Homecoming Girls

by Val Wood

  ‘Yes,’ Lorenzo said quietly. ‘And that was not the worst of it. I was shown the opium dens, the places where Federico spends his time and money.’ Lorenzo paused for a moment and then plunged on, as if pursued by demons. ‘I must tell you, Miss Clara, that Fed has told me that he’s very attracted to you and wishes to take your friendship further. Please, do not listen to him. He has a very persuasive manner in his sober moments, but I’m sorry to say that he’s a hopeless case. I speak as a friend to him, and I hope to you.’

  The realization came to Clara as Lorenzo spoke. ‘I’ve no intention of allowing my friendship with Mr Cavalli to go any further,’ she said. ‘Indeed, I’d rather not speak to him any more if that is his purpose.’ She smiled. ‘If he should broach the subject again you might tell him that I already have a commitment.’

  ‘Oh.’ Lorenzo’s face brightened. ‘Is that so? I’m very pleased to hear it. This is someone in England?’

  ‘Erm, yes. At least, that is what I hope for.’

  Lorenzo laughed. ‘You mean he hasn’t yet spoken? What’s the matter with the man?’

  Clara wouldn’t be drawn, but turned the tables on him by asking, ‘And what of you, Lorenzo? Do you have plans?’

  He stared at her in astonishment. ‘Can you not tell? I thought it would be written all over my face. I adore Jewel! I feel as if I have been waiting for her all my life! But we’ve known each other such a short time. I can’t tell her of my intentions yet, as she’ll surely not wish to hear of them.’

  Clara hid a smile. ‘Perhaps you’re right, and how sensible you are,’ she said wryly. ‘And perhaps I should tell you that her parents, her adoptive parents, have arrived in America and are presently in Dreumel’s Creek.’

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  ‘Are you sure!’ Wilhelm whispered.

  ‘Absolutely,’ Georgiana said. ‘And so is the doctor.’

  ‘Oh!’Wilhelm breathed out; it was as if he was lost for words. He put his arms round Georgiana and closed his eyes. ‘I can’t believe it.’ He kissed her cheek. ‘I must take great care of you. Is it safe? What did the doctor say?’

  ‘He said it was fairly unusual to have a first child at my age, but not unheard of, and,’ she said reassuringly, ‘he said I was very fit and therefore he foresaw no difficulty.’

  Wilhelm gave a sudden whoop and picked her up and swung her round. ‘I’m going to be a father,’ he cheered. ‘I’m going to be a papa! Oh!’ He stopped suddenly. ‘Whatever will Jewel think? We are giving her a brother or sister when she is old enough to have a child herself.’ He put his hand to his mouth. ‘Will people think we are too old?’

  ‘It doesn’t matter what other people think, Wilhelm,’ Georgiana said softly. ‘It’s what we think that matters, and we are delighted,’ she added.

  ‘And another thing, my darling,’ Wilhelm said slowly. ‘Another thing that we must think of—’

  She put the palms of her hands on either side of his face. ‘I have already thought of it, Wilhelm. Is it not strange that after all these years of wanting a child and now – we’re here, in the land of your birth! You’ll want our child to be born here? In Dreumel’s Creek?’

  He nodded mutely, too full of emotion to speak.

  Georgiana smiled. ‘I know. I’ve already spoken to the doctor’s wife. She’ll take care of my confinement. I think that we won’t announce the news just yet, not until we’ve written to Jewel, and then perhaps, when she has discovered all she needs to know about her birth mother, she’ll come back here to be with us. Then we can tell Kitty and Grace. The doctor thinks the birth will be in the spring, but he can’t be sure.’

  ‘Perfect,’ he said contentedly. ‘It’s the time of rebirth. When the dark soil gives forth green shoots and the birds nest.’ He heaved a deep sigh and held her close. ‘I cannot believe my good fortune.’

  Dan had been talking to Jason and had been invited to supper with him and his wife, Rose, a plump, pretty woman. They had four children, all girls, two of them now married.

  ‘I wished for a son,’ Jason said, ‘but I was blessed with daughters. What about you, Dan? You got a wife or a gal back home?’

  ‘N-no,’ he said. ‘I don’t seem to have much luck with the ladies.’

  ‘No?’ Rose said. ‘Why not? A handsome buck like you? Well, we’ve got two daughters left over. Or maybe you’re not the type to settle down? Or maybe not ready?’

