Brave Beginnings (19 page)

“The coffee won’t help,” Julia teased.

“Oh, you’re right,” Millicent said. “But I
don’t care. A love realized is to be cherished, and if I miss a few
winks for it, then I gladly do so.”

“We’re happy for you,” Erin replied. “Conrad
comes from a good family. You couldn’t do much better.”

“I agree,” Julia added. “He’ll make you
happy, and I agree with what you said about love. Enjoy every
moment of it.”

“Oh, I will!” Millicent put her cup back on
the saucer she held. “I want a love like you and Chogan have.”

“Yes, Julia and Chogan share something few
people do,” Erin commented, winking at Julia. “I have a feeling
that Conrad will be as good for you.”

“Julia, that reminds me,” Millicent began, a
concerned look on her face. “I heard Chogan lost his job, but no
one is sure why. If you do not wish to discuss this matter, I will
not press you.”

Julia sighed. “It’s all because of
Ernest.”

“Ernest? Ernest Freeman? The one who wanted
to court you?” Millicent asked.

“Yes. Guess why he found a reason to tell Mr.
Wilcox to fire him?”

“Surely, you jest.”

Erin shook her head. “I’m afraid not,
Millicent. Ernest claims that Chogan attacked him and insisted
Chogan must not be allowed to represent the Tribune anymore.”

“Chogan didn’t attack him,” Julia added, her
anger threatening to come to the surface. “But Mr. Wilcox doesn’t
care. He fired Chogan anyway.”

“And people believe such hearsay?” Millicent
asked.

“Apparently, Ernest carries quite a bit of
weight in this town,” Erin replied.

“A little too much,” Julia muttered.

“What will Chogan do now?” Millicent asked,
turning her concerned gaze to Julia. “Will you stay here or go to
his tribe?”

Julia blinked in surprise. “I didn’t think of
going to his tribe.” She didn’t know why the option hadn’t occurred
to her before.

“He’s looking for another job,” Erin told
Millicent.

“Oh, then I’m sure he’ll find one soon,”
Millicent replied. “I heard he was a most admirable worker. It’s
unfortunate this had to happen. He was happy at the Tribune, was he
not?”

“He was,” Erin said. “But some things weren’t
meant to be.”

“That is quite a shame,” Millicent softly
replied. “The world is not always a fair place. I am not so naive
as to believe this, but I like to think that justice prevails in
the end.”

“Chogan would not agree with you on that,”
Julia said.

“Perhaps I have a smidge of naivety in me.”
Millicent shrugged and offered an apologetic smile.

“It’s a good quality to have,” Erin said,
patting her arm. “There’s no harm in having hope, and things do
look hopeful for you.” She chuckled. “Julia and I are excited for
you!”

Taking her mind off of Chogan, Julia smiled
at her cousin. “Yes, we are. So when will you see him again?”

Julia and Erin listened as Millicent told
them the plans she and Conrad already made, and for the moment,
Julia was able to put Ernest and the Tribune far from her mind.

~~********~~

Chogan dumped the horse manure into the trash
can and caught sight of Ernest on the other side of the street.
Ernest glanced his way, smirked, and dropped a piece of paper into
the street. Chogan gritted his teeth and stomped in Ernest’s
direction, ignoring the horse and rider that was coming his
way.

Ernest chuckled despite the flicker of
uncertainty that crossed his face. “Finally, a job you deserve. I’m
sure Julia’s thrilled she married you now.”

Chogan reached him and stood close—almost a
foot taller than his nemesis.

Ernest took a step back but continued to make
an appearance of bravado. “You think Julia will like knowing the
man she married is savage enough to attack an unarmed man?”

“You leave her out of it,” Chogan
growled.

“You better be careful. People are
watching.”

Chogan glanced at the crowd that developed
around them. He gritted his teeth. Did people have nothing better
to do in this town than to stick their noses into other people’s
business?

“Good day to you, Barney!” Ernest called out
to an overweight, balding man.

“Afternoon, Ernest. Is that Injun giving you
trouble?” Barney asked, inspecting Chogan up and down.

