Читать книгу A Home for Her Heart - Janet Lee Barton - Страница 11

Chapter Two

Elizabeth’s alarm clock jarred her awake an hour earlier than usual for a Saturday and she fumbled to quiet it so as not to awaken the whole floor. After the meeting the night before, she, Kathleen and the other women boarders had stayed up much too late poring through magazines and patterns for wedding gowns, finally narrowing down Kathleen’s favorites to a manageable number. Hopefully they’d trim down her choices more in the next few days.

She threw off the covers and hurried to freshen up in the bathroom she and Kathleen shared. After dressing in a plain shirtwaist and skirt for the trip to the tenements, she hurried down to breakfast, yawning as she entered the dining room. Julia Olsen, who worked at Ellis Island, was just leaving for work.

“See you at dinner,” she said as she walked out of the room.

“Good morning, Elizabeth,” Mrs. Heaton said. “You’re down earlier than usual today.”

“Good morning! Kathleen wants John and I to check out some buildings this morning for possible articles and we’re leaving right after breakfast.”

“Oh, I’m glad. Something must be done to get those landlords to take care of those dilapidated buildings.”

Elizabeth chose a muffin from the sideboard, along with a couple of pieces of bacon and some fluffy scrambled eggs before taking her seat at the table.

Saturdays were always more relaxed than workdays or Sundays when everyone was on their way to work or church. The boarders came down at different times and lingered at the table a little longer. This morning John entered just as she took her seat.

“Good morning,” he said as he began to fill his plate. Ben and Matt entered behind him.

John slid into his seat beside her. “I’m surprised to see you up so early. I heard you women laughing when I went downstairs last night.”

“We did have a good time. What did you and the men do?” Elizabeth asked.

“Oh, we played a few games, talked about the building Matt is working on and finally got bored with our own company and called it a night.”

“I’m still not sure why all this secrecy about the wedding dress is necessary,” Luke said from across the table.

“Missed Kathleen, did you?” Elizabeth asked.

Kathleen and Millicent Faircloud, one of the new boarders, entered the room just then and Elizabeth thought once more of how blessed she was to be living at Heaton House. As an only child with a father who was out of town often and only a housekeeper to look after her, she truly felt as if she were part of a big family living here.

“What’s all this I’m hearing?” Kathleen asked. “If it makes you feel any better, Luke, I missed you, too.”

That seemed to settle the man down and he smiled at his fiancée as she took the seat he pulled out for her.

Talk turned to the nice weather they were having and the Independence Day celebrations planned in the city the next month. As always there was much going on—parades, picnics and fireworks.

“There is much to choose from. But we really ought to go on a picnic while it’s still fairly cool,” Mrs. Heaton suggested. “Why don’t we go this coming Saturday, if the weather holds up?”

“Oh, I love the sound of that,” Millicent said. “I’d like to get photos of all of you at the park.”

“It’s about time we had some new ones made. But we need to include you and Matt in some. Maybe we can get a passerby to take a few.”

“That’d be nice.”

Everyone seemed excited about a trip to Central Park.

“It should be lovely this time of year. Just about everything has bloomed now,” Mrs. Heaton said.

“If your garden is any indication, there will be roses everywhere,” Elizabeth said.

“I think we should all take another trip to Coney Island and go swimming before long,” Ben suggested. “That might be something to think about for Independence Day. And you know they set off fireworks on Manhattan Beach on that day, too.”

“Most of the parks will have bands playing patriotic music, too. We’ll just need to figure out what it is everyone most wants to do that day and do some planning,” Mrs. Heaton said.

“That’s a good idea. We’ll have to see what we can work in,” Luke said.

“Sounds good to me, too,” John said. The clock in the foyer chimed the hour and he leaned near and nudged Elizabeth’s shoulder. “You about ready to go check out those buildings?”

“Anytime you are.”

“Let’s go, then.” He pushed back his chair and stood. “Let us know what you come up with for Independence Day.”

Luke nodded from across the table. “We will.”

“Where are you two off to so early?” Millicent asked.

“We’ve got some investigating to do,” John answered.

“Oh, I see. Well, if you have any need for professional pictures to be taken...”

John had just scooted Elizabeth’s chair out for her to stand and he turned to the other woman. “You know, Millicent, we may just call on you if we need to have photos taken. What do you think, Elizabeth?”

