Chapter 82 – Matters at Hand

After Andy left the jail, he headed over to sign the contracts with Lee. He then planned on sticking close to town because he was waiting to hear about things and that way if they wanted to talk to him he would be close.

"Thank you for everything, Lee." Andy said. "Here is the check that you wanted. Let me know when you need more, otherwise I will have it for you when I come back."

"Sounds good." Lee said. "Just so you know, Hope Valley is usually not this crazy. It is normally a quiet little town."

"I understand." Andy said. "I have lived in Calgary for years and spent time in some of the bigger cities in the States. I went to college in New York City for a time. This is nothing and I know it is because you all are taking care of my men and their families."

"My fiancee, Rosemary." Lee said. "She spent some time in New York working on Broadway. You should sit down and talk to her, she loves to talk about the city."

"I just may have to do that." Andy said. "I miss the theater. It is one of the things that keeps me going back to Calgary from time to time, although Union City has started to have a few plays here and there."

"So other than coal mines." Lee said. "What other businesses do you own?"

"I have a few hotels and have shares in a textile factory as well as a paper mill among other things." Andy said. "I also have worked with shipping companies. I have had a number of jobs over the years. I got a business and accounting degree back East. As you heard, my mother's family is in mining and the railroad. Mother never understood why I wanted to work with my hands and do things for myself. She grew up with money. I like to stay busy and be hands-on in my companies. I think that it is hard for management to take things for granted when they don't know when I will show up."

"I understand." Lee said. "There is something about doing things for yourself where you can that is satisfying. I didn't grow up with money, but have been able to enjoy a more comfortable life these days."

"Well." Andy said. "Hopefully, we can help each other make more money while at the same time helping other people. One more thing – have you thought about getting into the paper mill business. It works very well with a lumber mill. If you're interested, let me know. Maybe we can do something together."

"I couldn't agree more." Lee said. "I look forward to working with you, now there is plenty to do and we have sat for long enough. I will think about it. I would like to do some research."

"Again, thank you Lee." Andy said. "I will be in town until Friday some time, so if there is anything that you need, please just let me know. I will send you some stuff when I head back to the city. Just something to consider. I won't push."

"I will." Lee said. "I assume that Abigail will be talking to people today, so I am sure that there will be questions for you. May I suggest that you spend some time with your men and their families."

"I think I will." Andy said. "Oh, one more thing. I have payroll for my men coming in tonight, is there a place to put it?"

"Talk to Jenkins over at the bank." Hickum said.

"He usually sits with me as I count payroll." Lee said. "Then he secures it in the vault until the next day."

"Thank you." Andy said. "I will do that. Like I told Abigail and Wynn, I figured that it would be easier to have cash on hand."

With that Andy left Lee's office. They had signed the papers while they talked. Lee was glad that Andy was willing to do what he could. When Andy mentioned it, Lee was curious about the paper mill, but he wasn't going to show that. He knew that he would have to do some research. Another mill that he had ownership in had a paper mill close by. Lee had nothing to do with it, but at least he knew who to talk to about things.

"Hickum." Lee said. "Please go talk to the men that came in. Get them going on what needs to be done. They can start clearing and preparing the land for the row houses as well. I know that Dee had a layout plan that would mean more room in the middle for more houses. I want the row houses pushed back as far as we can on that field. The rows should be mirror opposite. I also want fences like the current ones have."

"Got it." Hickum said. "I figured that into the amount of wood. I also figured that we would have to dig outhouses for each house as well. Again, I figured that into the amount of lumber. Dee already talked to me and I agree since there is room and have already switched to that plan. With Dee's plan, we might have to add a few more pumps and create a new road, but with the money that we are saving, it shouldn't be a problem. He also said he was going to look into what needed to be done with that. I will wait to see what he comes up with."

"Good man." Lee said. "As long as these men are here to work, we will use them. I still plan on hiring men, if you think any of these men might fit that bill and are willing to stay on let me know. I was also thinking of talking to Adam Miller about helping and maybe hiring him as a foreman to oversee the construction. If you find him, please send him my way. Good idea, if Dee has a plan, best to let him see what he can do. Especially with contacts back East. He might be able to get people here faster."

"I will." Hickum said. "I think that he is a good choice. I told Dee I wouldn't do anything about the pumps until he talked to me again."

"Alright, we have work to do." Lee said. "I will either be here or at Abigail's office."

"I will get the men going." Hickum said heading for the door.

