“It is. I’m quite content.” She beamed a smile.
“Now, where are your mother and brother?”
Susanna could tell her father hadn’t broken the news of their living elsewhere. She looked to her father, who was quick to look away.
“Mother is no doubt at home in the little adobe house I arranged for them,” Susanna said. “Gary, however, is working for the railroad. He wanted to try his hand at manual labor.”
Her uncle’s scowl was deep. “You aren’t living here at the hotel, Herbert?”
Susanna’s father shrugged. “Gladys couldn’t abide it here. She was a nervous wreck. Susanna found us a little house only a few blocks away, and she manages much better there.”
“That wasn’t our arrangement. Someone must be on the premises at all times.”
“There is someone,” Father hurried to explain. “I come every dawn and stay until evening, except for mealtimes. Susanna is here all evening and night.”
“She lives here alone? That is hardly appropriate. You and your wife were to live here, not your daughter.”
“Yes, well, perhaps you can take that up with Gladys over lunch.”
Uncle Harrison merely rolled his eyes and then fixed his gaze on Susanna. “What about that brother of yours? Can he stay here with you? I don’t want you living here alone. This town has a reputation of being a bustling place with a lot of strangers. You need to be protected.”
“I’m sure Gary might consider it. We can ask him,” Susanna assured him. She couldn’t imagine why Gary would care.
“Let me see the books,” her uncle demanded. “May we use the living quarters, Susanna?”
“Of course.” She led the way and opened the door to her rooms.
They were exactly as Uncle Harrison had them built. Susanna hadn’t added any personal items to make them her own. She wasn’t sure how long she’d stay or if her family would find it necessary for whatever reason to take back the rooms. In fact, her entire world still felt as if it were turned upside down, and no place felt like home.
Her uncle and father took a seat at the small table while Susanna fetched them coffee. Father had the books open and was showing her uncle the records and then comparing those numbers with the bank deposits. Susanna herself had double-checked his entries and knew they were right, so she had no concerns that her father might have failed in this area.
“Good,” Uncle Harrison declared. “I’m glad to see we’ve had a few walk-ins from the train. Some will want the convenience of the Harvey House, and that is perfectly fine. I believe that, while we are competition for them, they have their purpose and place as well. Some people will prefer to be away from the tracks.” He looked back and forth across the ledger as if searching for something. “Where’s the accounting of expenses in the day-to-day running of the place? Laundry, for example.”
“Susanna does the laundry.”
“That’s not what I told you to do, Herbert. There’s a good Mexican laundry in town. They’ll pick up whatever you have to be done and deliver it the next day.”
“But just look at the money we’ve saved.” Susanna’s father looked proud.
“And have you given that money to Susanna?”
Her father’s look changed to indignant. “Of course not. I need that money for our living expenses.”
“You aren’t entitled to that money. I set a salary, and I set expenses.”
“I have a friend who is happy to continue helping with laundry at the house,” Susanna offered. “Perhaps I can simply pay her.”
“Do you have receipts for laundry items you’ve been forced to purchase?” her uncle asked.
“I’m sorry, I never thought about it,” Susanna said with a shrug.
“Herbert, from now on you will pay this friend of Susanna’s to do the laundry. Susanna has enough on her plate in cleaning the rooms and wash areas. How ridiculous that you and Gladys can’t even do that much.”
“I’ve had a representative from the railroad ask me about signing an arrangement for them to use our empty rooms for visiting workers,” Susanna’s father said, quickly changing the subject.
Uncle Harrison frowned. “Laborers?”
“I believe they were speaking of clerical headquarter workers, Uncle.” Susanna brought the cream and sugar, along with spoons. “They have offices here, as you know.”
“Well, clerical officials would be acceptable, but not laborers. We can’t have them staining the sheets and tearing up the furniture with their rowdy ways. I’ve not yet seen laborers who didn’t imbibe alcohol, and once drunk, they present quite the problem.” Uncle Harrison frowned all the more. “Which is another reason you shouldn’t be left alone here at the hotel, Susanna.” He looked at his brother. “You and your wife should live here.”
“But we can’t. Gladys would be ill all the time.”
“Your wife feigns illness every time her mood changes. The two of you must open your eyes to the truth, Herbert.”
Susanna saw a glint of anger in her father’s eyes. “None of this would be happening if not for you. You could easily make this go away.”
Uncle Harrison had his coffee cup midway to his lips and stopped. “You honestly blame me, don’t you?”
Susanna hated to see the brothers fight. She hated fighting of any kind, but what could she do or say to change the situation? Her father was being unreasonable, and his older brother had done nothing but attempt to help him see his erring ways.
“If you had released funds to me, I wouldn’t have lost my home,” Father insisted.
Her uncle put his cup on the table. “You lost your home because you took a gamble we all warned you not to take. We told you that the investment wasn’t sound. We warned you we had explored it and found it to be less than reliable. I begged you to hear reason, and you know this full well.”
“You were never one to take big chances,” Susanna’s father countered. “How was I to know this wasn’t just one of those times when you were being overly conservative?”
“Herbert, all of your adult life you have been unwilling to listen to counsel from others who know more than you.” He fixed Susanna’s father with a sad look. “Our father knew a day just like this would come. He hoped you would learn early in life that money management required so much more than risk-taking, but you’ve been unwilling to learn anything from me. I’m afraid that even giving you this opportunity was a mistake.”
“I think the summer heat is making us testy,” Susanna interjected. “We should walk over to the house. It’s much cooler there. The adobe keeps the temperatures much nicer, Uncle. You probably should have built the hotel of adobe.” She smiled, hoping he would be willing to end the confrontation. “Besides, it will soon be time for lunch.”
“Yes, well, I suppose we can do that,” her uncle said. He still studied his younger brother with undisguised disappointment.
“I’ll let Gladys know you’re coming,” her father said, getting to his feet. “I’ll send the Garcia boy over to watch the desk, Susanna.”
She looked at Uncle Harrison, who was scowling. She hadn’t had a chance to explain to her uncle about Father bringing in a boy to watch over things during mealtimes. She wondered how he would take the news.