She searched for the gloves and finally located them on the pillow of her unmade bed. “Oh, I remember now. I had to mend one of them,” she said, holding them up.
“You want me to help you with the hat?” Mara asked, holding up the large creation.
Ella giggled. “It’s almost big enough for the both of us, isn’t it?”
Mara smiled and nodded. “Yes’m, sure is. I ain’t never seen a bonnet this big.”
“That’s part of the reason I bought it. I think it’s magnificent. And it matches perfectly with this suit.” Ella sat down at the dressing table. “We’ll tilt it just to the right and let the brim ride up on the left. I like it best that way, and it really brings color to my eyes.”
“Your eyes already blue enough,” Mara said, helping place the hat as Ella suggested.
“That’s perfect,” Ella declared, reaching for two long hat pins. “Now I’ll fix it in place and be off. I know Lizzy will be wondering why I’m making her wait. I think, however, she’s going to be so excited to know you’ve joined us.”
“Will I have to keep hiding behind that veil?” Mara asked.
Ella grew thoughtful. “I don’t know. Let me talk to Lizzy and Mary. They always have the best counsel. Maybe once Lizzy knows, we can talk to her uncle Oliver. He runs the show along with an Englishman named Henry Adler. Oliver is a very nice man, and there are always dozens of jobs to do on the show. I’m sure someone as talented as you will be useful.”
“I sure hope so.” Mara frowned and shook her head. “I can’t be goin’ back to Fleming Farm.”
Ella nodded. “I’m afraid that’s true for us both.”
“And then they removed the veil, and lo and behold, it was Mara,” Ella told Lizzy and Mary over tea at the hotel after their meeting with the photographers.
Lizzy shook her head. “Mara from the farm? Your maid?”
“Yes, exactly.” Ella sipped from a china cup.
“What in the world was your brother doing with her?” Mary asked.
Ella continued her story while Lizzy glanced across the room to where Wes and Chris were deep in conversation with Uncle Oliver. Los Angeles didn’t sit well with Wes, especially after the photographers had revealed their true desires to hire some of the stunt riders away from the show. They even wanted Lizzy to perform for them, reminding her and the others that she was the top trick rider in the country. Wes had immediately pointed out that she was retired. He didn’t want Lizzy performing at all—not for any reason—and the fact that Uncle Oliver had suggested that perhaps they could revisit the issue after the show’s current season only put Wes in a fouler mood.
Lizzy actually felt sorry for him rather than angry. He had only agreed to come on tour for another year because Lizzy’s mother had begged him. Even Lizzy wasn’t that excited to go. Her heart was on the ranch in Montana—the ranch her grandfather, father, and uncle had built together. She hadn’t realized just how important that place was to her until her father had died while on tour with the show. After that, the wild west show had lost its appeal for Lizzy. Not only that, but she’d also suffered a lot the year before and had hoped to put it all behind her.
Yet here she was again, facing the grueling schedule and constant work. Well, it wasn’t quite the same—she wasn’t performing this time around. Wes had put his foot down about that. Now that they were married, he didn’t want her risking her life trick riding. A part of her wanted to protest, but she was getting older, and the performances took a lot out of her. Besides, she and Wes hoped to have a family soon, and she didn’t want to risk any unborn child just to get a few cheers from an arena full of strangers.
Still . . . she missed the unity she felt with her horses. She missed the challenge. And she really did miss the applause.
“Lizzy, I don’t think you’re even listening to me,” Ella protested.
A sigh escaped Lizzy. “I’m so sorry. I’m afraid my mind has been on so many things. We’ve barely started this tour and already there are problems to deal with. And of course the people we met today mostly lied about their intent.”
“Mostly?” Mary, the show’s star sharpshooter, said with a raised brow. “They completely lied about what they wanted. They wanted to create an entertainment in the city that features trick riding every night. Given the outrageous amounts of money they’re offering, I’m afraid one or two of the girls will be enticed to stay behind.”
