Ruby (18 page)

Sometime after she’d fallen asleep, a crash accompanied by men shouting, jerked her straight up. Outside? No, it came from downstairs. Was someone hurt? She grabbed her wrapper and headed for the stairs.

“No, you can’t go down there.” Cimarron stopped her with a hand on her arm.

“Why not? What if. . . ?” Ruby kept her voice to a whisper, surprised the others hadn’t come out already. Good thing Opal could sleep through about anything.

“Charlie will take care of it.”

“But what if he’s the one hurt?”

“Then Belle will take over.”

“Belle? Why? How?”

“She has a gun, and she knows how to handle it—and men who get out of hand.”

“But I paid for a bed here!” The shout from below could most likely be heard clear up into the hills.

“You can come back in when you’re sober enough to not break things.”

“See. I told you Charlie can handle them.”

“Did Belle serve liquor down there?” The thought made Ruby sick to her stomach.

“No, she wouldn’t. Belle keeps her word.”

“Then how?”

“A flask. Lots of the men carry them.”

“Oh.” Ruby crossed her arms and contemplated what she would like to say or do to the man she was sure was now picking himself up out of the dirt of the street. And after his nice bath too. Well, he could pay for another one in the morning and haul his own water besides.

She and Cimarron stood listening until they heard Belle go into her room.

“You think the men are in their rooms?”

“One is.” Cimarron started down the stairs.

“Where are you going?”

“To see how bad the damage is.”

Ruby closed her eyes.
Damage? Please, I have no money to repair damages
. Glancing down at her wrapper to make sure she was sufficiently covered, she followed Cimarron down the front stairs.
If Mrs. Brandon could see me now . . .
The thought was too distressing to tolerate. Ladies did not run around in public in their wrappers. No matter that this was her business, her home. She could hear someone moving around in the cardroom. Hopefully it was Charlie. Did the man never go to bed?

“I hope you hurt him when you threw him out.” Cimarron stopped in the doorway, hands on her hips.

Ruby hesitated on the last stair, wishing she could go back upstairs without knowing how bad things were. Had this happened before and no one told her?

“He might feel inclined to find somewhere else to sleep.”

“I’m not returning his money.” Ruby joined Cimarron in the doorway. Charlie set the last table back in place.

“Going to have to reglue some legs, I’m thinking perhaps I should go into the furniture business.” He turned a chair upside down and studied the three remaining legs. “We should order a lathe. It would make fixing these go faster.”

“What’s a lathe, and where would we get it if we had the money to purchase one?” Ruby stared at the coffee stains on the rug. “That’s it. No more rugs in here. If these men want to be animals, they deserve to be treated that way.”

“Now, it ain’t everyone.” Charlie set another chair upright and rocked it a bit to see how tight the joints still were. “A lathe is used for turning square-shaped wood into round pieces.”

“Oh. The man who did this—had he been drinking?”

“Musta been.”

“Was he at your table?”

“Nope.”

“Did Belle know he was drinking?”

“You’ll have to ask her.”

Ruby sucked in a deep breath. “I see.” Would this help Belle realize what happens when drink enters the picture? Perhaps Belle should have to help pay for the repairs.

“I’ll charge him for this. We got his kit and case up in the room. He wants it back, he’ll have to pay.”

They heard a knocking on the front door.

“That’s most likely him. You two go on up, and I’ll take care of this. Sorry to wake you.”

“Good night, then. You go on to bed after you talk to him. The furniture can’t be fixed until morning.”

“Oh, don’t you go worrying about me, Miss Ruby. I know how to take care of things.”

“I know you do. Thanks, Charlie.” Ruby turned to leave. Now she’d have to confront Belle after all. Might as well see if Belle had asked people to stay away from Dove House. Did Belle still think of the place as hers? That wasn’t what she’d said earlier. Biting her lip, Ruby recognized the white-hot feelings as pure rage. Rage at the men who flaunted the rules; rage at liquor and how it affected men; rage at her father for leaving her in all this mess. She motioned Cimarron ahead of her.

“You got to remember, Ruby, some men are pretty sneaky. And some can hold their liquor, so’s you got no idea that they’re even drinkin’.”

“You’re saying Belle might not have realized it?” Ruby kept her voice even, the effort causing her jaw to cramp.

“Sometimes it’s hard to tell, then all of a sudden the guy blows. That big one—he’s like that. A mean drunk.” Cimarron stopped at the top of the second flight of stairs. “I–uh–thank you I wasn’t down there.” The words came in a rush.

