Crimson Palace (18 page)

She had hoped the mountain postal carrier would be inside, but the only one there was the post master who was busily stuffing mail into a heavy canvass bag. He looked up when he heard the door bang closed.

"What can I do for you, son?" He stood and watched Shinonn approach the counter.

"I was looking for the man they call Snowshoe Thompson. I need to make the trip over to Nevada and I was hoping he would take me with him."

"He’ll be leaving at the crack of dawn tomorrow, but there’s no way you can keep up with him."

"If I can buy myself a pair of snowshoes I’m sure I could. I already know how to use them."

"Oh, he doesn’t actually use snowshoes. That’s just a stupid name someone tagged him with. I don’t believe the man has ever worn a pair of the things. No, he skis across the mountains. Uses those odd looking stick-like contraptions you passed by out on the porch. On snowshoes the trip would take him a week or longer. Carrying the mail, he crosses over in three days on skis. Why, he makes the return trip in only two days! So you see? There’s no way you could keep up with him."

"Maybe I could get a pair of those things. How hard could it be to learn to use them?"

"Forget it, sonny. He’s never allowed anyone to travel with him yet and he’s not about to start now.

Others have tried and he flat refuses to even discuss it. If you want to get to Nevada, I’d suggest you get yourself a room in town and get comfortable. It’s going to be weeks before that pass will open up."

The post master couldn’t help but notice the look of disappointment on Shinonn’s face.

"If you’re short on money, son, there’s a couple of boarding houses that’ll put you up fairly cheap until the pass opens up."

"Oh, it’s not the money, I’m all right there; it’s just that I’m looking for some friends and just found out they went out to Virginia City."

"If you’ve got the money for it, I’d stay at the Cary House over on Main Street. You won’t find a better hotel in town. Why, they tell me it’s as good as one of those fancy hotels they got over at San Francisco.

"After you get settled, go on over to the Wells Fargo office and get your name on the list for the first stage to Nevada. You can bet your last gold nugget, old Charlie Parkhust will get a stage through as soon as it’s humanly possible. He’s just about the best driver there is, and Placerville to Carson Valley is his route."

"I think I’ll take your advise, mister. Thanks for your time."

She left the post office with her spirits slightly lifted. Oh, she was disappointed that Sofie and Alex weren’t in Placerville, but at least she knew where they were and it was just a matter of time until she would reach them. She had gone too far and been through too much to let this little setback get her down.

The grandeur of the Cary House nearly forced her to turn away. She had never even dreamed of such splendor. But then she thought, my gold dust is as good as any man’s here. So I guess I’ve got just as much right to sleep in one of their fine beds as the next fella.

She squared her shoulders and marched up to the registration desk, half expecting to be turned away.

But the clerk behind the desk seemed totally unconcerned by Shinonn’s rather shabby, disheveled appearance as he shoved the register toward her. Shinonn hesitated for a moment, staring at the large book.

"Did you want me to write in that book?" Her face turned scarlet with embarrassment.

"Each guest must register. If you wish, I can fill in the information for you and you can just put your mark beside your name."

She sighed with relief. Apparently she wasn’t the first miner to stay here who couldn’t even write his own name. She was more than grateful that the clerk had treated the matter so casually.

She took the room key he offered, started to pick up her bags, but before she could, a young boy grabbed them and headed toward the stairs. She glanced over at the desk clerk. His face was completely impassive, so she hurried after the boy who had taken her bags.

When they reached her room, the boy reached out for her key, unlocked the door, then stood aside while she entered. The brass bed glistened brightly; the curtains on the window were crisp and clean.

There was even a colorful rug covering almost the entire floor.

"I’ll bring up some water for your wash basin directly", the boy said as he put her bags on the floor. "The bath’s down at the end of the hall."

Shinonn could hardly wait for the boy to leave. As soon as the door closed behind him, she sprang onto the big brass bed like a playful child. Balanced on hands and knees, she bounced several times, testing its springs. What luxury! She had never slept on such a spacious bed, nor in such an elegant room.

