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  Dahlia climbed inside more slowly, holding the second blanket in her arms as she settled on the bench. Her feet also found the bricks, only to realize they had already lost much of their heat. Wearing a smile, she turned to Kate. “I’ll spread my blanket over both our laps. I think it will help hold in the heat from the bricks better that way.” She glimpsed Kate’s expression of gratitude before she leaned over to tuck the edges of the blanket around her legs and feet. She noticed Kate did the same.

  Dahlia directed her attention toward the marriage broker, who sat on the front bench but had twisted in her seat far enough to now face her and Kate in back. She realized that she and Lizett were almost the same age. She suspected that this self-confident and well-dressed woman, owner of her own business, had a bright and secure future ahead of her. She, on the other hand, had scrambled to find something better than being dependent upon a brother who had not wanted her staying in his house longer than necessary.

  “It’s so lovely to meet both of you ladies. I prefer to go by first names, don’t you? Please, call me Lizett. Now, I usually like to give the brides a quick tour of Denver. However, due to the weather, I think we’ll go directly to my home.”

  Dahlia continued to listen as Lizett chattered on about the wonders of Denver, and how, if they arrived during the warmer months, they would be able to see the cosmopolitan features of the city.

  “Instead, you will be able to see the beauty of our Rocky Mountains to the west. Tomorrow, the train we will board will skirt the eastern edge of the Front Range as far south as Pueblo, and then it will turn west and travel through the majesty of these mountains. We had a bit of a snowstorm come through here yesterday, but it has cleared up enough they even have the main roads between the train depot and where I live shoveled free. Tomorrow should be bright and clear for our trip to Jubilee Springs.”

  Dahlia’s gaze followed the direction of Lizett’s pointing finger. A light haze hung over the plains, but the peaks of the mountains jutted above the filmy curtain of clouds. She hoped the woman was right. She understood dealing with drifting snow on the Kansas plains. Snow in the mountains, she suspected, was a different matter completely.

  As they turned into the driveway of a large lot containing a two-story gray Victorian mansion complete with white gingerbread trim, Dahlia heard Kate suck in a breath. She murmured words so softly that Dahlia barely heard them.

  “It’s almost as big as some of the mansions back in New York.”

  Once inside, Lizett led Dahlia and Kate to the foot of the stairs. She turned and eyed them both, her gaze settling the longest on Kate. “Since there are only the two of you, I’ll put you in separate rooms. I’ll meet with each of you alone, starting with you, Dahlia, once you’re settled in your room.”

  Lizett turned to Kate. “While you’re waiting your turn, I’ll have my maid draw you a hot bath in the bathing room. Since neither of you are probably used to our dry weather in the mountains, on the dressing tables in your rooms you’ll find some scented oil to help tame your flyaway hair. Also, I’ve provided some lovely lotions for the rest of you.”

  Dahlia ended up loaning her wrapper to Kate so, at Lizett’s insistence, the maid could wash and press Kate’s cotton dress for the next day’s journey.

  After seeing Dahlia’s travel suit once she removed her cape, Lizett promised to have the maid collect it in order to give it a good brushing so she could wear it on the morrow. Dahlia graciously thanked her. She looked forward to wearing her freshened travel suit, which would help her look her best when she first arrived in the town that would be her new home.

  Lizett showed her to her room—one much nicer than the space she had shared with her niece in the Greenleaf home. After she draped the collar of her cape on a clothes hook, she turned to listen to Lizett’s next instructions.

  “Please give me about ten minutes to get things settled with my maid and some water for tea started. I’ll have her bring you down to my office so we can talk. Unfortunately, I received a disturbing telegram from Mr. Bainbridge of the Prosperity Mine this morning regarding an issue that has come up. In light of this new set of circumstances, we need to discuss your options.”

  Discuss options? Dahlia felt her stomach tighten into a knot of apprehension. Feeling dazed, her gaze followed the bridal broker who, offering a forced smile as a flash of uncertainty crossed her brow, walked out of her room, and shut the door.

