by Janine McCaw
“Let’s get some food and water for the men,” Olivia replied. “We could use someone to run it over to them. Where’s Jimmy when we need him?”
“Probably already there,” Lucy admitted, heading into the store.
Although emotions were running high in Lucy’s mind, she shook her fears aside. It was her turn to try and help the community.
McMichael stood back from the firefighters and surveyed the situation.
“Frenchie,” he called. “Can you cross Howe Sound and bring some men from the wood fibre plant?” There were able men just a short distance across the water. McMichael could see them gathered upon the shore, watching the scene at Britannia unfold. The flames were so high they could be seen for miles.
It was a desperate situation.
“Aye,” Frenchie said. “Merde, it’s going ta be a struggle ta keep de fire from de powerhouse.”
“Mon Dieu,” McMichael answered, taking Frenchie aback. Frenchie had never heard McMichael utter any French before. But by God, McMichael thought, the Frenchman was right. If the fire spread to the powerhouse, the whole town could go up. The rows of wood framed bungalows had been built in very close proximity.
The powerhouse itself was one of the best-equipped waterpower plants in Canada, it’s nearest rival being located in Mexico. The lakes and streams located high in the mountains above Britannia provided a constant source of water for it, which in turn provided more than enough energy to power the mine. The pressure created from the water would provide the fire nozzles with tremendous power. If only Frank and Rudy could reach them.
From below, McMichael could only see the faintest outline of the two men through the thick smoke.
High on the rooftop, Rudy had cautiously managed to make his way across beams to get the first water nozzle going. The force was tremendous, and Rudy barely had the strength to manoeuvre the stream of water in the direction of the powerhouse. He prided himself that he was physically fit, but the elements were giving him a workout today even he had not prepared for. The heat was intense, and he felt himself sweating profusely.
“I’m going to try to start up the east nozzle,” Frank said.
“I don’t know Frank, that part of the roof looks like it’s going to go any second. You’re too heavy, you’ll go through. There’s no point. Let’s keep this under control and keep the water directed towards the powerhouse.”
“I’ll go,” a little voice said from behind the men.
Frank and Rudy turned to see Jimmy Yada behind them.
“How the hell did you get up here?” Frank asked.
“I shimmied up the drainpipe,” he said matter of factly.
“Son, shimmy yourself back down,” Rudy said. “Right now!”
There was a commotion on the ground as firemen tried desperately to put out a new raging fire, which had broken out when flames reached the sully oil from the third floor. The oil was an elixir for the fire.
More of the women had come to the store to assist Olivia and Lucy. Olivia had heard someone mention that it was Frank and Rudy on the roof, but she refused to look in that direction, focusing on the task on hand and saying silent prayers to God that her husband would be all right.
A portion of the first floor caved in, and Frank and Rudy tried to take another look at the water nozzle on the other side of the roof. The smoke was now so thick they could no longer actually see it.
“Forget it Frank,” Rudy said. They had been up there almost an hour and could see Frenchie’s boat coming with more men and equipment.
“Let’s get out of here while we still can. We’ll let this wheel keep going as long as it can manage on its own.”
The men heard a loud crack as part of the roof gave way.
“What was that?” Frank asked. He had thought he heard a scream through the rumble of falling timber.
“Where’s Jimmy?” Rudy asked.
“Oh God no,” Frank said. “The shouts from the ground distracted me when the third floor went. I didn’t see him go back down, did you?”
Rudy shook his head.
The wind took a slight shift, momentarily giving the men a line of sight.
Beyond where the roof had caved in, and still out of reach of the west nozzle, the men could see the collapsed frame of the boy.
“What are we going to do?” Frank asked helplessly.
Rudy took off his shirt and drenched it with water from the hose, tying it around his nose and face. He motioned for Frank to do the same. He tore a portion of his pant leg, and wet it down as well, placing it around his wrist.
“We’re going to have to make a bridge,” Rudy said, “see if you can pry loose some of those timbers. We’ve got to wedge them under that cross beam that’s still intact for support.”
