Disguised Treasure

By John T. Peters

In the mid to late 1800sCalifornia and then Canada's Yukon and Alaska experienced periods of gold rush fever.  Many individuals had gold fever in their veins escaping poverty, hopelessness, and some perhaps a hostile community and surroundings.  Others looked forward to the adventure, to see and experience new surroundings and look for new opportunities.

Of the thousands of stampeders from all parts of North America and countless other countries, there were thousands who became disenchanted and succumbed to the harsh conditions and failure to discover anything that resembled wealth.  Many that didn't perish in the attempt, gave up and settled along the gold trails.  Others continued to struggle and eventually retreated to bars and brothels where alcohol and debauchery were easier to find than gold.

A few had different views and goals and stopped to admire the scenery and look at the other possibilities.  There was other treasure besides simply gold.

• Language: English
• Publisher: John T. Peters
• Release date: Dec 18, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201311964

Book preview

Disguised Treasure

A Novella

Published by: John T. Peters

Copyright© 2021 John T. Peters, All rights reserved

Other books by John T. Peters

Pink Is for Disappointment

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Coming soon;

Tortured Beginnings

––––––––

By

John T. Peters

Disguised Treasure

(Started Nov. 12, 2015)

A novella by; John T. Peters

Email; [e-mail]

No portion of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or information storage and retrieval systems without the expressed written permission of the author.

This is a fictional story.  Use of or mention of historical events, places, or names of anyone or any similarity of the storyline to actual persons, places, or events is purely coincidental except where specifically authorized by said individuals.

Special Thanks to;

- My Wife - Liu Xinlin

Cover Photo; By Debi Sandul

Disguised Treasure

Table of Contents

~  ~

Foreword Page 04

Chapter 1 Page 06

Chapter 2 Page 21

Chapter 3 Page 34

Chapter 4 Page 49

Chapter 5 Page 64

Chapter 6 Page 80

Chapter 7 Page 94

Chapter 8 Page 107

Chapter 9 Page 119

Chapter 10 Page 134

Chapter 11 Page 148

Chapter 12 Page 162

Chapter 13 Page 176

Chapter 14 Page 190

Chapter 15 Page 204

Chapter 16 Page 218

Chapter 17 Page 232

Chapter 18 Page 246

Chapter 19 Page 260

Chapter 20 Page 274

Chapter 21 Page 288

Chapter 22 Page 301

Conclusion Page 312

Foreword

Long after the gold rushes were over in California, Northern Canada's Yukon, and the USA state of Alaska, the last gold rush being about 1890, hundreds of people continued to search for the yellow metal for the next fifty years and longer, even to the present day.  The magnetism of gold nuggets became an addiction for many.  Individuals risked their livelihoods, health, and their lives, surviving the most miserable conditions in the quest, and an incalculable number of individuals perished.  Despite everything, others still heard the rumors, still dreamed of cashing in on unbelievable amounts of treasure.  Like a religion, no matter the actual situation, people wanted to believe in unspeakable wealth, even in the harsh face of reality.  When minds and hearts are young, dreams are much easier to believe in than the stark, sometimes hostile realism that'd been or were their lives up to that time.

A select few went north, not only for the gold but other personal reasons, a deliberate choice possibly to escape poverty or an overly structured, un-accommodating society.  For some, it was to escape a harsh, sometimes hopeless reality.  For the majority, it was an excuse for adventure, to travel to distant locations only heard about in magazines, experience the great land of North America, especially the far north, and possibly find some gold in the process.  Along the way, many turned back; life was too severe.  More realistic individuals settled down along the gold routes heading north, met partners/spouses, settled down and raised families, and ended their quest for gold.  A few refused to capitulate to the obvious, pushing on despite great hardships with a slight possibility of a decent life and less likelihood of discovering the Bonanza that was gold.

Of the ones that survived the bar fights and the especially difficult winters, which many didn't, they unknowingly became the survivalists.  Nevertheless, like the proverbial thief in the night, ever so slowly over the years, sometimes not even noticing, they lost their youth, lost their ambition, some even lost their souls.  Alcohol and drugs replaced dreams.  Broken-down bar rooms became far easier to find than gold nuggets.

Yet a few select individuals survived, discovered new dreams, even flourished, and found a vibrant life others hadn't dreamed of.  These are some of their stories.

