Chapter 1 #2
Though the small daguerreotype he’d sent in his last letter the previous autumn had shown him to be a plain-looking and somewhat older man, his face held a look of integrity as well as honesty.
Maybe he wasn’t handsome or young, but that didn’t matter.
What she needed was a husband who was reliable, dependable, and able to provide for her and Astrid.
Besides, after making up her mind, Greta had wanted to move as quickly as possible to get Astrid to the healing air of the Rockies. Why waste time corresponding with other men when Phineas had been so eager and ready to help her?
Maybe she’d acted rashly. But what was done, was done. She was on her way to marry Phineas. She would, in fact, wed him by the day’s end.
Still, she blinked back tears. All of her savings were gone. If only Astrid knew how to obey better. If only the little girl had a real mother and father to raise her. Instead, she was stuck with a mere half sister who clearly didn’t know how to keep her in line.
Greta sat back on her heels and watched the young girl with a mixture of frustration and helplessness.
“Don’t be too hard on her.” Mr. Steele bent next to Greta and retrieved a shiny leather shoe.
“She’s a handful.”
“She saved us from meeting our Maker today.”
“She did?”
The gentleman removed his bowler and smoothed back his dark hair, which had hints of gray at his temples and streaking his long sideburns and mustache. “The gang leader liked her and showed mercy on us as a result.”
Mercy? Each of the passengers had lost everything of value. But she supposed that was better than losing their lives.
“I have a son about Astrid’s age.” Mr. Steele replaced his hat, watching Astrid wistfully.
“You must be looking forward to seeing him when we arrive in Fairplay.”
He focused on the child a moment longer, his expression filled with sadness. “Unfortunately, I won’t be seeing him anytime soon. He lives in New York with his mother.”
“I’m sorry.” Greta didn’t know what else to say.
Mr. Steele shook his head, as if by doing so he could shake away his morose thoughts. “Tell me again why you’re moving to Fairplay.”
Greta hadn’t told him anything yet, since he hadn’t asked. But she wouldn’t be so impolite as to say so. Instead, she gave him the rehearsed line she’d spouted to everyone else who’d wanted to know. “My fiancé lives in Fairplay, and I’m traveling there to marry him.”
“Your fiancé? Is that so?” Mr. Steele’s eyes lit with interest. “May I ask who the lucky fellow is? I’m mayor and have gotten to know many men in the area.”
All the misgivings she’d had since agreeing to marry Phineas soared. What if she’d made a mistake in coming west and agreeing to marry a stranger? What if he wasn’t who he had claimed to be? What if he mistreated Astrid?
Just as quickly as the doubts assailed her, she tossed them aside.
If Phineas wasn’t the man he’d portrayed in his letters, then she’d have no obligation to stay with him.
In fact, perhaps Mr. Steele would be able to advise her regarding the true nature of Phineas’s character.
Then if her fiancé had any glaring faults, she’d be well aware of them before arriving in Fairplay.
She cast a sideways glance at the other passengers, who were in the finishing stages of stowing their belongings and were thankfully heedless of the conversation. “I haven’t actually met my intended.”
Mr. Steele, in the process of picking up another shoe, paused.
“We’ve written to each other.”
He straightened and gave her his full attention. “You wouldn’t happen to be Phineas Hallock’s mail-order bride, would you?”
Something in his tone made the skin at the back of her neck prickle with unease. “Yes, Mr. Hallock is my fiancé. Do you know him?”
The gentleman shook his head, his features creasing. “I knew him well. He was a good man.”
Her heart began to patter fast and hard. “Knew?”
“I’m sorry, Miss Nilsson. Phineas Hallock is dead.”
“The mine owner Phineas Hallock, originally from Connecticut?”
“Yes, he left for California last October. Said he was traveling there to purchase supplies for his new bride and that he planned to be back by late spring. When the thawing came and he didn’t return, we all thought he was delayed. Until a body was discovered on Hoosier Pass.”
“His body?”
“As far as we can tell, after so many months of being exposed to the elements . . .”
She stared at Mr. Steele, but somehow he faded from her vision. All she could see was the black-and-white photograph of Phineas.
In his last letter, he’d mentioned his trip to California and his excitement over picking out additional furniture and items for their home.
He expressed his desire to have the newly built house well-stocked and ready for her arrival.
She hadn’t heard from him since and assumed he hadn’t had the opportunity to send further correspondence.
Even if he had, mail delivery via the Pony Express and stagecoach wasn’t reliable. Letters were sometimes lost or stolen.
Besides, she’d been busy preparing for the trip, sewing clothes for Astrid and her, packing their belongings, and saying good-byes. She’d never in her wildest imagination believed Phineas Hallock hadn’t written again because he was dead.
He was dead.
She swayed, her vision growing fuzzy.
Mr. Steele’s grip on her elbow steadied her. “I’m truly sorry, Miss Nilsson.”
With a deep breath, she tried to bring the world back into focus. The sunlight streaming through the aspen branches above splashed across her face as though to wake her from a nightmare.
The man she’d come west to marry was dead. Every penny of her savings had just been stolen. What would she do now? How could she, a lone woman with a sick child, survive in the wilderness knowing no one and having nothing?