The Pursuit of Lucy Banning,A Novel (Avenue of Dreams) Read online

“Right away, miss.” Charlotte laid Henry in his new bed and stepped into the bedroom to find the closet.

  Lucy examined herself in the full-length mirror. She had chosen a day dress of copper color with black lace accents. The sleeves swelled from the bodice in an ostentatious manner that irked Lucy but pleased her mother. At least they narrowed over the forearm and cuffed at the wrist, offering some practicality. Lucy glanced at a clock on the side table. If she didn’t get out of the house soon, she risked having to explain to her mother where she was going.

  “Will this do?” Charlotte held a demure beige hat featuring black lace with two silk ribbons falling down one side.

  “Very nicely. The hat pins are on the vanity table.” Lucy sat and allowed Charlotte to pin the hat in place not because she could not do it herself but because she knew Charlotte wanted to be useful. “I’m not sure how long this will take. Mr. Emmett does not know I’m coming and may be engaged. I promise you I’ll wait as long as it takes to talk to him, and I won’t leave until he has promised to help.”

  “What shall I do while you’re gone?” Charlotte asked.

  Lucy thought quickly. “I’m going out this evening to an art exhibit with Aunt Violet and . . . a friend. I think I’ll want to wear the ivory damask gown embroidered with glass beads. It’s there on a hook at the end of the closet. I believe some of the beads may be loose. Perhaps you can inspect the gown and stitch down anything you find out of place.”

  “Yes, Miss Lucy. I’m very good with a needle. My grandmother taught me.”

  Lucy glanced into the drawer at Henry, who was quiet but alert. “Did she make Henry’s quilt?”

  “Yes, ma’am. It was my baby quilt.”

  “How lovely that your son can use it.”

  “I’ll get started on the gown right away.”

  Lucy knew no beads were loose. The gown was brand new. But the task of examining the gown would keep Charlotte in the suite with her son for a legitimate purpose, at least until Lucy returned.

  12

  I wish you would go with me,” Lucy said on Thursday morning. “This parade is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. No one would think twice about my asking my ladies’ maid to accompany me.” Lucy wondered when the last time was that Charlotte had done anything fun. She suspected it was long before Henry came along.

  Charlotte shook her head vigorously. “I’m a farm girl. I wouldn’t know what to do in a crowd like that.” She pulled the brush through Lucy’s hair one last time before twisting the hair in the back to pin it up. “Henry and I will be just fine, thanks to you.”

  “Bessie and Elsie will wonder why you’re not going. Penard gave them a few hours off so they can be in the crowd.”

  “I’m afraid I feel a headache coming on,” Charlotte said. Lucy saw her maid’s sly smile in the mirror. It was the first time she’d seen Charlotte smile, and she hoped it wouldn’t be the last.

  “That’s what you told them yesterday when you were supposed to have your first afternoon off.”

  “I’ll just say it’s the same headache. After I’ve ‘rested’ a bit, if Henry is sleeping, I’ll see if I can help Mrs. Fletcher with dinner.” Charlotte pushed a pin firmly in Lucy’s hair. “What about your class this afternoon?”

  “It’s canceled, fortunately. My professor is marching in the parade as a representative of the fair’s fine arts building.”

  Charlotte put the brush down and opened a jewelry box. “Would you like the silver brooch for your collar? Or perhaps the opal fan pin?”

  “The pin. I want a festive look.” Lucy picked up the pin and held it to one shoulder briefly before fastening it on. “I wish I had some word for you from Mr. Emmett. I can’t imagine how hard it is for you waiting to know if he can find a place for Henry. It’s been three days, and I can barely stand it myself.”

  “Yes, miss, but I feel so much safer now. I’m with Henry most of the day, and no one bothers us here.” Charlotte smiled at the baby who studied her from his drawer-bed nearby.

  “Once Father put Penard in charge of searching the servants’ rooms, I knew we’d done the right thing moving you here,” Lucy said. “Of course he didn’t find anything.”

  “What do you suppose has really happened to your father’s things?” Charlotte asked.

