Soiled Dove (16 page)

TWO WEEKS LATER Ino arrived in town with the buckboard. Horace Barlow had finally sent word the remainder of Clare’s wire had arrived. As usual his first stop was at the Cattleman’s Saloon. After several drinks he invited Mavis to join him for dinner at the café next door. When they were seated at a table, he took a deep breath and sighed, mumbling under his breath.

“What’s wrong, sugar?” Mavis asked, Brushing hair away from his forehead. “You look exhausted.”

“I ain’t no nursemaid, Mavis,” he said. “It’s hard takin’ care of the stock, the hands, and Clare. She’s meaner than the worst steer we got.”

“How’s Miss McIlhenney feeling these days?”

Loretta asked as she set menus on the table.

“She’s drivin’ me loco,” Ino answered. “She’s usin’ a cane to walk now, but won’t stop helpin’ long enough to let her ribs heal. I been with that woman almost twenty years now and she still don’t trust me.

We had a fight today and she told me to get out. Can you believe that? That damn ranch is half mine…sort of.”“She’s just frustrated because she can’t do much,”

Loretta said, then walked away to help another customer.

Ino looked at Mavis and sighed. “I know she’s frustrated, but so are me and the boys. She never could cook worth a damn and we’re gettin’ pretty damn tired of jerky and beans. I don’t know about her, but I need help.”

“Why don’t you hire someone to go out there to cook and clean? At least until she can get back on her feet.”

“That’s what we argued about! But she don’t want no stranger poking around in her business,” he said with a fake laugh. “She needs someone to take care of the house so even when she gets back to ranching she won’t have to do it. Spread’s getting’ too big.”

Ino watched as Loretta scurried around the restaurant taking orders, delivering plates, and refilling drinks. “How much you think that girl makes workin’ here?”

“I don’t know,” Mavis answered with a shrug. “I wouldn’t think it was much. Maybe ten a month, but she gets some extra from tips, I guess.”

“Is that good?”

“It’s not terrible. What’re you thinking?”

“Clare needs a housekeeper. When it was just me and her mostly we were okay. Now we got five more hands that gotta be fed and the house is much bigger than the original cabin. If she’s serious about makin’ a drive to Pueblo, we’ll have even more hands to feed.”

“Where you gonna find a woman who’ll put up with living at the ass-end of nowhere and be willing to cook for your hands
and
put up with Clare’s bad temper? That’s a tall order, baby.”

“How much you reckon we’d have to pay for that?”

“At least twenty a month. Maybe more.”

“How about twenty-five and a place to live?”

“You thinking about stealing Rosario’s help away?”

“Maybe.”

“Then you’d better talk to her brother-in-law, the preacher. He’s responsible for her.”

THE NEXT MORNING, after loading the barbed wire, Ino trudged up the steps to the home of Reverend Cyrus Langford and knocked on the door.

When the door opened, a fresh-faced young girl smiled up at him. He pulled his hat off and nodded.

“
Senorita.
Is Reverend Langford at home?”

“Yes, he is.” Stepping back, she invited Ino inside.

“Please have a seat in the parlor and I’ll tell Cyrus he has a visitor.”

“
Gracias
.”

Ino looked around the modest home, finally looking at the pictures hanging on the walls.

Obviously relatives, none of them were smiling. They all looked angry about something. The men wore black suits and white shirts and most were seated. A dour-looking woman wearing a dark floor-length dress stood stiffly beside each man with her hand resting on his shoulder.

“How may I help you, sir?” a deep voice asked.

Ino whirled around and saw a man who looked very similar to the men in the photographs standing in the doorway to the parlor.

“Sir, my name is Inuncio Valdez. I am here on behalf of my employer, Clare McIlhenney. Miss McIlhenney is the owner of a ranch near the Spanish Peaks, outside of Trinidad. She was recently injured in an accident and would like to offer the position of cook and housekeeper to your sister-in-law, Senora Langford.”

“Mrs. Langford is already employed in town.”

“Miss McIlhenney is prepared to offer Senora Langford not only the generous monthly wage of twenty dollars, but a place of her own to live in at the ranch, away from the main house.”

“Your employer wishes to hire my sister-in-law as a servant, sir.”

