“You came up here to get gold so you could marry?” she asked.
“Yes,” he replied curtly.
“That’s nice. I’m sure your fiancée is very appreciative.”
“How would you know that? You know nothing about her.”
“Well,” Alice sighed. “I can see by your hands you must be working incredibly hard. That’s all.” She stood up.
“I doubt she’d find my hands to her liking in this condition,” he remarked. He stood up and started into the woodland.
“How on earth did you ever find this place?” she asked as they walked from the trees into an open area.
In the center of the clearing sat a squat cabin, sturdily built with a stone chimney and an overhung roof. The area surrounding the lodge was packed smoothly. On one side was a small chicken coop and on the other a freshly dug garden. A stream ran just beyond the house where several boxes sat beside the water similar to the ones on the beach in town. Beyond the clearing was a tall pile of rocks and rows of firewood stacked neatly between supporting trees. Several fat chickens pecked in the yard and a thin wisp of smoke rose from the chimney.
Alice stopped and giggled quietly. Joseph turned and watched her, wondering what she found so amusing.
“Joseph this is beautiful!” she gasped. The homestead seemed so inviting, nestled away in the white birch and pine with the mountains misty and mauve beyond. “You must have worked incredibly hard.” She walked around the yard, looking around the cabin and examining the neatly notched logs of the building. “Your home puts the entire town of Tutchone to shame!”
Chapter Four
Joseph set the baggage down in the yard and looked around. Only two people other than himself had ever seen the property until now. He hadn’t built it to anyone’s specifications other than his own. It was what he thought he needed to survive and he kept it orderly for efficiency. He stopped and looked around, trying to see it through Alice’s eyes. Joseph was surprised that what had just looked to him like a place to live looked more inviting than he had ever realized.
“Thanks,” he grunted. He pushed open the door and held it open. “I guess you’ll want to see inside.”
Alice nodded and ventured into the cabin. She was immediately overcome with how warm the building felt. On one wall was a large stone fireplace which surrounded a metal woodstove unlike any she had ever seen. There were benches fashioned from split logs and a long table. On one end of the room was a large bed, piled high with plain muslin quilts. There was a sink, of sorts, but no pump of any kind.
She crossed the room and examined the unusual windows. Instead of glass panes, each frame was filled with canning jars, set on their sides and the spaces between them were chinked tightly with moss. They let in plenty of light and painted a distinctive view of the outside world. “Amazing,” she said softly.
Joseph watched her walk around inside the cabin, touching the walls and bending to see how the furniture was constructed. He noticed her appreciation and caught himself smiling for a moment, despite how uncomfortable he felt over the situation.
He left her alone while he retrieved her bags and took them inside, setting them on the table. Then he gathered several pails which he filled with fresh water at the creek.
“Your home is stunning, Joseph,” she said, turning to face him. “I’ve been inside many cabins and yours is especially nice.”
He scowled at the thought of her being in many cabins as she said, and considered what reason she may have had to visit them. “I’ll make something to eat. Here’s water if you need it.”
Alice thanked him and pulled fresh clothing from her bag. She sat on one of the benches and unhooked and removed her shoes unceremoniously. She lifted her skirt to remove her stockings, rolling the first one down over her thigh.
Joseph froze at the sight of her bare leg. He had never in his life seen a woman undress, and certainly never so boldly in front of him. He cleared his throat.
“Oh my,” Alice sighed. “No wonder my feet hurt so terribly. I’m sure those shoes have never worked that hard. She pointed her toe, her foot a bright pink and looked up at him comfortably. “Joseph?” His expression confused her. “What’s wrong?”
He stood silent for a moment. “I’m going outside until you are finished.” He turned suddenly, leaving the cabin and closing the door behind him.
Alice frowned and removed the other stocking, rinsed her face, hands and feet in the cool water and took off her dress. She removed the underwear she had worn, now damp with perspiration, and chose lighter undergarments and a fresh calico dress in a soft, butter yellow. She removed the pins from her hair carefully, put them into a small metal case and shook her head, letting her hair fall free to her waist. The heat of the day had completely uncoiled her carefully coifed curls she noticed in her hand mirror. She returned her things neatly to her luggage, rolling her soiled clothing in a tight bundle.
Alice was pacing the cabin in her bare feet when it occurred to her that Joseph might have been waiting until she was finished. She opened the door and stepped outside. The cool clay earth felt refreshing on the soles of her feet.
“I’m finished,” she announced cheerfully, swinging her arms at her sides. She saw him peering into the box beside the stream and sauntered over. “What is this? I saw some like this down at the beach.” She smiled up at him.
Joseph straightened his back. He looked down at her bare feet and frowned and then up at her face. Surprised at the transformation, he studied her face. No longer dressed in the elaborate clothing, she looked fresh and casual and he noticed that she was already beginning to freckle from the bright sunlight.
“You’re going to need a hat,” he remarked stiffly.
“Does my hair look that bad? I didn’t think I needed a bonnet out here.” She looked around the isolated clearing.
“For the sun,” he said.
