Chapter 21
Mavis was amazed at the amount of work Eliza and Jute could do in a few hours.
Scrubbing the resale store floor usually took them several hours, but Eliza and Jute flew threw it…
and they did a great job, too. She never had to ask them to do something over.
When a teamster wagon pulled up, they were the first ones there to help lift down boxes and start sifting through them and putting them out on the floor…
carefully folded for the customers to buy.
In three days, Mavis didn’t know what they would do without them, especially in the kitchen. Eliza was a wonder as a cook. Her bread was lighter than air, and her biscuits would have gotten her a job anywhere in Angel Falls, hell, she could have gotten a job anywhere in the Colorado Territory!
Jute chopped wood like he was a machine and he was only nine years old!
He averaged a cord every two days. Sheriff Red came by and couldn’t believe what that boy was accomplishing as he swung that axe over his shoulder.
Nor could he believe the muscles he had for only being nine years old.
The only thing the two youngsters didn’t know about was money or math.
They had never had any money in their lives living on the plantation and had never gone to school to learn to read, write, or add and subtract.
If they had, they would have been punished.
Mavis thought it was a sin in this day and age that they couldn’t read and didn’t know the difference between a penny or a nickel.
She called on her daughter to start teaching even before she left for teacher’s college.
Every night before the two went to bed, Martha began teaching them.
She started with teaching them about money, so they wouldn’t be taken advantage of.
Jute was a sponge. Once he heard something, he didn’t forget it.
Eliza wasn’t as fast, but she didn’t quit until she had learned what Martha told her for the night.
By the end of one week, the two knew the difference between a penny, nickel, dime, quarter, half-dollar, dollar, and five-dollar hard money.
They could also recognize a dollar bill, five-dollar bill, ten-dollar bill, and a twenty-dollar bill.
Mavis never got anything over a twenty-dollar bill.
She still had a week before she left for school, and she started on the alphabet.
She got Mary involved, because she would be continuing after she left for college.
They took three letters a night. They had almost all the letters by the time Martha left for college.
Both Eliza and Jute hugged her as she left on the train.
They felt so fortunate for getting the chance to learn to read.
Mavis hated to see her daughter leave, but she couldn’t keep them tied to her apron strings for the rest of her life.
They had to have their dreams, too. She was already dreading when Mary left.
She had talked about wanting to become a nurse in a few years.
She felt so fortunate about finding Eliza and Jute when she did.
As Martha got on the train, Logan Callihan stepped off the train. The first persons he saw were Eliza and Jute. He nodded and tipped his hat at Eliza, Mavis, and Mary as he walked a few steps away and ran into Travis and Angie Buchanan.
“It’s about time you got here. I’ve been checking the train everyday for you to be on it and dragging my family with me, so they could meet the man I’ve been talking about for the last year.
You are a sight for sore eyes!” Travis didn’t lose any time in grabbing the big man and hugging him in front of everybody.
It didn’t matter to him that he was black, and nobody thought anything about it. Logan liked that.
“It’s good to see you too. It looks like your woman is a good cook, you’ve put on some weight since the last time I saw you and put you on that train to go home.
I also notice that you added a star on that vest. You like being a deputy in a town this size?
” Logan asked him when they let go of each other.
His eyes were twinkling as he looked around.
He noticed the two black youngsters and the two white women leaving the depot in front of him. The black girl was sure pretty.
“It surprised me to find out I do like being a deputy. I was hoping that you might like to give it a try, too.” Travis told him and Logan’s head snapped back to look at him.
“You saying that this town would accept a black deputy?” Logan asked him thinking that he had lost his mind.
“That’s what I’m saying, and my boss, the sheriff thinks so too.
We have a large black population in town, and we both feel they’d like having a black man representing them.
We got no trouble with the black and white man getting along and so far, no racial problem.
We want to keep it that way. If anyone gives you trouble with you being a black deputy, throw him in jail.
The sheriff and I will back you up one hundred percent.
” Travis told the surprised man. “Now, I want to introduce you to my wife, Angie, and my two boys. This is Will and Bobby. Let me take you over to my brother’s store.
They have a room in their warehouse where I stayed when I first came that they are going to make available for you, too.
It’s clean, and convenient for you to go in and out of easily.
And it’s free. Did you bring your horse with you? ”
“I regret that he didn’t make it. He caught some gatling gun fire in the last weeks of the war.
I hated losing him like that. He carried me for five long years of that war.
I was hoping that your livery here in Angel Falls could find me a horse that was big enough for me to ride and that wouldn’t cost too much.
” Logan told him as they walked to the mercantile.
He still hadn’t told Travis whether or not he would become a deputy or not.
But he sure liked the idea of being someone with enough authority to keep order in a town like this.
He could stand up for the other blacks in town, too.
He was giving serious thought to the idea.
He did have to get a job, and he had said that he wasn’t going to take anyone calling him boy or taking advantage of his being black again.
Being a deputy would accomplish that…maybe, just maybe, he’d take that job Travis was offering him.
They came into view of the mercantile store.
In front of the store was a playground with a fence in front of it.