“I don’t know,” Ernest said and turned his
gaze to Chogan. “Do you mean me harm?”

Chogan gripped the broom and dustpan so
tightly that he wondered if they’d break. “I do job,” he snapped,
cursing himself for not speaking the full sentence correctly. The
words were there in his mind, but his tongue stumbled on them.

Ernest made a show of looking up and down the
street. “And a fine one too. No one cleans up the waste like you
do, wouldn’t you agree?” he asked the group of men and women who
huddled nearby.

They laughed and whispered to each other.

Chogan felt the heat rise to his face before
the broom handle snapped in his hand.

Ernest raised an eyebrow. “You might want to
tame the savage within,” he muttered so no one would overhear. In a
louder voice, he said, “Oops. I see you missed a piece of paper
right there.” He motioned to the paper he’d thrown into the street
and smiled at Chogan. “I wouldn’t want you to lose this job. A man
like you… Let’s face it. What other chances are you going to
get?”

“I told you those redskins are lazy,” a woman
told her friend, as if Chogan wasn’t in hearing distance!

“We must be patient with him,” Ernest called
out to her. “He grew up in a dirt home.”

The two women pressed their hands to their
necks and blanched.

“I’m sure in time, he’ll do better.” Ernest
patted him on the back. “All in good time.” Though his voice
remained pleasant and his smile wide, an underlying malevolence
reflected in his eyes. “I best be off to work at the bank. Real
work, you know.” He passed by the group and greeted the people by
name before he continued on to the bank, not once bothering to look
back at Chogan.

Chogan’s pulse raced with the need to slam
his fist right into Ernest’s smug face, but he knew he couldn’t do
it. Not with everyone watching. It would disgrace Julia, and as it
was, he couldn’t bring himself to tell her the job he found. For
the past week, he tried to, but the words wouldn’t come out. It was
enough that he lived with the shame. Going from what he’d been to
what he was now, from brave hunter to picking up litter and horse
droppings… He could imagine her shame. It was one thing to work at
a paper, but this was a depth he never thought he’d have to sink
to.

“Injun!” someone yelled.

Chogan blinked and forced his gaze off of
Ernest’s retreating figure.

Barney pointed to the piece of paper in the
street. “This garbage needs removal.”

“And where do you want me to put you? You
won’t fit in a trash can,” Chogan muttered.

“What did you say?” Barney snapped.

“Nothing,” he lied and picked up the
paper.

“I don’t like that tongue on you, Injun.”

Chogan shrugged. “Then don’t talk to me.”

“Why I never!” a woman exclaimed and hurried
off, practically dragging her friend by the arm in the process.

“Watch yourself,” another man said. “We only
welcome civilized men here.”

The rest of the group nodded and left
together, as if they were heading off to the same place.

Chogan took a deep breath and closed his
eyes. He slowly exhaled to release the tension in his body. Without
meaning to, he recalled the time when he sat upon his horse. He
wore breechcloth that day instead of the tight pants and buttoned
shirt he wore now. His hair had been braided and hung down his
back. The wind ruffled the two eagle feathers attached to his head.
There was no hat. No short hair. No need to conform to the white
man’s world in a vain attempt to prove himself.

The summer heat bore down on him as he
scanned the open land for the best buffalo among the herd. The
other hunters waited for his cue to make their move. He got his bow
and arrow ready. The others followed suit. Then, in one swift
motion, he gave the signal and pressed his heels into the flanks of
the mount. The horse burst forth into a full gallop as Chogan led
the way to the buffalo that’d been grazing. When the buffalo
realized what was happening, the herd headed off. The race was
on.

Never had Chogan felt more alive than in the
thrill of the hunt. And now…

He opened his eyes. The cold air stung his
skin, the clothes covered him from the neck on down, and instead of
holding a bow and arrow, he held a broken broom and dustpan. It was
a far cry from what he’d once been. People once looked upon him
with respect. Now they had utter contempt for him. He understood
most of it was due to Ernest, but had the white people not assumed
the worst already, he wouldn’t have had to pick the lowest job the
town offered. Nor would he have just had to endure the
condescending stares and remarks the busybodies felt the need to
add to Ernest’s taunting.

