Flash Gold
( Flash Gold Chronicles - 1 )
Lindsay Buroker
Lindsay Buroker
Flash Gold
Part I
Kali McAlister tapped a wrench against her thigh as she contemplated her invention. She had stripped every extra piece of metal she could from the “dogless sled” and had even debated removing the brush bow, but that seemed unwise. Besides, it’d been cold enough the last week men were complaining of pee freezing before it hit the ground. The ice on Forty Mile Creek ought to be thick enough for the heavy steam sled. If it wasn’t…winning the race would be the last of her worries.
Hinges creaked, and a gust of frigid air hurled snow into the workshop. Kali spun toward the door, her long braid whipping around her shoulder.
A fur-clad figure loomed, head an inch shy of the top of the frame. With those broad shoulders and that height, she assumed it was a man, though a cap buried his eyebrows and a scarf swaddled most of his face. He gripped a rifle in one gloved hand, and the hilt of something-a sword? — poked over his shoulder. Who in tarnation brought a sword to the Klondike?
Kali’s grip tightened on the wrench. Another thug who wanted to interrogate her about her father’s alchemical masterpiece, probably.
“If you’re going to hold the door open that long, you could at least bring in some wood.” That sounded cocky, especially since the wrench was the closest thing to a weapon she had handy, but bravado went a long way in Moose Hollow.
Meanwhile, she sidled closer to the workbench and the panel of levers on the far end of it. The man’s blue eyes were the only thing visible between the cap and scarf, and they narrowed, watching her.
“The stove’ll have to work double time to heat the place again,” Kali said, hoping to distract him from her movement. “Not that this drafty hole could aspire to warm anyhow.”
The man stepped inside. Kali tensed, ready to spring for a bronze lever with a billiards-ball knob.
He did not move past the threshold though. Without taking his eyes from her, he pushed the door closed. He removed the cap, revealing thick tousled black hair, then tugged the scarf down to his throat. Kali might have called him handsome, but a scar gouged one cheek, as if someone had tried to remove one of his eyes. The beard stubble darkening his jaw would do little to warm his chin in the cold. He must be new to the north.
His cool gaze skimmed the shop, resting briefly on the unorthodox metal sled before settling on her.
“You Kali McAlister?” he asked, voice smoother and more pleasant than his rough exterior hinted at.
“Ma’am.” She propped her hands on her hips by way of disguising another step toward the lever. “It’s polite to call a lady ‘ma’am.’ Even if she’s a half-breed wearing man trousers with tools sticking out of all her pockets.” Not to mention she was only eighteen and covered in grease. She would collapse in surprise if anyone called her ma’am without the ulterior motive of needing a favor.
He stared at her for a long moment. “You Kali McAlister? Ma’am.”
“I reckon that depends on who you are.” She pretended to scratch her knee and took another step.
“Your identity changes depending on your caller?”
“Sometimes it does.” Another step.
“Cedar.”
“What?”
“My name.”
“That’s not a name,” she said. “That’s a tree.” Though at his height, children might mistake him for the latter.
“Both.”
“And what are you here for, Cedar?” Three more steps and she would reach the lever. He might plow through her “security measures,” but they would distract him and give her time to run.
He strode toward her. She lifted the wrench threateningly.
“The job.” His free hand delved into a pocket. Paper rustled. He pulled out a sheet with writing on it.
It was Kali’s turn to stare. “What job?”
Wordlessly, he held out the flyer.
ASSISTANT MUSHER FOR BARTON’S RACE
Experienced pugilist preferred. Inquire at Kali McAlister’s Tinkery.
Kali scratched her head. “Where did you get this? I didn’t post it.”
“Nelly’s Good-Time Girls.”
“Nelly. Oh.” Kali puffed out an annoyed breath. While it had been nice having someone step in as a big sister after her father died, sometimes Nelly presumed too much. At least this meant the man was probably not there to rob or interrogate her. “That’s a mistake.” She waved at the flyer. “I can’t afford to hire help. I’m going alone. Sorry to have wasted your time.”
