That last thing she wanted was to return to Oswego with failure trailing behind her. A fiasco, just as her mother-in-law had predicted. It would be the ultimate humiliation. She clenched her fists.
Then again, perhaps there was another choice. Gerritt had said men in Montana were desperate for wives. She cringed at the idea of getting married again, but if it meant carving out a new life for herself, perhaps she could find a suitable candidate.
She perched on the bed, put an elbow on her knee and balanced her chin in one hand. Who was she fooling? She’d already lost her heart to Professor Gerritt Rhinehart. No man would ever compare to him and yet he’d pushed her away today.
How could she convince him to let her stay? She pondered the question. He did confess he lusted after her. How could she use that?
Her carnal knowledge consisted of performing her wifely duties, as women referred to it, with her husband. They’d both been innocent in the marriage bed and Eli had never demonstrated much imagination. It was after she’d become a widow that the things she overheard discussed amongst married woman suggested there was more to the sexual act than lying down, spreading your legs and waiting for your husband to finish.
And a marriage manual she’d found hidden in the Worthington house proved to be most illuminating. There were even diagrams that made her squirm when she read about positions that could be assumed for the mutual pleasure of a couple.
Even now the memory made her feminine parts throb. It had been a long time since a man had touched her intimately. There were things she wanted to try and discover about her body. She was anxious to try them with Gerritt, but if he sent her away, she’d never have the chance.
She had to figure out how to remain in Jubilee. She paced across the room several times. She paused and glanced in the mirror that hung above the dressing table. She pinched her cheeks to give her pale complexion some color then swiped a finger at several curls that had escaped from her chignon. She straightened the black bodice of her widow’s weeds.
She had a full month’s salary coming to her, and she intended to remind Gerritt of that. She’d also bargain for enough time here in Jubilee to apply for another position. He at least owed her that much consideration.
She puckered her lips and tried to put a flirtatious look on her face. She grimaced at her reflection. That wouldn’t work. She simply didn’t have the skills to ply any feminine wiles on a man. She’d have to resort to a logical argument.
Fortunately, logic might be a much better weapon to use against Professor Rhinehart than flirting.
Chapter Eight
A Shot at Success
Gerritt stood as she entered the dining room. A slight smile and a nod of his head welcomed her, but his good manners couldn’t erase the wariness in his eyes.
Did he expect her to burst into tears at the dinner table? She’d need to prove to him she wasn’t the hysterical female he expected to encounter this evening. She settled into the chair he held out for her and waited for him to be seated across from her.
She wanted to keep her gaze focused on the plate and tablecloth. She wanted to avoid watching his reaction. She lifted her head and did what she wished she could avoid.
“I need to apologize for my rather abrupt departure from your office this afternoon. I should not have reacted the way I did, and I certainly should never have called you a name.”
He frowned at her but didn’t interrupt. He was probably enjoying this too much.
“It was unprofessional of me. If you are dissatisfied with my services, you have every right to terminate my employment.”
Gerritt jerked back at her words and dropped his fork on the china plate. “I am not terminating your employment, and I am satisfied—I mean, with the job you are doing—which is good.” He reached for his glass of wine and took a gulp. “I’m not terminating your employment. I just think it would be better for you to move down to Jubilee, into Mrs. McCauley’s boarding house for a while.”
Prudence’s heart leaped in her chest. He wasn’t sending her away? He was just asking her to move out of the house. She still had her job and she fought the urge to jump out of the chair and dance a jig.
“Moving to town? That’s what you were talking about this afternoon?”
He stared at her. “Of course, what did you think?” He frowned again, a deep crease marring the perfection of his high forehead. “Did you think I planned to send you back East? Is that why you were so upset?”
Light dawned in his eyes like a Montana sunrise. “No wonder you called me a name. You thought I was unhappy with your work.” He leaned back in his chair to give her a long pondering look.
“Prudence, nothing could be further from the truth. Even in the short time you’ve been here I can see a difference in the organization of my papers and office.” He gave her a sheepish look. “Although I confess, you might discover I’ve undone some of your hard work again today riffling through the files.” He picked up his fork. “I was searching for a new design I’ve been working on, something like an air balloon. You might have seen it?”
She drummed her fingers on the table. “I believe there was a design like that on the bottom shelf of the cupboard. I put all of your unfinished designs and diagrams that didn’t fit into the file cabinet there.” She started to get up. “I could go and find it right now.”
Gerritt shook his head. “There’s no need. We can look after dinner.” He glanced at his plate, avoiding eye contact for a brief moment. “And I’m sorry I wasn’t clear about my decision.” He looked at her, his eyes telegraphed his dejection. “I owe you an apology.”
Prudence didn’t move a muscle. She was so humiliated about her outburst in his office. She should have let him explain what he’d planned but she was so sure he was sending her back east, she wouldn’t even listen to him.
And she knew it was more than her fear of returning to her home and facing failure. She didn’t want to leave her position, she didn’t want to leave Montana…and she didn’t want to leave Gerritt.
