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Chapters (51)
  1. Cover
  2. Books by Elizabeth Camden
  3. Title Page
  4. One
  5. Two
  6. Three
  7. Four
  8. Five
  9. Six
  10. Seven
  11. Eight
  12. Nine
  13. Ten
  14. Eleven
  15. Twelve
  16. Thirteen
  17. Fourteen
  18. Fifteen
  19. Sixteen
  20. Seventeen
  21. Eighteen
  22. Nineteen
  23. Twenty
  24. Twenty-One
  25. Twenty-Two
  26. Twenty-Three
  27. Twenty-Four
  28. Twenty-Five
  29. Twenty-Six
  30. Twenty-Seven
  31. Twenty-Eight
  32. Twenty-Nine
  33. Thirty
  34. Thirty-One
  35. Thirty-Two
  36. Thirty-Three
  37. Thirty-Four
  38. Thirty-Five
  39. Thirty-Six
  40. Thirty-Seven
  41. Thirty-Eight
  42. Thirty-Nine
  43. Forty
  44. Forty-One
  45. Forty-Two
  46. Historical Note
  47. Questions for Discussion
  48. In 2020, look forCaroline Delacroix’sstory in
  49. About the Author
  50. Back Ads
  51. Back Cover

“You sure about that?” Otis asked. “If she knew about this, she would seize the chance.”

It didn’t matter. Loyalty to Luke might prompt her to participate, but Caroline had a promising future, and this plan involved risk. She didn’t deserve to get sucked into Luke’s schemes.

“Caroline is to know nothing about this. I don’t want her within a mile of it.”

“And what about you?” Captain Haig asked.

At that very moment Luke was sweltering in a Cuban jail cell, unlikely to ever get out, and it had all started because of a cup of tainted coffee. Peeling the curtain back on Clyde Magruder’s schemes was the best gift Gray could give to Luke.

A smile curved his mouth. Heaven help them all, he was going to do it.

Twenty-Four

ch-fig

Annabelle gazed in wonder at the odd wrinkly lemon that had just landed in her palm. Hundreds of people were crammed into the meeting room on the Department of Agriculture’s ground floor, where strange fruits and vegetables were being passed around the audience. They were in the middle of a presentation by David Fairchild, recently returned from the Mediterranean to recount his adventures gathering nuts, fruits, and seeds that might be adapted to the American climate.

“The Corsicans call this fruit a citron,” Mr. Fairchild said of the wrinkled lemon. “It grows on a compact shrub, and the juice is sweet with almost no acid flavor. I believe it would be suitable for adaptation in California or other warm, dry climates.”

Annabelle passed the fruit to the man sitting next to her, then turned her attention back to Mr. Fairchild, but being short made it impossible to see over the people in the seats in front of her. This was likely the only chance she’d ever have to see the famed explorer in person, and she was tired of being polite. She stood, trying to be unobtrusive as she angled down the crowded aisle so she could stand in the back of the room for a better view.

When she turned to face the podium, Mr. Fairchild met her gaze across the crowded audience and gave her a little nod. She nodded back, and he continued his speech.

That was odd. A few people noticed the momentary exchange and swiveled to look at her, but she ignored them, for the exotic fruits and plant cuttings displayed on the front table were fascinating. Mr. Fairchild gestured to several bowls that brimmed with a strange seed called a pistachio, which was a member of the cashew family. The tree was native to the Middle East, and the seeds of the tree looked like little green nuts. Mr. Fairchild had enough for everyone to sample, and as he concluded his speech, he sent the bowls of pistachios down the aisles.