My Heart Belongs in Castle Gate, Utah

by Dicken, Angie;

  As they approached the crown of the hill, a group of miners appeared in front of them, nearing the mine.

  “I feel sorry for you, Alex. Why can’t a man follow his heart?” His brother ran his hand through his hair. “Perhaps I should have Maria talk to Papa—and Coffey?” He snickered but gave Alex a sympathetic look.

  “I cannot be with Leanna, even if I tried. It was a foolish attempt to find her.”

  “If I can prove Coffey started the fire, maybe there would be a way?” Yanni hooked his finger on his chin. “I’m already working on Papa.”

  “The wedding is in a month. What would you have me do?” Steam rose in Alex, as powerful as an engine on the rails. “Where would we go?”

  Yanni placed his hand on his shoulder. “You do not have to get married next month. It will not solve anything.”

  “That is where you are wrong.” He exhaled, releasing the rest of his anger. “Kara deserves a marriage. She left love behind in Greece for me. I cannot keep her a spinster for my own lost love. I will not let it ruin her.”

  “Alex Pappas. Always a man to come to the need of a poor woman, even at the cost of himself.” Yanni mocked on dangerous ground.

  “Do not bring up Helena,” he said in a threatening tone. “What’s done is done.” Yanni lurched forward to speak and Alex stopped him with a raised hand. “Enough, Brother. It is what it is. I will get married.”

  Tommy ran ahead, jingling coins in his fist. “Please, can we take the trolley?”

  “Very well,” Leanna said, hoping that the busyness of the city would distract her thoughts for a while. It was a fine day for an outing, the sunshine and fresh air were the perfect medicine to ground her to the present. After all, life back with the Pappas family was bitterly cold, at least the weather had been. She sighed. They walked through the neighborhood, and once they arrived at the corner, Tommy sprinted farther ahead.

  “Slow down, Tommy. It is not proper to run ahead of a lady like that.” She adjusted her hat and tucked her parasol under her arm. He ran back then walked beside her with exaggerated wide, slow strides. His blond hair shone white in the bright day. “Thank you, sir.” She smiled. An outing was just what the child needed after working so hard on his assignments.

  They arrived at the trolley stop just as one pulled up. Tommy scrambled up the steps first but turned around and held out his hand to help her up.

  “Thank you, gentleman,” she said, then followed him back to the seat of his choice. He offered her the window seat.

  “I want to watch the driver,” he said.

  “Ah, I see.” She slid into the seat.

  Tommy would not sit yet. He reached into his pockets then pressed his hand to his freckled forehead. “Oh, no,” he exclaimed. “I forgot.”

  “Forgot what?”

  “To place a penny on the rail.” He opened his hand and three shiny pennies gleamed. He crumpled into the seat.

  Leanna refrained from chuckling. “I am sorry.” She patted his knee and the trolley began to move. “I’ll do my best to remind you next time.”

  They sat in silence, Tommy peering out into the aisle with his back nearly turned to her. She watched through the window, enjoying the breeze that poured through the open-air trolley. Buildings and trees passed by, and busy pedestrians streamed past carriages and an occasional automobile. She was certain that her father had an automobile by now. They seemed to be the most prestigious thing among men these days.

  At least, men like her father.

  A familiar language snagged her attention to the back row of the trolley. Two Greek priests, with their tall round hats and bushy long beards, gabbed together. How had she not noticed them before?

  Her throat tightened, and she turned her attention to Tommy’s fingers tracing the coins in his palm. Tears sprung in her eyes. Even the sight of a strange priest not connected to Alex except by nationality caused her emotions to roll.

  “Mrs. McKee, is that my father’s hospital?” Tommy pointed to the window. A horse-drawn ambulance rushed down the drive to St. Mark’s Hospital.

  “It is.” She swiped away the moisture, chiding herself as she returned her attention to the outside world. Three nurses bustled to the stopped ambulance, their hands clutching stark white aprons that crisscrossed in the back. Two of the nurses wrote in a small book, while the other nurse assisted a man being lowered onto a stretcher.

  The trolley lulled at the hospital corner while several people shuffled on and off. Two young women hurried toward the nurses, spoke with them, then rushed inside as they took off their spring hats. No doubt exchanging their civilian attire for nursing frocks.

