Trailblazer

by Anna Schmidt

  Too soon, he rested his head against her forehead. “I love you, Grace. And I know I have put you in a terrible position here, but I hope you have no regrets. As for me, if the time we’ve had together were all we were ever to have, I’d still take comfort in knowing we did it legal and proper. A woman like you deserves nothing less. And I swear I’ll make it up to you. We’re goin’ to have a terrific life together—that’s a promise I aim to keep.”

  “Just come back to me, and we’ll figure out the rest together.” For the first time, she understood the finality of what was happening. He would be gone for a month. She could not tell anyone—not even Lily and Emma—they were married. “I should go,” she whispered as she leaned in and kissed the lobe of his ear.

  Before he could come to help her, she stepped down from the buggy. “Go,” she urged as tears threatened.

  “I’ve got time. You go first. I want to watch and be sure you get in before I leave.” He motioned toward the back of the hotel. “Laundry door is there just past—”

  “I see it.” She blew him a kiss before grabbing her skirt in one hand and running quickly through the thickets of sage and juniper. It was still dark enough to conceal her movements should anyone be looking out. She was breathless when she reached the laundry door and turned the handle. The door opened, and she heaved a sigh of relief. Before slipping inside, she turned and waved and heard the jingle of harness in the distance as Nick left to return the buggy and board the train for California.

  * * *

  When she reached her room, Emma and Lily were already dressed for work and sitting on their beds. The minute she stepped inside, they stood.

  “Where were you?” Emma demanded, her face twisted into a mix of irritation and concern.

  “We fell asleep.” It was not a lie—eventually, they had slept. “Did Miss—”

  “You’re fine,” Lily said. “But if you don’t hurry, you’re going to be late, so get changed.”

  Grace grabbed her uniform and hurried across the hall to the washroom. By the time she returned, dressed and ready, Emma and Lily had left for their shift in the dining room. Grace found the locket that held the picture of her parents and pulled the chain free. She threaded it through her wedding ring and fastened the necklace around her neck, hiding any evidence under her dress. As she ran down the back stairs, Grace heard the clock on the second-floor landing chime the hour. She waved to Jake as she hurried through the kitchen.

  The new girl hired for the lunch counter had not worked out, so Grace was still taking double shifts. Polly scowled at her as Grace hurried to her post, and as if the day weren’t already off to a bad start, seated on a stool was none other than Jasper Perkins. Grace hesitated. The banker usually chose to eat in the dining room. In fact, she could not recall a time he’d come to the counter since she’d started working there.

  “Well, well, well,” he said, eying her closely. “It’s you.”

  “Pardon, sir?”

  He laughed—too loud and long enough to attract attention. He glanced around, then lowered his voice as he pretended to study the menu. “Now, girlie, let’s not play games. You might have been wearing a mask, but I never forget a pair of eyes. Especially not eyes like yours.”

  She picked up his cup, already set to signal black coffee, and filled it. “May I take your order, sir?”

  He scowled at her. Grace saw Miss Kaufmann pause to glance her way as she passed through the lobby on her way to her office. Perkins motioned Grace closer, although she doubted Miss K could actually overhear the exchange.

  If a customer makes any reasonable request, it is the duty of a Harvey Girl to honor that request. The words she’d read time after time as she studied the manual came back to her. Was this going to be a reasonable request?

  She pressed her palms against the edge of the counter as he leaned in so that only she would hear what he said.

  “What I want, missy, is time alone with you. I suggest you find a way to make that happen, or I promise you I can make your life a living hell.”

  Grace was so shocked, she straightened suddenly. Hot coffee sloshed over the back of her hand and spotted her apron. “I…excuse me, sir. I must change. I’ll send another waitress to take your order.”

  She waved to Polly, pointing out the stains on her apron, and then fled to the kitchen. By the time she was safely away from the man, she was shaking so badly she could barely manage to untie the sash.

  “Grace?” Miss K had paused in the kitchen.

