We came out onto the street. The dying twilight had streaked the western sky with pink and the houses stood as dark silhouettes.
“Take care of yourself, Daniel,” I said, slipping my hand into his.
“Don’t worry about me.”
“You know I do,” I said.
The door opposite opened at that moment and Sarah came out, accompanied by a tall, angular young man with light ash-blond hair. His face was fine-boned and his hollow cheeks made him look almost frail. However, I presumed this was a normal quality of aristocrats. In fact his face was so pale that in the semidarkness he looked like a ghost. Sarah smiled when she saw us.
“Oh, Molly, there you are. I didn’t want to leave without saying good-bye to you. And now I can introduce you to my fiance. Monty, this is my new friend, Molly Murphy. And Molly, this is my future bridegroom, Montague Warrington-Chase.”
“How do you do, sir.” I nodded politely. “And this is my future bridegroom, Captain Daniel Sullivan,” I said.
The men shook hands.
“Dashed annoying, this wedding business, isn’t it?” Monty said in drawling upper-class English tones. “I’m rather of the opinion that an elopement might have been the best idea.”
“Oh, Monty.” Sarah slapped his hand. “You know our families would have been furious if we’d deprived them of a proper wedding with all the relatives and all the trimmings.”
“Luckily our wedding will be a modest affair,” Daniel said, “and my mother is organizing most of it. I have the excuse of being stuck in New York on a case.”
“A case?” Monty’s voice sounded sharp. “You’re a lawyer, sir?”
“Daniel is a police captain,” I said.
Monty gave a brittle laugh. “Silly of me. When we were introduced, I assumed you were a sea captain. But then you don’t have the requisite beard, do you?” He tipped his hat to us. “Now if you’ll excuse us, I have to take Sarah home to change. We are expected at the Waldorf. I wish you all the best for your future—Miss Murphy, Captain Sullivan.”
We parted with additional pleasantries. Halfway down Patchin Place, Sarah looked back. “Come and visit me at work, Molly. I’d love to show you what we’ve accomplished.”
“I will,” I promised.
“Sarah, I thought I made it clear that I want you to stop working,” came Monty’s voice as they walked down the alley.
“Now does that sound familiar?” I looked up at Daniel with a grin. “Is that something that all bridegrooms say to their brides?”
“She works? Where does she work?” Daniel asked.
“She volunteers at a settlement house on Elizabeth Street.”
Daniel gave a snort. “Then I can understand why he wants her to stop. I would too. That’s a rough part of the city for such a delicate-looking little thing.”
“I know, that’s what I thought.”
Daniel continued to stare after them. “You know, I’ve seen that English fellow somewhere before,” he said. “Somewhere I wouldn’t have expected.…”
“Where?”
He frowned, then shook his head. “Can’t remember. No matter. I expect it will come to me. I should be getting back to work. No peace for the wicked.”
“Oh, are you wicked? I didn’t know I was marrying a wicked man. What fun.”
He laughed and gave me a peck on the cheek. “Enjoy your party with your lady friends. I’ll be in touch.” Then he was gone.
Seven
The next morning I rose to the smell of fresh brewing coffee and came down to find that Gus had been to the French bakery on Greenwich Avenue and had returned with the morning papers, croissants, and brioches. If Sid hadn’t insisted on making Turkish coffee so thick that the spoon stood up in it, the breakfast would have been perfect. As it was, sitting with my friends amid the exotic plants of their conservatory, I thought eating fresh pastries and reading the paper a fine way to start the day. I scoured the papers to see if there was any hint of this big case that Daniel was working on, but there were only the usual petty crimes.
“So you’ll be going back to work for your Chinese gentleman, I take it, Molly?” Gus asked.
“I’ll have to go back and report to him, but when he hears that I’ve scoured the pawnshops and jewelers, I think he’ll have no further use of my services.”
“Maybe that’s for the best, now that you’ve seen Daniel’s face yesterday when he learned you were staying with us,” Sid said, tearing off a hunk of croissant and dipping it in her coffee.
“I know. That’s what I was thinking,” I said. “I’ve got to admit that my career as a lady detective is over and a life of domesticity looms ahead.”
“You make it sound like banishment to a penal colony.” Gus laughed.
“Not as long as the two of you are across the street,” I said. “I’ll enjoy having more time to spend with you.”
“So will we,” Sid said.
“By the way,” I said, remembering what had been forgotten in the fluster of the previous evening, “you’ll never
