He was knocking by the time she summoned a breath and followed.
The door opened, and a man stood in the frame. "Yes?"
Jericho cleared his throat. "Need two rooms. The nicest you have for Miss Wyatt."
The man looked at her, his gaze scanning up and down quickly. What did he see in her? Hopefully, he didn't think her the kind of woman who'd been in Helena.
He turned back to Jericho. "Only have one open. Surely that will suit." The corners of his mouth curved, and he stepped back. "It's two dollars. Up the stairs, last door on the right."
After a nod, Jericho turned to speak to her. "I'll sleep with the wagon at the livery."
A spurt of panic clutched her chest. "Is it safe here?" The proprietor already thought her a loose woman and seemed fine with that scenario playing out in his establishment. Jericho hadn't set him straight either. Maybe he thought the man wouldn't believe him. Truly, she didn't care what this stranger thought of her.
But she did care about whether a drunken man would barge into her room during the night, thinking she'd welcome him.
Jericho paused, his gaze meeting hers. In the shadows, she couldn't read his expression. "This is the most respectable lodging in town. I wouldn't let you in the door of the others. Let's get you settled, then maybe I can bunk double with someone else here."
The weight inside her eased. Maybe he could stay close enough to hear if she screamed. Surely that wouldn't be necessary, but still, it made her feel better. "That won't be comfortable for you."
His mouth curved a little. "Wouldn't be the first time."
He returned to the wagon to grab her pack, and she followed him into the building, up the narrow stairs, and down an even narrower hallway. Their footsteps echoed in the silence. If the rooms were all taken, where were the occupants? In the saloons, maybe.
The door at the end on the right was open, and a light glowed from inside. Jericho stopped in front of it and motioned her in. A lantern sat on a small table, illuminating the closet-like space. A cot barely wide enough for a single person sat in one corner, a three-drawer bureau with washbasin and pitcher in another, and the table and a single chair filled a third, leaving barely enough space to walk between them.
She turned back to Jericho, who waited in the hall. "Will you come get me when it's time to purchase supplies?" As late as it was, it didn't seem a businessman would want to open his shop tonight, but Jericho would know, surely.
"I can. Wouldn't you rather just give me a list? That way you can settle in for the night."
Would she? She'd expected to peruse shop shelves, walking along aisles and examining goods. Maybe even find some cloth so Naomi could begin stitching baby clothes while she lay in bed.
But Dinah couldn't do that tonight. Not well after ten o'clock, or maybe even pushing midnight. Those niceties would have to wait until she and her sister were more settled.
For now, Jericho could load the things they couldn't do without. In the morning, she could inquire from the hotel owner and any other shopkeeper she saw about whether an open building existed that she could rent for a medical clinic.
After seeing Missoula Mills, she wasn't as certain there would be a vacant space. But if she had to, she could set up a tent at the edge of town until a more permanent structure became available. There had been hundreds of medical tents during the war, which had proven a viable means of providing care, especially in a frontier setting like this.
For now, she gave Jericho a grateful smile. "I'll write a few things down for you."
* * *
At least the saloons were closed this early in the morning.
Jericho strode to the livery before the sun turned the edge of eastern sky gray. After loading the supplies, he'd only slept four or five hours. And for those, he’d been stretched out with a blanket in front of Dinah’s door. It was the only way he could truly keep her safe. He would be relieved to shake the dust of Missoula Mills off his wagon wheels.
Maybe this place wasn't as decadent and rough-shod as Helena, but since the Mullan Road opened, that lot had been trickling this direction, searching for the next big strike. All those rows of tents along the river proved it.
When the first strike happened, this place would become every bit as bad as Helena or Virginia City. He could only hope no one spotted any pretty colored stones and realized what they were.
When he stepped into the open livery, Clip was already hitching the team. "Morning."
The livery owner nodded. "Thought you'd be heading out early. These boys've had their breakfast and are raring to go."
Though Jericho only came to Missoula Mills a few times a year, somehow the man remembered him. Or maybe the pair of matched chestnuts stood out to him. Either way, he was a good fellow. Kind to the animals.
Jericho moved to the horses and worked with Clip to finish hitching the wagon. Somewhere back in the barn, a whine sounded. An animal of some kind. Or several of them.
Clip must have seen him glance that way. "Got some pups I'm weanin' from their mama. They're not fond of the process."
