by Janine McCaw
Forgiveness.
It really wasn’t something you can do until you’re good and ready, Olivia thought. It had taken Lucy Bentall all of a year to begin to forgive Britannia for what it had taken from her. It had taken Sarah all of an evening to forgive Jason for not proposing. Where she was with Frank, she wasn’t quite sure.
Things had improved, she admitted. They were speaking to one another once again. At least they were communicating, she thought. Frank had moved back into the bedroom, and while there was a lot of sex, she didn’t feel there was a lot of tenderness involved. Still, for Olivia, it was an improvement over the past few years with her husband.
It had been a month since the threatened strike at the mine, but there seemed to be an undercurrent of anxiety toward her, just the same. Olivia knew she couldn’t trust the men completely and as the days neared towards the signing off of the concentrator installation, she found herself having to watch their every move. They were trying to get under her skin, she knew, and she was desperately trying not to let them.
Things finally came to a head one afternoon when Bobby Ashton, one of the workers, returned from work, reeking of alcohol.
“Mr. Ashton,” Olivia said. “Kindly explain yourself.”
“I had a beer for lunch, no big deal.”
“Where were you drinking beer at this hour? The bars aren’t open.”
“Prohibition ended with the war, boss lady. We can have beer in our house. McMichael knows all about it.”
“It is a big deal, Mr. Ashton. I highly doubt it was one beer. And I doubt Mr. McMichael knows all about it. Not on a workday. Go home and sleep it off.”
Bobby picked up his welding torch, fired it up and turned, waving it in front of her. She could feel the heat from the flame on her face.
“I don’t think you heard me, Mr. Ashton.”
“Oh, did you say something?” he smirked.
“You, Mr. Ashton, have two choices. You can either go home and sleep it off, like I said the first time, or we can invite Mr. McMichael up here to discuss your termination. You know as well as I do he does not let men with alcohol on their breath work their shifts. And don’t flatter yourself into thinking you’re intimidating me with that torch.”
Bobby Ashton tried to stare her down, but she stood her ground.
“Well? I’m waiting. Time is money.”
Bobby Ashton put down his torch and sulked off.
“You! Ronnie Sykes! Get over her and finish this weld,” she shouted.
When word of the incident eventually reached McMichael, he smiled. He’d been smiling a lot lately, Sarah noted, but she dared not mention it. The coffee invitation had been unnerving enough.
Chapter Thirty-Two
“Lucy,” Sergeant Wolanski shouted as he saw her coming out of the café, “come here a moment. Please.”
Lucy smiled and walked over to Rudy.
“I was wondering Lucy, if you’d do me the honour of accompanying me to the moving picture show tonight at 7:00.”
“Oh Rudy, that would be lovely!” Lucy exclaimed. “I was looking for a reason to get out of the house tonight to leave Frenchie and Margaret alone.”
“I was hoping you wanted to come to the show for more than that,” Rudy said.
“But still, beggars can’t be choosers. I’ll take you for coffee afterwards, thereby delaying your return by another half an hour, how’s that?”
Lucy laughed.
“You could probably keep me out until eleven,” she winked. “I won’t mind.”
If the truth be known, and the truth seemed to be known by just about everyone but Lucy, Lucy thoroughly enjoyed Rudy’s company.
“Well, what’s stopping you?” Olivia asked her one day. “Good-looking single men like Rudy don’t come along every day. Just ask Sarah.”
“But he’s been married before,” Lucy said.
“Well, so have you. What’s your point?”
“The point is...we know what happened to my husband. What happened to his wife?”
“Why don’t you ask him?” Olivia said. “That’s the only way you’ll ever find out. That’s the only way any of us will ever find out. He sure doesn’t like to talk about it.”
Jason’s moving picture house, which he had called “The Caprice” after the movie houses in the United States, had been an instant hit. And while it wasn’t a marriage proposal like Sarah had wanted, it did manage to keep her man in town and she considered it a blessing.
