Chapter Thirteen
Natalie adjusted her hat for the hundredth time as she took her
walk. She wasn’t used to wearing something with decorations on it.
While the hat was a pretty one that complemented her dress, she had
to wonder if it was practical. The maid had pinned in real flowers
to go with the color of her yellow dress. Those weren’t so bad. But
then the maid had added a couple of fake birds, and these had a
tendency to pull the hat forward. Even though the maid had pinned
the hat to her hair, Natalie could feel the pins
slipping.
“It’s in fashion,” the maid had told her.
“Ever since Mrs. Thomas wore something like it last month, it’s
been a popular style.”
Natalie had trouble believing it was in
fashion since she couldn’t recall seeing any other lady wearing
something like it, but rather than argue with the woman, she put it
on. The hat was actually beautiful, so she supposed it couldn’t
hurt to wear it.
What she hadn’t factored in, however, was
that the Nebraska winds would keep trying to blow the hat off of
her head. The pins weren’t strong enough to compensate for the
heavy bird figurines. Halfway into the park, she gave up pushing
her pins back into place. Instead, she held the hat up with her
hands. But, despite her best intentions, at one point she tripped,
and as she tumbled onto the grass, she released the hat, which, of
course, blew off her head.
She was surprised the hat was able to keep on
blowing away from her since the thing was so heavy, but then she
saw that the birds had fallen off several yards away from her.
With a sigh, she put her hands on the ground
and pushed herself up, which wasn’t as easy as it might have been
had she not been wearing a corset and a ton of petticoats. She
almost lost her balance, but then someone put his hand under her
arm and steadied her.
“I’ll help you,” a man said as he helped her
to her feet.
She glanced over and saw the preacher who had
married her and Mark. Before she could thank him, Ben ran after her
hat. She brushed back the strands of hair that were wrapping their
way around her face and pinned them back in place. Next time it was
this windy, she would skip the walk, even if the day was sunny and
warm. This just wasn’t worth the hassle.
Mark’s friend returned to her and held the
hat out to her. “Here you go.”
“Thank you,” she replied as she put it back
on her head and pushed some pins in through it to help secure it.
This time, it had no trouble staying in place. Those birds falling
off of it was for the best.
“You’re welcome,” he replied. “I was on my
way into town and thought I’d see Mark. He works a couple of blocks
from here.”
“I know. I’ve been to his office.”
“So you know your way through the maze of
downtown Omaha?”
She hadn’t thought of downtown Omaha as a
maze, but as she thought about it, he was right. There were a lot
of businesses already established, and more were popping up. It was
a growing area, and because of that, a person could get lost if
they didn’t know how to get somewhere.
“Mark’s coachman and some women showed me
around,” she said as they started walking.
“You do realize that the coachman belongs to
you, too, since you’re married to Mark.”
“Yes, I know, but I’m not used to having
servants yet. I don’t know if I’ll ever be.”
“Sure you will. You haven’t been married for
long. You’ll adjust to things in time, especially since Mark loves
you.”
“If it weren’t for Mark, I wouldn’t have
chosen to live this kind of life. Giving how I grew up, it did make
more sense for me to marry Tony. Velma would have fit right into
this world.” She gestured to the buildings they were approaching.
“She would have stepped right in, and everyone would have loved
her.”
“I may not know you, but Mark adores you and
if he adores you, then it means others will, too. Mark has a good
sense about people.”
Recalling Kenneth, she glanced at him. “When
Mark tells you he has a bad feeling about someone, is he
right?”
“You can trust Mark’s instincts about things.
I know most people don’t, but they don’t realize there’s a still,
small voice inside all of us telling us what is good and what
isn’t. He pays attention to it while most people don’t.”
She frowned. So if Mark was convinced that
Kenneth wasn’t good for Annabelle, then he was right. “It’s hard to
believe something unless there’s evidence.”
“It is, but that’s where faith comes in.
Faith allows you to believe in something you can’t prove.”
