The Back Building (14 page)

“We had no choice. Cat knew Patty meant to kill me and she was in trouble too.”

“I thought she was intolerable. How has she been?”

“She’s been okay. I understand her now, what she has been through and why she does what she does. She is under the weather now, I need to tend to her but I don’t want to leave you again James, ever.”

“I’ll come with you. Let’s eat a meal first and we’ll go see to her together.”

We walked hand in hand toward my hotel, we ate heartily, and went upstairs to find Cat missing. A note was sprawled across the table top for me, reading;

Iona, my friend and fellow lunatic,

I think we should separate now so that they don’t find us. I am going after Samuel, wish me luck. I have taken the horse.

Cat

“Oh my, she’ll never make it when she is this sick.” I explained who Samuel was and together we prayed that someone was looking out for Cat and that she would find her happily-ever-after.

“How about we get married?”

“Right now?” I asked.

“Yes, I want you by my side tonight and forever more.”

“James, are you really here? I have to be sure I am not imagining this, pinch me.”

James pinched me under my arm and sure enough I felt it. I hugged him once more and we left in search of a priest to marry us.

Chapter Nine

Marriage

James and I decided to make Waterloo our home. We were married immediately by a justice of the peace whom the hotel manager helped us locate. Our first night together as man and wife was unremarkable. I was so exhausted from my escape that while we shared a marriage bed, my good husband simply carried me across the doorway of our hotel room and settled me into a nest of covers. I lay safely beside him and slept for nearly fifteen hours.

When I woke, James was waiting for me. I bathed alone, soaping my private areas and armpits, then my stinky feet. I wrapped myself in a towel and when I came out from the bathroom I opened it like a gift before my husband. He had never seen a naked woman before and dropped to his knees before me, appraising me and taking my offering. Hugging his head to my belly and caressing me with gentle touches I relaxed in his arms. His soft lips took my mouth and he explored the cavern with his tongue. His kisses were gentle but there was a neediness I understood. We fell onto the bed and clumsily learned about one another. The contours of my lover’s body were that of a man who worked hard. His arms were muscular and his chest well defined. He said I was far too skinny and that he had every intention of fattening me up. We made sweet and satisfying love to one another that morning, that afternoon, and again that night. We only left our room for meals, it was our honeymoon after all and we were two love-birds with much to celebrate.

“James, what shall we do today?” I asked after our second day sequestered in our room.

“We will tend to Lucky and find a place of our own to live,” he said as he rubbed his hands through my growing hair.

“James, did you steal Lucky?” I had to ask.

“No, I wouldn’t say that. They owe me an awful lot of back pay, Iona, so I felt at liberty to take him in exchange.”

We purchased a newspaper for a penny and looked at the employment sections for work, as well as the real estate section for homes. James found several jobs that looked intriguing and left me to go speak with managers and foremen at different locations. I continued to comb the paper, but didn’t find anything suitable for my skills. There were plenty of jobs for seamstresses and laundry maids, there were even opportunities for care givers, but until I saw the opening at the bait and tackle shop I was not intrigued. I walked to the shop and noted the ‘help wanted’ sign in the window. I took a deep breath to calm my nerves before entering.

“Can I help you, Miss?” An older man asked from behind the counter.

“I am here about the job.” I stuttered.

“Oh no, I can’t hire a woman, ain’t nobody would take you seriously. They’d be thinking they could pull one over on ya and take advantage. Nope, go on now, I can’t hire you.” He showed me out the door, dismissing me immediately. Hetty walked right beside me chatting about how unfair that was. “We’ll keep looking, yes we will. I taught you to clean, you could do that.” Hetty was well intentioned but I didn’t want to clean tubs for a living. I had too many bad memories associated with them now. I walked through the small town, counting paces while taking in the sights, smells, and sounds of my new surroundings. I was careful not to arouse suspicion by conversing with Hetty lest people think I was crazy and start gossiping about me. When she talked, I listened but didn’t respond. This irked her but she understood why I was behaving this way, she didn’t want me back at Willard any more than I did. I duly noted that she was an apparition now and accepted her presence.

James and I met back at the hotel. We briefly ate, then ran to our room to make love before he started his first job. He was lucky, someone at the mill up and quit a few days earlier and they were looking for anyone who could start right away. He didn’t have a recommendation but they could tell he was a hard worker by one look at his body.

“I can’t believe I start right away. The first few days are just a trial, but I want you to start looking for a house, or land anyway. Maybe we can build our own place. I have some money saved from years of work. John never let me pay him rent so I saved and saved. I have just about three thousand dollars. I would have had more if they paid me my wages for the past two months, but the hospital was struggling.”

“I will start looking when you leave, or maybe I’ll just lay here a while and wait for you to come back, don’t be too long now.” I looked at him provocatively, loving the way we were able to make one another feel. I didn’t want him gone from me for one single minute.

I decided to start with the desk manager, I asked if knew of any properties or any land that was for sale. He didn’t but would put the word out. I strolled through town, looking at notices hanging in windows at the grocer’s and baker’s. I found one alluring sign, it described an older, charming home a few miles outside of town. The property was close to water and had ten acres. I grew up with an enormous amount of land and this was nowhere near that, but we could keep some animals and livestock if we wanted. I guessed charming meant the house needed work, and maybe we would prefer to start fresh, but still it was worth considering. I got directions from the bakery owner and since I had nothing else to do I walked to the property. I knocked on the door but no one answered. I decided to have a look around anyway. The property itself was overgrown and had been left untended for a long time, but it held great promise. The home had a nice structure and after peering in the windows, seemed decent in size.

