Bluegrass Blush

by Carolyn Bond

  Suzanne took Everleigh by the arm and the two of them went downstairs to the back porch. Suzanne told her it would be best to stay away from the front until it all dies down. There would be gawkers and such. Everleigh was glad. She just wanted to hide now. She’d had courage at the time but now her strength was crumbling and she shivered.

  “Dear, dear. Now you just sit and take deep breaths. It’s all fine now.”

  She helped Everleigh to a bench and Fluffed pillows around her.

  “I’ll just tell the cook to make us a tea service and I’ll be right back.”

  Everleigh thought back to her conversation with Mr. Peeble. She thought she hadn’t said anything so wild that he should lose his mind. Perhaps the prospect of losing a fortune was more than he could handle.

  She breathed a deep breath, relieved he was now in custody. She held her hands together trying to stop the shaking. The sound of a man yelling jerked her head up, fear seizing her.

  Lord, did he escape?

  As the voice came closer, she recognized it.

  Malcolm!

  “Everleigh!” he called from inside the Inn.

  She jumped and ran inside. He was standing in the foyer trying to decide which way to go.

  “I’m here, Malcolm!”

  He ran to her and scooped her into his arms.

  “Oh, God, thank you. Everleigh. I was in town and I heard the gun shot and then saw the sheriff dragging Mr. Peeble away. I was scared to death for you. Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine. Just shook up.”

  He pulled her away to look her over.

  “I guess he didn’t care for your decision?”

  “You can say that again.”

  He hugged her to him again. Suzanne appeared and smiled.

  “Mr. Steel, would you like to join us for tea on the back porch. I was just trying to calm Everleigh’s nerves. But, you might be able to do a better job than tea.”

  Not taking his eyes off of Everleigh, he nodded. They filed through the hallway and out the door to the back porch. This porch was much smaller and more of a utility porch. A swing hung on the left and a wood garden bench and chairs were on the right. Everleigh and Malcolm sat on the bench. He put his arm around her shoulders as her kept looking her over to reassure himself she was alright. Suzanne set the tea service on a small side table and poured each one a cup. She settled herself into a wood chair.

  “Darling,” he started, “what happened?” Suzanne’s brows shot up at the affectionate nickname.

  “I was very clear and didn’t mince words. I thought it best not to give him any false hopes. He had legal papers that he told me said I had no choice but to marry him. I’d snuck into his room and found them. He hadn’t told me the whole story. I knew my rights and that incensed him. I asked Mr. Clark to check on him and he found him breaking into my room.”

  Malcolm stiffened and then smiled at her pleased.

  “That’s very brave of a young women to stand up to him like that. I certain he didn’t expect it.”

  “Apparently not. I will not get my parent’s inheritance now. It will go to my aunt. I suppose that’s alright. It’s not like I’m homeless.”

  Suzanne chimed in, “You can stay here with us as long as you need to, you know.”

  She smiled and said, “Thank you. Your friendship means the world to me.”

  “I need to go check to make sure the lunch menu is settled and if the maids need help. Will you excuse me?”

  She sat her tea down on the tray and went back inside.

  “My darling, you should have let me talk to him. What if he’d hurt you?” His brows pressed down in concern.

  “I’m sure you telling him to shove off would not have made him take it any better,” she laughed.

  “At least that is done. I need to go to Midway and check on the station and schedules today. Are you up for an outing? I could show you around a little. You could do with getting away from here a little, I’m certain.” His right eyebrow perked up mischievously.

  She straightened and smiled, “I would love that! When are you leaving?”

  “As soon as you are ready,” he said with a satisfied grin.

  She jumped from his arms and told him she just needed to get her hat and she would be right back. She darted gracefully up the stairs, carefully stepped past the broken door and went to the vanity table. She affixed the summer straw hat with a pin and smiled at herself. The glow of color on her pale cheeks made her feel alive. A handsome sweet man awaited her downstairs. She savored the moment.

