Best White Lies
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“I’m sorry about that,” said the man who was now in front of her. “I didn’t know what else to say.”
She nodded and looked back at where the men were standing. They weren’t coming toward her, but they weren’t leaving either. She had no doubt she’d be asked to leave before long—if not escorted out by one or both of them.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief which he offered to her. “Here. Wipe your face.” When she took it from him, he gently stroked the side of her head then moved around in front of her, holding open the door so she could enter the establishment.
It wasn’t hard for her to see why this place would make an impression on most women. The interior was all dark wood: mahogany paneling on the walls, floorboards polished until they glistened, and the furniture filled up the room.
There was even a grandfather clock near the entrance hall with its face turned toward the door, making it clear there was always someone present. But none of those things made any impression on her.
The real reason she’d stepped inside was the fact that there were three men waiting for her in another section of the building. One looked like the black man who’d tried to kiss her earlier while the other two had similar facial features to the man who held the door for her.
Each wore a white shirt, vest, and tie under their coat. Only one of them carried a gun, which he’d left holstered when he came over to stand behind the counter.
When the man in charge of the restaurant spoke to her, she realized he’d come over from wherever the other two men were standing. He also wore a white shirt and tie. Unlike the men who had followed her in, he’d taken off his hat and placed it on a small table in front of him. The rest of the waiters were wearing the same uniform as he did, although hers was missing some buttons.
“Are you Miss…?”
She shook her head. “No. I’m not a waitress here.”
His mouth formed a thin line, but it quickly disappeared when she continued speaking. “Actually, I just stopped in to look around.” Her eyes scanned the menu posted on the wall above him. Most of it was unfamiliar, but one item caught her eye.
“I saw something called a ‘fried chicken sandwich’ listed among the appetizers, so I thought I’d order one. Can I get it to go? It might take me a while to find a place for lunch.”
He nodded as if he understood exactly what she wanted and told her to have a seat where she was already seated. He picked up his own hat and walked away without asking for payment.
As soon as the doors closed behind him, the two other men joined her at her table. Neither of them looked happy that she was still sitting down and eating.
“What are you doing?” asked the man who had first approached her. His tone of voice indicated he didn’t want an answer.
She looked at each of them in turn. Their faces all appeared familiar but it took a moment for her to recognize how they were related. The older of the two was the man who’d tried to kiss her. He also shared a few traits with the one who carried the gun, including the color of his eyes and a square jaw covered with stubble.
The youngest of the three wore a pair of wire-rimmed glasses which made her believe he was the oldest of the group—the only one who actually seemed old enough to be her father. Although he was younger than her brother, he still had gray streaks in his black hair.
If anything, the others in this family resemblance were a little too young to be her father. Then again, she had no idea what her parents really looked like. And since neither of them cared enough to ever tell her about herself, she wasn’t going to bother telling any of them.
The man in the middle didn’t speak as she ate her meal and drank the lemonade offered by another waiter. He just sat silently, watching her as if she were being closely watched by someone or something. As far as she could see, she hadn’t done anything wrong. She was simply sitting at her table enjoying a meal. Why did these men think otherwise?
After she’d eaten half the sandwich, the other two finally decided to join her. When they stood at the end of the table, they were right across from one another. The one carrying a gun leaned forward so that he was closer to her, which made him appear much larger than the rest of them.
The older man’s voice startled her when he spoke first. “How many people are working for you?”
She lifted her hands so she wouldn’t accidentally drop the remainder of the sandwich into her lap. “Who are you looking for?”
That caused all three of them to stiffen. They glanced around the room as if expecting to find someone else with them.
“We’ve been told there are four,” the oldest of the three said, his tone flat. “A woman, a man, a boy, and a girl. So we know there’s a fourth person who works for you.”
She waited, hoping none of the others would say anything until she answered his question. “It would take more than four people to watch over the ranch.”
His mouth twisted in disgust. “You can’t be very good at your job then because you obviously haven’t even bothered to count everyone on the property. We’re talking about a woman who’s supposed to live alone out here.”
