“Not in those words,” Matt admitted, “but she wouldn’t take my ring. She might as well have told me the wedding is off.”
“Let me ask you this—did Melissa end the conversation, or did you?”
Matt’s face grew hot.
“Uh-huh.” Nat nodded knowingly. “That’s what I thought.”
“What are you talking about?”
Nat licked his lips and held his finger up. “Now hear me out before you get riled up.”
“Too late.”
Nat went on like he hadn’t heard the impudent remark. “You’re my friend, right? Let me point that out, first of all.”
Matt raised his eyebrows. “Yes,” he agreed.
“And you’re a great friend...”
“Where are you going with this, Nathaniel?”
“See here. You’re not the most sociable fellow.”
“And what’s wrong with that?”
Nat shook his head. “Ain’t nothing wrong with that. What I’m getting at is this: when things get hairy, you tend to bow out. I’ve seen it plenty of times. If you don’t like a conversation or a situation, you leave. Sometimes, it seems you’re fine with not clearing the air. You go on home to your animals and little house set aside from everyone else, and you stay there.”
“I do better by myself,” Matt argued. “Plus, I’m not all that antisocial. I have my ma and pa.”
“Two people who’ll accept you, no matter what you do.” Nat paused for emphasis. “I understand that, too. With my folks in town, a hot meal always waiting for me on their table, my ma always baking me pies and knitting me socks, it’s hard to say no. Leaving the nest takes a while.”
“How did this conversation turn into one about leaving the nest?”
“My point is that you like being alone. That’s fine, but if you want to learn how to get along with others, you’ll need to practice. You didn’t think that everything with Melissa was just gon’ be walks in the sunshine, did you?”
Matt felt dumbstruck. He realized then that, in a way, he’d thought exactly that. He’d seen any issues as solely Melissa’s. She was the one who needed to adjust. She was the one who needed to open her heart.
“I messed up,” he admitted, staring at the wall but not seeing anything on its shelves.
“Not really. You made one mistake. Fix it, and all will be fine.” Nat lifted his bag of nails. “I best get back to the house. Let me know what happens.”
“Uh-huh,” Matt responded, still feeling dazed.
He couldn’t get over the shock of his new realization. Nat was right: he was antisocial and didn’t have much experience with others. Matt always thought spending all that time alone was a good thing, but now, after twenty-eight years, he really understood how he might have messed himself up. There were things he didn’t know how to deal with.
He hoped it wasn’t too late to rectify the situation.
16
16. Allie
Chapter Sixteen
May 1883
A knock on the door made Allie jump up from the chair she’d perched on. “That must be the doctor.”
Melissa didn’t respond. Her eyelids were half closed, and her breathing had become harsher in the last ten minutes. It had been almost two hours since they’d called for the doctor, and Allie was starting to become frantic.
Opening the door, she found a gray-haired man standing there.
“I heard there is a young woman here who needs examination?” He looked past Allie to the bed.
“Yes, sir. Thank you for coming.” Allie quickly stepped to the side, then, realizing Melissa might like some privacy, retreated into the hallway. “I will be just out here.”
She shut the door behind herself. Finding that having some space between her and Melissa made her even more anxious, Allie set to pacing. Again and again, she covered the hall’s length. With each step, the knot in her stomach tightened. This whole situation was a dangerous one. Stopping in Cincinnati meant taking a risk. Now, she worried for both herself and someone else.
Allie did not regret staying and caring for Melissa one bit, but she desperately needed the woman to get better so that they could put more distance between themselves and New York.
Melissa had said that Allie should come with her to Wyoming. At first, Allie had balked at the idea, wondering if Melissa really meant it. Thinking about it now, she realized it was better than any other plan she could concoct. Wyoming was a grand world away from New York. No one would think to look for her there.
The more she thought about it, the more excited Allie became. Her worried pacing turned into excited pacing. Did Shallow Springs have a hotel? Perhaps she could work in it. Or maybe one of the farmers or ranchers in the area needed a housekeeper? She could take on a fake name and stay close to Melissa.
Suddenly, the whole situation seemed beyond fortuitous. It was a gift from God. Surely, she and Melissa had been meant to meet.
The door opened, breaking Allie’s long train of thought, and the doctor stepped out.
“What is it?” Allie asked, rushing forward.
The doctor frowned and shut the door firmly behind himself. Allie realized she’d neglected to get his name.
He nodded his head at a spot down the hall, away from where Melissa would hear them. Allie followed him there, her heart beating loudly.