After a sumptuous dinner in the hotel’s restaurant she returned to her room. The fine meal, a hot bath and the thick mattress lulled her into a long peaceful night’s sleep.

Brilliant sunlight streamed into her room when she finally awoke. Stretching lazily, she felt like a fat old cat, with not a care in the world. Then she made the mistake of looking in the mirror. The sight of her tousled short hair, plus the pile of disreputably tattered men’s clothes she had carelessly thrown to the floor the night before, brought her up short.

She was suddenly filled with disgust at herself for her denial of her womanhood. How could she have allowed herself to carry on the charade all this time? How could she have aligned herself with the masculine gender, the very people who had brought her nothing but misery all her life?

Well, no more.

She dressed in the cleanest clothes she had. She knew that when she returned to this room and dressed herself as a woman, she would leave behind not only a pile of tattered men’s clothes, she would leave behind Tim O’Brien. She wondered if the world was ready for the new Shinonn Flannery. Well, it had better get ready, she thought as she closed the door behind her, because she was ready for it!

Curious eyes followed her when she entered the small lady’s dress shop. She smiled to herself, thinking that the sales ladies were soon to be more than a little shocked when they realized that this scruffy boy would be buying a whole wardrobe of women’s clothes for himself!

The clerk who helped Shinonn select the clothes tried mightily to act as if she sold women’s clothing all the time to young men. But in the end she was unable to carry it off. Her curiosity at the young man’s purchases overcame her attempts at indifference.

Shinonn left the shop laden down with packages. She had bought one dress, three woolen skirts, five shirt-waists and four sets of under-linens. Her next stop was at the boot shop where she bought her first pair of women’s high heeled boots. She barely made it up the stairs of the hotel with all of her bundles.

Later, as she stood before the mirror dressed in her new finery, Shinonn was pleased with her reflection.

The hot bath had brought extra color to her cheeks. Her clean hair glistened with a healthy luster.

Thankfully, as she hadn’t cut it for weeks, it was beginning to take on a more feminine look. And the garnet red dress she wore was the most beautiful thing she had ever owned.

She grinned at her own reflection. It felt so good to be able to be herself once again! No more over-sized shirts. No more heavy work boots. No more ugly old trousers.

She walked carefully around the room in her new lady’s boots, testing the strange gait they caused. No wonder women walked so differently from men, they had no choice, their shoes were so peculiar!

But she liked the way they made her feel. She liked the feel of the skirts brushing against her legs. She liked the way the bodice hugged her body, revealing her womanly shape.

Looking around her luxurious surroundings, she forced herself to consider her circumstances. Staying at the hotel was out of the question. Although she still had an ample supply of gold, it wouldn’t last forever, and the price of the room seemed dear to her. Also, she had checked in as Tim O’Brien. How would she go about explaining Shinonn Flannery’s sudden appearance? It didn’t take long for her to come to the conclusion that the fine hotel was for Tim, but a boarding house would be much more practical for Shinonn.

It took but a few moments to store her new clothing away in her saddle bags. After packing, she looked at the pile of ragged men’s clothing on the floor. Lying on the top of the heap was the shirt Lincoln had placed on her the last day they had been together. She remembered the smile in his eyes as he carefully fastened each button.

"Let me do it," he had said in his low, grating voice. "I want to take care of you now and forever."

This is forever, Lincoln. And where are you? Is this how you meant to take care of me?

A glint of steely determination came into her eyes. "No man has ever taken care of me before, and I’ll be damned if I need one to do it now", she thought as she grabbed up her bags and headed out the door, refusing to acknowledge the stab of anguish that pierced her as her eyes caught one last glimpse of the discarded shirt.

The boarding house was more than a little run-down, but the woman who ran it was warm and friendly.

She never questioned Shinonn’s story about being stranded in Placerville while she waited to meet her friends in Virginia City. She had learned many years before to take her guests at face value and to leave speculation to those who had the time for it.

