followed Adelaide inside. “I must return this to Mrs. McFarland, and then we can go.”

  “I’ll join you. What were you reading?” Adelaide finished shrugging into her coat and reached for the book. “Herbs and Medicinal Plants of the Colorado Territory. You do choose books that would put me right to sleep. I much prefer novels about dashing dukes and their ladies or pirates on the high seas. It’s a pity Mrs. McFarland doesn’t have any books like those.”

  She handed the book back to Edie, who clutched it to her chest as she pictured Mrs. McFarland curled up with a dime novel about a pirate. A rare giggle came to her lips and almost escaped. The contentment she’d felt earlier must be going to her head to conjure up such images. “I enjoy learning about plants and trees.” She paused a moment, wondering if she should share more, then plunged ahead. “I hope that as soon as the weather is warmer, I’ll be allowed to plant a small garden.”

  “Why, Edie Dutton,” Adelaide said as they made their way through the busy hotel lobby, “I had no idea you were a farm girl.”

  Edie’s fingers tightened around the book. “I’m not. I mean, my mother tended a garden and we had a few horses and goats and chickens, but . . . no, my family aren’t farmers.” Adelaide didn’t need to know most of those horses weren’t really theirs, or that the goats and chickens were necessary since they couldn’t often go into town to purchase milk or eggs or meat, just like she didn’t need to know anything else about Edie’s previous life in Kansas. No one did.

  Mrs. McFarland was not in her office in the north wing of the hotel, so Edie slipped the slim volume into the pocket of her skirt. She’d come back later. She didn’t dare try the knob to see if the room was unlocked, not after what had happened earlier this winter when that horrible Mr. Adkins had forced her to steal from the hotel to repay what he thought her pa owed him, or else have her darkest secret made public. It was a wonder Mr. McFarland had allowed her to remain employed as a Gilbert Girl and hadn’t put her on the next train back to Kansas.

  Not that she would ever return home.

  The girls returned to the expansive lobby, which bustled with guests, hotel employees, and men who had arrived in the valley since the snows had melted to begin building the town. Adelaide waved to Dora and Emma, two former Gilbert Girls, who sat near the fire. Emma’s hands rested on her growing stomach, while Dora held sheets of paper in her lap. Edie smiled at them. She was always hesitant to presume anyone was her friend, and although Dora and Emma had never been anything but nice to her, she feared they might see through her somehow. Particularly Dora, who had discovered Edie was the one stealing from the hotel. Yet Dora had remained ever kind, even after Mr. Adkins had held them both at gunpoint in the hotel’s stables.

  “Emma tells me her baby isn’t to be born until late June, although it looks to me as if it could arrive any day now,” Adelaide whispered as they pushed open one of the large doors and stepped back out into the sunlight. “I cannot imagine ever having children. Can you?”

  Adelaide was forever making broad pronouncements such as this, and it amused Edie to no end. “Oh, I believe you’ll have a whole passel of children. Seven, at least. Perhaps ten,” she teased.

  “Ten!” Adelaide pressed a hand to her heart. “My mother had only my brother and myself, and she remarked often about how trying it was.”

  “Oh, it isn’t so bad. Having so many children in a family, I mean. I have five brothers.” Edie clamped her mouth shut. She never shared details about her family. What had possessed her to do so now?

  Adelaide shuddered. “One brother was plenty for me. Having another four to boss me around sounds like a nightmare come to life.”

  Edie searched in vain for a new direction of conversation. The last thing she wished to discuss was Adelaide’s sheriff brother. She scanned the horizon from where they’d begun to walk down the hill toward the depot and the burgeoning town. “Oh, look,” she said weakly, “what do you suppose that will be?”

  “Which one?” Adelaide asked. No fewer than five new buildings were under construction on both sides of the railroad tracks.

  “The one by the smithy shop.” Edie chose a partially constructed building at random.

  “A livery, perhaps? It would make sense to have it next to the blacksmith’s.”

  “It’s awfully small to be a livery.” Edie was truly curious now. In fact, the entire new town made her curious. It was a miraculous thing to see something arise from wilderness like this. When she’d first arrived, this place had felt so big and empty. Being from Kansas, she was used to wide open spaces, but to see an entire town emerge from such a place was an entirely new experience. It was fascinating to watch, but deep down inside, it made h
er nervous. More buildings meant more people, and she’d already had the misfortune to be identified by Mr. Adkins. Who else might arrive here if it turned into a proper town?

  Adelaide shot a grin at her. “Then let’s go find out.” The younger girl was nearly to the depot before Edie caught up with her. Edie picked her way across the railroad tracks and the mud lying on each side, her breath coming quickly from the unexpected sprint down the hill.

  “Pardon me,” Adelaide was already calling out to the men working on the mystery building.

  A warm flush crept up into Edie’s cheeks. Adelaide was overly exuberant at times, which could be endearing, or—such as now—could be far too forward.

  “Adelaide!” Edie whispered loudly as she closed the steps between them. But Adelaide paid her no mind.

  “My friend and I are wondering what this building might be once it is finished. Could you tell us?” Adelaide smiled at the young man who’d answered her call, and he went a bit red.

  “It’ll be the land office, miss,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “The railroad bought up all this land when it laid tracks.”

  Edie let her eyes wander the partially built structure. It was hard to imagine these pieces of wood would turn into a building one could use.

  “Thank you, sir. You’re doing a wonderful job,” Adelaide said, as if she were in charge of the building. She tucked her arm around Edie’s, and they started toward the mercantile and general store, which was only just south of the to-be-built land office.

  “Good afternoon, miss!” the man called a half-moment too late. Edie knew if she looked back, she’d find the poor man watching Adelaide walk away.

  But as for Adelaide, the man and the land office were already forgotten. She steered them around some mud and said, “Oh, I hope Caroline has some lace handkerchiefs. She told me she would order some. My handkerchiefs are a frightful mess, and I must have at least one new one before we go to services in Cañon City on Sunday.”

  “Can you not edge a square of cotton if you’re in such need?” All of Edie’s handkerchiefs were plain cotton, and they served their purpose just fine.