Page 4 of Mail Order Mittens (Brides of Alaska #2 | Brides of Beckham #68)

A lmost as soon as they were in their cabin, Maggie and James fell asleep. When Maggie woke it was already light out, and she felt bad that breakfast wasn’t ready for James yet. But then she noticed he was still sleeping as well.

She crept out of bed and searched the tiny kitchen area for something she could cook, but there was nothing. The cupboards were completely bare.

There was a soft rap on the door, and she hurried to see who would be there so early.

She wasn’t at all surprised to see Belle standing there in a thick fur coat with a basket over her arm.

“I realized after you left that you wouldn’t have anything to make for breakfast. I put this together for you.

Don’t forget to come see me so I can take you to the store later. ”

Maggie took the basket that was thrust at her and watched as her friend hurried away, her feet making prints in the frost. She wanted to yell thank you after Belle, but she didn’t want to wake James until she had breakfast ready for him.

She set the basket on the counter and looked through it. There was a bottle of milk with a cork stopper, a dozen eggs, a loaf of bread, sugar, cinnamon, maple syrup, and flour. Belle had even included a ball of butter.

After removing the bag of flour, she found a slab of bacon beneath it. She had choices about what she could make, and though she felt bad for leaning on her friend, she was happy to have something to cook.

She quickly whipped up scrambled eggs and bacon, toasting some of the bread to go along with it. At the same time, she put a pot of coffee on the stove, having found coffee beans to be the only thing in the house besides hardtack and jerky.

She was serving the plates as she heard James stir. She set them both on the table and poured two cups of coffee.

James sat up in bed, rubbing his eyes. “You cooked?” he asked.

“Belle came by with a basket of ingredients to make breakfast with.”

“We could have just had hardtack and jerky,” he said. “You look tired.”

“I am, but I need to adjust to getting up in the mornings to fix you breakfast before you head to work.” She frowned. “What should I make for your lunch?”

“Oh, you don’t need to go to the trouble...”

“I’ll make you a few bacon sandwiches,” she said, refusing to listen to him tell her not to make his lunch. He would be hungry after a morning of chopping trees.

They had a quiet breakfast, and she wondered how to bring up going to the store. “Belle is going to take me to the store today.”

He nodded. “You’ll like Mrs. Johnson.”

“I’m sure I will. Belle seems to think a lot of her.” She bit her lip. “I was thinking of doing what Belle does and baking for the store to sell. Would you mind?”

He frowned. “I suppose I wouldn’t, but don’t wear yourself out. Belle seems to have an endless surplus of energy, but I’m sure she gets very tired.”

“We both worked twelve-hour days regularly. I would get bored if my hands were idle. The cabin is as neat as it can be. I’ll do the dishes, but after that, I won’t need to do anything until supper.”

“I’m sure Belle will have you out hunting and foraging with her. She’s taken to Alaskan life in a wonderful way, making the most of what she can gather from the land.”

“We’ll see what happens. I do think I’ll be doing some sewing for her to trade for food for the winter.”

He frowned. “You don’t have to work for everything. I can provide.” Just barely, but he could. They would make ends meet.

“I won’t do more than I can reasonably do. I don’t want to have nothing to do.”

“I don’t see that being a problem for you.”

After James had left for work with the sandwiches she’d prepared wrapped in oil cloth and in a lunch pail, she quickly did the dishes and bundled up before walking to Belle’s cabin, returning the basket the food had been delivered in.

“Thank you so much for thinking of us for breakfast. James seems to think eating hardtack and jerky is enough for every meal, but I’m a little fussier than that. After eating it the whole way here, I don’t ever want to look at hardtack again.”

Belle smiled. “We had more time to get here, and though we moved quickly, we had time to make our meals. I’m not a picky eater, but I think I would have gone crazy eating only those two things the whole way.

” She talked as she put on her coat, taking a rifle from the wall.

“I’ll show you where to get berries and Eskimo potatoes, and I’ll shoot while you forage.

But first, we’ll go to the store. I’ve done my baking for the day, and I need to take the extra eggs. ”

Maggie took a basket of fresh-baked goods and an empty basket while Belle carried the eggs, had the rifle slung over her shoulder, and carried an empty basket as well.

Maggie could tell Belle had a knife stuck in her boot, and she felt like she was in a different world. Belle seemed so different here. In Massachusetts, her hair had always been in a perfect bun. Here...Her hair was a bit wild. Half down and half up. Belle even looked different!

The walk to the store was a short one, and Maggie was surprised that there were five or six men in the store, obviously waiting for Belle to arrive. They opened the door wide and immediately started asking what Belle had baked.

“Did you make those snickerdoodles I like?” one man asked.

“Any pies in there?” another asked.

“I just want to get one of those loaves of bread!”

Maggie shook her head. Belle was right. They could use another woman baking every day.

Walking to the front of the store, Belle set the egg basket down, and an older plump woman lifted the towel covering the eggs. She counted. “There are fewer than usual today!”

“I shared with Maggie and James. They finally made it to town last night.” Belle nodded toward Maggie. “This is my friend, Maggie. Maggie, this is Katie Johnson, my first Alaskan friend.”

“It’s good to meet you, Maggie. If you bake, think about making some extra for the store. You can see the men standing around waiting to see what I put out to sell.” Katie sighed. “You can wait another minute or two!” she said to a man who looked like he was going to snatch the basket Maggie held.

“I’m happy to meet you as well, Mrs. Johnson. Belle has told me all about you.”

“Call me Katie.” Katie took the basket from Maggie. “Looks like you got your wish, Isaiah. Snickerdoodles.” She took the loaves of bread and cookies from the basket. “I’ll put this on your account,” she said to Belle.

