Chapter 1

one

“ Y ou know I’m not one to engage in puffery,” Breezy VonMeisterburger whispered dramatically, “but as you can plainly see, the Imperial Hotel is a most magnificent oasis arising from the panoramic majesty of Trillium Bay, just as I promised.”

Standing with her siblings on the red-carpeted steps of the palatial resort, Trudy Hart smiled while knowing full well her Aunt Breezy was absolutely one to engage in puffery, sometimes to the point of pure fabrication. In this instance, however, the blustery declaration was accurate.

Four stories tall and gleaming white against the vibrant greenery of the island, the hotel was magnificent, and Trudy was dazzled by its scope and splendor. The freshly painted front porch ran some six hundred feet from end to end and was ( according to her aunt ) the largest porch in the entire world. A dozen cozy seating areas dotted its length with floral-cushioned rocking chairs, wicker footstools, and lace-covered accent tables upon which to set one’s teacup—or perhaps a spirited libation if the mood was right. A string quartet played a lively tune as finely dressed guests strolled past the profusion of colorful blossoms bursting forth from ceramic pots as large as whisky barrels. Even the late afternoon sun played a part, adding a shimmer of gold to every surface, as if the atmosphere wasn’t already sufficiently opulent.

“How fortunate you are that I invited you all here,” Aunt Breezy reminded them, speaking in a slightly louder whisper this time so eavesdroppers might be privy to her altruism. She ran a silk-gloved hand over her expansive, satin-clad bosom adding, “But as my guests, I must remind you to exercise the utmost decorum at all times. Fine manners are the order of the day, and I will not condone any coarse behavior that might besmirch the fine VonMeisterburger name. So, behave yourselves.”

Breezy swished her parasol shut with a vigorous snap, and while Trudy very much wanted to defend herself and her siblings against their aunt’s presumptuous insult, she’d learned the value of maintaining a discreet silence when the situation warranted, as this one did.

Throughout medical school and during the past few years working as a physician in her father’s medical practice, Trudy had dealt with virtually every manner of humanity, from bloviating physicians to judgmental classmates, to frightened, irritable patients. With hard-earned patience and far too much practice, she’d learned to navigate other people’s tirades and tantrums without giving in to her own frustration.

However, a single week in Aunt Breezy’s company while traveling from Illinois to Michigan’s Trillium Bay had pushed Trudy’s exasperation to the edge of eruption. Her aunt had all the charm of a boil in need of lancing, and Trudy longed to say so, but she swallowed down the mean-spirited words like bitter medicine and smiled politely. Because the truth of it was, she and her family were fortunate to be here.

The invitation to spend an entire summer on this idyllic island as guests of their wealthy VonMeisterburger relatives had been as unexpected an offer as it was an uncharacteristically generous one. Although Breezy and Trudy’s mother were sisters, never had two such diverse entities existed. Other than their lineage, the shape of their noses, and a shared childhood full of comfortable privilege, Ada and Breezy had virtually nothing in common. While Breezy had married Albert VonMeisterburger for prestige and position, Ada had (according to society) squandered her pedigree by marrying Dr. Samuel Hart, a country physician.

For love , of all things! How very tawdry.

Ada always assured her children they were rich in all the ways that mattered, and they believed her. They didn’t miss the frivolous material things the rich seemed to cherish. Instead, they had each other. They had the pursuit of education and parents who encouraged them to be whatever they wanted to be. While Trudy and her older brother, Calvin, pursued medicine like their father, Lucy planned to study astronomy, and Coco (when she wasn’t too busy admiring her own reflection) wrote clever stories. Asher, at fifteen, still straddled the line between boyish games and adult responsibilities, and Poppy was, for better or worse, a clever, precocious child whom they all indulged.

They were content and wanted for little, but Breezy’s sudden and inexplicable invitation was a welcomed one, even if it did require spending the next three months under the oppressive cloud of the VonMeisterburger’s pretentious philanthropism.

