A Lady of Hidden Intent

by Tracie Peterson

Carter crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. “I take it there are financial problems at the mill.”

  “Your brother managed to lose us everything.”

  “We will get another investor,” Robin protested.

  “But when? It won’t come in time.” Their father slammed his fist down on the hall table. “I’ll be the laughingstock of Philadelphia.”

  “I don’t understand,” Carter said. “Why is time a problem?”

  “There is a large note due,” Robin said without waiting for their father to speak. “And if it is not paid, we stand to lose everything.”

  Carter shook his head. “Everything? Can you not sell some stock or other assets to meet the need?”

  “If it were that simple, it would already be done,” his father said. “I’ve sold off everything that I could. This deal was going to help us get back on top, and now there’s nothing.”

  “Could you not speak with the bank and ask for an extension?”

  “And admit that we’ve failed?” his father asked in disbelief.

  “Wouldn’t a temporary failure be better than a complete collapse of your business?” Carter asked. He found his father’s attitude to be out of line.

  “You know nothing about business. Just stay out of this.” His father stormed off, muttering and swearing all the way up the stairs.

  Carter looked at Robin and could see by his ashen expression that the situation was not over-exaggerated. “You’ll need to convince him to at least try to extend the loan,” he told his older brother.

  “Don’t think I haven’t tried. He’s determined to be thought a huge success, but my guess is that most of the town knows full well the details of our problems.” Robin ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t know what I’ll do if this disaster continues.”

  “Have you prayed for guidance?” Carter asked.

  Robin met his gaze. “No, but I suppose it would be a good idea. I’ve not done a good job on my own.”

  Carter nodded. “None of us does.”

  CHAPTER 28

  Catherine sat across from Mrs. Arlington as they finished a light lunch. The judge sat between them at the head of the table and regaled them with tales of various happenings in the city. Catherine liked the couple immensely. They were kind and gentle in nature but also quite amusing and entertaining. They reminded her very much of her own mother and father.

  “My dear, you look radiant today. Is that a new dress?”

  “Actually, it’s a gown Winifred Danby gave me. She had several that she didn’t need and wanted me to have.”

  “Well, it suits you very well,” Mrs. Arlington continued. “That color of blue suits your complexion.”

  Catherine looked at the powder blue color and nodded. “I like it very much. The construction is done quite well, and the material is of the utmost quality.”

  “You know so very much about sewing. I can do enough to get by,” the older woman declared, “but I was never gifted with the needle.”

  “You are gifted in many other ways,” the judge said and picked up his coffee cup. “There is none that can hold a candle to your china painting.”

  Mrs. Arlington smiled. “Thank you, my dear. You are so kind to say so.”

  “What plans have you today?” Judge Arlington asked Catherine.

  “I am going to buy supplies for Winifred’s wedding gown. I will probably visit Mrs. Clarkson first, however. She has ample supplies of pattern paper, and I’m certain she will lend me some. Carter has offered to take me this afternoon. I thought I would visit with Mrs. Clarkson and let her know all that has happened since we were last together.”

  “Well, I hope you will give her my regards,” Mrs. Arlington said.

  “I will.” Catherine slid her chair back. “If you will both excuse me, I need to finish preparing. Carter should be here shortly.”

  “But of course.” Mrs. Arlington nodded enthusiastically. “Be sure to invite him to supper tonight.”

  Catherine had just gotten to her feet when the judge added, “I hope you know that your father is welcome to stay here with us. We want to do whatever we can to assist in his recovery.”

  “That is so kind of you both. I know he will be touched by your generosity.” Catherine started to go, then paused and offered the couple a smile. “You both remind me of my parents. They were always laughing and happy. I have seldom seen two people more suited to each other than my mother and father, but you match their joy of life in every way. It is refreshing and pleasant to see.”

  “I’m sure you’ll find the same once you and Carter are joined in marriage,” Mrs. Arlington said with a coy smile.