  Lucy shrugged. “I have no idea. I have to admit, he is meticulous by nature. It would be odd for him to suddenly become so forgetful. It’s a good thing he’s had a busy week getting ready for the fair dedication tomorrow. He seems to have put his distress out of his mind for now.”

  “I hope the items turn up soon,” Charlotte said.

  Lucy sighed. “Tomorrow and Saturday will be busy. After the weekend’s obligations are over, though, I may not be able to persuade anyone I need my own maid. Mother and I always got along with just one before. I’m worried for you.”

  “Please don’t worry for me so much, miss. This is a big day for your family, what with your father and Mr. Daniel meeting the vice president and all of you in the review stands.”

  Lucy glanced at the clock Charlotte had wound just that morning. “Aunt Violet will be here with her carriage any moment for Mother and me,” she said. She stood up and smoothed the skirt of her dress. Soft flutes of sky blue silk were smocked at the waist and sleeves. Daniel had chosen the fabric, and the dressmaker had created the garment especially for this occasion. Ironically, Lucy was not likely to see Daniel except from a distance in the stands, and by dinnertime she would have changed into another gown. Anyway, the October cool required at least a cape covering the dress. Lucy had dressed to keep her mother’s eyebrows from arching too high.

  “Here’s your hat.” Charlotte offered a hat made of fabric that matched the dress.

  Lucy took the hat and arranged it on her head. Lucy Banning, you put up a good front.

  “That friend of Leo’s seems like such a nice young man,” Aunt Violet remarked as soon as the three women were settled in the reviewing stands in front of the Federal Building toward the end of the parade route.

  “What friend?” Flora asked, adjusting her hat.

  “Will Edwards, of course.”

  Lucy’s heart lurched. Will and Violet had seemed to get along nicely when the three of them attended the art exhibit Monday night, but she was certain her aunt understood that Lucy was not advertising the outing to her family.

  “Oh yes, Mr. Edwards.” Flora smoothed her dress absently. “Leo brought him to dinner last week. I didn’t realize you’d met him.”

  Lucy’s eyes widened, but Violet took it all in stride.

  “Leo brought him around to have tea yesterday,” Violet said. “We had a lovely chat. I think Lucy would like him quite well.”

  “Lucy is not looking to meet a young man,” Flora huffed with finality.

  Lucy turned her attention to the barricaded street awaiting the parade and tried not to smile at Violet’s smoothness. The truth was Lucy had liked Will quite well on Monday evening. They spoke freely of what they saw in the art while Aunt Violet discreetly managed to absorb herself with a painting on another wall. If they moved, she moved. Will’s observations and their interaction were a great help in organizing her thoughts for her paper. She felt confident she would turn in work she could be proud of after she made a few changes and wrote it out one more time before Tuesday.

  They stayed until the gallery closed, then went to a nearby shop for coffee to round out the evening. On their way home, Violet’s driver dropped Will off at the building where he had taken rooms—far more humble than Prairie Avenue, Lucy was painfully aware. Continuing on to Prairie Avenue, Violet prodded Lucy to express her opinion of Will, but Lucy guarded her words. Even Violet did not know the truth of her doubts about Daniel, and she could not risk sounding effusive about a man she barely knew.

  But it had been an exquisite evening that replayed itself in her mind over the next two days.

  “Wouldn’t you agree, Lucy, that Mr. Edwards is a likeable young man?” Violet leaned forward t
o catch Lucy’s eye.

  Lucy looked at the two sisters sitting to her left. Other than their physical features, they couldn’t be less alike. Was Aunt Violet truly set on having this conversation in the presence of Flora?

  “At dinner last week he seemed well spoken.” Lucy chose her words carefully. “I sense he has an inquisitive mind.” Really, Lucy, is that the best you can do?

  Violet chortled. “From what I saw, there is a great deal to admire before one gets to his inquisitive mind.”

  “Violet!” Flora screeched.

  “He’s the most handsome thing to darken my door in decades,” Violet said. “There’s no harm in appreciating that Mr. Edwards is a handsome young man. Isn’t that right, Lucy?”

