Bless the Bride

“Yes, I believe they will set him free.”

The smile of relief that flooded her face reassured me once and for all that she had not been involved in the killing herself. And for the third time that day I set off back to Mulberry Street. When Daniel and I were married, I thought, there would be a telephone in the house so that the police could get in contact with him whenever he was needed. Such a useful instrument. It would have saved me a fortune in shoe leather!

Thirty

As I took the trolley southward yet again I rehearsed what I was going to say to Daniel. I had uncovered valuable information, so he should be pleased with me. On the other hand, I had continued my involvement in this case when he had expressly forbidden me to. The knot in the pit of my stomach returned. He was going to shout at me. Be furious with me. Then suddenly I decided that this wasn’t like me at all. I wasn’t usually the sort of person who cowered before men. I was turning into the kind of female I despised, the kind who lost her individuality and gumption when she married. What sort of a life would I have if my sole purpose on this Earth was to defer to my husband and make sure I didn’t upset him?

Enough is enough, I said to myself. If I didn’t stand up to Daniel now, he would dominate me for the rest of my life. He was going to have to accept that I was not prepared to turn into a helpless little wife. I could understand that he didn’t want me to continue my career as an investigator because that could be seen as compromising his position in the police department. And he did feel the need to protect me, which was nice. And God knows I’d been in need of protection several times in the past couple of years. But I wasn’t going to let him bully me or dictate to me.

Having come to that decision I strode out from the trolley with more confidence. But I have to confess that as I went up the steps into that austere building, that confidence did waver a little. Still, I held my chin high as I approached the front desk.

“I wish to speak to Captain Sullivan,” I announced to the constable who was manning the front desk. “It’s most urgent.”

“I’m afraid Captain Sullivan’s not here at the moment,” he said. “Will one of the other officers do instead?”

“No, thank you.” I felt the relief of reprieve and had to force myself to continue, “You don’t know where I might find him?”

“No, miss. I couldn’t tell you that,” he said.

“Even if you did know, you mean?” I stared at him. “Look, I have some facts for him. It’s important that he gets them as soon as possible. If you won’t tell me, may I write a note and you can ask one of your men to deliver it to him?”

“What’s this concerning, miss?” he asked warily.

“A murder case he’s working on.”

He was still looking at me most suspiciously. “And you say you have important information for him?”

He was driving me mad. “Yes. Now for goodness sake, please provide me with a pen and paper.”

He did so and I wrote: Daniel, I need to speak to you immediately about the murder of Lee Sing Tai. I have obtained valuable knowledge, which I want to share only with you. I believe there has been a second murder. I will await you at—I didn’t want to go all the way back to Patchin Place again— the settlement house on Elizabeth Street. It would be better that he examine Annie’s corpse for himself before he questioned Bo Kei.

I finished up with: Yours, Molly.

I only hoped I was his after this. I blotted the sheet, folded it, then handed it to the young policeman.

“I’ll see that he gets it, miss,” the constable said. He poked his head through into a back room. “Harry, this note has to get to Captain Sullivan,” he said. “The young lady says she’s got information concerning the case he’s working on.”

Another constable, this one looking absurdly young and boyish with a freckled face and strawberry blond hair, came to the doorway and paused there looking at me with interest. Obviously he then decided I looked respectable enough. “Right you are, miss. I can’t guarantee where he’s likely to be. Knowing the captain, he could be anywhere.” He turned to give his companion a grin. “But I’ll find out and we’ll see he gets it. What name shall I say?”

I really didn’t want them to know I was Daniel’s fiancee or they’d think it was some trifling domestic matter such as my needing to speak to him on the color of ribbons.

“It’s Murphy,” I said, “but the pertinent information is all contained in that letter and it’s rather vital that he gets it so that a murderer doesn’t have the chance to slip away.”

At the word “murderer,” the constable’s face became somber. “He’ll know where to find you, will he?”

“I’ve put that in the note.”

“Then I’m sure he’ll come as soon as he can,” he said and escorted me to the doorway.

I went out into the street and was about to go on my way to Elizabeth Street when I had an idea. I ducked into a shop front and waited. Sure enough, a few minutes later the freckle-faced constable appeared and set off down Mulberry Street. I followed, at a sensible distance. I had a problem keeping up with him as he was moving along with the large strides of a young man and my shoes didn’t fare so well on the cobbles. At the corner of Bayard he turned left.… And I realized he was heading for Mott Street. I was in luck. So Daniel had heeded my pleas to find out the truth and get Frederick released. He was still working on the murder investigation, in spite of having told me that it was Captain Kear’s territory.

Sure enough, the constable stopped just before he reached Lee Sing Tai’s residence. Another constable was standing guard outside.

“Is Captain Sullivan in there?” I heard the first ask.

“As far as I know,” the other agreed. “He went in some time ago and I haven’t seen him come out yet.”

I decided I had been patient long enough. I stepped forward. “Thank you, Constable. I can take it from here,” I said.