Cedar lowered the paper, but did not leave. “If you win, there will be prize money.”
“Yes…. One thousand dollars hard money goes to the first-place finisher, thanks to Francis Barton’s lucky claim. The old sourdough’s spending like a drunk.”
“Then you’ll be able to pay me.”
Kali’s suspicions toward her visitor returned. Only gold miners worked for thepossibilityof payment, and most of them were addled in the head. More, nobody in town thought her steam sled would do anything except crash through the ice and disappear forever. Francis wouldn’t have let her enter the race if anyone believed otherwise.
“If I win, I’m using that money to build…something I’ve wanted to build for a long time,” Kali said. “And I’m getting out of Moose Hollow to go somewhere warm.” And where nobody knew about her crazy family or called her a witch.
“One hundred,” Cedar said.
“Are you truly trying to negotiate with me over money that odds are against me winning?”
“You believe you’ll win.” A hint of impatience hardened his jaw.
“Everyone believes they’ll win or they wouldn’t risk their lives in this Godforsaken endless winter to run their dogs up a river. Look, Mister-”
“Cedar.”
“Look, Mister Cedar. I appreciate you coming-”
Something shattered upstairs. Kali froze. That sounded like the ceramic-pot booby trap she had set up in front of her bedroom window.
She scowled at her visitor, suspicions deepening. He did not appear surprised. His head was lifted, eyes toward the open stairway at the back of the workshop.
“You know anything about that?” she asked. He was probably the distraction while his cronies-
The front door slammed open. Three men charged inside, six-shooters leading.
Cedar whirled to face them. Metal rasped, and his sword appeared in his hand.
Hoping the men were focused on him, Kali darted for the bank of levers. She yanked the one with the billiards-ball knob.
A door along the wall slid upward, revealing two bulky figures in a shadowy cubby. Gears whirred, and a pair of four-legged mechanical constructs clanked out. Though comprised of a patchwork of spare parts and metal scraps, they had cohesive, canine forms. And they were big.
Her guard “dogs” angled toward the intruders, issuing growls that sounded like knives rasping against sharpening stones. Two of the men noticed the metal hounds and stumbled backward, eyes wide. The dogs’ steel maws gaped open, and iron teeth snapped.
A shadow fell over Kali. The intruder from upstairs. He vaulted over the railing and landed in a crouch beside her. A leer split his beard and displayed a row of tobacco-stained teeth. He raised a Colt Peacemaker toward her chest.
Kali hurled her wrench at his jaw and spun, intending to run for cover behind the steam sled. A second man dropped into her path from above, and she crashed into his chest.
Before she could jump back, massive arms wrapped around her in a bear hug.
“Got her!” her assailant yelled.
She squirmed, finding room to angle a knee into his crotch. His grip slacke
ned, and a startled grunt flew from his lips. She yanked free, but the first man had recovered and grabbed her from behind.
As quickly as he snatched her, he released her. A howl of pain assaulted her ears. One of her dogs had clamped onto the man’s leg with those iron fangs.
“Good boy,” she caroled while jumping to the side to avoid the man still behind her. He caught her braid though and whipped her back so roughly pain erupted in her neck. He spun her to face him. Sharp, cold steel pressed against her throat.
“Mongrel bitch,” the man snarled. “I’ll send you to the bone orchard for that.”
A rifle fired.
Shock widened her attacker’s eyes. He stumbled back, dropping the knife. She shoved him, and he collapsed.
Her mechanical dog still harried her other assailant. The three men who had charged in the front door lay unmoving, blood spattering the floor around them.
Cedar crouched on top of the boiler on her steam sled, rifle balanced across his knees, while the other dog clanked about below. He glared at the last man standing, but that fellow had noticed his comrades were all down. He raced out the front, slamming the door before the dog could chase after him.