“He’ll be able to provide for a family,” Sarah had noted to Olivia.
As if the picture show were his main source of income, Olivia thought. Sarah apparently hadn’t thought it all through. Or maybe she just didn’t know of the family’s wealth. Or maybe she just didn’t care. Sarah’s biggest thrill seemed to be that Jason let her into the pictures free whenever she wanted, and even sprung for popcorn.
It took a long time for the films to reach Britannia. They were sent city to city by train, and when the big cities didn’t need them anymore, Frenchie brought them up to Jason by boat. The film they were watching tonight was a few years old, but no one cared. No one had seen it before. Tonight they were showing “The Poor Little Rich Girl” starring Mary Pickford. Mary Pickford wasn’t only a Canadian, she was probably the most famous woman in the world! In the picture, she portrayed a young girl who was sadly neglected by her social-climbing parents.
“I don’t know,” Rudy had said after the show, “it’s a bit hard to believe a twenty-four year old woman playing the role of an eleven year old girl.”
“Perhaps,” Lucy commented, “but I thought she was wonderful. How glamorous to be a movie star.”
“You could have been a movie star,” Rudy said. “You sure have the looks for it.”
Lucy kissed him on the cheek. It was the first time she had extended that type of affection towards him.
“But the poor girl,” Lucy continued, “left alone in the hands of evil servants who tried to poison her. How tragic. Imagine what that would do to her emotionally.”
Rudy grew silent.
“Rudy,” Lucy said, “I’m fine, really, don’t worry.”
“It’s not you Lucy. Let’s go have some coffee. I’ll tell you all about it.”
After the crowds had left the show, Jason still had some closing up to do. Jimmy Yada came by at nine thirty each night and swept and mopped the floor for him. He said he was saving the money for university. Jason hoped the young lad made it there.
“Sarah,” Jason said. “Come here, I need you to do me a favour.”
“What?”
“The extra set of keys fell into the popcorn. Jimmy must have left them on the top shelf. If you find them, I’ll take tomorrow night off to take you out to dinner.”
Sarah giggled in delight.
“What will the people do with no show?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “I’m sure they can get by for one night, they managed up until now without any movie house at all. I’m just going upstairs to go lock the money up in the safe. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“Do you really want me to stick my arms in all that buttery popcorn?” Sarah asked.
“Yes I do,” Jason said. “Find the keys so I can throw all that buttery popcorn out. It will go rancid in a day.”
“Wouldn’t it be easier just to get some more keys for Jimmy?”
“Not if you want to go out to dinner tomorrow.”
Sarah sighed and started to dig for the keys. About half way down she came upon something larger than keys. She brushed the kernels away to find a little box.
“How odd,” she said aloud.
She took the box out of the machine. It reminded her of the days she and Akiko used to leave presents for each other hidden under her desk. That seemed like so long ago now.
She opened the box.
Jason could hear her squealing with delight.
Thank God, he thought. She found it. He didn’t want to go sifting through the garbage for it l
ater.
“Jason!” she screamed. “I’ve found it.”
Jason went back downstairs.
“Oh Jason,” she said, daring not to hope, “look what I found.”
Inside the palm of her hand was a diamond ring. The biggest diamond ring she had ever seen in her life.
Jason got down on one knee.
“So Miss Lieboldt, light of my life, will you marry me?”
“Oh, wait until I tell your sister,” she cried.
Jason took that as a yes.
“Please tell my sister, I am not an idiot.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Never mind,” he said. “Just go order your shoes.”
Sarah’s smile went from ear to ear.
When they reached the door of the café, Rudy paused and turned to Lucy.
“Let’s not go in yet. Let’s go for a walk. Do you mind?”
“Not at all,” Lucy said. It was a nice night and she could see Rudy wanted to talk.
“Was it something I said?” she asked.
“No,” Rudy began, “I just found the movie a bit disturbing. Not that it had anything to do with the movie really; it just brought up emotions in...me. I find the theme of mental illness a bit discomforting.”
