CHAPTER THREE Excerpt from Standing Ovation by L. C. Bennett Stern

CHAPTER THREE Excerpt from Standing Ovation by L. C. Bennett Stern

Tuesday, December 25, 1900

A buzzing mosquito flitting by her ear woke Mae on Christmas morning. She rolled onto her back and attempted kill it by clapping her hands in the air but missed. She glanced at the cuckoo clock through bleary eyes. “Fifteen past ten? It can’t be!”

Wide awake now, she’d forget about sleep and get dressed for the day. Mae knew she’d have to hurry. She poured water from the hammered tin pitcher into the washbowl, splashed some onto her face and under her arms and patted herself dry. She ran her still-damp fingers through her hair and then quickly pinned up her auburn curls. In keeping with the holiday, she chose her red and green taffeta skirt. Her new purple shirtwaist would finish the festive outfit.

When she was satisfied with her appearance, Mae placed the festooned gifts for her friends in a market basket, left her room and trotted down the stairs. Out in the neighborhood, passersby greeted each other with cheerful wishes for a Merry Christmas, and despite the heat, her bright mood continued throughout the trip to Lizzy’s.

When she arrived, Franny was already there with Amanda perched on a stool at her feet, clutching the baby doll Mae ordered for her from a Sears Roebuck catalogue. She kissed the top of Amanda’s flaxen, curlcovered head and sat on the caned side chair nearby. Franny leaned over and whispered, “She loves her new dolly!” Mae winked at her coconspirator.

Lizzy gave Mae a cup of punch, and she, in turn, gave Amanda a sip. Franny pushed her hand away and said, “That’s enough, Mae.” She looked down at her daughter and said, “This punch is for the grownups, Amanda. Aunt Lizzy made you your own…drink that, honey.” She gave Mae a scolding glance.

When she heard her name mentioned, Lizzy tuned into the conversation. Mae ignored Franny’s scolding and said, “Amanda, did I ever tell you about the other Amanda I knew?” The little girl shook her head. “Well, I knew her a long time ago, before I came to California. She was a lady of the theater like all of us here today.” She clinked cups with her young audience and took a gulp of punch before continuing. “That Amanda was not nearly as delightful as you, but she wore the most beautiful long flowing scarves. And on all her fingers except her thumbs—Mae held up her left hand and splayed her fingers to make her point—she wore the most enormous rings I’d ever seen. Truly, I don’t know how she managed to lift her hands!” “Really, Auntie Mae?”

“You never told us about her before,” Lizzy said. “She sounds fascinating!” “Yes, she is,” Mae said. “I did write to her once, asking her to join our little troupe, but she’s set in her ways and wants to stay put in Council Bluffs.” Looking down at her young admirer, she added, “That’s in Iowa, Amanda.”

“What a shame. She could’ve stayed with me,” Lizzy said. “Since Teddy left me last year after typhoid took our little Patrick, I rattle around in this house with no one to talk to.”

She got misty-eyed but after a few moments, perked up, took a sip of punch and added, “That’s why I’m so delighted to be a part of this group of talented ladies. Now, Amanda, dear, would you like to help me hand out those cookies you made?”

Before Amanda could respond, another voice interrupted their conversation. A woman approached singing an out-of-tune rendition of “Joy to the World.”

Claire arrived last, as usual. The others raised their cups to her as she came bustling through the door.

She maneuvered a large basket of fresh fruit and wine onto the red cloth-covered table in the corner and laughed. She held up the bottle of Inglenook Bordeaux and said, “I thought we could throw some of this into the punch. But, I see I’m too late. You started without me!” She got herself a cupful of punch, raised it high and said, “Happy Christmas, girls!”

Now that they were all there, Mae handed out her gifts. Kate (a raven-haired beauty with incredible aqua eyes) ripped the tissue paper from her present first. “Oh Mae! Jonteel Face Cream! How did you know I’ve been wanting this?” She didn’t hesitate to unscrew the lid

from the jar to smell the contents. “Ooh, it smells like a garden full of flowers! Thank you so much!” She jumped up and pecked Mae’s cheek.

The others (except Claire) received the same cream, and Naomi read the label aloud. “Will not grow hair on the face. Well, I should hope not! I don’t want to end up being the bearded lady at the carnival show. Besides, I just might want to look for another husband some day!” Laughter echoed through the room.

“What happened to your first husband?” Tilly asked. “My Clayton died a few years back at the bottom of a collapsed silver mine. His body wasn’t recovered, so I never got to say ‘good-bye.’ To this day, I get a headache if I dwell on it too long…imagining how much he must have suffered.”

“I’m so sorry,” Tilly said. “But, I know the perfect cure for headaches— Carter’s Little Liver Pills.”

Naomi laughed at Tilly’s innocence. “I don’t think pills are going to cure what ails me, honey, but this cream might help!”

As the rest of the women snickered, it took Tilly a few moments to realize what Naomi meant. She covered her mouth with her hands and her fair complexion turned scarlet. Naomi patted her arm. “You’ll learn.”

Next, it was Claire’s turn to open her gift. Mae had difficulty restraining a grin, as her friend tore off the tissue.

“Oh my! It’s perfect!” Claire examined her gift carefully and giggled. “Let us see! What is it?” the others asked as they gathered around her. She displayed her new gold brooch for all to see—an enameled nude of a well-endowed woman with an exquisite figure, holding a bunch of

grapes above her head.

“I think it’s you, Claire. Look at those long legs,” Samantha said. “Though, for the life of me, I don’t know when you found the time to pose!” Everyone laughed again and Lizzy asked, “Who needs a refill?”

“That’s right,” Mae said. “Everyone fill your cups. I’d like to propose a toast.”

When Lizzy finished pouring the last of the punch into Tilly’s cup, Mae lifted hers and said: “Here’s to the Merriest Christmas ever for the ladies of The Mari Mort Theater. Cheers!

“And as Claire would say during rehearsals… bottoms up!”

L. C. Bennett Stern, born in Philadelphia, was raised in southern New Jersey as the middle child in a family of nine. She enjoys doing research for her books, nature and architectural photography, backyard birding, and is recognized as the family worrywart.

Her first book (Award-Winning Finalist in the “True Crime: Non-Fiction” category of the 2017 International Book Awards) is Bosses and Blackjacks: A Tale of the “Bloody Fifth” in Philadelphia. It tells the story of her paternal grandfather, a police lieutenant in 1917.

Mae’s Revenge, is the first book of The Mari Mort Theater Trilogy, based on the travels of one of her great aunts.

Standing Ovation is the second act of the historical fiction trilogy. Linda is the mother of two grown children, a daughter and a son. She lives with her husband, a fellow author, in a small New Jersey river town that overlooks the Philadelphia skyline.