He stood to his feet and shoved his hands into his pockets, considering what question he most wanted to ask.
“How did you make the smoke appear last night?”
“That’s a very good question.” Alex knew one of the students would ask about it and held no amount of surprise it ended up being Tom. The boy loved to learn how things worked even though he could write the most beautiful essays she’d ever read. “Smoke can be created using any number of properties, such as gunpowder. The smoke last night came from a chemical mixture that all good magicians know.”
Hurriedly scribbling something on Tom’s slate, she walked it back to him and gave him a wink as he read the note that said, “I’ll share the details with you later.”
He grinned and settled back in his seat.
“Mary, you guessed the next closest number, what question would you like to ask.”
Alex answered the next three questions. Mary inquired if all magicians wore such beautiful costumes. Alice asked if Alex could make her brother, Percy, disappear for good, earning a scathing glare from the boy. Ralph questioned how long it took her to master all the tricks she performed.
“Anna Jenkins, you get to ask the final question.” Alex smiled tenderly at the sweet little girl.
“Are you gonna marry Mr. Guthry and stay here as our teacher?”
Regretful that she didn’t limit the questions to something pertaining to magic, Alex bit her lip then forced a smile to her face.
“I’m not planning to marry Mr. Guthry or anyone else. Your teacher, Miss Bevins, will be back when you return to school after the holidays. Won’t that be fun?”
Alex gazed around the room. Disappointed stares met the hopeful look she cast out.
Anna sniffled and brushed at a tear that rolled down her cheek. “Please, Miss Alex? Won’t you stay? Even if you don’t marry Mr. Guthry, won’t you still be our teacher? We love you and don’t want you to leave.”
For the first time in a long while, Alex thought she might succumb to her tears. She rolled her eyes to the ceiling and took a deep breath before pasting on a smile. “I love you all, too, but I can’t stay. It wouldn’t be fair to Miss Bevins. This is her school and you are her students, although I shall miss you all terribly when I leave. I promise I’ll never, ever, ever forget any of you. You’ll always and forever be very special to me.”
Several of the girls wiped at their tears and emotion charged the room. In need of a distraction, Alex went to the blackboard and erased the assignments she’d written.
“There are too many sad faces for such a happy time of year. A little fun might cheer us right up. I want each of you to tell me your favorite word. I’ll write them on the board and then we’ll make up a story. How does that sound?”
The students began to appear interested instead of despondent. Alex started with the youngest child in the room and worked her way back to Tom Grove, who was the oldest.
“Tom, what word do you choose?”
“Prestidigitation.” The boy grinned broadly as he said the word.
Alex smiled as she wrote it on the board with a flourish.
They spent the next hour making up silly stories with the words. To incorporate a little learning with the fun, Alex had the students provide the definitions and how the words could be used in sentences.
From there, the day passed quickly. An hour before she normally dismissed the students, she asked them to push their desks against the walls and sit in a circle on the floor.
After taking a basket from beneath her desk, she passed out cookies Filly had sent for the children. As they sat enjoying the treat, she told them a story about a man traveling from a far away land to a new country, how he raised four daughters and one son, and the son raised a daughter who kept her grandfather’s secrets alive.
While she told the story, she did several sleight of hand tricks with coins, pieces of candy, and a few small toys.
When she finished, each child had received a small gift, staring at her enraptured with the tale.
“How does the story end, Miss Alex?” Percy asked as he clutched a dime in his fist.
She smiled. “I don’t know yet, Percy. I hope I have many years to write a good finish.” The younger students missed the meaning behind her words, but the older ones grinned. “Now, off with you all. I’m sure I’ll see some of you tonight in town, and the rest of you, I’ll see at the carnival tomorrow!”
The students jumped to their feet, jerked on their coats and rushed out into the chilly afternoon, proudly carrying their newly gifted treasures.
Tom stayed behind and helped her put the desks back into place. While she cleaned the classroom, he practiced the simple tricks she’d taught him.
