Lucky Creek Lady

by Shirley Kennedy

  “You don’t want to go? There must be a reason.”

  “I don’t need a reason. I’m not going.”

  What should she do now? Laurie waved toward the kitchen table. “Let’s sit down. You need to explain.”

  Valeria removed the pan of eggs from the stove. They sat facing each other at the table, Laurie so flabbergasted she hardly knew what to say next. “I just dismissed you. I don’t understand why you’d want to stay.”

  Eyeing her defiantly, speaking in her broken, hard-to-understand English, Valeria began, “Not much to explain. It’s my husband. He’s jealous all the time. If I work in a place where there are men, he thinks I flirt with them, and he beats me. Here there are no men around anymore except Mr. Hugh, and Emery not worry about him now. He told me so this morning. I wouldn’t dare leave now.”

  Again, Laurie recalled the awful stories she’d heard about hot-tempered Emery Finch. How her brash and very independent cook could put up with such brutal treatment, she didn’t know. Maybe now was a good time to bring up the forbidden subject. “If you don’t mind my asking, if your husband treats you so poorly, why don’t you leave him? You don’t need him. You could easily support yourself.”

  Valeria seemed to wilt before her eyes. “I can’t,” she whispered. “If I leave, he’ll kill me.”

  “You could call the sheriff, have him arrested.”

  “My skin is brown. I come from below the border. You think the sheriff would take my word over a white man’s?”

  “Of course not. I wasn’t thinking.” Laurie didn’t know how else to answer. She hadn’t been in Lucky Creek long before she recognized the deep-seated prejudice that existed against foreigners, especially those who were nonwhite and came from any continent except Europe, and even then, resentments simmered. Lucky Creek had a sheriff, but from what she’d heard, he was weak and not beyond accepting bribes. In her own life, she had nothing to compare with Valeria’s predicament. In Philadelphia, all the men she knew were gentlemen, at least on the surface, although the older she got, the more she realized life wasn’t all polite talk and drawing room manners no matter where she lived. “I want to help, Valeria. I suppose we could pay you half wages—I can promise that much—and more if we can.”

  “Fine. I’ll take what you can give me.” Valeria rose from the table and went back to scrambling her eggs. Obviously, their conversation was over, and had ended on Valeria’s terms—certainly not Laurie’s.

  Shortly after, Ada and Mother appeared. Valeria had left the kitchen. “Well, did you tell her?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Yes, I did, and she paid no attention. She’s not leaving. I’m a failure. I can’t even dismiss the cook.”

  Elizabeth cocked her head and gave her an I-told-you-so look. “Let’s hope you have better luck at the mine today. If anything goes wrong, and it very well might, you come straight home.”

  A sudden fear clutched Laurie’s heart. Today was a day of firsts. Like thousands of others, she was going to drive herself to a place where she’d put in a full day’s work. She would set up the payroll book and God knew what other account books, all for the first time in her life. And also, if that weren’t enough, she’d be working alongside Darcy McKenna, a man like no other she’d ever known. He made her angry with his bluntness, and yet?

  In some perverse way, she was actually looking forward to her first full day at the Monarch mine, although she wasn’t sure why. Her mother didn’t think she’d last the day, maybe with good reason.

  After breakfast, Laurie headed for the stable. Ada soon followed. Looking skeptical, she declared, “I’ve got to see this. I can’t believe my elegant sister is actually going to hitch up the curricle all by herself.”

  “Just watch.” Laurie led Brownie and Prancer from the stable. She still harbored a fear that one of the animals might kick her, but she harnessed them with ease, thank goodness, managing to appear as if she did this every day. She rolled the curricle from the stable, making that look easy, too, and actually completed the job without one single hesitation or slip. When finished, she gave each horse a friendly pat and casually remarked, “See how easy it is? I should have learned how to do this years ago.”

  “No, you shouldn’t have. You’re just being brave.” Ada wrapped her arms around herself and shivered as a cool, late-summer breeze brushed over them. “Things are so different now. Father’s gone. Hugh might never be the same. Mother’s not well, and we have no money.” Tears glistened on her pale cheeks. “What if the new gold vein turns out to be nothing? What’s to become of us? What if Mathew and Maryanne don’t have enough to eat?”