She sighed. It wasn’t the answer she was
hoping for. Annabelle was obviously interested in Kenneth. It might
not be love, but it could very well turn into love. She hated this.
She wished Ben had said that Mark wasn’t always right, that there
had been times when he’d been wrong. But he’d only confirmed what
Mark had been telling her all this time.
“How well do you know Annabelle?” she
asked.
Seeming startled by the question, he looked
at her, eyes wide. “I didn’t say anything about Annabelle.”
“I know you didn’t. I’m the one who brought
her up.”
“Why? Did Mark tell you that I want to marry
her?”
“You want to marry her?” she blurted out in
surprise.
He stopped and glanced around. “Not so
loud.”
She scanned the people around them, but no
one seemed to be paying attention to them. “I’m sorry. I didn’t
mean to be loud. I just didn’t expect what you said, that’s all.”
Lowering her voice, she asked, “You want to marry Annabelle?”
His face went red. “Yes, but it doesn’t
matter. She has no interest in me.” He straightened his suit jacket
then added, “You’re not going to tell her, are you?”
“Of course not. I would never tell anyone
anything so private.”
He visibly relaxed.
“This is wonderful,” she said. “You’re Mark’s
closest friend. His family already approves of you. It’d be a good
match. You should tell her how you feel.”
“I can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
“Because I have a hard time saying anything
to her. It’s been that way ever since we were children. I end up
sounding like a bumbling idiot whenever I’m around her.”
“That’s sweet.”
“It’s not sweet. It’s pathetic.”
“I’d think it was romantic if a man had
difficulty talking to me because he loved me.”
“It’s not romantic.”
As if to put an end to the conversation, he
started walking.
She followed after him. “What if I was with
you? You could come over to have dinner with Mark and me. Surely,
if Mark and I are there, we can help you be more comfortable. Then
you’ll have an easier time talking to her.”
“I don’t think it would do any good. Besides,
I heard she’s already interested in someone.”
“What if the person she’s interested in isn’t
really a good choice?”
He glanced at her. “What do you mean by
that?”
“What if she doesn’t realize the man she’s
interested in would make a bad husband?”
“Exactly what do you mean by ‘a bad
husband’?”
“I don’t know.” They crossed a street and
headed down the sidewalk that led to the building where Mark
worked. “What if he’s just not the person she thinks he is? What if
he’s lying to her?”
“Then whoever knows what he’s lying about
needs to tell her.”
“If you knew that a man was lying to her,
would you tell her?”
He blinked in surprise. He probably hadn’t
figured she would turn things around on him like that, but she was
curious as to how much he believed someone should warn her about
Kenneth. It was easy to say someone should do something. It was a
lot harder to be the one who actually did it.
“I would have to,” he finally replied. “I
have a responsibility to do the right thing.” His face grew red.
“Even though I didn’t do that when you married Mark.”
She smiled at him. “I hold no ill will
against you, Preacher. Mark had said things would work out, and
they did. Velma’s happy with Tony.”
“That’s good to hear. You should call me Ben,
by the way. Mark and I have been friends for years. Since you’re
his wife, you should address me by my first name.”
“In that case, you can call me Natalie.”
He nodded, and after a moment, he said. “I
felt so bad about being a part of the deception that I ran out of
peppermints.” Before she could ask him what peppermints had to do
with the wedding, he continued, “Is the man you’re talking about
named Kenneth Gordon?”
“You know about him?”
“Mark talked to me about him not too long
ago. He should tell her he has a bad feeling about him.”
“He doesn’t think she’ll believe him.”
He adjusted his hat and let out a heavy sigh.
“Alright, I’ll talk to her. What has Kenneth done that is
wrong?”
“Nothing that I know of, but you said Mark’s
instincts are good.”
“Yes, they are, but Annabelle is the kind of
person who wants proof. She’s always wanted proof. She’s been that
way ever since I can remember. I can’t tell her anything until
there’s some proof. When there’s proof, I’ll talk to her.”
They reached the building, and he opened the
door for her. She thanked him and went inside, glad to be out of
the wind. Even if her hat was no longer trying to blow off her
head, it was nice to be inside.