Alma entered the room with a platter filled with slices of roast beef, potatoes, carrots and small chunks of fennel that smelled wonderful to Prudence. She’d missed her afternoon coffee break and her stomach grumbled at the enticing aroma of the food
“Nice to see you made it down for dinner,” Alma said to Prudence, ignoring Gerritt.
“I’m feeling much better Alma, now that the professor has informed me he intends to send me to Jubilee and not terminate my employment.”
“Humph,” the housekeeper responded, giving Gerritt a disgusted look. “I’ll bring the bread out.”
Prudence stared after her. She turned back to Gerritt to see him sawing at a slice of roast beef as if it was a pine log. “Do I detect that Mrs. Faraday is a bit miffed with you?”
Gerritt handed the platter of meat and vegetables to Prudence. “Alma has no problem expressing any of her opinions. Today she pretty much told me I’m an idiot.”
Prudence couldn’t help laughing out loud.
His face darkened. She didn’t care.
“Named a coward and idiot in the same day. I’m surprised you put up with so much insubordination from your employees, Professor.”
“Good help is hard to find, so I must be patient…even when my employees push me to the limits of my good nature.”
Prudence laughed again and a smile broke across his face.
“I’m willing to move, as you suggest, but I want you to know that I won’t feel any safer in town than I do here with you,” she said.
Gerritt set his knife and fork on his plate. “I can’t guarantee your safety any place. But I have to believe if someone is searching for the plans I’m working on, they might target you as long as you’re in the house.”
“So if they believe I know about these plans, how will moving make me safer?”
“Now you sound like Alma.” Gerritt took another sip of wine.
“It appears you’re stuck with two outspoken, logical females d
estined to try your patience on a regular basis.”
“I’m cursed,” he responded but a smile dimpled the edges of his cheeks.
He leaned toward her. “I’m afraid someone might come into the house in search of the plans. If you’re here, it puts you in danger. There are a lot more people in town and that means more witnesses if you are harassed.”
“Do you think I’ll be harassed? Or even attacked?” She twisted the stem of the fine crystal glass in her fingers. Her mouth tasted sour and dry despite the sweetness of the wine.
“I don’t know, but I’d rest a lot easier if you were out of the house at night. In the daytime, there will be two of us here to protect you.”
“Two of you?” Prudence was confused.
“Alma’s a crack shot. Even at her age I have no doubt she could shoot the eye out of a rattler from fifty paces.” He looked a bit sheepish. “I’m not afraid to confess I’m a bit terrified of her. She took care of three sons and a ranch for ten years after her husband died. That woman is a legend in these parts. There aren’t too many men willing to mess with her.”
Prudence was shocked. She’d never heard of a woman who could shoot a gun as good as a man. From the sound of things, maybe even better. A plan began to form in her mind.
“Do you think Alma would teach me to shoot a gun? Then I wouldn’t be as frightened about... everything.”
He refilled his wine glass and stared into the ruby depths as he seemed to be considering her question. “I’m not sure how I feel about you being armed, but it’s your decision. I doubt Alma would be the most patient of teachers but she’d be a damned good firearms instructor.”
The topic of their discussion swung into the room at that moment. Prudence mustered all her courage to ask the older woman. “We were just talking about you,” Prudence said.
“I guess that’s why my ears was burnin’,” replied Alma. She smiled at Prudence.
“I’d like to learn to shoot a gun.” Prudence watched for the housekeeper’s reaction. “The professor tells me you’re an excellent shot.”
Alma set a loaf of bread on the table. It filled the room with a delightful yeasty smell. She didn’t say anything for a few moments. Then she nodded. “I’m a fair shot with the rifle and a damned good shot with a revolver. Which one you aimin’ to learn to shoot?”
Prudence had never considered such a question before. The men in her family were the hunters. Women were taught to cook, sew, mend clothes, take care of the gardens and mind the children when they came along. Prudence didn’t think she knew a single woman who could shoot a gun well enough to hit anything.
A shiver of excitement shimmied up her spine. She wanted to learn things that put her at the edge of “lady like” behavior. She wanted to challenge society’s foolish rules for her sex. She wanted to be a rebel and flout those rules for a well-behaved woman. She’d tried to live her life within the strict limits of what was acceptable for a woman and paid a price for her acquiescence.
Seeking approval had earned her poverty, loneliness and ridicule. Alma Faraday was clearly a woman who had created her own rules and Prudence admired her for it.
“Both”, she said. “If that’s acceptable to you.”
Alma shrugged. “Might be I’m not a good teacher, or might be you’re a poor student, but we can give it a try.” She grinned at Prudence and headed back to the kitchen.
“That’s encouraging,” Gerritt said, raising his eyebrows in Prudence’s direction. “Either she’s a terrible teacher or you’re a terrible student. I can’t wait to see which one of you wins that contest.”
They both dissolved into laughter.
***
Clutching blueprints, Gerritt paced around the table. Meeting in the equipment shed at the edge of his mine insured privacy for this late night briefing. “If we build this, we’ll need a barn that’s at least twenty feet tall and sixty feet long. How are we going to build something like that without the whole damned town noticing?”