Frank moved over to a section of the roof that appeared to still be sturdy, except for a couple of weather worn planks which freed themselves easily from the frame.
“Lay them across this portion of the roof,” Rudy instructed. “We’re going to have to crawl across the two, like a balance beam, dispersing our weight. We don’t know what condition he’s in, but needless to say we’ll need to cover his face with this wet wrist cloth to keep him from inhaling any more smoke. If he’s still breathing.”
Frank thought about it.
“Okay,” Rudy continued, “I’ll go first. Throw your weight on the end of these two beams and I’ll do the same for you when I get on the other end.”
“What do we do when we get to the other side?” Frank asked.
“Pray,” Rudy announced.
McMichael watched the silhouettes of the two men on the roof.
“What are they doing?” he asked.
Harry, who had been manning a hose line between the main power plant and the mill, offered an explanation.
“I think someone is trapped up there.”
“Who went up?” McMichael asked. “I see two men. That would be the buddy system. Who would be fool enough to go up there on his own?”
“I think Frank and Wolanski were up there.”
“Then who are they saving?”
Akiko came around the corner with a look of terror in her eyes. In Japanese she explained to Harry that she had found Jimmy’s new wagon by the drainpipe.
“My son,” Harry said, his voice choking.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
McMichael put his fist through the plaster wall in his inner office.
“That woman,” he exclaimed, “will be the death of me.”
“Is he talking about you?” Sergeant Wolanski asked Sarah.
“Oh goodness no,” Sarah laughed. “Haven’t you heard?”
She leaned over to speak with the sergeant in a low voice.
“It’s the concentrator.”
“He refers to the concentrator as a woman?”
“Heavens no,” Sarah began, “you know how it was destroyed in the fire last week...”
“Of course I know about it. The mine’s been shut down ever since.”
“Well,” Sarah said, barely able to contain her excitement. “They say the fire happened under suspicious circumstances.”
“I know,” Rudy admitted, “that’s what I want to talk to him about.”
“My Jason, he’s Olivia’s brother you know, well he thinks he saw Les Ferguson standing in the rear walkway just before the building went up.”
“That’s what I’ve heard too,” the sergeant said with interest.
“Oh, but that’s not the best part. The best part is that Mr. McMichael has found a man in San Francisco who says he can build him a new concentrator, a fireproof concentrator, and he can do it faster and cheaper than any competitor.”
“I would have thought that would make your boss happy,” the sergeant said.
“Oh it did, it did. But the man in San Francisco said he wanted to put one of his relatives in charge of the installation and running of the operation to make sure that his interests were protected financially until it was fully paid for. That
seems understandable, you know, since we’ve had to temporarily shut down and all,” Sarah continued.
“It does seem reasonable.”
McMichael came out of his office.
“What are you staring at Sarah?” he bellowed.
“Nothing sir, would you like some ice for that?” she asked, nodding towards his hand.
“What do YOU want?” he asked the sergeant. “I thought we went over everything last night. I don’t know what the boy was doing up on the roof, and the doctor says he is going to be fine. He suffered smoke inhalation, but with bed rest should make a full recovery.”
McMichael stormed out of the office.
“The man in San Francisco,” Sara giggled, “is named Aaron Bower. He’s a partner with William Bower, the railroad man who’s negotiating a meeting for McMichael and the Canadian Pacific Railway people.”
“Olivia’s father?”
“Yes. And the relative his brother wants to put in charge of the concentrator operation, is his niece, Olivia Fitzpatrick.”
Sarah and Rudy snuck into the inner office to look at the hole in the wall.
“I wouldn’t be calling Joe to fix it yet,” Rudy said letting out a whistle. “I have a feeling he’ll only be patching it up again real soon.”
McMichael went hunting for Frank Fitzpatrick. It wasn’t much of a hunt, since he always knew where Frank was, but this time, he was looking for him like a missile looking for its target.