  “Mr. Perkins was placing his order when I accidentally… Polly has a customer, and Mr. Perkins is quite—”

  “I’ll go. Take your time.”

  “Please take care—”

  Miss K gave her an odd, kind smile and left to serve the banker.

  Grace ran through the kitchen and straight out the back door to the yard where she doubled over and forced herself to gulp fresh air.

  At the party, Nick and Mr. Lombard had come to her rescue, but who was to rescue her now? The man had made a very definite threat. She had no idea what he meant by it, only that she was certain he was fully capable of delivering. He was one of the most powerful men in the community. A word from him could quite possibly be enough to get her fired.

  Lily rushed outside. “Grace, you need to get back to your station.” She was carrying a fresh apron and immediately began untying the bow of the soiled one and replacing it. “Miss K told me to come get you.”

  Grace allowed her friend to tie the bow on her clean apron before turning to face her.

  “You look like hell,” Lily said, never one to mince words. “When’s the last time you had any real sleep? Certainly not last night. Well, you’d best tell Nick that you—”

  “Nick’s gone to California.”

  “For good?”

  “For a month.” Grace touched her hands to her hair, straightening the white bow. “I’m fine. Let’s go before I get you in trouble as well.”

  “You gonna tell me what happened?” Lily asked as they walked back inside.

  “Later.” Grace pasted on her brightest smile and returned to the counter where Jasper Perkins was glaring at Miss Kaufmann and pointing to a plate of perfectly served eggs and bacon.

  “I tell you, it’s undercooked,” he ranted.

  Aidan hurried over. “Is there a problem, Mr. Perkins?”

  “There is. Take this back, and have that girl bring me a properly prepared breakfast.” He thrust the plate of food at Aidan and pointed at Grace. “And from now on, when I choose to dine in this establishment—whether here or in the dining room—I wish that girl to be my waitress. Is that clear?”

  “Perfectly, Mr. Perkins,” Aidan assured him. “We are so sorry for any inconvenience. Of course, your meal today will be compliments of the house.”

  “I should think so,” Perkins grumbled as he sat back down and tapped his coffee cup with his spoon. “Could use a refill.”

  “Of course.” Aidan motioned to Grace, and when she hesitated, he frowned.

  As she picked up the coffee cup, dumped out what was there, and refilled it with fresh, she wondered if this was step one in Mr. Perkins’s promise to make her life miserable.

  Beneath the bodice of her uniform, she felt the press of her wedding ring against her chest. She forced her mind back to the happiness she’d felt just hours earlier and smiled. If she thought about Nick and not this horrible man, just maybe she could make it through the day.

  Jasper Perkins showed up for breakfast and lunch every day that week and the next, and every day, he sat at Grace’s station. He made conversation with her that to anyone else would seem simply like polite interest, but Grace was not fooled. Every comment was a veiled threat.

  “Just heard Nick Hopkins had to go out to California,” he said one day. “You must be missing him. Haven’t the two of you been steppin’ out?”
<
br />   “We’re friends,” Grace replied with a tight smile.

  Perkins snorted. “Friends? Is that what you young folks call it these days?”

  She set his cup and memorized his order before returning to the kitchen. Harvey Girls did not write anything down. “Will there be anything else, Mr. Perkins?” she asked when she delivered the food.

  “Now, missy, you know very well there’s to be something else.” He spoke in a low voice covered by a smirk. “Question is when and where?”

  Never and nowhere, she wanted to say, but she smiled and refilled his coffee before turning to go.

  “Do not turn away from me, missy,” he growled. “I asked you a question.”

  Suddenly, she saw a way out of this nightmare. She smiled apologetically. “When and where would be convenient for you and Mrs. Perkins, sir?”

  Perkins looked at her for a long moment, but instead of being enraged as she might have expected, his eyes widened with something she hoped was respect. “Why, how about Friday evening?” He wiped his mouth with his napkin and pushed back his chair. “Shall we say seven o’clock?”