  Until that moment, Laurie hadn’t recognized the depths of Ada’s concern for their future. She should have, considering her sister’s fears were real. The once affluent Sinclair family could best be described as having fallen into desperate straits. Laurie felt like voicing her own wail of despair, just like her sister, but of course she couldn’t. Whether she liked it or not, she’d become the only Sinclair left who could claim being both healthy and levelheaded. That made her head of the family, at least temporarily. If they were going to survive, it was up to her.

  Her admission to herself didn’t come easily. Even though she’d volunteered to work at the mine, somehow, she’d assumed there’d be someone she could fall back on. All her life, someone had watched over her, someone she could turn to for guidance and advice. Now she herself was that someone. Head of the family. Maker of decisions. And maybe, above all else, person responsible for keeping spirits high. She had no idea what the future held, but more than anything else, her mother and sister mustn’t worry. With a casual toss of her head she replied, “Don’t be silly, Ada. Mr. McKenna wouldn’t be investing in the Monarch if he thought that new vein wouldn’t pay off.”

  Her sister wiped a tear away. “I can’t believe you’re actually going to work there. It’s such an ugly place. How will you cope with all those rough miners? They can hardly speak English, some of them, and don’t know their manners.”

  “I shall cope. There’s other things in the world besides good manners.”

  Ada wrinkled her nose. “Well, I don’t know what. Promise me you’ll be careful, working up there with God knows what kind of men.”

  “I promise I will be.” Ada needed something to distract her, Laurie thought. Something to keep her from worrying so much. An idea struck her. Outlandish, but it might work. “Actually, I was hoping you could help. You’ve seen the office and how bare and ugly it is. I had thought you might lend a hand and put up some curtains. I could do it, but you have an artistic flair that I lack. You could do some decorating. Brighten the place up. That sort of thing.”

  “Oh, I couldn’t.”

  Ada’s response was no more than what Laurie expected. Full of fears, she resisted new ideas and always said no to begin with. “Think about it. You might change your mind.”

  “No, I won’t. You know me, Laurie. If I had my way, I’d never leave the house. I still don’t know how you’ll be able to work up there.”

  “I consider it a challenge. Maybe it’ll be fun, and I’ll make new friends.” Such a lie. She hoped she sounded convincing considering the doubts she had.

  Ada didn’t look at all convinced. “But you said you don’t even like Mr. McKenna, and now you’ve got to work with him.”

  “He’s not all bad.”

  “But you were going to go home. You were going to marry Brandon Cooper. What if he doesn’t wait?”

  At her sister’s words, a sudden fear knifed through Laurie’s heart. “He loves me. Of course he’ll wait.” She put on a cheerful face and threw an arm around Ada’s shoulders. “We’re going to be fine. Maybe we’ll be a little bit poor, but it’s only temporary. And remember, Valeria’s not leaving. We won’t have to cook after all.”

  Ada returned a brave smile, just as Laurie expected sooner or later she would. “Of course, I’ll
try, and I’ll do my best to look on the bright side. Why should I worry as long as we have a roof over our heads, food on the table, and the children are happy?”

  “Why indeed?” Laurie spoke with new confidence. She wasn’t sure what the future held, but in reassuring Ada, she’d also reassured herself. The events of the past few days had filled her with grave misgivings and a gnawing fear of what the future would hold. But at least for today she knew what she had to do and where she was going. She’d let tomorrow take care of itself.

  * * * *

  Before going to the mine, Laurie stopped off at the hospital to visit Hugh. He still lay flat in bed, had gained full consciousness but was still in a lot of pain. At least he was well enough to voice his complaints. “They won’t tell me when I can get out of here. I want to go home.”

  She remembered where he’d been staying the past few months. “Back to your fancy suite at the Egyptian?”

  He started to laugh, then winced in pain. “Forget the Egyptian. You know what I mean.”

  She told him she’d be working at the mine, but of course Mother and Ada would be there to help him when he did get home.

  He stared at her in amazement. “You’re working at the mine? Am I hearing you correctly?”

