Sending another prayer upward, she whirled around. “Widow Wallace. So good to see you.”
“I must say, I’m surprised to see you about. Particularly after the incident with the stonemason. He’s taken up with that—”
“Mr. Thorne and I ended our association with each other some time ago, Widow Wallace so anything that you say wouldn’t have any interest to me whatsoever.”
“But to be cast aside like a pair of—”
“What can I do for you today, Widow Wallace?”
Eulalia glanced up to see Millie coming their way. Though she had a pleasant smile on her face, she could see the tightness around her eyes, giving evidence to the fact she’d heard what the widow had been saying.
“Good afternoon, Mrs. Cutler. I was just telling Mrs. Pemberlay here how shocked I was to see her about after—”
“If I must say Widow Wallace, I happened to overhear your words, and I am certain I heard Mrs. Pemberlay say she wasn’t interested in idle gossip. So, for the sake of good manners, let’s change the subject, shall we?”
An angry look came over the woman’s face. “I don’t know why we have to tiptoe around her about it. Everyone knows what happened and frankly I want to see—”
“Mama!”
They all turned to see Widow Wallace’s daughter, Penelope Cooper enter the store. “What is it?” the widow asked grumpily, obvious she was displeased at being interrupted in her favorite past time—gossiping and causing malcontent as much as possible.
“The stage is in, and there’s a big package that’s come.”
“How big?”
“Big enough for me to wonder who sent it.”
Without another word, the widow dashed out to the mercantile. Penelope gave an apologetic smile and then left behind her.
“Ugh, that woman.” Millie gave a disgusted snort. “She’s so…unpleasant.”
Eulalia was tempted to agree with Millie but at the avid looks on her children’s faces, she went instead with, “Well, she probably needs prayer.”
“That indeed.” Millie shook her head. “Well, it was rather uncouth of her to bring it up in such a scandalous way. And trust me, Mrs. Pemberlay, I am not gossiping. But I was under the impression that you both ended the courtship mutually.”
“You would be correct, Millie. But Widow Wallace wouldn’t care about a thing like that. If she can make it more sensational, then she will.”
Eulalia hadn’t thought about Mallet Thorne in a while. The man who did occupy her mind was Nicander. She missed him almost every minute of the day.
“May I hand you this list? We need these items for when the circus comes to town soon.”
“Of course.” Millie took the list.
“Mama, do you think Uncle Nic will be back soon?” Winston asked.
It was a question that had been on her mind for the past two weeks. She wished she’d known where he had gone. It had to do with Guinevere. Of that, she was certain but past that, she knew nothing else.
When Nicander was around, it seemed as if the pang of Josiah’s loss eased. Not that she didn’t miss her husband. There were still times she’d curl up in her bed at night and cry her eyes out for the man she’d loved with all her heart. She’d met Josiah when she was fifteen years old and married him a year later. The Lord had given them eleven years and two beautiful children. Despite the sorrow that had gripped her, she was grateful for the time they did have together.
But with Nicander there, Josiah’s lingering specter didn’t seem quite so near. It made her feelings even more confused.
Though he had never lived in the house with them, Nicander’s presence seemed imprinted on the walls of the borrowed home. She’d glance up and swear she’d see his long blond-haired figure in the doorway, smiling at her.
Often, as she went about her life, she wondered if by kissing Nicander and by thinking of him, if she had betrayed her husband. It didn’t make sense to her, but she could not get rid of the thought. Hadn’t Josiah made it clear that he wanted her to marry his best friend if something happened to him?
On the heel of that thought would come another. Your husband hasn’t been gone a year and yet you’re willing to forget him. Latch on to some other man? Did you really love Josiah?
“Mama, can we go see the tent village?” Tabitha asked.
“The tent village?”
“Yes!”
“Why do you want to go there?” Thinking of the Chinese workers that had been hired to bury the dead from the mine, Eulalia balked at the idea. Not that she had any problems with the Chinese. She found them a beautiful, hardworking people who often did tasks no one else would, or wanted to do.
But there had been whispers of opium, and she wanted her children to have no part in that.
“I want to see them. They talk funny,” Winston said with a child-like scrunch.
“Well, we probably sound funny to them, too,” Eulalia told her son. “But no, we’re not going to over there but maybe one day, we’ll go by and visit.”
“I want to see them now,” Tabitha pouted.
“No, Tabby. We have things to do because the circus is coming. Wouldn’t you like to see that?”
The reminder of the circus did the trick. Soon, they collected their supplies and left the mercantile to meet at the park with the other women. Eulalia let the children run around the park with others who’d come with their mothers.
Fannie Pearl, one of the town elders and a wise woman she’d come to respect made her way over to where she stood, setting out the items she’d retrieved from the mercantile.
“How are you, Eulalia?” Fannie Pearl asked after she received a hug.
“I’m doing all right, Fannie Pearl.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” The older woman gazed over to where Tabitha and Winston were playing with the other children. “So many of our children have had it rough this year. That’s why I’m so glad the circus is coming. It’s going to give our town a chance to focus on things other than moving on.”
“You’re right, of course.”
“How is Josiah’s friend?”
