“So do I.” Wallace paused a moment, looking as though he wanted to say something, but then didn’t.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Well, I’ve just had an idea, and I think it’s rather brilliant. The question remains, though, if you would think it’s brilliant.”
“Let’s hear it then, and I’ll tell you.”
Wallace picked up his hat and played with the brim. “You see, I start my shift in Wichita, where I live. I ride the eastbound train through Topeka and on to Kansas City, where my shift ends. I have a room at a boardinghouse in Kansas City, where I spend the night. The next morning, I get up and head west, coming through Topeka and back to Wichita.”
“I see. I’m not understanding your idea, though.”
“Ah, be patient. I’m nearly there. What if you were to spend a shift with me on the train? I could pick you up in Topeka and you’d ride to Wichita, where you could spend the night at the hotel—or I’m sure the new Mrs. Hanks would be pleased to put you up. Then, in the morning, you could ride with me back to Topeka. This way, I could show you all the things I love about the train, and if you felt so inclined, you could complain to me about what a terrible time you’re having.”
Caroline laughed. “That’s a very intriguing idea, especially the part where I would get to complain. May I think about it? I’d need to make sure things were under control here before I left, and I admit, I’ve never ridden off on an overnight adventure with a man before.”
“I assure you, my every intention is honorable.”
“Oh, I’ve no doubt. But appearances being what they are, you know.”
“Yes, indeed I do. Please think it over and let me know. I’d be delighted to share that experience with you, but if you’re not interested, I’ll understand. The train isn’t for everyone.” He stood and put on his hat. “Good night, Caroline. This has been a most enjoyable evening.”
“Wait—where are you staying?”
“I have a room at Mrs. Dempsey’s boardinghouse.”
Caroline raised an eyebrow. “But this is a hotel. You could stay here.”
“Ah, but appearances being what they are, I thought it best if I not stay under the same roof as the woman I’ve come to court. Good night, Caroline. Sleep well.”
For the second time, he walked off, leaving her utterly flabbergasted.
***
Caroline laid out her predicament, pacing a line in Adam’s rug as she spoke. “So, what do you think I should do?”
Adam sat behind his desk, twiddling his pen between his fingers. Caroline wished he’d stop it—it was highly annoying, especially when she had such a difficult problem and needed his input. It would be hard to trust any advice he gave if he couldn’t take this seriously.
“What do you think you should do?”
Caroline stopped pacing and put her hands on her hips. “That’s not an answer to my question.”
“But it’s an answer to mine. You’ve already decided, haven’t you, and you’re hoping I’ll talk you out of it.”
“That’s ridiculous. I don’t need your approval or your permission—I’m your elder, not your charge. I can go or stay as I please.”
“That being the case, why did you come in here to talk to me?”
“Because I do care about your opinion.” Why wasn’t he offering it?
Adam laid down the pen and focused on her. “What would you like to do, Caroline?”
“I think I’d like to go. It might be interesting. But it also might be the most boring experience of my life.”
“And you won’t know which it is unless you see for yourself.”
“Exactly. What if I miss out on something I might actually enjoy because I’m being too stubborn?”
Adam chuckled. “You? Stubborn? Impossible. No, beyond impossible.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “Yes, I’m stubborn. I admit it. Now tell me what I should do.”
“You say you could stay with Abigail and Deputy Hanks?”
“That’s what Wallace suggested.”
“Wallace, eh?” Adam pursed his lips.
“We’ve started using our given names, yes. It was my suggestion.”
Adam didn’t say anything to that. “And you’d be riding from here to Wichita, then back again in the morning?”
“Yes.”
He picked up his pen again. “Well,” he said after a long moment, “if you’re serious about getting to know him, it seems to me that spending some time seeing what he does all day, every day might be a good step in that direction. Can’t really know a man if you don’t know what he does for a living. He already knows what you do—he’s seen you do it countless times.”