“I don’t know. Photographs might help.” Elizabeth didn’t mention that she had a camera she could take. She wasn’t really very good at photography and it was Millicent’s career, and she was just starting out here in the city. Still, she felt John had put her on the spot and it irked her a little.

Millicent nodded and smiled. “I hope you can use me. I need the work and the exposure, you know.”

“We do,” John said. “But we couldn’t pay you. That would only come if the Tribune or Delineator wanted to use them.”

“I understand. I don’t have a problem with that.”

“I suppose you could tag along.”

“Maybe we should take a look and make sure we have the right buildings before we waste Millicent’s time,” Elizabeth suggested.

Millicent’s smile disappeared and she shrugged. “I’ll be around this morning. I can meet you there if you need me.”

Elizabeth sighed inwardly. What was wrong with her? If she didn’t know better she’d think she was jealous. But she liked Millicent. She was very nice and she did need the work. If they did an article and used her pictures, she’d make money. “You know, on second thought, why don’t you go get your camera and come on with us now?”

“Really?”

“Yes, but hurry,” Elizabeth said. She didn’t look at John for fear he’d see that she really didn’t want the other girl to go with them. And she wasn’t even sure why. She had little time to think about it, though, as Millicent was back downstairs in a flash, camera in hand.

“You know, I’m not sure taking your professional camera is a good idea,” John said. “We really only need some snapshots and we don’t want to alert the landlords to what we’re doing right now.”

“Oh, well, I can go get my Kodak. Will that work?”

“That will be fine.”

Elizabeth sighed as the other woman rushed back upstairs.

* * *

“What’s wrong? Don’t you think a smaller camera will be better?” John asked.

“I do. But I have one. I could snap the pictures.”

“Oh... I’m sorry, Elizabeth. I can tell Millicent we don’t need her. I should have—”

“No—we can’t do that. Not after telling her she could come. It will be fine. I’m just a little out of sorts this morning. I’m sorry.”

“Maybe you didn’t get enough sleep.”

“Maybe not. At any rate, I shouldn’t take my mood out on Millicent or anyone else.”

“It’s all right. We all wake up on the wrong side of the bed occasionally.” But John couldn’t remember when he’d seen Elizabeth in a bad mood of a morning. She was usually sunshine and light. Maybe it was lack of sleep, but he couldn’t help but wonder if something had happened at her aunt’s. She hadn’t seemed quite the same since she got back.

He wanted to ask but had a feeling she wouldn’t like his prying and he really couldn’t blame her. Still... “If there’s anything you want to talk about, I’d be glad to listen.”

An odd look passed over Elizabeth’s face and she opened her mouth—

“I’m back,” Millicent interrupted the moment.

Elizabeth’s mouth clamped shut and John felt let down. For a moment he was sure she was going to say something, but Millicent’s arrival quickly put a stop to it before it could happen. Something was bothering Elizabeth and it wasn’t just an out-of-sorts mood. But he wasn’t sure what to do about it. And at the moment there was nothing he could do.

“Let’s go, ladies.” He motioned to the door and followed them outside. It was a beautiful early summer day, blue sky overhead with only a few puffs of white cloud. They took the trolley past Gramercy Park over to Second Avenue and then to Eighth Street. The tenements weren’t pretty—especially compared to the neighborhood they lived in. All the buildings were pretty much the same, made of brick with stoops out front and most from six to seven stories high. But he knew the outside of them was deceiving—it was the inside that varied and most were in bad condition.

He didn’t like taking Elizabeth and Millicent there, but the cause was important and he’d learned long ago that Elizabeth had no qualms about going into the area. It had been obvious she had empathy for the poor from the first time they’d come here together to help Kathleen move. Was she born with it, or did it come from something in her past?

He’d known her for three years now, yet she remained an enigma. He felt he knew her better with each passing day, but he also felt that what he didn’t know about her far surpassed what he did. There was something about the woman that fascinated him and yet he was certain Elizabeth Anderson was far out of his reach. Not that it mattered. He’d learned his lesson about giving his heart to a woman the hard way and he had no intention of letting it happen again. Ever.

Still, he considered Elizabeth a friend and—

“Is this the address, John?” Elizabeth had stopped in front of one of the buildings.

“I think so.” He pulled the paper Kathleen had written the address on out of his pocket. “Yes, this is one of them. I’ll take a look.”

