Page 139 of Conveniently Wed
He cleared his throat rather loudly. “Well, lassie. I’ve no need for another clerk just now. I’m all set for the summer boom. Go and check with Mill’s Café and the hotel to see if they’ll hire ye on. If they send ye back, well… That be God tellin’ me to hire ye on for a couple o’ weeks.”
Heat surged all the way to the tips of her ears as she curtseyed again and thanked the man. This asking for work was not a pleasant task.
The jingle faded as Leah closed the door behind her. Her shoulders sagged and a bench beside the door beckoned. She sank onto it to gather her thoughts. There must be something she was missing here. Hadn’t God brought her this far through His direction? Sheclosed her eyes tightly in an effort to shut out this awful dream she was living.
Lord, I know You have a plan in all this. You are who You are, no matter where I am. Your Word says trusting means that I cannot lean on my own understanding. So God, I’m going to sit in this place and wait for Your direction.
The peace that wafted through her was like a gentle aroma.
Just then, the bell on the door beside her clanged and she opened her eyes to see one of the older men that had been seated around the domino table. He wore long shirt-sleeves with no jacket, showing the leather suspenders attached to his black woolen pants. His scruffy gray beard covered much of his face, but the skin around his eyes and forehead was a wrinkled leathery brown.
He didn’t look her way, but removed his floppy leather hat from his oily gray hair and sat down beside her. As the smell of sweat and body odor wafted in her direction, she forced herself not to scoot away from him.
“See here, missy. My name’s Ol’ Mose. Leastways that’s what people’ve been callin’ me long enough I forgot what the rest of it was. Anyways, I heared what you was sayin’ to old Johnny inthere about how you was robbed and tryin’ to git to yer friends in Butte City.” He stuck a thumb through a suspender. “Well I got me a freight wagon I run back n’ forth ‘tween here and there. You’d be right welcome to ride along if’n ya like.”
The rush of completely unexpected information was hard to take in all at once. Was he offering her a ride to Butte? Did he really run a freight wagon? The old chap wasn’t much bigger than Leah, and looked to be a few years past his prime.
He was looking at her expectantly, though, waiting for an answer. She opened her mouth to respond, but she had no idea what to say.
“You’re…offering me a ride? In your wagon?” Her voice squeaked like a schoolboy’s.
“Yes’m. Plannin’ to leave out at first light tomorry.”
He was serious about the offer. But was he trustworthy? How would she determine that?
“I…um…I have two trunks I’ll need to take with me.”
He reached a nubby finger to scratch through his beard. “Reckon’ that’ll be fine. We can tie ‘em on top.”
He dropped his hand to his lap and cocked his head as if pondering something. “I don’t usually carry folks with me as a rule, but God kept a’nudgin’ me sayin’, ‘Ol’ Mose, you go on an help this girl now, ya hear?’” He threw up his hands. “So, here I sit.”
When he flashed a slightly-toothless grin, she wanted to reach over and hug the man. Instead, she smiled. “Thank you, Mr. Mose. I would be honored to ride in your freight wagon.”
“No, ma’am. The name’s Mose or Ol’ Mose. Nomisterabout it. My pa, he was a mister, but not this young fellow.” And then he flashed his toothy grin again.
8
Near Butte City, Montana Territory
June, 1874
Woosh.Thwak!
Gideon heaved the ax back over his shoulder, then slammed the blade into the ice again.
Woosh.Thwak!
He was close to water, he could feel it in the softness of the frozen mass.
Woosh.Thwak!
A mighty crack split the air as his ax sank deep into liquid.
The lowing of the cattle behind him grew louder and more insistent as the animals smelled the water. He hacked the edges to widen the hole, then jumped to the side as the cattle surged forward.
Leaning against the ax, he stopped to catch his breath as the animals jockeyed for position. Winter had lasted longer than normal this year, with the final snowstorm a couple of weeks before. Hopefully, he wouldn’t have to break ice for the cattle much longer before summer heated things.
He kept a careful eye on the latest calves, still wobbly on their feet. It would be easy for one of the little guys to get knocked over and trampled as the stock pushed forward to the water.
