Chapter 25
CHAPTER
Elsa paid the cab fare and leaned on her cane, relying on it more than usual after Thursday night’s harrowing ordeal, even after resting for most of yesterday and all of today.
She readjusted her cloche and climbed the eight steps, pausing for breath at the top before pushing through the brass revolving doors of The Plaza Hotel.
It would take more than two days to recover from what she’d done at Elmhurst.
But Mother had sounded so excited when she’d invited Elsa here for their weekly dinner, she hadn’t had the heart to cancel.
Elsa smiled as she entered the lobby. An enormous vase of lilies perfumed the air. Potted palm trees framed the entrance to the restaurant.
“Right this way.” A man in a tuxedo led her into the spacious restaurant, lit by a glass ceiling stained with shades of blue, green, and gold. “Your party, miss.” When he made to pull out her chair, he was interrupted by a bachelor her parents must have invited to join them.
This was one bachelor Elsa was thrilled to see.
“The honor is mine.” He came around and seated her with a smile that warmed her to her toes.
Luke Dupont in a crisp black suit was a vision she hadn’t been prepared for.
She had known he was strong and considered him handsome from the first time they’d met.
But there was something about the way that jacket fit him that sent a little flip to her stomach. He was resplendent.
“And here I thought I was early.” Elsa leaned her cane against the edge of the table. “Yet you three look like you’ve been deep in conversation.”
Her father tented his hands on the white linen tablecloth. “We have.”
Elsa raised her eyebrows, looking from one parent to the other. “And?”
Beside her, Mother’s smile held nothing back, but it was Father who answered. “Your mother and I have decided to retire. From matchmaking.”
“It would seem our services are no longer needed,” Mother added. “And through no fault of our own.”
Elsa coughed to hide a laugh.
“Do you agree?” Luke asked.
“I do.” Elsa grinned. “Emphatically.”
“Excellent.” Father stood, and Mother slipped her hand in his as she rose, as well. “Then our work here is done. Enjoy yourselves.”
Elsa glanced at the table and saw only two menus. “You don’t have to go,” she said. “Please, at least stay and have dinner. These reservations aren’t easy to come by, after all.”
“By all means, don’t let us run you off,” Luke echoed. “Join us.”
“If you’re sure, dears. I’d love nothing better.” Mother returned to the chair beside Elsa’s, and Father slid into the booth by Luke.
“We have a lot to catch up on,” Elsa told her parents.
Father swallowed and shared a look with Mother before turning an affectionate gaze on Elsa once more. “That we do.”
Dinner was soon ordered and served: crab cakes, grilled salmon, stuffed chicken, roast beef, and Yorkshire pudding.
Over the course of the evening, Elsa told them she found the aviary pages for the Petrovics.
She did not tell them she’d been locked in a dark room, had crawled through a tunnel, and jumped from a burning building.
There was no point in upsetting her parents unnecessarily.
“I do have some good news on that score,” Luke added.
“I showed some of the pages to the curator of medieval art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and he’s very interested.
He’ll have to bring it to the acquisitions board for official approval to extend an offer, of course.
But he was impressed by the provenance, deemed all of it genuine, and is eager to move forward.
Even if his offer ends up being on the lower end of the scale he mentioned to me, the Petrovics will have enough money to buy the land they want. ”
“And what is Tatiana’s plan?” Mother asked. “If the county agrees to sell her some of the Elmhurst land, will she continue to work on the grounds?”
“I don’t think they’d be able to stop her,” Elsa said. “Even if she only does it as a volunteer, I have a feeling stewarding the land is all she wants to do.”
“If the county has any sense,” Luke added, “they’ll consider her input when planning their landscape design.
She has a wealth of experience with what grows on that land and what doesn’t.
I’m going with her when she meets with Mr. Field about all this.
If he refuses to sell any of the land back to her, we’ll connect with my real estate contact in the Hudson River valley.
Even if her new home isn’t right on Elmhurst grounds, we’ll make sure it’s on the same river. ”
“Would you? That would be so helpful,” Elsa told him.
Mother smiled and folded her napkin, laying it beside her dinner plate. “And now, I think it would be most helpful for us older folks to take our leave and let you enjoy the rest of the evening.”