  Caught off guard, Grace nodded. “All right.”

  “Excellent. I’ll let Mrs. Perkins know to expect you. Come by the bank once you’ve finished your shift, and we can walk to the house from there.”

  But later that evening as she, Lily, and Emma prepared for bed and Grace told them about the dinner invitation, Emma frowned. “I don’t like it.”

  “I don’t either,” Grace agreed, “but the truth is if his wife is present, perhaps—”

  Lily rolled her eyes. “When does Nick get back?”

  “He said it could be as long as a month, and he’s only been away for a little over two weeks.”

  “Well, that’s no good. We’ll just have to come up with something else.” Lily directed her comment to Emma.

  Emma thought for a moment and then snapped her fingers. “I’ve got it. Mrs. Perkins has been after Miss Kaufmann to recommend one of us to help her plan a tea she wants to give for the ladies’ auxiliary at the church. Seems Mrs. Perkins is not exactly a social butterfly—more of a wallflower, if gossip can be believed, and nothing at all like her sister, Mrs. Lombard. The other women tend to forget she’s even in the room and often leave her off their guest lists for lunch or tea or such. Apparently, she thinks she can impress them by hosting some grand event of her own.”

  “I don’t see how—” Grace began.

  “It’s perfect,” Lily interrupted. “Let’s ask Miss K right now.” She was out the door and down the hall before Grace or Emma could say anything more. Two minutes later, she was back, bringing Miss Kaufmann with her.

  “Grace, Lily tells me Mr. Perkins has extended an invitation to you?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “This is most unusual.”

  “He’s been quite insistent,” Emma said quietly.

  “I see. And you have resisted these overtures?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Until today. I thought if I mentioned his wife, he might stop.”

  Miss K nodded and sat down on the end of Lily’s bed. “Well, it’s hardly the first time,” she said more to herself than to them. “I believe Lily’s suggestion that all three of you go is the wisest course. I’ll speak with Mrs. Perkins tomorrow and arrange everything.”

  Grace felt as if a huge weight had been taken from her. “Thank you so much,” she gushed.

  “And beginning tomorrow, you will change stations with Lily.”

  The weight came slamming back. “Please don’t do that,” she pleaded. “I mean, it will raise his suspicions, and he has…he could get angry.”

  Miss Kaufmann pinned her with a sharp glance. “Has he threatened you?”

  “I’ll be fine,” Grace assured her, deliberately avoiding the question, “once he realizes we Harvey Girls travel in packs.” She tried a smile.

  “You won’t mind if I alert Mr. Campbell to the potential problem?” Miss Kaufmann asked as she stood and walked to the door.

  “Not at all,” Grace assured her. “Good night, Miss Kaufmann—and thank you.”

  “We are a family, Grace—the Harvey family. We protect each other. Do not try to do anything on your own.” She included Lily and Emma in that last warning.

  “Yes, ma’am,” the three of them chorused as she left the room.

  That night, Grace got the best night’s sleep she’d had since Nick left, and when Jasper Perkins took his seat for lunch the following day, she greeted him with her best Harvey Girl smile and a full cup of fresh black coffee.

  Chapter 10

  Nick was worried.

  On their wedding night, he’d gotten so caught up in the thrill of making love to Grace, he’d completely forgotten his intention to pull away in time. What if she was with child? She’d have to admit to the secret marriage and would lose her job. The money she’d budgeted for her family would stop. The two of them would have to make do with his wages, and he could barely afford the bank payments on the property, much less provide for a wife and child.

  If there is a baby.

  In his zeal to return to Grace as soon as possible, he worked extra hours to finish the business Mr. Lombard had sent him to do in California, and after just two weeks, he had everything the boss needed. He wired his employer and got permission to come on home on the next train. He arrived on Friday night, and the first stop he made was at the hotel.

  “They’ve gone to the Perkins’ place,” Jake told him.

