Chapter 2
Not long after Fern fled to her bedroom, her mother sent Margie to track her down.
Predictably, Mrs. Adair hadn’t dared to leave her guests to come sort out why her daughter was not in the White Room for after-dinner cocktails.
Keeping the bedroom door closed to Margie’s persistent knocking, Fern mumbled that she’d developed a headache and planned to retire for the night.
She was certain Margie would deliver the excuse to Mrs. Adair, and that her mother would know it was a lie.
She would have to face her mother before too long, but first, Fern needed to speak to her brother about what Mr. Clifton and Mr. Halbert had said.
After waiting for all the guests to depart, she slipped out her bedroom and tread lightly to Buchanan’s room on the third floor.
He’d be leaving shortly for one of his clubs, and after spending the last hour sequestered in her room, her gut slowly twisting, she wanted to catch him before he went out.
Buchanan was a social creature, like their mother, and nearly every evening he went out to restaurants, clubs, or whatever speakeasy joint he could slink his way into.
He had a degree in business from Northwestern University, a managerial position at Sheridan Trust her little girl had every right to leave the house without being subjected to such scrutiny.
Fern had admired her mother when she’d declared that she was no different than any other child—that she would hold her chin high and teach Fern to do the same.