Luke stood and shook Father’s hand. Mother kissed Luke’s cheek. And Elsa marveled at the warmth already springing between them. Who were these parents of hers? And why had it taken so long for her to find them?
But people changed. Elsa was proof of that, as well.
Luke smiled at Elsa and took her hand, drawing her into the booth beside him. “Dessert?” he asked.
“I’d love to, but I couldn’t possibly.”
“Nice night for a walk in the park.”
“One of the nicest. How about a carriage ride this time instead?” She was done ignoring her limits. It was time to be kind to herself instead.
Luke’s smile broadened, pushing brackets into his cheeks. “Even better.”
———
Clip-clopping hoofbeats made a soothing rhythm as the horse pulled the carriage through Central Park.
To the left was the pond, its surface reflecting the cloud-tufted sky.
Trees arched their branches overhead, releasing some leaves to swirl on the breeze.
Elsa picked one off Luke’s shoulder and rolled its stem between her fingers.
“What did they find out about the fire?” she asked, now that such questions wouldn’t upset her parents. “Was it arson for a lark since they knew the house would be torn down the next day anyway?”
Luke shook his head. “I’ve spoken with the fire inspector in Tarrytown, and he didn’t see signs of foul play. His best guess was that someone was careless with a cigarette right before leaving for the night, and it caused a fire, made worse by spills of whatever alcohol they brought in.”
Elsa could believe it. “I still don’t understand why Archer let me stay locked up for so long, even if he’d soured on our friendship. Was he being deliberately vengeful? Or am I truly that forgettable to him?”
“As it happens, I asked him the same thing yesterday morning. I went to his house before work.”
She turned to look at him. “You did?”
“Of course I did. His parents were very interested in what I came to say and ask him. It was obvious he was suffering a headache from the night before, but I didn’t let that stop me from speaking loud and clear. I would have hated for him to miss a word.”
Elsa could picture it. “Did you go all scary face on him? I mean, scary is in the eye of the beholder. And behold, I don’t think you’re scary at all.”
Luke chuckled. “He should have been scared. His parents looked horrified, but not because of me. Archer had to admit that he had locked you in that room and forgot about you. You should have seen their faces when I told them about the fire. I admit to waiting an extra beat before telling them you escaped. They needed to consider what could have happened. They needed to know you could have—” He swallowed and shook his head.
She laced her fingers with his. “But I didn’t.
It’s over.” After returning to her apartment in the wee hours of Friday morning, she’d fallen asleep only to wake with a start in the dark.
It had taken her a few moments to reorient herself to her bedroom, as opposed to the pitch-black tunnel where she had been.
Last night had been the same, waking with a surge of adrenaline as she had when Barney licked her awake in the tunnel.
She told herself then what she told Luke now. “It’s over. All is well.”
“I haven’t stopped thanking God for that.
” He put his arm around her, and she nestled into his side.
“At any rate, from what Archer said—if we can believe the guy—he went back to let you out after you’d entered the tunnel.
When he didn’t see you in there, he figured someone else had let you out and had locked the door again after you left.
When he drove home, he allegedly believed you’d left before him. ”
Resting her head on Luke’s shoulder, Elsa pondered Archer’s explanation as they rolled past Gapstow Bridge. The stone arch over the neck of the pond was mostly covered with vines that would soon turn bare for winter.
“Do you believe Archer’s story?” Luke prodded.
She didn’t answer right away. “It’s easier to believe him than to think he’d intentionally leave me there when he left for the night. I can’t believe he would be that cruel. No decent human being would do that, even to someone they didn’t care for.”
“Have you thought about pressing charges?” he asked. “Mr. and Mrs. Hamlin said they were ready to offer any sum to keep you from doing so, and from talking to the press about Archer’s role. I’m surprised they haven’t reached out to you already.”
Elsa frowned. “Maybe they tried. Ivy kept the telephone off the hook today to make sure no ringing would wake me. No, I don’t want to press charges or talk to the press, and I certainly don’t need their money. The charges wouldn’t stick, and I’d rather move on from the entire ordeal.”
The carriage trundled by families and locals, past tourists smart enough not to come at the height of summer.
When they came near enough to the Central Park Carousel to hear the organ music on the breeze, Elsa could picture the hand-painted horses going up and down on their poles, even though she couldn’t see it from here.