by Amber Stokes
“I don’t know.”
“Well, go find out, man! Yer not being aggressive enough. That other fellow’s goin’ to waltz right in and steal yer girl. Believe me, I know. If ye don’t step in soon, yer goin’ to lose her.”
David stared at Myghal, wondering what sort of heartache was hidden beneath his jovial exterior. He didn’t sound bitter, only resigned.
“All right then. What do you suggest?”
“I thought ye’d never ask.” Myghal smiled again and headed over to another boardinghouse down the street. “That girl of yers seems awfully sweet on ya. She came to a saloon to search for ya, for goodness’ sake. Time for ye to show her some sweetness, too.”
David ran a hand through his hair, which seemed to be permanently darker due to the coal dust from the mine. “What are you talking about?”
Myghal walked over to a bush planted by the boardinghouse, covered in yellow flowers. “Yer in luck, me friend. The Cornish roses are in bloom in the heat of summer.” A look of pride crossed his face as he gazed down at the pastel flowers bathed in a soft butter color. “A group of us brought some seeds to plant where’er we settled in America. These little beauties remind us of our homeland.”
He picked one and handed it to David. “Take a few of these to yer lady. I guarantee her heart will be yours forever.”
Taking the small, delicate flower in his work-callused hand, David smiled in gratitude. These blooms weren’t blue like the sky, but they were yellow like the sunlight. It was a perfect gesture.
***
“Isn’t that David?” Annabelle asked as she rocked back and forth in the rocking chair on the porch.
Elizabeth squinted in the morning sunlight, surprised and pleased to see David walking toward the house. “That’s him!” She felt her face grow warm, although she blamed it on the sunlight slanting toward them.
A soft smile lit Annabelle’s features as she continued to sew one of Jacob’s shirts.
Standing, Elizabeth placed a hand over her eyes and waved with the other hand until she saw David wave back.
“He looks like a man with a purpose on his mind,” Annabelle observed, watching David’s approach. “Did I tell you that he came to visit while you were away?”
“No.” Elizabeth shook her head, a slight frown replacing her wide smile. She glanced back at Annabelle. “What did he say?”
“He just asked if you were here. He didn’t stay long. Although he did seem rather disappointed to discover you were gone.” Annabelle looked up with wide, innocent eyes, but the upturned corners of her mouth gave her away.
Elizabeth blushed again and turned back around to find David standing at the bottom of the steps.
“Good morning.” His smile was bright, and she returned it.
Noticing he was holding something behind his back, she felt her eyebrows rise as she asked, mischief saturating her tone, “What are you hidin’?”
A beautiful bouquet of little wild roses appeared. She gasped with delight. “Oh, David! Where did you find such lovely flowers out here in the desert?”
“You remember Myghal?”
“Yes?” Her eyebrows fell in uncertainty.
“Well, his countrymen brought the seeds here all the way from Cornwall.”
“They’re just lovely.” She clutched them close and looked down at them admiringly.
“I’m glad you like them.” Pleasure warmed his voice. It sent a thrill of joy through her to know that he wanted to make her happy.
“I love them! Annabelle…?” Turning to where Annabelle observed the scene from farther back on the porch, she saw that her sister-in-law anticipated the question.
“There should be a pitcher or vase somewhere in the cupboards. Might I see them before you bring them inside?”
Elizabeth handed the bouquet to Annabelle, touched by the look of child-like enchantment on her face. Some blond wisps fell forward as she bent over the bouquet, and Elizabeth marveled at the woman’s beauty. She reached a hand to her own hair, wondering how she appeared to others. To David. Shaking the self-centered thought away, she offered a smile when Annabelle handed the flowers back to her.
“They are absolutely wonderful.”
Elizabeth agreed. Rushing into the house, she found a vase and pumped some water into it. As she filled it, she considered—not for the first time—how Virginia City got such clear, delicious water so far away from a proper water source. Jacob had told her about the flume, how the water came from a lake above the grand Lake Tahoe. And something about a reverse siphon underground, which she sort of understood. The pressure from the incoming water pushed the rest of the water down and then up to where it was needed. The stories he told her about people he knew riding logs down the flume years ago were incredible. What a wild, curious place this was.