The older man’s gaze narrowed when he stared at her. “Do you know why we’re here?”
“Because you think I killed my husband.”
They all turned toward the door when a loud clatter echoed through the restaurant. A man rushed in and grabbed the waiter who’d brought their lunches. The two of them went outside and argued while the older man stepped inside, took the tray, and walked away.
As soon as the doors closed behind the last of the waiters, she finished off the remaining food on her plate and left the restaurant. She knew better than to try ordering a fried chicken sandwich for dinner after that debacle during lunchtime. Instead, she stopped by the grocery store before heading home.
***
Two hours later, when she returned to the ranch house, the two ranch hands met her at the front porch steps and handed her an envelope. As soon as she unlocked the door and stepped inside, the younger of the two men followed her inside.
She wondered what he planned to do, but she had no reason to think any of the ranch hands intended harm against her. In fact, she knew quite a few of them had taken a liking to her.
In spite of having a gun and a badge, she still couldn’t help feeling nervous around the others. But she didn’t feel threatened by any of the men she worked with. After all, she had never known anyone in her family either. Even her father probably considered himself to be her uncle.
The two men stayed outside while she locked the door behind her. She pulled the curtain aside and peeked out to make sure they weren’t coming back inside. Both of them were gone, which meant they had probably left town altogether. With that thought, she entered the kitchen and put a fresh pot of coffee on.
While waiting for it to brew, she opened the envelope and saw a note written on lined paper, folded neatly with one side facing up. It read, “Your clothes were washed and hung by the fireplace. There will be dinner ready in fifteen minutes.”
She recognized the handwriting immediately and felt her heart skip a beat. This must mean that the man who wrote this letter was also involved in the murder investigation. That wasn’t good news for her.
As soon as she finished the cup of coffee, she set it aside and headed to the bedroom where she dressed for dinner. While she did that, she imagined how things might have turned out differently if she hadn’t found herself caught in a blizzard.
Would she have gone along with the plan and murdered her husband? Or would she have run away instead like the wife of that poor man who’d tried to rob the bank? She shivered when she remembered what had happened to him. If he’d only been smart enough to escape before she shot him, none of the other men would ever have gotten close to him.
When she finally finished getting dressed, she walked down the hallway to the dining room and discovered the men sitting at the table already eating. One of them carried a gun, though not near her.
The meal was delicious, especially considering how much work went into preparing meals on a ranch. The men had prepared roast beef with baked potatoes, gravy, steamed asparagus, carrots and peas, and biscuits. Not only did each person eat his or her own portion, but she ate from all the dishes too.
After dinner, all three men watched as she washed the dishes and dried them before setting them on the rack. Once they finished cleaning up, one of the men offered her a ride home on his horse while the other two rode ahead to secure the property.
“Thank you,” she said quietly so that no one could overhear her. “I don’t want to impose on any of you.”
“We’re glad to see another woman here. It’s rare for a lady to visit our ranch these days.”
That was true, she thought as the men left the house and disappeared into the darkness. Most women had become accustomed to cooking for themselves, which was something she often did. She certainly wouldn’t mind being out here on the ranch.
Once alone, she walked into her study and sat in front of her desk to check the mail before opening the letter. She saw that there were five letters from the law firm in St. Louis, which was understandable since she lived hundreds of miles away.
She also received a handful of bills and notices regarding bank accounts. One letter was written in red ink and addressed to Mr. Samuel Larkin and signed by none other than Sheriff Tompkins. The name of the sender seemed familiar. It was probably someone related to her dead husband who assumed the role of head of the household. Maybe that was why he’d wanted to kill her?
She turned over the envelope and unfolded the letter. It read, “We regret to inform you that we have received information that your husband has passed away unexpectedly. Please report to St. Louis as soon as possible and attend his funeral services.”
What? She stared at the letter in shock. Did that mean he was still alive after all? And if so, could it be the result of some foul play on his part? What would be the motive for such a thing?
Her heart raced as she reread the words over and over again. Her hands shook so badly that she almost dropped the letter. In spite of that, she managed to get the words written on the letter out without any trouble.