“That’s true.” Caroline considered that. “It’s only fair that I do the same for him. But what about the hotel? What about Agatha?”
“You’ve been telling me how pleased you are with the waitresses, how they’ve taken on extra responsibility and proven themselves up to the task. We can ask Olivia to step in as well. As far as Agatha goes . . .” Adam dropped the pen and sighed. “She’s been in this condition for several days now. It’s far too unpredictable. I say, go and enjoy yourself. Agatha will do what Agatha will do whether you’re here or not, and you’ll only be gone twenty-four hours. If . . . if she does pass, you’ll be back with us before we know it. You deserve a day away from the hotel. Take it.”
Caroline took a deep breath. “All right, I will. Wallace is eastbound today, but I’ll tell him that I’ll go with him tomorrow.”
“Good. And for what it’s worth, I’m proud of you for taking this chance.”
“You make it sound as though I never do anything spontaneous.”
Adam chuckled. “Do you?”
“Not often, but I do.”
He chuckled again. “Have a good trip, Caroline.”
Chapter Nine
Caroline was waiting when the train pulled into the station, and Wallace couldn’t help the grin that covered his face at the sight of her. “Good morning,” he said as he stepped onto the platform. “It’s a pleasure to see you, as always.”
“I wasn’t sure if you were coming over to the hotel, and I didn’t want to miss you,” she replied. “I’ve decided to take you up on your offer, and I can come tomorrow, if that’s all right.”
“That’s more than all right. I can hardly wait.” He grinned again. “I hope you don’t mind, but I was more than a little bit presumptuous, and I spoke with Mrs. Hanks last night. She said she’d be delighted if you came for a visit, and just asks that you send her a telegram to let her know when.”
“Well, it might have been presumptuous, but I’m glad you did it. I’d much rather stay with a friend than in a hotel. I’ll send the telegram this afternoon.” Caroline paused. “Are you coming over to eat?”
“Of course. A good meal, plus a few extra minutes with you—I’d be a fool to pass it up. I’ll be there in a moment.”
Wallace watched Caroline as she made her way back to the hotel with just a little saunter in her step that told the world she was no one to be trifled with. He liked that.
***
Caroline slid her list across the counter to the grocer at the general store. “If you could help me with this, I’d appreciate it.”
Mr. Appleby took the paper and studied it. “You’re ordering more this time. I take it the hotel is doing well?”
“It is.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Very glad indeed. I’ll have this ready for you in about twenty minutes, if you’d like to browse or take care of any other errands.”
“I do have another errand to run. Tom’s out front with the wagon, as usual, when you’re ready.”
“Excellent.” Mr. Appleby gave a quick nod, then grabbed a grocery box and began filling it with items on Caroline’s list.
She stepped back out onto the sidewalk and closed the door behind her, then crossed the street to send her telegram. Was she really doing this—going off on an adventure with a man sh
e barely knew? Apparently, she was—and to her surprise, she was looking forward to it.
She jotted down a few words to let Abigail know she’d be on the next day’s train and handed the paper to the girl behind the counter. When she tried to pay for the telegram, though, the girl shook her head.
“No, ma’am. Mr. Dupree came by and paid for it already.”
“He did?”
“That’s right. He told me that if you tried to pay, I was to refuse.”
Caroline shook her head in surprise. “That’s . . . really very kind.” So that’s why he’d left the dining room early. She’d thought there had been some sort of emergency with the train.
“I thought so too, ma’am. And is there anything you’d like to add to the telegram? He paid for more words than this.”
“I can’t think of anything.”
“Very well, then. I’ll just put it on account.”
Caroline shook her head again as she crossed back to the general store. She really should stop forming judgments—Wallace was continually surprising her, and she found that she liked being surprised.
“Mr. Appleby,” she said as she entered the general store once again, “I hope I ordered enough cherries.”
***
Caroline could hear Rose fussing before she even opened the door to Agatha’s room. Adam was there, pacing the floor, a distressed look on his face.
