"Return to Paradise Trail" PART ELEVEN
Charlotte gently crimpled the corner of the freshly-printed newspaper as she cradled it in her lap with little regard to her surroundings as she sat on a crate near the Mason's campfire with Sam sipping his coffee from the crate beside her. He stretched over to get a peek at the advertisement she searched for but was quickly put in his place as Charlotte shot him a smile and hid the publication from him.
Sam settled back in place with a sigh, letting a smile slip away as he drank another sip of coffee. "Have you found it yet?"
"No, not yet." Charlotte sighed.
"You want some help looking?"
"No, I'm fine." Charlotte gave her husband a grin with little more than a touch of sarcasm edging the notion.
Sam settled his now empty coffee cup on the iron rack above the fire before he took a good look over the camp, calculating his duties for the coming day when he caught a glimpse of surprise on Charlotte's face from the corner of his eye. He quickly shifted his gaze, his eyebrows narrowed together out of concern. "What is it?"
Hardly stirring her gaze, Charlotte reread the bit of the article to be sure it was all a joke. But she was quickly realizing that it was far from being such.
"What? What is it?" Sam pressed, not wishing undue pressure on his wife but feeling more concerned for her by the second. He couldn't remedy her worries if he didn't know what they were.
"The river's been shut down. No travel is being allowed through."
Sam's eyes widened, his interest rising as he processed what Charlotte had just said. "Let me see that." He reached out and took the newspaper as Charlotte handed it to him. Sam read the article, a bit of heat rising to his cheeks as he realized why the river was being shut down. "I can't believe this. How could one man keep travel from carry on? This is outrageous!"
Charlotte watched as Sam's voice rose and fell between sighs, seeing how vexed he had become. "That's not the worst part. It—it's probably all my fault."
Sam's eyes widened and his hand immediately found its way to Charlotte's. "Nonsense. What makes you say that?"
"The man who that article says is responsible for barring travel is Deputy Adams."
Sam thought back to the few days he had spent in Charlotte's company back in Pennsylvania. She had only mentioned the name once. And he had only met the man once when he helped deliver the criminals responsible for Mr. Wooster's death and Charlotte's near demise to the local jail. "Are you sure?"
Charlotte nodded simply, her gaze falling lower by the second.
"But I still don't understand why you would think it's your fault," Sam countered.
"Adams," Charlotte swallowed hard. "He always was a bit jealous of the fact the Mr. Wooster never paid him any mind hardly. At least he didn't give him as much as he did me. You see, Adams wasn't just like a son to Mr. Wooster. He was his nephew once removed. If it wouldn't have been for Mr. Wooster leaving a thorough will, I kind of believe that Adams would have been the heir to the property in Utah."
"I see." Sam exhaled deeply. "And you think he might be trying to prevent the train from getting to Utah."
"Yeah," Charlotte couldn't quite look her husband in the eyes as she spoke. "I'm probably making something out of this that it's not."
Sam gently squeezed her hand, drawing her gaze back to himself. "Don't go saying that. You could be right."
Charlotte's tight-lipped smile found her way to Sam as she held his hand snuggly in return. "What would I do without you?"
"You know, I was thinking the same thing." Sam leaned in for a kiss but found Charlotte looking away.
Charlotte had noticed Molly and John coming from around the corner of the third wagon down the line and quickly stifled her smiles. She set a hand against Sam's chest. "Not in public."
Sam scoffed. "We are married you know."
"And I'm proud of the fact," Charlotte smiled and pecked a kiss on his cheek. "Believe me. Another one of these nights soon, I'll be sure to remind you of that."
"What are you two up to?" Molly secured her arm within her husband's as they stopped on the other side of the fire.
Sam sighed, remembering the news that he had just found out about. "Bad news, John. No travel is being allowed on the river any longer."
"What?!" John's gaze drifted between the couple. "And by whose authority was this vested?"
Sam immediately extended the newspaper to John who reached forward for the item at the same time.
John Mason read it thoroughly before he handed the item to his wife. "What should we do, Sam?"
"The only thing there is to do, John. Fight it. Not with guns or knives perhaps. But we have to challenge this." Sam glanced to his wife briefly. "No personal vendetta is worth shutting down an entire method of commerce in a large city like St. Louis."
Molly had raised her gaze from the paper in time to see the subtle communication between Sam and Charlotte as he spoke. "I don't understand. What vendetta?" She settled her worried gaze on Charlotte.
"I think Mr. Wooster, the man who raised me…I think his nephew has been following me this whole time. That and I think he's been wanting to get the land that Mr. Wooster left me in his will. The entire reason I started out on this trip to begin with."
"I see," Molly frowned, turning to Sam. "Can he do that? Can he shut down the river like that?"
"No. No, he can't," Sam insisted, quickly rising to his feet and tracing a _ path away from the camp.
