by Zina Abbott
Mrs. Collins walked out with a bowl filled with flour. “Do you have a lard crock?”
Eustace pointed to a shelf above the counter. “I believe there, ma’am. I’ve seen Mrs. Peterson pour drippings in it.”
Mrs. Collins checked the crock of lard and harrumphed. “I hope there is enough. I saw the soldiers that I understand are not usually here. I’ll make some biscuits for dinner. Along with your man, we’ll fix enough for supper, too, if you can convince the men here to leave them alone that long. What were your plans for supper, Mr. Cantrell?”
Eustace pointed to the pot full of potatoes. “I was hoping to have enough potatoes left to fry up.”
Mrs. Collins peered inside the pot and sniffed. “That would be quite a bit of stretching with all these men, Mr. Cantrell. After your man makes biscuits, I suggest you have him scrub up a few of the carrots and turnips I saw in your storeroom, cut them up, and add a peeled and chopped onion to cook in some water until soft. He might want to cut up a little fatback to add for flavor…" She sighed. “Never mind. I’ll tell him myself.” Her gaze surveyed the room. “Where is he?”
“I’ll get him, ma’am.” Eustace ran to the door and jerked it open. He spotted Tom in the corral putting hay out for the mules. “Tom! Let Jim finish that. You brush yourself off. Scrub everything from your waist up and get in here. You’re learning to make biscuits.” And other food.
Eustace closed the door and turned back to his passenger with a smile. “Tom will be here in a few minutes, ma’am.”
“Perhaps it would have been best if you were the one to learn.”
Eustace knew how to boil water for beans or potatoes. He knew how to make coffee. Anyone who had fought in the war did. However, he had other plans for himself. “No, ma’am, I need someone else who can keep the men here fed. You see, after dinner, you and your husband will be leaving on the coach with Mr. Jessup and Mr. Bean for Salina. Since I will be going, too, all I need is food for four B.O.D. men and four soldiers. Paul Brown, the shotgun messenger who rode on the coach that brought you here, told me he can cook some. So, ma’am, if you would be so good as to make biscuits for dinner, teach Tom to make some for supper and breakfast, they can get by for the time being.”
Tom burst through the door. “You want me to do what?”
Eustace turned to him. “Learn to make biscuits. Go wash, from the waist up.”
Mrs. Collins sniffed and glared at Tom. “No offense, Mr.—"
His face scrunched with worry lines between his eyebrows, Tom turned to the woman passenger and blushed. “Barker, ma’am. My name’s Tom Barker.”
“A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Barker. I’m Mrs. Collins. As I was saying, you have the smell of livestock and the corrals on you. If possible, please also change into a clean shirt.”
Wearing an expression of bafflement, Tom turned to Eustace.
Eustace cleared his throat. “Mrs. Collins, our usual laundry day on last Sunday was interrupted by the Cheyenne. We haven’t had the time to wash clothes. I suggest he put on that extra apron still hanging on the wall.”
“You want me to wear what?” Tom’s voice came out in a whisper.
A no-nonsense expression on his face, Eustace turned to Tom. “Mrs. Collins has graciously offered to teach you an important survival skill—how to bake biscuits. Now, do what you were told. Shake out your shirt, brush off your pants, scrub up, and then get in here. Don’t track any muck inside, or you’ll be cleaning the floor, too. That’s an order, Tom.” He softened his tone. “She’s also going to show you what to fix for supper later. Paul said he would help.”
Tom narrowed his gaze. “Where will you be?”
Eustace placed his hands on his hips. His voice held a note of impatience. “Not that it’s your place to question me, but I’ll be leaving with Benny and Charlie. I need to take care of some business and mail off an order for supplies for the station. Since I assume someone had the presence of mind to stop at Fort Riley long enough to send a telegram to Atchison, I also want to find out if the division agent finally hired another driver, at least…" Eustace paused as he stared at Tom.
Tom wore a wide, toothy grin.
As he glared at Tom, Eustace’s eyelids narrowed. He knows I’m going after Lorena. “Not a word, Tom, about anything, you understand? Get busy and learn to make biscuits. Mrs. Collins doesn’t plan to wait on you all day.”