I was entrusted with James’s money. I took a five dollar bill and went into a few stores to purchase some necessary items. I bought a frying pan, a sauce-pan, and a spatula and wooden spoon. I would need a few towels and oven-mits, so I bought those too. I had the items wrapped in parcel paper and waited patiently for James, who didn’t arrive home until after the dinner hour. I was growing fearful something awful happened to him, but when he came in and removed his hat, I realized just how hard he was worked today and forgave him for the scare. He bathed and ate, then fell fast asleep before I could present him with the gifts. The following morning we rose together and I brought the packages to him.

“What are these?” He asked befuddled.

“Just a little something for our new home.”

He unwrapped the items and swept me up into his arms, “They’ll be perfect, did you find us a place then?” he asked amused.

“I haven’t spoken with the owners, but I have seen the property and it will do just fine.”

“I have tomorrow off, let’s go look at it then. I can hardly wait, now I must be off to the mill. Enjoy yourself today.”

It turned out the property owners were deceased and a distant relative was selling the homestead. He wanted far more than the property was worth and we weren’t willing to part with our entire nest egg. After bickering back and forth between lawyers, we obtained the property for two thousand and four hundred dollars. The lawyer also had a fee, so after we paid him we were left with about five hundred dollars to our name. It wasn’t much, but for us all that mattered was having a place to call home.

On his days off James cleared the property and repaired the stables while I took care of the inside of the house. It had been well kept and still had some furnishings that we gladly used. The oak kitchen table sat four people, so I envisioned my husband and me and our two children all eating meals together there. I wiped it down and oiled it, then set to work on the floors. I swept and mopped, then dusted the cobwebs that lingered in the cupboards. I saw a few vermin scatter across the floor and jumped onto the kitchen chair, screaming for James. When he came in he had an expression of terror, but when he saw me with a broom and up off the floor he guessed we had mice. His laughter filled the house, making me love him and this place, our place, even more.

“Once we really get settled in here the mice will move out. Until then, don’t go anywhere without your broom, haha.” He got a tall glass of water and then went back to do more yard work. He said he had a surprise for me and he was trying to finish it before dusk.

I prepared a measly dinner of pancakes and eggs, I didn’t know how to cook very well and this would have to do for now. Then James took my hand and led me outside. He had me close my eyes and when I opened them, before me was a chicken coop. My very own coop. It was nicely constructed and just the perfect size.

“Oh, James, you remembered. Thank you. Now we have to get some chickens!”

“My boss at the mill said we can go to his place tomorrow, he has more than he needs now that it’s just he and his wife. She’d like to meet you as well and help you get acquainted to the area so the official invite is for dinner. Is that okay with you?”

“Of course, I’d love to meet them. It will be lovely, but what shall I wear? I only have the two skirts….”

“Take a few dollars, go into town and buy a nice outfit. Buy me one too!”

I bought us both some much-needed new clothes and a pie from the bakery so we didn’t arrive empty handed. I was letting my nerves get the better of me. What if they found out who we really were? Or what if they pried into our background and asked how we met? I would need a convincing story. We were pretty young comparatively to be married and living on our own already.

James came home to freshen up and we were off to dinner. The couple were Ben and Jennifer Mills. They looked to be in their late forties and had several children who had moved on to larger cities leaving them alone with the mill.

“Your home is just lovely, Jennifer,” I said, remembering my manners.

“Thank you, do come in and have a proper look around.” It was a very inviting home, fluffy lace pillows adorned the davenport, hand hooked rugs covered nearly all the wooden floors. Water-color paintings lined the side tables and walls.

I felt so lacking in my ability to make a home and said as much to Jennifer. To my surprise, she offered to help me spruce our place up. I admitted I was not much of a sewer or cook for that matter and she grew slightly apprehensive for a moment. I told her James and I were young lovers and that we ran from home to be together. I begged that she not tell anyone. It explained how we arrived in a new town without any family waiting for us, or helping us. It didn’t explain why I was so deficient in womanly ways. I added that my mother lacked the patience to teach me, and that because there were so many mouths to feed at my house, it was easier to send me outside, the reason I was so good with animals.

Jennifer understood and didn’t ask further questions. She served us an impressive meal of pork chops, smothered in apple butter, alongside a vegetable casserole, and hot buttered rolls. It was delicious, and had me wondering where she found the time. I supposed she prepared the crusts for the casserole and the rolls earlier in the day and realized I would soon be doing the same if I were to take care of a family. My time would be spent in the house more often than not and I wasn’t quite comfortable with that.

That night I told James my concerns that he wouldn’t love me if I couldn’t cook properly or take care of the home sufficiently. He promised to help and I held him to his word.

We came home with not two or three but five chickens for our coop. We had fresh hay that I scattered around and a trough full of grains for feeding. I sat in the coop with the girls and closed my eyes, remembering back to when I was a young girl collecting eggs. I wondered about my family. I ruminated about my new baby brother, Frederick, and how they were all getting along. I shook off the image and collected myself before heading indoors.

James worked long, arduous hours. I was often left home alone from sun-up to sun-down. Luckily, Jennifer paid me frequent visits, sensing my loneliness. On one such occasion she brought with her two fluffy pillows that she made but no longer required and settled them on the davenport. She looked at our lackluster decor and suggested we go shopping.

“I know just the place.” She grabbed my hand like we were old friends and together we marched into town. There were several stores I hadn’t noticed before that had all kinds of knick-knacks. I was disinclined to spend too much money, but did buy a few little items to make my place homier. I bought a pair of salt and pepper shakers in the shape of chicks, and a cuckoo clock to go over the mantle. I had spent my limit, but then I saw the baby blanket. It was a velvety soft, light blue blanket with a lace pattern. I grabbed it and held it to my cheek, then marched to the counter and checked out with all of my items.