by Donis Casey
They continued down Randolph, pausing to comment on the darling hats on display in the window of Clutter Millinery before they passed Klein’s Department Store. Martha and Grace were reliving their shopping adventure of the day before when the group turned south at the big white bank building on the corner of Randolph onto Grand.
Streetcar, automobile, and horse traffic had been banned from the square for the duration of the celebration, so they only had to contend with the crush of foot traffic as they crossed to Maine and turned west.
“I can’t see, Mama!” Alafair lifted Grace into her arms to keep her from being smothered by the press of people.
Olivia swept the air as she gestured toward the buildings lining the street. “You know, this entire south side of the square, and a bunch of the buildings on South Grand burned to the ground when I was little. Not a thing here is more than fifteen years old.”
“I was afraid the whole town was going to go up,” Ruth Ann said, raising her voice to be heard over the din.
Across Maine the white brick Federal Building sat back to back with the beautiful red brick “Cherokee Gothic” Garfield County Courthouse, with its white stone trim and six gables, all surrounded by elegant white globe lights. The courthouse square was huge, two blocks long and a block wide, and every open inch of the parklike grounds was covered with tents, booths, pavilions, and carnival rides.
The girls grabbed Alafair and Ruth Ann by the arm, propelling them through the crowd and across the street, down the long line of carnival attractions. McCoy trotted hot on their heels in an attempt to keep up with the excited young women.
Grace was about to twist her head off in her desperate attempt to see everything. “Bears, Martha! Look at the bears in the cage!” she exclaimed. “There’s a man eating fire, Aunt Ruth Ann!”
“Lord have mercy, I can’t watch!”
Olivia pointed at a hugely tall young woman sitting on a platform under a sign which declared her Giganta—The Tallest Girl Alive. “Oh, my goodness, that poor girl, everybody staring at her.”
“Why, she looks happy enough,” Alafair decided.
“Look yonder, Ma, there’s the Ferris wheel. Let’s take a ride. We could see the whole festival from the top.”
“You girls are going to be exhausted before you get halfway around the square. Mercy, I’d think y’all were five years old instead of grown women. This fair will be here for three days. We don’t have to see it all within the next hour.”
“You don’t want to ride the Ferris wheel?” Martha asked, disappointed.
“Why, I’ll be glad to take you for a spin,” McCoy offered.
Grace was game. “I want to ride the fair’s wheel.”
“You three go on ahead and give Grace a ride, if you want. Me and Ruth Ann will do some sightseeing. Just don’t come complaining if Grace starts screeching at the top or throws up on your dresses.”
Offended by Alafair’s lack of faith, Grace told her in no uncertain terms that she would neither screech nor throw up.
“I’m sure she’ll be fine, Ma. Are you sure y’all don’t want to come?”
“Would you like me to escort you ladies, Mrs. Tucker?” McCoy offered gallantly.
“Oh, mercy, no. I feel like doing a little meandering, here.”
Ruth Ann agreed. “Maybe I’ll buy me another bag of peanuts and walk around and watch all these folks for a spell.”
“Well, don’t get lost, Ma,” Martha said. “The parade starts in an hour, and I’d like for us to see it together.”
“We’ll meet y’all right back here in front of the Tallest Girl Alive at three-quarters past ten. That should give us time to find a good spot to see the parade.”
***
Alafair and Ruth Ann bought another bag of peanuts to share and walked around the square, discarding shells and watching the fairgoers. One entire side of the courthouse lawn along Independence was taken up with a dozen or so tepees, housing for the Cheyenne from Woodward, who had contracted with the city of Enid to lend color to the festivities and lead the opening parade. Several long-haired, young Cheyenne men, dressed in full tribal regalia, stood together in the midst of their temporary village, painting their ponies and weaving feathers and other talismans into the manes, laughing and talking together as they readied themselves for the parade. A score of Indian women and children, some in native garb and some not, stood together in a companionable group, watching with amusement as their men decorated their horses and themselves. A gang of little boys, some Indian, a couple colored, but most white, ran around the lawn hollering and whooping in a warrior-like fashion. Three or four of the boys were playing some game of dare, and the women stopped to observe as they finished their peanuts. The boys huddled together and giggled for a moment, then one screwed up enough courage to dash up to one of the tepees and slap the side a couple of times, then retreat posthaste into the crowd. One after another, little boys periodically launched themselves out of their huddle and tore forward to pound on the lodge and dash away.