“You don’t really think they’d leave Brookstone’s, do you?” Ella asked. “I know I never would. This has become my family.”
“As I recall, it was Lizzy they wanted most,” Mary said with a shrug. “I thought Wes would pop a vein.”
Lizzy thought of her husband’s dismay. “I did too. But I told them no and so did Uncle Oliver. But they offered a lot more than the show can pay. Not to mention the other benefits like a place to live and a personal assistant. Goodness, there are times I wish I had a personal assistant.”
“The girls who would consider leaving must not understand the delicate balance of the show,” Ella said, shaking her head. “We have a very specific act planned out. Maybe we should talk to them and explain.”
“That was my thought exactly,” Mary said, reaching for a small sandwich. “I think we should remind them of the contract they signed and how important it is that they keep their word. Like your daddy always said, ‘The show must go on.’”
Lizzy was glad they felt just as she did on the matter. “In the meantime, we will of course hire Mara on to help. I have enough authority to see to that. She can work in the laundry and sewing room. I’m sure our new head seamstress can use an extra hand. She seems a bit . . . overwhelmed.”
“You don’t like Amanda much, do you?” Mary asked.
Lizzy hadn’t meant to be so obvious. Frankly the seamstress was much too familiar with Uncle Oliver. Not only that, but she always seemed to find ways to get out of her work. “I don’t know her well enough to like or dislike her. She’s definitely no Agnes.”
At the reference to their former seamstress, who had retired after last year’s tour, the other two nodded.
“Nobody is as good as Agnes,” Mary declared. “I was more than sorry to hear of Brigette’s illness. Especially after all that time Agnes put into training her. It’s a shame she wasn’t able to join the tour this year.”
“Well, she’ll always have a place with the show if she wants one. Meanwhile, I’m waiting to see if Miss Moore proves herself,” Lizzy said in a curt manner to stress that the topic wasn’t open for discussion.
Wes was making his way over to the table.
“I see the boys are finished with their conversation. Why don’t we adjourn to your room, Ella?” Lizzy suggested. “Then I can talk to Mara about the days to come. I’m sure we can keep her busy and safe.”
two
I wish you weren’t so upset.” Lizzy could see by the wary look in Wesley’s eyes that he was worried about her encounter earlier in the day. She hadn’t even had a chance to tell him about Mara.
“I wish folks would stop trying to buy you. You aren’t a commodity.”
Lizzy touched his arm and smiled. “No, I’m not. But, more importantly, no one could ever separate me from you. No matter how much money they were offering. Just remember, I’ve wanted to be your wife for a very long time.”
He shook his head and strode over to the large hotel window. “It just rubs me the wrong way that they would even ask. Especially after we made it clear the first time.”
“I suppose they’re used to getting what they want. They cajole and offer more and more until a person agrees.”
“We should have never come on the tour. We would have been better off staying at the ranch. Phillip would have been better off by far. He’s drinking a lot. I try to keep tabs on him, but he always manages to slip away.”
“He’s a grown man. You can’t be his conscience. You’re a good brother, but you can’t make him a good man.”
Wes frowned and turned to l
ook out the window. “I’ve got a bad feeling that this was a mistake.”
Lizzy knew there was nothing she could say to change his mind, so she chose instead to change the subject. “There’s something I want to talk to you about. It has to do with Ella.”
He didn’t even turn around. “What about her?”
“Her brother showed up and brought her a surprise.”
“Not that fiancé of hers, I hope.”
Lizzy shook her head, then realized he couldn’t see her. “Wes, would you just come sit with me for a few minutes?”
She saw his shoulders drop as he sighed. Nevertheless, he turned back to face her and then followed her to the sofa. Once he was seated beside her, Lizzy put her hand on his thigh.
“Robert brought Ella’s maid, Mara, to stay with her. Apparently there was a problem with Jefferson Spiby. He wanted Mara to be his mistress.”
Wes said nothing, but his scowl deepened.