“I’m not sure who’s more upset—you or the baby,” she said, amused.
“Elizabeth needed to step away for a moment, and Rose wants nothing to do with me,” Adam replied. “How long does teething take, anyway?”
“Well, I’m certainly no expert, but I do believe it’s more than just two days.” Caroline looked over at the bed, hoping that the baby wasn’t disturbing Agatha. Then again, she wasn’t sure the woman could hear anything. “Is there any change at all?”
“Elizabeth got her to swallow a dribble of broth.” Adam shifted Rose to his other shoulder. “It’s not much, but it is encouraging.”
Elizabeth entered the room just then, and Rose reached out for her with short, chubby arms. “Thanks, Adam,” she said.
“I didn’t do anything. I just held her while she cried. I think you’re the only person she wants right now.”
Caroline looked back and forth between Rose and Agatha, indecision warring in her heart. “Are you sure I should leave tomorrow? This seems like the worst possible time.”
Adam set his hand on her shoulder. “I’ve already told you—we’ll be fine. I spoke with Olivia a little while ago, and she’s more than glad to help out. In fact, she says she’ll stay until we fill that sixth slot.”
“She will? Isn’t that taking her away from home quite a bit?”
“It is, but the pastor agrees that we could use the help, and he says this is a concrete way to give service. There are times to pray, and then there are times to pray and then get off our backsides. I’m quoting him—that wasn’t me.”
Caroline chuckled. “All right, then—if you’re sure.”
“I’m sure. Now please, stop worrying about us. We’ll be fine.”
Caroline looked over at Elizabeth, who nodded. “We’ll be fine,” she echoed.
With those assurances, Caroline went to her room and packed a small overnight bag, hoping that everything would, indeed, be fine.
Chapter Ten
“So, you paid for my telegram.”
Wallace turned at the sound of Caroline’s voice. “I did indeed.”
“And just now, Mr. Hoover wouldn’t let me buy my ticket. He said you already took care of it.”
Wallace grinned. “Yes, I did that too. You didn’t think I was going to carry you off at your own expense, did you?”
Caroline smiled a little sheepishly. “I wasn’t sure what to expect, actually.”
“Wonderful. I’ve finally surprised you like you surprise me.”
“You surprise me quite a bit, Wallace.” She handed him a small satchel. “Where do I sit?”
“Follow me, and I will lead you to it.” He passed off the satchel to a waiting porter, grabbed the handrail and climbed the few steps onto the train, then turned and took Caroline’s hand as she joined him. Then he motioned toward the interior of the car. “This is one of three passenger cars we have on the train today. The other cars are for coal, wood, and baggage, and we also have a shipment of goods for various stores to deliver. In fact, I believe we have a rather large shipment for the general store here in Topeka, and yes, here’s the wagon to pick it up.” He squinted through the window.
“Your seat is over here. We don’t seem to have many passengers today, so I arranged for you to have a seat alone, without having to share.”
“That’s very kind of you. It almost doesn’t seem fair, though.”
“I only did it because the train isn’t filled to capacity. And there should be privileges that go along with being my guest, shouldn’t there?”
“But I might come to expect special treatment every time I get on a train from now on, and it would be horribly disappointing if I didn’t get them.”
“Then we’ll just have to make sure that you always get them.” Wallace’s tone was light, but his implication ran far deeper than he had intended, and he cleared his throat. “From this seat, you’ll be able to see Kansas at her best.”
“Excellent. And despite what I said before, I am planning to enjoy myself. You’ve gone through such lengths—of course I will.”
“I hope so, Caroline. I really hope so.”
Wallace turned at the sound of voices on the platform. “Duty calls. Get settled in, and let me know if you have any questions.”
“I will.”
