The Dowry Read online

  Once again, his mind wandered to the young woman that dominated his thoughts these days. More than just an obsession with restoring her house, it was the woman she had become that so entranced him. The more Robert read in the diaries, the more he was drawn back to the 19th century world she lived in.

  After a long while the two went inside where Robert went back to his reading before finally retiring for the night.

  ----*----

  It was several weeks before both the plumbing and the electrical wiring was completed and signed off by the inspectors. While the wiring already in the house had completely skipped the knob and tube era, receiving its first power in the 1940s, the plumbing apparently had several attempts at renovation. Besides dealing with the damage they caused by removing the old plumbing, the renovation efforts exposing damage caused from the prior work decades earlier.

  As his people labored to expose the old piping, they found both cast and galvanized iron piping abandoned and in use. He was frustrated that the previous builders had simply cut away the old lines, leaving them in place and routing new piping nearby. That required new holes in the structural woodwork, weakening the overall integrity of the house. Robert had it all removed, and the damage repaired before the new water and sewer lines were run.

  The electrical wiring had all been installed in the 1940s renovation by Victoria’s father. Here, they found an ungrounded, two-conductor, cloth-covered wiring installation terminating in a fuse box in the basement. Robert had the cloth tested, as much of the material at that time contained asbestos. To his relief, his did not contain the dreaded material, as it would have required special treatment for the expensive removal, and they ripped it all out.

  For the upgrade, he increased the service from the street to 200 amps and had a new feed brought in. Rather than reusing the unsightly power poles currently lining the driveway, he had a trench dug for underground access. The upgraded breaker panel in the basement would supply twice the power he estimated needing, providing for more than enough electricity for the future.

  The house and grounds, including the carriage house and pool area, would be fed from the main panel here in the basement, allowing for subpanels outside where needed. The new wiring throughout the house would also be two-wire Romex, containing two feed wires and a ground, for the 120 volt needs. The carriage house and pool area got their own three-wire, 240-volt runs in metal conduit with the fourth ground wire in the same covering. In all, Robert was quite pleased with the upgrades.

  During this time, both Robert and RD were busy getting their other crews working on the two renovations in town. Even with all the work in progress he needed to supervise there, Robert still made it a point to swing by his house either first thing every morning or at the end of the day. His need to stay connected to Charlotte’s labor of love the primary motivator for the visits, but with all the activities in town, his sleepovers had come to a complete stop.

  It was during one of his drive-bys that he happened to come upon two of the electricians arguing on the front porch.

  “Look, I know you did it, just tell me why,” the first man was saying as the other shook his head.

  “It wasn’t me, I’m telling you,” the other said emphatically.

  “We were the last ones here yesterday, so it had to be you.”

  “What's going on?” Robert asked as he climbed the steps.

  “Someone ripped out all my work upstairs yesterday and we were the only ones here. It had to be him; I just want to know why he did it.” the first declared.

  “It wasn’t me I’m telling you, I was working in the kitchen,” the second responded emphatically.

  “Show me,” Robert said.

  Following the two men up the stairs in the foyer, they crossed over to the study. Once inside, Robert could see where the wiring had been ripped out of its install path and was laying all over the floor.

  “And up here too!” the man said as he led the others up the hidden staircase, the hidden door already wide open.

  Climbing the stairs behind the others, Robert emerged in the tower room to find the same mess as below. He immediately understood why the wiring had been ripped from its placement. It was all wrong! Not improper, as it was to code, it was wrong for the restoration.

  The placement of the wiring was supposed to be hidden behind the built-ins, a far more difficult and laborious task, but one he was more than happy to pay extra for. The real question was who had known the difference and undid the man’s work? Not willing to ask the question openly, he decided to take the fall.

  “Look, I’m sorry, but it was me,” Robert declared, surprising both men.

  “I should have left a note last night after I came by, but I was in a hurry,” he added.

  “I don’t understand, why did you rip it out?” the first man asked in surprise.

  “Someone should have told you this all needs to run behind the built-ins, not the way you have them routed here,” he replied as he indicated the difference.

  “I see what you mean,” the man responded, appearing still somewhat confused at the whole episode.

  “I know it’s more work, so feel free to charge me extra, but these just can’t be to code, they have to be exactly right,” Robert finished as he pointed out once more how he wanted them re-routed.

  Once everyone was clear on the issue, Robert left them in peace, sure they were questioning his sanity behind his back. Robert was positive that no one, but he, would have been gutsy enough to rip out all the work in question. Even RD would have called before taking such action.

  He considered the incident while heading to his Jeep and recalled some of RD’s stories. It was then he remembered the dream he had the very first night he had slept in the house. He recalled Charlotte watching him as he and his men had worked in the desert.

  “I am watching to be sure you do it right,” she had stated to him then.

  Though not a believer yet, he was well on his way to revisiting the whole ghost thing.

