Chapter Nine
On the first of April she went to meet Mourning Free under the old covered
bridge and handed him two five dollar coins.
“Safest thing would be to keep one in each boot,” she said. “So no matter
what, you’ve always got some money. And you’d best collect any wages owing
to you. I’d say we’re ready to go.”
Two weeks later, in the middle of May 1841, Mourning drove a wagon up Maple
Street to collect Olivia’s wicker baskets. She’d waited until her brothers left for
the store and Mrs. Hardaway was back in the kitchen humming. Then she’d
dragged them down the front stairs, one at a time. They were heavy and made a
loud thump on each step, but Mrs. Hardaway’s hearing was bad. Despite
misgivings, Olivia did as Mourning had told her – set the baskets on the other side of the front hedge, hidden from the house but in plain sight of the nosy neighbors across the street. Olivia thought she should try to conceal them in the
bushes. Mourning snorted his disapproval of that idea.
“You Killions got neighbor ladies what see what kind a spiders you got on
your porch. Best way to get them ladies interested in something is try and hide it.
They ain’t gonna think nothin’ of me picking up some junk in front of your house. All the folks in this town think they doin’ me a giganteous favor, lettin’
me haul away the things they got no use for. Anyways,” he said, “soon enough
all them ladies gonna know – Olivia Killion gone and run off. But they ain’t gonna think it was with me, just ’cause I pick up your things. You only done what any of them would. Who else you gonna get to carry for you?”
The next morning Olivia woke early, her mind blank. She felt exhausted, but
was no longer tormented by anxiety. Things were either going to go as planned
or they weren’t and there was not another thing she could do about it. She didn’t
feel excited or scared, only impatient for the time to pass, to be on that stage and
on her way out of Five Rocks. She had convinced herself not to worry about being seen. So what if someone saw her? What were they going to do? All
Olivia had to do was act natural and make up some relatives she was going to visit. Anyway, Avis and Tobey would know soon enough that she was gone.
When the clock struck five, Olivia got out of bed and crept down to use the
outhouse before encumbering herself in the traveling clothes she had set out on
the hardback chair. She splashed water on her hands and face before putting on
her new Sunday dress of soft dark gray and the black velvet bolero jacket that went over it. To save room in the baskets she had reluctantly encased herself in a
corset and stepped into six petticoats. She stood in front of the mirror admiring how grown-up she looked and tucked her hair into a white day cap.
Then she reached under her cumbersome skirts to tie her homemade money
belt around her waist, thinking that if men had to flounce around wearing these
stupid petticoats, not much would get done in this world. The belt was heavy, but
the solid weight of the gold coins was more of a comfort than a burden. Last, she
pulled the Hawken rifle from under her bed. It was too long to fit in the baskets,
even on the diagonal. She slung it over her shoulder and then arranged her long
black cloak around it.
She made the bed, smoothed the pink and white quilted cover, and looked
around the room. All the surfaces were clear, except for the pitcher, basin, and hand towel on the dresser. She removed the note she had written from the dresser
drawer and placed it on the bed. Then she reconsidered and tucked it under the
pillow, not wanting to risk anyone finding it before she was safely on her way.