Kali gave the bronze lever a shove. She wanted the metal guardians back in their cabinet before Cedar had a good look at them. She told people all her constructs were simply steam-powered machines, but anyone familiar with the technology would guess more than punchcards directed their actions.
Cedar watched through narrowed eyes as the hounds clanked toward their kennel. “Interesting.”
“A girl who lives alone up here has to have security measures,” she said, not sure what to make of the speculation on his face.
His blue eyes shifted to study her. They were clear, like the purest ice, and a striking contrast to his dark hair. They could have made her uneasy, but the speculation was not unfriendly. The scar and beard fuzz notwithstanding, she wagered he would be popular with Nelly’s girls. Not that she cared. A handsome man would not swindle her again.
“They say you’re a witch.” Cedar hopped to the floor, landing lightly. He pulled his sword from the belly of one of the downed men without the faintest change in expression that might suggest the killing bothered him.
Kali looked away. “How lovely. The local rumormongers have decided to share their theories with thecheechakospassing through.”
Cedar cleaned the long, thin blade on the dead man’s jacket. “It seems your friend is correct. You need the protection of a pugilist.”
Whatever this fellow was, she suspected he was far more than a simple pugilist. After cleaning the sword, he walked from downed man to downed man, considering each face. He rolled one fellow from belly to back and stared for a long moment before shaking his head slightly.
“Have I proven my capabilities sufficiently so you’ll hire me?” he asked.
“For all I know, you’re one of these bandits, eager to rob me for…whatever they think I have.”
“Would I have shot them if that were the case?”
Kali shrugged. “I haven’t noticed that criminals care overmuch for other criminals.”
He walked toward her. She tensed, but he stopped a few paces away and stared her in the eye.
“I’m no criminal.”
“Then what are you?” she asked. “Why do you want to go with me?”
“I’m a simple traveler seeking adventure.” He nodded toward the sled. “I believe you are someone whom adventure finds.”
Kali snorted. In the aftermath of Sebastian’s betrayal, those words were proving too apt for her tastes. Yet it might be useful to have such a capable fighter along,ifhe did not mean to betray her himself. At the least, she could put him to work loading and unloading supplies.
“Fine,” she said, hoping she was not making a mistake. “We leave at eight A.M. Bring food for yourself for several days and kerosene for the lamps. Since it’s dark most of the day, we’ll travel through it when the trail allows.”
She headed to a coat tree and bundled up. She would have to visit the new Mountie headquarters to report the incident. Things had been easier before the law showed up, representing the “Dominion of Canada.” Criminals’ bodies had merely been tossed out for the wolves.
“Where do I sleep?” Cedar asked.
Kali stopped at the door and gaped at him. “Uh, the Blue Moon Saloon has a couple rooms.”
“You’re not paying me enough to cover lodgings.”
She wasn’tpayinghim at all. No holes or frayed sleeves marked his clothing, and he bore quality weapons. Surely, he was no penniless pauper without coin for a room. “You’re not sleeping here.”
She did not want him roaming around her property while she slept. The flash gold was hidden and booby-trapped, but what of her other valuables? Hertools?
“Are you always this warm and demonstrative to men who just saved your life?” Cedar asked.
“I don’t know. You’re the first who’s bothered.”
“Then perhaps you should consider displaying gratitude, thus to encourage others who may consider similar acts.”
Kali scowled at him. Why did she have a feeling he was going to be trouble?
“Fine. You can sleep in the shop down here. Don’t touch anything.”
Part II
Whale oil lanterns burned on the dock, doing little to push back the darkness. This late in the year, dawn would not come until after nine. The sleds would be long gone by then.
Wind gusted down the frozen river, ruffling the fur on Kali’s parka. The warmth from the open firebox door offered a slight reprieve from the cold, but she kept her scarf over her nose as she shoveled coal inside. Embers glowed red, and the pressure gauge on the boiler ticked closer to the operational mark.
