Amelia wanted to just leave, but she couldn’t help but notice how beautiful the biscuits were on basket, and they did indeed smell quite fresh.
“Thanks so much, Mr. Cartwheel. My father is going to appreciate it more than you know.”
She always felt odd calling Toby her father. He was only that relation because he married her mother. Her real father had been gone a long time. She paid the baker and left, walking as quickly as she could with the basket full of biscuits. Although the streets were crowded, Amelia was able to walk quickly through the skirts and boots on her way back home.
Suddenly, something caught the corner of her eye. There was something on the bulletin board outside the sheriff’s office. Something that hadn’t been there before. Amelia never paid much mind to the “wanted” posters that were hung by the door, the bounty hunters were the ones who dealt with that, but she still too, note when something changed.
Every now and then she would see one of the posters come down, and she would wonder if that man was caught by one of the Georgia sheriffs, or if that outlaw had been caught in another part of the country. Time after time Amelia wondered what it would be like to be an outlaw, and longed for the freedom they had.
Of course I wouldn’t want to break the law, but it would sure be nice to be just me and the wide open stars. Miles after miles of prairie land, with nothing and nobody to nag at me.
Amelia found herself walking over to the sheriff’s, trying to get a closer look at the new paper that was posted. She laughed at herself for her fancies. Of course she didn’t want to be all alone out there on the prairie, she just wanted to be away from Toby.
She finally pushed her over to the sheriff’s and now stood on her tip toes to see the paper that was posted. Amelia had only finished the basic schooling, so she couldn’t read well, but she did manage to read the two words posted on the top of the page.
“Brides Wanted”
Her heart leapt in her throat, as she suddenly saw a way to make her plans come true. Amelia glanced up and down the street. It was full of people still pushing against each other, each trying to make their way wherever they were going, but nobody was on the street that Amelia recognized.
She hurriedly reached up and snatched the paper, then rolled it up and slipped it in her boot. No doubt Toby would wonder what had taken her so long, and he would suspect she had gone to the library. If she hid the paper in her cloak he may discover it, but there would have been no way to put a book in her boot, so she knew the paper was safe in there.
With a sudden surge of promise, Amelia grasped the basket in both of her hands, and hurried home, as quickly as her feet could carry her.
“I swear I could have made seven batches of biscuits by now! Where on earth were you?!”
Toby was already yelling before Amelia was even in the door. She tried to act as natural as possible, but she felt on edge. If he did find out about the paper for some reason, she knew she was going to be in a lot of trouble. The key was to make sure he didn’t find out about it.
“I’m sorry, but the baker wasn’t finished with the biscuits when I got there. I had to wait for him to finish them before I could bring them here.”
She forced a natural smile, and he looked at her harshly.
“Let’s see it!”
Her heart thudded in her chest, but she remained calm.
“See what, Father?”
“I know you had to be out somewhere besides the baker’s. You were at the library, weren’t you? Give me the book!”
A feeling of relief swept over her, but she acted completely surprised.
“No Father! I was waiting for the biscuits! I promise! See?”
She poured out the basket and showed him the pockets in her cloak. All were empty. Toby looked at her suspiciously, then took the basket from her.
“Set the table and ladle up the soup. Be quick about it!”
Amelia hurried to obey, but all she could think about was the paper that was in her boot. She would have to sit her way through dinner, but with any luck at all, Toby would head out to the saloon shortly after.
That would give her all the time in the world to look over that ad she found, and try to put together a plan.
Chapter 4 – Making a Move
Amelia was right.
Shortly after dinner, Toby headed out, and she was left to clean up and mind the chores all alone. Tonight she didn’t mind, for tonight she had a plan. Get everything done as quickly as possible, then head for her room.
It wasn’t unusual for Toby to be out late, so Amelia would often lock herself in her room early on in the evening. That way it didn’t matter when he came home, she would already be in her room in bed, and he couldn’t bother her or ask her to do anything for him.
Tonight I’ll just get the chores done and lock my door as usual, then if he does come home he’ll just think I went to bed early or something. It isn’t like him to want things that late anyway, so now is probably the best time.
It took Amelia a long time to get through the ad. She couldn’t read well, and some of the words she couldn’t read at all. Amelia did her best, however, and carefully penned a reply. The ad was based out of Texas, looking for a group of brides to make their way down there.
Amelia didn’t know anyone her age that wasn’t already married, so she decided going alone was going to be her only option. There was no way Toby would let her go if he found out, so the fewer people that knew about it the better. Amelia looked over her letter in reply, and shook her head.
I sound uneducated and simple. There’s no way one of those cowboys is going to want to marry me! What kind of wife would I be?
She sat back on her chair and crossed her arms. A small sigh escaped her chest, and she shook her head. That old feeling of despair tried to creep up on her once more, but Amelia squared her shoulders and shrugged it off.
“Enough is enough. I am not my mother, and I am not going to let Toby control me for the rest of my life!”