  Leanna searched the crowd for her friend Sally. She spotted her in the scene while the trolley paused. Another familiar woman poised studiously, taking notes with her posture noticeably perfected. Leanna leaned closer—yes, she was sure of it. It was Mildred, the pleasant nursing student she’d met at Bethany’s.

  Even from a distance, she had a spirit of cheerfulness amid her somber surroundings. Perhaps she did deserve Dr. Scott’s compliment, after all. She appeared eager and engaged.

  “There’s my father!” Tommy pointed again, his arm reaching across Leanna’s shoulder. She narrowed her eyes to spot Dr. Scott. He stood at the door where the men carried the stretcher inside. Mildred was swarmed by the crowd of nurses and students and injured men. But while most disappeared into the building, Dr. Scott had grasped one of the nurses by the elbow, holding her back from everyone. The nurse stepped back outside along the brick wall, and Dr. Scott remained slightly pressed against her with one hand on her elbow and his other arm around her waist.

  In a frantic motion, Leanna tossed her parasol to the floor and leaned forward, blocking the view from Tommy. “Give me my parasol, please.” Her voice shook.

  “But my father—should we go see him?” Tommy wiggled this way and that as he tried to get another look.

  “No. He is working. We will see him at home.”

  The boy relented and reached down to gather up her parasol. The trolley jerked forward, and Leanna whispered a grateful prayer that Tommy had missed the intimate gesture. Then she begged that when she looked back she would discover she had imagined it all.

  She whipped her head around to catch one last glimpse to be sure. Dr. Scott was twirling a curl that had been loosed from the bun beneath the nurse’s cap.

  Sally’s forgotten words buzzed in Leanna’s mind like angry bees. “The man is hardly cold—to some.”

  She could only see the back of his head, but the nurse was in plain view. The Scott’s sweet guest, Mildred, turned her flushed faced up to Bethany’s husband, beaming with rosy adoration.

  Leanna flung her parasol to the cushions of her bed.

  For an hour she had tried to convince herself that she had misconstrued the circumstance. But it was too obvious. Mildred’s improper affection had stirred up her memory of that cold December night when she found herself lost in the rich airs of James Alcott on the plain dance floor. No doubt Alex felt just as betrayed as he would have if he’d been her husband. They had both admitted their feelings for each other, yet how quickly she had considered another man when Alex was nothing but devoted.

  Had she been so heartless as to put Alex through that torture? The Coffeys had frightened her, and she was scared to love Alex, or at least show it.

  She had been a coward for good reason, though.

  But now, she would have a choice to be brave. Should she keep Dr. Scott’s secret or tell his wife and risk shattering the heart of her dear friend?

  Bethany’s call down the hallway pierced Leanna’s thoughts. Could she pretend to think on anything besides Dr. Scott’s horrific secret?

  Her stomach soured.

  How could that blasted Dr. Scott have such a hidden way about him? He was not only a coldhearted fiend but a bigger cheat than that Greek labor agent. Hot tears seared her eyes as she remembered discovering Jack’s wager. How betrayed she had felt. It took his death follo
wed by life alone in a coal town to find forgiveness for her husband. Betrayal was a powerful destroyer. Leanna feared that a man like Dr. Scott would hardly care to mend the broken trust with his wife.

  Bethany called once again.

  “Coming!” Leanna’s voice rang higher than usual. She hurried down the hall, hoping that a quick swipe at her eyes and a pinch of her cheeks would paint her healthy, not burdened.

  A stout figure stood in the parlor offering her fashionable hat to Bethany. A groan threatened to escape her. Mrs. Tilton was here. Leanna hesitated before entering but decided she must at least make an appearance, especially if Bethany summoned her twice.

  “Good afternoon, Mrs. Tilton.” Leanna offered her brightest smile.

  “Hello, Mrs. McKee.” She smiled without looking away from Bethany then followed her into the parlor.

  “Leanna, are you well? I rarely have to call you more than once.” Bethany gave a forceful laugh. She glanced at her mother from the corner of her eye. The tension was almost palpable between the mother and daughter. Leanna understood why Bethany might want an ally in the room.

