“The time is never going to be right! She has no intention of introducing you to her father.”
“You don’t know that,” Jehu said in a stubborn voice.
I took his hand and looked into his eves desperately. “Jehu, I know these people. I grew up with them. Even if Mr. Biddle did agree to meet with you, he would never partner with someone like you. He—”
“Someone like me?”
“I didn’t mean it that way,” I said quickly.
“Why? ’Cause you don’t think I’m smart enough to start a business?” he asked in a dangerously quiet voice.
“No, of course not! You’re very clever and talented. It’s just that …,” and my voice trailed off.
We stood there outside the empty house, staring at each other in silence.
“It’s just what, Jane?” Jehu said, and I flinched at the iciness in his tone.
I swallowed hard. “You have no connections and no references. Men like Biddle stick to their own. I’m sorry.”
Jehu’s face hardened, and a look I had never seen before entered his eye. “If that’s how little you think of me, then I best be going.” He turned and started to walk away.
“Jehu,” I said, and now I was getting a little angry with him. “I’m not saying this to hurt you! Don’t you understand?”
His stride didn’t break.
“You’ll never—”
He froze and looked back at me.
“Watch me,” he said coldly.
* * *
Just when it appeared things couldn’t possibly get any worse, the next morning I discovered that the sewing circle was meeting at Mrs. Hosmer’s cabin that afternoon, and I had not been invited.
Mrs. Frink paused by my desk to soften the blow.
“Perhaps by next week everything will have calmed down,” she suggested in a consoling voice, but I knew better. Now that Sally had her claws in the group, it would never be the same.
I tried to busy myself with drawing up a list of supplies I would need at my new house, although after a while, even that made me feel a little despondent. With William’s looming threat, would I ever even have a chance to live in it?
Finally, tired of my own company, I decided to go to Star’s to pick up a few things for supper. I would try out some new receipts, I decided. Baking always made me feel better. As usual, Red Charley was lolling on the barrel in front of the bowling alley when I walked past.
“See, now that I’m constable, I can put you in jail if you don’t pay me what you owe me,” he was telling some man.
When I entered Star’s, Keer-ukso was at the counter, arguing with Mr. Staroselsky. Several men were listening to the heated exchange, Mr. Russell and Mr. Hosmer among them. Mr. Hosmer, in particular, did not seem pleased to see me.
“It does not make sense. I always buy from you,” Keer-ukso said, exasperation plain in his voice.
“All I know is I’m not allowed to sell ammunition to, um, Indians anymore,” Mr. Staroselsky said, sounding embarrassed.
I walked up to the counter. “Who says you can’t?”
“Dr. Baldt. He says it’s not allowed.” He raised his shoulders awkwardly. “I can’t risk it. I have a wife and baby to support.”
Mr. Russell slapped Keer-ukso on the back in a consoling way. “Come on up to the cabin, Keer-ukso, and I’ll get ya fixed up. I don’t give a fig what the Baldt feller says. Maybe this’ll even get business going again.”
Keer-ukso glared at Mr. Staroselsky but went along with Mr. Russell.
“Well,” Mr. Staroselsky said, patting his forehead with a handkerchief.
The front door bounced open and Mrs. Dodd stood there, a frown carved into her face.
“I’m looking for the judge,” she announced to the room. “I need to speak to him about the half-breed girl.”
“Do you mean Katy?” I asked. “Has something happened?”
She narrowed her eyes at me. “Not that it’s any business of yours, but something’s got to be done. She needs to be raised with her own kind, not with that Injun mother of hers.”
I put my hands on my hips. “Really, Mrs. Dodd. You go too far.”
Mrs. Dodd continued in a loud, righteous voice. “M’Carty was an honest man. He would’ve wanted his child raised as a white girl, not running around like some savage.”
To my utter shock, Mr. Hosmer said, “What exactly are you proposing?”
“I’m willing to take her in, and she’ll be a burden, but my husband and I think it’s the decent thing to do.”
Mr. Hosmer nodded in agreement. “Seems sensible enough to me. No point in raising the girl as a savage.”