She jumped at the sound of a thud out in the hall. Apparently Toby had come home early after all, surprising her. She slowly got up, and silently crept to the door, pressing her ear against the solid oak wood. She could hear Toby’s heavy breathing and heavy footsteps as he made his way up the hall to his room, and Amelia let out a sigh of relief.
That was too close. I have to be more careful about what I say when I think I’m alone, or I am going to get into some real trouble.
She blew out the candle on her desk, and slipped into her nightdress. The letter was written, and she could easily hide it in her boot once more, which is what she planned to do first thing in the morning. Toby’s snores were already filling the halls, so Amelia knew she would have some time to herself the next day.
She closed her eyes.
If all of this was really coming true, she was going to need her sleep.
Amelia woke with the house silent. She thought this was odd as Toby’s snoring often carried on well into the morning. She carefully crept out of her rickety bed, and softly walked up the hall to his room. He was asleep on his bed, covered in clothing and blankets.
Amelia saw her chance. She tossed her petticoat on over her nightdress, and buttoned the front closed, then she slipped her letter into her pocket and grabbed the basket then hurried outside. She prayed with every step she took that Toby wouldn’t awaken before she got back, but there was still a knot in the pit of her stomach.
She rushed down to the post office and dropped her letter into the slot. She knew it would be mailed later that day, so there was little worry that Toby would find out about it before it was gone and on the road. On her way back to the house, she slipped into the baker’s once more.
“Good morning Missy.”
Anita greeted Amelia as she walked in. Anita was the one and only daughter of the baker, and was the kindest soul Amelia had ever met. She smiled and stopped to chat with her friend for a few minutes before she purchased two crumpets.
“I must be
on my way, Anita. Toby is bound to be up any minute now, and he likes to have breakfast on the table when he comes out to eat.”
“Ah, well, it was good to talk to you. We really need to catch up one of these days! Don’t be such a stranger now! Bye!”
Amelia waived to her friend as she walked out the door and hurried back home. She could hear things being tossed around inside before she even opened the door, and she took a deep breath before pushing it in.
“Where have you been!?”
The words were shouted so loudly Amelia thought the whole town may hear. She smiled and gave her step father a cheerful ‘good morning’, and held up her basket.
“I went to the baker’s. They were mixing up some crumpets when I was there last night, and I know how you like your crumpets. I thought I would surprise you.”
Amelia set the crumpets out on the table, then set out the syrup and butter. She carefully started the coffee and set out the table cream, then looked at Toby, who had been watching her the entire time, without saying a word.
“I don’t know what you have been up to, but I know it wasn’t anything to do with breakfast. Mark my words young lady. As soon as you start to get all sneaky on me, we are going to have problems, and just as your mother learned, you don’t want to have problems with me!”
Toby slammed his hand on the table, causing Amelia to jump. He turned and stormed his way back to his room, and slammed the door behind himself. Amelia watched him go, her heart pounding in her chest.
He is certainly right about that. But no worries, I am going to be gone with the dawn.
She smoothed her skirts and forced happy thoughts, then sat down to enjoy her breakfast.
Chapter 5 – Starting the Journey
Amelia kept to herself as much as possible that day. She needed to pack her things, but stay out of sight of Toby. If he saw her packing, there was no way she could convince him he was just imagining things.
She spent much of the day watching for him, and packing up her things when she was able to. All in all, it didn’t take her long. She was only brining the bare minimum with her, and she didn’t have that much to begin with. At long last, it was time to get dinner, and she sighed as she pushed her satchel under her bed.
Toby wasn’t anywhere to be seen when she set the table, but she was used to him coming in late some evenings. As long as she had the food on the table when he did come in, he was happy. She was nearly halfway through her meal before she heard him coming up the walkway.
“Good, dinner is ready. That’s my good girl.”
Toby kissed her on the forehead as he walked in, and Amelia looked up at him in surprise.
“Did you have a good day, Father?”
She didn’t know what else to say, and she hoped the conversation would be short. She was certain there was no way for him to find out about what she was doing, but there was still a feeling of doubt in the pit of her stomach.
“Yes, my dear, it was a very good day. A very good day indeed. I have some news for you. We are moving.”
Amelia’s heart sank far down inside of her, and she felt sick.
“Oh?”
“Yes, I have taken on a job at the railroad, which means we are going to be on our way tomorrow. I want you to pack up after dinner, I want to be on our way as early in the morning as possible.”
“Yes Father.”
Amelia didn’t know what to do. Her heart was racing inside of her. How was this possible? How could they be moving now? Was it possible he knew what she had planned? Wouldn’t he have said something else to her if that was true?
With her thoughts racing wildly, she didn’t have much to say. When Toby asked her why she was so quiet, she merely replied the news took a little while to settle in, but she also assured him that she was quite happy. That seemed to pacify him, but Amelia was grateful when he headed out for the night.
What am I going to do? He won’t be back until late… if he even comes back at all. He may not be back until morning, which means I won’t have a chance to get out of here without him seeing me!