With a heavy sigh, he turned back to his
work, not sure what else he could do.

***

Julia was on her way to the grocer when she
saw Ernest heading in her direction. She hurried to the store and
thought she could make it into the building before he spotted her.
But she was wrong.

He called out to her and quickened his
pace.

She glared at him but didn’t stop heading for
the store. If she let him make her turn on her heel and go back
home, she’d always be running from him. Then he’d have power over
her and know it. He lived in town, and like it or not, she was
bound to run into him at some point. That, however, didn’t mean she
had to talk to him.

She reached the door at the same time he did,
and before she could open it, he blocked her. “Get out of my way,”
she snapped, her heart racing with a mixture of anger and
anxiety.

“Julia, give me a chance to apologize,” he
said. “Granted, I acknowledge you’re right to be upset—”

“You’re right I’m upset!”

“And I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?”

“What I did was wrong.”

She narrowed her eyes, unwilling to believe
him. “If you’re so sorry, then tell Mr. Wilcox he can hire Chogan
again.”

“I did.”

She slapped him, making sure there was enough
force in it to adequately wipe the false sincere look off his face.
“I’m not stupid. Don’t you think I know a lie when I hear it? Don’t
you think I hear people talking about my husband? Did you not once
think of the damage you were causing because you let your wounded
pride get in the way of doing the right thing?”

She stopped shrieking at him so she could
catch her breath. He made her so mad she couldn’t think straight.
All she could do was act.

Ernest waited for a moment and softly said,
“I don’t blame you for not believing me. I behaved
abhorrently.”

“And you still are. Get out of my way so I
can shop.”

“I think after what we meant to each other, I
deserve the chance to make amends. I was wrong. I let my pride get
in my way. I should have gracefully accepted your marriage. I went
to Josh Wilcox about hiring Chogan again. I explained everything,
but Larry
Bleier insisted that Chogan should find
employment elsewhere.”

She shook her head. “Don’t make me slap you
again.”

He held his hands up and sighed. “I can’t
make you believe me. I understand that. I felt terrible for what
happened, so I offered to help Chogan find employment somewhere
respectable. I tried to right my wrong. I’m sure Chogan mentioned
it to you?”

She slapped him again. “I warned you not to
make me slap you again. Stop lying to me!”

This time he brought his hand to his red
cheek. “I take it Chogan didn’t tell you then?”

“Must you persist in this? Next time I’ll
whack you with my purse!”

With a shrug, he said, “I’ve done all I
could. I guess Chogan is right. Picking up horse waste and litter
off the streets will work well. It’s hard to watch someone not seek
a higher purpose in life, but if it makes him happy…”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

He furrowed his eyebrows. “But certainly he
told you about his new job.”

She hesitated to respond for Chogan had told
her he found a job, but whenever she inquired about it, he found a
way to change the topic so she forgot about it until later when he
wasn’t there to ask.

“Julia,” Ernest softly replied, “you deserve
so much better.”

She slapped him. “You did this to him!” She
swung back her hand to slap him again, but he caught her wrist. “If
you hadn’t interfered with his job at the Tribune, he wouldn’t be
cleaning the streets. How do you sleep at night?”

He caught her other hand as she made another
attempt to strike him. “What has he done to bewitch you? You’ve
lost all sense of reason!”

“You have no idea how much he attained at
his tribe. You think being a vice president is impressive? His
position in the tribe was better than that. He’s more of a man than
you’ll ever be!”

His expression darkened. “You would dare
compare me to a savage?”

“Ma’am, is he bothering you?” The deputy set
his hands on his hips. “Sir, get away from the lady.”

Ernest released her hands and stepped away
from her. “I meant no harm.”

The deputy motioned to the street. “Maybe
you should get on to whatever business you have to do.”

Ernest glanced at her and straightened his
coat. Then he took another look at the deputy before he strolled
down the street.

Realizing her body still trembled with rage,
she took a deep breath to calm down. She couldn’t recall a time
when she’d been more upset. How could Ernest justify his actions?
She didn’t understand it. But she’d had enough. She had enough of
him and this town.