Eulalia almost dropped the small pot of red paint for the banner onto the ground. “I’m sorry,” she croaked. “What did you say?”
“Josiah’s friend,” Fannie Pearl said without skipping a beat, a twinkle in her eyes. “How is he?”
“As far as I know, he’s fine. He left a few weeks ago.”
The older woman clucked her tongue. “You know, Tabby and Winston were going around town, saying that he was going to be their father.”
Eulalia wanted the ground to open under her and swallow her whole. “Yes, I know. Children are something, aren’t they?”
She didn’t want to tell the elder that Josiah had planted the idea in the children’s mind.
“They can be. But I couldn’t help but think what a good idea it would have been if he had decided to become their father.”
“Nicander’s married, Fannie Pearl,” Eulalia hastened to remind the woman and…herself.
“Oh, I’m aware of that. Josiah told me about it some time ago. But he’d make such a good father to those children. I can tell things like that.”
“Well, I hope that one day the Lord blesses him with children of his own.”
Fannie Pearl’s gaze strayed away. “Well, would you look at that?”
Eulalia followed the direction of Fannie Pearl’s nod. The children were playing, all except two.
Tabby and a young Chinese boy a few years older than her stood away from the other children. He looked to be no more than twelve or thirteen years told. They stared at each other in a quizzical way. Then she saw Tabby say something to the boy. Whatever she said made him smile and duck his head in a shy way.
Then, Tabby reached forward shyly and gripped the young Chinese boy’s hand into her own. As Eulalia continued to watch, the boy gazed down at his and Tabitha’s clasped hands for a long time. Then he looked back up at her daughter, who gave him a nod and anoth
er smile.
Eulalia’s eyebrow arched. Why did she have the feeling that something like destiny meeting had touched the two?
“Uncle Nic! You’re back!” Winston’s voice screeched out over the park.
She gasped and her stomach did somersaults. He was back!
“Isn’t that interesting,” Fannie Pearl observed. “And here we were, just talking about him.”
She let a pleased, but platonic smile decorate her face, and then she turned just as Winston dashed past her to leap into his godfather’s arms.
“Hello, Nica—”
Eulalia stopped, staring in the eyes of the man she’d wanted to see for the past two weeks. What she saw there made her gush out, “Nicander, what’s wrong?”
Winston’s exuberance helped to ease away the pain inside of Nicander’s chest ever since he’d left Wickwell Springs. The boy’s incessant and excited chatter made up for his lack of response.
How like Eulalia to take one look at him and know that something was wrong.
She looked beautiful with her chestnut hair and bright blue eyes dressed in a long flowy yellow gown. Like a ray of sunshine. He thought back to the conversation they had just two weeks prior. Her words had echoed in his mind, when she pleaded with the good Lord to give them some sort of warning when calamity would strike.
And now, for himself at least, calamity came down upon him like the pounding of a hammer on an anvil.
“Nicander, what is it?” she asked again, coming closer to where he stood.
Nic longed to tell her his problems but he knew he couldn’t. Perhaps she wouldn’t understand his dilemma. Or maybe she would understand it all too well.
“Nothing’s wrong, Eulalia,” he lied as he set the boy down back on the grass. “I’m just a bit tired. I travelled straight here from Wickwell Springs.” He glanced at the older woman beside her. Though it had been some time since he’d seen her, he’d know Reverend Edmundson’s wife anywhere.
“Mrs. Edmundson, it’s good to see you. I didn’t see you the last time I was here.”
“Give me a hug with those big strong arms of yours.”
He obliged her and then pulled back to see Eulalia still staring at him. The overwhelming need to confide in her almost overtook him but he couldn’t. Not now.
Not ever.
CHAPTER SIX
Nicander spent the next few days in the company of the marshal, the mayor, and other members of the town council. Though he could not accept the position of the fire chief for Silverpines, he could lend his expertise to the town in order to help protect its citizens.
It wasn’t possible to view every building and every home in the town so they limited the inspection to the buildings and businesses that made up the majority of the business district. Nicander, with the owner’s permission, went over homes and gave advice on how to maintain a fire exit route in the event of a fire.
For the major businesses in the district, he did an inventory of the buildings, showing the owners how to move around merchandise that blocked a pathway. As he surveyed the town, he noted many of the buildings were made out of wood which increased the risk of a large-scale fire, especially if someone carelessly left a stove burning, a cigar, a pipe. He’d seen enough fires in the major cities he’d visited over the years to know how a small, insignificant spark could create an inferno.
After he inspected the water tower and met with the business owners, he sat down with the town council and suggested they invest in fire extinguishers. Although a water brigade was still effective for putting out a fire, not every fire could be contained in such a fashion.
If the town invested in the extinguishers and gave one to all the business owners, then it would be an additional tool for the citizens to use.
The council took down his advice, but he could tell they weren’t too sure on things. There had been rumors about bringing in a city developer to help with the rebuilding of the town. Maybe they would wait until then to get the equipment they needed.
During his inspection, he had an opportunity to get to know some of the people. Most of the men had come from other places as mail-order grooms to fulfill the two-fold need: husbands and workers to help rebuild the town. The more he spent time with the people, the more he longed to stay.