  “Well, that might be true,” Catherine said, “but he has yet to truly propose.”

  “Surely you jest,” the judge said, putting down his cup. “That young man is wasting valuable time.”

  “Perhaps you should propose to him,” Mrs. Arlington teased.

  Catherine laughed. “Perhaps I shall.”

  “My dear, you cannot know how happy I was to hear you were back in town. I do wish you would have returned to me, but I understand Mr. Danby’s desiring you to rest. Still, I would have allowed for it here,” Mrs. Clarkson said.

  Catherine sat in Mrs. Clarkson’s private sitting room, explaining all that had happened since she had fled to New York. “You have been more than generous already. I know Selma and Dugan are happy to be back. I talked to Selma before coming to see you.”

  “They are very good to me,” Mrs. Clarkson admitted. “I hope to entice them to stay no matter what the outcome is with you and your father. But I’d also like to revisit my earlier proposition to you. I’d still like very much for you to become my partner.”

  “That’s very kind,” Catherine said.

  Mrs. Clarkson got up and went to a small sideboard. “I had the papers changed. See here, it says Newbury in place of Shay.” She brought the contract to Catherine. “We are already having requests for your designs, and in a few weeks when your patterns and drawings appear in Godey’s, I know we will have more than enough work to keep all of us busy.”

  “You cannot know that for sure,” Catherine protested.

  “I feel it,” Mrs. Clarkson said. “It is what my heart tells me. Not only that, but I am certain others can be hired to do the sewing. You could simply design the gowns and oversee their creation.”

  “I will think on it, Mrs. Clarkson, but until my father is returned to me and I know what his desires are, I cannot commit to anything. You understand, of course.”

  “Certainly I do, my dear. I only hope you will continue to consider it as you and your father make decisions. I must say I was more than a little pleased when Selma told me what Mr. Danby and Mr. Arlington had done to help you.”

  “Yes, it was a tremendous surprise,” Catherine replied, nodding. “My heart hasn’t been this light in years. I can scarcely stand to wait for word from Mr. Arlington.”

  “When did he leave for England?”

  Catherine sighed. “Only a week ago. He’s not even made it to England yet. I fear it will take so very long before I even know for certain Father has been set free. Supposedly he was released to the duke of Mayfield, but I cannot say for certain.”

  “My dear, we will simply continue to pray for his safety. Do not lose hope or allow yourself to fall into despair.”

  “No, I will not. That’s one of the reasons I plan to busy myself with Winifred Danby’s wedding gown.”

  Mrs. Clarkson clapped her hands together. “How wonderful. It will be all the more special because of the closeness you two share. Is there anything we can help with?”

  “Just the pattern paper, as I mentioned earlier.” The clock chimed and Catherine got to her feet. “Oh, you’ll have to excuse me. Mr. Danby promised to pick me up at three, so I should go now.”

  “Please come and see me again soon.” Mrs. Clarkson embraced Catherine and kissed her lightly on the cheek. “You are such a dear. I have missed our talks and your company.�
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  “I have missed you as well. I promise to consider the partnership.”

  They walked to the front door, where Catherine reclaimed her coat from Beatrix. “Do ya have to be goin’ just now?” the girl asked.

  “I’m afraid so. Mr. Danby promised to come for me at exactly three.” Catherine pulled on her coat and did up the buttons before taking a stack of pattern paper. “Thank you for this. It will help me as I work on Miss Danby’s wedding dress.”

  “But of course, my dear. You come back if you need any further assistance.”

  Lydia appeared and stood in the doorway to the planning room. She looked rather forlorn, and Catherine couldn’t help but feel sorry for her. Lydia probably didn’t know what to do with herself without Felicia badgering her.

  Catherine offered a smile. “I hope to see you all again very soon.” She opened the door to see Carter’s carriage waiting for her. He quickly exited the carriage and came up the walk to claim Catherine.

  “Good afternoon, Mrs. Clarkson.”