He pulled on his coat and started to leave, but she stopped him before he went out the door.
“I almost forgot, Tom. Smoke can be made with this.” She handed him a piece of paper with detailed directions. “Just promise you’ll never use that at school or to scare the cows at home.”
The boy laughed as he stuck the folded paper in his pocket. “I promise, Miss Alex. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Tom. Thank you for being such a good student. It’s been a pleasure to be your teacher.”
Solemn, the boy nodded and started out the door, but turned back to glance at her. “I really wish you’d stay, Miss Alex. Miss Bevins isn’t terribly kind and she never made learning interesting or acted like she cared about us the way you do.”
Alex patted Tom on the back. “When I get settled somewhere, I’ll send you my address. I’d be happy to tutor you from wherever I may be.”
Tom nodded again and rushed outside, running through the trees and across a snowy field toward home.
Rooted to the spot, Alex watched him go, knowing she would miss him when she left. He had a keen mind that needed nurtured and challenged and she somehow knew Edna Bevins held no interest in doing either. She’d found a file containing evaluations Edna wrote of all her students the first week of school.
Infuriated by the woman’s cruel assessment of the students, Alex had written her own views and taken the information to Luke. The school board had a right to know that just because one person thought the students were lacking didn’t mean everyone did.
After glancing around the classroom one last time, Alex banked the fire in the stove and trailed her finger across the back of a desk, hearing the echoes of the children’s laughter in her ears.
Filled with emotion, she closed the door and locked it then proceeded to the little house that had been her home the last few months.
It didn’t take long to pack her meager belongings. She would load her wagon tomorrow and leave immediately after the carnival. If the snow held off and Bill cooperated, she could be several miles down the road before Christmas arrived.
Alex knew with unwavering certainty if she spent Christmas in Hardman she’d never muster the strength to go. Even without plans to stay for the holiday, it made her heart ache to contemplate leaving the town and her friends behind.
Thoughts of the Granger, Stratton and Dodd families made her wish she didn’t have to leave. They’d all worked their way into her heart, especially Erin and baby Maura. It would be hard to bid them all goodbye.
Thoughts of Arlan made her desperate to settle in Hardman. She couldn’t begin to imagine how she’d leave him behind. Her heart and head both shouted at her to stay, to lay claim to the incredible love he could offer, but she couldn’t, especially now that Luke made Arlan a partner in the bank. He needed a genteel woman full of grace and hospitality, someone like Ginny or Filly or Abby.
A descendent of Polish immigrants, she’d spent the last seven years of her life wandering from town to town without roots, wearing pants, and defying any number of society’s conventions.
The last person Arlan needed beside him was a girl like her, no matter how much she wished otherwise.
Swiftly changing into another show costume, Alex gathered her things and pulled on h
er cloak. The voluminous dark folds hid her form as she stuck to the shadows and made her way to the back door at Granger House.
She only tapped once when the door whipped open and Filly tugged her inside, giving her a sisterly hug. “Oh, I’m so glad to see you. When it got dark and you hadn’t arrived, I started to worry. Luke ran out to the barn to harness your horse. Have you eaten supper?”
Alex smiled at Filly as she removed the cloak. “I’m fine, and I did eat a bite of dinner before I changed. I do appreciate you concern, but all will be well. Did the stage arrive? Are Luke’s parents here?”
Filly released a frustrated sigh. “No. Of all the days for the stage to be late, it had to be this one. I just hope none of them get in the midst of our plans.”
“Everything will be fine.” Alex squeezed the woman’s hand, trying to reassure them both. “You’re staying here with Maura, aren’t you?”
“Yes. It’s much too cold to take the baby outside tonight and Mrs. Kellogg is thrilled at the opportunity to see you perform.”
Alex walked over to where Maura slept in her cradle. “It is quite nippy outside and Miss Maura is much safer here.” Pleased when the baby started to awaken, Alex didn’t hesitate to lift her into her arms and cuddle her close.