  But today? If she only knew.

  She bit her lip. “I am well, Bethany,” she fibbed.

  Once they were all seated, Bethany began to pour tea without saying a word.

  “I’ve often admired Grandmother Bartlett’s tea service.” Mrs. Tilton eyed the teapot as her daughter carefully set it on the tray. “How are Tommy’s studies?”

  “Leanna has worked wonders,” Bethany was quick to say.

  “Wonders?” Her mother snorted and reluctantly settled her gaze on Leanna. In a hushed voice she said, “Well, he’s not a Greek, at least there’s that.” She raised her cup to her lips.

  Bethany rolled her eyes with more good nature than Leanna would have ever mustered up in the face of her own parents. The woman had abundant patience for those in her life who deserved much less.

  Mrs. Tilton lifted her eyebrows at Leanna as if she expected a response. “So, Mrs. McKee, do you have anything to say?”

  Both women waited for an answer with eyes cast in her direction. If she must sit there and bear such a tactless woman as Mrs. Tilton, she may as well ask a question she had so often wondered about. “Whatever happened to that restaurant on Main? It was scorched to a crisp last I saw it.” She took a sip of her tea. “At least it was Greek.” Her emphasis on the last word was a sharp weapon, one she couldn’t resist.

  Could this woman, or any of the arrogant miners back in Castle Gate, realize the danger in their prejudice?

  Mrs. Tilton paused before taking another sip. She then gulped, loudly. A sneer transformed her face, and she narrowed her eyes. “Funny you should mention that. It seems that you would know such things according to Mr. Pappas.”

  Her heart stopped. She nearly dropped her tea in her lap. What rumors had spread?

  “Good heavens, Mother. What do you mean?” Bethany exclaimed, shooting a knowing look at Leanna.

  “That Greek man visited Father the other day, insisting on obtaining your address.” Mrs. Tilton shook her head. “Did he really think your father would hand out your address to any old immigrant?” She swallowed a sip of tea. “He claimed that our tutor here was a good acquaintance of his family’s.” Mrs. Tilton scoffed.

  “I was a good friend. His niece and nephew were in my care just like Tommy is now—”

  “I believe it was their father, not their uncle, who inquired.” Mrs. Tilton fluttered her lashes and took another sip.

  “Oh,” Leanna murmured, flooding with embarrassment.

  “It is a good thing that it was not the uncle, wasn’t it, Mrs. McKee?” Mrs. Tilton glared at her. “Your interest in that man was quite known around town.”

  Leanna’s nerves shook with anger and humiliation. “Mrs. Tilton, I was a good friend of the family. The children—”

  “The children, the children. Yes. We know,” she snapped. “It doesn’t matter anyway. What’s done is done.”

  Yet so much was left undone it seemed. Why would Yanni search for her? Perhaps San Francisco was a safer place to be? Salt Lake City was proving to be a poor bandage to her easily affected heart.

  “Bothering a busy banker for an invitation to a wedding that you would have no time to attend. It just seems foolish for him to ignore—”

  Leanna’s cup tumbled from her fingers and spilled tea down the front of her dress. She popped up and dabbed at it with a napkin, not sure if she was soaking up anything. Her vision was blurred with tears.

  “Here, let me help you.” Bethany stood, blocking Mrs. Tilton from further view of Leanna’s face. “I will find out more. Go, now,” she barely whispered.

  Leanna rushed out of the room, down the hall, and threw herself on her bed.

  The wedding was soon. Penelope and that woman were most likely shopping like all brides-to-be and their families. She grabbed a handkerchief and wiped her eyes then opened her desk drawer. San Francisco seemed her only option. Surely the western town was more progressive. At least she didn’t know most anyone there—the bitter thread that attached her to women like Mrs. Tilton was much too easy to slice with her anger.

  A wild storm set off at the woman’s remarks about Greeks—it was nothing short of the ignorance of her parents or the many factory owners who took advantage of poor immigrants, driving them to work in hideous conditions, just like the papers reported.

  She was one woman. Not a sewing circle with political connections to make a difference. What could she do? She wanted so badly to fight the injustice, to prove the value of women like Mrs. Pappas and Penelope, and men like Yanni, and of course, Alex.