“You are most welcome.” Ruby gripped the stair railing as if she could squeeze her feelings into the wood. “Thank you for all your sewing and cooking, and I know you don’t like cleaning, but you do your share.”
Not like someone else we know
. “I appreciate it all.”

Cimarron sniffed and knuckled away a tear. “No one ever talked nice to me like you do. Without wanting
something
, you know.”

Not really, and I’d just as soon not know
. “Thank you, Cimarron. I’ll see you in the morning.” She knew her words were stiff, but it was the best she could do.

“You goin’ callin’ with Charlie in the mornin’?”

“Oh, mercy, I forgot all about that.”
No, I’m not going. Calling on the people of Little Missouri won’t do any good at all!
They’d slammed their doors the night she and Opal arrived. Why would it be any different now?
You have to go. You told Charlie you would, and he’s set the dough for sweet rolls. If only I could find the box
. Surely there was money in it to make things better, or why would Far have struggled to mention it when he was so weak? But she had looked everywhere she could think of. Limp as a water weed now that the anger had drained away, Ruby collapsed on her pallet.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Charlie stood in the doorway with his arms folded across his chest. “You can’t go looking like that!”

Ruby glanced down at her red traveling dress. “What’s wrong with this?” She’d brushed it carefully; she knew all the stains on the hem were gone. And the hat was set just right. The mirror never lied. She knew she looked nice. Mrs. Brandon had said so.

“No one dresses that fancy in Little Missouri. People will think you’re a . . .” He looked like he was going to swallow his Adam’s apple.

“What he means is that the men will be so busy looking at how pretty you are, they won’t pay attention to what you are sayin’.” Milly turned slightly so that Ruby couldn’t see the look she sent Charlie.

He tipped his bowler farther back on his head. “Yep, that’s what I meant all right.”

“But you said—”

“Just wear your better dark skirt and that nice blue print waist you have. You’ll fit in better that way.” Daisy looked up from measuring flour into the pancake mixture. “I’ll have breakfast ready in a few minutes. We haven’t seen hide nor tail of our guests yet.”

The front bell tinkled.

Ruby started to go to the dining room, but Opal stepped in front of her. “I’ll go. It’s my turn.”

“Oh, and Ruby, I’ll have the sweet rolls ready for you. They should be coming out of the oven pretty soon,” Daisy said.

“If I had a particle of sense, I’d . . .” Ruby paused. She had to admit that real sense meant listening to Charlie.
He knows the people of Little Missouri far better than I do!
she thought as she climbed the stairs. And besides, those two houses they’d stopped at might remember her hat, at least, although it had been too dark at the one house. But at the other, she and Opal had been welcomed—at first.

She carefully laid her hat back in the hatbox and set it on the shelf. Her gloves she smoothed flat and laid them in the trunk, and the dress she hung on a hanger and then over a hook. How she would love to have that armoire back again.
How I would love to have that room on the floor below back again
. While it had seemed barren at first, compared to the space she and Opal now shared, the room had been palatial. She left her hair pinned up and donned the skirt and waist. She looked more everyday now. Once again stroking a hand down the dress on the hanger, she grabbed an apron off one of the pegs on the wall and tied it on while descending the stairs.

“Ah, that smells heavenly.” The wonderful aroma of rolls fresh out of the oven met her halfway down. And they were all to be given away. Perhaps they should use the wheelbarrow that Charlie made for the garden.

The bell rang again as she entered the kitchen. She could hear voices coming from the dining room. Had they more than one customer for a change?

She pushed open the swinging door into the dining room and stopped. People were sitting at three tables. However would they handle such a crowd?

The two salesmen glanced up from their pancakes, one of them sporting a swollen jaw. When he caught her eye, he nodded toward Charlie. “He sure does pack a punch.” He rubbed his jaw. “And I was winning too.”

“You weren’t winning.” The more slender man took another bite of pancake.

Ruby glanced toward the man who stood just inside the door. Rand Harrison. What was he doing here? Was he planning to give her another piece of his mind?

Out of the corner of her eye, she watched him take a table as she stopped to talk to the drummers. “How are things this morning— besides the jaw?”

“Good. Sure some different around here than it used to be.” The second one nodded in agreement with his friend. “The food is good too.”

Ruby counted to six before making sure her lips were smiling and her eyes weren’t. She kept her voice sweet and gentle. “I’m glad you like it here, and I do hope you come back and that you tell others of the good service you received here.” She lowered her voice a trifle. “And if you are caught drinking again, you will sleep with the hens in the chicken house. There will be no whiskey at Dove House.” She smiled as though she’d just shared a delightful secret with them.

