Clyde flushed and got to his feet. “If I am honored to meet with the crown princess, all will be prepared by the finest chefs—”
“Because the princess has very discriminating tastes. I would take it as a personal embarrassment if she’s fed embalmed beef.”
“Of course, ma’am. And may I state that my company had no part in the embalmed beef controversy during the late war.”
Mrs. McKinley sent him a withering stare. “That’s a low bar, Mr. Magruder.”
Gray could almost feel sorry for Clyde Magruder. He didn’t deserve the attacks coming from Mrs. McKinley, but the journalists were catching every word, and tomorrow’s newspapers would laud the first lady for valiantly standing up for American troops while castigating Magruder Food.
Clyde Magruder’s congressional hopes had just been dealt a body blow.
After the meeting, Annabelle stood beside her parents, watching the aftermath continue in the lobby. Her parents gaped at Mrs. McKinley as she was wheeled out of the conference room,reporters surrounding her to take advantage of her rare public appearance. Caroline dutifully stood beside her, keeping the journalists at a distance but gamely helping Mrs. McKinley field their questions.
The meeting had surpassed Annabelle’s expectations, exposing the Magruders in a fashion that would delight Luke’s mischievous sense of humor. Thanks to Maude, the food company’s practice of cheating people a few pennies at a time had been laid bare. Ida McKinley’s distaste for cheap Magruder imitations had been icing on the cake. While Mrs. McKinley’s tirade appeared impulsive, Annabelle had noticed the subtle interplay between Caroline and the first lady and suspected both women knew exactly what they were doing. Even now Caroline and the first lady seemed to be enjoying themselves while the reporters scrambled for attention.
Not so the Magruders, who made a beeline for the exit, avoiding questions and looking as dark as thunderclouds. They had gotten their military contract, but not without a pummeling to their reputation. Although the fight for legislation for pure food would be waged for years to come, the drumbeat of change had begun. She and Gray had played only a small part in it, but no matter how long she lived, Annabelle would be forever proud of what they’d accomplished.
She gazed at Gray across the crowded lobby as he stood beside Caroline. What a proud, magnificent man he was. She drank in the sight of him, trying to imprint it in her memory, for by this time tomorrow she would be on a train back to Kansas.
“Time to leave if we’re going to meet Elaine for dinner,” her father said, cutting through her thoughts.
“I know.”
Even as she spoke, she met Gray’s eyes across the lobby, and he began angling through the throng of people toward her. She braced herself, not sure how to say good-bye. He seemed ill at ease too.
“The two of you are good soldiers to have in a fight,” he said to her parents, offering both of them a handshake. “Well done, Maude. Roy.”
Roy nodded but Maude beamed. Then Gray turned his attention to Annabelle, and it felt like her heart was in her throat.
“So you’re leaving for Kansas tomorrow?” he asked.
Her gaze locked with his, and the first cracks in her heart began to split. She wanted to rush into his arms and lay her head on his shoulder, turn back the clock, and run away with him.
Instead she managed a smile. “My boss gave me a sack of durum wheat. We’ll be the first farm in Kansas to test it. Maybe it will be the answer for us.”
Gray’s eyes warmed in affection and a hint of regret. “I hope so,” he said and extended his hand. “Best of luck, Annabelle.”
Was she really going to bid farewell to the only man she’d ever loved by shaking his hand? But she did, and he touched the side of her face before turning away to follow his sister out of the building.
After the thrill of the day’s events, Gray found the loneliness in his townhouse unbearable, for there was no one with whom to share his triumph. Annabelle was leaving for Kansas, Caroline now lived at the White House, and Luke ... well, Luke was probably gone forever.
Like the irresistible urge to wiggle a sore tooth, Gray felt the need to torment himself by heading upstairs into the cold loneliness of his younger brother’s bedroom. Everything was exactly as Luke had left it four months earlier. A half-used bar of shaving soap lay on a dish alongside a canister of tooth powder. Some books from the local library were stacked on the corner of the dresser. It was past time to return the books and dispose of the toiletries, but Gray had been delaying the inevitable. He just didn’t want to face the fact that Luke wasn’t coming back.
He sighed and paced the room, turmoil and loneliness clawing at him. The only sound in the empty house was his footsteps echoing in the empty room.Thud,thud,thud,thunk...
That was odd. He stepped on the hollow-sounding spot again.Thunk.
The floor was covered by an oriental rug Luke had bought a few years ago. Gray remembered being surprised by it, for although Luke had always been a sharp dresser, he’d never spent anything on furnishing the house. So why the pricey rug?
Gray knelt to peel back the carpet and saw that a square about two feet wide had been cut into the floorboards. His heart accelerated and his palms began to sweat. Whatever was hidden here, Luke had gone to a lot of trouble to hide it.
A notch on one of the boards was barely large enough to wiggle a finger into and lift up the board. Dust swirled and Gray’s nose twitched as he lifted the other boards free. The cache was filled with books and papers. He dreaded what he was about to see, for the top documents were in Spanish.
Nausea filled his stomach. If this was related to Luke’s treasonous activities, did he have the fortitude to surrender it to the government? If it could save lives, it would be the right thing to do. It was still a vile thought. Was this how Annabelle felt when she’d been confronted with the exact same situation?
He lifted out the first book, staring at the title. He couldn’t read Spanish, but the language was enough like French that he could tell it was a book about the banking system of Spain.Banking?The pages were filled with mathematical charts and monetary tables. The other books in Spanish looked equally harmless, merely books on the history and economy of Cuba.
He quickly rifled through the other documents, and relief trickled through him. There was nothing relating to the military or troop positions, but Luke had gone to a great deal of trouble to hide these papers, and Gray desperately wanted to know why.