Eustace excused himself to join Jim in the corral. The dinner stop would take a little longer since, unlike Mrs. Peterson, he had not had the food prepared when the stagecoach arrived. However, while their passengers, Benny, and Charlie ate, he needed to help Jim with the livestock and get the new team hitched up to Benny’s coach.
Eustace looked across the corral and noticed one of the men from the fort brushing down a mule that came in with Amos. He walked over to him. “Your corporal know you’ve left your post, private?”
The young man offered him a wide grin. “I waved and he didn’t say anything. He wants me back, I’ll go.” He turned to the mule. “This one reminds me of our Jubal back home.”
Eustace nodded. “If your corporal allows it, I appreciate your help. I’ll be helping my other man hitch up the outbound team in a few minutes while our passengers finish eating.” He pointed toward the four mules that would go out. “They’ve been fed, but with the weather getting warmer, I want them watered good. Not too much. I don’t want them swamped.”
The man turned back and snickered. “They won’t get swamped. Mules are smarter than horses that way. They only take what food and water they need.”
Eustace bit back a retort. Actually, he already knew that about mules, but he still automatically fell back on his experience of raising thoroughbreds. If he intended on rising within the ranks of the stagecoach business, he must bring his thinking around to the kind of livestock needed for the company to succeed. Ben Holladay uses mostly quality horses on his routes, but not the B.O.D. They stick with mules because they think they’re sturdier—and less attractive to the hostiles. “You’re right. Thank you, private.”
Eustace finished helping Jim hitch up Benny’s team, washed his hands, and stepped inside to see if he had enough time to grab a plate of food before the stagecoach left.
Mrs. Collins rivaled Caroline Peterson when it came to organizing a kitchen. While she had Tom still rolling and cutting biscuit dough, she pointed to a bowl of carrots, turnips, and an onion while she explained something to Paul. As soon as she saw Eustace, she pointed to a plate of sliced ham, fork-mashed potatoes smothered in white gravy, and two biscuits. “There’s your dinner, Mr. Cantrell. Since I understand Mr. Jessup plans to leave soon, we both need to eat as quickly as proper manners allow. Mr. Barker and Mr. Brown, here, have assured me they have time to eat at a second seating once the stagecoach leaves.”
Eustace picked up his plate and fork. “Yes, ma’am, that is the case. They’ll see to feeding the troopers after we leave.”
Soon, Benny, Charlie, and the passengers prepared to leave.
Jim trotted over to Eustace. “Escort’s outside the gate. I don’t recognize the corporal leading them.”
“Thanks.” Eustace called out to Benny. “I plan to sit up top with you and Charlie. One of you wait until I get there, unless you don’t mind me climbing over you.” Eustace hurried into the bunkroom where, along with the others, he slept and kept his personal belongings. Grateful he owned a clean set of clothes—the ones he bought to interview for his job—he packed them and his shaving gear. As he prepared to leave, he grabbed a Ballard rifle and stuck extra ammunition inside his coat pocket.
Both Jim and Tom met him at the door.
“I don’t mind cooking for you, Eustace, but I refuse to wear Mrs. Peterson’s aprons.” Tom jerked the offending garment off his body and wadded it into a bundle.
“Don’t tear up her aprons, Tom. She or Isaac will be coming for her things one of these days.” He paused and looked toward the door, as if it had a window through which he could see wh
at took place inside the station yard. “It was Mrs. Collins’s idea. She wanted you in clean clothes that didn’t smell of the corral. Since I knew you didn’t have clean shirt and pants, I decided you wearing the apron was preferable to you marching in there wearing nothing but your drawers. As soon as she’s gone, just hang it where you found it.” He ignored Jim’s snicker.
Tom grumbled as he shook his head. “Why’d you pick me to learn to cook?”
“Mental toss of the coin. You’re in charge of the kitchen while I’m gone. Jim will be in charge of the station. That shouldn’t mean much, since you both know what to do, and I don’t plan to be gone that long. Hopefully, that one private will pitch in again when it gets busy.”
