Hiss and Tell by Rita Mae Brown

Author:Rita Mae Brown [Brown, Rita Mae]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2023-03-28T00:00:00+00:00

21

August 3, 1789

Monday

Stifling heat enveloped Richmond. The river made it feel worse. The girls sat in the back this late afternoon. Bodices opened a bit to catch whatever breeze might blow their way. They lightly fanned themselves; helped.

Deborah leaned back in the chair, which would have fit in on an English estate. Georgina paid attention to fashions in England and France, had them copied by workmen in the city.

Lily and Sally were both young, Lily white and Sally black; they leaned back on the bench, giggling. Beatrice, opposite them in another lovely chair, was sipping a lemonade, remembering being that young. While she wasn’t old, a woman could age fast in this business.

The boss was in her office, heedless of the heat, going over the bills.

Eudes, Mignon behind him, knocked on the open door.

“Yes.” She liked these two.

“Given the heat, Ma’am, might I substitute braised beef with Mrs. Purdles’s spinach salad? Should be refreshing with the fruits. And we have chicken. Can’t ever go wrong with chicken salad or even fried chicken.”

“You’re right. It’s too hot for heavy dishes. Sherbet?”

“Peach, lemon, strawberry.” He smiled.

“You know the Romans made sherbet.”

“No, Ma’am, I didn’t know that, but I expect those ancient peoples were ahead of us.”

“Is there anything else?”

Back outside, a horse whinnied in the tiny paddock behind The Tavern. It was Nestor’s mare. She fit right in. Most city homes had a mews with a bit of grass and flowers between the back of the house and the stables, which were often built to match the house. Nestor did not know what happened to his mare. If he did, he would not go back to Georgina’s.

“Lordie, will this heat ever pass?” Fiona fanned herself vigorously.

Lily, next to her, smiled. “You’re giving me a good breeze.”

“Well, fan back.” Fiona jabbed at her with her fan.

The gate by the mews opened with a creak. Sandy Oster walked toward the women, whose attributes were generously displayed thanks to the swelter. The girls simply placed their fans over their bosoms.

“Ladies.”

“Mr. Oster,” they replied, as all knew him as the constable.

“I’m calling to see if one of your number is missing?”

Deborah took over. “No, Mr. Oster.”

“You may have heard that a young woman was murdered in the church on Grace Street. We picked up a man with head injuries, but he was too befuddled or frightened to tell us anything.”

“Perhaps he killed her,” Deborah posited.

“He swears he didn’t. Declared that as he was driving a young woman out of town he was pulled from his cart by a man whose face was covered.”

“Who found her?”

“The priest. Father Hinson.”

“Well, the poor fellow must have suffered a shock,” Beatrice chimed in. “And in his house of worship.”

“Some people thought the young woman worked here. I mean resided here.”

Deborah half smiled. “No. Our residents can come and go as they please, but no one is missing.”

He looked from one attractive woman to the other. “I see.”

Deborah asked him, “Will you be expanding the number of watchmen, Mr. Oster? Might deter these unfortunate incidents.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.