[Yukon Quest 01] - Treasures Of The North (30 page)
‘‘Maybe,’’ Leah replied, hurrying to bury herself under the wool blankets on her cot.
Their father entered the room rather expectantly, almost as if he anticipated their questions. When Leah and Jacob only watched him, however, Bill Barringer took the opportunity to question them.
‘‘Have you been minding yourselves for Miss Pierce?’’
Leah nodded from her bed. ‘‘Yes, Pa. I like Miss Pierce a lot. She’s teachin’ me the same kinds of things Mama used to show me.’’
He smiled benevolently on his youngest and turned to Jacob. ‘‘And what of you, son?’’
Jacob tensed. He knew from having overheard his father’s conversation with Karen that he would be wondering about the fights. ‘‘I’m doing my best, Pa.’’
Bill nodded. ‘‘Miss Pierce tells me there’ve been some fights.’’
Jacob looked to the floor as he moved to sit on the side of his cot. ‘‘Yes, sir.’’
‘‘Well, she doesn’t understand how it is with men. Just try to keep out of trouble. You have a sister who needs you to stay in one piece. Men up here are mighty tight strung. The gold fever is keeping them at odds with everyone, and those that can’t put together the wherewithal to get north are going to be particularly surly.’’
Jacob looked up to meet his father’s eyes. ‘‘I’m not in any trouble, Pa. The fights are usually because I let my temper get the best of me.’’
‘‘You know what your ma would say about that?’’
Jacob nodded. ‘‘She’d tell me to turn the other cheek. To put a guard over my mouth.’’
‘‘Exactly,’’ Bill replied. ‘‘Things will probably seem to get a whole lot worse before they get better.’’ He sat down and began pulling off his boots. ‘‘Sometimes folks do things that others have a hard time understanding. Sometimes things don’t make much sense and it leaves angry feelings between people who care deeply about one another.’’
Jacob knew his father was talking about something more than his daily fisticuffs with other local boys.
‘‘Sometimes, without even meaning to hurt their loved ones, people do things that they have to do. Important things that will make it better for everyone in the long run.’’
‘‘What kind of things, Pa?’’ Leah asked from her bed.
Bill scratched his beard and pulled off his remaining boot. Jacob could see that his father’s hard work had worn holes in the heels and toes of his socks.
‘‘Well, princess, it’s like your mama used to say. Sometimes God sends things our way to bless us and sometimes they come to teach us. Some of those teachin’ times are hard. They might even cause us pain. Sometimes they take people away from us—people we love and care about.’’
‘‘Like Mama?’’ Leah asked.
Jacob wished they’d both just drop the subject. Thinking of his mother only caused him greater grief. Some of his fights had come about because of derogatory statements made about his mother. But more often than not, they referenced his father.
‘‘Look,’’ their father stated, getting to his feet. ‘‘I’m going to smoke me a bowl.’’ He picked up his pipe and smiled at them both. ‘‘Your ma would be proud of you children. I’m proud too. Just never forget that.’’
He left them then, closing the door behind them. Jacob reached for the lantern, but before he could turn it down, Leah sat up in bed. Her eyes locked on his.
‘‘He’s leavin’ us, isn’t he?’’
Jacob nodded. He felt a lump in his throat that refused to allow him speech. His sister had spoken the truth—an undeniable truth. Their father was leaving them here—leaving them with Miss Pierce and going north.
He blew out the light quickly, not wanting his sister to see his tears. Balling his hands into fists, he punched at the pillow as if to arrange it into proper shape for his comfort. In truth, he was beating out the anger in his soul—an anger that was threatening to eat him alive.
Karen found the coals in the stove were just barely putting off heat by the time she roused herself to prepare breakfast. Adding wood and tenderly nurturing the fire back to life, she grabbed a bucket of water and placed it atop the stove. At least the water hadn’t frozen like it had all those nights in the tent. The new building would afford them a much more comfortable existence, and once her father made it back to Dyea, she’d simply convince him to stay on with them.
Finding it still dark outside, Karen lighted a lamp and went to work measuring out oats for their morning cereal. It was as she set the table with bowls and spoons that she noticed the folded piece of paper addressed to her attention.
Puzzled, Karen put down the bowls and reached for the missive. Unfolding it, she found herself completely overwhelmed by the news of Bill’s departure.