Once she had enough water in the vase, she set the roses in it, placed it on the table, and headed back out to David. He stood talking with Annabelle, but he stopped when he noticed she had returned. His smile made her think about the kiss they had shared, and shivers of awe swept through her.
“I was thinkin’ maybe we could take a walk, if you’d like.” If he only knew her thoughts, there’d be no hesitation in his offer.
“I’d love to.” Would she ever be able to stop smiling when she was around David?
“Have a good time,” Annabelle said as the two of them stepped down from the porch. Elizabeth waved to her and then set off beside David.
They weren’t far from the house before David asked, “Why didn’t ya tell me about the trip to the canyon?”
Her smile twisted into a grimace. “I was going to tell you. When I found you at the saloon, in fact. But I got…distracted. There was a lot I wanted to tell you, but it didn’t seem that important when we…ya know…”
David’s face turned red, and she placed a hand on his arm. “I didn’t mind. Being distracted, I mean.” Then, realizing she had been too bold, she quickly let go of his arm and stopped talking. Now she was certain her own face blossomed red, as well.
“I’m glad.” He grinned playfully. “I suppose I didn’t mind, either. You being distracted, I mean.”
“David!” She was mortified at where the conversation had gone. Was it possible to be mortified and happy at the same time? His laughter only served to warm her heart more.
As they stepped down onto C Street, though, she instantly sobered. “Can I ask you to do something for me?”
She sensed his eyes on her, studying her.
“Of course.” His words were certain, but his tone was hesitant. “Just don’t ask me to be friends with Joe.” When she turned a horrified gaze toward him, he chuckled. “I was just teasing.”
Taking a deep breath, she pointed to her brother’s store. “I don’t know what it could be, but there’s something I don’t know about my brother. Something important. Joe won’t tell me. His brother didn’t get the chance to tell me. And Annabelle would never say anything. Will you please find out for me? He’s my brother. I can’t stand to have this secret between us.”
David put a hand to her back as they navigated the crowded wooden sidewalk. After a while, he finally asked, “Are ya sure you want to know whatever it is your brother is hiding? Maybe there’s a good reason no one is willing to tell you. Maybe…” He took a deep breath and finished, “Maybe you should leave it alone.”
“He’s my brother! I know it’s something bad. I’m not that naïve. But I want to know. Please, won’t ya help me?”
Pausing outside Jacob’s store, they both looked in, to where Jacob was assisting several customers. “I don’t know, Liz.”
“Please.” Her whisper was a plea as she met his gaze.
A moment passed, and as she waited, she saw the compassion grow in his eyes. She knew before he gave his final answer that he had resolved to help her.
“All right. I’ll see what I can find out.”
“Thank you.” She smiled up at him and tucked her arm in his as they entered the store.<
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Chapter 13
Night pressed down on the hillside as Elizabeth sat on the steps of her brother’s porch. The sun was setting behind her. As it touched the tip of Sun Mountain, scattered clouds of red crept across her peripheral vision, sparks of fire fanning across the sky. The approaching darkness, less bold but far more consuming, sent a shudder down her spine.
Movement caught her eye just then, and she let out a gasp. “Joe, ya startled me!”
His gentle smile put her at ease, though, as he came and sat down next to her, clasping his hands around his knees. “Sorry. I guess ya didn’t see me comin’.”
She returned her gaze to the clouds. “No. I was distracted by the sky. Isn’t it strange tonight?”
He looked up at the lingering pink and shrugged. “Yeah.”
The following silence ate at her like the darkness. She wanted to ask him about her brother, wanted to pry out the knowledge he held so tightly in his grasp, far above her reach, like Amos holding something above his head when he was in a mood to tease her about her shortness. She wished she could forget about it, but whatever the problem was, it made her feel that her new friends and family were out of her reach, as well. She couldn’t ignore that.