After checking in at the Wells Fargo office, Shinonn found she had little to do but wait. The long hours of idleness were difficult for her. She went each day to the stage coach office, more for something to do then to verify that there would be no stage leaving for Virginia City that day. She knew it would be weeks before the pass would open, but it gave her something to do. After leaving the office, she usually spent a couple of hours walking the streets of Placerville.

As the days wore relentlessly on she thought she would go mad from the enforced inactivity. And then, after she had been in Placerville for several weeks, a new worry began to slowly creep into her mind.

One morning the thought crossed her mind that she couldn’t remember the last time she had had her monthly. As quickly as the thought occurred to her, she swept it aside, refusing to even consider the consequence. But the days passed and still her "visitor" did not come. Finally one night, as she lay tossing in her bed, she realized she could not run away from the truth any longer. There was only one answer.

She must be pregnant.

She lay in the dark in shear panic. What could she do? The thought of suicide even crept into her mind for a single, brief moment. Tears of frustration and self pity streamed heedlessly, but they brought her no solace. She had never felt so alone in her life.

The answer came to her as the morning light began to creep into the room. There was only one thing she could do. She would have her baby and find a way to raise it. Sofie and Alex would help her. She knew she could depend on them to give her the support she needed during this painful time.

And when it was over, she would have her very own baby. No one would ever be able to take her baby from her. Finally she would have someone she could love who would always be hers.

She fell into a deep, untroubled sleep, not waking until well past noon.

Chapter 13

The stage coach ride over the Sierra Nevadas had been more than miserable. Throughout most of it, Shinonn found herself to be nearly frozen to the bone and more than a little nauseous from the constant swaying of the coach. That is, she told herself it had been the swaying motion that so unsettled her stomach and not the tiny infant she was now certain nestled deep inside her.

Although she had dressed warmly, wearing several petticoats, a woolen dress and traveling coat, plus gloves, a hat and a thick muffler, the icy air had relentlessly found each tiny opening around the door and under the floorboards, swirling around her ankles and under her skirts. At the first stop the driver, the locally famous Charlie Parkhurst, suggested she wrap up in a woolen blanket he had stowed away.

Shinonn thanked the man profusely as he tucked the blanket around her with surprising gentleness.

When the stage finally pulled to a halt before the Wells Fargo building in Virginia City, Shinonn couldn’t decide if she would rather kiss the ground beneath her feet or hug the driver in relief. In the end she did neither, but instead satisfied her need to express her gratitude by shaking Charlie’s hand until he must have feared she would never stop.

Her immense relief was quickly replaced by dismay, however, when she got a good to look at her surroundings. Her misery had prevented her from taking much interest in the passing scenery during the last few hours of the trip, so she had not noticed how very drab the landscape had become. Whereas Placerville had been located in lovely rolling, tree covered foothills, the hills of Virginia City were stark and ugly. What trees she saw were stunted and grotesquely twisted from the strong desert winds. The only other vegetation for miles around appeared to be scrub brush.

Behind her rose Mount Davidson, a huge, almost treeless expanse. In every other direction, dropping away from her into distant valleys, stretched mile after mile of arid desert. It was hardly a scene to lighten a woman’s heart.

How could anyone live in such a wilderness, she wondered. Yet surprisingly the town appeared to be even bigger and livelier than Placerville had been in its heyday. Which proved to her once again, the promise of a quick fortune quickly banished all inconveniences.

Before reaching Virginia City she had assumed that she would be able to find Sofie and Alex with no trouble, but as she took in the immensity of the city she realized her task would be more difficult than she had expected. A mish-mash of plain wooden shacks, hastily thrown up tents and more substantial edifices stretched for more than a mile. More buildings and tents lined streets above and below the main thoroughfare.

Looking up and down the street where she stood, it appeared that more than half of the business establishments were saloons. She quickly came to the conclusion that a town which supported so many saloons was very likely to also have dozens of sporting houses. She was suddenly faced with the problem of locating one particular brothel among so very many.