  Tiptoeing past the broken door and splintered wood again, she made her way back to him. He stood up from the bench in the foyer and took her hands.

  “You look lovely,” he breathed kissing her behind her ear.

  She giggled. Holding out his arm, he escorted her outside and across the road to his carriage. She cast a glance toward the sheriff’s office. It appeared to be calm. She was relieved to know Mr. Peeble was locked away and couldn’t hurt her. She thought about what a dangerous man he could be to be married to and shivered.

  “He can’t get you now,” Malcolm reassured her sensing her thoughts.

  She smiled and he lifted her up into the carriage. Malcolm climbed in behind her and Mr. Sloan lightly snapped the reins. The carriage jumped forward.

  “So is your work in Midway?”

  “Yes, for the most part. I manage the station and the section gang from Midway to Lexington. I tend to the men, ensure the coal and water supplies are available. If the track needs repair, I send the gang to fix it. The trains stop in Midway to fill up their tinders coming and going from Lexington.”

  “I see.”

  “I transferred to this station two years ago when I moved to my Uncle’s estate. I worked at the Louisville depot before. Taking care of the men is a big job. They are a good group of guys. Colorful folk. Some get liquored up and get themselves in a predicament and I watch out for them. I could tell you some funny stories. Not just about the men, but also about the things we see along the line. You name it and we have seen it.

  She chuckled.

  The ride to Midway took over an hour. As they approached town, she remarked, “It seems like a long ride to work and back.”

  “I usually hop on the baggage car of the Versailles & Midway train rather than carriage. Some nights I sleep at one of the section houses in Midway. It’s alright.” He got a faraway look in his eyes as he gazed out the side window.

  They pulled onto Main Street and the station loomed. Midway was smaller than Versailles. One short main street with a station. The tracks ran through the middle of town with a street and row of shops on each side. People were walking on the boardwalk in front of shops. The town seemed alive with commotion.

  “What a cute town!” All the gingerbread details in the architecture made it look like a perfect scene of Americana. She didn’t recall ever coming to Midway in her prior business trips so it was hard to compare it to what it would become by 2016.

  “Here we are.” Malcolm opened the door of the carriage and jumped out, then turned and lifted her down with ease making her feel light as a feather.

  “Mr. Sloan, we’ll lunch here in Midway, so it will be several hours until we need a ride home. Why don’t you enjoy Midway for a while? ”

  “Very good, sir. I’ll visit my sister, then.” Mr. Sloan clucked his tongue and led the horses and carriage away.

  They made their way into the agent’s office in the depot and she took a seat on a side bench to give him some space while he spoke to the men.

  “Mr. Steel,” said a man in an apron with glasses. He had a black band around his bicep that made his blue shirt bellow at the top, “The 11:30 to the Asylum is short a hand. We don’t have anyone to spare. Any way you could go with it and back?”

  Malcolm looked back at Everleigh. “I have a guest with me, Mr. Newsome. I’m not sure it would be a good idea to take a lady on that trip.”

  She jumped up, “I don’t mind to
go. I enjoy riding the train.”

  He strode over to her, “It’s not just an ordinary run, darling. It’s to make a delivery to the Lunatic Asylum in Lexington.”

  She noted a slight shiver when he said the name. His mouth turned down in a sour expression. It was plain he detested the place. Something in her memory caught her.

  He continued, “They have their own rail line for deliveries. I’m not certain it is safe, much less desirable, for a lady to be there.”

  Mulling it through her mind, she remembered why she it sounded familiar. Her client in 2016, whom she had come to the Bluegrass to consult with, was Bluegrass Career and Technical College. They had relocated to the site of the old Eastern State Hospital. Was this the same place?

  “I am rather curious. I’d like to go. What if I stayed in the passenger coach while we are there so you wouldn’t have to worry?”

  “Mr. Steel, we are in a bit of a pickle. The delivery train will be here shortly and without another hand, we won’t be able to make the delivery. We really have no place to house the box car until we have an extra hand tomorrow. And, of course, they are depending on the delivery.”

