After that little break, she tackled the living room next. She took the curtains off the windows and put them in a laundry basket to wash later, just as she’d done with the dining room. Heat flushed through her body and she was sweating while she scrubbed the walls.
Never did a day go by that she didn’t think about what Mark did to her. What he did was unforgivable, and then he left her destitute. The bastard did a number on her, and she would never let another person hurt her like that ever again.
She got the furniture polish and dusted and waxed the tables. After she finished, she turned on the television, and she was surprised to find that it still worked. Unfortunately, out there, without having a satellite or cable, she’d be lucky to get one or two channels.
She pulled out her mom’s old vacuum and swept the living room carpet. Every time she thought of Mark, she needed to work off her anger at him, and today, cleaning was her outlet. She pulled the hose out of the side of the vacuum to suck up the dirt, dust, and other debris in the cushions of the couch.
She began to vacuum the recliner, and she put the hose attachment in the side of the chair, sucking out the dirt. She saw a walnut in the chair and reached in to get it. Suddenly, a squirrel jumped out of the chair cushion and in front of her, grabbed the nut, and ran. It scared the living daylights out of her! She screamed as she staggered back and dropped the vacuum hose.
The squirrel ran across the living room to the dining room, running around in circles, and then into the kitchen. She stood frozen for a few minutes, not knowing what to do. Finally, she managed to get her legs to move, and she walked to the front door and opened it. With the mop handle held in front of her, she batted the squirrel a few times, trying to coax it out the door. The squirrel batted the end of the mop a couple of times like it was playing before it went back into the dining room. It jumped on a chair and then up to the top of the buffet with the big nut in its mouth.
“Come on, you little rascal.” She ran the mop handle across the top of the buffet to get the squirrel down. It jumped down and hid behind the buffet.
Damn! She pulled the buffet out from the wall and shooed the squirrel with the mop to get it out. It finally found its escape and ran out the front door. She ran to the door and slammed it shut.
Her heart was thumping hard in her chest. She hadn’t given any thought to whether there were critters living in the house. She swallowed a lump at the back of her throat and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
She walked around the house looking for any other surprises that might be waiting for her. After a thorough check, she got busy cleaning the bathroom. She got a sponge, a bucket of hot water, and tile cleaner, and went to work on the shower tile. She rammed the sponge vigorously up the wall of tile, and it made a screeching sound as she rubbed it.
She tried not to breathe the toxic fumes from the caustic cleaner as she muttered under her breath. “Mark may think he got the last laugh in this, but I’ll prove him wrong. I will make this work.” She squirted more cleaner on the sponge. “This is for you, Mark.” She pictured herself punching Mark in the gut as she rammed the sponge up the tile wall.
She turned the shower on to rinse the walls. Looking over what she had done, she felt proud of what she’d accomplished. Taking a much needed break, she sat on the toilet seat and rested for a few minutes.
She got more hot water from the pan to put in the bucket and grabbed another sponge. Returning to the bathroom, she mustered all the strength she had and scrubbed the bathtub even harder than she did the tile walls. She needed to take a bath in the tub, so it had to be squeaky clean. She scrubbed the sink as if she was in a race marathon to get ahead. Mark will not win. He. Just. Will. Not. Win. She wanted to forget about Mark, so she started humming Chariots of Fire again. After she finished the sink, she did the toilet, then she grabbed the mop and cleaned the bathroom floor.
She cleaned her bedroom but left her parents’ room alone for now. Pain shot through her arms when she lifted the laundry baskets and took them to the utility room. Her hips and legs soon joined the party of pain she was experiencing. As she surveyed the area, she grabbed an old box and put it against the wall. She intended to put the stuff in the box that she didn’t want, and either donate it to charity or trash it.
She looked at her watch. Good, time to do something fun for a change. She had enough time to go out to the Red Rock River where her dad had dug for sapphires and see what the condition was. Many years ago her dad had gotten a claim from the Bureau of Land Management on forty acres along the river so he could pan for gold and dig for sapphires. After he died, she continued to pay on the claim and now it was hers.