Amelia paced back and forth in her room. Her mind was reeling. Finally, she decided the best thing to do would be to leave, as soon as possible.
I’ll wait until midnight, and if he’s still not home, I’ll just sneak out the back way. There’s no way he’ll see me if I take the back path, and I’ll be long gone before he gets back in.
Amelia couldn’t focus on any one thing. She decided the best thing to do would be to lie back on her bed and wait. The only thing to do now was hope for Toby to come back sooner rather than later.
Amelia woke with a start. She hadn’t realized she was tired, but she must have fallen asleep. Now, she wondered if she was alone in the house, or if Toby had made it back. She held her breath and listened.
Nothing.
Amelia crept to the hall and listened. The house was silent, except for the ticking of the clock on the mantle. She could see from where she stood that it was shortly before midnight.
Perfect.
Amelia lit her candle and put her lamp over it. Then she grabbed her satchel and softly closed the door behind herself. When Toby came home, he would see that her light was on and her door was closed, so he wouldn’t bother her. When morning came, she would be long gone.
Amelia buttoned her petticoat, and opened the back door as silently as she could. Suddenly, she heard a crash come from the other side of the house. Toby was home!
Amelia gasped and ducked down, hoping he hadn’t heard her. She held her breath and didn’t move. She could hear him rambling on about something, but it had never been unusual for her to ignore him this late at night, so she knew he wouldn’t expect her to answer him now.
Suddenly, she heard banging.
Toby was banging on her bedroom door!
Oh no! He’s going to open it and find out I’m not in there! What am I going to do?
Amelia looked frantically around, then dove into the bushes. She had to get as much distance between herself and Toby as possible, and it was now or never. Amelia put her head down and ran as fast as she could through the bushes. If she was lucky, she would be able to catch a ride with one of the coal miners heading out of town.
They were on their way to the train station to catch the train that left at dawn. If Amelia could hitch a ride to the next town, she could lie low until the stage was ready to leave. With any luck at all, she would be on it.
Whatever I do, I can’t stop now. It won’t be long before he knows, and if he catches up with me, it will all be lost.
Amelia shuddered at the thought, and clutched her parcel to her. She didn’t want to think about what would happen if she failed, because she only wanted to focus on what was going to happen when she made it.
Chapter 6 – The Western World
Amelia sighed as she sat back on the seat. She had made it this far, and so far so good. There hadn’t been any sign of Toby, or word that he was looking for her. Not yet, anyway.
Amelia had found a ride to the next town, and she boarded the stagecoach as soon as she could. The more distance she could put between herself and that man, the better. Now that she was on the road, Amelia began to think more about Texas and the man she was going to marry.
When she had sent off her letter, she had addressed one of the cowboys in the ad who went by the name of Bird.
He described himself as tall, with dark hair and slender features. He sounded so appealing to her. So handsome.
She didn’t know if he liked the letter she sent, or even if he was still looking for a bride, but she had to try. After all, there had been a list of over forty names on that ad. Surely if that one cowboy had found his bride there would be another looking for the same.
She described her situation to him, and told him she was on her way as soon as possible. If all worked well, she would be in Redstone within a couple of days.
I don’t much care who I marry, so long as he is good to me, treats me with respect, and lov
es me. Not even my own step father could manage to do that.
She tried to push all thoughts of Toby out of her brain, but with the passing landscape and the quiet passengers inside the coach, she found her mind wandering back to him more and more. She wondered what he did when he found she was missing. She wondered what he would do if he caught up to her.
Now now now, there’s absolutely no need to be thinking things like that. He isn’t going to catch up with you, and even if he does, you are going to be long married, and your husband will tell him to leave you alone for good.
Amelia felt better after she had reassured herself, but that queasy feeling still remained deep down in the pit of her stomach. She didn’t like to think of Toby finding her, or of what would happen if her husband wanted to step in. So instead she decided to think of her new home, what she would do.
And the kids she would raise.
Amelia smiled at that thought. Sure, it would be a long time down the road, but it was a happy thought, and right now, that was just what she needed. She leaned back against the bouncing wall and closed her eyes. Sleep would be one of the greatest things in the world for her right now. To forget some of this headache and store up on some energy.
That’s all she needed.
Amelia woke up, knocking her head against the wall of the coach. She cried out softly and mumbled to herself, sleepily opening one eye and looking out the window.
They were in town.
In a town, anyway. She didn’t quite know where they were, but she hoped they were close to Texas. The ticket she purchased was enough to take her all the way to her destination, but it didn’t say how many stops there were going to be along the way.
If Amelia had her way, they wouldn’t have stopped at all, but would have rushed through the night and into the next day. But, the horses were tired and she paid for what she could afford, which meant she had to deal with the normal schedule of the stage.
“Excuse me, Sir! But where are we?”
She shielded her eyes as she looked up at the driver. He stood on top of the coach and tossed the luggage down to those that were standing on the platform waiting for them. The sunset behind him made him difficult for Amelia to see, but she could still hear him.
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