The building looked much the same as the others on the block—until he entered. The foyer said it all. The paint was peeling, the lights were dim with dust and the smell made John want to gag. He backed out of the doorway and turned to the women.

“No need for you ladies to come in. It’s no place for either of you.”

“If you can stand it, surely we can, too,” Elizabeth said. She and Millicent pushed their way around him to enter, and quickly grabbed their noses as they looked around.

“If the manager lets it look like this on the ground floor, what must it be like upstairs?” Elizabeth asked.

“If we want to know,” John answered, “now would be the time to find out. No one has come out to see what we’re up to yet. Are you up to it?”

Elizabeth gave a short nod while Millicent let go of her nose long enough to take a quick picture. Then they followed John up the stairs.

“If anyone asks, we can say we’re looking for someone,” he said in a low voice.

But they met no one in the halls. Everything was shut up, tight as a drum, the hallways dark from unwashed windows at the end of them, except where the broken windowpanes let light through, and only a dim lightbulb here and there. The stair railings were loose, just asking for an accident, and the trash in the hallways added to the odors that had them all holding their noses.

“Get a picture of that, Millicent.” Elizabeth shuddered and pointed to a rat getting his fill of something in a sack in a dark corner. “I hate to think children live here.”

Millicent let go of her nose and quickly took the picture. “Do we have enough?”

“For now,” John said. “Come on. Let’s get you both out of here. I shouldn’t have let you come inside in the first place.”

“We had to know what it is Kathleen was talking about, John,” Elizabeth said.

Just then a door cracked open. Millicent slid the camera into her bag and they all froze where they were.

Elizabeth held her breath and her heart seemed to stop beating as a big man backed out of the room. “You have one more day to pay your rent, Miss Hardin. If I don’t have it by tomorrow, you’re goin’ to be out on the streets.”

“I don’t know where I’m going to get it—I don’t get paid for another two days,” a woman’s voice said.

Elizabeth’s heart went out to her. How awful it would be to have to live here—and to pay good money to do so!

“Then you’d best be packing now.” The man turned and slammed the door behind him. He was big and foreboding as he realized strangers were in the hall.

“I don’t recognize the lot of you—who are you and what are you lookin’ for up here?”

John stepped forward. “Are you the landlord”

“I am. Mister Brown to you, and from the looks of ya, you aren’t lookin’ for an apartment. So just what is it you’re up to in my building?”

“We’re visiting.”

“Who is it you’re visitin’?”

Elizabeth hurried to the door he’d come out of. “Miss Hardin.”

“You’re friends of hers?”

Elizabeth had a feeling they were about to be. “We are.”

“Well, if you are, ya might help her with the rent, as she’s about to be thrown out on the street.”

“And how much does she owe?” John asked.

He named a figure and John dug in his pocket as Elizabeth and Millicent opened their pocketbooks.

Together they quickly came up with the amount Miss Hardin owed and John handed it to the man. “We want a receipt for it so our friend has proof that she’s paid up.”

“I’ll get you one. Come with me.”

“You two go on in and let our friend know she doesn’t have to move anywhere for now. I’ll be back once I get the receipt.”

John and the landlord started down stairs, the man saying, “If you’re such good friends with Miss Hardin, why aren’t you helpin’ her get out of here?”

“If you’re the landlord, why aren’t you doing something to clean up this building?”

“That ain’t any of your business, mister.”

Dear Lord, please don’t let anything happen to John, Elizabeth prayed as she hurried to knock on the door. “Miss Hardin?”

“Yes? Who is it?”

“We’re the women who just helped pay your rent,” Millicent said bluntly. “Please open the door.”

The door cracked open and a young woman about their age peeked around the door. “Why would you pay my rent?”

“We don’t like the landlord,” Millicent said.

“Or how he talked to you,” Elizabeth added. “And we wanted to help.”

The young woman looked totally confused as tears rushed to her eyes and she opened the door to let them in. “I didn’t know how I was going to do it. I have barely enough for food until payday. I was sick a week ago and couldn’t work. I— My name is Lacy and I don’t know how I can repay you.”

“We aren’t worried about that. We just didn’t want you thrown out.” Elizabeth dug in her pocketbook for one of Mrs. Heaton’s cards. “If you have problems—ever need a place to stay for a while, come here. You’ll be welcomed.”