Eustace turned to Jim. “Now, just in case we have unwanted visitors like Sunday, I’m leaving the Spencer repeater. I’m taking this," he patted the Ballard rifle, “and some ammo, just in case Charlie and our escort need back-up.”
Jim folded his arms and cocked one hip as he stared at Eustace. “Just how long do you plan to be gone?”
Eustace grunted and shook his head. “Like I told Mrs. Collins, with a little bit of luck, if they found a driver to cover for Isaac, I’ll be back here in three to five days.”
“And…” Tom waggled his eyebrows and grinned.
Eustace held up a finger and he lowered his voice. “Keep it down. Sound travels in this building. Not a word, you two, about anything that no one outside us three needs to know.”
Jim nudged Tom. “Come on. Let’s go get our dinner before Amos and Paul eat it all. I want to try some of Mrs. Collins’s biscuits in case the ones you made are harder than rocks.”
Eustace left his two men and almost ran to the stagecoach. He tossed his bag in the boot and climbed up into the center of the seat. Propping his Ballard rifle between his legs, he turned to Benny as soon as the driver settled on the bench. “Once we get out of the gate, I want you to turn the leads over to me. It’s time I learn to drive a four-in-hand team.”
Benny chuckled. “Don’t like being shown up by a woman driver, huh?”
Eustace glared at him. Exactly. “I was needed at the station, Benny.”
“Um-hum.”
Eustace gritted his teeth. He leaned back and exhaled. “I’ve driven carriages pulled by a pair, but my field hand drove the bigger farm wagons. It’s time I get some experience with larger teams, preferably when we’re not under attack by the Cheyenne.”
Wrinkling his forehead, Benny turned to Eustace. “You don’t think them Indians will come after us today, do you?”
Eustace shook his head. “From what you told me, they captured two horses off the patrol on Monday. Add that to what they got off the station and the fort Sunday, they’ll probably take what they have back to their people and strike somewhere different next time. If I’m wrong and they do show up, besides the escort patrol, you’ll have an extra rifleman to fight them off. This, I do know how to use.”
“All right. I’ll get you past this bend and pass the leads over. After we stop at Big Springs Station, you can sit where I am so you can get practice with the brake and the whip.”
.
.
.
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Chapter 21
~o0o~
Junction City, Kansas
July 21, 1866
A s the stagecoach approached Junction City, Eustace began to worry in earnest. They had not passed the other coach—the one Isaac usually drove. No one along the route had seen it.
During the stop at Chapman’s Creek, where Benny let him drive into the station itself and practice getting the team stopped at the right place, Eustace had climbed down out of the coach. He needed to stretch his legs as well as rest his fingers that, after a day and a half of driving coach, ached from not being used to holding leads that long. As soon as he came out of the necessary, one of the stock tenders cornered him.
“Still down a coach, I see. I was sort of hoping for that red-headed woman to come driving in here again. She sure was a sight to see.”
Eustace shook his head. “I doubt you’ll see her driving anytime soon. Her plans were to get Isaac to medical help and take her baby away from a dangerous situation.” And here I am, hoping I can convince Lorena to marry me and bring her baby to that same place. Yes, Eustace realized, he would bring the baby for Lorena. “I’m on my way to see how Isaac is doing.”
Benny drove the last few miles leading into Junction City. As Eustace followed him out of the driver’s box, he hoped he would learn how much farther he needed to travel to find Danny. When he saw Isaac’s coach parked on the far side of the property, his anxiety increased.
He approached the station manager, a man he vaguely recalled meeting on his way out to Ellsworth the previous September. “Eustace Cantrell from the Ellsworth Station, sir. Do you know how Isaac is doing and where I might find him?”
The man grinned wide. “The doctor released him yesterday afternoon. He and Caroline are staying in a room upstairs until he’s well enough to return to Atchison to finish recuperating.”
“Thank you. If you don’t mind, I’ll toss my things on a bunk with your stock tenders before I go up and see him.” Before Eustace had time to retrieve his bag from the back boot, he caught sight of Danny walking out of the station building. A wave of relief crashed through him.
