Lilly: Bride of Illinois (American Mail-Order Bride 21) (5 page)

Moving her fingers back to the center lock on the second door, she slowly turned the knob until it clicked. Would the door squeak when she pulled it open? Was anyone on the other side of the door? She couldn’t chance lifting her head and someone inside or out seeing her shadow. She held her breath as she pulled on the door handle and the door opened a crack. Getting a firm grip on her bags and blanket, she opened the door wide enough to crawl out, being careful it closed quietly behind her.

She peeked both directions and saw no one in the streets—which wasn’t surprising considering a mixture of rain and sleet was pelting down on her head. Keeping low, she scurried to the recess of the next doorway, paused a moment then moved to the next until running to the corner, always staying close to the buildings.

Now which way?
The depot? But when Hardesty or Mrs. Mason found her missing, they might head there first. And learning how the police and business owners were in Hardesty’s back pocket, they’d probably return her to the Emporium. Seth’s hotel? It was close enough they could look for her there, too.

Lilly ran towards the smell and the stockyards, hoping to find shelter there.

Chapter 4

He acted drunk and wandered around to the front of the Emporium, but all he could see inside was the bartender and one of the women working behind the bar, cleaning up after closing for the night. He walked around the block and headed for the hotel just as light rain started spitting on him.

He watched from his hotel window until the dawn showed a glistening white landscape. After quickly taking care of his toiletries he moved down to the lobby, choosing a chair near a window where he could see a wide view of the area outside the hotel, and watch the front desk. Seth brought along the program from the stock show so he’d look like he was reading while waiting for someone to come down to join him for breakfast. The dining room wouldn’t open for another hour, but men usually came down early to talk and wait, so he didn’t look out of place.

Cold air swept in the lobby as a policeman pushed through the hotel door and walked to the front desk.

“Good morning, Officer Reinhart. What can I do for you?” The older man at the desk wasn’t alarmed when the policeman walked in, but he did look slightly annoyed at the snow the man tracked in across the carpeted foyer.

“Hey, Brody. Hardesty is missing a girl this morning. Seen anyone come in during the night? Tall blonde, Swedish immigrant so you know the accent, and wearing a blue floosy dress.”

Seth raised his program higher to cover his face as he listened.

“No, but I’ll get her back over there if I do. What’s her name?”

“Lilly Lind. She arrived earlier in the week, and Hardesty really likes her looks—and her voice. Wants her back ‘performing’, if you know what I mean,” the cop smiled as if it would be a pleasure to be the one to deliver her back to Hardesty.

Seth gritted his teeth hearing the two men talk about Miss Lind as if she was Hardesty’s property.

“Why’d you think to look here?” asked the hotel clerk.

“She was with a rancher by the name of George Milner last night, so figured we need to check all the hotels in the area. Check your register to see if he’s here.”

Excuse me for lying about my name last night, Lord, but I’m so glad I did.

The clerk scanned several pages in his book. “No, don’t see his name. You know the stock show is going on. There are thousands of ranchers in the area this month and not all at this hotel.”

“This man was tall, cowboy hat, western style boots.”

“You’re still describing most of the men staying here this week.”

“He’s young, late twenties, has dark red hair too, so that’s got to cut down the list of suspects.” The policeman rapped his knuckles on the counter. “Let us know if you hear anything about her. Mr. Hardesty would
appreciate it
.”

Seth breathed again, relieved Lilly got away last night. Unfortunately, people were looking for both Lilly and him now. So where is she? Apparently Lilly got away before the snow would have shown her tracks. As soon as the clerk turned his back, Seth would sneak back up the staircase for his coat and hat, and start looking for her.

He wondered if she went to train station, but she’d probably guess Hardesty’s thugs, or the police, would look for her there. And he doubted she could find out where a church was, or find help there during the night.

Seth had told her to meet him in the stockyards, so he had a feeling she was hiding there—if she hadn’t been accosted by someone else along the way. There were around two thousand livestock pens and numerous buildings covering the three–hundred acre stockyards. Somewhere, hopefully, Lilly was hiding—and not frozen to death—waiting for him to find her before someone else did.

