northbound

[1] Dogs and Dust

The room was dark, quiet, and filled with the odor of 12 sleeping hound dogs. Some of them twitched every once in awhile or a small whimper escaped one's throat, but that was it. Sylvia, sitting against one of the walls, slowly moved her head to look towards the one window in the basement. It's scattered sunlight shone a faint line across the room and illuminated the dust in the air. Sensing her movement, one of the hounds that was currently wrapped around Sylvia's back opened it's eyes and looked up at her. She looked down, her tired frown turning into a smile. She slowly rose her hand from her lap and rested it on the dog's head, breathing in a shaky breath. "Oh, my love, you make me so happy," Sylvia whispered to the dog, it's tail wagging at the sound of her voice. She was lonely and miserable, but at that moment it didn't matter. She had all the love she needed right there.

                                                                _______________________________

Sylvia woke up to the sound of the basement door crashing open, sending all 12 dogs jumping to their feet and running up the steps. She flinched as a few tails slapped at her on their way by, squinting against the light from the opened door. She felt her heart drop at the sight of her husband, Allan, in the doorway. He was a handsome man, with rich brown hair and sparkling blue eyes. He was wearing a black petticoat and holding a newspaper. She sometimes felt lucky to have such an attractive and wealthy husband, but that was quickly overshadowed by his horrible demeanor. "Sylvia..." his tone was low and condescending, "Why would you think it was a good idea to come down here when there is so much work to be done up in the loft?" He growled, wrinkling his nose at the sight of her dusty dress and messy hair. "Come up this instant and get it done." He added before turning briskly and starting to leave. Sylvia nodded and cleared her throat, looking down at the floor. "I'm off to see the hunt!" He yelled behind him as the hounds all trotted behind him. She slowly let out the breath she didn't know she was holding and climbed the stairs into the large dining room. 

She slowly started to walk up the steep stairs to the loft to do laundry, before her eyes casually flicked to the dining table. Being absolutely exhausted and sore from sitting against the wall for so long, she was wasting time doing anything but what Allan had told her to do the minute before. So she jumped down the 2 steps she had previously climbed and tiptoed over to the table, keeping her eyes open for any sign of movement from the front door. Having a newspaper to read meant having an escape from her current situation, so it really piqued her interest. Glancing at the headlines, Sylvia's eyes widened. The first lines read;

                                                                        KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH BEGINS!!

                                        THOUSANDS ARE MAKING THEIR WAY TO THE RICH YUKON FIELDS

Sylvia's eyes opened wide with curiosity. She continued to read the article, brushing the loose, dark brown strands of hair out of her eyes as her heart started beating faster. Words danced through her vision as the article told of untapped riches and of a perilous trip to a wild land. She read the article again. She read it 3 times over, each time getting more and more excited. Just then, she heard a loud thump behind her. The paper flew out of her hands and onto the floor as she spun around to see who was there, fearing her husband had returned. If he caught her now, she'd be dead. But, staring back at her, was just the happy face of the hound from earlier. It was panting now, wagging its tail and looking at her from the door. Sylvia sunk onto the ground, a relieved laugh escaping her mouth, as she stuck out her hand to invite the dog to come to her. It happily obliged, running into her arms and rubbing it's slimy, wet nose on her face. "Oh, Bugg! You're revolting!" She spat jokingly, wiping her face on her sleeve before giving him a quick kiss between his eyes and turning around to pick up the scattered newspaper. She tidied it as best as she could before giving Bugg one last pat on the head and running upstairs to start the laundry. 

The rest of the day, she couldn't stop repeating the article's words in her mind over and over. They swirled images of her leaving this horrible life behind and embarking on something actually worth living for -- something astounding. But, she caught herself every time. It would be impossible for someone like her to do. She had no skills, other than knowing how to cook and do laundry. And how would she even get there? She has no horses, no sled, no tools... nothing. Frowning, she finished hanging the clothes on the line and went to bed, wanting to be fast asleep before Allan returned from the hunt.