  “Good afternoon, Mr. Danby. Thank you so much for bringing Catherine to see me. I hope you will bring her again soon.”

  “I’m certain she will see to it,” Carter declared, giving a bow. He looked to Catherine and extended his arm. “Shall we?”

  Catherine nodded and let him lead her down the steps. Once they were inside the carriage she could see that Carter was deeply troubled. Putting the pattern paper aside, she turned to face him. “What’s wrong? Have you had some bad news?” Then a horrible thought came to mind. She put her hand to her mouth. “Is it Father?” The words came out in a muffled whisper.

  He frowned and patted her arm. “No. At least not your father. Mine, however, has caused more than a few problems for the family.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that. Your mother must be quite upset.”

  “She doesn’t know. At least not yet. Father would never allow her to know anything about his business. I wouldn’t know myself, but I overheard him the other day. Then today after dropping you off for your visit, I returned home to find him in a rage. Apparently Robin went behind his back and asked their banker about the possibility of an extension on a loan.”

  “And what was the result?” Catherine asked, rather confused as to why that would cause problems for Carter’s father.

  “The result is my father learned of this and lost his temper. He didn’t want anyone to know about the problem. He prides himself on being a leader in business. To admit the need for help deeply wounded him. He would never have done it on his own, but Robin knew the risk was too great to ignore.”

  “I am sorry.” Catherine could see that Carter was more than a little worried.

  “Were it not for Mother, I wouldn’t care. If Father lost everything it would serve him right. He’s broken the law and caused great harm to so many people. He deserves whatever happens to him, but my mother is innocent in this. She brought a part of her family’s fortune into the marriage, and now it’s gone.”

  Catherine put her hand over his. “Since the night I had to flee my home, I have struggled to trust God in every circumstance. I knew such fear from my loss and didn’t understand why God would allow such things to happen to me. I still don’t, but I do trust Him. You need to trust Him in this matter as well. Hopefully your father will make the right decision.”

  “I doubt it. He seldom does.” Carter looked away and squared his shoulders. “I apologize. I didn’t intend for our day to turn to this. Where are we headed?”

  “To pick up the things I need for Winifred’s wedding gown. I want to get to work right away. I have the paper I needed, and now I want to go ahead and purchase the material for the dress.”

  He smiled. “Very well. I shall accompany you and carry your packages.”

  She couldn’t help but laugh. “And I shall let you.”

  “Maybe you should buy some extra material,” Carter said with a wink. “Just in case you wanted to make yourself a wedding gown.”

  Catherine pretended exasperation and rolled her eyes. “I have no need for one, Mr. Danby. Your sister is the one getting married. Remember?”

  Carter tried not to think of his father’s rage while he waited for Catherine to find the things she wanted. He left her looking at several bolts of cloth and turned his attention to the traffic outside. He still hadn’t managed to formally ask Catherine for her hand in marriage, but he intended to rectify that tonight.

  Yet there was the matter of her father. Catherine wouldn’t want to marry without knowing he was safe and well. She would probably seek her father’s blessing, and while that would add to the time before they could be wed, Carter would have it no other way.

  He glanced back to see if Catherine needed any help, only to realize that Felicia stood behind the counter. Only moments ago an older woman, whom Carter presumed was the owner, had been assisting Catherine. Now the same blonde who had caused Catherine so much grief at the sewing house was obviously at it once again. She was talking to Catherine and looked quite menacing. From the way Catherine’s expression had tightened, Carter knew there was trouble. He snuck around the aisle and came upon the women without either one seeing him.

  “I will tell the police,” Felicia stated quite clearly.

  “You’ll tell them what?” Carter asked, coming up behind Catherine. He put his hand protectively on her elbow.

  Felicia looked quite taken aback. Carter glanced at Catherine and back to Felicia. “Will you tell them how you tried to blackmail Miss Newbury?”

  “I . . . I . . . did nothing wrong!” Felica declared.

