man on her mind had only been to the office one morning in the last three, but Ed had worked well into the night once Penelope was asleep. Juggling his time between work and his niece was fast becoming more and more difficult, and add to that was his doll dilemma. He had continued to search, had been to every toy shop or store that sold toys and dolls in the city, and in all of Bergen County, New Jersey, rushing home to have dinner and time with his niece before she went to bed. When he explained to Hal why he was on a mission to find a doll, Hal had his mother and sister check the shops in Boston and Philadelphia.
Yesterday he had lost his last hope. Word came in that there was no Josephine doll in either Philadelphia or Boston. He was fast beginning to believe that the doll they had seen in the window had been the only Josephine doll anywhere.
He glanced down at the piles of work stacked on this desk in order of most urgent. On top was a telegram from his aunt. She'd left London less than a week ago and couldn't get here fast enough for him. Perhaps Aunt Martha would have the answers he needed. He found himself questioning every decision he faced with his niece. Her need for him as clear in her expression. When he walked into her sigh she look relieved, and her face brightened, something that broke his heart and scared the hell out of him at the same time.
Dr. Cummings' last words echoed in his head, "Buy her the doll, Lowell."
Then Gordon, his secretary, alerted him that Oscar Dunbarton was there. Ed checked the wall clock. Three minutes early. He liked that. Perhaps his solution was waiting just outside his door.
And perhaps Santa Claus would show up Christmas Eve and put a Josephine doll under the tree...and perhaps he would grow a second head.
"Send him in," Ed said and pulled out the lists his secretary had typed up on the new Underwood. Gordon was so enamored of that machine that anything Ed wrote down was soon replaced with a new, freshly-typewritten page.
Dunbarton removed his bowler and shook Ed's hand. "Mr. Lowell, a pleasure."
"Have a seat."
Oscar Dunbarton sat down in the chair across the desk from Ed. He was of medium height and had a tobacco brown mustache with curled waxed ends, a hearty face, and the bushy brows of a billy goat. "What can I do for you, sir?"
"I need you to locate something for me."
"Yes, well, that's my specialty, Mr. Lowell, finding people."
"I need you to find a doll."
"A doll?" Dunbarton's expression showed clearly this was a first.
"Yes." Ed handed him the typewritten paper. Here's a list with the name of the doll, a description, and a list of stores where we've already checked. All the toy shops in the city, Brooklyn, Hoboken, Jersey City...most of Jersey. I've had friends check Philadelphia and Boston."
"Let me get this straight. You want me to find a doll, but you've already checked everywhere I could possibly look and you've still not found this doll?"
"Yes."
Dunbarton scratched his head as he looked at the list, then he looked back at Ed.
"You'll be well compensated." Ed named a figure that made Dunbarton sit up straight. "But you only have a week. This is time sensitive. Your reputation led me to believe you could do the impossible. I need you to locate a Josephine doll." Ed stood. He didn't want to give the detective the opportunity to turn him down. "My secretary has a draft for your expenses and we'll have another bank draft for you next week. We'll meet a week from today at the same time. Say eleven?"
"Certainly, Mr. Lowell." Dunbarton stood and added, "You're very generous." He set his bowler on his head with a determined swagger. "I'll find your doll, sir." And he left.
Ed stared at the closed door. Yes, Yes. Find the doll, Dunbarton, he thought, before he sat back down and went back to work.
Idalie gathered the pieces of fabric from the back clothesline and carried them up the rear stoop, pausing on a step with her willow basket resting on hip. She looked around. The feeling someone was watching her still plagued her. Silliness, really. This was the city. Buildings were almost on top of each other. Windows spread upward around the small patch of ground like large square eyes. Everyone watched everyone else. Jo