  “They?”

  “Grace, Emma, and Lily. Miss K made the arrangements. Something about Mrs. Perkins needing their help to plan some tea or something.” He edged a little closer to Nick and lowered his voice. “If you ask me, the whole business is a setup to protect Grace.”

  Nick felt his throat tighten. “From what?”

  “From who is more like it. Perkins has been giving Grace the business every day since you left.”

  “And she’s there? In his house?”

  “With Emma and Lily and his wife. Calm down, Nick. It’s all handled.”

  “What time did they leave?”

  “You just missed them. They walked over to the bank. Perkins thinks it’ll just be him and Grace, but he’s in for a surprise.” Jake chuckled. “I’d sure like to be a fly on the wall for that.”

  Nick considered his options. It was a little after seven. If the girls were meeting with the banker’s wife, then it was likely they’d walk back to the hotel around nine. He had time to get a shave and a shower and make himself presentable. Then he’d just happen to be walking by the Perkins house when they were ready to leave. Perkins would most likely volunteer to walk the girls back to the hotel, hoping to get his chance alone with Grace. It seemed to Nick that Jasper Perkins might be in for more than one unwelcome surprise this night.

  He told Jake his plan, and his friend grinned. “I got a better idea,” Jake said. “What if we tell Perkins we saw some ruffians hanging out at the saloon the ladies would have to pass on their way back? What if you, me, and maybe Aidan Campbell showed up, knocked on the door, and said we’d come to see the ladies safely home?”

  Nick grinned. “I like the way you think, Jake.”

  Jake shrugged. “Not just good with running a proper kitchen, cowboy.”

  Nick left to get cleaned up and changed while Jake went to find Aidan and tell him the plan. At eight thirty, the three men met outside the hotel and started across the plaza and on up the street to the large house the banker had built on the edge of town. The house was ablaze with light, and as they approached the front door, Nick could see Emma, Lily, and the banker’s wife seated in the front parlor. They seemed to be waiting for something—or someone. Neither Grace nor Jasper Perkins were in the room.

  Nick held up a hand, signaling Aidan and Jake to wait in the shadows while he moved stealthily
around the side of the house, peering through each window as he went. When he reached the kitchen window, he understood what had happened. Perkins was pressing against Grace, her back to the sink. She was whipping her head from side to side, trying in vain to dodge the banker’s attempt to kiss her. Nick was about to call out when Grace’s arm shot out, sending a small stack of china dishes crashing to the floor.

  “What on earth?” he heard a woman’s voice cry.

  Perkins stumbled backward, wiping his mouth on his sleeve and glaring at Grace, who was now kneeling to gather the pieces of the broken crockery. Emma, Lily, and the banker’s wife rushed into the kitchen.

  “I am so sorry, Mrs. Perkins,” he heard Grace say. “It’s all my fault. I was trying to—”

  “And you will pay for every piece, young woman,” Perkins shouted. “That china was my mother’s.”

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake, Jasper,” Nick heard Mrs. Perkins exclaim as she and Emma and Lily helped Grace.

  He’d seen enough. He was going to get his wife out of that house—now. He ran back around to the front porch and banged on the door. Jake and Aidan took their places next to him, unsure of what had just happened. They could hear Perkins muttering to himself as he threw the door open and faced the trio with an expression somewhere between fury and confusion.

  “Good evening, Mr. Perkins,” Aidan said, stepping forward. “Sorry to interrupt your gathering, but there has been a bit of a ruckus at the Staghorn Saloon, and Miss Kaufmann was concerned that the girls would be accosted on their way back to the hotel.”

  “She asked the three of us to see they get back safe and sound,” Jake added.

  Nick could not speak. All he wanted to do was throttle the fat, red-faced banker—something his friends seemed to understand, the way they had positioned themselves between Perkins and him.

  Nevertheless, Perkins focused his gaze on Nick. “I see you’ve returned.”