text: 19
  
  After another week working alongside his lumberjacks, Grit took the train home to be with his family a few days. When he came home after being away, Colleen and Astrid greeted him with hugs and kisses, which made him want to be home and stay home.
  
  "Well, my dear husband, it's so good to have you back at home," Colleen told him as they prepared for bed that night. "I have some news for you."
  
  "What's that?"
  
  "We can expect a baby next June," she said. Grit's response was a look of concern.
  
  "Aren't you happy about it?" she asked.
  
  "Well, yeah, I'm delighted, but what about your classes?"
  
  "Oh, I'll keep going to school," she said. "I may have to alter my schedule to see that the baby gets fed, but I'll work it all out."
  
  "You sure?"
  
  "Of course I'm sure," she said. "June is the perfect time for me to have our baby. Now, let's celebrate. I have a need for you tonight." Grit was happy to oblige his sweet Colleen.
  
  The next day, Grit started looking around for a place where he could build a lumber store, figuring he could supply his own lumber much cheaper than the other stores and could undercut their prices if he wanted, or he could maintain prices and pocket the difference. He found 10 acres on the east side of town with the railroad running along the north boundary of the property.
  
  Remembering his conversation with Eddie Butts, he was a little leery of starting a new lumber store, but he convinced himself that he couldn't worry about idle threats from a competitor. At least he hoped the threats were idle. If not, he supposed he'd have to deal with that too.
  
  Within two weeks, he'd contracted to have a lumber office built with an attached hardware store and a large warehouse for storing the lumber. He bought another steam-powered saw and planer and was in business when the first load of lumber arrived early in November from Grit's holdings along the Platte. He called the place Milburn Lumber and Hardware.
  
  When he told Colleen he was ready to hire help at the lumber store, she asked, "Any chance you've got room for a widow woman?"
  
  "I don't know, why?"
  
  "There's this woman I met," Colleen said. "She's in her 50's, and lives down the street and needs the work. I think she could do a good job taking orders at the store."
  
  "I was planning to hire men," Grit said. "All our customers will be men."
  
  "You'd have to meet her," Colleen said. "She's a big woman, and I doubt she'd take any guff off any of the men. Yet I think she could relate to them."
  
  "Okay, if you think so, I'll give her a try as office manager, but she'll be on probation," Grit said.
  
  Her name was Asa Woodley, and she came to the lumber store for an interview. Grit was reluctant to hire Asa, but he'd told Colleen he'd give the woman a try, so Asa came to work the next day. Within a month, she'd taken over not only the office but the entire lumber yard. From the day it opened, the lumber store was busy with one order after another. Grit hired several men to help because he was overwhelmed with all the orders. And Paulie started working on Saturdays.
  
  Asa held meetings with Grit and the men each morning and gave them the orders that needed filling. She also took over the bookkeeping for all the Milburn businesses, and she accounted for every penny that came in or out. After two weeks, Grit had to start ordering lumber from other wholesalers because his men couldn't supply all the lumber he needed and keep his own wholesaler happy.
  
  Many of the customers wanted lumber delivered to their work site, and as Grit contemplated buying wagons and a whole cavvy of workhorses, Asa said, "I have another idea if you want to hear it."
  
  "Of course I wanna hear it," Grit said.
  
  "We're not in the freighting business, so why not hire Conn Freighting to do all our deliveries. We'll add the delivery charge onto each customer's bill, and if they're a good customer we could occasionally offer free delivery maybe."
  
  "That's a great idea," Grit said. "That solves all our problems. Would you set it up with Lewis Conn?"
  
  "I'll be happy to make all the arrangements," Asa said.
  
  Grit had almost forgotten about the threat of Eddie Butts when the man showed up one day with two bulky friends. He charged into the office venting vile threats.
  
  "Where is he? Where is this Milburn? I'm gonna burn this place to the ground."
  
  Asa said, "May I ask who you are, sir?"
  
  "I'm Eddie Butts, and I told your damn boss not to start a lumber business in this town, or I'd burn him out. Now where is he?"
  
  "One moment, sir. I'll be right back." And back she came with a loaded .44 revolver in her hand, cocked and ready to fire. She held the revolver in perfect stance and said, "You, sir, will leave this store immediately. If you don't, this may be your last day on earth."
  
  Eddie's two friends started toward the door, but Eddie didn't believe Asa's warning. "You wouldn't dare."
  
  Asa lowered the weapon slightly and pulled the trigger. She shot Eddie in the thigh and immediately recocked the weapon for a second shot while Eddie lay on the floor bleeding and breathing out more curses and threats.
  
  Grit came running in the back door and immediately knew what had happened. Asa said to Butt, "You, sir, have the filthiest mouth I've ever encountered, and you are bleeding on our floor. Tell your two friends to get you outta here. I'll send you a bill for the cleanup." Grit watched as the two men hauled Butts out of the store.
  
  When they had left the office, Grit said, "I'm sorry about that, Asa. I should have warned you of his threats."
  
  "Don't worry about it, Grit," Asa said. "I think the problem's solved. He won't be so lucky if there's a next time."
  
  That afternoon, a reporter came from the Nebraska State Journal and wanted to know about the shooting. Asa gave him the story matter of factly, then got back to her job.
  
  The next day, the sheriff came by and interviewed Grit and Asa. "It's just like she said, Sheriff. Butts came in threatening to burn our place down, and Asa confronted him with a revolver. She told him to leave. He refused, so she shot him. The shooting was justified."
  
  "It appears so except that Butts was not armed," the sheriff said.
  
  "If there are any charges brought against Asa, we'll hire the finest lawyer in the state of Nebraska to defend her, and she'll be found not guilty," Grit said.
  
  The whole affair seemed not to bother Asa in the least, and the story on the front of the Nebraska State Journal brought in even more business. Soon Grit removed the word "office" from Asa's title and gave her a $20 per month raise in pay. She was no longer the office manager, she was simply the manager of Milburn Lumber and Hardware.
  
  When somebody asked Grit how something should be done, he'd often say, "Ask Asa!" in order to reinforce her authority among the men. Of course, he consulted with her regularly and enjoyed working in the yard himself, but when he was away, he knew the business was in good hands.