“Miss Torvald, you are a chip off the old block, only a lot prettier.”

“Do I have your agreement?”

“You’d turn down business?”

“Yes. I would.” She straightened her shoulders. “You’ve already spoken with Charlie about the repairs to the cardroom?”

“Oh yes. Paid him up, though his prices were a mite steep.”

She nodded. “Thank you.” She wasn’t sure what all she was thanking him for, other than for courtesy’s sake, but he didn’t seem a bad sort when he was sober.

Ruby glanced up, hoping Charlie would go speak with Mr. Harrison, but instead she saw his back as he returned to the kitchen. Back to smiling, she crossed to the rancher’s table.

“Good morning, Mr. Harrison, what would you like this morning?”

“Coffee and some breakfast.”

“How many eggs with your pancakes?”

“Two, three.”

“Very good.” Ruby turned his cup upright and returned to the kitchen. She gave Daisy the order, grabbed the coffeepot, and headed back out.

“I hear you had a bit of trouble here last night,” Rand said as she filled his coffee cup.

“How did. . . ?”

“Small town, things get around fast. You’re livin’ in a dream world, you know.”

“Pardon me?”

He gestured around the room. “All these changes. Might do in Dickinson but not here in Little Misery.”

She’d heard Little Missouri called by that name before and liked it even less now. So was this the man behind the conspiracy? He sure did act like it could be true.

“Mr. Harrison.” She clipped off each sound as if she’d just finished a lesson with an elocution teacher. “I don’t tell you how to run your ranch, and I’d appreciate the same courtesy from you.”

“But you’re a woman. What do you know about running a business?”

“I may not know a lot, but I’m learning, and it is
my
business.”
If I can keep the doors open
. She clamped her teeth, smiled in spite of the tight jaw, and took her coffeepot over to the other table. She’d rather serve the two louts than serve him.

“I swear I’m going to learn to shoot, and he’ll be my first target,” she muttered back in the kitchen as she plunked the coffeepot back on the stove.

“Who?” Opal looked up from buttering the tops of the rolls lined up on the table.

“
Mister
Harrison.”

“Ah, is Rand here?” Cimarron started toward the door, then stopped herself.

“Here’s his plate.” Daisy set the plate on a tray that already had a syrup pitcher and a dish of jam.

Ruby picked it up and backed through the swinging door. She turned to see Charlie talking with Harrison and made her way to the table after dropping off extra pancakes for the drummers.

“Mornin’ again, Miss Ruby,” Charlie said, “that will work much better.” His emphasis on “that” made her sure he meant the change of clothing rather than the serving of food.

“I’m glad to hear that.” Ruby didn’t quite manage to keep the resentment from her voice. She set the food in front of the man at the table.

Rand looked from one to the other. “Thank you, Miss Torvald,” he said with a slight emphasis on her last name.

“You are welcome.” She paused, “Will there be anything else?”

“I’ll take care of him.” Charlie set his cup down on the table and his rear in a chair. “So you’re on your way for a bull, eh?”

Ruby turned away but not before hearing the man’s response. Where would he have to go for a bull? She glanced back to see his carpetbag by the door. Obviously he was taking the train. She shook her head. What she knew about ranching would fit in a teaspoon.

The dining room had emptied, and they’d cleaned up again with Milly and Opal setting up the tables for dinner when Charlie asked if she was ready to go.

“We’ve packed the rolls in three baskets. That should give you plenty.” Daisy tucked a cloth over the tops of the bread.

“Has anyone seen Belle yet?”

They all shook their heads.

“You want to use my straw hat?” Cimarron asked. “That sun is heating up.”

“Thank you.” Ruby accepted the broad-brimmed straw with green ribbon around the crown and trailing down the back. Good thing she had fashioned her bun down lower. She used the hatpin to best advantage and took a basket over her arm.

Is this what Daniel felt like when stepping into the lion’s den?

“I’m going to introduce you as Ruby Torvald, owner of the newly redone Dove House.” Charlie picked up the other two baskets.

“And I’ll invite them to come for a meal in the new dining room to see the many changes I have made. And that there will be no charge.”

“Good.”

“And I will offer them our special rolls that have become so popular with the travelers on the train.”

“Right.” They walked up to the first house, the one that Ruby was sure had been her first to visit that dreary night.

Charlie rapped on the open door.

“Come in.”

Charlie motioned for Ruby to go first. They stood for a moment before the woman came from the rear of the house.

“Good morning, Mrs. Fitzgerald, I brought Miss Ruby Tor-vald to meet you.”