  Dahlia stood in the middle of the floor and stared at the blank wall. She made the trip this far full of confidence in the decision she made to accept Nathan Price’s marriage proposal. She had felt sorry for Kate’s reduced circumstances, and perhaps a little smug. She had not been forced to leave everything of value behind for the rest of her family like Kate felt compelled to do. Instead, she wore new clothes for the journey bought with family money—her portion of her father’s inheritance. She left home with her basket filled with a day’s worth of food. The only money she spent from the funds she received from Mr. Price had been for the bread, cheese, and an apple she purchased earlier to get her through the day. If she had realized Kate was out of both food and money, she would have bought enough to feed her, too. She had felt self-assured and settled on the direction her life was now taking—until Lizett’s cryptic comment left her feeling unbalanced.

  What new set of circumstances had arisen? What options did Lizett need to discuss with her?

  Please, oh, please! Don’t tell me Mr. Price has decided he does not wish to marry me and wants to send me back.

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  Chapter 7

  ~o0o~

  Between Denver and Jubilee Springs, Colorado – December 16, 1881

  H olding her blanket she brought for the trip, Dahlia watched Lizett instruct the porter to load Dahlia’s two trunks, plus a small one for Lizett, into the baggage car of the train. Next, movement by her side grabbed her attention. She turned in time to witness Kate Flanagan push to the front of the crowd boarding the Denver & Rio Grande passenger coach. Dahlia suppressed a smile as she saw Kate, her tow sack hooked over one shoulder and her basket in hand, rush inside. She knew her new friend and fellow bride would seek one of the seats close to the coal heater.

  Dahlia waited until Lizett joined her, and they both entered the passenger coach together. She quickly scanned the interior until she spotted Kate, who smiled at her and motioned to the other half of her bench.

  Dahlia tapped Lizett on the shoulder. “I’ll go sit with Kate. Perhaps you can find a seat close by.”

  Lizett ended up sitting on the bench behind Dahlia. As the train started, Dahlia twisted to face the marriage broker. Her gaze caught sight of the picnic basket Lizett brought with sufficient food inside for the three of them. Fortunately, there were enough empty seats Lizett had been able to claim the entire bench for herself and her belongings. She started to speak.

  Lizett interrupted her. “I do wish the railroad would establish a nice lunch restaurant for passengers. About Pueblo would work out well for the noon meal. Until then, we must take our chances with the vendors hawking their wares at each stop or bring our own meals. Since I don’t feel like getting out in this cold if I don’t have to, today I brought food. You can wait until noon to eat, can’t you, dear? After all, we did just enjoy a nice breakfast not too many hours ago.”

  While she fought off a surge of annoyance, Dahlia clamped her lips tight. She had not been about to inquire regarding something to eat. She resented Lizett’s assumption that she intended to wheedle a snack out of her. She forced a smile. “Of course, Lizett. I’m still full from this morning. I just wondered how long you expect the train ride to last before we arrive in Jubilee Springs.”

  “Generally, when the weather is clear and dry, we arrive by late afternoon. I do hope the snowstorm from earlier this week doesn’t slow us up much. If there is ice on the tracks, it might cause a problem.”

  They chatted for several minutes, Dahlia nodding in app
reciation as Lizett pointed out a few landmarks outside the train window as they made their way down the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains.

  When Lizett turned her attention to a conductor walking down the center aisle, the conversation ended. She offered him one of her dazzling smiles.

  “Sir, will you please put more coal in the heater? I’m beginning to feel a little chilled.”

  Dahlia raised an eyebrow. Although Lizett did not sit right next to the heater the way Kate did, she sat closer than most of the passengers. In spite of the draft coming from the window, Dahlia found the temperature to be comfortable.

  “Yes, ma’am. I’ll be back in a few minutes and take care of that. We will bring on more coal in Pueblo, but we do want what we have to last until then. Perhaps your blanket will help.”