“Well?” Breezy prompted when no one spoke. “Have you nothing to say about the hotel’s magnificence?”

Coco smiled wide. “Oh, my, yes, Aunt Breezy,” she exclaimed effusively. “We’re all just speechless. I don’t imagine the gates of heaven could be more awe-inspiring! You have certainly blessed us with your thoughtfulness.”

Trudy turned her face away to hide another smile at her sister’s facetiousness. Though only seventeen, a full eleven years younger than Trudy, Coco had the charisma to shift virtually any situation to her advantage. She played people like violins and left them moved by the music. While some might consider her disingenuous (along with being vain) , Trudy appreciated her willingness to stroke Breezy’s grandiose sense of self-importance.

“Yeah, it’s neat,” Asher added loudly. “But I’m starving. Can we go inside now and get some food, or do we have to stand out here all day gawking?”

Breezy’s head swiveled in his direction with such rapidity the spray of peacock feathers on her hat quivered, as if the plumes themselves were agitated by his lack of decorum. Trudy lightly pinched his arm, causing Asher to blush and mumble sheepishly, “Sorry, Aunt Breezy. What I meant was if I don’t get something to eat soon, I might keel over dead and find myself outside the real gates of heaven.”

Lucy chuckled and pulled some wrapped taffies from the pocket of her traveling dress, offering them to her brother. “Here. I was saving these for later, but you may have them if you promise to be nice to me for the rest of the day.”

He eyed the treat for a moment as if weighing the cost, then snatched them from her palm with a grin. “Until midnight, then,” he said. “Tomorrow, you’re fair game.”

“Pah! Such impudence!” Breezy groused before turning back to face the hotel’s entrance. Squaring her shoulders and lifting her chins, she ascended the staircase with the artfully measured gait of a society matriarch about to greet her public—whether they wanted her to or not.

“Please, mind your manners,” Trudy murmured quietly to Asher as they followed. “Mother told me to make sure you all behave until she and Father arrive. Don’t make me give her a bad report.”

Asher’s unabashed grin was lopsided, his cheek bulging with taffy as if it were a wad of the very best tobacco. “I promise to be at least as good here as I am at home,” he said.

“Oh, good heavens, please be better than that,” Trudy responded.

Ada and Samuel Hart were on their way to Boston to visit Trudy’s brother but would join the rest of the family on the island next month. While Aunt Breezy was ostensibly in charge until they arrived, Trudy knew the true weight of guardianship fell squarely upon her own shoulders, and it worried her. Matters of a medical nature she could face with confidence, yet issues beyond the realm of illness or injury might prove altogether too perplexing, and in this unfamiliar world of rules and refinement, hurdles were inevitable.

Especially when it came to Asher…

And Coco...

And Poppy…

At least Lucy would be no trouble, thank goodness. At nineteen, she was Trudy’s closest companion and confidante, as much a dear friend as a beloved sister, but little Poppy could be willful, Asher was a scamp, and Coco? Trudy tamped down a sigh of concern, for the only thing Coco enjoyed more than gazing at her own reflection was gazing at strapping young gentleman in well-cut suits, and as Trudy quickly surveyed the surroundings, she noted an abundance of dashing lads who would undoubtedly be all too eager to make her sister’s acquaintance. Trudy would have to be vigilant lest Coco’s na?ve and impetuous nature lead to disastrous consequences.

Following their Aunt Breezy, the Hart siblings traversed the hotel steps and walked through open French doors, entering a palatial lobby even more elegant than the exterior of the hotel. Plush, jewel-toned rugs adorned the smooth pine floor, and sparkling, crystal chandeliers cascaded down from a pink-painted ceiling. To the right was a wide staircase leading to the upper floors, and to the left was a long mahogany registration desk gleaming in the sunlight. All around, hotel employees in blue serge jackets moved with rapid but smooth efficiency, carrying luggage and guiding well-heeled guests in one direction or another.