It might seem unfeeling,
she read halfway down the page,
that I should leave my children behind, but you don’t know what
the trails are like. I’ve seen people die—kids too. I wouldn’t want
that for Jacob or Leah. I’ll send for them as soon as I can. Please
don’t be angry and take it out on the kids. I love them, and I
know you’ve come to care for them in your own way. I’ll write
when I get settled, and I promise to pay you for your trouble
.
He added no personal notes for the children, and Karen couldn’t help but wonder if he’d left similar letters for each of them. She glanced around but found nothing. Perhaps if he had, he would have left them in the bedroom he had been sharing with Jacob and Leah. She thought to go searching but decided against it. They would have to know the truth sooner or later. If they said nothing to indicate their father had told them of his departure, Karen would remain silent and save the news for a more private moment.
She quickly refolded the letter and put it in her pocket. A feeling of despair washed over her as the reality of the situation began to sink in. She was now mother to two motherless and fatherless children. Jacob, already angry and unreachable, would not brook this desertion easily. And poor little Leah, who adored her father and mourned her mother, would be devastated. Karen wanted to cry for them both. How could the man have been so heartless?
‘‘I thought I heard you out here. You should have woke me,’’ Grace said, tying an apron around her waist.
Karen smiled, but her heart wasn’t in it. ‘‘You look positively domestic, Grace.’’
Grace smiled. ‘‘I actually like the life. I used to feel so completely useless back home. This seems much more fitting.Why should I have servants when I take such joy in doing things for myself? Mother, of course, would be horrified, but I love it all, even the cleaning.’’ She pulled her hair back and tied it with a ribbon before adding, ‘‘Wasn’t it kind of Mr. Barringer to stay another day in order to see us settled in?’’
Karen nodded and turned quickly back to the oatmeal. She had no desire to broach the subject of Bill’s departure with Grace. She couldn’t even decide how to tell the children, much less announce to Doris and Grace that she was now fully responsible for the care of two children. ‘‘I was just setting the table.’’
‘‘Then I’ll finish it,’’ Grace replied as Jacob and Leah emerged from their shared room.
‘‘Where’s Pa?’’ Leah asked, looking around the room.
Karen met her expression, then let her gaze travel to where Jacob stood with a look of stoic indifference on his face.
I can’t
tell them,
she thought.
I can’t hurt them like this. Better to let
them think he’s simply gone back to work on the trail
.
‘‘He left early,’’ she finally said. At least it wasn’t a lie.
Leah’s face paled as she turned to Jacob. Karen could see the boy’s jaw clench as if in rage. He put his arm around Leah, then met Karen’s eyes. Karen trembled without knowing why. They knew. Either Bill had told them of his plans or he had left them similar letters, but either way—they understood what his absence meant.
She pulled the letter from her pocket. ‘‘Did your father give you any idea of what is in this letter?’’
Leah shook her head. ‘‘He didn’t say much last night.’’ Her voice sounded frightened and uneasy.
Karen wanted to put her mind at ease but knew the contents of the letter would do nothing of the sort.
‘‘Your father has gone and asked me to take care of you until he’s settled,’’ Karen finally stated. She looked to the letter as if to read it, then decided against it. Glancing up, she could see the anger in Jacob’s eyes.
‘‘He’s gone?’’ Grace questioned. ‘‘Do you mean permanently?’’
Karen had expected the question from Leah or Jacob, but not from Grace. She turned to her friend and nodded. ‘‘He felt the trail was too dangerous.’’
Grace nodded, seeming to understand that her reaction would affect the children’s reaction. ‘‘Well, I suppose that must have been very hard for him,’’ she said softly. ‘‘What a difficult choice to make.’’
Karen gave Grace a smile of gratitude before turning back to the children. ‘‘I want you both to know that I won’t allow any harm to come to you, if I have any say about it. We can make better plans once my own father returns to Dyea, but for now, just know that you have a home wherever I have a home.’’
Leah burst into tears and came to wrap her arms around Karen. ‘‘What if he doesn’t come back?’’ she cried.
‘‘He’ll come back. He promised to in his letter,’’ Karen said, trying to sound reassuring. Her confidence faded, however, as she met Jacob’s eyes. They both knew it was a lie. Bill Barringer might never again return. The leaving had been the hard part. Staying away would require little effort.