Frank was sitting at a picnic table having lunch.
“Get over here Fitzpatrick,” McMichael yelled.
Frank almost choked.
“What is it sir?” he asked.
“It’s that damned family of yours. Your uncle-in-law, or whatever the hell he is to you, Aaron Bower, is the only man who can get us a new concentrator on time and on budget and he wants to put your wife in charge of the operation. Not you. Not your brother-in-law Jason. Your wife! Get on the phone and talk some sense into him.”
Frank began to stammer.
“I’m afraid he won’t listen to me sir. He doesn’t like me much.”
“Well, I’m not liking you much now either Fitzpatrick. I have a bit of a problem. When your wife opened that confounded store, you suddenly had a father-in-law who is standing between me and my railroad. When my concentrator burns down half the town, your wife, out of nowhere, has an uncle who has his hands in just about every business imaginable including fireproof concentrators. Her brother, the realtor, gets them whatever land they need. Good God man. What other relatives do you have hiding in your closet? Is her cousin the President?” he said sarcastically.
“Well no,” Frank said sheepishly. “But go easy on the God stuff because her sister is a nun and there is an Attorney General and a C.E.O. of the Bank of America tucked into the limbs of the family tree for good measure.”
“I wouldn’t be smirking too much if I were you,” McMichael snarled. “Unless I can figure something out, your wife is about to become your boss.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Sarah gave Akiko a big hug.
The two women were standing outside the Beachcomber store around noontime on a sunny Wednesday. Sarah had scooted away from the mining office on her lunch hour to spend some time with her friend. She knew how important this day was to Akiko.
“You look beautiful,” she encouraged the older woman.
Akiko was dressed smartly in a new navy-coloured dress she had ordered from Eaton's only a month before. It was western style, but its free flowing form suited her maturing figure well. It had been a little more expensive than Akiko originally planned to spend, but she figured she owed Eaton's a thing or two.
“Now I want you to go inside,” Sarah began, “and do it just like we practiced. Go on, you can do it, I know you can.”
Akiko glanced nervously at the sign in the window.
Wanted: Part Time Sales/Bookeeping-Apply Within
She patted the back of her head. Her hair was perfectly coiffed without a strand out of place. Beautiful pearl combs kept her hair upswept. As she slowly opened the door, she could barely hear the door chimes, the sound of her own heart beating so loudly. She was certain everyone else in the store could hear it as well, but they were blissfully going about their business, her level of her anxiety known only to herself.
“I’ll let you know,” Olivia was saying to Mary Alice. “We still have a few more people to interview for the position.”
“Well remember,” Mary Alice said. “I have a new line of floral dresses coming out this season, if you’re not afraid of a little competition for your Eaton's business.”
“Like I said, I’ll let you know,” Olivia said, barely containing her smile.
Mary Alice nodded to Akiko as the local seamstress left the store. Akiko in turn nodded to Natsu Miwa, a Japanese friend of hers, who was looking at some shoes on display in the store.
“Can I help you with anything?” Olivia asked Natsu.
Natsu, understanding enough English to know what Olivia meant, started to explain to Olivia in Japanese that she was looking for a size seven shoe, in brown. Natsu pointed to the shoes she liked, and Olivia went to the storeroom to get a pair for her to try on.
“She can’t be much bigger than a seven, or a seven and a half,” she thought to herself, reaching for the correct shoebox.
Akiko and Natsu talked together for a moment. When Olivia came back into the store area, she noticed a quizzical look on Natsu’s face.
“What is it?” Olivia asked, not expecting an answer. She looked to Akiko. “Where’s Jimmy when I need him?” she asked herself rhetorically. Jimmy would be able to translate for her.
“Excuse me,” Akiko began nervously, “Mrs. Olivia, she wants to know the price. I told her, ladies shoes, $9.95, like the sign says.”
Having just heard the woman she had known for a several years now utter her first words, her first sentence, so perfectly in English, Olivia was flabbergasted.
“I don’t know what to say, Akiko!”
