"Chase it off?" Constance wondered if the upset mother would really just let some human run her off? Too bad she did not realize they were only goint to try to help save her baby.
But as she watched him wave his arms and yell loudly, it at least got the big beast's attention. She then joined in with her own shouts. Well the mother did not run off but it did move further down the riverbank then pause to watch the goings on. Hopefully she not going to change her mind and charge them? Risk Justus was prepared to take and into the water he went as the baby continued to struggle uselessly. He wanted her to watch the mother though, a sensible precaution. Constance stopped at the rocky shore line to then look toward the adult moose.
Approaching cautiously, Justus muttered, "It's okay, little Mortimer, I'm just gonna help." The baby bellowed and struggled, and that was when it became apparent that he was somehow stuck. Frowning, Justus got closer and ran his hands down the calf's hind legs, avoiding any blows from its swinging head.
"His leg is stuck!" he called back to Constance. "I need ta move th' rock, but it's too heavy!"
"Oh no!" Constance turned to take a closer look with a stricken expression on her face. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound. Justus was already in the water and at least it was not drownable deep. (She actually could swim though.)
"I'm coming on in!" she announced and did not wait for his response but just jumped on into the water. Oh good lord! That water was cold! These big dresses would soak up water like a sponge too. She did not care.
Moving beside him, she looked the life and death scene over, "We try to move it together? Maybe on a count of three?"
Though he was running low on funds, he hadn't thought much ahead of what he'll do once his wife's murder was avenged. He certainly didn't want to return to the home he and his wife had in San Francisco, it would feel far too empty to him without Okashi there with him. He also had no job to return to and he doubted he would be able to resume his schooling, giving so much time had passed. No, there was nothing in San Francisco for him other than bad memories. He had his wife cremated as was custom to his people and he kept her ashes with him, not wanting to bury her till he knew her spirit could finally rest after her murderer saw justice.
Kalispell wasn't a very large town and he would miss the Asian market in San Francisco but this was where his wife's spirit had been seen by the young woman before him. Perhaps here was where she will like to be laid to rest, something he could think about later as he really didn't know the town yet.
"I will keep it in mind," he said, realizing he was being rude by not answering the young woman promptly. As she hadn't offered her name he didn't want to make her uncomfortable for not having offered it earlier. "I haven't decided if I will remain here, especially now that my reason for coming has been accomplished."
"If you excuse me, I should be going," he said, bowing slightly then taking his leave. If he did decide to stay he would need to find lodging somewhere clean and affordable or find a place out of town to set up camp.
"Miss Jemima said I could talk to my ma," he whispered, "but I never got a chance to try, since she'd buried in Whitefish." Maybe that was something he should try some day...
"Can we go talk to Mrs. Jemima after school?" He asked his cousin ready to go and find her now if he could, but he didn't want to get in trouble for skipping school on his first day. He looked at Jane. "She's really there? She really answered you?" He had never even considered that there were ghost around and that he could talk to them!
Jane gave a knowing nod of affirmation.
"I've spoken to Miss Wigfall about it, and she said that I am probably a natural spirit medium and she wants me to meet Mrs Dorothea Orr, and she's the most important Spiritualist person in the whole of Kalispell" she said importantly. And then the icing on the cake "We could all go to see her!"
Miss Bowen was ringing the bell.
"We'd better go in" said Jane "But we could call on Mrs Orr after school!" she suggested.
This was actually a terrible idea - although a little slow, Jemima Wigfall had the common sense to nix the idea of a kid as young as Josh from attending a spooky séance; Dolly Orr, on the other hand, a rather addled woman of 'a certain age', had the spirit-rapping mania, and was mad enough to welcome anyone to a table-turning session at any time of the day: morning, noon or night!
The kids started filing into the little school room. Jane sat at the front, a very unpopular place to be, as you were right in Miss Bowen's line of fire when she started asking awkward questions about who won the Battle of Bunker Hill or what the square root of 9 was... however, that also meant that there was usually an empty seat next to her for Clemmy to sit in.
@[JulieS]
Bowing once he then clapped his hands twice and gave a silent prayer, thanking the spirit of his wife for revealing herself to this young woman so she could tell him what she saw.
Herschelina didn't know what the heck the Japanese man was doing but it looked kinda important and sombre, so the girl closed her eyes and bowed her head, just like she did in church.
"I do not think you are nutty, quite the contrary," Shintaro responded after finishing his brief prayer. "What you have told me has removed a heavy weight from my heart and filled me with inner peace."
The little black-haired freckled maid nodded and gave him an unaccustomed smile, glad she'd told him about the incident, now.
"Say, you know Mister Takahashi, if'n you are thinkin' of stickin' around these parts, I hear Mister Baur's hiring..." in her accent she pronounced the man's name like 'Barr' "... and I reckon he won't mind you not bein' a white man cause..." she looked round and whispered the scandal "... he's married to a Injun squaw!" she gave him a knowing nod.
Down in Marshal Guyer's tomblike subterranean dungeons, Zenobia stirred at the sound of the door opening above, and put down the book she was reading, The Wide, Wide World by Elizabeth Wetherell, in the gloomy light of the jail. Like a person in hospital, she only had visitors and meals to look forward to. Unlike people in hospital, there was nothing medically wrong with her, although her case was terminal.
When she saw who these particular visitors were, she became less than welcoming.
"Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in. My dear caring older brother! Back from the range, too late, as per usual! What, have you come to make sure they hang me, Jesse?!" she spat peevishly. "And who's that, your girlfriend? She looks too good for you. Don't do it dearie, he'll ride off into the sunset just when you need him!" she advised, looking at Hannah.
"I thought I heard my lawyers voice too. I imagine he's too shame faced to come down and see me, the incompetent idiot! Oh, and here's my dear old Jailer, Marshal Guyer. Unfortunately, he's the only person in this town who does know what he's doing. Surprised he hasn't got me in chains."
@[Stormwolfe]
[In no particular order]
She really was a trooper, and Justus had to allow that Constance was all right! Not that he'd ever had the impression that she was some shrinking violet, overly concerned with frivolities that didn't matter. That said, he'd make sure she had a new dress after this...it wasn't as if he had anything to spend his pay on anyway, and her torn skirts were his fault.
"So, um..." Justus really had no idea what to do, except that he had to get the mama to back off some so it was safe to approach the calf. "SHOO!" he shouted, waving his arms at the mama moose might back off. She looked at them from across the stream and snorted, but actually did trot off to the tree line, where she stopped to watch.
The action also frightened the little calf, who struggled to clamber up the bank to no avail.
"I'm gonna go give him a boost," he told Constance, then waded into the water. Being snow melt, it was cold, but it only came up to his mid-shins, so it wasn't hard to ford. "Watch Mama, let me know if she looks like she's gonna charge."
Approaching cautiously, he muttered, "It's okay, little Mortimer, I'm just gonna help." The baby bellowed and struggled, and that was when it became apparent that he was somehow stuck. Frowning, Justus got closer and ran his hands down the calf's hind legs, avoiding any blows from its swinging head.
"His leg is stuck!" he called back to Constance. "I need ta move th' rock, but it's too heavy!"
Shintaro didn't know much about the term kismet but he did know karma as that was something he learned about. There were many things in life one couldn't control but the main thing every person could control was their own actions. As far as he was concerned, seeing Boyd dead even if it wasn't by his own hand, satisfied his vow to avenge his wife's murder. As he didn't have to break his other vow he swore to his wife made it all the more honourable.
Nodding to indicate he did remember what happened earlier when the young woman ran out of the house, Shintaro remained silent so he could listen to the rest of what she had to say. At the description of the 'lady' she claimed to have seen, he made a sound of wonder. Even though the description could fit any Japanese woman prepared for traditional ceremonies he knew this young girl had seen the spirit of his wife. Bowing once he then clapped his hands twice and gave a silent prayer, thanking the spirit of his wife for revealing herself to this young woman so she could tell him what she saw.
"I do not think you are nutty, quite the contrary," Shintaro responded after finishing his brief prayer. "What you have told me has removed a heavy weight from my heart and filled me with inner peace."
"A knife? What if we run into Indians?" Constance was shocked he was so confident.........errr, maybe foolish? Not that this issue was Indians but the danger could still lurk about, who knew where Indians were until they came after you.
Justus told her to stay close, she intended to. Well, he was right about one thing just before, the brambles, branches were problems and she got caught up in them with her long dress several times. Once the dress ripped even, she'd just have to fix it when they got back. She also got some scratches on her arms, even wearing long sleeves.
"Wish I had my chaps," he commented, reaching to help her over a log, "wouldn't tear up my britches so much!"
"Yes, this is worse than I had imagined," she agreed, no wonder the West was often called a wilderness.
"We're gettin' closer." Along with the back and forth bellowing between baby and mama, they could now hear the trickling of a stream, and after a moment, the landscape opened a bit, revealing the problem...
Constance was shocked, the baby had fallen into the water and was struggling to get out. Mama was upset but had no way to rescue her calf.
"Oh my! We have to help them. The poor thing!" she was not ready to stand there and watch that young animal drown.
"We can do it!" Constance meant it too, even if she had to jump in, she was willing.
"From Tennessee?! Golly, that's quite a space! Well, pleased to meet you, Josh. I assume that's short for Joshua, like in the bible? Hmmm, Joshua Chappel, has quite the ring to it doesn't it?" Jane nodded
Josh puffed up real proud when Jane went on about him being from Tennessee and his name sounding nice! He smiled wide at the mention of it and just shrugged his shoulders not really sure what to say. "yea, that's right....right outta the Bible and I was named after my Uncle too 'cause he died in the war."
Then Jane went on to start talking about a ghost named Clemmy. He was so confused. His brow furrowed and he tilted his head like a little puppy. He was getting ready to ask Jane if she could really see the ghost there when she got quiet, looking to her side like something was really there! Josh's eyes got wider by the second. Then Jane told her that Clemmy liked him and at that point his mouth dropped open. He was younger than all of 'em there, so he really thought it to be true!
Weedy took a second to explain to him who Clemmy was - her sister that had died - then Weedy said that Mrs. Jemima told him that he could talk to his Ma since Weedy's Ma had died too. He thought he had met Mrs. Jemima one time before but that was way back when they first came to town. He was going to have to find Mrs. Jemima and ask her if he could talk to his Ma too! His heart was beating really fast - he was so excited. "Can we go talk to Mrs. Jemima after school?" He asked his cousin ready to go and find her now if he could, but he didn't want to get in trouble for skipping school on his first day.
He looked at Jane. "She's really there? She really answered you?" He had never even considered that there were ghost around and that he could talk to them!