Everywhere she looked, Trudy saw luxury. Velvet sofas, striped damask covered chairs, ornate clocks, vases full of roses and peonies, and a curio cabinet bursting with curiosities. While she preferred the ambience of their uncluttered home and modest furnishings, she was not immune to sumptuous extravagance.

“Opulence does have its appeal, I guess,” she murmured to her sisters, trying not to stare at the abundance of fripperies.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” whispered Lucy.

“It’s even more amazing than Hudson’s department store,” Coco agreed reverently, which, from her, was high praise indeed.

“Jumpin’ Jehosaphat! It’s the Mona Lisa!” Trudy heard Asher exclaim. She looked back over her shoulder, hoping to glare him into silence, only to realize he was indeed staring at a replica of the Mona Lisa.

At least… she assumed it was a replica…

“Mrs. VonMeisterburger!” cried out a balding, jowly-faced man from behind the desk. “How delighted we are to welcome you back to the Imperial Hotel.”

“Thank you, Beeks,” Breezy responded imperiously. “This my niece, Miss Gertrude Hart, and her siblings. I trust our rooms are prepared?”

Trudy grimaced, both from being called Gertrude , and from being called Miss. She was Doctor Hart but there was no point in reminding Breezy of that, again. Especially knowing her aunt considered Trudy’s dedication to medicine more fetish than vocation.

“Indeed, madam. Your rooms are just as you’ve requested. You and your guests will be residing on the third floor, next to the Bostwick family suites. I trust that’s acceptable?”

“Are our suites as large as the Bostwick family suites?” Breezy questioned without a hint of shame.

“Larger,” Mr. Beeks whispered conspiratorially, one bushy brow arching ever so slightly.

“And the view?” she pressed.

“Superior to theirs,” he assured her, sliding the leatherbound guest book across the desk.

“Very good then. Those rooms will suffice.” She picked up the quill to sign, perusing the list before committing her name to the parchment as Trudy grimaced again.

The Bostwick family.

Bother!

It hadn’t occurred to her they’d be at the hotel, although it should have. Breezy and Constance Bostwick were friends—at least in public—so it made sense that they’d summer on the same posh island—at the same luxurious resort—at the exact same time—because that’s how the privileged classes seemed to do things. Together. How else could they judge who was truly preeminent among their elite?

It seemed a strange eccentricity of the wealthy, Trudy mused; the insatiable need to compete with each other, to voluntarily jockey for position within the same tiny bubble of good fortune, as if having more than enough wasn’t sufficient. The aim was rather to have more than everyone else .

“You need to sign the registry, Gertrude,” Breezy said, interrupting Trudy’s thoughts. “List all your siblings and remember to use their proper names. This isn’t a boarding house.”

“Of course, Aunt Breezy.” Trudy’s falsely obedient smile made her face ache. By the end of the summer, her tongue was sure to be numb from all the words she did not say but she dipped the quill and set her attention to the registry.

“Have all the Bostwicks arrived?” she heard Aunt Breezy ask Mr. Beeks.

“They arrived last week, madam. All but Mr. Bostwick Sr. who I believe will be staying in Chicago this season, just as he did last season.”

Trudy glanced up to note the hotel manager’s lips pursed in an uncharitable smirk, and realized her aunt was wearing much the same expression.

“Do you mean to say that Mr. Alexander Bostwick is here?” Aunt Breezy questioned, lowering her voice and leaning toward the manager.

“Indeed, madam. He arrived with his mother and sister.”

Trudy paused in her signing to wonder why her aunt would have asked about Alexander Bostwick in particular. It seemed an odd coincidence. Trudy knew precisely why she herself disliked Alex, but she had no notion of why her aunt might not be fond of him.

She slid the book back to the manager.

“Very good,” he said, carefully scanning the list of names she’d added as if making certain her spelling was correct. Then he offered an ingratiating smile to her aunt.