“Say yes, the price is right,” Akiko said.
“Yes, yes it is.” Olivia nodded taking Natsu’s purchase to the counter.
Akiko shrugged. “I told you,” she said to her friend in Japanese; “$9.95, no discount. Not on sale now.”
Natsu smiled at Akiko and thanked her in Japanese. She paid Olivia for her purchase and left the store.
“Thank you for your help,” Olivia said to Akiko.
Akiko bowed.
“Mrs. Olivia,” Akiko began, “I come about job. I can help yes? I can make signs in English and Japanese. Make everyone happy. Your sales go up.”
Olivia thought about this for a moment. Never in a million years would she have thought that Akiko Yada would apply for the job she was advertising in the window. Never in a million years did she think that Akiko Yada could apply for the job she was advertising in the window.
“I have resumé,” Akiko said, handing Olivia some papers.
“Did you do this yourself Akiko?” Olivia asked, astounded.
“No, Mrs. Olivia,” Akiko admitted humbly. “Miss Sarah, she helped me. But my work history is true. I worked for my father’s silk factory back home in Japan. I can do simple bookkeeping. Arithmetic is arithmetic, no? Four plus four is eight. Even in English. I would work very hard, Mrs. Olivia. I studied your merchandise. I know a lot. I could work any hours you need. Even nights and Saturdays.”
Olivia could not believe the extent of this woman’s English vocabulary.
“Akiko, your English is excellent. Wherever did you learn it?”
“Miss Sarah helped me.”
Akiko looked out the window and waved to Sarah, who was watching everything from outside. Sarah quickly pretended to be reading her book.
“Ladies dress. $8.95,” she said proudly. “I will make sure Jimmy makes his deliveries for you on time. No stopping to talk to the girls.”
Olivia’s informal arrangement with Jimmy had lately become a part-time job for the
lad, her customers liking the new after school delivery service the Beachcomber was able to offer.
“Jimmy’s no problem Akiko, not to worry. He’s bringing more girls in than he’s chasing away. My penny candy sales have gone up and it all seems to be selling after school lets out.”
How would Jimmy feel about his mother working at the store as well, Olivia wondered?
“He’s growing quite tall now,” Olivia added, trying to relax Akiko.
“He will turn 13 soon.”
“I know. He’s been talking about it quite a bit...about becoming a teenager.”
Olivia had also noticed that his voice was changing, becoming deeper, sounding more like his father’s. He had grown quite a bit this past year, favouring the height his mother had. If he weren’t taller than Harry was now, he soon would be.
Akiko smiled.
“Mr. McMichael, I heard him say to Miss Lucy that you employ child labour. I don’t want you to get into any trouble.”
“Oh he did, did he?”
“Yes. Miss Lucy talked back to him. She said that she had seen him break a few child labour laws in his day, and to go away please.”
“Oh she did, did she?”
Olivia could only imagine that conversation. She laughed. She had recently given Lucy a promotion at the store; she was now a manager, and apparently Lucy liked the new responsibilities. It was true though; she had seen some young Chinese boys, much younger than Jimmy, working in the mine upon occasion.
“I have never seen anyone talk back to Mr. McMichael,” Akiko said.
“Well, stick around here,” Olivia jokingly said. “I’m sure we’ll have reason to do so again. I wouldn’t worry. Jimmy is certainly no child, as you know better than anyone.”
She could see by Akiko’s eyes that this was a very serious matter for her.
“He is powerful man. You do not want to displease him. No one in your family is safe from him. I should know.”
Akiko’s head was bowed once again, but she was not immediately raising her head. She had hoped she had not pushed her potential employer too far by reminding her it was Jimmy’s involvement with the Beachcomber that eventually led to Akiko losing her cleaning job with McMichael at the mining office. It had been a calculated choice of words that Akiko had thought about for days on end while she was trying to gain the courage to ask for the job. She did not yet know how that calculation would pay off, and she was afraid to look Olivia in the eye.
