The Paper Daughters of Chinatown - Heather B. Moore Page 0,77
was too busy to involve herself in situations that would take her long from the mission home. Of course, her sisters’ letters continued to encourage her to keep looking, but they couldn’t understand that Dolly was busy.
“A note for you,” Lonnie said in her sweet voice, appearing at the doorway. She had already dressed in a new white outfit she had made herself. “From your sister Jessie.”
Lonnie’s proud expression told Dolly that she was happy to have been able to read the return address.
Dolly held out her hand, and Lonnie rushed forward, all eager smiles.
The letter was short and to the point, which only made Dolly laugh at the irony. Jessie had invited her to her home in Alhambra, near Pasadena, for a weekend visit. Her other sisters, Annie, Katherine, and Helen, frequently invited her to their homes, too. But in this letter, Jessie had made no secret that she thought the minister of their town congregation would be a great match for Dolly. Reverend Ben Bazatas was passionate about saving lives and souls—something Dolly could relate to. She had met the reverend on prior visits to Jessie’s church, of course, but Jessie had never been so adamant before.
Dolly sighed and squeezed Lonnie’s hand. “Thank you for bringing me the letter. I should go and check on Ah Cheng.”
“Can I see the bride?” Lonnie asked in a hopeful tone. “Please, Mama?”
“If you are very well behaved,” Dolly said.
Lonnie nodded her head so hard that her teeth snapped together.
“Come.” Dolly led the way out of the room and up the stairs, wondering if Reverend Bazatas was even interested in her, or if the Lord just had a good sense of humor.
Whatever the case, Dolly’s melancholy lifted by the time she reached Ah Cheng’s room. The bride was beautiful in her white wedding gown.
“Look at you,” Dolly said. “Jun Ling will be blushing before you reach him at the end of the aisle.”
Ah Cheng’s own face flushed at the comment. “Do you think I will please him?” Ever the modest Chinese woman, Ah Cheng still displayed some insecurities.
Ah Cheng nodded. Then her gaze dropped, and her mouth turned down.
“What is it?” Dolly asked in a quiet voice to prevent Lonnie from overhearing.
“Should I be wearing white?” Ah Cheng murmured.
Dolly’s eyes burned. She knew Ah Cheng’s question wasn’t referring to the traditional red that Chinese women wore on their wedding days. The mission home provided white wedding gowns to its women in order to symbolize their purity. Whatever Chinese women had experienced during their captivity, their escape cleansed the old darkness and provided new life and new light.
“You, of all people, are the purest soul I know.” Dolly pulled Ah Cheng close. “Jun Ling knows this, and I know this. You deserve to wear white as much as any other woman.”
When Ah Cheng drew away, tears rimmed in her dark eyes. “Thank you.”
“Now, a hundred guests are about to arrive,” Dolly said with a watery smile. “And you will soon have an anxious groom downstairs who can’t wait to see you. Where is your bouquet?”
Ah Cheng exhaled. “I think someone took it downstairs already. I left my bedroom for a few moments, and when I returned, it was gone.”
Dolly frowned, looking about the room. “No one should have taken it. How long were you gone for?”
“Only a few minutes, but it’s all right,” Ah Cheng said. “If . . . if someone took it, I will go without.”
Ah Cheng was an angel beyond anyone Dolly had ever known. She didn’t want to think one of the girls had stolen the bride’s bouquet, but a wedding day wasn’t something that every woman and girl would celebrate. Some of them had deep wells of pain associated with their own weddings and the betrayal surrounding them. Or jealousy could also be a factor.
“I’ll be right back,” she told Ah Cheng.
“No, I’d rather you didn’t reprimand anyone,” Ah Cheng said. “Let it go.”
Dolly paused. “I’ll check one place, and if it’s not there, I’ll return immediately.” She had a notion where the bouquet might be and who had taken it. She didn’t want to be right, but if she was, she would rather deal with it now than have Ah Cheng face her wedding-aisle walk stripped of what was rightfully hers.
She hurried to Tien’s bedroom and found the door locked. Dolly knocked softly, and when no one answered, she said through the door, “It’s Miss Cameron, Tien.