by J. R. Biery
Mother Wimberley caught her breath and sat back on her seat. It was her imagination. Bonnie had been through poverty, abuse, and a tragic marriage. She should slink along with bowed head and humility. Instead, Bonnie, who had always been shy and quiet, now was speaking out, offering her opinions, as though they were as good as anyone else’s, even the men. She was like the rough ore Robert smelted and turned into shiny steel. The more adversity that was heaped upon her, the stronger and brighter she emerged.
For the first time Mother Wimberley looked at her cherished child and felt sorry for her. Calum Douglas wasn’t the only man who might make the comparison between the two girls and choose Bonnie over Claire. A minute later, she had decided on an answer. “Well, she is very tall, and Tarn and the Lieutenant are both exceptionally tall men. Maybe that’s why they like her.”
Claire smiled for the first time all day. “I think you’re right, Mother. And I don’t want a tall man. They’re too hard to kiss.”
Suddenly, Claire reached out for her startled mother’s hand.
“All I want is to find someone to love me, someone like Father, who has always loved you. I just don’t think I’m going to ever find him.”
Mother wrapped her daughter in a reassuring hug. “Love will find you, you just need to make yourself ready.”
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At noon, it was Claire, who walked to the rear wagon, then walked to each of her fellow travelers, handing out the food Bonnie had prepared. When she reached the mounted riders, it was Henry who gave her a special smile as he accepted his food. Before he could comment, she held out the last sandwich to Bonnie.
Her friend stood surprised, then swept her into a tight embrace. In minutes, Claire was saying all the things she had tried to say earlier. Bonnie let her babble on, then stopped her with another big hug. “Thank you, friend.” She raised her hand, extending her small finger. Claire hooked hers around it. “No more jealous fights, okay?”
Claire laughed, “No more, I promise.”
As the two walked off to eat together, Claire missed how Henry’s face darkened. He watched the two women settle in the shade of some nearby trees to eat and talk. He had no problem with whomever Bonnie chose to love. But the thought of Claire wanting the tall Lieutenant took away his appetite.
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Two weeks later, as they passed through Indiana early in the morning, they stopped at a farm house. In the meadows beyond the farm house, several dairy cows grazed. Someone whistled and three barking English shepherds stopped carrying on. In the barn, they found a farmer pitching hay down. He whistled sharply and the three dogs who had sat down at the farmers, ‘quiet,’ sprang into action.
By the time he had the feed-boxes full, the dogs had a string of cows headed toward the barn, ready for milking. The Wimberleys were able to buy some of his stored pumpkins and wheat. The boys quickly loaded everything inside Bonnie’s wagon on top of the tools.
Father Wimberley watched the boys trying to pet the young dogs whose long coats flashed as they zipped around the herd, and then back toward the boys, temptingly close.
The farmer watched the boys playing with the younger pair of dogs. “Your boys there need those dogs. I can make you a good price. Here Tip and Tyler,” he called. The black animals ran low to the ground with lovely splashes of white on their faces and legs. Like the twins, the dogs, were almost identical. The farmer whistled and the dogs ran up and sat at attention, waiting. “Go on boys, they’ll let you pet them now.”
Tom and Jim sat wistfully petting the silky ears, talking to the friendly dogs. Father Wimberley paid for the animal feed, milk, and eggs and started to shake his head. “Sorry, it’s not a bad price, but I can’t afford to buy them.”
“They’ll earn their feed. They’re already trained herders.”
Father Wimberley stared from the boys blue eyes into the pleading brown eyes of the dogs.
“Good watch dogs, too. Give you plenty of warning when anyone’s around.” When he saw the man start to shake his head again, he said. “Go on, take ‘em for free. You paid up fair for the tucker. Twin pups and twin boys, meant to be.”
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The men quickly learned the whistled commands and appreciated the dog’s help in moving the oxen each day.
The three girls all loved the well behaved animals. They were mirror images of each other, but none were sure which was Tip or Tyler. Tom said Tip was the one with white on the left side of his face. Jim argued they were mirror images and the girl’s noticed the other did have white on the right half of his face. Bonnie liked having them sleep under her wagon. Ever since Calum Douglas had planted fear of marauders and thieves in their minds and advised them to keep guns nearby, it had been harder to fall sleep.
Claire loved to have them along whenever she walked away from the wagons. She still had a lasting fear of snakes, but didn’t worry with the dogs along. They reminded her of the spaniels in the portraits of royalty, and she enjoyed pretending she was a princess and they were her pampered pets. The boys insisted they were English shepherds, not hunting dogs.
Mary Anne tried to tie a red neckerchief around the one called Tip, and had a blue one beside her for the other dog. But the two animals managed together to pull it off. Mother Wimberley refused to let her try again, insisting it hurt the animal’s dignity to be dressed up like a doll.
Barney Lambton was also thrilled with the friendly dogs, and would grab their fur and squeal whenever they came near. In turn, they would lick him and run along to herd him whenever he got up to walk. It gave Bella a little time for herself, and she made a point of slipping them treats to keep them nearby during meals.
