Janet Barton - A Place of Refuge

“It’s good to see you as well, Gretchen.”

Mrs. Heaton led her back to the hall and to a room across from the kitchen. “This is the back parlor where you may bring a guest. Gretchen and Maida are always happy to prepare refreshment for you and your company. It’s a nice place to come to read or write letters or just a place to relax.”

It was a very inviting room, smaller but just as beautiful as the larger parlor, and done in blues and greens with a homey feel to it. After that was a smaller room, very cozy with a wall of shelves filled with books.

“This is my study. You’re welcome to borrow any book you’d like,” Mrs. Heaton said.

“I do like to read, but haven’t had much opportunity to in a while.” Kathleen couldn’t remember when she’d last had the time to read for pleasure.

“Feel free to help yourself anytime.”

“Thank you, I will.”

They walked out and Mrs. Heaton showed her where the telephone was in an area under the staircase. “Mrs. Driscoll has this number in case she needs to call you in. And I have hers if you should need to speak with her.”

They were back to the foyer and Mrs. Heaton said, “That’s about it for this floor—except there is a small garden out back. Downstairs is where the men’s rooms are, and the next floor up from yours is where Maida’s and Gretchen’s rooms are, with a few other rooms that are used from time to time.”

“It’s beautiful, Mrs. Heaton.”

The telephone in the cubby behind the staircase rang just then and Mrs. Heaton took it on herself to answer. She put her hand over the receiver and whispered, “This is a call I need to take. I’m sorry, I—”

“Oh, no, please take your call. I’ll see you later.”

Kathleen gave a little wave and hurried upstairs to her room. A room she’d never thought to live in and wasn’t sure she could afford to, until after she knew what Mrs. Heaton would be charging her. The woman had refused to discuss it until after Kathleen went back to work, telling her that she didn’t owe a penny until then.

She’d hate to leave, but after seeing the rest of the house, she couldn’t imagine that she could actually afford to stay. She might have to look into the YWCA. Kathleen made her bed—refusing to let Gretchen and Maida do it for her. They had enough work to do.

The bathroom was empty and she decided to wash her hair for the outing that afternoon. She toweled it dry as best she could and combed it out, knowing it would dry into near-uncontrollable curls.

When she entered her room, she noticed the door to her armoire was open slightly and went to close it. But color caught her eye and she opened it to find it full of clothing and a note attached to a gold dinner dress. At least that’s what she thought it was from the magazines some of her coworkers had brought to work.

She unpinned the note and read, “Kathleen, these are the outfits I told you about. As you can see, the colors are much more suited to you than to me. This gold dress will work nicely for dinner tonight. I hope everything fits. If not, we can alter them. I took a sewing course from Violet Heaton last summer.”

Kathleen hurried back into the bathroom and knocked on Elizabeth’s door. When her new friend opened it with a smile, Kathleen threw her arms around her neck.

“I don’t know what to say, except thank you, Elizabeth. I’m not sure I can accept your generosity though—it’s too much.”

“It is not too much, Kathleen. Aside from my buying on a whim, I have an aunt who buys clothes for me without taking into consideration the colors or styles I like. I wore them each once for her. I’ll not be wearing them again. If you don’t like them—” Elizabeth shrugged “—we’ll just gather them up and I’ll—”

“Oh, no. I do love them. And I’m sure they’ll fit. Thank you.”

“You are more than welcome. Come on, try them on and let’s see if they need to be taken up anywhere.”

They spent the rest of the morning with Kathleen trying on outfits, including a warm coat Elizabeth had assured her she didn’t need.

“I have another newer one, Kathleen, and I like it better. This one is just going to hang in my closet or be given to someone else.”

The coat fit perfectly, as did everything else, and all Kathleen could do was thank Elizabeth once more. As she tried on one outfit after another, Elizabeth ran back and forth between rooms to find the accessories that went with them. It was almost too much to take in.

By the time she and Elizabeth joined the others in the foyer to go to the museum, Kathleen felt as if she were the most blessed person on earth. Hard as it’d been for her to understand why things never seemed to get better for her sister’s family, now she couldn’t understand why things had changed so drastically, in the best possible way, for her. All she knew was that the Lord had blessed her beyond anything she’d ever imagined.

* * *

When Luke saw how happy Kathleen looked as she and Elizabeth came downstairs, he was very glad he’d written enough that he could take the afternoon off.

“Are you ready? Are your shoes comfortable?” he asked Kathleen.

“I’m ready and yes, my shoes are comfortable. Elizabeth gave them to me and she broke them in well.”

“That was nice of her.” Luke smiled and nodded at Elizabeth. He’d been sure the women at Heaton House would take care of any shortage in Kathleen’s wardrobe. They seemed to have plenty and were always bringing in more from a shopping trip on Ladies’ Mile.

“They look comfortable and that’s good, because you’re going to be walking a lot.”

They all left the house and he fell into step beside Kathleen as the group headed for the trolley stop.

“This is a very nice neighborhood,” she said. “I thought it would be, since Heaton House is so beautiful, but I haven’t been out since the night I was brought here.”

“Gramercy Park is a good neighborhood. It’s an old one, but very well kept as you can see. The park is nice, too. We’ll have to show it to you one day.”

“There’s a park?”

“Yes,” Elizabeth said from behind her. “It’s a small private one, open only for those living in the neighborhood. It really is a kind of oasis of sorts and you can’t get to it without a key.”

“It sounds lovely.”

The trolley to the museum arrived and Luke made sure to be right behind Kathleen as they stepped up into it. He had their fare paid before she could open her reticule.

“That’s all right, miss. You’re paid for,” the driver said.

Luke wasn’t sure how she would take him paying for her but it didn’t take long to find out. He found empty seats for them and motioned for her to take the one by the window.

As soon as they both had sat down, she turned to him, her eyes flashing. “Thank you for getting my fare for me, Mr. Patterson. But I have a job and I don’t expect you or anyone else to pay my way.”

“Please don’t be upset with me, Miss O’Bryan.” He smiled down at her. “I know you haven’t worked this week and I don’t want you to go short until you get your next pay. Forgive me if I’ve insulted you.”

Kathleen closed her eyes and gave a little shake to her head before releasing a sigh. “I’m sorry if I’ve insulted you after all you’ve done for me, Mr. Patterson. You and Mrs. Heaton know I didn’t arrive with much and I realize you are only trying to help me. Please forgive me for being so prideful.”

His heart twisted in his chest. This woman... “There is nothing to forgive you for, Kathleen. Not a thing. And if you want to pay me back, you can—after you get paid again.”

Then she smiled at him and said, “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” The tightness in his chest eased somewhat but he felt awful for injuring her pride. He’d have to be more careful from now on.