William chuckled to himself when he thought of how he had learned of the backstreet modiste who catered to the demi-monde. One of his fellow club members was complaining about her invoices.
“But at least she knows better than to send bills around to the house,” he exclaimed. “Of course, that's why she commands such a stiff prices.” And then he had smirked, “But she does keep my soiled doves looking lovely.”
In his line of work he never knew what information would prove useful, so he’d tucked it aside. But he avoided becoming friends with the man.
William looked at Harriet thoughtfully. She actually was a very attractive woman when she wasn't scowling or trying to give orders. But her personality he found repulsive, and her manners left a great deal to be desired. Well, nothing for it but to be blunt.
“My dear, I think it would behoove you to use this time while we are waiting to find who has your gold, to learn the style and manners of society. People accustomed to money behave differently from those who know what it is to work.”
He decided to fudge the truth a bit, adding, “You may not be aware, but my circumstances were not quite what my wife's were, and I, too, had to polish my manners to fit in. I saw you watching my daughters at tea and how quickly you picked up the presently accepted manner of enjoying a repast. A woman as clever as you would have no trouble learning everything needed to become the toast of the town.”
He needed her to be at least socially acceptable in case she was seen by anyone, even with the cover story he had devised.
Frustrations
Harriet was frustrated. Karl had left her no money and William had given her none, explaining he would be with her whenever she needed to acquire anything. So she was virtually captive in the house unless she wanted to walk somewhere. The man didn't even keep a stable! It had been impractical in town, especially after his wife became ill, he’d claimed.
Given the central location of the house, cabs were easily come by and far more anonymous, especially for his sideline work for John Grey, thought William, although he didn't share that sentiment aloud.
She was also frustrated that William would not give her the keys.
“Consider yourself on your honeymoon, my dear,” he said. “Household management is well under control and I do not wish any disruptions to my comfort. We keep the closed rooms locked so the staff doesn't worry about them when they're unneeded.”
That she could understand, because men were clearly only concerned for themselves. Look at her thoroughly selfish husband Karl. Drat, she reminded herself, I have to keep thinking of him as my brother to stay in character. But, oh! she was so bored.
She did not read and did not particularly care for hand work. With Karl in Philadelphia pursuing other leads, she had nothing to do. And now she was not even being allowed to run the household! I'll see to that. I am the new mistress. He had said so to the housekeeper! So from now on she would start insisting on planning menus at the very least. And she wanted access to the rooms so she could see what she now owned. And what I can pawn. She smiled to herself. She did have a certain set of skills with regard guard to locks, after all.
She would spend a day or two observing the household so she would know where people were at all times before she started her visits to other places in the house. She could start on the upper floors and work her way down. She smiled broadly now that she had a plan.
~~~
In her peregrinations through the upper floors, Harriet had discovered one or two saleable trinkets and had walked the few blocks to the business district to fence them. She didn't use the broker Karl usually did. Although she would have gotten a higher price, she knew Karl would have instantly learned of her new side venture. Now she had a bit of pin money and could take cabs when she needed to. And she needed to! She wanted to get as far away from this museum as she could, at least for a few hours. She knew they had long-term plans, but in the short-term this was turning into pure hell for her.
Henry, in his careful, quiet way, had noted her obvious skill with lock-picking and endeavored to add protection to those doors which barred more sensitive matter than a few trinkets and decorations. One of John’s agents had been assigned to watch the house and follow Harriet whenever she left. He’d reported to Henry that she had walked to visit a known fence, but come out smiling and used a cab for her remaining errands. He’d only been able to keep up thanks to congested streets.
Henry had paid the man a visit and suggested any items brought in by Harriet would be purchased back for a premium—but if he tried to cheat them in any way, including mentioning this visit to anyone, he needn’t worry about having the opportunity to ever cheat anyone else. The fence had quickly agreed and promptly turned over any purchases.
Open Door
And then Harriet had come across the door to Celeste’s room standing open, empty, and could not resist the urge to go in. She looked around the beautifully decorated space, noting
