Page 2 of The Gold Rush Bride
Inside the cab, she tried to figure out what to do. She knew she had some money, but not enough to live on for more than a couple of months. She’d have to find a job, or perhaps...her mind ran over all the possibilities. Yes. Why couldn’t she?
The next morning, Sadie returned to see Mr. Murphy.
“Back so soon?” asked the old man. “Couldn’t resist my charms?” He chuckled. But he flashed a warm smile and pointed to the chair in front of his desk.
She sat and faced Mr. Murphy. “Yes, I want to sell the house and anything else father might have left. Everything.”
The man’s silver brows came together in a deep vee between his eyes. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure, sir. I want to go to the Klondike and work my father’s claim. I really don’t have any choice...given my lack of an occupation.”
If his jaw had dropped any farther, it would have landed on the desk. “You can’t go work the claim. You’re a woman.”
She huffed a breath. “What has that got to do with anything?”
“Everything. You can’t just go off to the Klondike. It’s dangerous for men, much less a woman.” He shoved an arm in the air. “Your father was killed there, for goodness’ sake.”
Sadie let out a deep breath that ended on a sigh. “Mr. Murphy. There is nothing for me in St. Louis. I have no relatives or even close friends to keep me here. For goodness gracious, I don’t even have a pet. Please do as I say and sell everything.”
With his mouth in a grim, flat line, he nodded. “As you wish. If you really want to sell, I will buy the house which is your only asset. Your father sold the bonds he had to go on his fool’s errand.” He pulled a folder from the credenza behind him. “According to my last estimate of the values of your personal investments and the house, your worth is about $2,000.
“The rest of the money is from your grandmother’s investments, so that amount could change. It would be challenging for you to survive in that house for over six to eight months with only the investment income, regardless of how frugal you are. However, in that time, you could find someone you want to marry and have children with. Why would you want to risk your life in a wild place like the Klondike?”
“Because I have nothing here. I want to actually live life, not just exist. I can’t do that without money. And since I haven’t found anyone to marry in twenty-seven-years, it’s highly doubtful I’ll find anyone in six-months.”I don’t count my engagement to Richard. He left me for someone with more money. I just count myself lucky to have found out what men were like before it was too late. “I have no choice but to go work Daddy’s claim. I have no other skills. Besides, I want to do something with my life. Maybe I’ll find what I’m looking for. Who knows, maybe the man I’m to marry is there. I’ll never know if I don’t go.”
Mr. Murphy sagged in his chair, took a breath, and then sighed. “Very well. I’ll see you have your money as soon as possible. You may remain in your house until you leave. Do you know when that is?”
She shook her head. “I have to read up on what I’ll need and then purchase what I can here and the rest when I reach Seattle. I estimate I’ll need another month, perhaps less, to accomplish this.”
He nodded. “Are you sure I can’t talk you out of this, this...fool’s errand?”
Sadie smiled at the elderly man. “I’m sure. Thank you for making this as easy on me as possible.”
“Of course, m’dear. Your father was my best friend and had been for years. He would first chastise me for letting you go and then would want me to help you in any way I can. Please let me know if I can do anything to aid you.”
She rose and extended a hand. “I will. Thank you again.” Sadie turned and left with a smile that hadn’t been there when she went in.”Klondike, here I come.
She stopped at the bookstore and found a book calledThe Klondike Official Guideby William Ogilvie. In it, she found lists of things she would need to survive in the Klondike. Canada was not letting people cross their border without a year’s worth of supplies or the money to purchase them. This little book was all she needed. She’d buy her clothes here and whatever else she could readily carry. She wasn’t getting a tent, or anything like that, because she would live in her father’s. She had enough money to purchase food in Seattle or Skagway. But most likely in Seattle because it would be cheaper, and she was more likely to get what she wanted.
The closer she got to leaving, the more she missed her father, and she knew that feeling would never go away.
She’d take the train to Seattle and a steamer to Skagway. Then she would travel over the mountains to Dawson City. That would be the hardest part of the trip. She heard many stories about the men who couldn’t make it over the mountain passes and died along the way.
Would that be her fate? To chase a dream and then die before she achieved it? Like her father?
* * *
March1898
Sadie knewshe was exceptionally lucky. She could pay to take the new tram over Chilkoot Pass rather than be in the throng of people below her that were having to hike over it. She’d purchased the one-way ticket for her, her horse, Lucky, and the large sled he pulled with all of her goods for a year on it.
She was in awe of the snow-covered mountain peaks rising above as the tram climbed against a stunning blue sky. She placed a hand over her heart. The sight completely and utterly took her breath away.
After the tram ride, she had to ride down the river in one of the many boats going to Dawson City in the Canadian Territory. She’d had to pass a checkpoint where they examined her sled to determine if she had the requisite amount of supplies for a year before she could board the ferry at Lake Bennett. The gold fields were in Canadian Territory, and they were very thorough. They didn’t want anyone starving to death.
The boat from Lake Bennett took them down the river through lakes, past forests so thick with trees like maple and pine, you couldn’t see into them. She saw one particularly large animal standing in the shallows of one of the smaller lakes. It had an enormous set of antlers.
One boatman came by her.