Alafair and Ruth Ann watched the kids for five minutes, wondering idly what the purpose of this activity was, when suddenly a giant Cheyenne in an eye-popping war bonnet, a face full of war paint, and a tomahawk in his hand, burst out of the tepee with a hair-raising whoop and chased the screaming youngsters for a couple of yards.
Ruth Ann laughed. “Those boys disappeared into thin air faster than spit on a griddle!”
The Cheyenne turned around to go back to his lodge, but paused when he locked eyes with the laughing women. His fearsome face split into a white-toothed grin, and he gave them a conspiratorial wink before he lifted the door flap and disappeared inside.
Still chuckling, they resumed their walk around the square, taking in the sights. Alafair found herself wishing that her younger kids, Charlie, Blanche, and Sophronia, were here to enjoy this. And Shaw, too. He’d get as big a kick out of the fair as the kids would. Because of the time of year it occurred, they had never taken the time to visit Enid for the Cherokee Strip celebration. Alafair made a mental note to talk to Shaw about it. Perhaps now that they had so many grown kids and sons-in-law, they might be able to make special arrangements next year to come up just for the occasion. She never thought much about leisure, since she had so little of it. She found she rather liked it, by the teaspoonful, at least.
The press of the crowd did annoy her, though, and she found herself suggesting to her sister that they walk straight down Grand, rather than turning the corner and continuing on around the perimeter of the square. She felt her shoulders relax as she walked away from the noise and into the quiet, leafy neighborhood, past big, white Victorians, red or golden brick, and native stone Craftsmans. Sometimes they would see someone sitting on her front porch in a chair or rocking in a porch swing. Ruth Ann always knew the person, and they would call a friendly greeting to one another.
The sisters had been engaging in innocuous small talk until Alafair took advantage of their solitude to ask a question.
“What’s the story on this Buck Collins fellow, Ruth Ann?”
Alafair took a couple of steps before she realized that Ruth Ann had stopped. She looked around, surprised, and Ruth Ann fell back in beside her as they resumed their walk. “Buck Collins? Why do you ask about him?” Ruth Ann said, without looking at her. Her cheeks were flushed.
“Lester has a pretty low opinion of him.”
Ruth Ann seemed quite herself again, but walked a little further before she answered. “There’s been bad blood between Lester and Buck for years.”
“Really?”
“Before either of them came to Oklahoma.” Ruth Ann glanced at her sister. “You know, I knew Buck even before I knew Lester.”
Alafair was surprised. “You don’t say?”
“Yes. It was in Wichita. You remember that summer I went to stay with Aunt Cena?”
“In ’92. Yes, I recall that. That’s where you met Lester.”
“I met Buck first. He worked in Uncle Homer’
s hardware store. He had come out from Baltimore on the train, thinking to see the West and make his fortune. He came out to Uncle Homer and Aunt Cena’s house for Sunday dinner once or twice. He took a shine to me, and I thought for a spell that he was courting me. But he wasn’t. He was already married to Mazie at the time. She was still back in Maryland. He brought her and the kids out to the Strip after the run. Besides, one day, Lester Yeager walked into the store, fresh off the train from Ohio, with a handbill in his hand for the Cherokee Strip land run, and as far as I was concerned, that was that.”
“I remember how upset Mama was that you wanted to marry some penniless wastrel you’d just met two weeks before.”
“Wasn’t that a dustup?”