After Abigail left Wynn and the others at the jail, she headed back to her office. She wasn't sure what was going on, but she knew that there was stuff to do. She knew that she had to talk to the town and start getting people settled. She just wished that there were more hours in the day to try and get everything done. She felt bad that she wasn't spending time with Cody and with Becky coming back, she felt even worse. Abigail knew that she needed help, but there was only so much that she could hand off to others. There were things that she needed to handle herself and town business was one of those things. The books and ordering for the cafe was another. She just wished that she would have had more time to adjust to her job before so many changes.

Abigail hadn't been at her desk long when there was a knock at the door. She stood to see who was there, she knew that Dee and/or Wynn would have knocked and just come in. When she got to the door, she was relieved to see Frank standing there.

"Hey." Frank said. "You okay? I saw the men and wagons."

"Overwhelmed, but okay." Abigail said. "Apparently, the men were sent here to help and are being paid for two weeks. I don't know where they came from or who is paying them. I am not even sure I know what I am going to do with forty-five extra men in town right now. I guess they brought provisions, but still."

"Abigail." Frank said. "Slow down. If they are here to work, we will put them to work. We could use the help getting coffins built for tomorrow. I also know that you were looking at fixing up cabins on both the north and south roads. There is plenty for them to do. As far as the extra people, we will deal. Leave the dry order in effect until we get people out of the saloon on Friday. It will be okay."

"Thank you." Abigail said. "There are just things that I need to do and can't hand off to other people and sometimes I don't think that there are enough hours in the day."

Frank pulled Abigail into a hug before he spoke again.

"Take a deep breath." Frank said. "Do the things that you absolutely have to do and let others help you with the rest. I don't mind spending time with Cody or helping at the cafe. There are people that want to work and help, so please let us. I told you last night, so please."

"I will try." Abigail said. "I just don't know if I can afford to pay anyone to help. I am already paying Clara and Mary."

"I didn't ask for pay." Frank said. "Besides, business has been good and with additional people in town, I am sure that business will continue to pick up. Mary will also be taking time off soon right? Isn't she due soon."

"End of June, first part of July." Abigail said. "Her and DeWitt were married at the end of October. Even a honeymoon baby would be in July."

"No." Frank said. "She is due much sooner than that, she is way too big to be due this summer. I have been worried about her. With Faith here in town, I have felt better about things. I would still love a doctor and have included that in my prayers. But I know that God will provide. He already provided Faith."

"Jack said something about Mary also." Abigail said. "She swears that she is due this summer, but I have to agree that she is getting big. Jack said that she reminds him of when Carla was pregnant with the twins. We didn't know and it surprised us all."

"I will say an extra prayer." Frank said. "All we can do is be there for her. Now, what do you need help with today?"

"I would love your help." Abigail said. "But don't you have a large funeral to get ready for?"

"Yes I do." Frank said. "The rest of the bodies will be here from Rock Creek this afternoon. The Mounties are getting the graves dug and the coffins made. I have been with the families, but people are getting restless. I was hoping that there would be things that people could do."

"I am not sure." Abigail said. "I am sure that there are things to do, but I can't even think. I have been so busy dealing with town business that I haven't really had time to get out and see what is all going on."

"In that case." Frank said. "I will go see if I can find something to help keep people busy. I know that there is laundry and other regular chores to do. I will also take a look at what needs to be done at the cafe."

"Please do that." Abigail said. "Hopefully, once we get through tomorrow and some of the men head back to work on Friday, things will be clearer. I just wish that I had some answers for the people. There is still so much that we don't know."

"Again, slow down." Frank said. "One thing at a time. We are getting housing worked out and people are going to be getting back to work. We will get people moved out of the schoolhouse and it will be cleaned this weekend. I am going to go. I will check in later."

"Thank you, Frank." Abigail said.

When Dee got back downstairs in the cafe after speaking with Jack and Elizabeth, he grabbed his messenger bag and headed to the mercantile. He wanted to send a wire and also check if there were any messages. He then planned on heading to the jail and grabbing paperwork before going over to Abigail's office to work. He knew that after the previous night that there was a lot to do and he hoped that his dad would be in a better mood. Then again after what happened this morning, he began to wonder. Dee picked up the messages at the mercantile and then headed to the jail. He wanted to make sure that there wasn't any paperwork there that they would need right away. From there he headed to Abigail's office. He got there just as Pastor Frank was leaving. He quickly knocked on the door and entered. Abigail nodded to him as he sat at the table.

