The Edge of Dreams (Molly Murphy Mysteries, #14)

“It’s a pity you have damaged ribs or I’d take that as an invitation,” he said with a smile, “but given the circumstances, I think a kiss will have to suffice.”


And he planted his lips firmly on mine. I waited for the usual arousal I felt in such circumstances, but my head was still buzzing with too many worries. As Daniel draped an arm over me and fell asleep, I found myself thinking about Bridie, and a brilliant idea came to me. Bridie’s father’s family lived somewhere in the Lower East Side. Her father’s cousin Nuala was one of the most unpleasant women you’d ever meet, and her sons were the worst sort of ragamuffin. There was even a rumor that they were now affiliated with one of the street gangs. Not the sort of relatives you’d want. But it came to me that these boys might be ideal for getting information out of a younger child. If I paid them well enough, perhaps they could do what Daniel thought impossible, and find out who gave a note to a street urchin to be delivered to police headquarters.

I gave a little smile of satisfaction at the thought of delivering such news to Daniel. Then I snuggled up against him, feeling the comforting warmth of his body against mine, and fell asleep.





Thirteen

Mrs. Hamilton lived in a comfortable neighborhood just east of Gramercy Park. I looked out of the hansom cab with interest as we passed that square, with its gardens surrounded by elegant homes, and fond memories came back to me.

“I was once locked in the gardens here,” I said to Sid and Gus.

“When you were working on a case and chasing a criminal?” Sid asked, her eyes lighting up.

“When I was pushing an old woman in a bath chair,” I replied. “I worked for a while as a companion to a crotchety old woman, Miss Van Woekem. She lives in that house over there. I grew quite fond of her, after that rocky start. I hadn’t realized you needed to bring a key to let yourself out of the gardens. She wasn’t at all amused at being locked in there for hours.”

Sid and Gus chuckled. “You’ve had a colorful life, I’ll say that for you,” Gus said.

“Oh, I’ve had a colorful life? I like that,” I retorted. “What about you two? I’ve never turned my living room into a Mongolian yurt.”

“We just play at things,” Gus said. “We’ve never taken anything too seriously, until now. I think what we went through in France rather shook us up and sobered us a little. I took my studies in Vienna seriously enough, didn’t I, Sid?”

“You did. I rather wish you’d stayed on. You might have made a major contribution to the study of diseases of the mind.”

“There is still time to pursue my studies over here,” Gus said. “I’m now realizing how little I actually learned in such a vast field. I have to confess I’m having serious misgivings about seeing this young girl. I’m not a doctor. Could I be doing more harm than good?”

“I mentioned it to Daniel. He was concerned that if it ever came to a court case, you could be called as a witness, and even prosecuted for practicing medicine without a license, he said.”

“A court case?” Gus said. “I’d hate to think of a young girl being dragged into court, especially after what she’s already gone through.”

“We don’t know the circumstances yet, do we, Gus?” I said gently as the cab passed the square and proceeded along Twentieth Street. “We have to consider that she could be guilty of setting the fire. I’m sure we’ll make a better judgment after we’ve spoken with her.”

“We’ve written to Professor Freud asking for advice,” Sid said. “Gus will meet the girl and is certainly capable of making a preliminary assessment as to whether she has deep-seated mental problems that are beyond her capabilities.”

The cab came to a halt outside a row of well-kept brownstones. To me they epitomized comfortable middle-class prosperity, and the thought crossed my mind that Mrs. Hamilton hadn’t done too badly for herself. If she hinted that her deceased sister-in-law had taken a step down in the world by marrying Mr. Hamilton’s brother, then Susan must indeed have come from the realms of the Four Hundred.

We were helped down from the cab and mounted the flight of steps to a green-painted front door. It was opened by a maid, and we were led through into a front parlor. Here the air of elegance and obviously good furniture was spoiled by subtle hints that this was a household of four boys. The carpet and sofa were a little the worse for wear. There were lead soldiers lying under one of the chairs. Before we could take a seat Mrs. Hamilton herself appeared. She looked flustered, with wisps of hair escaping from her bun.