“You couldn’t be talked out of it, though.”
“It worked out fine, didn’t it?”
Alafair grinned. “I’d say so.”
“Look how pretty the asters are in the bed under that window, Alafair!”
“What a color! They’re as bright as a new copper penny! So you think that’s why Lester doesn’t like Collins? Jealousy?”
“Oh, Lester knows he doesn’t have a reason in the world to be jealous. Lester can’t stand a crook, which Buck is. A crook and a bully. Lester thinks he was a sooner, too.”
“You’re joshing! You think he jumped the gun?”
“Lester’s convinced of it. Lester made the run fair and square on that long-legged red of his. He galloped eighteen miles, straight as a plumb line, and was practically the first person to reach the Enid town site. Said he never saw hide nor hair of Buck. But when he went to that plot right downtown that he wanted, it was already staked, so he hotfooted it off to his second choice and planted his stake. When he got to the land office to file, he asked who got that first plot, and lo and behold, it was Buck Collins! Lester got him a mighty good claim anyway, right where the warehouse is now, by the tracks. But he’s dead sure that Buck snuck in early somehow and stole his claim out from under him.”
“I’ll swan! I never heard that Lester lost the claim he wanted.”
“He’s not eager to mention it.”
“You think Buck beat Lester out of his claim just for meanness?”
“I don’t know. Maybe he did. I didn’t think so at the time, but Buck has proved himself to be a spiteful creature, I’m afraid. A few years after that, the two of them got into it over some fool thing at a town council meeting and ended up in a fistfight right on the boardwalk outside city hall, for heaven’s sake! Nobody tried to stop them until the town marshal showed up. I think the council members were taking bets! Ever since then, they’ve barely had a civil word to say to one another. They’ve managed to live together in the same town, though, and even done business.
“Over the years, Buck just grew twisted, somehow. Lester may hate him, but he’s right about Buck being dangerous. He’s done some mighty nasty things to folks, and I fear that he’s not one to let go of a grudge. He owns half a dozen enterprises in Garfield County, most of them having to do with land, and most of them acquired by cheating somebody else out of them. Rumor is he’s got himself some hired persuaders, in case a business associate needs help to become more enthusiastic about one of Buck’s projects. There have even been a couple of unsolved murders laid at his door.”
“Why hasn’t he been arrested?”
“He’s mighty smart, I reckon. Sheriff Hume has never been able to prove anything against him.”
“Well, then, you’re lucky you never got involved with him!”
“Yes, thank the Lord for Lester. Oh, look yonder! What a pretty bunch of tomato vines in that garden!”
***
They had about decided that they had wandered long enough and it was time to meet the girls and McCoy in front of the Tallest Girl Alive when Ruth Ann noted that they had reached the corner of Cherokee and Grand, and were walking toward the sprawling headquarters of the Yeager Transfer and Storage Company.
“Would you like for me to show you the new addition, Alafair?”
Alafair had not been inside the warehouse for several years, not since it had been expanded so. “Yes, I would! Just a quick walk through, though.”
Ruth Ann grabbed her hand and practically skipped down the street, excited at the prospect of showing off Lester’s pride and joy. “Come on, Alafair! I expect the girls won’t miss us for another ten minutes.”
***
“Sure is quiet in here,” Alafair observed.
“It’s because of the Jubilee,” Ruth Ann told her. “In fact, there’s going to be a Yeager float in the parade. It’ll be manned by a goodly number of Lester’s employees. He had considered closing for the duration. A lot of other businesses are.”
Alafair couldn’t see a single person hovering about the usually bustling warehouse. However, one of the three garage doors stood open, with a big van parked inside, nose out to the street, so somebody was there.
They walked into the warehouse through the open garage, into the dark, cool, cavernous interior. At first, Alafair thought the place was deserted, but a light was coming from the windows of the manager’s office, overlooking the loading dock.
“I see that Mike Ed is here, at least,” Ruth Ann said. “He’s probably taking advantage of the lull to catch up on some paperwork.”
