Chapters (50)
- Cover
- Half Title Page
- Books by Elizabeth Camden
- Title Page
- Dedication
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Historical Note
- Questions for Discussion
- In 2021, look for Luke Delacroix’s story in
- About the Author
- Back Ads
- Back Cover
Winter crashed into Washington with a vengeance. As December morphed into January and then February, it seemed the ice storms would never cease. The ladies’ dormitory had no fireplace, and each morning Caroline shivered as she dashed to grab her warmest clothes.
The inauguration would take place on the fourth of March. Mrs. McKinley had no interest in helping plan the day, relying on Caroline and George to design the tightly choreographed schedule. A morning worship service would be followed by a procession to the Capitol for the swearing-in ceremony. While George and Sven polished the president’s speech, Caroline took the lead on organizing the luncheon. Special guests would join the president for a sumptuous meal that had to be served on a compressed timetable, for the inaugural parade involving thousands of people could not be postponed for the sake of a delayed soup course.
It was going to be the largest military procession ever assembled for an inauguration, featuring five thousand soldiers. Fifteen separate marching bands and dozens of cavalry units from across the nation would participate. Cadets from the military and naval academies would march, along with regiments from the National Guard.
All of it was a security nightmare, and Nathaniel was a daily presence in their planning sessions. With hands fisted and a clenched jaw, it was obvious he dreaded the day, but never more so than when informed who the president had requested to escort him during the parade.
“Old soldiers?” he asked incredulously, pacing before George’s desk.
“There will be eighty Civil War veterans to serve as the president’s special escort,” George confirmed.
“Eighty old men,” Nathaniel said. “We expect forty thousand people crowded along Pennsylvania Avenue, and you want the president to be guarded by old men?”
George shrugged helplessly. “The president specifically asked for ‘the old boys’ to walk him to the reviewing stand. I have complete confidence in you, Mr. Trask. Find a way.”
Find a way had been George’s refrain for weeks. Whether it was how Caroline could serve a four-course luncheon in half an hour, find lodging for six hundred visiting diplomats, or stable two thousand horses, the answer was always the same. Find a way.
She had. All the government buildings would be closed and filled with pallets on the floors and hallways to serve as temporary barracks for the soldiers. Members of the diplomatic corps from foreign nations expected better, but there weren’t enough hotel rooms in the city. Caroline braved freezing winds and ice storms to pound on the doors of private residences, looking for people willing to put up visitors from Europe, Asia, and Latin America. She pled, bargained, and flirted, and after a month, she’d secured decent lodging for six hundred visiting dignitaries.