"I can go." Dee said. "I just figured that Dad was here."

"No it is okay." Abigail said. "I thought he was coming over, but he headed to the row house. Feel free to work, I know that you have your paperwork here. I need to run over to the bank and then I assume Bill will be over. We need to sit down and start figuring things out."

"That was why I came." Dee said. "I saw that you had some typing that needed to be done and I also have paperwork that needs to be done for dad."

"Do your paperwork." Abigail said. "I can always get one of the ladies to do some typing."

"Okay." Dee said. "But I am really good at typing if you want."

"I will keep that in mind." Abigail said. "What can't Mounties do?"

Dee just smiled and Abigail shook her head. She realized how much Dee and Jack were alike. She was glad he was there and part of her wished that he could stay longer. Dee set about his paperwork and Abigail ran to the bank to put the checks from Andy in the town accounts as well as talk to Jenkins. It wasn't a conversation that she was looking forward to, but she knew that she had to figure out what was going on with town money. She was glad that there were other people that could handle less pressing matters, such as helping people get settled and ready for the funeral. What Abigail really wanted was twenty minutes to herself, but she knew that she wasn't going to get that anytime soon. When Abigail got back to her office, she wasn't surprised that Bill, Lee and Wynn had joined Dee. They were all sitting around the table working on things. Bill looked up and motioned for her to join them.

"Give me a minute." Abigail said.

"Take you time." Wynn said. "We were just going over things. I think we have a clearer plan moving forward. Nothing is set, but we think we have worked things out."

Abigail went into the back room and took a moment to herself. She took a couple deep breaths. She wiped her face and said a quick prayer before rejoining the group. When she came out, Wynn looked at her and knew that at some point he was going to have to make her take a break. He could tell that she was stressed, but trying to hide it, but like his Elizabeth he could see through it. Wynn was starting to worry about Abigail and didn't want her to get burnt out.

"As I was telling the others." Lee said. "Hickum is getting the men going working on the cabins on both the north and south road. All should be ready, minus furniture in a few days. Unless there are things there. I also will have the men start clearing and getting things ready to build the row houses. I know that permits haven't been done, but you know what at this point I don't care."

"I told him that I can deal with things if there is a problem." Wynn said.

"There shouldn't be a problem." Bill said. "It is basically in the town property and as long as Abigail approves the permits, it should be fine."

"Bill is right." Dee said. "Besides, you agreed to the work. Also this is an unusual situation. There shouldn't be any problems. I will work with Buxton and the county if there are problems, but usually the town has a right to issue permits themselves. Granted they should be filed with the county as well. So in addition to what we already figured out, we should have ten cabins for housing soon."

"So do we know anymore about these men who came into work?" Abigail asked.

"Yes and no." Wynn said. "Still not clear who hired them, but from the list of supplies it looks like they have the things needed for construction and appear to be skilled in that area. We will use the men as we need and to the fullest. I suggest we worry less about where they came from and see how much we can get done. I have my suspicions, but I will keep those to myself for now. Obviously whoever is behind it wants to remain anonymous. I suggest that we don't push the issue. If people ask and keep pushing it, we will kindly remind them that it was anonymous and we honestly don't know. I have left the paperwork on your desk Abigail."

"Thank you, Wynn." Abigail said. "I agree with you, but it is still surprising."

"That it is." Lee said. "But let's just get things fixed up and people who want to stay settled. I assume that you are going to call a meeting later to talk to people?"

"Yes." Abigail said. "I am sure that the rumor mill is going in full force at the moment. The problem is that I don't even know what to say to the people."

"We will help you." Bill said. "But I think that right now, there are other matters that we need to talk about."

"I will get back to work." Lee said. "I will continue to keep updated on the work. Depending on how things go, I may talk to you, Abigail, about more than the sixteen row houses agreed to with Andy, but that can wait until next week. Let's get through the weekend first. Dee thanks for the new plan, Hickum has it and that is what we are going to follow."

"You're welcome." Dee said. "I figured that since it was all town land and mostly cleared, we might as well use it to the fullest, because even if you don't build the houses right now, they will be needed in the future."

"You are right there." Lee said. "This is a much better use of the space. I was just going with the plans that Jack found in the old mining office."

"Yeah, well." Abigail said. "The man that drew those up wasn't the best at fully using his resources unless it was a benefit to him."

"Understood." Lee said.

"Thank you again, Lee." Abigail said. "Thank you, Dee, for all your help."