Alafair had met Mike Ed Beams several times over the years. He had worked for Lester since he was a youngster, eventually becoming the general manager. He was in his early thirties, now, married with young children, and fiercely dedicated to Lester and the Yeager Transfer and Storage Company. The women only had time for a quick look-see before they were due to meet the kids, so they didn’t take the time to mount the stairs to greet Mike Ed.
The huge warehouse stretched out into the shadows as far as Alafair could see. They took a right at the garage door, toward the interior. Tall windows stretching two stories high along the outside walls were open to admit the light and air. Only the one van was parked close to the loading dock, but Alafair could see spaces for three more. Most of the rest of the interior was packed with crates and boxes, neatly aligned in rows and on shelves, awaiting transport or pickup.
The place smelled of tires and exhaust, sawdust and cement, and a dozen other exotic and, to Alafair, unidentifiable smells. The building was at least three times longer than she remembered, and she was duly impressed by the fruits of Lester’s industry and skill. Ruth Ann guided her through the gloomy interior, proudly pointing out all the sights along the way, to the big refrigeration unit at the far back of the building. There wasn’t much to see—just two thick wood and iron doors with little windows at eye-height. Alafair had to stand on her tip-toes to look into the ice room, but the lights were off, and all she could see was blackness. She didn’t attempt to look into the cold storage lockers next to it. The loud machine hum was bothersome to her, but not nearly as much as the cold. The two refrigeration units looked to be solidly sealed off from the rest of the warehouse, but she had noticed the change in the climate when she was still twenty feet away. Standing up close to look through the little window was like stepping back into winter, and it didn’t take two minutes for her to become chilled. She stepped back with a shudder and shook her head.
“What an amazing invention, artificial refrigeration, Ruth Ann. Whatever will they think of next?”
Time was growing short before the start of the parade, and they decided they’d better get on with it. As she turned to leave, Alafair stepped on something sharp lying close to the wall by the cold storage door. She absently scraped her shoe on the cement floor in order to dislodge whatever it was, but only succeeded in driving it further into her sole. Annoyed, she lifted her foot to inspect the object, and was surprised to see a small gold ball stuck to the bottom of her shoe.
Ruth Ann cocked her head in curiosity. “What’s the matter, Alafair?”
Alafair pulled the offending item out and brought it up to her face, the better to inspect it in the dim light, and saw that she was holding a rather exp
ensive collar stud that some unfortunate man had managed to lose. “Why, it looks like a gold collar stud!”
“Let me see. So it is. Looks like something that Kenneth would wear. He loves to get all gussied up.”
“You suppose this is his?”
Ruth Ann shook her head. “I don’t think so. Kenneth doesn’t come into this part of the warehouse if he can help it, especially since Lester put in the refrigeration units. He detests anything cold. Said he got enough of being cold to last a lifetime when he was growing up in Michigan.” She laughed as though she thought this a charming peccadillo.
“What on earth was a banker or lawyer or other fat and wealthy gentleman doing back here by the cold storage lockers that would jerk his collar stud loose?” Alafair wondered idly. She slipped the gold stud into her skirt pocket and promptly forgot it as the two women hastened to get back to town in time for the parade.
***
McCoy met the ladies in front of the Tallest Girl Alive and escorted them down the block. The girls had already found themselves a place to view the parade, directly opposite the speakers’ dais, and they were all sitting on newspapers draped over the damp curb, eating popcorn, when Alafair and Ruth Ann walked up. Grace practically threw her popcorn bag at Martha in her haste to rush over and tell her mother every detail of her ride on the Ferris wheel. The sisters sat down on either side of Martha and Olivia while McCoy positioned himself on the sidewalk behind them. Alafair settled Grace into her lap, listening to her piping chatter with one ear while planning what remedy to give all these youngsters later, when they finally developed their inevitable stomachaches from too much carnival food.