Ino wasn’t sure what to say to that. In actuality, Clare didn’t wish to hire anyone and it had taken him most of the morning to memorize what Mavis told him to say when making the offer.

“Miss McIlhenney has six other employees who work her herd and needs someone to cook for them.

Her home has many rooms and since her accident she has been unable to clean as well as she would like.”

“So you are talking about a temporary position?”

“I’m sure it would become permanent if Miss McIlhenney was satisfied with the work.”

“You expect my sister-in-law to give up a permanent position in town near her family in favor of a temporary one in the middle of nowhere that
might
become permanent?”

“
Si, senor
,” Ino answered, twisting his hat in his hands.

“That’s ridiculous, Mr. Valdez,” Cyrus said with a chuckle.

“But
senor
…” Ino began.

“Amelia said we had company, Cyrus,” Loretta said as she entered the room and saw Ino. “Mr.

Valdez,” she continued with a smile. “How nice to see you again. How is Miss McIlhenney?”

“Apparently that’s why Mr. Valdez is here, my dear. It seems Miss McIlhenney wishes to hire you as her housekeeper. I’ve told him it’s out of the question.”

“Why?”

“It’s barely more than you earn now and it’s so far away from town.”

“Miss McIlhenney also offers you a home to use as your own,” Ino interjected quickly.

“Oh, Cyrus! That would be wonderful. To have my own home.”

Cyrus turned to Ino and said, “I need to speak to my sister-in-law privately for a moment. Will you please excuse us, sir?”

Cyrus took Loretta by the elbow and escorted her from the room and into his study. When he closed the door he said, “You cannot take this position, Loretta.

It’s out of the question.”

“Why? I came here to start over, just as you and Hettie did. This is my chance to do that. I could save the money and…”

“I’ve spoken to many people in town and, from everything I’ve gathered, Clare McIlhenney is not the kind of person I would feel safe having you live around.”

“Is she a whore or a gambler? Those are the kinds of people I am used to living around or have you forgotten so soon,” Loretta snapped.

“She lives alone far from town. She and Mr.

Valdez have lived together for many years and no one is certain what their relationship is. There are rumors she has encouraged the Indians in the area to attack her neighbors and has murdered or assaulted a number of people.”

“Those are rumors, Cyrus. Since when do you listen to such things? Even if she has done any one of those things I’m certain she had a valid reason. She told me herself that she and Mr. Valdez are nothing more than friends.”

“There is no good reason to live in sin, Loretta,”

Cyrus hissed.

She took a step closer and said firmly, “You did,
Reverend
. How dare you forbid me to live my life as I see fit! I owe you a great deal for saving my life, but I don’t owe you my life. What would your precious, pious congregation think if they knew you were living under the same roof with two former prostitutes who are not related to you? Save Amelia, please, but I will make my own decisions.”

Cyrus looked stricken by the angry tone of Loretta’s voice. “I’m sorry, Loretta. Perhaps I have taken my promise to protect you too seriously.

However, regardless of the consequences, I will not agree to let you take this position without at least one stipulation. You must be allowed to come into town one weekend a month so that we might see you.”

“I can live with that, Cyrus,” Loretta said with a smile. “And I must give Rosario a chance to find another waitress before I leave and I already know just the right person for the job.”

A WEEK AND a half later Ino took the buckboard into Trinidad to pick up Loretta and her belongings.

His ears were still stinging from the tongue-lashing he had received from Clare over the hiring of a housekeeper and cook for the ranch. Clare was furious and threatened to fire him over the matter more than once. In return, he threatened to leave and take all the other hands with him. He couldn’t understand why Clare was being so damn stubborn about one small woman who would be relieving her of the cooking and household chores she hated so much.

“You need help, Clare, and your goddamn pride is ruining your good judgment!”

“You don’t know anything about this woman, yet you propose that I pay her and turn her loose in my home!”

“What you got she might take off with? Look at this place! It’s filthy and you can’t take care of it by yourself right now. All I’m trying to do is make things easier for you.”

“And make me pay for that privilege! I ought to take it out of your pay and then we’d see how long you’d be willing to put up with that. And you agreed to take her to town every month. I won’t pay you for those days so you can lollygag around in town for a weekend with Mavis. Or do you have your eyes on someone younger now!”

