A Misguided Mistake

Chapter Eight

As summer gave way to autumn, Margaret found herself feeling rather out of sorts. There was little to look forward to; she felt an overwhelming sense of dread that consumed her, for she knew that Fred would have received her letter and was possibly on his way to England. Her mother's health worsened a little with each passing day, however much Dixon tried to deny it. Two things played on her mind constantly; the grave risk posed to Fred by coming to England at all, and the very real possibility that their mother would die before he got here - meaning he would have placed himself in danger for nothing.

In an effort to keep these thoughts from driving her quite mad, she strived to stay as busy as possible. She walked for miles every day, until her feet hurt and her body was weary. She spent time in Princeton, though some days that only served to hurt her more, for the loss of Bessie was still raw in her heart. She missed her friend bitterly.

Margaret had never felt so alone.

The resumption of production at the mills meant Mr Thornton had been too busy to attend his regular lesson, and Margaret was unsure if she was glad of this or not. She had not seen him for many weeks, and she found herself thinking every dark haired man in a hat that she saw out of the corner of her eye was him. But no, there had been no sign of him.

In the dying days of summer, as the trees turned brown and the air chilled, Margaret had received an invitation to attend the Great Exhibition with her aunt. At her mother's urging, she now found herself in London, standing in Hyde Park and looking upon the most astounding thing she had ever seen.

"Isn't it wonderful?" Edith chirped, looping her arm through Margaret's as they approached the enormous glass structure. "I have never seen anything so exotic, even in all my travels!"

"It is wonderful." Margaret agreed, taking in the unusual architecture as it grew nearer. "But so strange! It looks as if the building is from another world, quite out of place. And full of such marvels, I feel blessed to see such a thing."

"I am so glad you joined us! I am only sorry Aunt Hale could not be here too."

"I am to tell her all about it when I return. I must remember every detail, or she will be most displeased!"

"I am sure you could never do anything to displease her, Margaret! Now, what shall we see first?"

Their time at the Exhibition slipped by frustratingly easily, for Margaret felt they had barely scratched the surface of all there was to see. She watched as Maxwell and Henry made self important conversation as they remarked upon machinery they knew nothing about. How tiresome it was, to hear men wax lyrical about things they did not understand.

She swallowed down such disloyal thoughts; the Lennox brothers were not bad men, perhaps she was being too harsh on them. She found it increasingly irritating, however, to feign interest when all that she wished to do was take in the splendor around her in silence. To observe every detail, to touch and to hear and to learn, without being told what she must see and how she must react. Edith was no better, squealing with delight over anything and everything, with Aunt Shaw barely disguising her sneers at things that were not to her taste.

Oh, Margaret thought, how wonderful it would be to be alone in this place. To wander freely, to spend hours looking at what she wished. It was a folly, really, for the place was packed with people. Still, one could dream.

"I suppose it's only right," Aunt Shaw began as they walked past some ornate chairs, "That we've invited people from all over the empire. Even if some of the exhibits are a little..exotic."

That last word hung in the air, the tone of her voice clear to anyone who heard it that she did not care for that which she did not understand. Margaret paid her no mind, her eyes still fixed on the sumptuous objects that surrounded her.