KAREN AND GRACE poured all their energies into making bread for the days to come, while Doris and Leah minded the store. They no longer worried about their safety. Word had traveled fast about Karen’s ability with a rifle, and with that reputation, a new respect for the trio of women was born. The rowdies still poured in, demanding and bellowing for their supplies, bemoaning their lack of good fortune, or complaining about some swindle that had left them penniless. But through it all, the customers maintained a kind of silent admiration for the women.
‘‘You ladies are known as the toughest bunch of gals in
Alaska,’’
one prospector had told them.
‘‘We drank to your
health last night at the Gold Nugget. Then we drank to ours, just
in case you took a dislikin’ to us.’’
Grace had laughed at the sentiment. She still found it hard to believe that they’d been put in such situations of peril. Her days prior to coming north had never prepared her for the life she was now living, but she couldn’t help but enjoy the freedom they now experienced. She thought, in fact, she very well might like to settle permanently in this wild, rugged country.
‘‘So what’s so pleasant that I find you grinning from ear to ear?’’ Karen asked from across the table.
Grace was overjoyed to find she had a few moments of privacy with her dear friend. ‘‘I was just thinking about our reputation. I’m sure half the newcomers to the area are too scared to even step foot in the store.’’
‘‘Yes, but the other half comes out of curiosity and maybe even the desire to consider challenging us,’’ Karen replied. ‘‘I don’t like having a reputation either way. I’d prefer we be unnoticeable, given the reason we came here in the first place.’’
‘‘You aren’t still worried about Martin Paxton, are you?’’
‘‘Aren’t you?’’
Grace was surprised by Karen’s candor and considered the idea for a moment. ‘‘Not truly,’’ Grace said as she mixed yet another batch of sourdough. Taking a pinch of the starter, which had come by way of an old Tlingit woman who traded for sugar, Grace worked in the ingredients and waited for Karen to reply. When she said nothing, Grace stopped stirring and looked up. ‘‘Are you worried?’’
‘‘Some. I guess I’ve known men similar to Mr. Paxton. They aren’t easily swayed and not at all inclined to take defeat— especially from a woman.’’
‘‘I wouldn’t fret over it. We’re a long way from Chicago, and Mr. Paxton must have other concerns to busy himself with. Just as we have ours. I was just thinking that I might very well like to settle here. Perhaps I’ll stay on, even when Mother assures me that all is well. Maybe I can even convince Mother to bring Father and come here to join me. Although I suppose there would be little work for Father here, and Mother does love her social events.’’
Grace paused, noting that Karen was sitting idle, staring off as if lost in a memory. ‘‘What’s wrong? I don’t think you’ve heard a word I’ve said.’’
Karen shook her head. ‘‘I’m sorry. What were you saying?’’
‘‘Never mind what I was saying. Tell me what has you so worried.’’
‘‘My mind is just preoccupied. I’m worried about Father, and I’m worried about those children.’’
‘‘This doesn’t sound like the same woman who told me over and over that we had to give our heartaches to God and trust that He would see us through the bad times as well as the good.’’
‘‘I know God is in the midst of this, but I have a bad feeling about this matter of the Barringer kids. Leah is so heartbroken that her father would leave her behind, and Jacob is angrier than ever. His rage was already getting the best of him—what do I do with him now?’’
‘‘Have you tried talking to him?’’
Karen picked up a bag of flour and measured some out into a bowl. ‘‘I’ve tried,’’ she said, focusing on her work. ‘‘But he wants no part of it. He’s almost grown. And with Bill’s departure, he certainly isn’t open to parental guidance, especially in the form of a substitute mother.’’
Grace began mixing the bread again and considered the matter carefully. ‘‘I would hate to be left behind like that. They must feel completely betrayed.’’
‘‘And the worst of it is, I can’t help them to believe that they haven’t been betrayed. I can’t offer support for Bill Barringer’s actions because I don’t believe the man made the right choice. If anything, he should have taken his savings and loaded those kids back on
Merry Maid
and headed for home.’’
‘‘I agree, but we can’t change the circumstances now.’’ Grace set the dough aside to rise and turned to her friend. ‘‘And what of your father? How shall we handle this matter?’’