He hopped back down onto the platform and greeted the passengers, some continuing their journey after eating at the hotel, and some coming aboard for the first leg of their trip. He smiled and shook hands, collected luggage, and helped a few less agile persons up the steps. All the while, his mind was on the woman in the passenger car. She wore a plum traveling dress, and with her dark hair, she looked like the picture of a queen in a storybook he’d had as a child. It had been all he could do to take his eyes off her.
Wallace pulled out his pocket watch and checked the time, then looked over at the ticket office. Mr. Hoover gave him a nod, meaning there was no one left waiting in line. “Westbound to Wichita, leaving in two minutes. All aboard!”
The few people saying their good-byes on the platform scrambled onto the train, and Wallace climbed up after them. Then, with the escape of steam and a blast of the whistle, the train’s wheels began to turn, slowly at first and then picking up speed. The clackety-clack, the hissing, all the sounds that filled the majority of his day entered his ears, and he smiled. Yes, the train was noisy, but this was his home, and he loved it.
After seeing to a few other duties, he came to Caroline’s side. “How are you enjoying yourself so far?” he asked.
She nodded. “It’s been pleasant.”
“Come. I’d like to show you around.”
She looped the drawstring of her reticule over her wrist and stood, holding on to the back of her seat for balance.
He led her to the end of the passenger car, then opened the door and ushered her out to stand on the platform at the back. Then he stepped across the coupling to the platform of the caboose.
“I’ve got you,” he shouted above the noise of the wind and the wheels, holding out his hand.
Caroline hesitated only an instant before stepping across as he had. He’d worried that the bulk of her skirt would make it difficult, but she managed it with ease.
He opened the door of the caboose and showed her inside.
“On some trains, the caboose acts like the conductor’s office,” he said. “Here is where I keep my logbooks and any other pertinent paperwork or documentation regarding the running of the train. They stay here, in the caboose, so the next conductor has access to them. My personal things come with me from train to train in my valise.”
“I’ve noticed that not all trains have cabooses,” Caroline said. “What do you do in a case like that?”
“Sometimes there’s a cupboard or closet set up at the back of one of the passenger cars,” he replied. “When I start my shift, that’s the first thing I do—I locate where those things are kept on that particular train. Then I start at the engine and work my way back, checking the couplings on each car, and making sure everything’s clean. I only have a short amount of time for that—the train has to stay on schedule, so if it’s slated for a thirty-minute stop, I only have thirty minutes for that inspection.”
“That’s quite a lot to do in a short half hour,” Caroline commented.
“It is, and when I first started, I felt a bit frantic about it. But I soon fell into a pattern, and now it’s no trouble to keep everything clean unless one of the passengers became ill or something like that.” He stopped abruptly, wondering if he should have said that much. Caroline was a lady and wouldn’t appreciate such mentions. She didn’t seem to care, however, and nodded. “And I have an hour at some stops,” he went on.
“Who are the other men who work on the train? I’ve met one of the engineers, but I’m afraid I don’t know much beyond that.”
Wallace was pleased that she was asking questions. She seemed to be taking an interest in what he was saying—thank goodness she was giving this a real try. “There’s the engineer, the fireman, the brakemen, and the baggage porter. On trains such as this, where we’re chiefly pulling cargo and only have a few passengers, the brakemen will double as porters. If we’re pulling larger numbers of cars, we’ll bring on additional crew, and sometimes we’ll have an apprentice for the engineer or the fireman along for training. Right now, we’re running with the minimum.”
He led her from the caboose back up to the passenger car, then left her there while he attended to his other duties. The crew teased him about his lady friend, but he didn’t care. There was something that felt so very right about her being on his train, sharing in his experiences. He had never dreamed that showing her his world would fill up the empty part of his soul, and yet, it was doing just that. He was eager to reach Wichita, where he could sit across from her and ask her what she’d thought about everything she’d seen. Maybe, just maybe, he’d be able to convince her to love the train as much as he did.
The Whisper of Morning (Kansas Crossroads Book 6) Page 6
