Mister Quaid: 1800s: I Will Always Find You... (WLW)

Part Two, 1879: Chapter Thirteen

November 19th, 1879, Houston, Texas, Quaid Traders Co.

Alice sat stiffly in a chair on one side of Richard Quaid's office while he sat on the other side of his office behind his desk. He appeared to be sizing her up, then turned his attention to Jack. Alice knew exactly where this was heading and with a heavy heart, she stifled a sigh.

"Well, Mister Marsters, it would appear you have all the correct paperwork in line for me to sign, however, I see it has yet to be signed and initialed by either of you. May I ask why that is?" Richard pointedly asked as he kept his eyes on Jack.

"Mister Quaid, I am to whom you should be directing your questions and I feel that there are a series of questions I must ask you before we can continue furthering our business." Alice said, drawing his hesitant attention back to herself. He grimaced and a pang ran through her chest. It was oddly familiar and she found herself asking a question that did not belong in the long line she had already mentally established. "Would you happen to have a sibling, Mister Quaid? That is not a very common name, is it?"

"More common than you would imagine, ma'am. And yes, I did have a sister." His neck muscles bulged at mentioning his sister and he cleared his throat. "She was taken from us too soon, at the age of nearly sixteen. No longer with us."

"My apologies, Mister Quaid, you are just very..." Alice studied his face for a moment and took in its features. His blond hair glistened with the morning sun strewn into the room through the window behind himself and his hazel eyes were somewhat paralyzing. They were just so... "Familiar."

Richard shifted in his seat and sweat beaded at his eyebrows. "I assure you, I just have a common face. Now, if we can get back to the business at hand--"

"Do you aim to spread your business through our transcontinental expansion? Is that your reasoning, sole reasoning, for your investment proposals?" Alice asked, turning on her all business, austere persona.

If she had learned anything from her travels since August of 1873, it was that having an outer, impenetrable identity was the best way to go about life. At least that much she had learned from her time with...

Why had she felt her presence outside? Perhaps it was just because of being around someone holding the surname of Quaid. Maybe it rattled her on a deeper level than she had originally thought. She wasn't sure, couldn't be sure, but Pete... Alice could have sworn she felt her searing gaze just outside of this building. Just as polarizing and igniting as it had been all those years ago. Was it really just her mind playing tricks on her? It had to be.

It has to be... Let it alone, Alice.

"Well, yes, ma'am. I would like to invest enough to possibly have a series of freight cars on one of the trains you would have running along those tracks. It would open up new trade explorations for my company with New Mexico. We would like to expand west if at all possible within the next few years as Texas commerce expands there as well. Would that become a problem within our negotiations?" Richard finally answered, pulling Alice from her thoughts gone awry.

She interlaced her fingers on her lap and kneaded her thumbs together to keep herself rooted in the conversation. As thrilling as her thoughts were, and they were incredibly thrilling, she needed to focus on the task at hand. Whether Pete was in Houston or not was of little importance. It would not change a thing in her life and her brother had given her a task to fulfill.

"No, I do not believe it will. However, you must know that while we do build railroads, we also trade as well. The Covington company has a large amount of business all over the country. I am not sure if--"