It was time to pray to God and one of his Irish mother’s favorite protectors, Saint Michael for help, because this search could be harder than finding a needle in a haystack.

Two hours later, Seth still hadn’t seen any sign of Lilly in the buzz of activity in the snow–covered stockyard. Some yard workers were moving hogs toward the meat packing plants, while others unloaded livestock from the trains which had stopped in the Yards. Workers were systematically forking loose hay from horse drawn hayracks into the horse pens’ feed troughs, so horses were lined up in the pens eating. Seth slowly walked down the alley of the horse pens, pretending to look at the horses listed on this week’s sale bill he carried. He kept up a steady conversation with the horses, loud enough so Lilly could hear him if she was nearby. Seth stopped when other lookers walked by, but started talking again after they passed.

“Look at that
dumskalle
, will you, looks like the jackass came all the way from Sweden.”

“A Kansas rancher wouldn’t buy that
dumskalle
.”

Seth kept talking, thinking of words Lilly might catch as a clue to show herself.

He stopped at the next pen, realizing that all the horses were standing facing an inside corner, as were the horses in the three other pens which connected to it. Something, or
someone
had their attention.

Seth looked closer, trying to see through the legs of eight horses in this pen, then he went to the next pen to look at the corner from another angle. A tiny bit of blue fabric showed in the corner pile of hay.
Surely he had found her!

“Miss Lind! Lilly!”
Seth hissed as loudly as he dared. She didn’t answer, nor did the patch of material move. He tried again, “
Dumskalle!
Smörgåsbord! Lutfisk!”
Still no movement in the corner.

Seth looked around, then slid open the gate latch to get into the pen, then closed the gate behind him. “It’s all right, just trying to get to the corner,” he calmly spoke to the horses as he made his way around the inside perimeter of the pen’s fence.

Seth cautiously poked the hay pile with his boot, knowing it could be a drunk hiding, or just a piece of fabric instead of Miss Lind.
The hay shifted.
Seth reached out to lightly brush hay off the form until he found a gray blanket. Half afraid, Seth slowly opened the blanket—to see two beautiful, sleepy, blue eyes blinking open.

“Miss Lind, it’s Mr. Reagan.”
Thank God and Saint Michael.
“Are you all right?”

She blinked at him, still half asleep, or in shock? Seth looked around, he had to get her out out of the pen and away before someone saw them.

“I’m...cold...but...”

“Listen, you need to get out of that dress because the police are looking for you.”

“What?” She blinked her eyes and looked around her.
Did she remember getting into the pen of horses last night?

“I have a bag of clothing you need to change into, then I’ll put the dress in the bag so it isn’t seen.
Hurry!”

Seth pulled out a pair of trousers, then pulled Miss Lind up to her feet. “Lean on me,” he grabbed her foot and worked it into a leg of the pants, then shifted her weight to slip her other leg in. He yanked the trousers over her bloomers and buttoned them at her waist before she had time to protest.

He looked around again, there were people slowly wandering this alley, stopping to look at the pens of horses, but still a distance away.

“I got a shirt and men’s coat for you to put on, so let’s get you out of the dress.” Seth popped off half the buttons as he opened the side seam and was yanking the dress over her head before Lilly got her arms up.

“Go easy...my ribs...”

“
Hurry up!
People are coming!” Seth grabbed a hunting cap out of the bag before stuffing the dress in his bag, causing the horses to move in agitation.

“Whoa, there, we’re not trying to startle you. Calm down,” Seth lowered his voice to settle the horses, keeping himself between them and Lilly.

“Miss Lind, you’re now my assistant,
Arthur Johnson
, at least until we get out of the stockyards.
Ready?
People are two pens from here,” he whispered as he looked over his shoulder.

She had the shirt on, but was timidly working to get the coat on.

“Here, put the coat on and wrap it around you,” Miss Lind hissed as Seth roughly pulled the coat on her shoulders and pushed the cap on her head. “Don’t worry about buttoning anything right now. The hat’s got a havelock cape to cover your neck and hair.”

Seth rubbed his hand over the back of the nearest mare as three men strolled by the pen he and Miss Lind were in. “Hello,” Seth said, nodding to the men, before continuing to run his hand up the horse’s neck.