  “Violet, please!” Flora shifted in her seat and sighed. “I don’t know what scandal you’re trying to provoke. I’m a married woman. Lucy is engaged to Daniel. And you’re far too mature to be entertaining unseemly thoughts about a friend of Leo’s—especially in public.”

  “I do admit my thoughts are quite entertaining!” Violet said, her green eyes twinkling. “Perhaps I’ll risk unseemly.”

  Lucy could no longer hold in the laughter. “Yes, Aunt Violet, Leo’s friend does have some appealing attributes. Perhaps I’ll have the opportunity to get to know him better—if Leo will bring him around again.”

  “You’ll have no time for friends of Leo’s,” Flora said. “I understand that Mr. Edwards is new to Chicago and Leo wanted to give him a good meal, but I don’t expect we’ll be seeing more of him.”

  “Leo seems to like him a lot,” Violet observed. “You might be surprised how much he pops up.”

  “That’s ridiculous. We know nothing of his family. And while I value the talents of an architect when needed, that hardly puts him in the circle of friends we move among.”

  “The marvelous feature of a circle,” Violet said, “is that it’s easy enough to make it bigger.”

  “Daniel says there will be almost a hundred thousand marchers in the parade.” Lucy’s bright tone turned the conversation back to the event before them. “And they have eighty thousand seats set up for the dedication ceremony tomorrow.”

  “If we can believe the newspaper reports,” Violet said, “Chicago will have to put on quite a pageant to match what New York did. Their parade went on and on, and the fair is not even happening in their city.”

  “We are fortunate to have the fair in our own city,” Flora said. “Samuel has been working tirelessly for months to make sure it’s a success.”

  “I’m sure all the directors have,” Violet said, “but now it comes down to public spirit.”

  “Surely no one can accuse Chicago of not having public spirit,” Lucy said. She gestured to the street in front of them. “Just look at the flags and streamers on the houses and shops. There’s no telling how many people will be out to see the parade.” The streets of the parade route were cleared of traffic, but the crowd of onlookers grew deeper by the moment.

  “I do hope Samuel is well,” Flora said. “He gets more tired than he likes to admit. I wish we could have been seated with them instead of way up here.”

  “Be grateful you have a seat,” Violet said. “Look at all the people just standing along the street.”

  “Samuel would never leave me standing in the street,” Flora responded.

  “I’m sure Daniel will look after Father,” Lucy said. “He’s so excited to meet Vice President Levi Morton.”

  “Psht!” Violet said. “In a hundred years, no one will know who Levi Morton is. He couldn’t even get his party’s nomination for the election next month. Rutherford B. Hayes—now there’s a president to remember. He put everything he had into rebuilding the South after the war, and he fights for education and giving prisoners a second chance. He’s here today too. Daniel should be trying to shake his hand if he’s going to pander to anyone.”

  “Daniel never mentioned former President Hayes was going to be here today.” Lucy craned her neck to try to get a better look at the dignitaries sitting closer to the parade route.

  “No, I suppose he wouldn’t,” Violet said. “Morton is a banker, and Daniel understands that world. Hayes cares more for people.”

  “Violet Newcomb, I must insist you control your tongue!” Flora said. “I will not have you disparaging the son of my dear friends and the man Lucy is going to marry.”

  So much for a safe topic of conversation. Aloud Lucy said, “Let’s leave politics for the men who will vote in next month’s presidential election. Today is about Chicago. I’m proud of our city, and I’m proud that our family has had some small part in bringing the Expo here.”

  “We can all be proud,” Flora agreed.

  “Mr. Edwards mentioned yesterday that he was to be in the crowd today,” Violet said. “Not marching, of course. He’s too new to the city for that. But because his company has designed some of the smaller fair buildings, all the employees were given two hours off to watch part of the parade.”

  “I don’t suppose we’ll see him,” Flora said blandly. “Keep your heart in your chest.” Her words were aimed at her sister, but her eyes were fixed on her daughter.

  “No, I don’t suppose we’ll see him in this crowd,” Lucy agreed softly. But it would be so good if we did. “Oh look, here come the girls!”

  “What girls?” her mother asked.

  “Open your eyes, Flora,” Violet said. “How can you miss them?”

