Virginia Clay’s story unfolds during the 1970s, a decade when New York City teetered on the brink of bankruptcy. Plagued by a severe fiscal crisis, soaring crime rates, and widespread urban decay, the city’s grand architectural treasures became vulnerable to demolition in the name of progress. The fight to save Grand Central Terminal, central to the novel, was born from the memory of a previous loss: the 1963 demolition of the original Pennsylvania Station, an event that galvanized a powerful preservation movement. This movement led to the creation of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1965. When Penn Central Railroad, the terminal’s owner, proposed building a 55-story skyscraper on top of the station, the commission designated the building a landmark, setting the stage for a legal battle. This culminated in the 1978 Supreme Court case Penn Central Transportation Co. v. New York City, which saw the Court rule that the terminal’s designation as a landmark did not significantly hinder the economic potential of Penn Central’s property holdings. The terminal maintained its landmark designation. However, because Penn Central was undergoing bankruptcy around this time, it could not restore the terminal, forcing the government to execute repairs at public expense.