“Mr. Hosmer!” I exclaimed. “How can you say such cruel things?”
He pulled the brim of his hat low over his eyes and said, his voice cool, “Same way you can, Miss Peck.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
or,
The Good Mother
I was sitting in Cocumb’s cabin, where I had gone straight after hearing Mrs. Dodd’s scheme. I had half expected to meet William along the trail, but I reassured myself that Mrs. Dodd wasn’t planning on speaking to him until the morning. There was plenty of time for Cocumb to take Katy and disappear into the vast wilderness. Perhaps she could go and stay with some relatives.
But now, as we sat at the kitchen table, Cocumb seemed unconcerned.
“Mrs. Dodd,” Cocumb said in a scathing voice. “That woman cannot get anyone to work for her. No one likes her.”
“It’s William I’m worried about,” I explained. “He’s been waiting for an opportunity like this.”
Cocumb shook her head. “I know that William is judge, but he cannot take a child away from her mother. My father would never allow it.”
“But you don’t know William. He’ll take Katy away just to make a point,” I said. “And he can get away with it now that, that …” And here my voice trailed off.
“My husband is dead,” she finished.
“Yes,” I replied.
“Boston Jane,” Cocumb said, and I sensed a hint of pity in her tone, “you are my friend, but sometimes you worry about William too much. He’s just a man.”
I sighed and looked away. Across the cozy cabin, M’Carty’s rocking chair sat empty in front of the fire, as if waiting for him. I couldn’t help but remember the last time I had been in this room. M’Carty had been sitting in that chair. The wood gleamed in the flickering light, as if Cocumb had polished it recently.
Cocumb saw where I was looking and gave me a sad smile. “I miss him so. I keep waiting for him to walk in the door and smile at me.” She closed her eyes, breathed in the air. “I feel closest to him here, where we had our life together. I couldn’t bear to leave this cabin. It’s all I have left of him.”
The door flew open, and we both started.
Katy stood there, flushed from play. Her expression grew puzzled as she took in our serious faces.
“Is something wrong, Mama?” Katy asked. “You look sad.”
Cocumb hugged her daughter tightly to her bosom and smiled at me, her eyes watery. Then she looked down at Katy and smoothed the hair out of her face.
“No, nika tenas klootchman,” Cocumb soothed, her eyes meeting mine over her daughter’s head. “Everything’s just fine.”
* * *
It happened in the blink of an eye.
The next afternoon William appeared on Cocumb’s doorstep with his new constable, Red Charley, at his side, demanding that she turn over Katy immediately. Luckily Mr. Swan was visiting at the time and managed to put him off.
“I told him that at the very least he should hold a public hearing,” Mr. Swan said as he sat in the kitchen at the hotel, relaying the events. “The man knows nothing about the law.”
“You’ll represent her, won’t you?” I asked.
“Of course,” he said. “Although whether or not anyone will listen to me is another matter entirely.”
Poor Mr. Swan was still taking his defeat in the ele
ction hard.
I grabbed him by the hand. “It doesn’t matter,” I assured him. “Don’t you know that you were the best judge we’ll ever have?”
He seemed to brighten a little. “I wasn’t terrible,” he mused.
“You’re brilliant, Mr. Swan. I know we won’t let William take Katy away!”
He leaped up with his old vigor, pacing back and forth in the kitchen. He slapped his hand against the table. “The rightful place for a child is with her mother!”
“Yes!” I shouted, and clapped. “More!”
“Are the Chinooks any less deserving of their own children?” he boomed, as if he were already in the courtroom.
“Bravo!”
He nodded to himself, rubbing his beard thoughtfully. “It shouldn’t be too hard, I should think. Just have to get my thoughts in order.”
“Wonderful, Mr. Swan. Is there anything I can do to help?” I asked eagerly.
“Actually, might I have a piece of pie? A man can’t think on an empty stomach.”
The day of the hearing arrived, and it seemed as if every pioneer in the territory had packed into Star’s Dry Goods to watch the spectacle. Our esteemed new constable, Red Charley, was covertly taking bets on the outcome on the porch outside.