  Malcolm sighed seeing he was overruled. “Alright. Send a message to my driver that we will be later than we expected. Here is his sister’s address.” He jotted down a note and handed it to Mr. Newsome.

  “Certainly, sir.”

  “We should find a bit to eat before we go. It may be awhile before we have a chance once we get going and the cargo hasn’t been loaded yet, anyway.” He led her out and down the boardwalk to a café at an inn. After being seated and served tea, Everleigh remembered his scowl at hearing the name Lunatic Asylum.

  “You didn’t have a favorable reaction when your man talked about the Lunatic Asylum? Have you had a bad experience?”

  He sighed and thought before he answered.

  “The people there are always nice to us. But,” he paused, “I worry about the residents there.”

  “Why? Are they dangerous?”

  “Perhaps some are, I suppose, but really I worry for them. I can’t imagine what kind of life they have there. There is a Children’s Asylum nearby and those children grow up to live at the Lunatic Asylum.”

  “I’m sure they are taken care of.”

  He looked at her searching for understanding. “Have you heard of Sir Francis Galton?”

  “Um, no. I don’t think I have.”

  “He is the cousin of Charles Darwin.”

  “Oh, I see.”

  “He has been very active in England passing eugenics laws.”

  “Eugenics? What is that?”

  He sighed. “He is of the belief that there is a supreme race of people, notably white, Nordic, blue eyed, intelligent people. I have seen his book Hereditary Genius where he describes, much like Darwin’s theory of evolution, the quality of humanity can be improved with deliberate pairing of couples over several generations much like breeding dogs or horses.”

  “What? So this man is actually making progress getting legislation to support such inhuman ideas?” So what does this have to do with the Asylum?”

  “I’ll tell you. His beliefs are worse than just natural selection. He believes we should euthanize anyone who is not worthy The United States has opened an Office of Eugenics in New York to evaluate immigrants. It seems that followers of this line of thinking are making headway in this country. One of the key populations they focus on, besides immigrants who could sully the population, are the feeble-minded.”

  “Feeble minded? You mean disabled?”

  He looked at her curiously, “Dis-abled? I am not familiar with that word.”

  “It’s okay. I get the idea.”

  “So, one of the latest propaganda papers I have seen is that they want to make it a law that all children or adults who are born deformed, simple minded, or Mongoloid are to be immediately admitted to asylums. It’s being debated in several states.”

  “Required? You mean parents would have no choice?”

  “Exactly. Most are anyway. The newborns are immediately turned over at birth because of the shame it can bring on a family. And on top of that, these children would be sterilized and even forbidden from ever marrying.”

  “That seems extreme.”

  “Not if you understood the point of view of these proponents. There are people who argue that the deformed are not even human, just an animal. They would actually like to euthanize them. That is what happens in some European countries even now. Europe is ahead of us on this issue.”

  “How could they just make this a law? Why couldn’t families just take care of their own?”

  “It’s already difficult because many doctors refuse to treat people who suffer from these disorders. The kindest doctors say it is for the best to let nature take its course. Even with doctors who treat them the cost is so high many families cannot afford the care. ”

  “Refuse to treat them? What right do they have to do that? I thought doctors had to take an oath to treat anyone whose life was in danger.”

  “I know of no such oath. There are many schools of medicine and they all have their own school of thought. Maybe some have this oath but they can certainly choose who they deem worthy to treat. In fact, many doctors are getting on board with the notion of requiring undesirables or immoral women to be sterilized for the good of everyone. All it takes is a statement from a doctor that a woman is unfit for propagation and the authorities can seize her for forced sterilization.”

  Everleigh’s head was swimming. Talk about going back into the dark ages, it was frightening to think of the lack of regulation and personal rights in this time. She had never heard of such atrocities here in America. Apparently her high school history book left that out.

  A tickling in her mind about Hitler and his Supreme Race made her wonder if these eugenics laws had influenced him. The timing would be pretty close.