Simon Faherty studied his boots settled on the edge of the table. “Do you think we could use the old stamp mill up at Silver Creek?”
“That might be possible. “Gerritt stopped pacing and slapped the blueprints on the table. He leaned over to study them. “That’s actually quite brilliant, Simon.”
Simon slipped his feet off the table and picked up his glass of whiskey. “That’s what I’m here for, Professor, to give you brilliant ideas.”
Grinning, Gerritt settled into the chair opposite the other man. “Your mood has been sour this evening, are your teaching responsibilities rubbing you the wrong way?”
Simon snorted and finished the shot of whiskey, then grabbed the bottle to refill his glass.
“I don’t mind the children, because they’re good kids, at least most of them. But the parents—that’s—a different story. I swear if I see bruises one more time on little Tommy Franklin’s face, I’m going to go beat the shit out of his brute of a father.”
“The man works for me at the mine,” Gerritt said, frowning. “I’ll have Heisman take him aside and give him a warning. If he values his job, he’ll lay off smacking the little guy.” He shook his head, “Hurting a child, with your fists or your words, still confounds me. It’s so cruel.”
“He’ll lay off if I go over there and give him a dose of his own medicine too.” Simon twirled the glass in his fingers. “Nothing I hate more than a bully. Especially one who chooses to hit someone smaller and less capable of defending himself.”
“Did you speak to his mother? Grace seems like a reasonable woman.”
Simon stared down at the golden brown liquid in his glass. “She’s terrified of her husband too, that much is apparent. She begged me not to talk about it again or both she and Tommy would get another beating.” His hands formed fists. “Before I return to the Capital, that man is going to pay for his brutality.”
“I’ll see what I can do. The School Board might frown on their teacher beating the parents.”
Simon shrugged and gazed at the ceiling. “This assignment is going all to hell anyway. Did that little secretary of yours discover the blueprints in your office?”
He’d arranged to meet Simon in the small mining shed to discuss his newest project. Not that the two men meeting to have a few drinks together was going to cause anyone to take notice. They’d used the pretense of friendship to cover their planning. It wasn’t pretense anymore they respected and liked each other.
“I locked Prudence out after the Mecho went crazy and tried to kill her. I tore the room apart searching for the blueprints and couldn’t find them. Then she told me where they were and found them immediately.” He took another swig of whiskey.
“I’ve decided to move her down to Mrs. McCauley’s place for a while. Her living up at the house has put her in too much danger.”
“You aren’t afraid of putting her in the cuckoo’s nest with me?” Simon leaned back and put his hands behind his head. “She’s a sweet little thing. I might do some courtin’ since she’ll be so nice and close now.”
Gerritt slammed his glass on the table. “If you lay a finger on that fine lady, or mesmerize her with any of your effusive charm, I’ll have you sent back to Washington faster than you can draw your gun.”
“That’s pretty damned fast. Besides, if the ladies find me charming, I can’t help that, can I?” Simon gave Gerritt a lazy grin and shrugged.
Anger pulsed through Gerritt’s body. The muscle in the side of his face throbbed and he swore his vision was going as red as hot coals glowing in a fire.
“Mrs. Worthington is moving into the boarding house for her safety, not to be seduced by the likes of you!”
“I’ve got better things to do than seduce your woman, Gerritt. But you need to keep your mind on this project, because a lot is on the line.” Simon stood, picked up his wide-brimmed felt hat and settled it on his head. “We need to find a way to build the Isis, and if the little widow is distracting you from the mission, then you shoul
d send her farther away than the local boarding house.”
With that Simon turned his back and marched out of the room. The sound of the door slamming behind him echoed for what seemed like a few minutes.
Gerritt pushed the bottle of whiskey to the side as he studied the blueprints.
The sky ship, Isis, was a dream that had become a plan and now was his obsession. He’d convinced several generals and congressmen in Washington it could be built. It would be a prototype for a fleet of sky ships that would move troops and supplies from one location to another quickly and with a minimum of cost. It could also be armed, which would make it a lethal weapon that could sweep down on the enemy from the air without warning.
Balloons were already being used to track troop movements and study the weather in the war. Since the discovery of huge deposits of helium in the West, it had become possible to consider creating a ship that would float in the air, powered by the gas and utilizing several small steam engines for maneuvering.
When Gerritt corresponded with a French inventor who claimed to have plans for a ship that would float through the sky, he’d purchased them. Now he was consumed by the idea of building his sky ship. He’d named the ship the Isis, for the Egyptian Goddess of magic, because if he could create a machine that would soar through the heavens, it would be as close to magic as he could imagine.
The Union didn’t trust him to maintain secrecy in order to build the sky ship. That had become apparent when Simon Faherty, a military man and spy for the government, arrived in his town. Simon was the most improbable school teacher he’d ever met.
But, Gerritt believed he could build the Isis. All he needed was time and a few of the right men. He’d think about what Simon suggested. The stamp mill had been used for a mine up at Silver Creek that had been played out for years. It was possible he’d have the perfect hiding place to build a prototype of the sky ship.
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