“And if not, we’ll just be a few feet away.” Susanna picked up her case again and walked through the open door to the private quarters.
Gary was finishing some toast and ham. “I see you made it back,” he said, then continued to eat.
“Yes. You look well-rested.”
Gary swallowed as he shrugged. “I spent the night at the house so Father could tend the hotel last night. I came home for breakfast because there’s nothing decent to eat over there.” He picked up his toast. “Did you enjoy yourself?”
“I did.” Susanna deposited the case once again and came to the table. She grabbed a clean coffee mug and poured herself a cup before sitting down across from her brother. “Life at the Mendoza ranch is different from anything I’ve ever known. Their concept of family is working together. They have the most amazing meals, with the women all cooking to create them, and then everyone eats and talks and laughs. After supper there was music. Lia’s family is quite musical. Several play violin and guitar. It was really wonderful to be part of a family who loves each other so much.”
She glanced up to see her father in the doorway. He looked so sad for a moment that she wished she’d said nothing. She decided not to make a big deal of it.
“Lia’s uncle makes the most amazing tiles from clay,” she continued. “It’s a huge process, and Lia’s son John is quite an artist. He can paint intricate designs on the tiles, sometimes from templates and sometimes freehand. I think he’ll go far. Emilio, on the other hand, loves horses and plans to move to the ranch when he’s finished with school so he can learn everything about having his own ranch. They have sheep too, but they were in a far pasture, and I didn’t see them.”
“It sounds like you had a good time,” her father said, taking a seat at the table beside her.
“I did. It was good to get away. How did things go here? Uncle Harrison was in a very good mood when I met him at the station.”
Gary tossed down the rest of his coffee and got to his feet. “I’m going to be late if I don’t get a move on.”
“Have a great day. Do you have a lunch?” Susanna asked.
“No.” He stopped and turned around, a look of frustration on his face.
She smiled. “I’ll bring you one.”
Relief washed over him. “Thanks, sis.”
He made a dash for the door and was gone. Susanna chuckled. He’d never called her sis before. It touched her in a way nothing else could have.
She glanced at her father, still feeling guilty for the happiness she’d felt with Lia’s family. “So, you wanted to discuss something?”
“Yes.” He picked up Gary’s coffee cup and refilled it with coffee. After a long sip, he put the cup down and drew a deep breath. “I have a confession to make to you.”
“All right.” She tried not to sound too eager.
“I stole that money from you when it looked like someone had broken in. I was desperate for money.” He paused and fixed her with a gaze she couldn’t quite read. Was it remorse? “I also set the fire and stole the hotel money.”
Her eyes widened, and she hurried to take a drink of coffee to keep from blurting out something she might regret. It had taken a lot of courage for her father to make this confession, and she didn’t want to ruin it by saying the wrong thing.
The hot liquid calmed her a bit. She set the cup down and nodded. “Did you tell this to Uncle Harrison?”
“No. But I will. I think Gary knew, and I’m sorry to have burdened him with that knowledge. I’ll apologize to him. But I felt like I owed it to you first.”
“Why?”
“Because that wasn’t all I did. Well, it wasn’t all that I considered doing.”
Susanna shook her head. “I don’t think I understand.”
“I was in a card game last night, and I nearly wagered the house.”
She blinked. “My house?
He glanced downward, then back up to meet her gaze. “Yes. I was like a man possessed. Just like when I put our Topeka house in jeopardy. It’s like a sickness, I suppose. I am determined, however, to beat it. If Gary hadn’t been there, I’m not sure I could have stepped away, but I did. Because of it, I see myself in a new light, recognizing the horrible things I’ve done.”
“I have to say, I’m not completely surprised.”
“Oh, I’m sure you aren’t. I think you’ve always figured me for the fire. I honestly hoped the place would burn to the ground and free your mother and me from this prison. I don’t know what Harrison will say when I tell him. I’m hoping a few months of proving myself will soften the blow.”
“He’s gone to El Paso and will back through here in a few weeks. Maybe you can show him how much you’ve grown. Of course, he probably won’t believe it unless you and Mother both are living here at the hotel.”
“I know. That’s my next step. I have to break this news to her and get her to understand that she must live here and help me.”
“I can still help with the hotel,” Susanna promised. “I don’t mind.”
“I know you don’t, but the truth is that my brother is cutting our pay because your mother isn’t doing her part. We barely made it on what he gave us as it was. If your mother is doing her part, then perhaps he’ll give me back the full stipend.” He got to his feet. “I’m heading over to tell your mother now. I hope you’ll pray for me.”
“Of course. I’ll also take care of things here while you’re gone.”
“The guests who are here won’t require any cleaning, and of course we don’t change their beds unless they’re here longer than a week. So you should be able to take it easy.”
Susanna nodded. That was the one concession she could allow. If the same guests were to have the same room for a few nights, there was no need to change the sheets. “I’ll be praying, then. I can give my full attention to it.”
Herbert made his way home, anxious to speak to his wife while at the same time dreading it. Gladys would never understand, nor would she ever agree to do her part. He knew her mind would be completely set against it—and him—as she always was. No matter how much Susanna prayed, it would take an outright miracle to get Gladys to change from the spoiled woman she was.
He entered the house and was greeted by nothing but silence. They’d not been able to hire anyone to cook and clean for them in the short time Lia was gone, so they’d mostly been eating cold foods or getting their meals at the Harvey House.
The clock on the wall chimed seven. His wife was used to sleeping until ten and then taking her tea and breakfast. Sometimes in bed, when things were particularly difficult. Herbert knew that waking her to tell her how things had changed would not bode well, but he had no choice. He needed to get back to the hotel soon, and no matter when he told her, she wasn’t going to like the news.
“Gladys?”
He found her still sleeping. For a moment he stared down at her, trying to remember a reason, any reason, they were still together. It certainly wasn’t love—at least not the kind of love that promoted happiness. No, he didn’t think it was love at all, but more merely being used to each other. The main thing they had in common was the last twenty-six years. There was little else. But folks didn’t easily divorce. The world didn’t encourage such things.