Peace of Mind
Copyright© 2021 by DB86
Chapter 31
New York, 1852
It is a joyful Yule. After ten days of searching, I found my brother Jamie. He is with me now. Running low on funds, he had been enticed into a fighting club where he was forced to lose rounds after winning several matches. When he complained about not being paid, he was badly beaten and thrown out on a wintry street in Five Points, an area much feared.
New York is a lawless place. The police are corrupt, asking for money when I sought assistance. I hired men to look for Jamie. One stumbled upon him and brought him to my lodgings. A doctor attended him, and he is improving. I asked him to return to Scotland, but he refused.
Despite his injuries, he is determined to go west. The newspapers are full of news about gold finds in California, and there are also rumors of gold in Colorado. I fear if I do not go with him, he will go alone and his recklessness will kill him.
I offered to pay our way if he would travel west with me. Jamie, now penniless, agreed. I do not seek gold as my brother craves, but I have heard there are opportunities in the West. I have talked to many people, and I am told we should buy goods and wagons in Independence, Missouri, since the journey from New York is long and harrowing with many river crossings. I have also been told we should be in Independence by April to join a wagon train for protection against the savages. I can buy goods then and hire men to drive the wagons.
I fear I have seen Scotland for the last time, but there are vast new territories to explore. I have purchased a book that purports to tell me everything we will need on the journey westward from the Mississippi.
From the Journal of Fergus Carter
Landon closed the leather-bound journal as the door to the garden room opened and Marcus appeared, followed by the old housekeeper carrying the tray of coffee and small cakes. Marcus had called him earlier in the day and asked whether he would like to read some more excerpts of the journals. Landon had grabbed at the chance.
He had been far too occupied with thoughts of his meeting with Grace last night. He welcomed the distraction.
“I thought you might need a break,” Marcus said. “You’ve been reading for more than two hours, and it’s not that easy to read. In some parts, the ink has almost faded.”
Landon shoved back his chair. “I didn’t realize ... I’m sorry ... I’ve just traveled a long way with Fergus.”
The housekeeper poured tea into a cup and handed it to Landon, who thanked her.
“I want to ask you something,” Landon said sipping his tea.
“Nothing stopped you before,” Marcus said as his eyebrow arched.
“What would you think about an outdoor play about the founding of Middletown?”
He waited for the fallout.
“Not a bad idea,” Marcus finally said. There was actual color in his cheeks. Marcus looked like a different man than the one Landon had met. There was life in his eyes. “Who will write it?”
“Me...”
Marcus nodded his approval.
“Grace and her sister-in-law would help. It would be a group effort, but I’d be the one in charge,” Landon said. “I would like your input too. You know how the story goes better than anyone. You’ve read the journals.”
Marcus hadn’t said no so far.
“They want it ready for Founders’ Day. That’s in two months,” Marcus Carter said. “That’s impossible.”
“Nothing is impossible with the right attitude. That’s what Grace says, anyway.”
Marcus broke his reserve sufficiently to exhibit a brief smile. “That McAllister girl has you wrapped around her little finger, hasn’t she?”
Landon just shrugged and diverted the subject.
“We talked about it,” Landon continued. “She is going to recruit teachers of Middletown High to help.”
“I’ve been toying with the idea of writing Fergus’s story for a long time,” Marcus continued. “Maybe it’s time to tell the truth about the town’s hero.”
“Are you sure?” Landon asked with a hint of concern.
Marcus nodded. “Maybe a good place to start would be with a narrator opening the first journal and reading an entry. Then the actors could dramatize it.”
“That’s a great idea. If we choose the pertinent journal entries it might work.”
“I can certainly help there,” Marcus offered.
Landon felt his excitement building. Marcus’ reaction was far more than he had expected. He could hardly wait to tell Grace.
That sudden thought startled him. How could Grace become important so quickly?
He feared returning to the nothingness he had felt, and yet he equally feared becoming so involved in other people’s lives. He didn’t want to care deeply again. It just hurt too much.
“Before you leave...” Marcus Carter handed Landon a thick folder.
“What is this?” he asked.
“Some pages I printed from the first journal for you.”
To read the complete story you need to be logged in:
Log In or
Register for a Free account
(Why register?)
* Allows you 3 stories to read in 24 hours.