Still, no words came as she turned to Joe. She knew he wouldn’t betray her brother. Or maybe he was trying to shield her. But she didn’t want to be barred from the truth. Didn’t he know that?
“What is it, Elizabeth?” He studied her, wary.
She huffed out a sigh and looked down at her feet, bound tightly in her boots as they rested on the lower step. Shaking her head, she said nothing.
“Are ya homesick?”
Perhaps in some ways she was, but she shook her head back and forth again. Homesickness was not her primary concern at the moment.
“I’m glad.”
Genuine warmth filled his voice, and she startled when he cupped her cheek with his strong hand and turned her face to his. Without hesitation, he pressed his lips to hers.
***
“I appreciate you coming with me.” David offered Myghal a tight smile as he walked down the slope toward Elizabeth’s brother’s home. His nerves were on edge, from more than just seeing his girl.
My girl. His smile turned true, and he pushed aside the uncertainty. He was just concerned the late visit might be taken the wrong way. “I only want to stop and say goodnight to Elizabeth, maybe let her know that I’m keeping my word.”
Myghal grinned as he ambled alongside David. “I see yer takin’ my advice. Ne’er let a day go by without seein’ her face, that’s me motto.”
David nodded, anticipation churning in his gut. They turned toward Jacob and Annabelle’s house as the stars slowly appeared, the moon nowhere in sight. As they approached, he noticed the silhouettes of two people on the porch.
Suddenly Myghal grabbed his arm.
“Perhaps we better pay ’er a visit tomorrow, my friend. Didn’t ya say there was a lot ye needed to do tonight?”
David made no reply. The sound of his own breathing and slowed heartbeat drowned out the other noises. His fists clenched at his sides, and in a flash his heart sped back to life. A red haze covered his vision, brighter than any remnants of the sunset.
Instead of running the rest of the way to the porch and pounding that no-good Joe into a bloody heap, as he wished to do, he spun around and headed farther down the mountainside. His little Liz had made her choice then.
“Where are ya goin’?”
The nimble Cornish man caught up with him, but David had nothing to say.
“C’mon, David. What’s say we go back to the boardin’house?”
David shrugged off the hand Myghal placed on his arm. “I have a promise to keep. I told her I would find out what her dad-blamed brother was up to, and I aim to do just that.”
“Perhaps another day? Ya didn’t tell her when ye would find out.”
David halted and stared into his friend’s worried gaze. “I’m not going back to sit and stew over this in the boardinghouse, all right? I’ve got to do something, and I might as well be doing this. If you’re not going to help me, then just leave me alone.”
“Maybe this is a big misunderstandin’. Ya don’t want to be doin’ somethin’ ye’ll later regret.” The wiry man spoke calmly, soothingly. His boyish face appeared much older tonight, with more lines around his light brown eyes that held an ancient knowing. “I know what trouble can be gotten into when yer hurtin’ o’er a woman…”
David’s heart twisted painfully, making him wonder if perhaps he did need to calm down and not charge headlong into disaster.
The thought flitted through his head in a moment’s time, the trail of its wings overtaken by that blood-red haze. He needed to do something. The last thing he wanted was to be alone with his thoughts. So he strode purposefully down to C Street, leaving his friend behind. He didn’t bother to glance back, knowing that Myghal stood where he left him, looking on helplessly.
That thought didn’t deter him from his mission, though. He patted the holster at his hip, making certain the revolver he had bought days ago was right by his side. Who knew what he would encounter this evening? Beyond the loss of his green-eyed forget-me-not…
Hot anger fueled David as he barged through the door of Jacob’s business. The man had to be somewhere close by, as Jacob supposedly worked all hours of the day and night. Darkness met David’s eyes, except for a glow coming from the back of the store.
He made his way slowly toward the faint light, every thought focused on finding the brother that had led Elizabeth to this hellish place. He could take his rage out on the man after he discovered whatever awful secret he was hiding.
