Philadelphia! Page 5

  “I’m not sure . . .” John hesitated. “I don’t know if I’m very comfortable asking people for money.”

  “But if it’s tied to getting historic status for your building, I think people will want to help,” Mom argued.

  “Plus,” Alfie jumped in, “everyone we’ve met in the past couple of days loves this hotel and your family. If they knew what was going on, I bet they’d want to do something about it.”

  “We do know quite a few people in the community . . . ,” John said.

  “There has to be a historic society in Philadelphia,” Zia added. “Maybe they would want to get involved!”

  “Donatella’s right,” Ann said. “There’s a huge chapter of the historical society here in Pennsylvania. They are always helping buildings that are in danger of being torn down.”

  “I’ll call them!” Emilia jumped in. “I would love to talk to someone from the historical society!”

  John shook his head and laughed. Then he looked at Mom and Dad. “You’ve got two smart kids on your hands.”

  Dad put his arms around Alfie and Emilia’s shoulders. “Yes, we do!” he said.

  “I’m going to go get some paper so we can start planning,” Emma said, dashing toward the lobby.

  “And I’ll throw together a few snacks in the kitchen and bring them out,” Ann said.

  Everybody else got to work setting the table at one of the bigger dining-room tables.

  Soon Emma returned with a giant pad of paper, and Ann came out of the kitchen balancing a tray of snacks and drinks.

  “I was just thinking,” Ann said, “that it might be nice to host a big dinner or cocktail party here at the hotel for our fund-raiser.”

  “Yes!” Emma cheered. “We could sell tickets and plan a menu around a theme—something fun and festive with lots of food!”

  “That sounds great,” John replied, and everyone agreed.

  “I would love to help make food for the party,” Zia said.

  “Oh, I would, too!” Mom chimed in. “What fun!”

  “Fantastic!” Ann exclaimed.

  Dad turned to John. “Are there any repairs or small fixes we can make before the fund-raiser? I’d be happy to help.”

  “That’s so generous,” John said. “It’s really just the last couple of months that things have started to slip, and I can’t understand it. I’ve had repairmen in here several times, and they either claim that nothing is wrong or that they’ve fixed the problem, but haven’t.”

  “Well, we could go through the hotel floor by floor and make a list of things,” Dad suggested.

  “That’s a great idea,” John replied.

  Alfie forgot about how tired he’d felt when they walked into the hotel. Now all he could think about was helping Emma and her parents put together the best possible plan to save their hotel. It just had to work!

  Along with Emma’s family, the Bertolizzis worked for the rest of the afternoon to get the hotel and fund-raiser plans together. They decided to hold the fund-raiser in two days. Ann spoke to Mrs. Wells at the Betsy Ross House and learned that there was a meeting of the historical society in town, so they wanted to put together the fund-raiser as soon as possible so that some of the society members could attend.

  Alfie followed his dad and John around the building, making a list of things that they’d need to tackle during the renovation. He liked seeing Emma’s dad smile and get excited about the hotel again. The best of the day was seeing his dad, though. He had been so busy with work for such a long time that Alfie had forgotten how funny he was and how great he was at fixing things. He hummed while he worked and made Alfie and John laugh with silly jokes.

  “Watch this, Alfie,” Dad said, balancing a screwdriver on his nose. “I bet you didn’t know your old man was so talented, did you?”

  Alfie laughed. “I sure didn’t!”

  “Maybe we should have a talent show for a fund-raiser instead,” Dad suggested.

  “I think we should stick with a party,” Alfie responded.

  “All right. We’ll do talents next time,” Dad said with a wink.

  Once they had gone floor to floor making a list of renovations, they met with the plumber and the electrician. Alfie thought both of them acted kind of strange. The electrician even got called away before they made it to the mechanical room to check on the wiring. He said there was an emergency and he’d have to come back later.

  “Here’s the pipe, right here,” John told the plumber, pointing to the leak that had caused some of their guests to check out. “You said last week you replaced this piece!”

  The plumber shifted from side to side and rubbed the back of his neck. “Uh, yeah . . . that’s really weird. Let me go check something in my truck. I’ll be right back.”

  The plumber practically bolted from the room. As the man tried to stuff a pen and notepad into his pocket, Alfie saw something fall to the floor. He walked over and picked it up. It was a business card. He figured he’d give it back to the plumber when he returned, but when John went out to check on him, his truck was gone.

  After their odd encounters with the repairmen, Alfie, Dad, and John headed back to the restaurant dining room where everyone else was hard at work. Emilia and Ann focused on the historic landmark information while Emma, Mom, and Zia planned the fund-raiser menu.

  Ann hung up the phone just as they entered the dining room. She and Emilia both had big grins on their faces. “They’re going to send over a representative tomorrow morning before the big historical society meeting,” Ann said. “They’ll show us exactly what we need to do.”

  Emma’s eyes grew wide. “That’s fantastic!”

  Emilia nodded excitedly. “And we both told her all about the fund-raiser. She said she’d be happy to spread the word at the meeting.”

  “Did you tell her that the party is in two days?” John asked, looking worried.

  “Yep! And she didn’t think that would be a problem. She said people would be happy gathering at short notice for a great cause.”