  ‘I think I’m probably ready,’ he said. ‘But mebbe I look beyond my station.’

  ‘I don’t know what that means,’ Rose said. ‘Surely you’re as good as any other man? You’ve got a trade?’

  ‘Yes, I’ve got a trade, but I guess I’m too plain-spoken and I like my own way. The women I’ve met so far don’t like that.’

  Rose laughed. ‘Of course they don’t. But there’s the fun of it. If you can find a young woman who can stand up to you, then she’s the one for you.’

  ‘Do you think so?’ Dan gazed at her over his coffee cup. ‘Well, I’m not so sure.’

  ‘What kinda gal do you like?’ Rose asked inquisitively. ‘Dark or fair? Plump or slender? Quiet or merry?’

  ‘Well, I did like them dark, but lately I’ve discovered a partiality for redheads.’ He smiled. ‘Somebody with a—’

  ‘Ah’m looking fer a business partner,’ Jason interrupted, cradling his cup. ‘Ah’m lookin’ to build up a new business. There’s a deal o’ work ahead and I need tradesmen and somebody who can organize them. I’m not a tradesman myself,’ he explained. ‘I came to Dreumel when I was jest a young feller and did whatever was axed of me – dug shafts, panned fer gold, blasted through rock – but I feel the need to do more, build up sump’n permanent so I’ll be remembered; sump’n my wife and daughters, aye, and grandchildren too, will be proud of.’

  ‘Why, you old silly,’ Rose said. ‘We’re proud of you now, Jason. Don’t you be thinking we’re not.’

  ‘Ah, well, you know what I mean, Rose. I need to have my name up on a hoarding so’s that folk will look up and say yip, I remember him.’

  ‘What sort o’ business?’ Dan asked. ‘I’m a wood worker though I can turn my hand to other crafts, but I’ve no money to put into any company.’

  ‘Well, the way I look at it,’ Jason mused, ‘folks round here want to rebuild after the fire, and most of them haven’t any money either; majority of them put all they had into their homes and lost everything. And folks’ll be coming from far and near once they know that a new town is going up. I’d like to build some nice new houses, not fer sale but to charge a fair rent so’s that them folk can get back on their feet again and then they can have the option of buying once they’re good’n’ ready.’

  Dan shook his head and grinned. ‘You’d need a deal o’ money to do that, Jason. Or to know a friendly banker!’

  Jason leaned back in his chair. ‘Why, I know several of them,’ he drawled. ‘Fall over the’selves to have me bank with them. “Yes, sir, no, sir, what can I do fer you today, sir?”’

  Dan listened, astonished. Jason and his wife had a nice house and comfortable furniture, but they were far from pretentious. Rose had obviously cooked the supper herself. Was Jason boasting? Or did he really have wealth?

  ‘But there’s no sense in having money,’Jason went on, ‘if ya can’t spread it around.’

  He looked at Dan, who was staring at him open-mouthed. ‘Whatcha lookin’ at, boy? Did Bill Dreumel not tell you of the time we found gold?’

  My darling Jewel, I hardly know how to begin this letter, Georgiana wrote. You will know by now that Papa and I are in Dreumel’s Creek. We were so worried over you and Clara, as were Aunt Grace and Uncle Martin, and of course concerned about all our friends when we read of the disastrous fire in Yeller. Papa took ship immediately, although by then we had heard that you were safe and had left for California.

  She went on to describe the journey and how she had been unwell and how very helpful and considerate Dan Hanson had been. He seems to be settling into
life here and has joined forces with Jason in a building project in Yeller. He has said nothing about travelling to California!

  Georgiana thought long and hard about how to tell of the most important news of all and wondered how Jewel would react to it; but there was nothing for it, Jewel must be the first to know. She gave her the glad tidings and concluded by saying that she and Wilhelm were absolutely delighted at the prospect of a child and also of seeing Jewel again soon. She put a postscript at the bottom.

  I’m sorry to say that James Crawford is leaving the hotel. He has been an excellent manager, but now feels that it is time to return to his roots. He asked if, when writing to you, I would send his very good wishes to you and Clara and say what an honour it had been to meet you. He said, in particular, that he would never forget the pleasurable conversations he had with Miss Clara. What a very agreeable man he is; he reminds me so much of someone I used to know. We shall miss him here in Dreumel’s Creek.