“It’s cholera,” he answered.
“Cholera,” she repeated, the word feeling heavy. “Is it serious?” She knew that sometimes people died from cholera. Still, sometimes they did not.
He let out a long exhale. “There are different kinds of it, and yes, I believe this one to be serious. How long has she been ill?”
Allie thought fast. “Um, her symptoms began today, I believe. We were on a train together, and her stomach began aching.”
The doctor’s brows knitted together. “I gave her a concoction to help with the discomfort.”
“When will she be better?” Allie held her breath as she waited for the answer.
Sympathy filled the doctor’s eyes, and it was the last bit of information Allie needed. She was falling into a dark hole.
“She may not get better. Your… sister?”
“Friend,” Allie said with a numb tongue. A friend she’d only made that day. She and Melissa could hardly call each other even that, and yet here they were, revealing dangerous secrets and facing death together. In the course of one day, they’d shared more adventure than many people did in a decade.
“You should prepare for the worst,” he said, “just in case.” He paused. “I’m sorry.”
The hallway spun around Allie. “But she only became sick today. This makes no sense.”
“There are types of cholera that can decimate a body that quickly.”
“I… I…” Allie searched for excuses. This man had to be wrong. Two minutes before, she’d been looking forward to continuing westward with Melissa. This new twist did not work into their plans at all. Surely, he had diagnosed her wrong.
“We must take her to a hospital,” Allie sputtered. “For better treatment.”
He grimaced. “I will stay here and do what I can. At this stage, there is nothing a hospital can do for her that I cannot right here.”
“Is this certain?” Allie asked, her voice shaking. “She will die?”
“It looks that way.”
Allie burned like she’d been thrown into the flames of Hell. Her eyes. Her throat. Her heart and soul. Even her mind. They were all on fire.
“I need to go and wash up. If you’d like some time alone with her, you best take it now.”
Giving her another sympathetic look, he loped down the hallway, in the direction of the washroom.
Allie did not want to go into their room. What was she to say to Melissa? Had the doctor told her she was possibly on her death bed?
He was no longer there to ask, and there was only one thing to do. Allie needed to be brave. She needed to show confidence. It did not matter that she shook like a le
af. Like Allie, Melissa was caught between two worlds: her old life and her future one. All the two of them had was each other, even if it was only for one day in all of Earth’s history.
Allie would make that day count.
Blinking fast to dry her eyes, Allie went into the room. Everything was as she had left it, with Melissa lying on her side facing the door.
“How are you feeling?” Allie quietly asked, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.
Melissa tried to smile, but it appeared as if even that was painful. “The worst I ever have.”
Allie’s throat thickened. “The doctor is staying to continue to treat you.”
“Surely he has other patients to”—Melissa swallowed—“attend to.”
“You deserve his care. Close your eyes now. You need rest.”
The doctor had not said that Melissa would certainly die. There was a chance she could recover.
“No,” Melissa croaked. “I cannot. I don’t have much time.”
Allie’s heart seized. “Do not say that.”
“I am nearing the end, Allie. I can… feel it.”
The tears came so fast that they were unstoppable. They rolled down Allie’s cheeks, and she swiftly wiped them away, ashamed to be the one losing control when she still possessed full health.
“He said you can recover.”
“I saw his face. I… know…”
A sob tried to escape Allie’s chest, but she managed to keep it suppressed. “Sleep. That will make you better.”
Melissa shook her head against the pillow. “I want you to know that, though we only just met, I value you tremendously. I thank God for our time together.”
“I do too,” Allie whispered. “I feel He brought me to you.”
“You must go to Shallow Springs… after I pass.”
Allie shook her head, trying to ignore that last part.
“You must,” Melissa insisted. “It is a tiny town. You will be safe there.”
“You will come with me.”
“Stop,” Melissa fiercely said. She paused as she grimaced in pain.
Allie held her breath, waiting, knowing then that her pushing back against Melissa’s demise was only making their conversation harder. Melissa had accepted that her time on Earth might have come to an end. It was time Allie accepted it as well.
“Go to Shallow Springs,” Melissa said again, “and take my name.”
Allie felt her jaw drop. “What do you mean?”
“Tell everyone there you are Melissa Russell. No one will know any different. Matthew and I did not exchange more than scraps of… of information. He has seen no photograph of me.”
“And deceive a whole town?” Allie clarified, feeling desperately confused.
