Searching for Silverheels Read Free

fever, she suffered terribly.”
    â€œDid she die?” the lady said breathlessly.
    â€œNo. But her lovely face was scarred and pitted and her legendary beauty was ruined forever! In shame, she shut herself in her cabin. But the miners loved her so much that they collected five thousand dollars in nuggets and gold dust for her.”
    Frank whistled. “That set her up pretty well for life.”
    â€œIt could have. But when they took it to her cabin to profess their undying love, she had disappeared. They searched the mountains and roads and all the neighboring towns, but found not a trace. So they named the mountain after her, in hopes that wherever she was, she’d know they still loved her and she’d come back.”
    â€œDid she?” asked Frank.
    â€œYears later, a veiled woman appeared in the cemetery, leaving flowers on the graves of the men who had died in the epidemic, but she fled when approached, and to this day, no one knows for sure what became of Silverheels.”
    â€œWhat a sad, romantic story,” said Annie.
    From behind me, Josie snorted again. “It’s a load of cockamamie is what it is,” she said. “Now where’s my order of flapjacks, girl?”
    I ignored her and smiled at the city folks. “If you are interested, I could show you around Buckskin Joe. The old dance hall where she used to dance is still there, and the saloon.” Iglanced at Frank. “And there’s the cemetery, where some say the ghost of Silverheels still walks.”
    â€œWe’ll think about it,” Robert said, before leaning toward me and whispering, “You better get granny her hotcakes before she gets any crazier, don’t you think?”
    I nodded and went back to the kitchen. The hotcakes were ready, and, as no one else seemed to be coming in for breakfast, Mother was rolling out the crusts for pies. I gathered the butter, jam, and syrup for Josie, but I wasn’t quick enough. When I returned to the front she had pounced again. She was standing at the tourists’ table, complaining about women only being remembered if they served men. Which led, of course, to her usual rant about the women’s vote. I couldn’t get a word in edgewise to suggest an excursion to the visitors. Not that they would have listened at that point. They were shoveling their food into their mouths, eager to get away. Without a glance my way, Robert dropped his money on the table, shot Josie a disgusted look, and offered his arm to his wife. She wiped her mouth daintily and rose to her feet. Only Frank met my eye and smiled when I called “have a nice day” after them as they left. Josie snorted and sat down at the old-timers’ table where I had set her hotcakes.
    â€œI don’t see why a woman’s worth has to be measured in her looks,” she said.
    â€œYou wouldn’t, you old boot,” Orv muttered.
    â€œIt wasn’t Silverheels’s looks—it was her kindness,” Russell pointed out.
    Josie snorted again, sounding like an old pack mule. “Ah yes, womanly virtues.”
    â€œAin’t nothin’ wrong with womanly virtues, Josie,” Russell said.
    â€œWell if you ask me,” Josie said loudly, “it’s not much of a story.”
    â€œNo one is asking you, you old crank. The girl likes to tell it and the city folks like to hear it, so let it be,” Harry said as he got stiffly to his feet. “Put it on my tab, Pearl,” he called. The others followed suit and soon the whole crowd had shuffled out into the street, leaving only Josie, frowning as she ate her hotcakes.
    I got my own breakfast and sat down at the counter beside Imogene.
    â€œI told you that city boy was handsome, didn’t I, Pearl?” Imogene said, glancing sidelong again at Willie. He still showed no sign of jealousy.
    He pushed his empty plate back on the counter and got to his feet. “I’m going fishing,” he