She walked out the door and glanced at the table with the rocks on it. She remembered the last time she went panning for gold with her dad. He had a sluice, and they got several ounces of gold from the river using that thing. In the evenings, she sometimes sat down with her mom at the table and searched through the rocks that her dad brought in, looking for sapphires.
She got into her car and backed out of the driveway, going north on Highway 17 about five miles to Highway 350. As she got closer to the river her heart raced with excitement. When she spotted the property listed on the claim, she pulled alongside the road. This is the correct location, right? She got out of her car and walked toward the river, looking for the landmarks. Aww, there’s the boundary stake that Dad put in to mark the start of his claim. The butterflies in her stomach wouldn’t stop. She trekked along the property line and found the other stake located on the other side of the road that ran through all the claims along the river.
She came upon the shaker box that her dad had made years ago and stopped to look at it. Grabbing the sides of the box, she shook it. It rattled and squeaked since the wood was old and had been out in the sun for years. However, it was usable.
She walked a few steps over to a large rock and sat on it. A search of the land, the river, and the rough paved road did not show any signs of change from when she was last there. The river’s movement calmed her insides, and she had a nice, peaceful feeling flowing through her. She could smell the pine trees that grew in clusters throughout the land.
Now, the million dollar question is where did Dad put his sluice? He hadn’t taken it to Florida with them, so it had to be there somewhere. She suspected it was either in that old garage leaning toward one side as if it was about to tip over or in the shed behind it. She’d better stay away from the garage. She didn’t want that thing collapsing on her. She could get caught under it and die because no one knew she was there.
She decided her best bet would be to dig for sapphires and pan for gold after work each night. A loud diesel truck interrupted her thoughts as it drove up behind her. It stopped about twelve feet from her and an old man climbed out of it. He was wearing a pair of bib overalls with a lightweight flannel shirt, old boots, and old western hat.
He walked up to Marissa. “You know you’re trespassing on private property,” he said, grounding the words out between his teeth.
“I don’t think so.” Her tone was chilly as she surveyed him again.
“What the hell do you mean, you don’t think so?” He sounded agitated.
“I have a claim for this property.”
“No one’s been out here in years, and now you suddenly show up with a claim?” he growled.
“My parents had the claim, and I continued to pay on it, so it’s my claim now.”
“How come you’re here now?” he asked as he continued to stare at her.
“What business is it of yours that I’m here now? The fact is you are trespassing on my claim.”
“Just because you have a damn claim on the property doesn’t mean you own it or should be doing anything with it like sitting there to get a suntan. The claim is only for digging for minerals or panning for gold,” he said in a harsh, raw voice.
“Yes, I’m well aware of that.”
“Hell, you’re probably sitting on a damn gold mine and yo
u don’t even know the first thing about panning or digging for sapphires,” he commented.
“If you must know, yes, I hope I’m sitting on a gold mine, and yes, I do know a thing or two about panning and digging for sapphires,” she said matter-of–factly, her eyes boring into him.
He snarled and walk toward his truck. “I wouldn’t stay out here at night, it could get dangerous. There’s a lot of wildlife out here, and unscrupulous people too.” He stopped before he reached his truck and turned back toward her. “My name’s Campbell, and I have a claim for forty acres next to you, going that way.” He jerked his thumb toward the south. “Just so you know and don’t go trespassing on my claim, I shoot first and ask questions later.”
“Thanks for the warning,” Marissa said in a quiet voice and watched as Campbell got into his truck and drove away.
Well, that was…rude. She looked around to see if anyone else was nearby. She got up, walked to her car, and pulled out her purse. She grabbed the Smith and Wesson and loaded the bullet in the chambers. She pushed the safety lock pin. Why are my hands shaking? She aimed it and drew in a deep breath. Did she have the guts to fire it?