“It is for the best. If the man who hurt you is looking for you, he might find you… but not if you have another name. And Matthew… I am nothing special to him, simply another girl.”
Allie let that sink in. Melissa was being serious.
“God will understand,” Melissa whispered. Her voice was getting weaker.
Pain ripped through Allie. “It is a lie.”
“He will understand.” Melissa feebly pulled a necklace out from underneath her collar. “Take my locket.”
“Why?”
“It was my mother’s. I have always felt it… protected… me. And now, it will protect you.”
Allie tried to hand the locket back. “You must keep it.”
Melissa smiled, and though there was pain there, there was also something else. Hope. Relief. “I will not need it where I am going.”
Allie ran her thumb over the locket’s surface, a tidal wave of emotion pushing its way up her chest.
“There is nothing in it,” Melissa sighed. “I never had a… a photograph of her.”
Allie closed her fingers tight around the locket. “I will never take it off.”
“Good,” Melissa whispered. “I need more water… please.”
Allie quickly fetched her a cup, and then two more. Melissa’s thirst was insatiable. It was as if the water went right through her, not helping at all.
After the third cup, Melissa’s eyes drifted closed, and the doctor came in.
“Let’s see her,” he said.
Allie moved out of the way, so he could inspect Melissa. After a moment of feeling her pulse, he sighed.
“Just make her comfortable,” he instructed. “She’s slipping for now. I have to make another call, but I’ll come by later.”
Allie nodded. “Thank you,” she whispered, afraid that if she raised her voice any higher, she’d show too much emotion.
He left, and Allie settled back in the chair. The night stretched on, and as she grew more tired, she folded her arms on the side of Melissa’s bed and rested her head on them. She did not mean to fall asleep, but she must have, because the next thing she knew, someone was lightly shaking her shoulder.
“Miss, wake up.”
Allie jerked to a sitting position and blinked. “Hm?”
The doctor stood next to the bed, gazing intently at her. “I’m sorry, but your friend has passed.”
Allie’s gaze slid over to Melissa. She lay on her back, arms at her sides and face soft. She looked to be a woman entirely at peace.
A haze settled over Allie in that moment. It remained with her through the night, as she watched the morgue’s cart come for Melissa’s body. It remained through the morning, as she went through Melissa’s bag and determined there was nothing she needed to save as a memento. It remained through the afternoon, as she arrived in a far corner of the cemetery, the sole attendee of Melissa Russell’s funeral.
Allie had used her own money to pay the doctor and to purchase the most basic grave marker. Taking what Melissa had left seemed wrong, although Allie was sure she would have wanted that. As it was, Allie dropped Melissa’s last dollars in the donation box at the church where she prayed after the funeral.
And that was it. There was nothing more to do. In the space of two days, Allie had met and buried a wonderful soul, a woman who had brimmed with passion, bravery, and faith even in her darkest hour. A woman who had cared for Allie when they were hardly more than strangers. A woman whom Allie would never forget.
On the train station’s platform, Allie touched the locket around her neck. One more time, she peeked inside of her purse and counted the money there.
She had just enough to get her to Shallow Springs.
17
17. Matt
Chapter Seventeen
June 1883
As the house came into view, Matt became twice as nervous.
His talk with Nat had sent a shock through him, but Matt knew he was probably right. The only people who knew him better than his friend were his parents. And it wasn’t as if he had much experience when it came to other kinds of relationships. Though he’d tried courting years ago, nothing had progressed. He’d never really come to know any of the girls that were in town then.
He’d messed up with Melissa. As embarrassing as it was, at least he’d come to understand it. Now came the time for apologies… if he could find the guts to open his mouth in front of her.
After putting Trigger in his stall with some fresh water, Matt turned in the direction of the house—and stopped in his tracks. Melissa stood on the front porch, in the middle of dropping a rug over the railing.
Her hands paused as she caught sight him. They were too far away to see each other’s eyes, but they stayed where they were, staring at each other for a good minute.
Summoning all the courage he could, Matt hooked his thumbs into his belt loops and walked across the yard.
“Hello,” he said, stopping on the porch’s first step.
“Hello.” There was caution in her voice—which he couldn’t blame her for.
Matt cleared his throat, looked down, and rubbed the back of his neck. His tongue was as tied up as his stomach.
“You weren’t at breakfast.”
He looked up. The sa
me kind of caution that kept him dumbstruck showed on Melissa’s face.
“I was… not thinking,” Matt struggled to explain. “Would you take a walk with me?”
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