CHAPTER FIVE
The commotion I had seen from afar was the 1869 Virginia State Fair. Apparently, the Baskers had made a tradition out of attending the fair every year. This time, I would be accompanying them. I passed through the archway at the entrance and made haste in getting away from the group. As I moved I could hear Richard Basker telling the others to stay with him. Where I went must not have mattered to him. I brushed past bodies until I found a space to myself. It was loud and hot.
It was the busiest day of the whole fair. Conversations swelled around me and enveloped me in their cacophony. It kept getting hotter. It was as if I was drowning in my own body. Someone called my name, and I was restored. “James! James!” I spun around to locate the disembodied voice, praying it was som