CHAPTER TEN
The first week in August they finished the first leg of their journey. Camped beside the big river, Claire stood entranced by the city lights on the other side. Tomorrow they would cross where the Missouri met the Mississippi over the new Eads Bridge into St. Louis, Missouri.
When Bella walked up beside her with Barney in tow, Claire made room for her. “It is frightening, isn’t it?” Bella said.
Claire was surprised, usually Bella ignored her, talking to Bonnie or her Mother instead. The warm breeze from the river carried the rich smell of all the life and river traffic far below. “I think it’s exciting. After we leave this city, we’ll be heading onto the real western wagon trails. We’ll join another wagon train, a bigger one. There will be more men and women to help us.”
“More men for you to choose from for a husband.”
Claire laughed, “That too. They say there are as many as ten men to one woman in some of the towns out west.”
“You are a very pretty young woman. I’m sure you will have no trouble finding the perfect man.” Bella said, then turned to walk back to the campfire.
Claire was grateful for the darkness. What did the woman mean, that she wanted her to stay completely away from her husband, to find a man of her own? Claire placed her hands on her hips, leaned back as she inhaled deeply of all the promise. That was what she wanted, wasn’t it?
In the dark, she heard the children running and squealing as they played tag in the tall grass. Bonnie’s strong voice called everyone to come to dinner.
As she walked back, Claire heard the two men talking, arguing as usual. Father didn’t trust the new bridge, especially since half of it was taken up by a railway span. He planned to move one tandem wagon across at a time. Of course, Henry argued it was nonsense. It would have been engineered to support a lot more weight than their oxen and wagons. Father won the argument as usual.
Father Wimberley announced he would sell the wheat and pumpkins tomorrow. At sunset, the boys had pointed out a big frame building with sunflowers painted on the roof and the word flour, laughing that someone didn’t know how to spell flowers.
“I think St. Louis might be the place to sell the buckets and tools from the foundry too. I’m not sure what we’ll find on the trail to come. We’ve freighted it this far, but I might have an easier t
ime selling the wagons if they’re empty,” Father Wimberley said.
Bella spoke up, her sharp voice directed at Henry. “We should try to sell some of our goods as well. We have no idea what waits for us along this trail.” All the travelers had read the books with their tales of abandoned furniture and treasures along the difficult road. Henry told her, “I’ve made our plans and I intend to stick to them.”
Bonnie smiled at Claire. The women knew the argument would go on through the night. They knew from the past that Bella would not give up the argument until Henry agreed.
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The sale of the wheat didn’t go as planned. The mill wasn’t eager to buy last winter’s grain. After testing each bag, they agreed to take it, but at a smaller profit than Father had expected. Surprisingly, the hard-shelled pumpkins sold easily to a store for almost as much as Father had paid for everything.
Next Father drove to the business where he had planned to sell the factory equipment he had hauled from Boston. The man he had corresponded with wasn’t there. He tried two other places in the industrial area below the railroad bridge. No one seemed interested. They followed directions from the office secretary to find a room for the night to freshen up. Father tried not to look insulted. The secretary promised to send word if the owner came into work later.
The Southern Hotel faced a grassy area they were told would soon become a town park. Without asking permission, they made a square of the wagons and picketed the cattle and horses in the grassy field. Leaving the women and boys with the wagons, he and Henry checked into two rooms. After bathing and dressing in clean clothes, Father rushed to get the wagons ready before the messenger arrived.
The women, Barney, and Mary Anne went up to the hotel rooms. After their long baths, Bella, Mary Anne, and Barney stayed upstairs to sleep in the soft feather beds. Claire and Bonnie came down. The young women were both giddy with being clean and well-groomed for the first time in weeks. They promenaded up and down in the hotel lobby and received many curious and admiring glances.
Father guided the boys to unhook and form a tandem of the two wagons carrying tools. The twins were excited to be left to guard the rest. They didn’t want to sleep in the hotel since the dogs weren’t welcome there. Father and Henry went back to visit the barber shop for a shave, haircut and shoe shine.
The pair of girls met the two men outside the barber shop, having a heated discussion as always.
“The men said St. Louis is the fourth largest city in the country. You’ll make more money and please your wife if you try to sell some of your merchandise here,” Father said.
Before Henry could start his protest, Claire said in her happy, bubbly voice. “Oh, do try Henry, there were some wonderful looking stores on the main street.
The messenger was calling for Robert Wimberley, and Claire gave her father a kiss for good luck as he rushed out.
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Bonnie looked at Henry. “Claire and I are at loose ends, since the others are sleeping. We can come along to help.”
When Bonnie volunteered to stay with the wagon while Claire and Henry talked to the store manager, Henry smiled at the pair. Claire said, “I’m confident if a man will come down to see the stock, he will buy it.” It was agreed the three of them would try it.
Henry located the busy manager at the first store, but he refused to even look at what he had to offer. His reason, he already had suppliers he had been using for years. Claire looked around at the store with the full shelves and the clerks, all neat as a pen in white shirts or blouses, black pants or skirts. She liked the uniform they wore, even the black bow tied at the neck of each. It was more flattering on the women than the men, but she doubted if this manager would care what his employees thought.