  Your ever loving Mama.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  Jewel and Clara spent the next two weeks travelling around San Francisco and areas beyond. Larkin and Dolly took them into the hills in his trap, as Jewel had said she was keen to see the city as her father had seen it when he’d first arrived.

  ‘By rights we should’ve died on that journey.’ Larkin chewed thoughtfully on a wad of tobacco. ‘I don’t know how we ever made it. Just a gang o’ Mississippi swamp suckers we were; greenhorns, and your pappy was greener than most. A city gent we called him, but he proved to be as good as anybody. We walked across plains, got buried in the snow, and crossed the Old Spanish Trail and over the Sierra Nevada.’

  He pointed down to the city below them. ‘It’s changed in the twenty-five years since we came. Back then it was full of bars, cheap hotels, farmhands like us with hayseed in their hair, card sharps, and a bay full of ships disgorging men who were greedy fer gold. We pitched our tents and pondered on what to do.’

  ‘Did you never want to go back home?’ Clara asked. ‘To see your family?’

  ‘Nope,’ he answered laconically. ‘Don’t have any. I’ve gotta nice little place here. I’ve got Dolly to talk to, she’s bin a good friend, and, well,’ he cast an eye towards Jewel, ‘I guess I allus wanted to hang around in case this little lady came back.’

  Jewel felt very touched. She felt as if she had suddenly acquired many members of a family that she had barely known about. Dolly too was thrilled to have her here, just like a warm and friendly aunt, and together they were all fitting together the pieces of the jigsaw of her life to make her whole.

  Federico Cavalli appeared at their hotel, enquiring if he might be allowed to show them around San Francisco. Clara came down to meet him in the foyer. He seemed to have recovered from his excesses and made no mention of the fact that he hadn’t been seen at the Gallis’ restaurant. In fact, from his smiling face it was as if he had only seen them recently. He did not mention the earthquake or Jewel’s disappearance, and appeared genuinely disappointed when Clara refused his offer on behalf of them both, giving him the explanation that they had already done a tour with a friend.

  ‘Oh!’ he said in a high-handed manner. ‘But I’m very familiar with the entire city. I was born here; I’m a true San Franciscan.’

  ‘Thank you, but no,’ Clara said calmly. ‘And forgive me, Mr Cavalli, but it would not be proper for us to do so without an escort.’

  He laughed. ‘What nonsense! You came once before, and’ – his eyes narrowed – ‘I also escorted you into Chinatown.’

  ‘Lorenzo came too, and it was only a brief visit.’ Clara hesitated, embarrassed that he should point it out. ‘And with hindsight even that was perhaps unwise, although it was an emergency.’

  He clicked his tongue. ‘You’re not in England now, with its pious ways and conventions.’ His eyes searched Clara’s face. ‘I do believe you are making an excuse.’

  She gazed back at him. ‘I do believe you may be right.’

  ‘Clara!’ He reached for her hand. ‘Please! I want to see you. Must see you! You’ve heard, haven’t you, that I became involved with some villains in Chinatown? They plied me with drink and took my money. Who told you?’ His voice rose. ‘That Chink Pinyin.’

  Clara lifted her chin. ‘I don’t wish to discuss anything further with you. Your manners are a disgrace. Excuse me.’

  She turned to leave, but he grabbed her arm. ‘Clara! I’m mad for you. You’re perfect. Beautiful! I adore you. You alone can save me from myself.’

  Clara pulled her arm away. ‘Don’t be so dramatic. You need help, Federico,’ she added, ‘but not from me. I’m sorry.’ She took a breath. ‘And besides, I shall be leaving soon to begin my journey home.’

  She didn’t know why she had said it, but the second the statement popped out of her mouth she realized that that was what she wanted to do. She wanted to go home. Home to be safe; to be away from temptation and to be with those who really did care for her.

  ‘You can’t,’ he pleaded. ‘Don’t, please! Don’t deny me. I’ll do anything. Anything to keep you here.’ His eyes searched her face and she saw the entreaty there and something else: bafflement, she thought. He’s not used to rejection or conflict. He is only accustomed to having his wants and needs indulged. ‘What is there in England that you can’t find here? There is everything and more that anyone can want.’

  Clara turned on her heel. ‘Not for me!’ She walked swiftly away from him and up the stairs before he could say anything more, though he rushed after her to the bottom stair. She reached the top landing and ran along it and into her room, where she leaned against the door, panting, not with exertion but with exasperation.