“Anyway, it seems that Spiby is exerting more and more control over Ella’s father, and he was worried he wouldn’t be able to refuse Spiby’s demands. He told Robert about it, and Robert snuck Mara out of town and brought her here.”
“Why here?”
“It was the only place he could think of. Ella was delighted. She and Mara have always been dear friends, and Ella has asked that Mara be allowed to join the show.”
Wesley’s expression left no doubt of his surprise. “As a performer?”
Lizzy shook her head and smiled. “Of course not. Mara is a very talented seamstress. Ella also said she can clean if needed. I’ll talk to Uncle Oliver and Mr. Adler at our meeting in San Francisco, but I’m confident they’ll say yes. I plan to put her to work helping Amanda Moore in costumes.”
“Doesn’t that put everyone in danger? I mean, Spiby came after Ella when she ran away. What’s to stop him from showing up again to get Mara?”
Lizzy shrugged. “I suppose nothing, but I can’t imagine he’d go chasing after a mistress as he did a future wife. At least, I hope he won’t.”
“People are strange. They do things you’d never expect them to do. Like you being willing to work for a man whose son tried to kidnap you and force you into marriage.”
She could see an almost accusing look in his expression. “Wesley DeShazer! You know as well as I do that we’re here because Mother begged us to come. I didn’t want to be here any more than you did. I’m only here for Uncle Oliver. I’m not even performing, just as you commanded.”
He raised a brow. “I didn’t command you.”
She felt an air of smugness wash over her. “You want to rethink that comment?”
He looked away. “We both agreed that you were getting too old and that we wanted a family.”
“And I agreed with that logic, but you told me you wouldn’t agree to come—even to see to Oliver’s care—unless I stopped performing. That’s a command in my book. Or if you don’t like the word command, we could use ultimatum. Honestly, Wes, I didn’t want to fight about this. We’re here now, and we committed to being here for the duration unless our health or well-being dictates otherwise.”
He shook his head. “You make me out to be such a bad guy. Yet the real villain, Jason Adler, walks free somewhere. No one has even bothered to look for him, as far as I know.”
The very mention of Jason Adler had darkened his mood. Lizzy couldn’t blame him. Thinking back on Jason caused her more discomfort than she cared to admit. “Well, that’s where you’re wrong. Mr. Adler told me he hired an entire army of investigators to search for his son.”
“Looking for him and finding him are two different things.”
Lizzy felt the tension between them increase. Coming with the show was not the best decision they’d ever made together, but it was one that made her mother happy, and for Lizzy that was the most important.
She sighed. “I don’t want to fight with you, Wes. I know you’re unhappy, and because of that, I’m unhappy. I love you and I wish we were back home, but we made a promise and we need to see it through. It’s just until autumn, and we both agreed we weren’t going to Europe with the troupe. The months will pass quickly, and then we’ll be back on the ranch. Phillip and Uncle Oliver too, since they aren’t doing the Europe shows.”
“Your uncle will be lucky to make it through the American shows. As for Phillip . . .” He shook his head. “I have no idea how long he’ll make it. Adler always has liquor around, and it’s like taunting a child with candy.”
“True, but the world is full of temptations, and we each have to make a decision whether to yield to them or not. You can’t force Phillip to give up drinking, and you can’t make him better by making me out to be the enemy.”
Wes sighed and gave a nod. He looked at her long and hard, and she could see the love in his eyes. She never doubted it was there, but his anger was doing an excellent job of burying it.
“I’m sorry, Lizzy. I know you aren’t my enemy, and I don’t want to fight with you. It’s just that I see Phillip doing so much worse lately. I’d send him back to the ranch, but he’d just continue to drink, and I wouldn’t be there to keep him in check.”
“Phillip has to want to stop drinking. Something is obviously driving him to it. Have you tried to talk to him about it?”
