Somewhere in the World

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

 

Williamsburg, Virginia

1858

“Thank you, Jessamy,” Margaret Hale said politely as she accepted the letter offered to her on the small silver salver by their black maid. Jessamy smiled and curtsied before withdrawing from the parlor, leaving the young mistress of the house with the slender missive.

“Who is it from, Margaret?” Her mother glanced up from the embroidery tambour in her lap. Maria Hale sat on a faded silk settee that was angled beneath the large windows overlooking their garden to take advantage of the light from the southern exposure. Margaret had opened the windows earlier on this mild autumn day, and the scent of the late blooming flowers and the few faded roses remaining filled the room with a sweet aroma.

“It is from Edith, Mama,” Margaret replied promptly, a smile of delight crossing her features. It had been weeks since she had last heard from her cousin in Charleston, and she was eager for news. Until last month, Margaret had made her home in Charleston with her cousin Edith and her Aunt Shaw. However, upon Edith’s marriage to Maxwell Lennox, of the Savannah Lennoxes, it was decided by Margaret’s parents that it was time for their only daughter to return home.

While Margaret was sad to be parted from her cousin, she was well contented to be back in dear, sweet Williamsburg with its neat streets, lovely brick buildings, and cultivated gardens. She loved to take long walks in the lanes leading to the ruins of Jamestown, or visit various members of her father’s parish who lived in and about the town. It was heaven to be home once more, in this sleepy Southern city that had once been the capital of Virginia.

“What does Edith say?” Her mother’s voice recalled her wandering thoughts to the letter that she held in her hand. Picking up the letter opener from the table next to her elbow, Margaret deftly slit the seal and spread the sheet upon her lap. She scanned the lines quickly, then returned to the salutation and read aloud for her mother’s and her own edification.

Dearest Margaret,

 

How very disappointed I was (and still am!) that you refused to accompany my dear Maxwell and me on our wedding journey! I know that you felt your father and mother needed you at home, but that was a poor excuse to deny yourself the pleasure of a trip to Savannah. In any event, I love you still, my dearest cousin, but it was too, too bad that you missed the balls and races and routs.

 

Mamma enjoyed herself immensely, visiting with our cousins at their home in Five Oaks along the coast. The weather has been miserably hot, Cousin Eva informed us, but our visit brought the cool breezes at last.