“And what do you do for him at the club?”
“Whatever he needs.”
What did that mean?She furrowed her brow.
Ben chuckled.“It’s not what you’re probably thinking.I take care of the house, organize the food, drive him about when he calls for it.Help with security in a pinch.But he knows I don’t like to fight no more.”
Elizabeth relaxed her expression.Ben was Mr.Reeves’s butler, although she wasn’t sure he would appreciate being called one, so she kept the thought to herself.The day had turned out to be warm, and she felt a bead of sweat roll down the back of her neck.Summer in London meant the air constantly smelled like coal soot and rotting refuse.But the sun had made an appearance after all the rain of the past week, and she enjoyed looking up at the green leaves of the trees that dotted the streets of Mayfair.
“It certainly is nicer to ride through town.Thank you, Ben.”
“Anytime, Miz Harper.Did you get the information you was looking for?”
She shook her head.“No, they wouldn’t help me.Gave me the look.You know, like I wasn’t good enough to be in the shop.I fear I lost my temper and gave up too easily.Perhaps if I had simpered a bit, I could have gotten better results.”
“Places like that are only helpful to their own kind,” Ben said.
“Yes, that is true.I probably needed to pretend a little better that I fit in.”She picked at a loose thread on her best pair of white gloves.Maybe she needed to invest in a new pair.These were at least five years old.There were just too many things that needed to be paid for first before her wardrobe could be updated.
Hartwick had been generous with paying for Robert’s tutor, and he’d wanted to give her more to pay for the rent and other expenses, but she just couldn’t swallow taking any more of his charity.She had been doing just fine taking care of herself with the money her father left her and the income from the paper.She didn’t want to rely on the whims of the duke.What if he changed his mind at some point?Decided he didn’t want to be associated with his late brother’s by-blow?Especially now that Lucy may be carrying his heir.
“Could you tell Mr.Reeves that I guess we will have to do it his way?”She sighed.
Ben nodded.
“This is certainly a nice curricle.”
“He also has a town coach.Hardly ever uses either.Like you, he likes to walk everywhere.”
She slid a glance sideways at the big man next to her.Ben was so friendly.He was probably a fountain of information about the enigmatic Matthew Reeves.“Where does Mr.Reeves reside?”
“At the Blue Angel.Him and his sister.A few of us do as well.Mrs.Langley, the theater manager.Also, some of the girls, Val, and Allan the bean counter.Mr.Reeves wanted it to be a safe place for those who needed one.”He shrugged.“It varies who’s with us.Keeps me on my toes.But I like taking care of people.”
A safe place.Interesting.“Mr.Reeves said the girls are in a dancing show?But they also have rooms at the hell?”
Ben’s back straightened as he snapped the ribbons.“Yes, the show is a musical featuring Miss Reeves.It’s a proper show.”His voice sharp.“I heard about what you wrote about the Blue Angel.It’s not a brothel.”
Taken aback by his vehemence and his glower, Elizabeth felt bad about her assumptions.But what would one expect her to surmise?There definitely had been ladies of the night at the masquerade.Her assumptions were not that far off from the norm.“I’m sorry about that.It was based on my first impressions at the masquerade.”When there was no response from Ben, she twisted in her seat to look up at his profile.“I’m glad to hear it is a real theater show.Mary Beth was a nice girl.I used to watch her when she was young.Her dream was to be an actress on the stage.”
Ben’s ramrod-straight posture deflated.“She had a good voice.She was new, but Mrs.Langley thought she had potential.I’m just sorry I couldn’t keep her safe.”
“Ben, there wasn’t anything that you did wrong.You didn’t know she stepped outside.It still bothers me.What was she doing in the back alley minutes before the show was supposed to start?”
“Haven’t been able to figure that out.No one saw her leave the backstage area.”
She mulled over that.How did the killer lure Mary Beth outside?It had to be someone she knew; otherwise, why would she leave the safety of the club?Or perhaps the threat was already inside, and she fled outside to get away from it?These unanswered questions had been keeping her up at night.She would love a chance to speak with the other girls that danced at the club.Somehow, she doubted that Mr.Reeves would let her, based on his ire after her initial article came out.
“Ben, the name of the club, what does it mean?Is it named for someone?”
“Don’t rightly know.Never thought much about it.Gonna have to ask the boss yourself.”
Yes, she would.She had plenty of questions left for Matthew Reeves.He was a puzzle, to be sure.A man who grew up on the streets but spoke like a well-educated man.A man who essentially fleeced people of their money for a living.But also made his club a safe haven for those who worked for him.God only knows, with a man like Rhys Seaton as his business partner, what other unsavory dealings he was involved in.But she didn’t fear him, even when he’d had her pressed against the brick wall in that dark alley with his hand around her throat.She shifted restlessly in her seat.Instead, she had come alive, ready to submit to whatever he demanded with those wicked lips.
They turned onto Bloomsbury Square, and Elizabeth gave Ben direction to her house.As the carriage pulled up in front, she saw the flick of white curtains in the front window of Mrs.Lindow’s house next door.Her lips twitched; arriving home in such a fine conveyance would make her the object of gossip today.Ben helped her down.
“Thank you for insisting.My feet appreciated the break.”She grinned up at him.
Ben tipped his cap.“Boss’s orders.Good day to you, Miz Harper.”
