smiled and shook his head.
"I also gathered from the sadness in your eyes that these treasures are not within easy reach," Andy said. "Are they?"
Kevin laughed.
"I don't know if I should answer that. You're a reporter."
"I'm a reporter out there. In here, I'm just a regular Joe in search of a laugh or a song or maybe someone to punch."
Kevin chuckled. He liked his new acquaintance but wasn't quite sure what to make of him. Like many miners in Wallace, Andy O'Connell spoke in the colorful brogue of the Emerald Isle. He was at best a generation removed from Ellis Island, but he was no downtrodden immigrant yearning to breathe free. Polished and immaculately dressed, he looked more like a lawyer than a laborer. He was probably someone to know.
"OK. If you must know, both of the 'treasures' are close. I have one in a safe place, and I'm still looking for the other."
"Do you mind if I ask which is which?"
Kevin laughed. He could see that Andy had not checked his investigative mind at the door.
"I'm still looking for the woman."
"I figured as much. So tell me, Kevin, what brings you to Wallace? I know nearly every soul in this town, but I haven't seen the likes of you until today."
"That's because I've been here only three days. I came here to find work."
"What do you want to do?"
"I want to teach. I want to teach in a public school and heard there was a need for educators in the Bitterroots," Kevin said. "I graduated eight weeks ago from the university in Seattle. When I couldn't find a job in Washington, I packed a suitcase and hopped on a train."
"Schools don't hire until the spring and summer. Surely, you know that. Why would you come to a place like this in the middle of winter?"
"I wanted to get a jump on the competition and meet the administrators before they sent out their calls. I also wanted to see the schools during the school year and assess the communities. I don't know a whole lot about this area."
"There's not much to know," Andy said with a cynical laugh. "The mountains around us contain silver, Kevin, lots of it. Men, dirty men, pull that silver from the ground. They spend their meager pay in saloons and whorehouses, marry if they can, and die when they must. Those who make the money are the merchants and the traders. They own the houses on the hill and the properties on the river. The sooner you understand that, the sooner you'll fit in."
"Wallace sounds like a lot of other towns."
Andy smiled.
"I suppose it is. There's enough here to keep a poor man happy and a rich man rich. You could do worse than Wallace. It depends on what you're looking for."
"I'm looking for a woman, remember?"
"Ah, yes. Does your woman have a name?"
"She does, but I think I'll keep that to myself for now."
Andy brought a hand to his chin and looked at Kevin closely.
"How long are you planning to stay in town?"
"I'll be here another week, maybe longer. I haven't decided."
"Do you have a place to stay?"
"I've got a room at the Panhandle Hotel. I'm paying day-to-day."
"You're probably paying too much too. Let me see if I can't find you something better."
"I don't know what you mean."
"There's a rich widow on King Street who rents rooms to young men who capture her fancy. She's a bit odd at times, but she's fair and generous. She'd love a lad like you."
Kevin chuckled.
"Let me guess. You've already captured her fancy."
Andy beamed.
"I've had the big room for a year now. Maude's the best landlord in town."
Kevin pondered his living situation as he finished his drink. He didn't want to spend another night at the Panhandle and put up with its hallway noise and bedbug bites. Nor did he want to impose on the Johnsons, who had offered him a room on Monday when they learned he'd be staying in Wallace through the twenty-third. He took a final gulp and set his glass aside.
"I may just have to investigate. Where do I find this Maude?"
"Right now she's sitting at a table in the Placer Room, probably nursing a glass of
"I also gathered from the sadness in your eyes that these treasures are not within easy reach," Andy said. "Are they?"
Kevin laughed.
"I don't know if I should answer that. You're a reporter."
"I'm a reporter out there. In here, I'm just a regular Joe in search of a laugh or a song or maybe someone to punch."
Kevin chuckled. He liked his new acquaintance but wasn't quite sure what to make of him. Like many miners in Wallace, Andy O'Connell spoke in the colorful brogue of the Emerald Isle. He was at best a generation removed from Ellis Island, but he was no downtrodden immigrant yearning to breathe free. Polished and immaculately dressed, he looked more like a lawyer than a laborer. He was probably someone to know.
"OK. If you must know, both of the 'treasures' are close. I have one in a safe place, and I'm still looking for the other."
"Do you mind if I ask which is which?"
Kevin laughed. He could see that Andy had not checked his investigative mind at the door.
"I'm still looking for the woman."
"I figured as much. So tell me, Kevin, what brings you to Wallace? I know nearly every soul in this town, but I haven't seen the likes of you until today."
"That's because I've been here only three days. I came here to find work."
"What do you want to do?"
"I want to teach. I want to teach in a public school and heard there was a need for educators in the Bitterroots," Kevin said. "I graduated eight weeks ago from the university in Seattle. When I couldn't find a job in Washington, I packed a suitcase and hopped on a train."
"Schools don't hire until the spring and summer. Surely, you know that. Why would you come to a place like this in the middle of winter?"
"I wanted to get a jump on the competition and meet the administrators before they sent out their calls. I also wanted to see the schools during the school year and assess the communities. I don't know a whole lot about this area."
"There's not much to know," Andy said with a cynical laugh. "The mountains around us contain silver, Kevin, lots of it. Men, dirty men, pull that silver from the ground. They spend their meager pay in saloons and whorehouses, marry if they can, and die when they must. Those who make the money are the merchants and the traders. They own the houses on the hill and the properties on the river. The sooner you understand that, the sooner you'll fit in."
"Wallace sounds like a lot of other towns."
Andy smiled.
"I suppose it is. There's enough here to keep a poor man happy and a rich man rich. You could do worse than Wallace. It depends on what you're looking for."
"I'm looking for a woman, remember?"
"Ah, yes. Does your woman have a name?"
"She does, but I think I'll keep that to myself for now."
Andy brought a hand to his chin and looked at Kevin closely.
"How long are you planning to stay in town?"
"I'll be here another week, maybe longer. I haven't decided."
"Do you have a place to stay?"
"I've got a room at the Panhandle Hotel. I'm paying day-to-day."
"You're probably paying too much too. Let me see if I can't find you something better."
"I don't know what you mean."
"There's a rich widow on King Street who rents rooms to young men who capture her fancy. She's a bit odd at times, but she's fair and generous. She'd love a lad like you."
Kevin chuckled.
"Let me guess. You've already captured her fancy."
Andy beamed.
"I've had the big room for a year now. Maude's the best landlord in town."
Kevin pondered his living situation as he finished his drink. He didn't want to spend another night at the Panhandle and put up with its hallway noise and bedbug bites. Nor did he want to impose on the Johnsons, who had offered him a room on Monday when they learned he'd be staying in Wallace through the twenty-third. He took a final gulp and set his glass aside.
"I may just have to investigate. Where do I find this Maude?"
"Right now she's sitting at a table in the Placer Room, probably nursing a glass of
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