“Mrs. VonMeisterburger, our lead porter will show you to your rooms as soon as he returns from assisting another guest. In the meantime, shall I find you a comfortable place to relax while you wait? And bring you a glass of lemonade or champagne?”

“A place to relax? Will the delay be as long as that?”

Her question smacked of rebuke, and Mr. Beeks’ already flushed cheeks reddened further. “Only a short while, madam, but as you can see, we are quite busy this afternoon. Everyone seems to be checking in at once. The porters are doing their best to keep up.”

Trudy’s aunt looked around as if surprised to suddenly see other people in the lobby and gave a small harumph. “Very well. Find me a seat. They can stand.” She gestured dismissively toward Trudy and the rest of them.

So much for Breezy’s generosity.

Coco caught Trudy’s eye and whispered, “I wonder if we’ll be allowed to sit at dinner.”

“Yes,” Trudy whispered back, “but we must share a single chair.”

The sisters giggled as they stepped away from the desk to follow, literally and metaphorically, in their aunt’s dark shadow.

“Ash,” Lucy called out. “Get Poppy and come with us.”

Their brother was a few feet away, examining a miniature replica of the hotel displayed on a table near an oversized painting of the same. He glanced their way before performing a cursory search of the area around him. “I don’t have Poppy,” he called back, moving toward them.

The sisters halted their steps as Aunt Breezy and Mr. Beeks continued on, unaware.

“What do you mean you don’t have Poppy? I thought she was with you,” Trudy said.

His expression was nonchalant as he ambled closer. “She looked at that display for a minute, but I don’t know where she went after that.”

“She was just here,” Coco said, her eyes surveying the lobby. “She can’t have gotten far.”

“Unless she fell in the lake,” Asher teased.

“Asher, that is not amusing,” Trudy scolded.

“I thought it was,” he murmured, winking at Coco. Those two shared a similar sense of humor and were often in cahoots. Trudy would do well to keep them apart as much as possible until their parents arrived. Although perhaps Asher’s juvenile antics would repel any potential suitors from approaching her sister.

“Maybe she—” Lucy’s comment was cut short.

“Is that her basket on the floor?” Coco interrupted, pointing to an area near the front doors. She moved hastily across the lobby, picking up the wicker basket and turning back toward them. She held it aloft.

And upside down.

Oh.

Dear.

“Isn’t that basket supposed to have a cat inside of it?” Asher asked, his tone a blend of humor and exasperation given that they all knew the answer.

Yes.

Yes, indeed.

That basket was supposed to have a cat inside of it. A cat which Poppy had promised to leave at home in the attentive care of their housekeeper but which she had, instead, cleverly smuggled onto their steamship like a stowaway so that Sir Chester VonWhiskerton might also enjoy a summertime reprieve at the Imperial Hotel.

And so, it seemed their first mishap was already underway. They hadn’t even made it out of the hotel lobby yet and Trudy had already misplaced her little sister and a cat. Still, it was nothing to be too alarmed about. With a bit of expeditious hunting, they’d both be found, and all would be well. The lobby wasn’t that immense.

“Let’s each head toward a different corner,” Trudy said, “and then we meet back here in this very spot. One of us is bound to find her.”

But they did not.

After ten minutes of searching, they reconnoitered in the center of the lobby.

“Do you suppose the little scamp is hiding with him somewhere? You know how she loves to trick us,” Coco said.

“Or… do you suppose the cat ran outside and she followed him?” Lucy added, glancing at the open lobby doors. “If that’s the case, they could be anywhere.”

Oh, dear.

Oh.

Dear.

Lucy was correct. If Poppy had followed Chester outside, there was no telling which direction they might have gone, but now was not the time to panic. Now was a time for decisive action… if only Trudy knew what to do. Adrenaline was building in her veins as she considered their options while also trying not to consider all the potential dangers for a little girl chasing a cat in an unfamiliar place.