The manager of the second store at least came down to the street to look inside the wagon. He laughed at what he saw. “No way to tell what you’ve got, the way you have everything stacked and piled.
Henry was ready to give up when Bonnie spoke up. “It’s in the same shape as the other merchandise you get arrives in. You can’t expect it to be shipped across country on hangers or racks, can you?”
“What did you say?” the man demanded.
Bonnie stuck her brogan up on the box frame as he blustered toward the front of the wagon. “You heard me. If you want to loan me an iron, we’ll press any or all of it, and Claire can model it. Then you can decide.”
The man stared at the striking woman with her flashing amber eyes, then at the angelic little blonde beside Henry. He directed them to drive the wagon on into the warehouse.
They used the wagon for Claire to dress in, although there was hardly room to stand in the crowded space. Claire modeled one of her favorites first. It was a light blue gingham dress with soft bows at the neck and a tier of ruffles at the rear, each caught with dark, little blue bows. She even found a pair of blue shoes and small feathered blue hat to compliment it. The warehouse workers seemed more interested in the fashion show than in working. Henry stood guard at the rear of the wagon, Bonnie at the front, while Claire changed.
Ready, Claire raised the ruffled parasol Henry handed her and walked toward the open front door of the warehouse and back, glancing over her shoulder and twirling the tiny umbrella for the manager. He nodded, but looked unimpressed.
The second dress was a rose taffeta ball gown, off the shoulders with lace insets to modify the décolletage that was too old fashioned and bold. It was the skirt that brought the dress into the modern era, again with the fullness pulled toward the back, rather than the sides. This time Claire wore a lovely pink and white lace petticoat beneath, and managed to raise the skirt enough to show the extravagant garment as she climbed in and out of the wagon. This time the manager looked more than impressed.
Bonnie had a deep blue wool dress ready, but the manager waved a hand that he’d seen enough. Claire held the blue garment in her hands, and the buyer shook his head and whistled. “I’m going to hate not seeing you in that, I’m sure, but I think I’ve seen enough to decide.”
An hour later, after hard-haggling, Henry had sold two-thirds of the stock, all at a substantial profit. On the way back to the hotel, Claire back in her own green dress, giggled and squeezed Bonnie’s hand in excitement. “We did it. I can’t believe it only took two dresses for him to decide.”
“You looked so pretty, what choice did he have. There are a lot of women in this town who will snap up those dresses,” Henry said.
“He looked only because you spoke up and demanded he let us show him. What happened to my shy friend?” Claire said to Bonnie.
“I think she died with her baby,” Bonnie answered quietly. But as she drove back, she didn’t miss observing Claire’s other hand was firmly clasped in Henry’s.
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Father Wimberley met the buyer in the restaurant in the hotel. The man said he was wanting to buy equipment for his gold mine in the Black Hills. Mr. Wimberley convinced him he would be able to use or convert all of the equipment for that purpose and offered to make him a good price.
As soon as the man saw it, the deal was struck for the equipment. Then the man astonished them all by paying eight hundred for the tandem wagon and team to haul it in.
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Returning to the hotel, the trio rode the lift up to the room for the first time, rather than take the stairs. The tall bellboy stood at the pulley and held the door open for the three to enter, then closed the cage door securely. Claire could hardly breathe she was so frightened. Bonnie of course, had insisted they try it since she had seen others pulled up to their rooms and thought it made a lot of sense. The ropes were actually steel cables that passed through the large lipped pair of wheels mounted in the front corner. The cables, then disappeared through the floor and ceiling. As though it wer effortless, the man pulled and the car rose with a lurch.
Claire squealed and Bonnie and Henry pressed her between them. She noticed Henry was as nervous as she was as he held onto the top rail of the
cage as they were pulled up beside the giant staircase. Claire rolled her eyes at the people carefully climbing the stairs holding onto the handrail. She wasn’t surprised to see Bonnie smirking at them. When the cage stopped on their floor with a wire squeal and a lurch, Claire screamed again in surprise.
Laughing nervously, Henry held out a hand and led her to wait impatiently as the gate was swung open. Bonnie remained, staring down through the cage floor and pushing a little against the back of the carriage to make it sway. Claire wasn’t surprised when the Bellboy gasped and whispered, “Best not do that, ma’am.”
Claire pulled free of Henry and reached out for her foolish friend. “Don’t you dare, if the rope should rock off of the wheel, the whole thing could crash down and kill us.” The black man in the carriage closed the gate after crossing himself. Claire watched him muttering a prayer as she heard the bell ring downstairs. Gritting his teeth, staring straight ahead, the man lowered the contraption to the first floor.
Claire slapped at Bonnie’s arms and scolded her as the two women made their way down the corridor to their hotel room. Henry walked at a distance from them, then turned and knocked on a neighboring door for him.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Claire couldn’t stop talking about selling clothes to the wonderful department store. She told Mother that she had been offered a job at the store to model clothes for customers. Of course she had said no.
Still dressed, Bonnie lay down on the second bed in the room, the one she, Claire, and Mary Anne would share tonight. It was foolish to stand around talking and primping when there was still an hour before dinner time. In a minute, she was relaxed and asleep.