The sheriff was going to find out about this, that was obvious. He was bound to be angry, maybe even jealous that his former partner had found another wife—a pretty little thing who looked very much like her. That was why she had to be careful.
With that thought in mind, she took her revolver from her drawer and laid it on top of her desk next to a stack of papers. When she returned the gun to its hiding place, she closed the drawer and locked it. Then she headed to her bedroom and lay in bed staring at the ceiling until she fell asleep.
***
In spite of everything that happened at the bank, she didn’t go straight back to St. Louis when the train stopped there. Instead, she rode around for hours trying to come up with an excuse to stay in Montana.
She needed more time to decide whether she should try to convince Tompkins to change his mind and send her to jail rather than hang her. The longer she waited, the more difficult it was going to be to persuade him.
But the longer she stayed out west, the greater chance there’d be for her to fall in love with this man who called himself Sam. Was that what he really wanted from her? To keep her company until he found a new wife and moved on with his life?
At least she now had a reason to return home because her father would be upset when she didn’t show up. Even if he was disappointed, at least she couldn’t worry about him sending anyone else to watch over her while he searched for a new assistant.
When she finally got off the train in Chicago, she made sure that no one followed her out of town before riding south and then east on Highway 40 toward St. Louis. She spent most of her night’s camping in the hills and sleeping during the day under the warm sun.
Though she hadn’t been able to talk herself into staying on the ranch, she did consider giving up her quest altogether and returning home when the bank’s letter arrived. After all, there was no telling where Sam might be and it might take weeks to find him, if ever.
If it became apparent that she wasn’t coming back, he’d be left behind alone. Would that really be so bad? She imagined how he would react to her leaving. He’d likely think the same thing about her, which meant there was a good chance that neither of them would follow through on their bargain.
Then again, if she went back home, she knew he’d eventually track her down anyway. There was no way he could stay away from her forever. It just proved that she had to stick with this plan until she found him—no matter what!
The only problem was that she had not told her father or his partner about her trip and they were bound to get worried when she failed to report to work. She hoped she could avoid answering too many questions when she showed up at the office the next morning, but her hopes weren’t high.
She’d never seen a city as big as Chicago before. She wondered how long it would take to get used to the noise and bustle of the streets. As soon as she left the train, she noticed that the city seemed full of people.
Most of the buildings had four or five stories, and the ones with six or seven floors seemed to dominate the skyline. They also had many decorative towers, spires, and cupolas, all painted bright colors and adorned with gold trim. A few churches had stained glass windows that sparkled like jewels as she rode by.
There was a lot of traffic on the street, both horse-drawn wagons and automobiles. Pedestrians were everywhere, too. Some walked along the side of the road and others were jaywalking across the busy thoroughfare. Many of them wore hats that matched their clothes.
Others were bareheaded, which struck her as odd considering the fact that it was a cold spring day in May. Still, they all seemed cheerful and friendly, unlike the folks back home who were constantly complaining about the weather or the prices of goods.
It surprised her how quickly she adapted to the hustle and bustle of the city, and it didn’t bother her anymore that people were always bumping into each other. In spite of their constant jockeying for position, everyone smiled in greeting and held open doors for those who came after them.
Not even the beggars bothered her. Most of them looked clean and well-fed and didn’t begin in such an obtrusive manner.
As she approached her father’s business building, her stomach tightened with apprehension. She had to make up an explanation for why she missed work, but she didn’t know how long it would take. If it was too obvious that something was wrong, she might have to lie about her whereabouts.
But what excuse could she give? How would he react when he found out that she had decided to marry someone she met on a train and then run off without telling him?
She dismounted before reaching the front door and tied her horse to a hitching post in front of the office. Then she headed around to the rear of the building where she was accustomed to entering. She tried the office door first to see if any customers had already arrived but saw no one inside.
It wasn’t unusual to have some business waiting for her arrival at the end of the day since she worked late most days. But she hadn’t expected to see anyone here early in the day either. She knocked loudly and waited.