She looked around again. She stood in front of her car and aimed the gun at a tree across the river. She didn’t know how far a bullet could travel. She held the gun with both hands, putting her index finger on the trigger. She held her breath. Her heart was pounding loud as she pulled the trigger. The gun caused her wrists to move upward, and she took a step backward to keep her balance, but it still worked, and she would have something to protect herself with. Too bad there wasn’t a firing range nearby where she could go for training.
A few minutes later, she got into her car, pulled out on the single lane road, and headed back home. Home. It had a nice ring to it. The land and the house were hers and no one was going to take it from her.
Chapter 2
“I hate Monday mornings!” Marissa declared. It was a damn hassle trying to get going.
She got the stockpot out and filled it with water to heat up on the stove. What she didn’t anticipate was how heavy it would be to carry into the bathroom and dump in the bathtub. It was a ‘duh’ moment for her as she realized that it was a five-gallon pot. It took forever for the water to get hot, and then she had to carry it to the bathroom without splashing hot water on herself. She guessed she should do this at night instead of in the morning. The first thing she was going to buy when she got the money together was a new hot water heater.
Finally ready for work, she got into her car and pulled out on the highway. She went up a half a mile, turned off the highway, and was immediately in the great old town of Frankenburg, Montana. Nothing had changed much since she lived there years ago except for a lot of new county buildings. Along the main drag was The Lunch Box restaurant, a few bars, an outfitter store and clothing store, a few real estate offices, Southerlyn’s Jewelry and Gem store, and a drugstore.
The town still had one blinking traffic light right in the center where the business route of Highway 17 met Main Street. Before she reached the light, she looked over and saw the volunteer fire department, the sheriff’s department, and a museum across the street. In the next block were the new county government offices, a new hospital, schools, and the Opera House. Southerlyn’s was in a large two-story building that sat all by itself at the end of Main Street. Dave and Cindy Southerlyn owned the business, and they lived upstairs. Dave’s father owned the store when she was a young girl and Dave inherited it. Lucky guy.
Marissa arrived at Southerlyn’s Gem and Jewelry store and walked in the back door promptly at eight AM. She went to the locker and hung her jacket and purse, then walked over to the worktable where her tools were sorted out and ready to use. There were sapphires from Gulch Mountain that people brought in the previous evening she needed to look at. Part of her job was testing gemstones to be sure they were gems and not fakes. She also heat-treated the gems if needed, for better clarity, and she tested the diamonds that came into the store and sorted them by quality.
She sat at the table and started to work when a cheerful voice said, “Good morning, Marissa.”
Marissa looked up at Cindy, who was a petite woman with brown, curly hair and part owner of the store. “Good morning.”
“Did you have a good weekend?” Cindy asked as she poured herself a cup of coffee.
“Yes, I did. Did you?”
“It was fabulous. I made a fresh pot of coffee and brought a few donuts in if you’d care to have any. Cups are in the cupboard above the coffeemaker.”
“Okay, thanks.”
Was her stomach growling that loudly? The hunger pains were getting worse. It would be two weeks before she could get some groceries and eat like a normal person. What she really wanted was a big plate of eggs and bacon, but a donut and coffee sounded better than nothing. She walked over to the small kitchenette and poured herself a cup of coffee. She looked over the treats before grabbing a cinnamon donut and taking a bite.
“Have you made any headway on the gems?” Cindy asked, looking at what Marissa had sorted out.
“Yes, I put the top-quality gems in these boxes. They’re in excellent condition.” She pointed at the gems. “This stack here are okay gems, the clarity is cloudy. These here are flawed. They have cracks but could still be used, however you’d have to do a lot of cutting to get the best part of the stones.”
“Cool. Have you opened the kiln yet to see the heat-treated sapphires?”
“No. I think it should be ready to open tomorrow.”