It had been all Ino could do not to raise his hand against Clare. Instead he stomped out of the house and hitched the horses to the buckboard, leaving in the early evening. Despite all the arguing they had done, Ino never found a good time to tell Clare he had promised her old original cabin to Loretta, in addition to her pay each month.

Before he made it into town a thunderstorm rolled over the mountains filling the sky with lightning and dumping a downpour. The storm lasted all night and part of the next morning, but when he drew the horses to a stop in front of Reverend Langford’s house, Loretta was ready to leave. She seemed much more excited about the new adventure than the reverend or the schoolmarm who showed up to say goodbye. The only other person who seemed thrilled for Loretta was her younger sister-in-law, Miss Amelia.

The air was damp and chilly, but Loretta’s face was flushed was excitement. With a smile she faced forward in the seat of the buckboard and took a deep breath. As the road took her farther away from Trinidad, Loretta swiveled on her seat to look back at the small but growing town. The sight of hazy blue mesas through the early morning mist and the first shafts of light striking the golden prairies to the north of Trinidad took her breath away.

Loretta’s reverie was interrupted when Ino pointed at the still snow-capped mountains ahead of them. “See how the first light turns the mountains red,” he said. “That is how these mountains got their name. The Sangre de Cristos, the Blood of Christ.

Those two mountains ahead are called the Spanish Peaks. The ranch is near them.”

Loretta smiled. Ino said the name in a way that was almost reverent. “They’re magnificent,” she agreed.

The weather warmed slightly as the sun crept farther into the sky. It was nearly noon when Ino pulled the team over to rest them. Loretta unpacked small packages of snacks for her and Ino to eat. She drew the skirt to her simple dress up slightly and sat down on a rock outcropping. As soon as the horses were settled, Ino joined her.

“What is that flat-looking mountain over there?”

she asked, pointing to the south.

“That is Fisher’s Peak. Beyond is the pass the Santa Fe and the New Mexico Territory.” Ino looked around as he ate. “There are many markers for travelers here. Fisher’s Peak to the south, Spanish Peaks to the north. The Indians believe the Spanish Peaks are the home of some of their gods who guard them. Sacred mountains.”

“Indians?” Loretta asked.

“Not many in this part of Colorado Territory now.” He allowed his eyes to scan the horizon. “All this belonged to them once.”

By the time Ino announced they should resume their trip, Loretta was amazed by the beauty and quiet around them. She could easily see why someone like Clare McIlhenney would choose it as her home and be willing to fight not to lose it.

The horses seemed to know where to go on their own and a few hours later Loretta saw wisps of white smoke curling up against the dark green trees just over a rise in the road. She stretched her body up as far as possible to get her first glimpse of her new home. Home. That was a word she never thought she would be able to say without being afraid. She had no idea what to expect from Clare McIlhenney or her ranch hands, but it couldn’t be any worse than what she’d already survived.

When the clearing in front of the house came into view, Loretta smiled. It was larger than she’d thought. A sprawling single-story home of creosote logs with white chinking gleaming in the dappled sunlight filtering between tree branches. It was well shaded for the summer months and semi-protected from snow in the winter. Everything around the house seemed neat. A corral and a stable weren’t far from the house and there was a large stack of split wood between two tall trees near the house. Tall stands of aspen and evergreens seemed to extend endlessly a few yards from the rear of the structure, running up the low-lying foothills.

Ino reined the horses in and jumped from the seat to jog around the wagon to help Loretta down. “It’s lovely, Mr. Valdez,” Loretta said as she placed her hands on his shoulders and stepped off the wagon.

“Uh, there’s a stream and a couple of pools not far from here where we get our water. There’s fish in them if you’re inclined to fish.”

“I’ll go exploring after I get settled,” Loretta said with a smile.

Nodding, Ino went to the back of the wagon and lowered the tailgate. Loretta looked around the grounds once more while Ino climbed into the back of the buckboard and pushed her luggage closer to the tailgate.

“Your room is not far from Clare’s room,” Ino said.“You said I would have a home of my own,”