  His negative reaction didn’t surprise her. Hugh firmly believed men should be the moneymakers in the family and make all the important decisions. Women, because of their fragility and frivolous nature, should stay at home and meekly follow instructions. “It’s only until you’re well enough to come back.”

  He eyed her suspiciously. “And it’s all right with McKenna?”

  “Perfectly all right. He’s delighted he has someone to do the timekeeping.” A bit of a lie. If anything, Darcy McKenna was only tolerating her because he had to. But Hugh didn’t need to know that. “And while I’m there, I might even dig out your accounting books and see if I can work on those, too. That is, if I learn enough.”

  “Absolutely not. I forbid it. You leave those accounting books alone.”

  Her brother’s fierce reaction surprised her but shouldn’t have. After what he’d been through, he didn’t want to hear someone else could do his job just as well. “Then I won’t,” she said with a smile. “I couldn’t do the accounting books half as well as you and can’t imagine why I thought to try.”

  Hugh accepted her explanation with an irritated grunt, but after that, his good humor returned, and he seemed in fine spirits by the time she left. A touch of apprehension hit her as she climbed to the high seat of the curricle and picked up the reins. Driving along the wide main street of Lucky Creek was one thing. Driving the steep, narrow road to the mine was quite another. She’d always been a passenger. Now she alone was in command. That meant she had no one to turn to, no one to advise her if something went wrong. Had she been foolish? Should she never have attempted such a bold, unladylike endeavor? Firmly grasping the reins, she started up the narrow road to the Monarch Mine. The sun warmed her face. The steady clip-clop of horse hooves boosted her confidence by the minute. A heady feeling gripped her. I’m in charge. I can make this curricle go to any place I choose, at any pace I choose. Really, nothing she couldn’t handle. What a carefree, enjoyable feeling. Why hadn’t she done this sooner?

  At the mine, after unhitching the horses and making sure they got their oats, she entered the dilapidated headquarters of the Monarch Mine Company. Not to her surprise, Darcy had already arrived, along with Tom. Judging from the line of men extending from the door, they’d begun hiring miners. When she walked in, Darcy gave her a quick nod, remarked, “If you need any help, ask Tom,” and turned back to the man he was interviewing.

  So obviously, she’d be working on her own today. Fine with her. She would not ask Tom and must figure out what to do by herself. The less she had to do with Darcy, the better.

  She sat at Hugh’s desk and pulled out the time ledger. She recognized Hugh’s fine, cursive handwriting filling the first few pages. Maybe she should rip them out and start anew? But no, best to keep a record. Despite what he’d told her, she scanned the pages anyway. Nothing made sense, but she kept on scanning, trying to look busy. Along about lunchtime, Darcy appeared at her desk. “I’ve done some hiring. I’ll have a list for you tomorrow. If you need any help getting started—”

  “I can manage just fine, thank you,” she said with a friendly smile. He’d deliberately ignored her all morning, but he wasn’t going to know she’d even noticed.

  “There’s nothing to do until tomorrow. You may as well go home.”

  Was that sympathy in his eyes? Apparently, he’d seen through her pitiful attempts to act busy. How humiliating. She’d like to crawl under a rock but wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. “Fine then. I have much to do at home.”

  She picked up her reticule, waved a breezy goodbye, and headed toward the stable. Was he perhaps standing at the window looking after her? She wished she could turn around and see if he was but wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. Besides, he might not be looking, and that was the strange part. From the time she was fourteen and got her figure, she was accustomed to men’s lustful gazes and found them annoying. So why should she care whether Darcy McKenna’s gaze rested upon her? Of course, she didn’t care in the least. Even so, despite herself, she cast a quick glance over her shoulder. Silly girl. No one stood in the window.

  She had hitched up the horses and was on her way home before she thought of the answer to her own question. She didn’t care whether or not Darcy was looking at her because she loved Brandon Cooper. How could she have forgotten?

  * * * *

  When Laurie arrived home, she found Ada in the parlor reading a story to Mathew and Maryanne. Ada looked up from her book and frowned when she saw her. “Have you heard the latest? Little Ruthie next door has diphtheria.”