  There came a sharp tapping on the door. ‘Go away! Leave me alone,’ she called. ‘I don’t wish to speak to you.’

  There was a hushed silence and then Jewel’s voice said softly, ‘Clara? Are you all right? It’s only me.’

  Clara cracked the door and saw Jewel’s anxious face. ‘Sorry,’ she said, opening wide to admit her. ‘I thought it was Federico Cavalli.’

  ‘What? Here? At our door?’

  Clara explained what had happened. ‘I suppose I was rather rude and rushed away. I really didn’t want to discuss anything with him. He’s so persuasive, Jewel. I feel sure that he would talk me out of my better judgement and persuade me to meet him again.’

  Jewel raised her fine eyebrows. ‘What temptations, Clara! But you are quite right,’ she said seriously. ‘He’s very handsome and I admit he can be charming, but there is something about him that makes me uneasy; something dark and moody and, dare I say it, rather sinful.’

  ‘Yes,’ Clara agreed, and walked to the window. ‘Jewel!’ she said, turning round. ‘I need to talk to you.’

  ‘And I want to talk to you!’ Jewel waved the letter she held in her hand. ‘This is from Mama! Such news you’d never believe!’ She gave a little hop and skip and danced round the room, a whirl of skirt and petticoats.

  ‘Good,’ Clara said. ‘Jewel. About going home—’

  ‘Yes, but not yet. Mama and Papa are both in Dreumel’s Creek.’ Jewel beamed.

  ‘Yes, I know.’ Clara felt thwarted. She really did want to discuss the journey home and whether or not Jewel would be making it with her.

  Jewel shook the letter in her hand. ‘I must tell you the news. It’s central to any decisions we might be contemplating.’

  ‘Really?’ Perhaps Aunt Gianna and Uncle Wilhelm have decided to stay in America, Clara thought, and if so then so will Jewel, and in that case how will I get home? I’ll travel alone, she decided, before Jewel had time to say another word.

  ‘Clara.’ Jewel sat on her bed and spoke softly. ‘Mama was ill coming over in the ship. She thought she was seasick. But she wasn’t. She’s expecting a child!’

  Clara sank down beside her. ‘Oh!’ she breathed. ‘Oh, how wonderful!’

  ‘Yes!’ Jewel was ecstatic. ‘But will she be all right, Clara? She’s quite old to be having a f
irst child.’ She bit on her lip. ‘I couldn’t bear it if she—’

  ‘I’m quite sure she’ll be all right, Jewel,’ Clara assured her. ‘Mama knows women older than her who have had children. Not their first, admittedly, but then neither were they well fed or under a doctor’s care as I’m sure Aunt Gianna will be.’

  ‘Mama says she hopes to see me soon; oh, Clara, I must go to her,’ Jewel spoke earnestly. ‘I must look after her. She’s my mother, after all.’ Her eyes flooded with tears. ‘How must she feel? I’ve been selfishly pursuing my birth mother, when Gianna has brought me up and been as much my mother as anyone could be. And Wilhelm too – he has been my father in every sense of the word.’ She began to sob. ‘I’ve been so self-absorbed. I never thought that I might have hurt them by leaving on this mission.’

  Clara put her arm round her shoulder. ‘They won’t have been hurt. They have always spoken about your birth parents. They’ve never hidden from you that you were born in America to two other people. And they are the ones who have brought you up to question and enquire, and never objected when you said that you were ready to come here and discover your past.’

  Jewel wiped her eyes. ‘Yes, you’re right. I do know. It’s just that I suddenly felt guilty; but, Clara, I’ve been so happy since I came, except of course when I was caught up in the earthquake and even that turned out so well. And what will Mama and Papa expect of me now? I shall be torn.’ She swallowed hard, and put her fingers to her mouth. ‘And then there’s Lorenzo!’

  Ah, Clara thought – Lorenzo is the issue. He is the cause of all this emotion. ‘Has he spoken of his feelings for you?’ she asked.

  Jewel shook her head. ‘No, he hasn’t, and I don’t think that he will, not yet. I believe that he has been brought up in a traditional manner, rather as we have. It’s too soon – but if I go away—’

  ‘If he cares for you, then he’ll wait,’ Clara said patiently, ‘and if you tell him the reason—’