The miners had cleaned the dining room.
Walter repaired the last damaged shelf.
Daniel brought fresh bread.
And Anna Mercer placed a simple bunch of mountain wildflowers beside the kitchen window.
Loretta stopped in the doorway.
She stared.
Then she began laughing.
"What is all this?"
Thomas smiled.
"Thought the owner ought to have a proper welcome."
Several men applauded.
Loretta covered her mouth.
For a moment, she couldn't speak.
Then Daniel stepped forward.
He looked embarrassed.
"Miss Loretta, I owe you an apology."
She stared.
He continued.
"There were times I heard men making jokes about you, and I said nothing."
The room became quiet.
Daniel lowered his eyes.
"I told myself it wasn't my business."
Loretta felt tears gathering.
He looked up.
"But you fed us. You helped our families. And you showed us how to question the money they were taking."
He swallowed.
"You deserved better from us."
Several other miners nodded.
Loretta looked around the room.
She remembered the laughter.
The kicked stool.
The bread scattered across the floor.
The foreman shouting while her arms trembled from exhaustion.
For a moment, the memories hurt.
Then she looked toward Thomas.
He wasn't asking her to pretend none of it happened.
He was acknowledging that they'd allowed it.
She took a slow breath.
"Thank you for saying that."
Daniel nodded.
Loretta continued.
"I don't expect everyone to like me. I don't expect every day to be easy. But this is a place where people come to eat, and I'd like it to be a place where nobody has to be humiliated to get a meal."
The miners listened.
Then Thomas smiled.
"That sounds fair."
Loretta looked toward the kitchen.
She had been awake since dawn.
Her knees were aching.
And the cookhouse still needed repairs.
But for the first time, she felt proud standing in front of the room.
Not because everyone approved of her.
Because she no longer believed their approval determined whether she deserved respect.
Elias stood near the doorway.
His wolf-hide cloak hung across one shoulder.
For a moment, Loretta looked toward him.
Their eyes met.
He smiled.
She returned it.
Then she turned back toward the miners.
"Well," she said, "if we're celebrating, somebody had better help with the dishes."
The room erupted in laughter.
This time, Loretta laughed with them.
The celebration ended well after sunset.