  A thousand little girls—literally—swarmed into position before the reviewing stands. Dressed in red, white, and blue, they lined up to form the American flag.

  “How clever!” Flora exclaimed.

  “Some of the girls are from St. Andrew’s,” Lucy commented. “Mr. Emmett was so pleased they could participate.” She peered into the mass of girls, hoping to spot one she knew. Thinking of the girls from the orphanage, however, only made her worry even more intensely about Charlotte. Ever since Saturday’s discovery in the kitchen, Lucy felt responsible for Charlotte. At home she was vigilant about the whereabouts of both family and servants and made frequent excuses to spend time in her room, providing good reason for Charlotte to be there and assist her. But she could not be there every moment of the day.

  “I’m going to go say hello to the girls.” Lucy suddenly stood up, ready to push her way through the seated crowd.

  “Oh, Lucy, it’s such a lot of trouble,” her mother said.

  Lucy ignored her. She would enjoy greeting some of the girls from the orphanage if she could find them in the crowd, but her true thought was that perhaps Mr. Emmett was nearby to oversee his charges.

  Once she was down to street level, Lucy scanned every face within sight. She had never seen so many people in one place in her entire life and could only imagine the throngs that filled Wabash as the parade moved north and then west on Lake to State Street, where it turned south again before circling the Federal Building.

  Finally Lucy found a child she knew, draped in red and standing in position at the end of a stripe on the flag.

  “Jane!” she called.

  The girl turned, then broke into a rare grin. “Miss Lucy!”

  Lucy gave Jane a congratulatory hug, then asked, “Is Mr. Emmett nearby to watch your big moment?”

  Jane shook her head. “He didn’t come. Mrs. Baker brought us down. Mr. Emmett said there were too many children to manage and they would all stay at St. Andrew’s. He said he would never forgive himself if one of the little ones got lost or hurt in the crowd.”

  Lucy nodded. “That’s probably wise. I’m so glad you’re here, though.”

  “They were supposed to get here a long time ago.” Jane twisted a corner of red fabric between two fingers. “I’m getting tired of standing around.”

  A voice rose from the crowd. “Here they come! It’s starting!”

  Lucy joined the applause as the first rank of mounted police appeared in view.

  13

  Daniel snapped his pocket watch shut. “It’s 1:
20. The ceremony should start in precisely ten minutes with a march composed especially for the occasion.”

  Lucy sat beside Daniel in the front row of the second rank of seating inside the massive Manufactures and Liberal Arts Building on the grounds of the World’s Columbian Exposition. They had arrived more than an hour early to claim seats with a center view of the enormous platform.

  “I wonder where Leo and Oliver are,” Lucy said. “You agreed to meet here, right?”

  “That was the plan,” Daniel replied, “but you know Leo. If he’s involved, anything could happen.”

  Lucy chuckled in agreement. “Maybe they just haven’t spotted us yet.”

  “If they don’t show up soon, someone else will want their seats, tickets or no tickets.”

  Lucy scanned the vast sea of seats around them. Ribbons of color in women’s dresses splashed against the dark backdrop of men’s formal wear. Heads bobbed under a wave of one extravagant hat after another. Her parents and Aunt Violet were somewhere in the crowd, seated closer to the main stage. Lucy took Daniel’s word for it that eighty thousand people could be seated, and untold thousands more would be standing for a chance to glimpse this epic event. Five thousand chairs filled the red-carpeted platform alone to accommodate dignitaries from around the globe. The mammoth hall stood more than two hundred feet high and spanned forty-four acres. Sunlight streamed through a greenhouse-like ceiling and diffused through steel arch trusses filled with glass, setting the colossal structure alive with energy.

  Lucy glanced at the program in her hand. “From the looks of this, we’re going to be here a few hours.”

  Daniel nodded. “Believe it or not, it was supposed to be five hours. The planning committee cut it down to four, but we’ll see if they stick to it.”

  “They can’t possibly keep a crowd this size quiet and still that long!”

  “My guess is they’re not even going to try,” Daniel said. “We’ll have to leave it to the historians to record the importance of this day.”