“I don’t know if I have anything like that,” she said. “I’m sure I’m fine.”
“Wait here,” he crossed the yard to the cabin and returned with a broad brimmed black hat. He handed to her brusquely.
Alice set the hat on her head and smiled up at him. “Thanks!” She curtsied and giggled.
Joseph fought to maintain his aggravated mood, but she looked so friendly and adorable in the big hat that he felt a little captivated by her beauty and casual charm. “I got it from an Amish farmer, a neighbor of mine back home,” he remarked.
“I will take very good care of it,” she smiled. “What is this?” She peered down into the box.
“It’s called a sluice box,” he said. “It separates the gold from the rocks and soil quicker than panning.”
“I don’t even know what panning is,” Alice admitted.
“Here, I’ll show you.” He pulled a pan and a short shovel from beside the structure and directed her to the creek.
Alice stepped alongside him as he squatted down and she pulled her skirt up to her knees.
Joseph tried to concentrate on his demonstration. “You find a spot where you think the gold might have been caught as the water runs downstream.”
“Like there?” She pointed to a spot thick with grass and roots.
“Fine,” he said and walked over to the spot. “First you get a shovel full of dirt to put in the pan.”
“Oh, let me,” she offered, stepping into the shallow water and shoving the tool in alongside the roots. She lifted half a shovel full and emptied it into the pan.
“Aren’t your feet cold?” he asked.
“It feels wonderful. They’re so hot from the walk.” Joseph was further convinced that she had no decency at all.
He explained, as he took the largest of the stones out of the pan, how to swirl the water over the sand. He moved the pan methodically, rinsing away all but the heaviest of the gravel and black sand.
“Gold is heavy and will sink to the bottom of the pan,” he said. “The black sand is iron and also will sink. That’s where you look for the gold.” He
tilted the pan to catch the sunlight, but nothing sparkled.
“Can I try?” Alice asked enthusiastically.
He handed her the pan. “Be my guest.”
Alice took the pan and the shovel, tucked her skirt into her waistband and walked downstream several feet past the clearing to where she saw a small swirling pool. She set the pan down in the water and filled the shovel.
Joseph squatted down beside her, coaching her as she panned, instructing her to swirl the pan in less of a circle and more like the shape of an ellipse, or an egg. Alice rinsed and swayed the pan until it was nearly empty, turned it around, stood up and held it up to the sunlight.
“Oh look!” she exclaimed. “That’s gold, right?”
Joseph picked up the small particle and dropped it into the palm of his hand. “Nice,” he remarked.
“Is it any good?”
“Yeah, good sized too.”
“Enough for a couple of days’ rent?” She grinned.
Joseph frowned and nodded his head.
“So if the sluice box works better maybe we should get some of the mud from here and put it in there.” Alice suggested.
They worked for several hours, Joseph shoveling in the gravel and Alice rinsing it down in the sluice box. The box worked like a ramp, with ridges to catch the stones so that the heavier gold separated from the sand. It stood on four legs like an angled table and the dirt and rock were added to the top. Over the afternoon they found a dozen small nuggets and Joseph complimented Alice on her selection of locations along the creek. He set the pieces into the pan in the sunlight and Alice looked at them curiously.
“A few more and you can fill a tooth!” she laughed.
Joseph looked up at her and shook his head. “Very funny.”
“How many of these do you have to find to get married?” she asked.
“A lot more.” He picked up the pan and carried it into the house.
“So this is what you do up here all day?” Alice followed him into the house.
“I need to put this away,” he remarked.
“Sure, go ahead.”
He stood looking at her.
“Oh, I see. You want to hide it from me. You know, Joseph, if I wanted those little rocks I could have just tucked them into my camisole or something. It’s not like you’d go looking for them,” she laughed.
Joseph glared at her and Alice walked outside. She strolled along the creek for several minutes until she found an old campfire pit and poked at it with a stick. The earth had been scorched leaving a deep melted spot in the frost and soil and she shoved her stick hard into it. In the sunlight she thought she saw a twinkle and she squatted down and began to pry at the dirt. Up popped a nugget, the size of a bean, and she hurried over to rinse it clean in the creek. Taking note of exactly where she had found it, she covered the spot and strolled back to the cabin.
“Do you own all of the gold on your property?” she asked casually.
“Claim. I had to file a title and stake out the property. It’s called a claim.”
“So that gold I found in the pan is yours even if I’m the one who found it?”
“Yes.” He looked at her curiously, wondering why she seemed to be baiting him.
“Then I guess this is yours.” Alice held out her closed fist and waited for him to put out his hand.
When he opened his palm she dropped the nugget into it.
“Where did you get this?”
“Up the way. Nice one, isn’t it?”
“Show me.”
“On one condition.” She put her hands on her hips.
“What?” He made no effort to hide his agitation.
“That you get over the suspicion that I came to rob you or something. You’re helping me and I really appreciate that. I’m sorry that it’s so inconvenient, but really, I mean no harm. I’m not that way. If I wanted to steal from you I would have hidden that. There’s another. I saw it.”