  “Darkness is but ignorance.”

  And the darkness snuffed her out. And she let it. Mrs. Tilton only reminded Leanna of her cowardice.

  “May I come in?” Bethany peered into her room through the ajar door. She did not wait for an answer but sailed through the room and sat right next to her on the bed.

  “I apologize if I’ve put you in a tight spot.” Leanna sucked in a jagged breath.

  “Don’t worry about her.” Bethany patted her knee.

  “I thought I was at peace with it all. Perhaps, Castle Gate is not far enough—”

  “If you love him as I love Dr. Scott, then you would give up everything for him no matter society’s cost.” Bethany’s words were quiet but seeped in conviction. She had given up her own religion to follow Dr. Scott. If only to be deceived. An unbalanced price.

  “Bethany—” Her throat twisted shut. How could she add to the sorrow of the day with such tragic news for her friend? She couldn’t. It would be selfish to push aside her problem and present a massive one for Bethany.

  “Yes?”

  “You are stronger than I am, to give up so much for love.” Leanna sniffed. “Besides, nothing would change if I went back.” Nothing, except finding out that Alex might be in love with his soon-to-be bride.

  Bethany sat in her usual spot at the simply laid dining table wearing a gorgeous dress of royal blue silk. Her face was aglow. Had Dr. Scott’s charming interlude on the back porch given his wife undue hope? Leanna ground her teeth, unable to eat her salad. The man gave more attention to his food than to his beautifully adorned wife.

  “I am famished,” he admitted as he tucked his napkin onto his lap and began to eat.

  Hurt glanced Bethany’s brow, and then she also ate, chattering between bites as always.

  Leanna refrained from yanking the man’s stiff collar to force him to pay attention. “Bethany, you look beautiful tonight,” she declared during a moment of silence.

  Bethany appeared startled by the compliment. She let out a giddy laugh. “Thank you, dear.”

  “Don’t you think so, Dr. Scott?” Leanna challenged.

  His wife gave her a quizzical look but then looked at Dr. Scott with expectancy. He stared at her for a moment, his face without emotion. He nodded and said, “Lovely.” When he looked down, his jaw flinched.

  If it came
with such ease for the guilty man to ignore his wife, Leanna doubted that he’d ever reveal his secret. There wasn’t an ounce of confession in his cold spirit.

  “The hospital is busier than usual,” Dr. Scott continued. “A cartful of miners came in.” He raised a fork to his mouth then stopped and shot Leanna a look. “Actually, they are from the mine at Castle Gate. Your neck of the woods.”

  Bethany slowed her utensils and gasped.

  “Oh?” Leanna swallowed hard, resisting to appear too eager. “Any serious injuries?”

  “A Greek has several broken bones, and the Japs have serious methane poisoning. Seems to be an all-out rescue mission down there. They say some of the miners are trapped. Don’t know who is alive. Our beds are full now. If we have any more men brought in, we may have to set up tents outside like we did for typhoid a couple of years ago.” Dr. Scott shook his head and continued eating. “What a mess.”

  She shot a panicked look at Bethany. “Which Greek man?” Her voice was barely audible, her breath trapped beneath the lace trim at her diaphragm.

  Dr. Scott was oblivious to her question as he began on his soup.

  “What is the name of the Greek, darling?” Bethany arched her brows. “Perhaps Leanna knows him. She did teach the Greek children for several months.”

  Leanna mouthed “thank you” to her dear friend.

  Dr. Scott shook his head. “I cannot recall.” He snapped a bite from his fork then cocked his head. “Those Greeks have the most horrendous names. Nick Georgio-something? I cannot remember.”

  Was it the same Nick who was Alex’s friend from the restaurant? He’d sat in front of the boardinghouse that day of their hike. A shudder went through her. The thought of that mine devouring more men frayed her nerves. Jack had been its last victim.

  Fear strangled her heart. Who was trapped that might need saving now? She’d lived three months without answers to her questions about the Pappas restaurant and Alex’s arranged betrothal. There was no doubt in her mind that she would never live fully without knowing if Alex was safe or—