  Dahlia turned to face forward. Her blanket still rested folded over her one arm and in her lap. She shook out the folds, and then she turned to Kate. “Here, put this over your legs and tuck it in on the side. If your shoulders get cold, I can loan you my black shawl.” Kate responded with a grateful smile as she did as Dahlia suggested and snuggled under the wool. Dahlia did not ask why she had not brought her own, especially since the instructions for train and stagecoach travel included bringing a blanket during cold weather. She suspected the answer would be the same as the one Kate had given regarding her limited wardrobe—she left everything she could behind for her sisters.

  Dahlia turned her head to look out at the snow-covered plains before her. She resisted the temptation to rest the side of her forehead against the glass as her thoughts took her back to the evening before. To say Lizett’s explanation of what had happened to Nathan Price unsettled her was an understatement. Even now, as she thought about it, she blinked to fight back tears that threatened to fall.

  Earlier in the week, a mining accident severely injured her intended. The telegram Lizett received stated Nathan Price lay unconscious and helpless in bed. Although the other injuries he sustained were not life-threatening, the coma worried the doctor. He had no prognosis for how long it might last.

  Lizett had assured Dahlia that, unless she wished to return home to wait until spring to see what happened to Mr. Price, they could continue with travel plans. Dahlia could see where things stood once she arrived, then decide if she wished to stay or not.

  One thing Dahlia knew for sure—she did not want to return to Elm’s household. The last thing she needed was to deal with Jenny and all the woman would have to say about the matter. Even if his coma prevented her from marrying Mr. Price, she preferred to stay in either Jubilee Springs or one of the towns between there and Denver. She would find work and make a new life for herself.

  After noticing Dahlia stayed quiet during supper, a nightgown-clad Kate had sought her out in her room with the excuse of returning the borrowed wrapper. Dahlia told her to wait until after her own clothes were returned. All it had taken was a quiet question from Kate. Although Kate seemed to be several years younger, Dahlia had confided some of her fears to her. Then, Kate had shared some of her own experience of writing off for a husband. The man she preferred chose another. She still felt reservations about the one she came to marry. Both her mother and sister assured her that, once she knew him better, she would come to love him. She decided to marry him because he lived in the same town as where her sister had moved.

  It was her final statement that ran through Dahlia’s mind now. “It wasn’t what I was wanting, but that’s the way of it sometimes, now isn’t it?”

  Dahlia did want to marry Nathan Price. Although she had yet to meet him in person, she already yearned to be with him. Everything in his letters led her to trust in him being a responsible, caring man—someone she could grow to love. What she shied away from was learning he had been gravely injured and that he could die or never fully recover.

  As she closed her eyes, Dahlia’s thoughts once again turned to the neighbor boy, Jackson Edwards. Jack, closer to Spruce’s age than her, had been a lively and intelligent student two years ahead of her in school. When he was about ten years of age, a horse kicked him in the head. Since she was younger, she did not hear much about Jack until months later. They both attended the same church social the first time she saw him after his accident. She tried not to stare at the droop in his right eye and the sag of his cheek. His left arm he held close to his body with his fist closed. He stepped with difficulty. Spruce had walked over to greet him. Jack’s response came slow and labored—very different from the quick-witted boy they all knew.

  Although he improved over time, he never fully recovered. Dahlia recalled how she passed behind Jack and his parents at a picnic one day while Jack watched some of his old friends, who now had little to do with him, play tug-of-war with a rope. He remarked how he used to be able to do that. He used to help the other kids at school, but since his accident, he found math difficult.

  Is that what would happen to Nathan Price? Even if he did not die from his injuries or remain in a coma for the rest of his life, would he regain consciousness only to find his body did not work to full capacity the way it did before? Would his mental abilities be impaired? If he ended up becoming mentally challenged, would he not realize he did not think as well as he used to? Or would he be like Jack, who knew he once could think better, but now he realized his brain no longer worked the way it should?