  Mom squeezed Emilia into a hug. “Well done, you two!” she said. Ann beamed at them both.

  “It’s all coming together!” Emma clapped excitedly. “We’re not going to have to worry about that developer for much longer!”

  Ann stood up. “Well, I don’t know about the rest of you, but I could use a dinner break! Let me see what I can find in the kitchen.”

  “I’ll help!” Zia said, following Ann.

  While they waited for dinner to be served, Alfie, Emma, and Emilia worked on making posters they could hang around the neighborhood to advertise the fund-raiser.

  “What’s going to be on the menu?” Alfie asked.

  “We decided to make it a more fun and casual cocktail party—lots of finger foods and appetizers that really represent Philly,” Emma told him.

  “Like cheesesteaks and pretzels?” Emilia asked.

  “Exactly! But we’ll do cheesesteak sliders and pretzel bites with different dipping sauces.”

  “Yum!” Alfie said. He wanted more of everything they’d tried so far in Philadelphia. “What else?”

  “We’re going to do some fresh vegetable and fruit trays with what’s in season at the farmers’ markets. Then we’re going to make some classic Philadelphia Italian dishes, like Stromboli and tomato pie,” Emma continued.

  “Is tomato pie like pizza?” Alfie asked.

  “It is,” answered Emma. “It’s a Sicilian-style pizza that doesn’t have any cheese.”

  Alfie frowned. “That doesn’t sound very exciting.”

  Emma laughed. “It’s actually really good. The crust is kind of like focaccia bread, and it has a yummy, thick tomato-sauce base.”

  “It sounds good to me!” Emilia said.

  A bit later, Zia and Ann returned from the kitchen with serving trays of grilled chicke
n breast, sautéed vegetables, and roasted potatoes. It smelled delicious. Everyone dug in, talking excitedly about the plans.

  Mom joined in talking about the menu for the fund-raiser. “Emma also had the great idea to include an appetizer that’s made with Philadelphia cream cheese.”

  Emma smiled. “Well, Zia helped me come up with the actual recipe. We’re going to make mini smoked salmon finger sandwiches with herbed cream cheese.”

  “Wow!” Dad chimed in. “I hope we’re invited!”

  “Of course you are!” Emma laughed.

  “It’s going to be such fun!” Mom said.

  Alfie and Emilia exchanged a glance and smiled at each other. Mom was excited, too. They hadn’t seen their parents this relaxed in a long time. And neither of them had brought up work at all. Alfie secretly wished they could stay in Philadelphia—especially if it meant his parents would stay this way.

  The next morning, everyone was up bright and early to continue preparations for the fund-raiser. They ate a quick breakfast, and then Alfie and Emma set out to hang their posters around the neighborhood. Emilia stayed behind, eager to meet the woman from the historical society and hear all about the process for making the Liberty Hotel a landmark.

  It was another beautiful late spring day, and the morning sun was bright and warm. Alfie and Emma covered the neighborhood hanging posters. Then they took a smaller version of their best poster to a print shop to make flyers and postcards. After that, they went around to local businesses, asking them to post the flyers or leave a stack of postcards someplace where people could grab one.

  “Of course!” the owner of the local dry cleaner told them. “Anything for the Liberty Hotel.”

  “I’ve always loved that beautiful old hotel,” said the woman at the coffee shop across the street, gazing out the window at the building. “And the fund-raiser sounds like fun. Tell your parents my husband and I will definitely be there!”

  Each business they stopped in was more excited than the last. Everybody loved Emma and her family, and cared about what happened to the hotel. No one wanted to see it go.

  Alfie and Emma were excited and feeling positive when they headed back to the hotel empty-handed. They found Ann and Mom together at the reception desk. Ann was on the phone, and Mom was on a laptop. They both looked very focused.

  “What’s going on?” Alfie asked.

  “Ticket sales for the fund-raiser are already starting to come in!” Mom said with a big grin on her face. “Wherever you’ve put the posters and flyers, it’s definitely working!”

  Emma bounced on her toes. “I can’t wait!”

  They found Emilia, Dad, and John in the dining room with the woman from the historical society. Emilia looked just as pleased as they were.

  “Everything looks great,” the woman told them as she stood up from her chair. “The Liberty Hotel seems to meet all the criteria we need. I’m going to get the paperwork submitted this afternoon, and we’ll have a final answer to you shortly.”

  “Thank you so much,” John said, shaking her hand vigorously.

  “And I’ll tell all our members about the fund-raiser,” the woman turned to say as she walked out of the dining room. “I know everyone will want to come out and support the cause.”

  “It’s really happening,” Emma said, a little breathless.

  “We’re not out of the woods yet,” John replied, crossing his fingers. “We need to wait to hear back. Hopefully they’ll approve our paperwork.”

  “Of course they will. I can tell!” Emma said, putting her arm around her dad’s waist.

  Just then, Zia rushed out of the kitchen with a piece of paper in her hand. “I’m so glad you’re back. Can the three of you go to the Italian Market with this list? These are most of the ingredients we need to make food for the party.”

  “Definitely!” Alfie said. He was happy to have a reason to go back there and explore more.