Oddly enough, he ended up striking up a friendly conversation with the town engineer, Jeremiah Henderson. As they talked, he told them about the motorcar his father and grandfather tinkered with back in his hometown of Holland, Michigan. Jeremiah found it of great interest.
“What kind of motor car is it? Steam or electric?” The man asked this as they sat in the dining room of the Silverpines Inn after he’d gone over the mines and observed what he could as they began operations to re-open it.
“It’s an Oldsmobile. It has a curved dash and it’s powered by gasoline.”
The man’s eyes widened with excitement. “Well, I’ll be. I’d sure like to see one. A lot of folks think these horseless carriages are a passing fad. What do you think, Mr. Montgomery?”
“I would have thought so, too. They make a lot of noise and about scare the horses to death. But once you get behind it, it’s…I can’t describe it, Mr. Henderson.”
“All you gotta do is care for your horse and feed it. With a motor car, I would think it’d be a lot of work.”
“There is that,” Nicander acknowledged, thinking of the various details he, along with his father and grandfather had to do with the vehicle. He’d gone to visit his parents a year or so ago when he first encountered the motorcar.
His father and grandfather had brought the contraption from the factory in Lansing, Michigan from Mr. Ransom Eli Olds himself. At first, he’d been a bit afraid of it. It was so loud with all of the coughing, cackling, and rattling it did. But the more they all worked on it, the more they connected with the machine.
“I don’t think they’re going to go away, Mr. Henderson. Change and progress is inevitable and those machines, strange as it may seem represent that.”
“Braylon Watts, over at the mill, he’s talking about bringing electricity to Silverpines. Some of the folks, particularly his wife—”
“His wife?”
The man nodded like a horse. “His wife, were opposed to that but now, we’re starting to see the benefits of it. Flameless lights that can be strung about in different directions. Innovation is happening all around us.”
“That’s quite true.”
“Never to change is never to grow,” Jeremiah said reflectively.
Even when that change is the most devastating aspect of your life.
Due to his inspection trips around the town, he had little opportunity to check on Eulalia although he’d seen her about. The circus had arrived yesterday, and they had been greeted with much pomp and circumstance. Even now, the performers were getting ready to put up the giant tent. He’d glimpsed at exotic animals and strange people dressed in strange costumes.
Maybe it was for the best that he didn’t have a chance to see her, he thought later as he went up the stairs to the room he rented for the duration of his stay. He had to nip this attraction for Josiah’s widow in the bud. Now, more than ever. At the end of the day, no matter what had happened in the past, he loved his wife. Things may never be the same between them, but she deserved his loyalty, and his love.
Yet, there were times he wanted to just go to Eulalia and talk to her about his problems. But Eustacia was right in one regard: he knew instinctively that she would object to the decisions he’d had to make regarding Guinevere. The last thing he wanted was Eulalia’s disdain of him.
Thinking of Eustacia, he realized he hadn’t seen her in a while. She must have left town in search of the next game of cards. He was glad for it. She had lied to him of course, When he reached Wickwell Springs, he approached Wu Li about his conversation with Eustacia. The man assured him that he hadn’t spoken to anyone about Guinevere. Nic had described Eustacia to the man but his memory had drawn a blank.
Liar. She
was so good at it, too.
Nic lay in bed that night, staring up at the white ceiling, thinking of his wife. He should be at her side right this moment, but Wu Li had made it clear that it wouldn’t do much good.
How had it come to this? Seven years ago, when he’d met her, he’d fallen in love with a woman who made his heart sing. Guinevere had been everything he’d longed for in a wife without having even known it. His mother and father had welcomed her into their family and she’d been his steady and constant companion.
It had all gone wrong that day. The day changed everything.
Nic shifted to his side, blankets pulled tight up to his chest. Was there something he could have done that day? If he had arrived home earlier that night, would he have prevented the beginning of the catastrophe?
“I’m so happy for them,” Elena Clayborne, the blacksmith’s wife, grinned, as she clapped wildly. Two couples were getting married right before the circus began. Of the two couples, she knew the groom of one rather well. After all, she’d almost married him.
“I can’t think of two better people to have found each other.” Elena sighed happily.
Eulalia gave a quick smile even though she felt a pang in her heart. She liked weddings like the next woman but today, the wedding happening before them gave her mixed feeling.
She was happy for the two couples but it brought to mind her own wedding day when she married Josiah. Reverend Edmundson had performed the ceremony. Josiah, young and eager, she a shy, young bride. Eustacia had walked her down the aisle, unsmiling but still gave her a hug, whispering to her to be happy. Their aunt had disapproved of the match but knew there was nothing she could have done to prevented their marriage.
After the wedding vows were said, the circus began. Winston and Tabitha practically vibrated with excitement as they went around to the different parts of the circus. Eulalia joined in the fun and talk as she met others during her walk. At one point, the children got separated from her, but she could see where they were, staring with wide-eyed excitement at the lion tamer enclosed making the ferocious cats do all sorts of tricks.
“I wouldn’t want to fight against her,” a familiar voice said from behind her.
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