Charlotte wanted to go after her husband but knew better. He needed some time to think and consider what decision he'd have to make as the master of this wagon train. Many families were depending upon him. She simply hoped he wouldn't let one man rob him of the joys he held these days.
John moved around the fire and stopped at Charlotte with a nod. "Don't worry, Charlotte. Everything will be okay."
Charlotte turned a narrow line of a smile upward to John and then the same to Molly as the latter made her way to Charlotte's side for a moment of prayer. For that brought the very comfort to her heart that Charlotte needed.
##
A million thoughts seemed to rush through the woman's mind as she pulled the blanket closer to herself, hearing the street commotion of St. Louis in her distant thoughts as the hotel room's darkness honed in on her, reminding her and taunting her. She wiped at wayward tear as she tried sniffing away the emotion. But more tears came. More emotion came. More regret came as she remembered what she had left behind.
(flashback)
"Hey, Sully! Sang us another one of them thar songs!"
One man in a half-drunken stupor towered over the saloon's bar with a whiskey bottle in hand. He lifted the bottle in air and took a sip of the vile drink, missing his mouth mostly as he guffawed and drooped his body over the counter. He punched his neighbor in the arm, sending a glance towards the stage far away where a dance hall girl was resting between songs, smiling at this man and that man. "She can't sang much. But she can shore dance!" He let out another howling cackle.
"Shut up, drunk." The annoyed neighbor moved over a few inches and downed another shot of whiskey.
The first man didn't seem to care much and simply grinned stupidly while gathering his drool-smeared face off of the bar and pointing himself in the direction of a nearby poker table. He slightly ran into the dealer with a slap on his shoulder. "This table full?" He nearly spilled his drink as he struggled to keep his balance.
"I'm afraid it is, sonny. Best look for another one."
"Ugh!" the man growled and push himself to another table. It was mostly occupied by a few cowhands enjoying a drink. He noticed two empty chairs at the table that had a decent view of the stage and claimed one, barely making it into the seat before he propped his feet up on the other chair. The cowhands simply shook their heads with a smile at the stranger and turned back to the entertainment, enjoying another swig of their drinks as they waited for the singing to start.
With a broad grin and a curtseying of her dress that puffed into flamboyant twirls with little material covering where the thin straps held the item to her body, "Sully" swished that dress upward and back down a couple of times to the tune of the music that came from the piano nearby. A couple of moments of her kicking up her feet sent whoops and hollers cascading around the room, most of the men grinning, clapping, and whistling as the woman carried on with her display of rather provocative entertainment. And then she sang with all her might, missing a few notes along the way as her melodies collided with her moving steps.
"That a girl!" the same drunk cheered and laughed as the woman ended her song. "Ain't seen dancing like that since I was in Abilene!" He laughed some more and resorted to his whiskey bottle to top off his celebration, watching as the woman weaved her way through the loud crowd right past him. He reached out and wrapped his filthy hand around her waist and drew her to himself, her weight falling into his lap as he swept her off of her feet.
"Let go of me!" The dance hall girl swatted at the menace with her balled fists and tried writhing from his firm grip. "I said let me go!"
The man only laughed, his voice gaining volume as the girl grew angrier. "Now is that any way to treat your biggest fan?! How about you keep that enthusiasm going through the night? I got a room with your name on it. What you say, pretty gal?"
Stopping her struggle for a brief moment, the girl stared into his piercing eyes with her lips tightly closed. "You're drunk, mister," she finally breathed. "Now, let me go!"
"Fine," the drunk laughed and let her up, spanking her behind as she hurried away. Tears threatened her lashes while she found shelter by the barkeep and the rifle below the counter that no one could see.
"You okay, Kate?" The barkeep handed the girl a tall beer.
"Yeah," she chuckled dryly, accepting the drink but holding it only, unsure if she really wanted it or not. "You know how those cowhands are on Saturday night."
The barkeeper nodded barely with a tight-lipped smile and left the girl to serve another group of cowhands who filed into the Red Lion Saloon just then. Kate then glanced them over, observing their dirty attire as they tossed their Stetson onto a nearby coat peg while laughing and carrying on about some random happening from the trail. She could only cringe as she tried to put the thought out of her mind that one of them might pick her tonight. It was no way to live, she had insisted many times. But it paid. And she had no place else to go.
Turning back to look at the stage, the piano player gave her a nod of which she returned with a lift of her head before she pressed on, singing another brazen song of failed love before an audience who never did appreciate her for anything more than what she could offer them.
(end flashback)
Sleep never quite pressed beyond the bounds of the woman's shaken thoughts as she came out of the reverie, trying her hardest not to remember any more of her former life than what she had to. With one swift motion, she threw the bedding off of herself, feeling a rather sudden wave of heat over her body as she raised herself upright and reached for her silken robe drooped over the foot of the bed rather haphazardly. Standing to her feet, she slipped into the item's warmth and crossed her arms snuggly at her chest, the moonlight from the distant sky highlighting her just barely and drawing her to the window from where it came from.