I managed to find a seat on a bench near Cocumb, Katy, Mr. Swan, and Mr. Russell.
Mr. Swan did his best to calm Cocumb’s fears. “This is all quite preposterous, my dear lady,” he told her. “And I can assure you that I shall not allow your lovely daughter to be taken from you.”
Cocumb sat numbly clutching Katy, who was entirely confused by the situation.
“I don’t want to live with Mrs. Dodd,” Katy said in a clear voice. “Willard says she’s mean.”
Mr. Swan smiled kindly. “And you shan’t have to, my girl.” He turned to Cocumb. “I shall be calling both you and Mr. Russell to the stand to testify as to M’Carty’s wishes regarding Katy’s upbringing.”
“Can they win?” Cocumb asked in a nervous voice.
He patted her on the hand. “You have nothing to fear.”
I scanned the room of eager spectators. Mrs. Dodd and her husband had taken prominent seats up front. Behind us, Father Joseph, Auntie Lilly, Spaark, Keer-ukso, and Chief Toke sat. On the other side of the room were the Hosmers, and Mr. and Mrs. Frink, and even Mr. Biddle. Jehu was sitting next to Sally, and he did not meet my eyes.
The doors to the back room of Star’s swung open. William strode through and took a seat at the very same table where Mr. Swan had once presided. He didn’t need to bang on the table with his pipe for order, the way Mr. Swan once had. He simply looked out at the room, and it quieted down of its own accord. I looked over to gauge Mr. Swan’s reaction. He had gone a little pale.
“We are here today,” William began, hands crossed, “to discuss a concern raised by Mr. and Mrs. Dodd. It is their contention that Katy, the child of M’Carty, should be removed from her mother and raised by someone in town. Mrs. Dodd, would you care to state your case?”
“I sure would,” Mrs. Dodd said, her face set.
With exaggerated importance, Mrs. Dodd walked up to an empty chair at the front of the room.
“It’s one thing to live near the savages, or even work with them,” Mrs. Dodd said, staring at Cocumb. Cocumb stared right back at her. “But it is quite another to allow a white child to be raised by a savage. It ain’t right. She should be raised with her own.”
There were soft murmurs of assent from the assembled audience.
“I should like to add,” William said, “that this concern has been seconded by other members of the community. Now, as this procedure was requested by Mr. Swan, I shall hear his arguments at this time.”
Mr. Swan stared around at the crowd, looking uncomfortable and tugging absently at his collar.
“Mr. Swan,” I hissed. “Go!”
He lumbered up, clearing his throat. “Good neighbors,” he began, “this is a simple matter that concerns a family. Now, many of you knew M’Carty well, and as he is unable to speak for himself in these proceedings regarding his intentions for his only child, Katy, we shall hear testimony from M’Carty’s friends, as well as his wife. Mr. Russell?”
Mr. Russell walked up and took the chair recently vacated by Mrs. Dodd. He spit a wad of tobacco. It landed with a wet slap at Mrs. Dodd’s feet.
“M’Carty loved Cocumb. He loved her people,” he said.
Cocumb smiled at him gratefully.
He stared at Katy. “And he loved that little girl like he was a crazy fool. Thar ain’t no way he woulda wanted her taken away from her mama.”
“But her education is being neglected!” Mrs. Dodd shouted.
“That little girl’s smart as a whip. She speaks English and the Jargon. And jest who are ya anyhow to be talking about educating? I don’t see ya got any children of your own. Seems to me that ya wouldn’t know the first thing about being a mama. How many languages you speak?”
Mrs. Dodd went white.
“And the rest of ya. Mind yer own business, I say.”
Mr. Russell got up and ambled back down into the audience.
“Thank you, Mr. Russell, for your expert testimony,” Mr. Swan said with an approving smile. “As most of you know, Mr. Russell was M’Carty’s best friend. Now we shall hear from M’Carty’s wife. Cocumb?”
“Indian lover!” someone shouted from the back of the room.
I whirled around in my seat, but found myself staring at a roomful of stone-faced men and women, some of whom I had once counted among my friends.
Cocumb just stiffened her back and walked regally to the witness chair.