Danny’s face widened in a grin as Eustace approached. “Good to see you, Eustace. Who’s minding the station?”
“Jim and Tom, plus a young private that would rather tend mules than stand watch looking for Cheyenne. Where is she?”
Danny’s smile twisted into a playful smirk. “Right to the point, aren’t you, Eustace? Not even wondering about Isaac?”
“The stationmaster just told me he’s upstairs. Is she well?”
Danny nodded. “I just came back from delivering mail. Speaking of which, I have a letter for you.”
Eustace studied Danny as he accepted the letter. “She’s that close? I told her to get as far away as she could.”
“She’s closer than you think.” Danny pointed to the paper. “Read the letter.”
The letter was from Roslyn, not Lorena. After reading a few lines, Eustace jerked his head up and met Danny’s gaze. “She and Elam married?” He looked back down at the words. “That was quick.”
“Doesn’t take long when you know what you want.”
Eustace ignored the comment and returned to reading the letter. He folded it and put it in his pocket. “She says she thinks Isaac plans to give up the station. She encouraged me not to wait and see if it is offered to me, but to apply for it. In spite of all the rudeness and grief I have given her, it almost seems like she is looking out for my best interests.”
“You’ve been rude and given grief to everyone, Eustace. To her, that was just you.”
Eustace shot Danny a glare. True, but you don’t have to rub it in. “Has Isaac said anything to you about the station?”
“Why don’t you ask him? Afterward, I’ll talk about the other.”
Eustace slowly nodded. “I will. I need to know where things stand before I do anything else.”
After he visited with Isaac, Eustace felt one burden lift. Still pale and with his features drawn, he looked much better than he had the night he was injured or the morning Eustace helped get him inside the stagecoach. It did not take long for Isaac to question why he was there instead of at the station.
“We have a situation, Isaac. The station has no cook. Before I decide how to resolve it, I need to know your plans. I know what you said last Sunday, but I won’t hold you to it, since you went through quite an ordeal and were in a lot of pain. I would like to know what your thoughts are now about your future.”
Isaac glanced at Caroline and shook his head. He turned his gaze back to Eustace. “Same as it was then. I’d like to drive a little longer, if my leg heals well enough that I can climb in and out of the driver’s box. Fortunately, that arrow didn’t hit my braking leg. As for the station, I’m re
ady to give it up. I’d rather settle Caroline at the other end of the line rather than wait until the railroad reaches Ellsworth and they disband the route between here and there. Until then, I plan to recommend they give you the position.”
They talked longer. Eustace stood to leave. “I ask one last thing of you, Isaac. I need to check on something first, but, until I find out what I need to know, please don’t submit your resignation for the station yet. Don’t take Elam off the payroll, either. I might end up asking for help from you both.”
Downstairs again, Eustace turned to Danny. “I’m ready.”
The pair walked a block.
Danny pointed to the livery across the street. “That’s where the Stewarts are living and working now. I guess the owner is in declining health, and Roslyn is taking care of both him and the livestock.” He studied Eustace. “If you’re putting in for a home station, does this mean you plan to marry?”
Eustace swallowed and scratched the side of his mouth. He dropped his hands to his sides, where he splayed his fingers and then closed them into fists. “I just want to talk to her first.” He turned to face Danny. “She’s a church-going woman at heart. She deserves better than me.”
Danny shrugged. “If you want her to have what she deserves, then, decide to be better. But only you can make that decision, Eustace.”
Eustace grunted and faced forward. Can’t be that easy. His thoughts went back to the night that he walked away and let Lorena sleep instead of insisting on her giving him what he paid for. That choice had not been easy, but he did it, because not sullying her was the right thing to do.
They walked another block, where they crossed the street and stood on the corner by a hotel building.
Danny nodded toward the hotel. “This is where we’re going.”
As they approached the entrance, a middle-aged woman wearing what Eustace guessed to be her best clothes, although he could see they were faded and worn, exited the building. She leaned her back against the outside wall between the door and front window. She pressed her fist to her lips as she stared across the street. Once they were within a few feet of her, Eustace saw the tears in her eyes before she turned her head so her bonnet hid them.