“I have no desire to fight either. I will keep in mind your thoughts and feelings. Perhaps we could have a gathering—a party. You could mingle among the guests and get to know some of the men who reside in Cheyenne. I would choose only such men as I know to be honorable and of marriageable age. You could see if any of them appealed.”
“That would be acceptable to me, Father.” Laura would rather walk barefoot on hot coals, but to keep her father from being upset, she was happy to agree.
“It seems you’ve made several good friends already,” Father continued. “I’m glad you have managed to do that.”
“Yes, they’re all women from the church, and their husbands are quite active in Cheyenne. One used to be a banker,but now he owns and runs a boys’ school. Charlie Decker is his name. I believe he’s a member of one of your business groups. Then there’s Edward Vogel. He’s a deputy with the city’s police department. He works for the city marshal. Mr. Cooper is retired but keeps himself involved with town politics. You probably know him.”
“Cooper? Yes, I believe I do. Owns a boardinghouse, if I’m not mistaken. I know Decker as well. The man is quite intelligent—has a good mind for figuring out details.”
“That doesn’t surprise me. Their wives are quite knowledgeable too.” Laura held each with great affection. “And there’s Granny Taylor’s husband, Jed. He works for the railroad but used to own his own ranch in Texas. Granny is always giving sound and sage advice. I really like her.”
“It’s good that they’re such decent sorts. There are plenty in this town who aren’t. A lot of ruffians remained after the train moved west. I intend to see this town cleaned up. Now that we’ve passed laws against gambling and prostitution, we should see some real changes. And we will, of course, continue to pursue law and order.”
“I’m sure Cheyenne is a much better place for your attention. I know that you have interests in being appointed governor, but I don’t really understand why. What has driven you down that road?”
Her father finished eating and pushed back from the table. “The power and ability to carve a way in history so as to actively effect change.”
Laura hadn’t known what she expected him to say, but it wasn’t that. “You desire power to make changes? What kind of changes?”
“There’s a whole variety of things I would change. A lot of it, however, has more to do with the people I would eliminatefrom their positions of power. People who have flawed ideas and plans for this town and territory. I’d get rid of all the Indians, eliminate the reservations and the people on them.”
Her mouth dropped as her eyes widened. “Father, you would have them killed?”
He looked at her oddly. “No, of course not. I would have them removed. I am of a mind that we allocate one area in this country or perhaps Canada and send all native people there. There’s not that many of them left, and having all these separate reservations in our great country is ridiculous. Let them all be thrown together in one place where they can be controlled. As you know, they can be very violent.”
“But they’re of different tribes. They speak different languages and have different cultural stories. Throwing them together won’t work.”
Her father rose from the table and tossed his napkin down. “Nonsense. America is the very symbol of that. We are a conglomerate of nations. Irish, Germans, Swedes, as well as Mexicans and Asians. We have come together and live and work as a collective group. It shouldn’t be that difficult for the Indians to do the same. It would take an adjustment, but it would work in time, I assure you. Now, I must get to the store.” He came around the table and leaned down to kiss her cheek.
“It’s so good to have you with me,” he said. “Don’t worry yourself over political affairs. I’ve the head for such work, and you must trust that I know what I’m doing. With your suitors as well. I’m quite anxious to put you on the path toward matrimony.”
After her father left, Laura wanted to kick herself. Why had she encouraged him to bring suitors? She had no intention of choosing a husband. Her only desire was to know herfather better, and it seemed to her that breakfast had given her quite a bit of insight into his heart. The problem was, she wasn’t entirely sure she cared for what she saw there. Power and marrying for social connections were hardly things that she valued. It made her uncomfortable to know they were what her father desired. After all, they would do nothing to draw them together as a family. The thin line of connection they had would only be made weaker by adding a third party. Laura sighed and put her napkin on the table. Maybe if she said nothing, Father would forget all about it. She could only hope.
A week later, Will had to admit he wasn’t anywhere near as strong as he’d hoped to be. The doctor told him he’d lost a lot of blood, and they’d been forced to remove his spleen to prevent him bleeding to death. Will had asked but been denied the right to get up and walk on crutches. The doctor told him it was still too dangerous, and his broken ribs would never have the strength to hold him. But as much as this had soured Will’s attitude and spirit, a visit from Mr. Blevins only served to make it worse.
“I had come to bring you good news. The government is ready to move ahead and assign additional workers for the various reservations. I went to the boardinghouse this morning, hoping to give you the good word,” Mr. Blevins began. “However, Mrs. Cooper told me you had been in a terrible accident and were staying here for constant nursing care.” The older man lowered his wire-rimmed glasses to the edge of his nose so that he could peer over them at Will.
“Yes, I was injured on the fifteenth of January when a horse trampled me. I suffered broken bones and a rupturedspleen. I also took a hard hit to my head,” Will replied. “The doctor tells me I’m lucky to be alive.”
“Yes, well, while it’s good that you lived through your ordeal, it hardly helps me.” Mr. Blevins tsked. “No, sir, it doesn’t help at all.”
The little man rose from his seat. “You’ll no doubt be weeks, maybe months, at recuperating from your injuries. I can hardly set aside a position for that long.”
“It seems to me if you’ve waited this long, a few more weeks isn’t going to be the end of the world.” Will’s frustration brought out a sarcastic tone. How could the man only consider his own circumstances? Will had nearly died.
“Well, there’s also the other thing,” Mr. Blevins said, eyeing Will with a serious expression. “I understand your mother and sister were on the stage that was attacked by the Sioux.”
“Yes, they were killed.”
“And you’re still of a mind to go and work with those who were responsible?”
“I never intended to work with the Sioux. I’ve studied and learned about the Shoshone. We talked at length about my heading west to their reservation with the Bannock.”
“They’re still Indians. Are you sure you can handle working with people who might have been responsible for killing your kin?” Blevins straightened to his full height, which couldn’t have been more than five feet. “It’s something to think about. Maybe you’d be happier starting a little church right here in Cheyenne and avoiding contact with the Indians.”
Will had to admit, only to himself, that the same thoughts had occurred to him. His emotions were still torn when it came to the idea of working with the natives. He had wrestled with his lifelong plans over and over. After all, mentalarguments and contemplation were about all he was good for. Well, that and spiritual battles. He had even given thought to giving up on preaching altogether. He felt abandoned by God, and his heart didn’t seem to be able to move on past that point.
At his silence, Blevins gave a nod and moved toward the door. “I will check back in with you in a week and see what the doctor says about your recovery. I can wait that long to decide.”