“That proves nothing.”
“Okay,” she walked away and he followed behind her. “Until you trust me this is going to be a problem. I could kill you in your sleep, steal your chickens and even throw rocks through those amazing windows. Why,” she turned to face him. “I could take my stockings off in front of you and mesmerize you into just giving it all away to me. But honestly, I am not that way.”
Joseph puckered his lips and considered what she was saying. “You could do all of those things, or you could show me where you got this rock.”
“Alright.” She led him out of the cabin to where she had found the scorched earth.
Joseph pushed the shovel into the earth and turned over the clay. Two more good sized nuggets fell from the pile.
“Are you rich now?” she asked. “If I’m going to rob you I suppose I ought to wait until I’m sure you’re rich.”
Joseph looked up at her from over his shoulder and smiled broadly.
“Oh, you’re happy!” She clapped. “Well, by all means dig more because you are almost handsome when you smile!”
Joseph shuffled through the pile of stones, turned two more shovels and produced several more large nuggets.
“If this keeps up I will be going home in style!” he hollered. “And so will you!” He nodded to her in appreciation. “Maybe you can get a different kind of job.”
Alice took a deep breath, then walked towards the cabin, obviously upset.
Joseph watched her in her bare feet and he felt confused. To his mind, a way out of prostitution seemed to be a great opportunity for her. He rinsed the nuggets carefully and slipped them into a pouch in his pocket.
When he returned to the cabin she was sitting quietly on the bench inside.
“I can cook if you like,” she said quietly.
Chapter Five
Alice set the tin plate down in front of him and waited. He had smelled the stew cooking while he put away his tools and gathered the chickens back into their pen. He had to admit that it smelled delicious, but the real test was in the tasting.
He shoved his fork into a hunk of meat and put it into his mouth, biting down slowly.
“It’s good,” he smiled. “Very good.”
Alice sat across from him and began to eat. “If you have flour I can bake as well.”
“I didn’t expect you to be a very good cook,” he remarked offhandedly.
“Why not?”
“Because…” He stopped mid-sentence.
“Because I’m a whore?”
“I didn’t say that,” he swallowed.
“Not yet. You should, Joseph. You should say what you think. You’re the one uncomfortable with it.”
“I didn’t want to insult you.”
“You don’t know anything about it. You only know the nasty secret things that boys talk about in dirty alleyways.”
“Alright, then you tell me.” He looked up at her. “You tell me what it means to you. I’d like to hear it.”
“You want to know? Really?” She took another bite.
“Go ahead.”
“Do you know how many men come to see women like me? Men that really need a woman? Plenty.
“Your little fiancée probably never let you kiss her. Oh maybe a little peck on the cheek. You think you’re going to do all of this work for her and when you go home you can marry her and she’s just going to lay back and let you have her.”
“Hey!” he snapped. “That is none of your business.”
“No, Joseph. That is exactly my business. I can tell you what will happen, not every time, but far too many times. In a year or maybe a little longer you’re going to tire of her disdain every time you touch her. You’ll give her everything you can think of to make her happy, and she’ll seem happy, but she still won’t want your hands on her.
“One day you’ll think how life is too short and that it would be nice to have a woman open her arms to you. To have a woman who’s not afraid of your hands on her breasts, to have you inside of her.”
Joseph squirmed on th
e bench.
“That’s my business. I don’t care if you didn’t get the promotion at the bank or if you’re handy or not around the house. I’m not going to use sex as a weapon or to bribe you. You come to see me and I will be glad to have you. I’ll listen to your worries and not expect you to perform amazingly or be a fantastic lover. In fact, if you come to me I’ll take the time to be patient with you if things happen too quickly, or not at all.”
He sat quietly, taking a deep breath.
“I know, Joseph. I bet you never in your life had a woman talk to you about the things that men worry about. It’s because you never came to someone like me. Right now you’re young and ambitious with the carrot dangling in front of you, in a bridal gown, of course. I expect that every part of you works very well, at least when you’re alone and there’s no pressure. I even think that buried somewhere beneath that beard there’s a really handsome man. You’re lucky. That’s not true for many men.
“I make them happy and relaxed. They can go home and not pressure their wives any longer. Maybe they won’t leave them while they look for love and I imagine not raise a fist as often. That’s my business.”
She was certainly right about one thing, he thought. He had never heard such things come out of the mouth of a woman.
“When I was young, the first time someone called me the bastard child of a whore I went home and asked my mama what it meant. She told me that she had no idea who my father was, but that it didn’t matter. She explained what she thought it meant to be a prostitute. Some women get on their hands and knees and scrub. Some stand beside a stove all day and cook. She had sex with men. It was a way to earn a living like any other. It’s not making love. It’s work. She told me that you could be a good cook, a great cleaner, a wonderful bookkeeper or a talented prostitute.”
Joseph looked at her open expression. He had never imagined considering her point of view, but it didn’t make him any less uncomfortable. “A lot of people think sex should be private.”
“No, they think that you have to be in love. That’s different.”
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