She paused to issue a fierce yawn. The Mounties had kept her up late with questions and paperwork, making her regret her decision not to simply throw those thugs’ bodies to the wolves. Cedar had been conveniently, or perhaps conspicuously, absent when the Mounties came to retrieve the dead men.
Nearby, dogs pranced and whined with excitement as men led them to the traces. More than a dozen sleds were lined up on the riverbank. Kali ignored the muttered comments about her monstrosity as well as the wager going around as to how far she’d make it before crashing through the ice or having a catastrophic boiler failure.
Cedar was hefting sacks of sand onto her cargo platform. Each sled would carry a five-hundred-pound load in addition to whatever supplies the mushers took. She worried again about the mass of her contraption. More than once, she had debated saving weight by skimping on coal and cutting wood as she went, but that would take time she could ill afford to lose during the race. She supposed she could leave a few tools behind, though the box of smoke nuts was definitely going. A girl had to have more than a rifle for self-defense purposes.
“Morning, Kali.”
Though a scarf muffled the voice, Kali recognized the drawl. Originally from Georgia, Nelly managed to look beautiful even in a parka. Though layers of winter clothing obscured her curves, the long blonde hair spilling from her hood always enticed the northern men.
“Morning,” Kali said.
“I came to wish you luck. I slipped away from my young man to see you off.”
“Which young man is it this time?”
“The one I’d marry if his claim ever panned out.”
“So…that narrows it to…Charles or Saul. Or is Rupert still a contender?”
“Saul,” Nelly said, a smile in her voice.
Cedar dropped another sack on the sled, working quietly and efficiently. The perfect employee. Kali still found him damned suspicious. She took Nelly’s arm and drew her back a few paces.
“This fellow you sent over without asking if I was interested… What do you know about him? I question the wisdom of going out in the wilderness with a stranger. A tall, strong, well-armed stranger.”
“He walked into my salon and looked at my face instead of my breasts,” Nelly
said.
“I see. And that makes him utterly trustworthy.” Kali stamped her feet, already missing the warmth of the firebox.
“I didn’t saythat, but he probably won’t try to rape you out there.”
“An admirable quality in a man, I’m sure, but why does he want to go with me? Did you tell him…?” Kali watched her friend’s eyes.
“Only that you were hiring. He came in asking about the folks and businesses in town.”
“Asking?” Kali said. “Like fishing for information?”
“He spoke of doing some prospecting, but I could tell he was a tenderfoot who needed looking after.”
Kali arched her brows. Cedar might be new to the area, but he had already proven he could take care of himself. Besides, the only men Nelly worried about “looking after” were handsome ones.
“I told him he couldn’t prospect for anything in the snow,” Nelly said, “and he might as well settle in and get a job ‘til the streams thawed. Coincidentally, you were hiring.”
“Yes, but Iwasn’thiring.” Kali glowered to let Nelly know she did not appreciate the big-sister interference.
Nelly waved away the glower, unperturbed. “You need someone out there with you, and he’s a fine enough fellow to keep you company. In more ways than one, I’m sure.”
“Nelly.”
“What? You’re too young to act like an old maid. Just because Sebastian was a scheming scoundrel doesn’t mean all men are.”
Kali shook her head. “This one’s up to something sly. He doesn’t seem desperate enough to work for thepossibilityof pay.”
“You’re overthinking this, Kali.” Nelly gave her a friendly shove toward the sled. “It’s a three-day race. How much trouble could you two get into?”
Kali found it impossible to dismiss her glower as she returned to the furnace.
Part III
Daylight brought little reprieve from the cold. The sun occasionally peeped through a cloud, but it provided only light, not warmth. The wind continued, whistling down the river valley between snow-smothered hills dotted with spruce trees. Kali’s sled chugged along at the rear of the pack. The next slowest sled disappeared around a bend ahead.
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