An empty back room with only a cot in the corner and several boxes of supplies met his scouring gaze. But it was the door on the other side of the room, standing slightly ajar, which caught his attention. Opening it the rest of the way, he walked into a very short hallway lit by kerosene lamps, with several rooms off of it and a stairwell going down to a lower level.
Going down to D Street. Sporting Row.
He took a deep breath, finally putting the pieces together in his mind. Jacob’s store on C Street was the same building that housed a brothel on D Street. Only a town built on a hillside could manage something like that. He was certain Jacob owned both businesses. Flashes of the wealth evident in Jacob’s home ran through his mind—the fancy parlor, the chandelier, the blue cushions, the red carpeting. And with two businesses such as these, it was no wonder he was gone both day and night.
David stomped down the stairs. “Jacob! Come out here. I’ve got somethin’ to say to you.”
Jacob materialized from a room on the lower level, counting some bills in his hand. “Quit your shouting. You’ll disturb the other customers. I’ve got one open room, so show me the cash and I’ll show you in.” He glanced up then, and recognition flooded his eyes. Greenish-brown eyes, if the lamplight didn’t lie. A color not so different from Elizabeth’s. “Do I know you?”
“You should. I’m Elizabeth’s…” He hesitated. The emotion from moments before rushed over him, and he choked out, “Friend. I escorted her here because she was so desperate to leave her safe, decent home to come out and meet her brother. A brothel owner. Does Annabelle know about yer night job?”
Instead of the rage David expected his accusation to elicit, something like guilt shone in Jacob’s eyes. He somehow kept it hidden from his voice as he asked, “What do ya want?”
“Elizabeth sent me here, to find out what you’ve been hiding from her.” He glared at the man, watched him squirm under the scrutiny.
“Well, I guess you know now. Anything else I can do for you?” Jacob turned away, resignation and forced nonchalance mixing in his words. He slid behind the counter and filled a couple of glasses with what looked to be whiskey. “Have a drink.”
David stormed over to the man. “Don’t ya realize how this news will devastate Elizabeth? Your innocent little sister came to this godfors
aken place to meet you.”
Jacob faced David from behind the bar, his gaze hard, steely. The look punched David in the gut. Too much like Elizabeth’s eyes…
“I’ve done some things I’m not proud of. Haven’t we all? I’m providing for my wife the best way that I can. We could never live a normal life anyway.” Jacob gulped down a shot of the vile liquid.
David eyed the other glass cautiously. There was a sudden, strange urge inside him to wash down the craziness of the night with a shot of whiskey. Maybe it would help him forget. Before he could question himself, he downed the glass and set it down hard on the counter. “What do ya mean, you could never live a ‘normal life’?”
Jacob shook his head, his dark brown hair falling across his eyes. “Everyone in this town knows anyway, so you might as well know. Annabelle? She used to work here before I married her.”
David’s face reddened, and he downed another glass of whiskey that had somehow become full again while he was listening.
“No one respects her. So I give her the best life I can.” Jacob paused a moment, gaze vacant, before adding, “I love her.” Running a hand through his hair, he lifted his head and stung David with his stare. “I’ll not risk losing my money again. We’ll never be poor, if I can help it. She’ll never come back to this life, and I’m her only assurance of that.”
He cursed and continued pouring whiskey. David had no idea how many shots he drank while he listened to Jacob.
A soft hand on his arm startled him. A beautiful young woman with bright blond hair and a painted face gazed up at him, her expression sly, but with something deeper in her creek-clear eyes. He had the sensation he was diving in to rescue someone again…
“Hey, boy. You look like you could use some company tonight.” Her red dress was shocking, hitched up above her knees and cut far too low in the front. David tried to look away, but he found himself mesmerized, his gaze dipping beneath the waves of lace. Everything seemed hazy, and he couldn’t remember if he was dreaming or where he was.
“I know what it’s like to be cast aside. But we can make each other feel wanted tonight.” Her smile drew him, and he found himself smiling back.