  “Oh, no, what awful news.” Laurie would never forget the deadly epidemics that swept through Philadelphia when she was a child. She vividly recalled her mother’s helpless panic at outbreaks of scarlet fever, whooping cough, smallpox, or sometimes diphtheria, a horrible disease that started with a mild sore throat and often ended with the patient unable to swallow, unable to breathe. Many, especially young children, didn’t survive. Ruthie and Maryanne were the same age and often played together. As casually as Laurie could manage, she asked, “Has Maryanne played with Ruthie lately?”

  “Just yesterday. Ruthie seemed all right. Now her mother says she’s got a fever and sore throat. Doctor Hansen came by. He says it’s definitely diphtheria.” Ada’s face clouded. “Hasn’t this family had enough sorrow? I don’t know what I’d do if either of these darling children gets sick and…and…” She choked up and couldn’t go on.

  “We will just have to have faith that it’s not going to happen.” What next? Laurie had done her best to sound optimistic, but she, too, couldn’t bear the thought of her little niece or nephew contracting that deadly disease. Both children were so special. Each had been a delight to care for from the day they were born. They simply could not get sick. Not chubby, rosy-cheeked Mathew, who squealed with delight every time he saw a horse. Not blonde, blue-eyed Maryanne, who loved to cuddle on Laurie’s lap and be read to. No, they would not, could not, get sick. God couldn’t be that cruel.

  That night at dinner, Valeria served feijoada, another family favorite, a sort of Bolivian stew with black beans, beef, and pork. It took a lot of work to make, and she’d cooked it all day in a thick clay pot. “Yum, good,” Ada remarked after her first bite. “Valeria’s on her good behavior. This must be her idea of a peace offering after she refused to leave this morning.”

  “Fine with me.” Laurie’s day hadn’t been the best, but now, at dinner, her spirits had lifted, and she was looking at the bright side. During the day, they’d brought Hugh home on a stretcher and carried him up to his room. He might be unable to come down for dinner yet, but surely, he soon would be. She’d managed to
get through her first day of work at the mine. Maybe she hadn’t done much, but at least she’d survived, and would return tomorrow, determined more than ever to do the job right. But before long, she wouldn’t have to worry. Hugh would soon be back to work, and that meant she could soon return to Philadelphia.

  A dark cloud still lurked, but only in the deepest corner of her mind. This family had suffered enough. Nothing more could possibly go wrong.

  Chapter 8

  The first thing Laurie did next morning was tiptoe into the children’s room to see how they were doing. Mathew was sleeping soundly, his forehead cool to the touch. Which was not the case with Maryanne. Her face looked flushed. When Laurie laid her palm on the little girl’s forehead, she whispered, “Oh, no.”

  She immediately summoned Mother and Ada. Fearfully they gathered around Maryanne’s bed. “It’s diphtheria,” Elizabeth said in a bitter voice. “My worst fear come true.”

  Laurie tried to sound hopeful. “Maybe it’s not, and even if it is, lots of children survive it.”

  Mother remained silent, gloomily shaking her head.

  During the next two days, Maryanne’s condition gradually worsened. Her fever remained high. She’d developed a hacking cough. Her tonsils were swollen. She started wheezing and was having trouble catching her breath. They gave her spoonsful of honey for her throat, but she still kept coughing. Mother made a mustard plaster to put on her chest for the congestion, but it did no good. Laurie wanted to stay home, but both her mother and sister assured her she wasn’t needed.

  By the third day after she got sick, Maryanne was no better but not any worse, either. Laurie didn’t want to leave her. “I think I should stay home today.”

  “Ada and I can take care of her,” Mother firmly told her. “Go to work. She’ll be fine.”

  Worried but hopeful, Laurie hitched up the curricle and drove to the mine. Until today it had been closed, but this morning she found a lively scene awaiting her. Water gushed down the sluice boxes. A group of miners, picks and shovels in hand, were gathered around the mine entrance. What a nice surprise. The Monarch Mine no longer sat idle. Darcy hadn’t been around the last two days, but when she entered the office, she found him and Tom already hard at work. She said good morning to them both. Tom smiled and returned her greeting. After a curt nod, Darcy said, “You can get started on the time ledger now. I’ll be needing time sheets for each miner. Tom can help you get them set up. We need hours worked, what kind of task, and so on.” He turned back to the miner he’d been talking with.