“Aye.” Doubt blossomed on the woman’s worn face. “Pleased.”

“I brought you a sample of the sweet rolls we are baking. Folks on the train are really enjoying them, and I hope you like them too.” Ruby held out the napkin-wrapped parcel. “And I want to invite you and your husband to come for dinner, at no charge, and see all the changes we’ve made. Dove House is a real family place now.”

“Dining room, you say?”

“We redid the saloon. No more liquor served.”

“What about the . . .”

“No more.”

“Humph. Well, I’ll be.”

“I hope you’ll be my guest very soon. My sister, Opal, and I are looking forward to meeting all the people of Little Missouri.”

Holding the rolls in both hands in front of her like a shield, Mrs. Fitzgerald looked from Charlie to Ruby. “You sure don’t look like one of them fancy ladies.”

Ruby reminded herself to thank Charlie for his advice on changing clothes. While her traveling dress was appropriate for calling, it
was
far too fancy for this home. The large room was combination kitchen, parlor, and most likely bedroom, if the stack of pallets in the corner was any indication. The upstairs was most likely all one room too. Only difference, the large porch on the back of the first floor.

“Thank you for the rolls.”

“You are welcome. I hope to see you soon.” Ruby turned to leave, grateful they hadn’t been asked to sit down for coffee.

Once they were out the door, she sucked in a huge breath of clean, fresh air.

“Friendly, isn’t she?” Ruby allowed the bite of sarcasm to say what she really meant.

“She didn’t throw us out.”

“True. Thank God for small favors.”

The man in the next house was glad for the rolls but disgusted that he could no longer drink while playing cards at Dove House.

“That swill over at Williams’ nearly killed me.” He glared at Ruby as if she had forced him to pour the drinks down his gullet.

Ruby didn’t bother to invite him for a free meal.

Her basket lighter, they walked up to Mrs. McGeeney’s boardinghouse.

“Since she serves meals, do you think she’ll take affront with a gift of sweet rolls?”

“No, she’s smarter than that. She likes good bread as well as anyone. Her biscuits are real good, but sometimes her bread better not be dropped on anyone’s foot.”

“That bad?” Ruby chuckled, glancing at him from under the brim of her hat just in time to catch his wink. “Charlie, I do believe you have a talent for storytelling.”

“Whatever gave you that idea?”

The smell of the next place attacked them before they took the first step on the three treads to the porch.

“What is that horrible odor?”

“Oh, Bill must be mixing up his red-eye brand whiskey.”

“With rotten eggs? No wonder people get sick.” She blinked against the eye-burning stench.

“You get used to it after a while.”

Ruby took a handkerchief from her reticule and held it to her nose. “Do we have to go here?”

“Can’t leave anyone out. Come on around back. That’s where he mixes it.”

They walked around the corner of the slab-wood sided building to find the proprietor pouring ingredients in a large washtub. He stirred, tasted, grimaced, and added another bottle of cheap whiskey.

“Brought someone who wants to meet you,” Charlie called as they stood a ways back from the concocting.

Williams let his wooden stirring stick bang against the side of the tub and came around to greet them.

After Charlie’s introduction, Ruby held out the wrapped rolls and went into her invitation.

“Why thankee, miss. I been wantin’ to come by and thank you for sending so much business my way. Full every night now.”

“Miracle half of Little Muddy ain’t in the graveyard if they drink that stuff regular-like.” Charlie motioned to the tub.

“When I get that bottled up, I’m set for a time again.” Bill Williams nodded toward the mess. “Have to fix up a batch every week. I serve that good stuff only when someone’s willing to pay extra.”

“I heard tell you been accused of highway robbery.”

Ruby held her ground with a smile, all the while wishing she were anywhere else.

“They don’t have to drink it.” He set the rolls on the porch, then cussed at the dog who came over to sniff. “You got any more of that hooch you brought by before? I can afford some more now.”

“I’ll bring it over. You want one case or two?”

“Or three, four, whatever you got.”

“It’s cash, Mr. Williams.” Ruby interrupted firmly.

“I know that. Hear you had a bit a ruckus last night.
Hee hee
. That drummer . . . told him he’d never get by with that flask. Man can’t hold his liquor nohow.”

At Charlie’s look of insistence, Ruby reiterated her invitation to come to Dove House for a meal, and after enduring a minute or so of small talk, they left.

Back on what could be called a street only through a flight of imagination, Ruby took a deep breath of clean air and stared out at the sparkles on the river.
All I’d like to do right now is go take a bath, a long bath
. She shook out her skirt and looked longingly back at Dove House. “I sure hope this is all worth it.”