Chapter 1

Characters in Chapter 1– George Adams, Charles Hays II & III, Lily

George Adams only spent three years in formal education.  He was a good-looking lad with a mop of brown hair, 5' 11" tall, with an excellent muscular build.  As a student, he was eager and intelligent enough to do well in school, except his father needed him to help on their poor dirt farm on the open plains of Oklahoma.

Life was difficult for their family of seven, not unlike other farm families trying to make a living on the prairies.  Two sisters were younger than he and one sister, one brother older than him.  His parents had errored in their judgment sending him to school at all, despite the short time he'd spent in his studies.

While there, he read and heard of faraway places that were, without comparison, more stimulating to him than cleaning barns.  After months of hard work, the dry fields scarcely yielded enough crops to feed the family and maybe produce some supplies for the animals.

Reading school books with fascinating illustrations of mountains with green trees, all the way to the top, beaches with water lapping at the shores, was exhilarating.  Going back to the dreariness of the homestead was too depressing to consider as a long-term way of life for George.  On the parched land they called home, there hadn't been any indication of optimism or the prospect of a comfortable life, and without a doubt, not any possibility of adventure. It'd been a full-time career for the whole family, continually slaving away on that arid plot of land, just trying to survive.

As he looked around that farmstead, day after day, the lifelessness of the landscape overwhelmed him, nearly suffocating him.  As he scanned the horizon around the horse and cow pasture, everything was brown and lifeless in late July.  The horses and cows were gaunt with ribs showing.  The livestock needed more feed.

The heat radiated off the land in waves obscuring the bare dirt, presenting a mirage of a lake in the distance.  There hadn't been any noticeable precipitation for months, and there weren't any green plants in-sight.

He turned his eyes to the fields where the crops they'd planted should have been green by that time of year.  George wasn't able to detect any noticeable amount of green foliage there either.  The crops had turned yellow weeks ago baking under the hot sun caused by a desperate lack of rainfall.  There weren't any fruit trees or any other symbols of life.  All he could see was sand and tumbleweeds blowing around in a hot, dry wind.

He went for a stroll one day as he'd often done to get out of the shack they called home.  The only difference was that George continued walking away from that homestead that day with only the clothes he wore.  In his mind, anywhere had to be an improvement from where he was and what he was looking at.

~

George first turned his attention west to the California gold fields, though leisurely drifting along as he encountered clear water streams sustaining abundant life, plants, and animals.  He strolled through tall forests feeling and tasting the damp, cool air among the trees and hearing some of the wildlife it contained.

Regardless of the beautiful vistas George came across, which he relished, it slowed his journey, but it didn't stop him.  At the time, he had poorly defined goals, if any, except daydreams of gold nuggets urging him onward.

When he arrived at the first gold mining area, his disappointment was, at minimum, intense.  Instead of witnessing a bustling, wealthy city he'd envisioned, George found rusted equipment and a few old miners living in shanties, barely surviving.  Most of the dedicated, knowledgeable miners had moved north a long time ago.

The reality was a stark contrast to the visions he'd had in his head for years.  The California gold mines had been chiefly exhausted from the precious metal years before his arrival.  Everyone had moved on except a few stragglers with broken dreams and equally busted bank accounts.  It reminded George of his father's farmstead that he'd just left, everyone just living a life of existence, no dreams or hopes for a better future, just laboring to survive another day.

Being a young man at the time, with little time for thought or psychology, he had a youthful exuberance dictating that his future would never resemble the people or the stark conditions that confronted him at that place.  He would be wealthy, successful, enjoying an easy life long before old age — maybe soon.  All he had to do was continue to the next settlement, and there he would discover his fortune.

He hadn't realized how big America was till he'd started traveling.  In the books he'd read, he'd had the impression that the other world he was searching for was just over the next hill — or possibly two hills.

~

Still, good jobs were difficult to obtain along the gold trails, where most enterprises had either relocated their businesses to another area with a better economy or had locked the doors on the money-losing proposition.  Regular employment hadn't appealed to George either when he had gold dust in his vision.  Instinctively he continued his drifting.

George Adams migrated north through an array of poor towns, drinking establishments, and gambling houses.  He should've come to the noticeable conclusion that he was about thirty-five years or more too late for the gold rush years in California.  Still, his journey experienced a mixture of misfortune and fortune.

For the first couple of years, he lived the life of a poor migrant worker, laboring for meals or pennies.  On most occasions, his youth and optimism allowed him to overlook the negative aspects of his existence and concentrate on the adventure he was living.