  One of the things about herself that she was most proud of was being an advocate for the disabled. As a consultant, she had to spend time learning what life was like if you can’t get around well. She understood that without access, a large section of the population was unfairly excluded from many goods and services. She realized for the first time that the work she did was not unlike the western expansion of the railroad. She made it possible for many people to get to doctors and businesses that made their life easier. Maybe she did dream big after all.

  She also volunteered for the Special Olympics in the summers. In fact, it was coming up in her time in two weeks. Her favorite job was helping the Olympians at the swimming pool. She would sit at the starting line and call them over when it was their turn. She would say a word or two of encouragement and then when it was over, she was the first to congratulate them for trying hard. The look of pure joy and pride made her heart sing. She knew they had practiced and dreamed of competing and they all, each and every one of them, tried their hardest. Even if they didn’t place, they felt like winners.

  She wondered if they ever got a chance to feel like a winner in other areas of their life, but on this day, they were not just winners, but Olympians.

  He continued, “I don’t know if they do it at the Asylum, but I have heard from train workers that have worked for asylums on the east coast that some hospitals withhold care, or worse, to reduce their patient load. One guy I talked to said they had buried hundreds of bodies after an isolated outbreak of consumption. There was no other cases in the town around them. He just couldn’t shake that they had been purposefully infected.”

  “Malcolm, that is horrible! How could they do that?”

  “It not that hard to fathom. Think about it. These vulnerable people, some just children, have no advocate, no family. Just a ward of the state that is required to pay for their room and board. The asylums have a budget they have to meet. And, then you have people like Sir Galton, a scientist, telling governments that the feeble-minded are lesser animals, maybe not even human. Some sort of deranged mistake of nature. Many
people believe they are possessed.”

  “I see. They could even talk themselves into thinking it was the humane thing to do to let them die.”

  “Exactly. Like I said, I have no idea that it’s going on at the Asylum, but I wonder, and it makes me sad.”

  Everleigh thought about an article she had read about the college now at that location that said there was a cemetery for the old hospital that held thousands and thousands of remains of unidentified patients. A shiver went up her spine.

  After lunch they made their way back to the station. The soft summer breeze cut the scorching sun that radiated through the shoulders of her dress. Water Maples waved in the wind showing their leave’s silvery undersides. She shivered as trickles of perspiration ran down the center of her back. She and Malcolm waited on the platform for the train to pull up and the hiss of the steam overshadowed the rustling hiss of the leaves raking against each other.

  With a gentle chugging whoosh-whoosh-whoosh, the short train pulled in. It was just an engine, a box car and passenger coach. Malcolm spoke to the office a minute and returned. Taking her to the passenger coach. He settled her in a wooden bench inside and went to speak to the engineer. Before long, he returned and they were on their way. The green landscape blurred by so fast she had to focus on a spot in the distance. Green fields came and went, punctuated by fields of tall corn with yellow sprig flowers blowing on top of each plant. Children ran alongside the train now and then waving their hats. The little girls’ hats had long ribbons trailing behind them.

  Malcolm offered her a drink of lemonade. Despite the windows being open, the stuffy humid air buffeted her, blowing wisps of loose hair around her ears. The gentle rocking of the car could lull her to sleep if she’d been tired. They had the car to themselves as the brake man was up with the engineer.

  Malcolm sat next to her and traced the edge of her collar bone covered by her shirtwaist with his finger. The tickle on her skin gave her goosebumps and she leaned into his hand caressing the back of it with her cheek.

  ***

  He couldn’t imagine ever talking to a woman about such things as they had at lunch. She had such a kind heart. He had heard conversations about disfigured or feeble-minded folk that disgusted him. People’s callous reactions and revulsion to such a topic was commonplace and made him angry. How could they be so cruel? But yet, she didn’t recoil. She was even sympathetic. Everleigh moved him deep in his soul. Certainly she was beautiful, but he had seen many beautiful women. It was the woman under the skin that enchanted him.