“Last summer we made a lot of money on heat-treating sapphires for people who found them at Gulch Mountain and along Red Rock River. So far, it looks like it will be another good year, which is why I’m glad Dave hired you. The pay isn’t much, but it’s the best we can do at the moment.”
Marissa smiled. I’m just thankful for a job. She turned back to work, and Cindy walked out to the store to talk to the customers with Dave.
As Marissa was looking through what must have been a hundred diamonds that Dave had brought her, Cindy came to the back with more sapphires people had found at Gulch Mountains. “Boy, these look nice,” Cindy said as she handed them to Marissa.
She picked one up and looked. “Yes, this is a darker blue than most we see here.” After she pulled the first batch out tomorrow, she would put the next set of gems in the kiln.
At noon, the coffee she drank left a big hole in her stomach, reminding her she was starving. She pulled out her granola bar. While she was eating, a young girl came in through the back door. She looked about twelve or thirteen years old. She smiled at Marissa as she came over to look at what she was doing.
“You must be the gemologist that Mom and Dad hired.”
“Yes, I am. My name’s Marissa. What’s yours?”
“Katy,” she said, staring at the gems laid out on the table.
Marissa looked her up and down and noted that she was a petite, younger version of her mother.
Katy smiled shyly, and then asked, “Do you really like doing that?”
“Yes, I do. But more than this, I like gem hunting and gold panning.”
“Gold panning too?”
“Yep,” Marissa said.
“Dad has taken me gem hunting before, but we haven’t done any gold panning. What do you use for gold panning?”
“Well, there are several methods you can use. Usually I use a large gold pan and circle it around in motion and then back and forth so that the gold settles at the bottom of the pan. I know my dad had a sluice and I’m currently looking for it. It seems he hid it well.”
“What’s a sluice?”
“It’s a portable box with grooves on the bottom that separates gold from gravel or sand.”
“So, why don’t you ask your dad where it is?” Katy asked.
“I’d love to, if he were still alive,” Marissa answered sadly.
“Oh. I’m sorry.”
“Nothing to be sorry about. You didn’t know.”
“Nice meeting you too, Katy.”
After work, Marissa drove home and walked into the house. She left the front door open to let in the fresh, cool April air.
She had slept in her bed last night, and it was just too uncomfortable. She heard things all during the night. Things she didn’t want to know about. Maybe there were bats flying around in the house? She’d heard sounds in the wall like rattling paper. She had no interest in getting up and finding out what it was. Just as long as it didn’t attack her or land on her, it could have free range of the house for now. It could be mice, or another squirrel. Her mind went into overdrive thinking about what the hell it was she was hearing. She started to clean her parents’ bedroom, so she could move her blanket and clothes into the room. She hoped that it would be quieter for her and more comfortable.
* * * *
“Got another hot date tonight, Sheriff?” Liz Towbridge, the 911 dispatcher, asked as Riley got ready to walk out the door. She had a megawatt, mischievous smile on her face.
He knew what she was getting at and his lips twisted. “No. Good night, Liz.” He walked out and climbed into the cruiser. He went through town and then on to Highway 17.
The Volkswagen was still parked in the Saxton’s driveway, so he pulled in behind it. He exited the vehicle and walked up on the porch and knocked. The door was open, and he peeked inside. “Hello, Marissa?” he yelled.
“Yes. Coming,” she called out.
Marissa walked out of her bedroom into the living room and to the door. She stepped onto the porch. She had latex gloves on, she was wearing old clothes, and her hair was tied up in a ponytail. Riley noted how pretty she looked.
“Hello, Sheriff. What can I do for you today?”
“I thought you would have listened to me and reconsidered trying to make this place livable again.”
“Nope, I’m going to try to make a go of it.”
Riley splayed his hand on the back of his neck and gave her a small smile. “You need to go to the county office and get an inspector to come out here and determine what needs to be taken care of before you make this your home. The house has to be up to code.”
Blue as Sapphires Page 2