  “Great!” Zia smiled. “Just call us if you have any questions. And here’s some money for food and cab fare. Ann said you can arrange to have all the food delivered tomorrow morning.”

  “Yes,” Emma said, “we do that all the time for the restaurant.”

  Alfie, Emilia, and Emma hurried out of the hotel and in the direction of the Italian Market. “We should make a quick stop on the way,” Emma said. “You’ll want to see this.”

  They walked along South Street, and soon they came across a gap between two buildings. The side of one of the buildings and the whole front of the other was covered in mosaics. There was a gate and a shorter wall in between that was also covered in bits of broken tile and brightly colored glass—all in interesting and artistic patterns.

  “This is Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens,” Emma told them.

  “Wow!” Alfie said, taking it all in. “Someone made all this?”

  “Yep,” Emma responded. “An artist did. It took him over fourteen years.” Emma pushed open the gate, and they walked inside.

  Glass pieces glinted in the sun like silver, while the rainbow of other colors—bold blues, greens, yellows, oranges, and reds—seemed to dance all around them.

  “There are so many different materials,” Emilia said, running her hand along the wall. “Bike wheels, glass jars, china plates—all kinds of things!”

  “And even the floor is all mosaics,” Alfie remarked as they climbed a tiled stairway to another level. “It’s so cool.”

  “I thought you would like it,” Emma said.

  Alfie, Emilia, and Emma finished their tour and popped back onto South Street to continue toward the Italian Market. When they got there, they looked at Zia’s list and bought fresh ingredients from all kinds of vendors, some of whom they’d met with Emma already. They posted flyers and postcards advertising the fund-raiser at each stall they visited. Everyone they talked to was really supportive and happy to spread the word.

  Once they’d finished, Emma led the way to a local farmers’ market. They handed out the rest of their flyers and then ordered all the fresh fruits and vegetables they needed. Alfie couldn’t believe the number of people Emma knew at that market, too! Philadelphia really is the City of Brotherly Love, he decided.

  After the groceries were purchased, Emma hailed a cab, and they buzzed along the city streets back toward the Liberty Hotel.

  “Thanks for showing us the Magic Gardens,” Emilia said. “You’ve been such an amazing host. We’ve seen so many cool things.”

  “Thank you for all your help!” Emma said.

  “I’m so excited about it all!” Emilia continued. “Working with the woman from the historical society was amazing. I think I might want to do that some day.”

  Emma nodded, but her smile faded a little bit. “I love our plan, and people seem to be responding to it. I just hope it’s enough. The thought of selling to that condo developer . . .” Emma shuddered. “There is just something about that guy . . .”

  Alfie got a weird feeling in his stomach. “What did you say the developer’s name was?”

  “I’ll have to ask my dad to be sure, but I think it was Ray something . . .”

  “Ray Stevens?” Alfie asked.

  “That’s it. How did you know?”

  Alfie pulled the business card from his pocket. “The plumber dropped this when he ran out of the hotel yesterday. Maybe he’s working with the developer, and that’s why none of the repairs were done right!”

  Emma studied the card with wide eyes. “We have to tell my dad!”

  When they reached the hotel, they hurried inside. Emma passed the business card to her dad and told him what Alfie had discovered.

  “Well, that explains quite a bit!” John said, studying the card. “I knew those repairs hadn’t been done correctly.”

  “And those repairmen were acting so strange yesterday,” Alfie added. “Like they couldn’t wait to get out
of here!”

  “That’s right,” John agreed. “I had a feeling something was off at the time, but I didn’t know what it was.”

  “Good detective work, Alfie,” Dad said, ruffling his hair. “This is a really, really big deal.”

  Alfie smiled.

  “I’m going to make a few phone calls,” John said, hurrying into his office.

  “Where are Mom and Zia?” Emilia asked. “We have to tell them, too!”

  “They’re in the kitchen,” Dad answered.

  Everybody went into the kitchen to fill in Ann, Mom, and Zia on the big discovery. Ann and Zia made sandwiches while they talked. They were just sitting down to eat when John rushed into the room. “I called the plumber, and he confessed to working with Ray Stevens.”

  “I knew it!” Alfie cried.

  “He said Mr. Stevens paid him double to do shoddy work, but he’s been feeling bad about it and doesn’t want to be involved anymore.”

  “Well, I should hope not!” Ann said.

  “So then I called my old college buddy at the Philadelphia Daily News,” John continued, “and he’s going to run a story about the developer. He’s already been writing for months about all the buildings that have been torn down around the city. He said almost all of them have been thanks to Ray Stevens. And every time he tries to talk to Mr. Stevens, he avoids my friend and won’t return his calls. He wants to talk to you for the story, Alfie, since you’re the one who put the pieces together with the repairmen.”

  “Okay,” Alfie said. His heart beat in his throat. He had never talked to a reporter before. He was nervous and excited all at the same time. Dad squeezed his shoulder.

  “And the plumber has already agreed to speak with my friend, too,” John added.

  “That’s great!” Dad said.

  “So grab your sandwich and come with me,” John told Alfie with a smile. “You’ve got an interview to do!”