“Come on in,” she heard someone call from within the office. “No need to knock.”
She pushed the door open slowly. Her father stood behind his desk, talking to someone who sat in a chair on the opposite side of the room. His partner, Frank, was seated on the sofa near the fireplace. The man she assumed was a customer, though she wasn’t familiar with his name yet, was looking at her with interest.
Before she could say anything, he jumped out of his seat and ran toward her, calling out to her in an excited voice.
“I’ve been waiting for you!” he exclaimed.
He grabbed her hand and pulled her over to sit next to him on the sofa. She felt her face flush under his scrutiny and forced a smile to mask her discomfort. What was going on? Why was he acting as though nothing was wrong? Had she imagined that he’d called the police station and reported her missing?
“You don’t look so bad for a dead woman,” he said cheerfully. “How are you feeling?”
Her confusion must have shown on her face.
“Just kidding,” he chuckled. “You’re much better than I thought you’d be after your ordeal. You look like a new woman.” He gave her another wink.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
His dark brown eyes twinkled with amusement as he leaned closer. “Oh, I’m sure you’ve noticed that we hired a new secretary. She’ll show up sometime today, but we haven’t told her our secret just yet.”
He turned to Frank and raised his eyebrows as though he were asking permission to share information. Frank nodded his approval and then laughed as though they were sharing a private joke between them.
The man sitting next to her looked familiar and she recalled reading about him in the newspaper. When she mentioned this to her father, he smiled broadly and clapped his hands together enthusiastically, as if her words had pleased him greatly.
“This is Mr. Bancroft, my former associate,” he explained. “We made up and decided to start a new business venture together, and he has agreed to join me. Now you understand why it took us so long to hire a replacement for you.”
“But why tell me now?” She knew there was only one reason he would reveal her identity to strangers and that was because the business wasn’t doing well and Frank couldn’t afford to lose the partnership they shared. And now that they had lost one secretary, why was he making such a big fuss about hiring another?
“Because I want all my employees to feel part of the family. We’ve never discussed this before, but Frank and I think that it’s time to make a change.” He turned back to the customer who was still staring at her in amazement. “Mr. Bancroft, allow me to introduce Miss Rebecca O’Dell, my daughter.”
“Pleased to meet you,” she replied politely, wondering whether her mother ever felt the same way when her father introduced her to friends or neighbors. Of course, her mother was the one who usually did the introduction, not her father.
“And now let’s get down to business,” her father announced.
They began discussing contracts and financial matters as her father talked on. She listened intently, trying to follow what he was saying until she realized that he had stopped speaking to her. Instead, her father continued their conversation as if she weren’t even in the room.
She glanced around the room and noticed that her father and Mr. Bancroft were having animated discussions while Frank sat next to her and kept stealing glances at her. Her father had obviously forgotten her presence in the office, which didn’t surprise her.
They had always ignored her unless someone else was present in the room. That was why she had never learned how to read, write, or do business in any other language except English. In fact, it was her father who taught her to talk with proper diction and grammar, but that was the only thing he seemed interested in teaching her.
She’d had to learn everything else on her own—or so she believed. But that was before she met Frank. Did he teach her those skills, too?
Suddenly, something occurred to her. If her father and his partners really wanted her to work for them, why hadn’t they hired someone else to replace her? And why had they chosen this particular person to hire? Why not one of the ranch hands or even some of the women from town?
Was it because he liked the fact that she was pretty? Or perhaps he found her appearance pleasing to the eye because she reminded him of his ex-wife. It was no wonder then that he was ignoring her. She couldn’t believe that she’d thought otherwise.
This was the very first time he’d ever spoken to her. She’d thought it meant that things were changing, but apparently, that was just wishful thinking on her part.
A wave of sadness washed over her and she wondered what she should do. Should she quit?
But where would she go? Who would hire a deaf-mute girl without the slightest idea of what to do in business? Even if she could find a job somewhere, she had nowhere to live. She had no family, not even anyone in Texas who cared about her. No one to turn to when things got tough.
She was alone. Again.
The End