Inside of the fence were five children playing.
Three were playing in a sand box, two boys were up in a tree house.
Their mother was sitting outside the playground on the porch sewing what looked to be a mound of mending. She looked up as they approached.
“Good morning! You must be Logan Callihan, the man who saved my brother-in-law a million times during the war and sent him back to us in one piece.” Sam told him and stood up and hugged him.
Then, she kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you, we can’t tell you how much we appreciate you putting up with him for all those years.
We really like him, even though he is a pain in the butt sometimes. ”
Logan was shocked that she hugged and kissed his cheek as if he were white.
He was even more surprised at what she said.
He burst out laughing. He sure liked this sister-in-law of Travis’s.
“It was my pleasure, Ma’am. I will admit, he can be a pain in the butt sometimes, but we got used to him and his twisted sense of humor.
Abe and I kind of thought of him as our brother.
How is Abe doing now that he’s back to civilization? ”
“That is one huge man!” Sam told him and laughed out loud.
“He’s a big old teddy bear, and loves living in his cabin about fifteen minutes out of town.
He’s making furniture for the carpenter here in town and making quite a name for himself.
I think he’s happy and content that he came to Angel Falls.
He’s sure getting around well on his peg leg instead of those crutches.
He even put in a garden with the help of Angie and her two boys. ”
“No, kidding. That’s good to hear. Abe doesn’t like many people…
he’s worse than I am about making friends.
It’s good to hear that he made friends with the carpenter.
He was always good with his hands. You’ll have to show me where he lives.
I’d like to go and visit with him as soon as I get a good horse. ” Logan told them.
“Logan, this is Sam my sister-in-law, it will be in her warehouse that you will be living. Or rather her and her husband’s warehouse.
Come on in and meet her husband, my brother.
All those kids are theirs…Chris, Cam, Cassie, Charlie, and Cara.
Sam handles them all as if it were nothing at all, and she cooks like a dream, so does my wife.
” Travis told him and steered him inside leaving his boys and wife outside to visit with their cousins and sister-in-law.
Tate saw him coming and came to meet Logan.
He greeted him like Sam did, with a hug.
He didn’t kiss him. “It’s good to meet the man behind the legend that Travis is always talking about.
Welcome to Angel Falls. This is Jill and her brother, Mike, is bringing up a bag of flour for our customer.
He’s the muscle for me in the store. This is Logan Callihan.
He was with Travis when he was in the Army.
He’ll be staying in the room where Travis used to stay. ”
“Welcome to Angel Falls, Mr. Callihan. I’m glad the war is finally over and that you made it through safe and sound. If we can help you in any way, just let us know what we can do.” Jill told him with a smile.
“Thank you, it was sure nice to meet you.” Logan told her and then nodded to her brother as he came up with the flour.
Travis took him to the room through the store and into the warehouse.
Logan had never seen such a clean store and filled with so much merchandise.
Then he saw the room. He smiled. This would be great to stay in.
It was big enough for his big frame to feel comfortable in and so was the bed.
He sat down on it and felt the soft mattress.
Boy, would that feel good tonight when he went to sleep.
Sitting up for the last week on that train wasn’t comfortable at all, but it got the job done.
He’d been in worse situations over the last five years.
He noticed the pump to get water and even the pot-bellied stove to stay warm or even to heat up some grub if he were hungry. He could manage here just fine.
“Trav…I don’t know what to say. This is a lot more than I imagined I’d be staying in when I arrived in town.
It’s sure a lot cleaner. Thank you, and I’ll thank your brother and sister-in-law, too.
” Logan told him quietly. “I’ve been thinking about what you said about being a deputy here in Angel Falls.
I think I’ll take you up on that offer. I don’t know how good I’ll be, I’m more apt to knock some heads together if men don’t do what I tell them to the first time I ask.
You’ll have to remind me of the laws of the town and what I have to adhere to as a deputy.
I can shoot well and will back up you and the sheriff whenever I’m called upon to do so.
That’s not a problem. I just hope that the good people of this town will accept me as a deputy without any problems. I thank you for the opportunity. ”
“Perfect! Put down your saddle bags. I’m taking you over to see the sheriff, get your badge and get you sworn in.
I’ll get you something to eat…Angie has some sandwiches made at our house that we’ll chow down on.
We’ll head over to the livery to pick up my horse and get one for you.
Henry Williams owns the livery. He is a really good man.
He keeps it clean and the animals he has are good ones.
If he has a horse that’s big enough for you, he’ll let you know.
The town picks up the livery fee for him taking care of our horses, which helps.
Then, we’ll ride out and meet all the farmers and ranchers, and I’ll introduce you to them…
including Abe.” Travis told him and saw him grin.
“Always wear your six guns and keep plenty of ammunition with you, and bring your rifle, too. You never know what you’ll meet on the trail. ”
Logan nodded and they headed out. He told Tate how much he appreciated the room he was letting him stay in.
He wouldn’t forget it. Tate grinned and watched him leave with his brother.
They picked up Angie and his boys and headed back to their home.
They did stop at the jail to meet the sheriff and get sworn in as the new deputy.