Red River of the North - 02 - A New Day Rising by Lauraine Snelling

Author:Lauraine Snelling [Snelling, Lauraine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance, Historical, Western, Inspirational, Adventure
Goodreads: 568951
Publisher: Bethany House
Published: 1996-09-01T05:00:00+00:00

Mid-May 1884

Hjelmer kept looking over his shoulder even as he mounted the train steps at the station in New Jersey. Every time he saw a big man with dark hair, his heart started to race. No matter how many names he called himself and how many times he promised he wouldn’t react like that again, the feeling persisted.

Swen wanted him dead.

He was well into Pennsylvania before he finally felt his mind and muscles begin to relax. Swen wouldn’t spend the cost of a train ticket to follow him. No man in his right mind would do that. He began to take an interest in the sights out his window, and soon the discomfort of the hard seats and the noise of the squabbling children and chattering parents faded from his awareness. The beauty of the land captured him.

When the conductor said that Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was coming in two stops, Hjelmer struggled with a hard decision. As much as he loved working with metal, this city, the home of the steel mills, would be a good place to find a job. Dark had fallen by the time they entered the city, and all he could think of was the fires of hell. Mills lined the tracks, smoke and flames their heart. Flat train cars lined the tracks, piled high with lengths of steel waiting to be shipped to far-flung places.

Hjelmer got off the train at the next station. The smell of carbon and smoke and metal filled his nostrils. Did he want to stay here? He had ten minutes to make up his mind.

“All abo-a-r-d!” The conductor placed the step into its traveling position and swung his lantern.

Hjelmer grabbed his valise and leaped back aboard as the train began to move. He’d wasted enough time on his quest for land of his own. Dakota Territory, his family, his life. Another big city was not for him.

Five days later he still couldn’t sleep, not wanting to miss a single sight. He stared out the train window. They hadn’t been exaggerating. The letters home hadn’t begun to describe the flat expanse of the prairie or the immensity of it.

Surely there was room for half the inhabitants of the world to farm here and still have space for towns and cities. He shook his head. His brothers had been men of vision, but had they really learned to love this flat land after living in the mountain grandeur of home?

He checked the gifts he’d purchased at the stop in Chicago. Mrs. Holtensland had given him a valise with some of her husband’s clothes, along with her blessing when he had to flee New York for his life. On top of the pants he’d packed lay a book for Thorliff, a carved pony for Andrew, a crystal vase for Ingeborg who loved her flowers, and a book of poetry for Kaaren. He knew she loved to read. For himself, he’d purchased several carving tools to replace the ones stolen. He’d wanted to buy a forge and some tools, but he wasn’t sure what they had at the homestead.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.