Ben headed for the elevator, and Natalie
called out, “Do you trust that thing?”
He glanced over his shoulder and stopped when
he realized she wasn’t beside him. “Sure. I’ve been in them a lot.
They’re quicker than going up the stairs.”
She stared at the elevator as the doors
opened. A couple of men came out, and the person in charge of it
waved for them to come in. She looked over at the stairwell. Should
she just get in there and get it over with? She was sure she’d come
by here to see Mark every so often. The sooner she overcame her
fear of the elevator, the better.
Taking a deep breath, she steeled her resolve
and marched for the elevator. Ben waited for her to go in and then
entered it. The young man who operated the elevator asked them what
floor they wanted, and Ben told them.
She scanned the small area. There wasn’t much
room in here. The walls of the elevator seemed to be much too
constricting, and as the young man shut the doors, a burst of panic
washed over her. If this contraption failed, would she even make it
out alive?
“Wait,” she called out before he pressed a
button. “I change my mind. I want to take the stairs.”
“It’s perfectly safe in here,” Ben said.
His soothing tone did nothing to calm her.
She needed to get out, and she needed to do it now. At least with
the stairs, she knew she could control things.
She looked at the young man. “Please.”
“Of course, ma’am.” He hurried to open the
doors for her.
She hurried out of the elevator, surprised
her heart was pounding as hard as it was. How could Mark and Ben
trust something like that?
A couple of people chuckled, and she turned
in time to see Katherine and Janet. Unfortunately, they headed over
in her direction.
“Don’t tell me Mark’s friend was trying
something with you that he shouldn’t,” Katherine whispered.
Natalie looked over her shoulder and saw that
Ben had left the elevator. He stood a few feet from them, patiently
waiting for her to return to him. “No. Preacher Martin has been a
perfect gentleman,” she rushed to say. Good heavens. These women
weren’t in the habit of spreading rumors, were they? She sure hoped
not. “We were on our way to see my husband. I thought I could go up
to the third floor in that elevator, but I got scared and had to
come back out.”
“Scared?” Katherine asked, her eyebrows
furrowed. “Of the elevator?”
“Why?” Janet added. “It’s a simple machine
that takes you from one floor to another. It’s much better than
stairs.”
Face warm, Natalie offered them a weak smile.
“I never saw one until I came to Omaha.”
“They’re simple,” Janet said. “You go in, the
young man shuts the doors and pressed the button, you go to the
floor you want, and once he opens the doors, you step out. There’s
nothing to it.”
Natalie knew it was simple. She understood
how the thing worked. She just didn’t know if it would work like it
was supposed to while she was in it. “When I was in there, it felt
as if everything was closing in around me.”
“Really?” Katherine’s eyebrows furrowed. “I
don’t understand. The elevator walls have never closed in on
me.”
“Me neither,” Janet replied, seeming just as
surprised by her answer. “I’ve been in elevators many times.”
“I have, too.” Katherine shrugged. “It must
be because you grew up on a farm. People with your background
haven’t had time to adjust to modern conveniences.”
“That must be it,” Janet said with a
satisfied nod. “Don’t worry, dear. I’m sure you’ll adjust to
everything in time.”
Natalie wasn’t sure if Janet meant to be
condescending or not, but that’s how her tone seemed.
“Oh, and one more thing,” Katherine added.
“In the future, you might want to pick a better hat on windy days.
I wasn’t sure if I should say something because it was rather
embarrassing watching the hat blow off your head when you took that
tumble, but it’s probably best if you heard it from me. Heavy items
in a hat are only acceptable if you’re indoors.”
Natalie’s shoulders slumped. So they had seen
that, too? How many other people saw it? Was everyone laughing at
her?
They wished her a pleasant day and went to
the elevator. Ben waited for a moment before approaching her.
“Are you ready to see Mark?” he asked. “We
can take the stairs.”
Figuring it would look worse if she ran on
home, she nodded and let Ben escort her to Mark’s office.