The woman lifted a hand to gently push back the lace curtain. A smile almost played at her lips, vanquishing her inner turmoil as she tried to examine every speck of that distant moon. It was almost as if it was looking to her, calling out and drawing her to it. She wanted to reach for it so bad like she wanted to reach for a new life. A life where no one would care about her past but only about her future. That's why she had changed her name. It was the only way. Wherever she went, no one would know. Strangers would be friends to her someday. And life would be kind to her once more under her new persona of Kate Burns. Kate Sullivan would forever belong to the cruel past.
Kate shut her eyes tightly and drew in a deep breath before letting the curtain go and turning back to her bed. She almost removed her robe to climb back in but felt awake now. She no longer felt tired. With a sigh, Kate tied of her robe and slipped away from her room, deciding that a walk down the hushed corridor might do her some good. She was almost to the end of the hall when she heard a door gently open. Kate almost ducked back to run for her room but stayed, almost frozen and unable to move or speak.
From the room stepped a woman much younger than herself. She took notice of her height. It was about the same as her own. Her blonde hair was tied neatly in a braid against her chest, and a golden band on her finger gently glinted in the dim light.
The young woman worked at quietly shutting the door before she looked up, nearly gasping but holding her tongue in time while bringing a hand to her chest. She chuckled softly, keeping it only at a smile as she lowered her voice to a whisper. "You startled me."
"Oh, I'm sorry." Kate tried not to chuckle herself and stepped back one time, half-turning to leave.
Charlotte quickly stepped forward, a hand outstretched. "No, don't go on my account."
Kate paused, turned back, and offered a smile. "I couldn't sleep. Thought a walk might do me some good."
"Me neither," Charlotte sighed and put out her hand again. "I'm Charlotte Brazos. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Likewise." Kate took hold of the stranger's hand and gave a soft but firm two shakes. "I'm Kate Su—Burns. And," she held back a chuckle. "I'm sorry we met like that."
"Oh, no worries. I was just caught up in my thoughts. I should have been paying more attention."
"So," Kate pointed to Charlotte's finger. "You're a married woman?"
"Yes, I am." Charlotte's face shined a bit as she proudly declared. "For about four days now."
"Well, congratulations, Mrs. Brazos."
"Thank you. And what has brought you to St. Louis? That is...if you don't mind my asking."
"Teaching," Kate returned quickly and curtly. "That is," she laughed softly, wishing her words had not sounded so sharp at first. "I'm hoping to become a teacher. I took my teacher's certification test yesterday. With a little luck, I'm hoping to pass and maybe head west to become a schoolmarm in one of those frontier towns. Start a new life."
"That's wonderful. I almost became a teacher myself. But I never fully pursued it. Now that I'm a married woman, I think God knew best where I truly belonged."
"That he did," Kate grinned. "It seems by the smile on your face that it suits you well."
The two ladies shared a brief chuckle before Kate stopped her slight tangent, realizing she had let herself slip into happiness for a bit too long as her memory returned. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Charlotte." She reached for one last handshake.
"It was nice to meet you too, Kate. Will I be seeing you again?"
"I hope so. You seem so nice. I've not made many friends in the city since—since I moved here earlier this year."
"I know how you feel. I lived with my adoptive father for twenty years before the kind folks of the wagon train came along after he died. Without them, I don't know where I'd be."
"My! I'm so sorry to hear."
"That's okay." Charlotte bowed her head and raised it with a smile. "The blessings I have far outweigh my struggles I'm glad to say."
"That is good."
"Say!" Charlotte's eyes lit up. "You said you're a schoolteacher?"
"Well, I hope to be. In a few days perhaps."
"If you're interested in a job once you get your certification, the Masons are looking for someone to travel with us to Utah and teach the children on the wagon train. It's been too much for Molly and I to take on. Perhaps you'd be interested?"
"Maybe," Kate smiled. "I'll definitely think about it."
"Great," Charlotte gave Kate's hand a brief squeeze before she turned back to the hotel room she and Sam shared. "Good night."
"Good night." Kate delayed a moment, staying by the doorway as Charlotte slipped back into the room.
All fell quiet around Kate as she deliberated such a generous offer that had been handed to her by a stranger. She knew nothing was set in stone. They'd have to get to know her first of course. But she couldn't help but reflect upon the fact that only moments ago she had been reliving a nightmare and had now been given a brief chance to begin an entire new life with people who had never met her and was intent upon taking her for who she was now.
Shaking off the thought with a brief chiding of herself, Kate slipped away and back into her own room. She wouldn't allow herself to get too attached to the thought. Kate had not had much to look forward to throughout her life. Now was probably no different. She was still dreaming. It was all a smoke screen. She would wake up in the morning and it would all be different. But as she woke up the next morning, she realized that it all was real. So very real in fact that she was able to smile for the first time, the joy truly coming from her heart.