  “The authorities are in a better place to judge that,” Carter replied. “And since they already know about Miss Newbury’s situation, including how her father’s former partner could prove to be dangerous to her welfare, I think they would be interested to hear how you have threatened her. Better still, perhaps your employer would like to know about it first.”

  “No!” Felicia sounded rather desperate. She leaned forward on the counter. “I need this position. Mrs. Clarkson turned me out without thought as to what I would do.”

  “Perhaps you should have thought of that before striking out yet again to harm Miss Newbury.”

  He turned to Catherine. “What shall we do? Would you like me to send someone for the police?”

  Catherine looked at Felicia and then back to Carter. “No. She has no means to cause me harm. Not anymore.”

  Felicia seemed to be holding her breath as she met Carter’s gaze. He shook his head. “Very well. You don’t deserve Miss Newbury’s mercy, but I shall comply with her wishes.”

  “Thank you.” Felicia took up the bolt of material. “I’ll add these things up for you.” She hurried toward the front of the store, her arms full of various materials and trims.

  “Are you certain you wouldn’t like to see her pay for her bad deeds?”

  Catherine shook her head. “No. I lived in fear of the law for so many years. I don’t wish that to be anyone else’s fate.”

  “But she deserves it—you didn’t.”

  “Perhaps, but just as you mentioned, I will show mercy.”

  Carter surprised Catherine by paying for the purchases. He told her his father could make it right at a later time. He would probably never see a single cent from his father, but it could be a gift to his sister. She deserved that much and more.

  He helped Catherine from the store, carrying the stack of materials and sewing notions. Joseph waited faithfully to take the purchases and put them into the carriage before Carter handed Catherine up.

  “Mrs. Arlington told me I should invite you to stay for supper. Would you like to do that?” Catherine asked.

  Carter joined her, sitting beside her, while the purchases were carefully resting on the opposite side.

  “I’d like to, but perhaps I should wait to decide until we have a chance to talk.”

  “And what would you want to speak to me about that would negate an invitation by Mrs. Arlington?”

/>   “I want to talk to you about our future.”

  “I see.”

  He thought he heard a tremor in her voice, but he pressed on. “You know I’ve been working on designs for new government buildings in the capital. What I didn’t tell you was that if our designs are chosen, it would require me to relocate to Washington.”

  “I suppose so.” She looked out the window as if the matter was unimportant.

  “That’s all you have to say about it?”

  “I’m uncertain as to what to say. You should know that Mrs. Clarkson would like to have me as her partner. She wants me to design the gowns and oversee their creation. If I agreed to do that, I would most likely move back to the sewing house.”

  “What of your father?”

  “I told Mrs. Clarkson I would need to wait and see what was best for him. If, as you said, the Crown returns his assets, then that will need to be considered. If he desires to remain in England, that is yet something more for me to think about.”

  Carter felt a sense of frustration. The discussion wasn’t going the way he’d planned it. “Look at me,” he said in a voice barely audible.

  Catherine turned and met his gaze. It was nearly his undoing. Her beauty was intoxicating. “You have no idea what you mean to me.”

  She smiled. “Perhaps I do.”

  He laughed. “Perhaps you do. Still, I’m not entirely sure how I feel about married women working.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Mrs. Clarkson’s offer.”

  “But I’m not a married woman,” Catherine said, raising a brow.

  Carter pulled her into his arms. “If I have my way, you will be.” He kissed her without waiting for any further comment. Catherine put her hand on his cheek and returned the kiss.

  Pulling away, Carter grinned. “Is that a yes?”

  She gave him a rather blank look and shrugged. “I don’t recall being asked a question.”

  “Perhaps this will refresh your memory.” Carter pressed his lips to hers once again. Wrapping her in his arms, he pulled her closer still and let his kiss deepen. He heard Catherine sigh and couldn’t help but smile. Ending the kiss he looked at her, surprised to find her already staring back.