“Be careful she doesn’t get your costume soiled.” Filly handed Alex a clean towel to drape across the front of her vibrant purple waistcoat and topcoat.
Alex rocked the baby in her arms, murmuring softly to her until Luke stamped his feet and hurried inside the kitchen.
“Oh, good, you’re here.” He nodded at Alex as he accepted the steaming cup of tea Filly held out to him. “I was hoping to get Mother and Dad settled before your show, but I guess their arrival will just add to the excitement of the evening.”
“You don’t have to do this, Luke. You’ve got enough going on without getting involved in my problems.”
Luke glowered at her. “I’d say three wanted criminals in our town isn’t your problem. As a business owner, school board member, deacon of the church, and deputized member of the local law enforcement in Hardman when the occasion warrants, it’s more my problem than yours.”
“But if something happens, it will be because of me.”
Filly wrapped her arms around Alex’s shoulders. “No. If anything happens, those evil, greedy men are to blame. You’re one of the bravest people I know, Alex, willing to lure them out so the sheriff can get a confession out of them before arresting them.”
“I just hope his plan works. If not, I…”
“Think positive, Alex. After all, you’re the magician, capable of phantasmagorical wonders.” Luke knew the use of his new favorite word would make her smile. “Everything will be fine.”
“Then I guess we better go. It’s about time for the show.” Alex kissed Maura on her downy head and handed the baby back to Filly. She kissed the woman’s cheek and gave her a long look. “Thank you for being such a good friend, Filly, and opening your home and heart to me.”
Filly swiped at a tear as it rolled down her cheek. “Don’t make it sound like you’re never coming back. I’ve got cake ready for us to enjoy later.”
“Save me a big piece.” As she settled a silk top hat with purple plumes on her head, Alex gave it a determined tug.
Long strides carried her out the door to her waiting wagon. Luke rode his horse and left it tied just down the street from where she stopped the wagon near the mercantile.
Arlan appeared and helped her set up the stage while Luke went to the bank and retrieved the box of coins that would be part of the ploy to capture Decker and his fellow outlaws.
“You don’t have to do this, Alexandra,” Arlan whispered as he assisted her in setting out her props. “There’s still time to back out. The sheriff can arrest Decker from the wanted poster. We can put together a search party and find the other two.”
“No. I want them tried for killing my father and the only way to do that is to get a confession.” Alex hurried to set up the last of her tricks as the noise behind her signaled a gathering crowd. “You better go, Arlan. I have to do this alone.”
“I know, and that is the reason I hate it so much.”
Arlan jumped off the stage and blended into the crowd, making note of Luke, Blake, Douglas, Chauncy, and the deputies keeping watch. The sheriff hid in the shadows behind the mercantile where he waited for Arlan’s signal before he made a move.
“Fair ladies and handsome gents of Hardman… Good evening to one and all!” Alex’s voice rang over the crowd drawing their attention to the raven-haired beauty in the eye-catching costume onstage. “Are you ready for more phantasmagorical wonders?”
Alex winked at Luke as she uttered the phrase then beamed at the crowd before she executed her performance flawlessly.
“I thought you were gonna make gold disappear, lady?” A man in the shadows raised his voice above the crowd. Alex knew without looking that he was one of the three men she wanted behind bars.
“Right you are, good man. Did our illustrious banker bring his box of coins?” Alex turned to Luke. He stepped onto the stage and held up the box.
Alex took a gold coin from her pocket and began twirling it around her fingers, faster and faster until it disappeared in a blur.
Holding her hand up, the coin appeared to drop out of thin air into her palm and the spectators cheered.
“You can make one disappear. What about the whole box?” The second in the trio of outlaws asked from the opposite side of the crowd.
She smiled his direction. “For that, I’ll need my magic pot.” She lifted a large black cauldron from behind her and tipped it up to show it was empty.