“Lucy, check on the front porch, will you?” Trudy said after a brief hesitation. “Coco, you check down that hallway, and Asher, you look down that one. I’ll ask Mr. Beeks if he can spare a few porters to help in our search and let Aunt Breezy know what’s happened.” She turned on her heel, pulses thrumming, nerves tingling as she walked quickly to the sunny corner where Aunt Breezy had settled into a green velvet chair.

The hotel manager lingered by her side, obviously trying to take his leave as she spoke, but people did not simply walk away from Breezy VonMeisterburger. One must wait to be dismissed.

“Mr. Beeks, we have a bit of a situation,” Trudy said quietly, but breathlessly, not caring that she had interrupted her aunt’s story.

“A situation? What situation?” Breezy exclaimed loudly, making heads turn. For a woman who favored the utmost in decorum, she certainly didn’t practice it.

“I’m afraid my little sister has wandered off,” Trudy answered. “Along with her cat. We’ve searched the lobby to no avail. Mr. Beeks, might we get some assistance from the hotel staff to look for her? I’m sure she’s nearby but there are so many different directions she may have gone…”

“The porters are all very busy, Miss Hart,” he answered, seeing his chance to step away.

“Busy?” Breezy exclaimed again, louder this time. “Surely, they’re not too busy to find my precious niece and her pet. For shame, Beeks. What kind of a lowbrow establishment is this?”

For once, Trudy appreciated her aunt’s condescending tone. It seemed to have a rather powerful effect.

Beeks offered a curt nod. “Of course, Mrs. VonMeisterburger. I’ll put every available porter to the task and let the rest of them know to be on the lookout. Might I have a description?”

Breezy frowned quizzically at the little man.

“You need a description?” she barked. “A description? My niece looks like a little girl. And the cat looks like a cat. Do you have so many unattended children and beasts running around this hotel you think you might bring us the wrong ones?”

Trudy might have laughed but for the twitch in the man’s eye suggesting his patience was at an end.

“It’s a black and white cat, Mr. Beeks,” Trudy answered calmly. “And my sister, Poppy, is eight years old with blonde hair and brown eyes. She’s wearing a dark blue dress, and the last time we saw her she was near the registration desk.”

“Very good, miss.” He gave a curt nod and spun away, seeming even smaller than he had before.

Trudy turned back to her aunt, feeling rather small herself for having lost her sister and caused a fuss.

“I’m sorry for the kerfuffle, Aunt Breezy,” Trudy said apologetically. “She’s likely just sitting somewhere, but I’m concerned the cat might run out those open doors, and she’d go right after him.”

“You were quite right to enlist help,” Breezy answered with surprising affability. “This hotel is a maze of hallways, and she could have gotten to anywhere.”

Goodness. The woman was a study in contrasts. Bombastic one minute, understanding the next.

Then Breezy continued, “Of course, you should have kept an eye on her. I can’t be expected to take care of everything. This was very irresponsible of you.”

Ah, there was the Breezy she knew.

“I’ll be more watchful in the future,” Trudy promised, but could not resist adding, “I was distracted by having to list everyone’s proper names.”

Breezy squinted at her, then looked past as a handful of porters began to circulate through the lobby to peer under furniture and shake the silk draperies.

“Hm, it seems as if they’re starting with the cat,” Trudy mused aloud.

“Yes, so it would seem. Help me out of this chair. I’ll handle this.”

Trudy grasped her by the elbow and as soon as Aunt Breezy was on her feet she strode across the floor and up the stairs, pausing on the landing. She turned and Trudy nearly jumped out of her shoes as Breezy thwacked her closed parasol against the railing multiple times. “Hello! Hello there, all of you!” she shouted.

The din of conversation stopped abruptly as everyone turned and Trudy was equally appalled and impressed by her aunt’s bravado. The woman simply possessed no self-consciousness.

“My niece, Poppy, and her cat are missing somewhere on the premises,” Breezy shouted to the now attentive guests. “I would like them found post-haste so please join in our search.”