“How’s this group look, sir?” one of the men said.

“I believe all right. It looked like one of the mares had a cracked hoof, so I came into the pen to check it. But luckily, it was frozen hay and mud instead.” He moved to check the next mare, ignoring the men as he waited for them to move on. None seemed to notice his companion’s dress or stature before they continued to stroll down the alley to the next pen of horses.

“Why am I wearing men’s clothing? Where’s your cowboy hat?” Miss Lind looked confused as she croaked out the words. He had to get her back to hotel as quick as he could.

“The police were at the hotel early this morning looking for Lilly Lind—in a blue gown—and a tall red–haired cowboy named George Milner. So I bought some cheap men’s clothes for you and a black crusher hat for me this morning to try to change our appearances a little.”

Lilly swayed and Seth grabbed her before she crumpled back into the hay. Besides wincing, she gasped this time when he pulled her close. She squeezed her eyes tight, but tears still rolled down her cheeks.

“Are you hurt?
Did Hardesty hurt you?
”

“One punch in my ribs,” she said after taking a shallow breath. “But then I slipped on the ice when I was running, and slammed down on my side, which made it worse.”

“Think you can walk until we can hire a carriage to take us back to the hotel?” Seth was ready to pick her up and carry her back, but thought that might hurt her ribs more.

“Yes, just give me time. I can walk along the pens and lean against the fence if I need to.”

***

Lilly was so glad when the carriage pulled up to the hotel. Besides shivering from the cold and numb from fatigue, she was faint from hunger and lack of sleep.

“Mr. Reagan, I shouldn’t be going up to your room,” Lilly had whispered this more than once, but he refused to hear her arguments.

“My parents taught us boys to help others in need, so you’re my current case. My room has a private bathroom, complete with a bathtub and running water, which you need to soak in as soon as we get upstairs,” he reminded her again as they slowly walked side by side up the hotel entrance steps. But Lilly hardly heard him as she took in the lobby, tastefully decorated with expensive–looking overstuffed chairs scattered in groups for visiting. She had
never
been in a place this nice.

Mr. Reagan touched her shoulder to stop her once they were inside the foyer. “We’re in luck. There’s a different clerk at the desk now instead of the one the policeman talked to about us. Stay on the opposite side of me when we go up the stairs in case he looks our way.”

Lilly never thought it would be hard to go up a staircase, but right now each step was work. Mr. Reagan ushered her down the hall, looking both ways before inserting the key in his hotel room door and opening it for their entry.

“Before you wilt on the floor in a dead sleep, let me get the bathwater running so you can enjoy a nice, soaking bath,” Mr. Reagan remarked as he opened the door of the bathroom. Lilly sighed when she heard the sweet sound of hot water hitting the bottom of the bathtub.

The room was
clean
. No questionable stains on the bedspread, a thick area rug she couldn’t wait to sink her toes into, light streaming through polished glass…she had to be hallucinating.

“Are you going to be able to undress and get in the tub by yourself?” Sean asked while pulling off his hat and coat and tossing them onto the overstuffed chair by the window.

“Uh, yes…I’ll manage.” It may have taken effort to say those four words, but she’d get her icy cold clothes off because a
hot bath
was waiting for her.
Thank you for electricity and modern plumbing in this hotel.

The dirty Emporium room had a kerosene lamp, a chamber pot, wash basin and a pitcher of water in it—and a bed with a repulsive odor. Lilly needed to rub the reminder of that room and the smoky saloon off her skin and hair as much as she needed to warm up.

“All right. Umm ...while you’re bathing, I’ll go down to the dining room for coffee and food for us.” He lifted the door key. “I’ll let myself back in, so don’t be surprised when you hear me.” When Lilly heard the soft click of this door locking, she felt safe instead of scared, as she had at the Emporium.

Lilly stood in the bathroom doorway a minute and watched the steam coming off the tub water.
How did I get so lucky to have a decent man help me after this terrible week?

Piece by piece she shed the men’s clothing, and her wet undergarments, cringing at the pain it caused her left side. She gasped as she turned and looked in the mirror above the sink. Her hair was a tangled mess, and her face was as pale as the snow outside the hotel.