  ----*----

  With Phase 2 close to being complete, Robert was anxious to start bringing in things now. They had the HVAC people in the attic and basement, while the propane guy was installing the tank outside and running the line for the stove in the kitchen, laundry dryer and water heaters in the basement. Unsure about the reliability of the power year around, gas guaranteed he could cook and take hot showers even with the power out.

  His current excitement revolved around the kitchen. With the power and plumbing already in place, he would soon be ready to seal everything up when the gas lines were in. Once everything was in the walls, ceiling, and floors in the kitchen, the plumbing, electrical, gas and such, he had the plastering and flooring people on standby to close up the holes. That would allow them to install cabinets and appliances, all specially selected for both appearance and function.

  Robert had found a fabulous replica stove that resembled an original wood burner but had all the modern capabilities. The propane tank outside was to be hidden away in a small structure near to the house, but at a distance away set by the building code. He had designed the enclosure to look like a firewood bin, well ventilated and safe. The stove was a combination gas/electric commercial grade model. The seven gas burners were augmented with a side by side electric double oven below the stovetop.

  The refrigerator had been more of a challenge. His choices had been to either find a replica ice box, which were not known to be of a great capacity or hide a larger one among the cabinetry. In the end he did both, locating a wonderful Sub Zero for the butler’s pantry that he had made to match the cabinets precisely.

  In the kitchen itself, he located a piece from The Vintage Fridge Company that, for all outward appearances, was an icebox. The pieces they sold were all renovated originals and worth every penny to someone like Robert. The company took recovered ice boxes, restored them and then installed all the modern refrigeration components. They were truly amazing.

  For the air conditioning and
heating, the HVAC condensing units were installed outside in a similar structure as the propane tank, but next to the house, insuring anyone looking from the outside would see nothing amiss in the house from its 1850s roots. With the registers and air returns all installed in places where they could be hidden or at least were less obvious, there wasn’t much of the system visible to betray its presence.

  Since the plumbing and electrical were already run correctly in the other rooms of the house and signed off by the inspector, Robert would be able to turn the restoration crew loose there. Once the patching was completed, they would start on the finish work. Looking for a decorator who was knowledgeable of the period, he had hoped to have him or her supervising the plastering and painting where everything had been disturbed by the earlier efforts.

  While not a big fan of wallpaper, Robert was well aware of its prevalence in that time period. Since all the original interior decor had been removed during the 1940s renovation attempt, he had little to go on. Of all the things Charlotte had written about in her diaries, how she finished the inside of the house was one thing she had omitted providing great details on.

  Pulling in a decorator that RD had referred, Robert’s hope was that she could help him with the decor choices for the rest of the house. He and Sandra had actually met before and had even gone out a few times socially in larger groups. The few occasions he had seen her were more workplace events, organized as he passed through Jacksonville on other projects. Other than that, they had never really had an opportunity to spend any serious time together alone.

  Reviewing the “to do” list in the parlor, Robert was alerted to an arrival at the open front door.

  “Hello, anyone here?” he heard a female voice ask.

  “Sandra?” Robert asked as he turned the corner from the parlor to the foyer, greeting the attractive redhead at the front door.

  “Robert!” she replied with a glowing smile as she stepped inside, with her arms full of sample books and an oversized tote bag on one arm.

  RD had informed him that the woman was an expert on Victorian interior design, which was a surprise to Robert as it was something they had not collaborated on in the past. He had also indicated slyly that she was extremely excited to learn he was back in town and anxious to see him. Robert’s status as a newly unattached divorcee had seen him on the receiving end of more than one matchmaking attempt in recent times.

  In this case, however, the effort was appreciated as Robert considered Sandra not only attractive, but a fellow lover of things old and historic. They had chatted before about his work in California, which was why he was surprised she hadn’t commented about her Victorian expertise. Married at the time, he suspected she was just being respectful of his relationship.

  “Please, let’s go into the parlor,” Robert said as she passed him by and headed the direction he indicated.

  Whether by RD or some other well-meaning intermediary, Sandra must have learned of his interest in her. During their conversation, Robert had commented to RD he thought her quite attractive. Robert came to the conclusion that a setup was in play as he followed her into the parlor, her outfit far more appropriate for a night out on the town rather than a construction site.

  Not that he was at all upset about the implications. He had not been out on a date in almost a year, and she was absolutely beautiful. Much shorter than he and slender, her red hair was done up very flattering to her face. Her curves were well accentuated by the blouse and skirt combination she had selected to wear that day.

  Stopping mid-thigh, her skirt left an ample amount of skin on display as her long legs drew his attention down to the three-inch heels she sported on her feet. Quickly glancing up so he wouldn’t be caught checking her out, he could see she was scanning his campsite.

  “Yeah, I’ve been spending the night here on occasion as it gives me the opportunity to get some extra work done. I’m staying in town and the commute kills precious hours of my day,” he offered as she turned back to face him with a beaming smile.