Lucy felt a chill go through her.
Rudy felt it too. He took her hand.
“No, not you Lucy. Come, walk with me. I have a story to tell you, the story of my wife Renae.”
The two strolled arm and arm towards the water.
“We had a fight one night. About nothing really. I think she asked me to help with the dishes and I said no. That was the last time I saw her alive.”
Lucy was speechless.
“She had taken my service revolver out of the closet I kept it in, and went out back and shot herself.”
Lucy gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.
“Suicide?” she said.
Rudy nodded. “I tell people she walked out on me, but that’s not really the truth. She left me, but not like that.”
“I had thought about it myself once,” Lucy said, “shortly after my family was killed, but...”
Rudy had been a young constable in Regina, Saskatchewan when he met Renae LeBlanc. She was a Métis who had moved to Saskatchewan from Manitoba.
“Métis?” Lucy asked. “Was she from France?”
“No,” Rudy explained “The Métis are a group of people of mixed heritage who live across Canada. They are the children of Indian women and European fathers. Their numbers have grown over the years, and they have married also amongst themselves, forming their own nation. Renae’s parents were both full-blooded Métis.”
Like Frenchie, Lucy thought to herself.
“She was a beautiful girl,” Rudy continued. “Not unlike yourself in a lot of ways. Lively, vivacious. But she was troubled.”
“What happened?” Lucy asked.
“I don’t know. We had run up against a lot of prejudice. Me, being of Polish decent, marrying an Indian. A half-Indian at that. But I loved her. She was one of the kindest people I had ever met. She was very proud of her heritage. She was so beautiful. I would see the other men looking at her and it would drive me crazy. I’d get so mad. It wasn’t fair to her. I was just insecure. I was young. I sometimes wonder now if that helped push her over the edge.”
“Do you have any children?” Lucy asked.
“No,” Rudy answered. “Perhaps that’s a blessing, I don’t know. I don’t know how I would have raised them alone. I actually admire McMichael for that.”
“Tell me about her. Tell me about her family.”
“I honestly don’t know much about them. She didn’t talk much about them. She was taken away to a residential school when she was quite young. She said horrible things happened to her there, but she wouldn’t talk about it. It must have been tough for her to leave her family.”
“What do you think happened there?” Lucy asked.
“What could have happened, Lucy? It was run by some Catholic priests.”
“And she just shot herself one night?”
“Yes,” he said. He broke down and cried.
It was the first time he had cried since it happened almost ten years ago. The tears poured out of him. Lucy sat him down on a log on the beach and put her arms around him.
“It’s okay,” she said. “I understand.”
“I knew you would,” he said.
“Are you going to be okay?” she asked.
“Yes,” he said, and took her hand. “Let’s go back and get some coffee to warm up.”
“I must have scared the hell out of you that Easter dinner at Olivia and Frank’s. When I left the house like that.”
“You did,” he said. “I didn’t know what I had said.”
Lucy told him the story of Akiko’s origami birds.
“I won’t tell if you don’t tell,” he said.
“Promise?” she said.
“Yes,” he said.
“Well, I know one way to keep your mouth shut,” she said, and kissed him passionately.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Jimmy looked at the new bicycle in disbelief.
“Is this for me?” he asked.
Jimmy, Olivia and Akiko stood outside the store, admiring the bike.
His mother lowered her head. The Yada’s had not been able to afford such an extravagant gift for Jimmy’s thirteen birthday, despite wanting to.
“Well, sort of,” Olivia said. “Technically it belongs to the store. So if you quit...” Olivia lowered her voice, “...or if you get fired, it comes back.”
“Oh, I won’t get fired,” he said.
The new blue bike was a big shiny two-wheeler, the nicest bike Jimmy had even seen, and certainly the nicest bike anyone had in Britannia.
“It has a basket on the back so you can carry the groceries. And a bell on the front so you won’t run people over,” Olivia laughed.
“Wow!” Jimmy said excitedly.