“Of course I have!” His raised voice made Lizzy cringe, which in turn made him launch into another apology. “I’m sorry. I can’t seem to do or say anything right. When I try to talk to Phillip, he accuses me of being holier-than-thou. When I try to talk to you, I make a mess of it all by losing my temper. I’m really sorry, Lizzy. It’s something about this place. I just don’t like it.”
She could see the sadness in his brown eyes. She reached out and took his hand. “We’ll get through this together better than apart, and there is one thing we haven’t yet tried.”
“What’s that?”
“To pray together. Since leaving the ranch, we haven’t done much of it at all—at least not together. There’s strength in numbers, you know.”
“You’re right.” He pushed back her long brown hair before leaning forward to kiss her. “Please forgive me. You deserve better.”
She moved closer, cherishing the feel of him as Wes put his arms around her. “We’re going to get through this, Wes. With God to help us, we’ll make it.”
The first order of business when the show arrived in San Francisco was a meeting Henry Adler had planned well in advance. He was big on meetings and generally held at least one major meeting each week with smaller gatherings each day.
“I hope you’ve found the hotel suits your needs,” he began. “I know it might be strange that we’re in hotels instead of the train cars, but we’ve managed to include the rooms in some of our negotiations for performances, and I believe you will be better rested in these lush accommodations. Especially for days when we do more than one performance.”
Ella suppressed a yawn. She was more concerned about whether or not Lizzy had spoken with Adler or Oliver Brookstone about Mara. Worry over her friend had given her more than one sleepless night.
“As you know, we will have our first show tomorrow evening. It’s already sold out, as are the Sunday matinee and evening performance. Your reputation precedes you. Well done.”
Ella smiled, as did most everyone else. The only people who seemed less than enthusiastic were Phillip and Wesley. Ella’s gaze lingered on Phillip DeShazer. She’d lost her heart to him despite her attempts to resist. He was such a sweet-natured man, but he bore so much pain and regret. There was a haunting darkness to him that she couldn’t understand. She knew he blamed himself for his father’s death—he’d told her that one night when he was drunk. He would never say more than that, and ever since, Ella had wondered what had happened. Whatever the truth, he was hurting, and she wished she could give him peace of mind.
He caught her gaze and smiled. Even that, however, was a sad attempt. She would have to double her prayers on his behalf.
“Several people here i
n the West are experimenting with moving pictures. Apparently by coming here, they hope to avoid complications due to Mr. Edison’s patent.” Mr. Adler paused a moment and looked at his notes. “One man has asked to come to our practice session prior to the show. He’d like to attempt to film something of each act. I’ve given my permission for him to do so. He asks only that you ignore his presence.”
“What about him being in the way? How can we perform our tricks while making sure he doesn’t get hurt?” Alice Hopkins asked. Several other performers nodded as she continued. “I’ll be racing around the arena, shooting arrows from horseback. I can’t be bothered with worrying about whether this man is in the wrong place.”
“I’ve explained that to him. He will position himself out of the way. He assured me of that. Once we’re at the arena, you can let your concerns be known should you find his positioning less than acceptable. I promise, I will support your concerns.”
That seemed to put the matter to rest, and Adler continued speaking about a variety of things related to the show. Ella glanced at the clock on the wall and wondered how much longer they’d have to be here. She pulled a shawl tight around her to ward off the damp chill of the room and sighed.
It seemed Lizzy had said nothing to her uncle or Mr. Adler regarding Mara. Or at least if she had, Henry Adler wasn’t interested in bringing the matter to everyone’s attention. Maybe that meant he’d said no—that he didn’t want Mara on the tour.
Ella frowned. She could hardly send Mara home, although she might be able to talk Lizzy into letting her go to the Brookstone ranch in Montana.
“If there are no further questions,” Mr. Adler concluded, “we’ll adjourn early so you can enjoy the city. There are a great many attractions here, and I’m told they have some of the finest restaurants in the West.”
This met with most everyone’s approval, and the performers and crew began filing from the room.
What Comes My Way Page 2