“Mr. Granger, is this pot solid? No hidden compartments or any possible means to secret the coins away?”
Luke tapped the bottom of the pot and pushed on the sides. “It is solid, ma’am.”
“Very well. Let’s see those coins of yours.”
Alex took the box from Luke as he removed a key from his pocket and unlocked it then lifted the lid, revealing a box of gold coins that glittered in the lamplight. “If you’d be so kind, sir, to dump your money into my pot.”
Luke emptied the box into her pot where it sat on a table. Alex placed a red silk cloth over the pot and waved her wand above it a few times.
She stopped in mid-wave and turned to the audience. “I need a little help. Would all the Hardman students step forward?”
The children rushed to the edge of the stage. Alex leaned toward them with a merry look in her eye. “On the count of three we’ll all say the magic word together. Ready?”
Fluffy snowflakes began to fall as the students nodded their heads. Alex glanced skyward, wishing it had waited a few more hours, or days, to snow. Deliberately, she refocused her attention on the illusion she created. “One, two, three… Alakazam!”
She jerked the cloth off the cauldron. Luke’s expression established his shock and surprise as he grasped the pot and shook it, showing the crowd the magician made all his money disappear.
“There was nearly a thousand dollars in that box, Miss Alex. We can’t let that money disappear. It belongs in the bank.” Luke forced a look of panic to his face and glanced worriedly out at the audience.
“There you go, Mr. Tightwad, losing the money of the good citizens of Hardman.” Arlan heckled him from the crowd, enjoying his opportunity to poke fun at Luke. Originally, the plan was for Blake to pester Luke but the stage arrived during the show. Blake and Ginny quickly herded their parents to Granger House before they could get involved in the proceedings taking place in the midst of town.
Arlan took over the duties of trying to shame Luke in front of everyone. “If she can’t make that money reappear, you better plan to come up with the cash out of your own pockets, Mr. Moneybags.”
“Listen, you…” Luke grabbed the box he’d originally carried onstage as he started to walk off, but a rattling noise brought him up short. As he lifted the lid, he faked an astounded expression at th
e coins filling the box.
“Where did this… How did you?”
The crowd went wild as Alex executed an elegant bow and tipped her hat to them.
Once they quieted down, she reminded them to attend the Christmas Carnival the following day for the grand finale to her magic show and bid them all good night.
The combination of the cold, darkness, and falling snow sent the crowd scurrying back to their homes without any tarrying. Alex quickly folded up her stage, stowed her props and donned a thick coat.
After tossing her hat into the back of the wagon and checking to make sure all her cargo was loaded, she wrapped a scarf around her neck, settled an old hat of her father’s on her head, and yanked on warm gloves.
Lighting two lanterns, she hung them on the front of the wagon then climbed on the seat. She snapped the reins, directing Bill out of town heading north. Doubling back and going around town on a little used trail Blake showed her, she drove the wagon south.
Luke planned to give her a head start before he raced through town letting everyone know she’d given him a box full of gold-painted metal tokens and absconded with the bank’s money.
Reluctantly admitting the snow worked in her favor because it covered her tracks, she hurried Bill along as fast as the horse would willingly go.
“I’m sorry, Bill. I hate to make you pull the wagon on a cold night like tonight, but it’s for a good cause. Just hang in there, old friend, and I promise a warm stall with a big scoop of feed for you later.”
Bill tossed his head, making the harness jingle in the quiet winter air, as though agreeing to her promise.
Cautiously, she guided the horse off the road along a trail to the stand of trees where she and Arlan had spent a pleasant afternoon just a few weeks ago. Memories of his kisses sent welcome warmth coursing through her veins as she pulled the wagon to a stop in a cover of close-standing trees.
The sound of riders shouting and racing along the main road echoed in the stillness and she smiled to think of the many great actors Hardman possessed. They could put together an acting troupe with Arlan and Luke leading the way.
The Christmas Calamity Page 20