  “Sounds like fun, actually,” she said as she placed her things on the table he had cleared for her.

  “Well, RD thinks the place is haunted, so it helps convince the crew it’s not.”

  “I was wondering if you knew about that. This place does have quite the reputation,” she replied as she began separating her sample books and materials on the table.

  “I can tell you personally that I have seen nothing here that would scare me, other than RD in shorts!” he stated with a laugh.

  And so the dance begins, Robert thought to himself as he and Sandra continued to flirt while they worked.

  “So, give me the tour!” she asked as she first touched his arm before she pointed out into the foyer.

  Walking her through the entire house, he explained his thoughts on each room and what changes he had in mind from what they were seeing now. In full work mode now, Sandra took notes on a pad she carried, while asking questions about what he knew of the original furnishings and décor. Robert was quite impressed with her knowledge of Victorian style.

  “RD tells me you found a lot of the original 1850s furniture stored away?” she asked as they headed down from the upstairs survey, with Robert leading the way.

  “Yes, it’s all out here.”

  Leading her out the front door and into the carriage house, he opened up several of the double doors to flood the space with light before leading her inside.

  “Oh Robert, this stuff is beautiful!” she commented as she excitedly moved between the clusters of furniture.

  He watched her as she inspected several pieces, asking questions about his intentions of returning them to their former locations. Using her phone, she took lots of pictures, working hard to get a good capture of the colors and patterns.

  Moving back inside, he took her to see the work going on in the kitchen, where he talked about his vision while handing her the floorplan drawings he had for the layout.

  “I wish you would have let me help you in here, but I have to say your choices are exquisite,” she commented as she pointed to the flyers for the appliances, cabinets, and countertop.

  Leaving the kitchen, the two gathered around the table in the parlor once more, but not before Sandra pointed to the covered portrait on the wall.

  “What’s this?” she asked as she indicated the sheet covering the frame.

  “Oh, I had to cover that up to prevent upsetting the men,” he replied as he stepped forward and pulled the sheet aside for her to see. Pinning it open, he stepped back slightly.

  “She’s beautiful. Is that Charlotte Foxworth?” Sandra asked as she stepped up next to Robert, her arm brushing up against his in the process.

  “So, you have done your homework? Yes. You can see the house in the background, though I can’t confirm the accuracy of the depiction. The painting was done by her sister, Christina, as a gift.” He felt her lean in closer to him as she inspected the house in the portrait. He had to admit she smelled very good.

  “She did an excellent job,” Sandra commented as she slowly backed away, drawing Robert with her as she retreated.

  “You said it was upsetting the men?” she asked as they both returned to the table, this time, standing side by side.

  “Yes, the ghost thing. They thought they could see her eyes moving in the painting,” he replied with a chuckle. As they both laughed at the comment, she placed her hand on his arm, a motion he accepted warmly.

  “Ok, so let’s get to work, shall we?” She started assorting her materials in front of them.

  “Now, I was thinking that the foyer should remain simple. Perhaps just a coat of paint, with that lovely foyer bench you have out in the shed against the wall opposite the stairs. Then just artwork on the walls,” she proposed while dropping some color samples in front of him.

  “There are several more paintings by Charlotte’s sister out there,” Robert commented, indicating the carriage house as he pointed.

  “That would be perf
ect, period correct and once part of the original décor,” Sandra replied with a smile.

  “Now, in here we have this wonderful wainscot already lining the walls of this room, so how about this wallpaper above it,” she added while dropping the swatch in front of him.

  No sooner had she displayed the wallpaper sample, then she screamed and jumped, bumping into Robert in the process.

  “Ouch!” she declared as she turned to look behind her while rubbing her butt cheek.

  “What’s wrong?” Robert asked as he was all but holding her in place.

  With her body pressed up against his, he was in no hurry to push her away.

  “Something stuck me in my behind,” she responded without backing away from him.

  Breaking contact and stepping around her, he looked her over from the waist down and then the table, finding nothing out of place.

  “If I didn’t know any better I would accuse you of doing it on purpose, so you could check me out,” she commented with a laugh as he was inspecting the place she indicated on her behind.

  He could see nothing on the material of her skirt showing a disturbance of the fabric.

  “Wish I had thought of it!” he said with a smile.

  Finding nothing out of place, he returned to the spot he had occupied earlier and they resumed their work.

  “OK, well, as I was saying, this wallpaper…” she started again before another outburst.

  “HEY, stop that!” she screamed, this time jumping hard into Robert, almost taking them both off their feet.

  With both arms wrapped around her, he guided her to one side while turning her to examine her once more. Not just scanning the entire area this time, he ran his hand over the curve of her bottom, an action she didn’t object to, but he couldn’t find anything out of place. Finally, switching places with her, he indicated that she could begin again.