~

Unexpectedly he met Charles Hays II, the son of a wealthy banker.  Charlie came from European origins with a mixed ancestry of German, Swiss, with possibly some Jewish heritage in him.  His father, Charles Hays with, some partners, had taken over a struggling enterprise from his grandfather in Europe.

Rising from near poverty to some notable affluence, the senior Charlie Hays had started a banking business in Switzerland with his brothers, who had experience in the banking business.  The families had subsequently branched out into a few secretive sideline businesses that had been astonishingly prosperous.  The family chose Charlie Hays II to come to America to expand their enterprises.

~

Lilly Walker also migrated out of the American Midwest to California, the land of fantasies and fortune.  She came from a questionable background clouded in mystery.  Before meeting her husband, Lilly worked the beer joints and taverns crowded with drunken cowboys and miners along her route and her occupation in San Francisco for close to seven years.  There had been a couple of complaints that Lilly had stolen some valuables from her clients.  After a short investigation and individual officers spending a few private hours with the lady, the police dropped all the charges.

Lilly had become thoroughly dissatisfied with the dead-end life it had presented her.  She was actively searching for an escape from her somewhat miserable existence at the time.  She had enough foresight to recognize that her young beauty was limited, only a temporary asset in her brief career as a lady of the evening — everyone ages.

She'd encountered more than a few older ladies along her travels' where time and the ravages of alcohol and possibly drugs had taken their toll on their once lovely features.  Many women hadn't advanced to steady positions like madams of their establishments or managers for other businesses.  If younger working girls were available, they were thrown aside like so much unwanted trash.

Ex-prostitutes found themselves reduced to begging old destitute vagrants, drunkards, and women beaters for whatever coin was available.  Lily was in her mid-twenties and knew her time for attracting top money from quality customers was fading like that of other shattered ladies she'd encountered.

~

She read a local newspaper article earlier that week, giving the details of a banking convention at a local hotel that weekend in her city.  Wearing the best clothes she'd just bought with the bulk of her meager savings, she wandered into the hotel ballroom looking like a prim and proper lady.

Lilly did some hasty research on the attendees, asking for information at the front desk.  She could've made some excellent money that weekend.  She serviced two knowledgable men simply for a little cash and information on single, marriageable prospects at the convention.  Lilly had a couple slightly more appealing propositions within an hour of arriving and very briefly considered the come-ons.  But then, unlike many ordinary women involved in the trade, Lily had higher aspirations than just a few dollars that weekend.

Reckless earnings usually evaporated just as quickly as the memory of who'd paid her.  Miss Walker had ambitions of a long-term position in life, a life of affluence and culture.  Short-term risky propositions weren't her life's goal, at least not that weekend.

In a short time after arriving at the convention, Lilly finalized her plan.  Of the patrons there, Charlie Hays II wasn't the most handsome fellow there.  Essentially, he was outstanding by his evident unattractiveness.  Lily needed a stiff drink before approaching him.  He was rather ordinary, smallish, bordering on disagreeable in appearance — well, more like ugly.

In his favor, Charlie was younger than all the others attending the convention.  His most outstanding attribute, she'd discovered, was his wealth.  Secondly, he was single, unmarried unlike most of the other attendees at the conference.  He showed far more promise for a future life than the drunken saloon patrons she'd known until then.

Charles Hays II had been a nerdy type all his life.  No one could remember seeing him with a lady in the past.  At close to forty years old, he possibly was still a virgin.

As soon as he met Lily, he fell madly in love with her beauty and her exotic ways — well, instantly. He'd never been with a woman, and such a beautiful exotic lady mesmerized him.  She stayed with him all weekend, mentioning offhand that she was highly fertile at that moment, but only after George had released his passion in her.

For the entire weekend, at the bankers' symposium, George and Lily were inseparable.  Despite George being by her side constantly, the way Lily walked with her beauty and an air of confidence caused various men with raging hormones, single and married, to intervene, asking her for a fling.  Instead, she devoted all her attention to her prospective future husband, to George's delight and her long-term gain.

~

He told his brothers very little about the young lady he'd met and was courting.  Shortly after that momentous weekend, Lily informed George that she was expecting his child.  Not knowing the most elementary fundamentals of a woman's childbearing details and not having anyone to confide in, Lily became the new Mrs. Charles Hays II within days.  They were married without his parent's or family's knowledge, undoubtedly also minus their approval until weeks after the ceremony.

