Page 34 - Homestead By Ann Newhouse

would take us two days to reach our destination, with a one-night stopover and two days to return. I was looking forward to being with male company and earning a few dollars, as I had been asked to move out of the medical hall on my return. There was an empty cabin I hoped to rent from John. Sofie had been very distant with me and I had a feeling her father had a hand in it. I intended to make it my business to speak to her on my return.
John saw us off. We sat on horseback in front of the big house and waited for him to check everything out with Tom. It seems he had to give his stamp of approval, showing everyone who was the boss. Sofie surprised me, standing on the steps of the medical hall to wave us off. She caught my eye and smiled. “That’s a first,” Josh exclaimed giving me a curious look. I pretended not to hear his comment.
I found my first week of work very challenging. I ached all over and felt I needed some tender loving care, after riding non-stop for hours. The team made me feel one of them from the start and I particularly hit it off with Mitch. He explained how he felt hemmed in, living in the Homestead under John’s strict rules. He said he wouldn’t leave against Mr.Tirrell’s wishes, knowing it would mean trouble for his mother as she depended on Mr. Tirrell’s kindness, and he wouldn’t take kindly to Mitch going against him. He was only a baby when his mother had come to the Homestead, so he hadn’t known anything else. He believed Mr. Tirrell had something on his mother, not sure what, but he intended to find out. Some secret from long ago, perhaps. I had mentioned it to Josh, but it was obvious that he still feared his Father.
Mitch and I had spent a bit more time together, when we got away from the rest of the team on the drive. We had reached our destination and were staying near a small town. The older men went for a few drinks. Josh had joined them, while Mitch and I went to play pool. I suggested that he, perhaps, shouldn’t pursue his suspicions yet, but to leave it with me.
This gave me food for thought as I lay in my bed. I tried to picture the document I had in my rucksack, as I was almost sure Mitch’s parent’s name was on them. Why, I didn’t know? As far as I could recall, his Mother’s first name was Margarete. Margarete O’Neilson. Josh kept his distance from Mitch, and I believed John Tirrell had warned his son to stay clear of him, as he saw him as trouble. Now I wondered if there was more to John Tirrell’s warning.? I would have to study the document in more detail, when I returned to the Homestead, in a couple of days.
Sofie had left me a message to meet her at the restaurant for dinner, the day we returned. I showered vigorously as the dust of the desert was in every crevice of my body, after the long trek