“My husband is dead,” Cocumb said in a clear voice. “All I have left is my daughter. My beautiful Katy. She is part Chinook, part white. If it matters to you, I plan to raise her knowing the customs of both peoples.”
“Why should we listen to a savage Indian?” Mrs. Dodd’s husband barked.
“I am her mother,” Cocumb said quietly.
“Thank you, Cocumb,” Mr. Swan said, and helped her back to her seat.
Mr. Swan drew a deep breath and looked out at the room. “It has always been my opinion that mothers are most perfectly equipped to care for their children. I do not think anyone in this room or in society shall disagree with me on this basic point. There is no legal reason to remove Katy from Cocumb’s care. She should remain with her mother, where she belongs.”
A hush fell over the room.
“Very well, Mr. Swan,” William said. “I find that your arguments have no merit in this matter.”
“It is a matter of law, sir,” Mr. Swan blustered.
William raised an unconcerned eyebrow. “Really? Which law? I believe this matter falls under my province as justice of the peace. As M’Carty once said, we make our own laws out here.”
I couldn’t take it anymore. I leaped to my feet. “You’re married to an Indian! How can you say such things? What if Katy were your daughter?”
There were stray murmurs of surprise in the room. It seemed that William hadn’t told all his new constituents about his own marriage.
William tensed, and then an icy calm seemed to settle over him. “Miss Peck, my affairs are none of your concern, and you are lucky I am in an agreeable mood or I would have you jailed for contempt.” He inclined his head. “But as you have mentioned them, I would be more than happy to speak to your concerns.”
I held my breath, and to judge from the silence in the makeshift courtroom, so did everyone else.
“In the first place, as you well know, my wife is only half Indian. But let us set that aside. In the event of my untimely death, I would be only too happy to have a suitable member of society raise my offspring, otherwise the child would revert to savagery. Therefore, I hereby declare that Katy shall be removed from her Indian mother and given into the care of a pioneer lady, to be raised as a civilized child.”
He nodded to Red Charley. “Constable.”
“No!” Cocumb
cried.
Chief Toke stood up, Keer-ukso behind him.
But Red Charley already had latched his beefy hands around Katy’s arms and was dragging the struggling child from the room.
“Mama!” Katy called.
“Mr. Swan! Do something!” I shouted over the furor.
Mr. Swan looked at me helplessly as Cocumb sobbed into my shoulder.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
or,
A True Lady
The late days of June brought bright blue skies and cool evenings but no solace. Everyone went about their lives as if the terrible incident with Katy had never occurred. Except it had. I had only to walk over to Toke’s lodge and see Cocumb’s stunned face to know that.
Sally spent her days in the hotel parlor, making endless plans for the upcoming Fourth of July celebration. Even Mrs. Biddle got involved. Now, instead of endless complaints, she had endless demands.
Each morning she met me with a list of meticulous requirements, none of which, naturally, I was able to fulfill. There were no orchestras on Shoalwater Bay, nor were there any theater troupes, or hot-air balloons to hire, or any form of entertainment besides drinking, gambling, and bowling.
“Miss Peck,” she said after I informed her that the special coconut macaroons she requested would take months to arrive. “I am most disappointed in you.”
I wanted to tell her that she wasn’t the only one. The ladies of the sewing circle were disappointed in me. Jehu was disappointed in me. Mrs. Frink was disappointed in me. Only Brandywine, the dog, seemed happy in my presence. But he left fleas on my bed.
I took to spending all my spare time in my house, walking the floors and measuring the windows for curtains. It was my refuge from the hotel—and the disturbing sight of Sally Biddle holding court in the parlor. Her gay laughter was a grating reminder of everything I had lost—my friends, my place in this world, and, I feared, Jehu.
Jehu, for his part, seemed determined to prove me wrong about Mr. Biddle. By all accounts he spent every waking moment refining plans for the mill and lobbying Sally. It was as if he and I were living in separate worlds, like ships passing at sea. I often saw him strolling with Sally down the road, head bent in conversation, or outside Star’s with other men. Once, his blue eyes met mine and held.
The Claim Page 13