“You found my gloves! Thank you for bringing them. I was quite distraught when I realized they had gone missing, but I didn’t feel at liberty to retrace my steps due to concerns of safety. I’m so grateful I left them at your shop.” Martha picked up the gloves and pressed them in her hands, as though she was trying to locate the locket she had hidden in one of them.
“You are most welcome.” Lucy debated telling Mrs. Washington about the man who claimed to be her nephew, trying to retrieve them, but held her tongue. Instead, she nudged the first bag toward Mrs. Washington. “This was in your glove. The other holds your ring.”
A look of great relief passed over Martha’s features as she touched the bag with the locket, then she loosened the ribbontie on the bag that kept the ring, tipped it out, and slipped it on her right hand. She held out her fingers, admiring the play of sunlight on the diamonds. “It is even more beautiful than I recalled, and the fit is perfect. Thank you.” She reached for the other bag and removed the locket. “Look at that shine! I don’t think it has looked like this since it was new. It was given to me as a gift last autumn.”
“The person who made it is quite talented at the craft. Is the portrait inside of your daughter?” Lucy asked, wanting to know more about the locket, particularly the contents.
“No. I have no knowledge of the child’s identity, but she looked so charming and impish, I was most pleased to leave the portrait in the locket. Her smile reminds me of my darling daughter at that age. Sadly, she passed away three years ago.”
“I am deeply sorry for your loss.” Lucy leaned forward slightly and watched as the woman opened the locket and stared at the portrait for a moment, as though she walked through sweet memories.
Martha looked up at Lucy, appearing pleased. “You even polished the inside. Thank you.”
“My pleasure.” Lucy kept her hands in her lap lest she grab the locket and demand to know more about the hidden compartment. “I did polish the inside. Both areas of the inside.”
Martha raised an eyebrow. “Both areas?”
“Yes, ma’am. I do beg your pardon, but I removed the portrait to polish the silver around and behind it, and found the hidden clasp. When I touched it, the back opened and I happened to see the engraved name and the note inside.” Emboldened by the curious expression on Martha’s face, Lucy pressed on. “You are Mrs. Washington, aren’t you?”
Martha nodded. “I am. Patsy is a childhood name I use from time to time. Oddly enough, it was also a pet name for my daughter and brings her to mind when I use it. Regardless, Ididn’t intend for you to feel deceived, Lucy. I’m never quite sure whom I can trust. Enemies lurk around every corner these days.”
At the sound of approaching footsteps, Martha placed the hand holding the locket beneath the table out of view.
Eliza strode toward them carrying a loaded tray of food, accompanied by a young woman balancing a beverage tray, and a young man holding a chair in his hands. The chair was placed beside Lucy, and then food and drinks were arranged on the table. Bread, cheese, slices of roasted pork, pickles, fruit, and dainty sweets were served on beautiful plates edged in gold. Lemonade filled an expensive crystal pitcher, while a floral-painted teapot held steaming tea.
Lucy remained silent as the three servants nodded to Martha and then left.
Martha bowed her head, and Lucy hurried to follow suit, listening as the woman asked a brief heartfelt prayer on their repast and time of getting acquainted.
“Thank you, Mrs. Washington,” Lucy said after uttering a soft amen. She draped a fine linen napkin over her lap, then waited with hands clasped beneath the table as Martha reached for the lemonade.
“Would you care for lemonade or tea?”
“Lemonade, please,” Lucy said, looking forward to enjoying the treat. She had only had it a few times in her life, since lemons, along with tropical fruits, were expensive. She stared at what she was sure were pieces of pineapple among the berries on the plate of fruit. Not once had she tasted it, but she couldn’t wait to try a bite.
Before she ate, though, she wanted to know more about the locket.
Martha filled two glasses with lemonade and set one in front of Lucy, glanced around, then placed the locket on the table between them.
“You read the note?” Martha asked in a subdued voice, as though she was sure someone was listening.
“Yes. Truthfully, Theo and I have been trying to decipher it. It’s a code of some sort, isn’t it?”
Martha nodded. “It is. I am unable to divulge details to you, Lucy, until I know more about you. Your father is reputed as a fair man who hasn’t yet taken sides with Loyalists or Patriots, which is why I was so grateful to reach your shop. I knew I would be safe there.”
Lucy thought of her own disappointment that her father hadn’t been swayed to join those pursuing liberty, but didn’t give voice to her opinions. Her father was a good man. A kind man. A fair man. If straddling the fence between loyalty to the Crown and liberty had meant Martha Washington felt safe coming to his shop, then how could Lucy find any fault?
“Father feels it is important to have places in town where anyone can shop without fear of being castigated for their political beliefs.”
Martha remained silent for a moment and scooted a little closer to Lucy. “What do you believe?”
Lucy knew spilling her heart to the wrong person could end with her in the stockade, a prison, or even dead. But she was desperate to do her part to help the Patriots win the war, regardless of the personal cost.
“I believe it is time for the colonies in America to unite, to cast off the shackles of the king, and do whatever it takes to blaze a new path for our country. We cannot go back, and it seems to me the only way is forward into a future built on equality, where we all have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Martha smiled at Lucy’s reference to the Declaration of Independence. “You have memorized some of the lines of our great declaration.”
“They are lines worthy of being memorized and remembered often. Thomas Jefferson’s writings are inspiring.” Lucy had heard Mr. Jefferson from Virginia had penned much of the declaration, even though he was one of the younger members of the Continental Congress. “I must admit, Mrs. Washington, to being an admirer of both you and your husband. He is a fine leader, yet he does not have an easy task ahead of him. Those of us who believe in what he and the Continental Army are fighting for must be willing to do what we can to help.”
