“How long will the delay be?” Langdon demands.
“No telling, sir. The hotel across the street has openings. I’d hurry though, they tend to fill up fast.”
“Great!” Langdon grumbles and stomps away. “Another expense I didn’t need.” Later in his tiny room, he sips on the soothing drops, also known as morphine and smiles. He sits thinking of his bride to be. The cough syrup is useful for sedation, though it took some experimenting to get the correct dosage. The soothing drops will make her sleepy, relaxed, and compliant. The other will knock her out completely.
“Soon, Aiylin, we will be together.”
Chapter 8
Nazareth
Aiylin steps from the train and shivers. It has gotten much colder. She can see her breath and heavy clouds are hanging in the sky. As she walks towards the luggage being unloaded, she spots her guitar case and picks up speed.
“That’s mine,” she insists and grabs it before anyone else can. She ignores the strange looks, thankful that she removed the ridiculous hat.
“Can I help you miss?” a young voice asks. Aiylin is surprised when a boy of ten offers to assist her.
“Oh, yes, please. Those two bags,” she points to the bags with A.M. monogrammed on the side. “I could take your guitar for you,” he suggests eyeing her case.
“No one touches this, but me,” she quips. “Follow me, please.”
“Yes, Ma’am,” he grabs her bags and follows her through the station.
Aiylin stops when she notices an older gentleman holding a sign with her name on it. “I’m Miss Miller.”
“Wonderful. Is this all you have, Miss Miller?” he asks, gesturing to her guitar case.
“Oh no, this nice young man,” she turns to introduce the boy, but he’s gone. “No!” she gasps. “He was right behind me!”
“My name’s Stanley, Miss Miller. I work for the Becker family. I’m sorry to say that you’ve been swindled. Don’t worry, we will take care of you.”
“But my clothes!” She spins around looking for any sign of the boy.
“Welcome to Nazareth,” Stanley chuckles. “I will report it to the Sheriff’s office for you, Miss Miller. While I’m doing that you could make a stop at our general store for the necessaries. We will pay for anything you’ve lost.”
“That’s very kind of you, but I shouldn’t have been so gullible,” she frowns. “Thank goodness he didn’t get my guitar.”
“That's an excellent attitude. It’s just clothes. Thankfully, you weren’t hurt.” Stanley guides her deftly through the station and outside to a covered carriage. “We need to hurry,” he glances up at the cloudy sky, “it looks like snow.”
“Snow?” She glances up and notices the thick layer of snow clouds. “Perhaps I should stay in town,” she murmurs, but Stanley is insistent.
“No ma’am, Miss Miller. Snow doesn’t stop the people of Nazareth from going to a party. You’re expected.”
“Wonderful,” Aiylin says and allows him to lift her guitar case into the back. “It needs to stay dry,” she chews her lip in worry.
“Yes, Ma’am.” He covers it with a tarp to hide it from view and snaps the reins to guide them down the street. “I’ll pick up a second tarp inside to make sure.”
“Thank you. It was my Grandfathers.”
“An heirloom. Do you take it everywhere you go?”
“No,” she laughs. “I’m planning on staying in town for a few days, and I needed it with me.”
“I see. Well, Nazareth is small, but you should find everything you need. We have a large Christmas market coming up, with a tree lighting in the main square,” Stanley says.
“That sounds lovely,” she replies, glancing around. It is a charming town with beautiful Victorian homes. Stanley points out that Main street has a bakery, a post office, a church, and a general mill. The Nazareth hotel is at the end of the road, and Aiylin makes sure to remember where it is.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I will leave you at the general store, I have an order to pick up around back. I will visit the Sheriff and hurry back.”
“Not a problem. I will pick up what I need to replace my stolen goods. I shouldn’t be long.” Aiylin jumps down and turns back to him. “Don’t let anyone steal my guitar, please.” She wrings her hands and looks as if she’s about to change her mind.
“I promise to guard it well,” Stanley insists.
Aiylin nods and hurries inside thankful that she travels with her money inside her corset. She is quick to tell the clerk her predicament. The young girl grabs a carpet bag and begins to fill it with necessities.
“I’m only in town for three days. I won’t need much, though I will need a dress to wear to a party tonight. Do you have anything?”
“Of course! You must be talking about the Becker’s party! Everyone is talking about it. My name is Tasha Layton.”
Aiylin smiles at the nice young woman with dark hair. “We had designers from out of state send in sample dresses. Follow me.”
“I thought it was going to be a small party,” Aiylin asks.
Tasha grins, “Any chance to dress up and dance, and people will show up.” Aiylin finds that she’s excited about a party. How fun to show up and not have any preconceived notions about her or her family. No one knows her. She can just relax and enjoy a Christmas party. Music, food, and dancing. Tasha digs in the rack and comes out with a dress.
“This one?” Tasha asks, and Aiylin gasps.
“It’s lovely,” she murmurs and runs a hand over the midnight blue satin dress. It is simple with a bustled skirt and long sleeves. The tightly corseted