  As horrible as those possible outcomes were for Nathan Price, what did that mean for her? Dare she take that chance of waiting to see if he regained consciousness and full health—physical and mental—or make other plans for her life? She still had most of the money Nathan had sent her. By rights, if she did not marry him, she should return all she received, including the value of her train tickets, either to him or whoever took over legal responsibility for him.

  From the time she learned of the telegram, Dahlia had been praying that Nathan Price would fully recover. In her prayers, she begged the Lord to forgive the selfishness of her plea.

  The small amount of her own money she had collected over the years and brought with her was not enough to pay for a ticket out of Jubilee Springs and rent on a room until she found work. If she could not marry Nathan, she must rely on Lizett to find another man for her to marry.

  Deciding it did no good to dwell on the situation over which she had no control, Dahlia opened her valise and pulled out her book of poems. Hopefully, a little reading would calm her fears. She noticed Kate lean toward her to read the title. “Do you enjoy poetry, Kate? If so, I can read some to you.”

  “Pleased I’d be, listening to them. If you’d be willing, I’ll be taking my turn with the reading.”

  Pleasantly surprised that Kate knew how to read well enough to share in the reading, the two spent much of the rest of the trip doing so. At the end of each poem, they shared their comments about the deeper meaning of the verses. Realizing Lizett did not add any input to their discussions, Dahlia glanced behind her long enough to see Lizett brought her own book to read.

  When the train stopped in Pueblo, they all set their books aside. Dahlia found the city, with its Spanish influences, different from the Kansas towns.

  As they pulled out of the station, Lizett distributed their food.

  When the train began its uphill pull to the west, the changes to the scenery outside the train’s window captured more of Dahlia’s attention. She left the book in Kate’s hands for her to read while she watched the flat prairie, with its patchy snow over dried grass, give way to rolling hills, and then to tree-studded mountains. The narrow stretch of tracks through the steep cliffs on either side of the Arkansas River Lizett told them was called the Royal Gorge, she found to be both awe-inspiring and nerve-wracking.

  After they left a town called Cotopaxi, the long day that began before dawn when Lizett’s maid woke her to prepare to leave for the station caught up with Dahlia. She burrowed her fists under the edge of her blanket, wedged her valise between the top of the bench and the window, and shut her eyes.

  The s
creech of metal against metal, accompanied by sharp jerks of the train, jolted Dahlia awake. Instinctively, she thrust her hand forward to grab the back of the seat in front of her in an effort not to slide out of her seat. Next, as she felt her valise slide backward, she turned and grabbed for it, only to discover it being held in place. She twisted in her seat enough to see Lizett clinging to it. It must have cushioned the woman’s head from being thrown against the hard wood top edge of Dahlia’s and Kate’s bench back. As if in a daze, her eyes blinking, Lizett, her stylish hat askew on her head and strands of hair escaping her pins, forced her body back into her seat as she released Dahlia’s valise.

  Dahlia pulled the valise into her lap and turned to see how Kate fared. Although the coal stove had been allowed to cool, she knew the metal would still be hot to the touch and could burn her friend if she had been thrown against it.

  Kate, her eyes wide with fright and her hands clinging to the blanket that had slipped off of Dahlia’s lap, slouched on the bench and braced her body with feet widely planted on the floor.

  Wishing to ask Kate if she was all right, Dahlia opened to her mouth to shout above the cacophony of panicked cries and the shriek of the metal wheels against the rails, only to be thrown forward as the passenger coach came to an abrupt halt.

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  Chapter 8

  ~o0o~

  D ahlia once again felt herself on a collision course with the bench in front of her. This time, her valise in her arms, and her legs unable to resist the thrust pushing her, she slid off her bench. She landed on the floor. The side of her head hit the back of the bench in front of her. As she felt the floor beneath rise and bounce several times before it settled at a slant, with the downhill edge of the floor leaning toward the raging river she had seen outside her window, panic overcame her.