The young woman turned the card over in her hand. “Heaton House.”

“Yes. It’s where we live. And our landlady takes in temporary boarders from time to time.”

There was a knock on the door and John said, “It’s me, Elizabeth. I have the receipt.”

“That’s our friend, John Talbot. He got a receipt for you from the landlord.”

Lacy opened the door and John handed her a piece of paper. “Keep that with you.”

She looked at the paper. “I really don’t know what to say.”

“Thank you is enough,” Elizabeth said. “And keep that receipt handy in case you need proof that your rent has been paid.”

The woman nodded as Elizabeth and Millicent headed out the door. Just as they were about to leave, John turned to the woman. “You wouldn’t happen to know who owns the building, do you?”

She shook her head. “No. The only person we ever see is Mr. Brown and then only when we pay the rent or he comes to collect. He’s not here half the time. Can never find him when we need anything.”

“Is it always in this condition?”

She sighed. “It is. I— Thank you again. I’ll try to repay you one day.”

“Keep safe and lock this door,” John said.

“Yes, I will.”

Elizabeth led the way back downstairs, wondering if the other two were as glad to get out of there as she was. She could hear the click of Millicent taking pictures along the way and hoped they would be good enough to use in the Delineator or the Tribune.

Once they were back outside, all three took deep, cleansing breaths—or they would be if the neighborhood had any clean air in it. It appeared that in spite of efforts to clean up the tenements, there was still much to be done.

“Do we want to find the next building?” Elizabeth asked.

“Maybe we should save that for another day?” Millicent suggested. “That was awful. I had no idea what it was like inside these buildings.”

John looked from one to the other. “We can come another time. What do you think, Elizabeth?”

She nodded. She had no desire to go into another building as bad as this one today. “Yes, let’s save it for another day.”

It was a quiet walk to the trolley stop. Elizabeth didn’t know about the others, but her heart was heavy at the conditions they’d seen and it made her admire Kathleen even more. “When I think of Kathleen and her family living in similar surroundings, my heart breaks all over again for her. I am so happy she and Luke have found each other.”

“I knew she’d lived in the tenements, but I never knew what kind of environment that meant until now,” Millicent said.

“Her building wasn’t quite as bad as the one we just saw, but the living conditions aren’t good in any of them. Some of the landlords are better than others, though.”

Millicent sighed and shook her head. “What a shame. I’m going to get off at Michael’s office and develop these photos. Hopefully I got some you can use. I’ll bring them back with me.”

Mrs. Heaton’s son, Michael, had cleared out a large storage closet near his office in the building he owned and was letting Millicent use it for a darkroom until she could afford to set up her business elsewhere.

“That’d be great, Millicent,” John said.

“Yes, and thank you. You were a great help today.” Elizabeth couldn’t deny she had been.

The trolley stopped a block away from Michael’s office and Millicent stepped into the aisle.

“Do you want us to wait for you?” Elizabeth asked.

“No need to. I’ll see you both later.” She gave a little wave and hurried down the aisle.

John had been sitting across the aisle, but he quickly moved to the empty seat beside Elizabeth, filling the seat up much more than Millicent had. Elizabeth caught her breath as his shoulder touched hers when he leaned near to say, “I think she did get some good shots. Hopefully we’ll be able to use one or two for our articles.”

“I hope so.”

“Although I’d like to do a little more investigating before handing my article in. All we really have is the pictures, if they turn out, and a tenant who’s being harassed by a bully of a landlord. And that’s pretty normal for the tenements.”

“Yes, sadly, it is.” She thought about how John hadn’t hesitated at paying Lacy’s rent. “That was very nice of you to take up for Miss Hardin. And to offer to pay her rent.”

John shrugged. “I hate seeing people bullied like that. Besides, you and Millicent helped with the rent, too. And it’s a good thing. I didn’t have the whole amount with me, but either way I was going to make sure Brown gave her a little more time.”

John was so aloof at times it was easy to wonder if anything really touched him. But obviously, someone about to be evicted did. His quick action had warmed Elizabeth’s heart. He’d always made it plain that his goal in life was to break a big story and to get promoted to lead reporter at the Tribune. But with his actions today she began to think there might be more to him than that. Was it possible John wasn’t quite as full of himself as she’d always believed?