Lily Walker was a rarity amongst the young ladies that plied the world's oldest trade, managing to capture a husband with status and stable, lasting wealth, escaping their dubious profession in harsh conditions.  Thousands of other ladies never were and never would be as fortunate.

~

When their son was born, compelling circumstances surrounding the birth might've caused ordinary husbands to question the validity of the child's heritage.  The child was born an entire month and a half premature, counting the time from their first encounter.  The hospital did not consider it a premature baby and sent it home in less than a week with the parents.  Also, the baby had native/possibly oriental dark-skinned features, while Charlie and Lily were fair-skinned with blonde hair.

Nevertheless, DNA wasn't used or perfected for another fifty years or more, nor was it used to determine paternity at the time.  Charlie Hays II's forte was banking, not genetics.  Society reports stated he was incredibly proud of his son and family.

Mrs. Charlie Hays II had visions of their only child, a son, Charlie Hays III, bringing home an upper-class wife, unlike herself, that would produce a male heir who'd bring their family name to new lofty social standings.

Most ordinary people would have noticed and addressed Charlie Hays III's noticeable mental and character flaws early, perhaps at preschool age.  He certainly should've had treatment and or counseling during his school years.

His mother refused all arguments to that effect.  Her boy would be an outstanding success and noticeably increase her family's prestige and wealth, possibly becoming world-renowned in business.  Lily refused to listen to any arguments to the contrary, despite how obvious the boy's deficiencies were.

~

Through Charlie's early school years, he was constantly in trouble for fighting and beating other kids without reason.  Later, in his early teens, he forced himself on girls, at times openly sadistic with females and younger boys. He'd always been a social misfit bordering on criminal.

His parents paid heavily for teachers and colleges to overlook his lackluster academic performance and depravity.  With a hefty cash bribe, teachers passed their son into the next grade with honors.  If one school refused to do so, other schools willingly obliged the overbearing Mrs. Charlie Hays II.

The couple also had to donate money to individual police officers and the precinct in their area to overlook young George's obvious character flaws and criminal leanings.  All it took was a bit more graft currency, a small sacrifice for her brilliant child.

~

In contrast to his mother, young Charlie had different ideas and aspirations.  With a noticeable mental deficit, he aspired to a playboy lifestyle, continuously and wholly financially supported by his mother.  Young Charlie Hays's fancy generally included young boys and a party-till-you-drop lifestyle than any consideration of a future profession or family.

~

After graduating and acquiring an estate of his own, Charlie ventured into the horse racing business.  He hired George Adams, at first, to be his stable boy.  George had a natural talent and years of experience with horses and their care.  George soon became Charlie's aid as they went to horse races, extravagant hunting trips, and golfing.  At times George was treated more as a companion than an employee.  A few whispers alluded to a relationship between the two, but nothing was ever confirmed.

For nearly two years, George lived a high life with extravagant dining in the poshest restaurants.  Charlie bought him expensive clothes to interact with California's 'royalty' without feeling ashamed.  Gifts included expensive hunting gear, golf clothes, before and after dinner attire, and so on.

With his Oklahoma farm upbringing, George didn't pay enough attention to the mindset of the exaggerated egos within the society in which he mingled, especially his employer's.  He never educated himself in the game of internal politics to concentrate on advancing his interests in a particular group.  Neither did George endeavor to ingratiate himself into that culture to take advantage of possible financial opportunities as they presented themselves.  He was young, and long-term thinking wasn't his forte.

Regardless of his appearances in public, he was still a servant, not an equal, and never would be unless he adapted, played the games of the wealthy narcissistic in-crowd of the time.

~

George played golf against Mr. Hays during a hot afternoon after Charlie's intended golfing partner failed to materialize.  George, without any lessons, only a few tips from the caddy accompanying them, outperformed his supposedly professional drunken golfing boss by ten points.  There was an unwritten law that servants do not upstage their masters in such an arrogant society.

Sadly George had never paid attention to nor learned the fine points of integrating into such a pretentious group.  Charlie Hays considered it an insult to his character to have a servant beat him in a public golf game.  Charlie threatened but stopped short of beating George with a golf club.  George was publicly cursed, humiliated, and chastised in front of Charlie's friends and golf club staff.  George Adams wasn't impressed.

He