“Thank you.” Belle went to a shelf. “I’m running low on flour again. I guess that’s what happens when you bake for the whole town.”

“I guess so,” Katie said, grinning.

Maggie nodded. “I think I’ll be baking as well. I was worried I’d be competing with Belle, but...”

“Oh, you won’t. Trust me!” Katie said. “Half the men who come in here don’t get to buy any of Belle’s treats. They go home sad and disappointed.”

“Well, we don’t want that! If I bake five loaves of bread per day, and maybe a pie or two, would that be too much?” Maggie asked.

Katie laughed. “You could bake three times that and not make too much.”

“I suppose I need to buy some flour and sugar and...well, I probably need a little of everything.”

Katie pursed her lips. “Since you’ll be baking for the store, why don’t I open credit for you? I’ll do as I do with Belle and let you take what you need, and when your food sells, I’ll take off what you owe. Does that make sense?”

“That would suit me perfectly. I sew. Would there be any point in making items for the store?”

“As long as you make things in men’s sizes, I’m sure I’ll be able to sell them. Flannel shirts are what most men around here wear. Belle’s making socks and mittens. I’d much rather buy from the two of you because then I don’t have to pay the crazy shipping costs, and I can sell for less.”

“I’ll get right on it then. Belle is going to show me where to forage today.”

“But only because Katie showed me where to forage when I first arrived,” Belle responded.

“You girls have fun. And remember, I’ll take anything extra you have. I could use it for the store.”

“I’d love some more of your lingonberry jam,” one of the men who had been listening said.

“I’ll do my best!” Belle responded.

As they left the store, Maggie whispered, “There’s no way we can make enough to keep all the men happy, is there?”

“Not unless we stop taking care of our homes and cooking for our husbands,” Belle replied.

“Well, then I think they’ll have to be satisfied with whatever we can manage.”

“Trust me. They will.”

As they walked, Belle talked about where to find different foods. “This being my first year here, I don’t think we would have eaten anything but tinned foods if Katie hadn’t taught me to forage.”

“I’m glad she did then. It seems that you’ve built quite a reputation.”

“It’s a good thing we both enjoy cooking and baking, isn’t it?

” Belle pointed to a clearing in the forested area north of town.

“We’re going there. I’ll show you the berries and how to spot the Eskimo potatoes, and then I’m going to hunt.

I saw three deer the last time I was here, but I didn’t have my rifle.

I’m hungry for a big pot of venison stew. ”

“Oh, that does sound good. I wonder if we could sell something like stew to the men?”

Belle tilted her head to one side, thinking about it. “I think we could talk to Everett and see if he would allow one or both of us to go to the lumberyard at a designated time and serve stew to the men. It would be a lot of work, but it could be done.”

Maggie nodded. “I’ll think on it. I know James isn’t a man of means, and I don’t want to be a burden on him.”

Belle shook her head. “You could never be a burden, Maggie.”

“I hope not,” Maggie replied.

Belle quickly showed Maggie the unfamiliar berries and showed her how to identify and dig up the Eskimo potatoes. “Thankfully, the potatoes are available all summer. I was certain they’d be gone by now, but we can still harvest them.”

Maggie nodded, grasping a basket and getting to work on the berries. She planned to spend an hour or so on berries and then switch to the strange-looking potatoes.

Belle wandered off, and Maggie continued her foraging.

She was certain if Belle was able to shoot a deer, she would share, and she planned to share her bounty as well.

It wasn’t long before Maggie heard a single gunshot.

She finished picking the berry bush she was working on and went in the direction of the shot.

She found Belle field dressing the deer she’d shot. “That’s a huge one!”

Belle grinned. “That’ll feed both of our homes for a while. We’ll split up the meat if you’ll share your berries and potatoes.”

“That’s a deal I can easily agree with.”

Together, they worked on the deer, dragging it back to Belle’s cabin. They strung it up from a tree, head down, so the blood could drain properly. “Would you like to have venison stew with us this evening?”

“I think I would.” Maggie felt odd leaving the entrails of the deer behind, but she knew it would be too difficult to transport otherwise.

They spent the rest of the day working on the deer, carefully cutting it into chunks and carrying it into a small structure Everett had made for keeping animals out of their meat stores.

“With as cold as it already is, the meat will stay frozen here, so we don’t need to worry about turning it into jerky or salting it heavily. ”

“Is that what this building is for?” Maggie asked, looking around.

“Yes. Everett built it for me over the summer so I would be able to store enough meat for winter. I’ve really only barely started using it.”

“I wonder if James would build one for me?” Maggie knew there was little room on James’s property for things like that, but she had a feeling he would be willing to do what it took for fresh meat.

“I don’t know. You should ask him. Or you can just use our storage. I want this thing full.”

Maggie shook her head. “I’m surprised at how easily you’ve adjusted to this lifestyle.”

“My life growing up wasn’t terribly different. Once my mother died, I was the one to find forage, keep a kitchen garden, and hunt. I did fish some, but I don’t particularly like the taste of fish. I’d eat it if that’s what we had, but I prefer other types of meat.”

“I had no idea you were raised to do those things. We did a lot of gardening and preserving at the orphanage, but we weren’t hunting and foraging.”

“You’ll learn quickly, Maggie. There’s no doubt in my mind.”

Maggie smiled, wondering if her friend was right. She couldn’t imagine being the one to shoot a deer, but with trades, it would work out.

They took a quick break for lunch, having the leftovers from the night before. “What do you send with Everett for his lunches?” Maggie asked.

“I usually send a portion of what I served the night before. Today, he took some of the duck and dumplings.”

“I’ll remember that. I didn’t know what to do for James, so I made him bacon sandwiches.”

“That’s what you had on hand. I’m sure you’ll provide different things when you can.”