“I apologize.”
Stanton cleared his throat and then continued to read. “‘I believe that we have only begun to see the possibilities of a future that will forever improve the lives of every man, woman, and child on this planet.
There are new inventions that will, one day soon, allow even the most wretched man to live like a king, and for no child to go to bed hungry at night.’”
Her father stopped reading for a moment, his long pause clearly meant to offer an opportunity for anyone to dare to speak up.
When there were no more outbursts or interruptions he continued. “‘In my mind this is the true purpose of the Society of Paragons. We are the protectors and stewards of that future; parents of a tomorrow that we will never see. It is a world that will be beyond our ability to imagine it, even if it is built from our dreams.’”
Sarah smiled to herself as she listened, and then suddenly shook her head. She had already risked too much by sitting there listening to Darby's last words.
She shimmied herself away from the door. Now all she needed was some way to get past the doors without being noticed. There was no other way to get to where she wanted to go, and she knew from firsthand experience that all the men in that room were experts at ignoring women when they were discussing Paragon business.
Dragging herself across the corridor, she did her best to try to squeeze herself into the shadows that hugged the bottom of the wall.
As she moved past the door she could see her father standing directly in front of her behind the massive granite table, his eyes fixed on the document he was reading. If he even so much as glanced up he would discover his daughter squirming across the floor like a salamander. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and every breath she took sounded like thunder.
Next to Alexander, Nathaniel was absentmindedly staring at his nails, clearly deciding which one would be the best for chewing. His eyes flicked up, and Sarah froze. He was staring straight at her, and for a moment she thought that it was all over. There was no way he could have not seen her. A numb feeling clutched at her heart, and her skin went cold.
She would be in such terrible trouble. When would she ever learn?
And then his eyes turned back to her father and settled back to his nails.
Sarah quickly pulled herself out of the view of the open door with no obvious shouts of alarm or other signs of detection.
What if Nathaniel had seen her and decided to let her escape? But he never would do any such a thing. His loyalty to the Paragons was far greater than any amorous feelings he might have for her.
Safely out of sight, she took a few moments to gather her composure and then stood up. But she had just managed to tempt fate and win, and she wasn't going to try it again. Soon the sound of her father's voice once again returned to a confused muddle in the distance.
Sarah had managed to sneak past the world-famous Paragons, and she couldn't help feeling very pleased about it.
She turned right, stepping from the main corridor into a smaller side hall. The polished granite walls were gone, replaced with a combination of rough plaster walls and white stone. The ceilings here were lower as well, and the gas lamps were stationed fewer and farther between. The light was murky here, like an endless twilight in a smoke-filled sky.
Taking another step, she came to the top of a twisting stairwell that descended into darkness. Without stopping she grabbed the railing and headed down.
By the time she reached the bottom it was pitch black, and while the end of the railing told her that she had reached flat ground, Sarah still tapped her foot out on the floor in front of her to make absolutely sure that no more stairs were hiding in wait.
Finding none, she put her hand flat against the wall and stepped blindly forward. After a few feet her trailing hand crossed the bump of an igniter switch. For a moment she considered the idea of
Stanton cleared his throat and then continued to read. “‘I believe that we have only begun to see the possibilities of a future that will forever improve the lives of every man, woman, and child on this planet.
There are new inventions that will, one day soon, allow even the most wretched man to live like a king, and for no child to go to bed hungry at night.’”
Her father stopped reading for a moment, his long pause clearly meant to offer an opportunity for anyone to dare to speak up.
When there were no more outbursts or interruptions he continued. “‘In my mind this is the true purpose of the Society of Paragons. We are the protectors and stewards of that future; parents of a tomorrow that we will never see. It is a world that will be beyond our ability to imagine it, even if it is built from our dreams.’”
Sarah smiled to herself as she listened, and then suddenly shook her head. She had already risked too much by sitting there listening to Darby's last words.
She shimmied herself away from the door. Now all she needed was some way to get past the doors without being noticed. There was no other way to get to where she wanted to go, and she knew from firsthand experience that all the men in that room were experts at ignoring women when they were discussing Paragon business.
Dragging herself across the corridor, she did her best to try to squeeze herself into the shadows that hugged the bottom of the wall.
As she moved past the door she could see her father standing directly in front of her behind the massive granite table, his eyes fixed on the document he was reading. If he even so much as glanced up he would discover his daughter squirming across the floor like a salamander. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and every breath she took sounded like thunder.
Next to Alexander, Nathaniel was absentmindedly staring at his nails, clearly deciding which one would be the best for chewing. His eyes flicked up, and Sarah froze. He was staring straight at her, and for a moment she thought that it was all over. There was no way he could have not seen her. A numb feeling clutched at her heart, and her skin went cold.
She would be in such terrible trouble. When would she ever learn?
And then his eyes turned back to her father and settled back to his nails.
Sarah quickly pulled herself out of the view of the open door with no obvious shouts of alarm or other signs of detection.
What if Nathaniel had seen her and decided to let her escape? But he never would do any such a thing. His loyalty to the Paragons was far greater than any amorous feelings he might have for her.
Safely out of sight, she took a few moments to gather her composure and then stood up. But she had just managed to tempt fate and win, and she wasn't going to try it again. Soon the sound of her father's voice once again returned to a confused muddle in the distance.
Sarah had managed to sneak past the world-famous Paragons, and she couldn't help feeling very pleased about it.
She turned right, stepping from the main corridor into a smaller side hall. The polished granite walls were gone, replaced with a combination of rough plaster walls and white stone. The ceilings here were lower as well, and the gas lamps were stationed fewer and farther between. The light was murky here, like an endless twilight in a smoke-filled sky.
Taking another step, she came to the top of a twisting stairwell that descended into darkness. Without stopping she grabbed the railing and headed down.
By the time she reached the bottom it was pitch black, and while the end of the railing told her that she had reached flat ground, Sarah still tapped her foot out on the floor in front of her to make absolutely sure that no more stairs were hiding in wait.
Finding none, she put her hand flat against the wall and stepped blindly forward. After a few feet her trailing hand crossed the bump of an igniter switch. For a moment she considered the idea of
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