“I thought your father was a rail builder.” Marybeth took the basket and put it on the table.
“He is, but in the winter when they stop working on the line, the men who stick around take on any job that’s available. A lot of them leave the area and never come back. Sometimes I wish Da would get that notion.” She took a seat without Marybeth even needing to suggest it.
Carrie popped up from the crate and grinned. “I want cookies.”
“In a little bit,” Marybeth said. “You keep playing while I talk to Melody.”
The little girl frowned and seemed on the verge of complaint,but she surprised Marybeth and went back to her play. Marybeth took a seat at the table.
“Edward’s looking for a stove to buy, and once that’s installed at the Hendersons’, we can move.”
“I’m sure it’ll be nicer to be in a real building. Although I haven’t really minded the tent. Da keeps me supplied with plenty of coal and wood. He’s ingenious in the way he’s rigged things up to protect us from the wind. We’re always warm and secure. I don’t need much room for anything else.”
“There isn’t enough room for doing the laundry indoors. I suppose in the summer it’s not as much trouble.”
“Da pays to have it done in the winter. Not that I couldn’t manage, but he knows it’s hard to take care of in the winter. It’s like a Christmas gift to me.”
“Christmas will be here before we know it. And Carrie’s birthday. She was born on the thirtieth of December.”
“And she’ll be two this year?”
Marybeth nodded. “She’s growing fast.”
“Before you know it, you’ll have another baby, and then caring for one will seem like a dream.”
Her words took Marybeth by surprise, but she covered it by popping up and reaching for the tea kettle. “Would you like some tea?”
Melody shook her head. “No, that’s not necessary. I just wanted to stop by and visit for a minute, then I’m heading off to deliver more cookies.”
Marybeth took her seat again. “Edward nearly lost his way in the snowstorm last night. When he finally found the tent, he was half frozen to death.”
“A lot of folks get lost and die out here. Not just in the snows either. There’s so little to mark the way. Some try to follow Crow Creek, but that doesn’t always bode well. Therewere several times last summer they had to rally the army to go out and search for some poor lost soul.”
“I can’t even imagine. Coming here on the train, we saw stretch after stretch of nothing but prairie and endless horizons.”
“I remember it well.” Melody glanced around. “Are you going to need help packing? I can carve out the time to do that if you need. My winter days are mostly spent cooking and reading, what with Da having the laundry done. They even do the mending. Once I get things cleaned up in the morning and manage whatever food we need, I don’t have too much to do. Now, wet spring and hot summer days are a whole different story. But come spring, we’ll be movin’ on once again, so that will be work enough just seein’ to that.”
“I don’t envy you.” Moving every few months didn’t sound like any fun at all. Just imagining the packing and unpacking was enough to weary a soul.
“It’s not an easy life, to be sure, but it’s mine. So just let me know, and I’ll come help you.”
Marybeth smiled. “That would be wonderful. We don’t have much, but obviously it will all need to be repacked.”
“If the Hendersons have a wagon, I wouldn’t bother to pack the rugs. We can roll those and just load them on the wagon.”
“I hadn’t thought of that, but Edward did say that Fred would come and pick up the crates, so I’ll keep that in mind. That will help a lot. I won’t need to clean them so thoroughly if they aren’t going to be loaded in the crates.”
Melody got to her feet. “Well, just be givin’ me a shout, and I’ll come a-runnin’, as Da would say.” She laughed and headed for the flaps. “I’ll miss you being next door, but you won’t be that far away.”
“No, not really. I’ll expect you to stop by often. With or without cookies.”
After Melody had gone, Marybeth thought about the move. She hoped—prayed—it would be within the next few days. The Henderson house was closer to town proper, and being in a wooden structure where she could actually lock a door would give her great relief. Of course, she and Carrie would still spend their nights alone.
She looked again at the pile of clothes. Maybe she could ask Edward about sending it to the laundry. She laughed to herself. That would be the day. She wasn’t going to shirk her wifely responsibilities and ask someone else to wash her clothes.
“Well, Miss Carrie, I suppose it’s time I just get busy.”
Carrie was standing at the edge of the crate and began to clap her hands. “Get busy.”