“And I think it would be all right if you borrowed it to go to school, and on weekends,” Olivia added. “Just as long as you take good care of it. It is store property.”
“Oh I will, I promise,” Jimmy said.
“Well then you’d better get to work and deliver Mary Alice her milk. Happy Birthday Jimmy, or should we call you Jim now that you’re all grown up?”
“Jimmy,” Lara McMichael called from up the road. “Is that a new bicycle?”
Jimmy smiled at Lara, then turned to answer Olivia.
“No, Jimmy’s still good.”
Akiko heaved a sigh of relief.
Jimmy hopped on the bike and rode off. He had often borrowed the McMichael girls’ bicycles and taken them for a spin. Christina had taught him how to ride. But this one was special. It was a boy’s bike.
Akiko turned to Olivia.
“That was very kind.”
“He’s a great kid Akiko,” Olivia said. “I would be truly blessed to have a son like him some day.”
In that moment it was hard to tell which woman was prouder of the young man, as he rode up next to Lara McMichael. Though teenage years were upon them, and Lara was slightly older than Jimmy, (which can make a difference at that age), the two had remained best friends since their childhood. He showed off his new bike with pride.
“He is getting jealous, you know,” Akiko commented.
Olivia did not understand.
“Lara McMichael. She has many young boys vying for her attentions already. Jimmy of course, loves her dearly, but it can never be. She will eventually break his heart.”
“One never knows what the future will bring,” Olivia said to her friend. But in her heart, Olivia knew Akiko was probably right.
“She’s going to be a handful, just like her sister,” Olivia said.
“Yes,” Akiko agreed. “I am glad I have a boy.”
Last summer, Christina McMichael had announced her intentions to enter the Copper Queen beauty pageant. The problem this prese
nted was that none of the other girls her age wanted to enter the contest for fear of losing. The organizers spent hours convincing the girls that it would be a fun time, when they knew themselves that Christina would undoubtedly win. And win she did, surprising no one. The fact was, she was a kind, smart, beautiful nineteen-year-old woman whom everyone adored despite her last name. She had never shown any interest in running in the competition in previous years, but this year she had a reason. She wanted to impress the new young doctor Alex Thompson, who was joining Dr. Van den Broek’s practice in preparation for Dr. Van den Broek’s retirement. And impress him she did.
Olivia and Akiko watched the handsome young couple sharing some fish and chips as they passed by the storefront.
Time was passing quicker and quicker, she thought to herself. The town had grown, and while still isolated, it had just about everything they could want: a new school, a big library, the movie theatre, and a billiards hall. Jason even rented the movie theatre out to the performing arts group that had recently been formed. This winter they were going to present Shakespeare’s “As You Like It”. The whole town was looking forward to it.
“Akiko, could you do me a favour?” Olivia asked. “Could you open the store tomorrow morning for me? It’s Lucy’s day to sleep in, but I’ve been a little tired lately and McMichael has asked if I could come in early over at the mine. I would really appreciate it.”
Akiko had never been asked to open the store by herself.
“It would be an honour, Mrs. Olivia,” Akiko said.
Sarah came running into the store.
“Are they here yet?” she asked excitedly.
“They’re in the back,” Olivia said. “I’ll go get them.”
A few moments later Olivia returned with the Eaton’s shoe box. Inside were white satin covered shoes.
“They fit like a glove,” Sarah exclaimed as she tried them on. “I just can’t believe it! Everything is going perfectly! I can’t thank either of you enough!”
Her wedding was less than two weeks away and the talk of the town. Sarah had asked Akiko to be her Matron of Honour, with Olivia taking the less glamorous role of bridesmaid, but Olivia didn’t mind. It meant so much more to Akiko Sarah had taken Akiko with her down to Vancouver to shop for her wedding dress, and Akiko had stocked up on a few dresses for herself while she was away. She firmly announced to Harry upon her return that she was taking at least one trip down to the big city each summer. Akiko had discovered the Hudson’s Bay department store.
