“Someone will be with you soon.” The man left, closing the door behind him. It was not five minutes later when it opened again.
“Good evening, sir.”
Easily as tall as him, the woman had a hard look in her eyes that matched the man who had let him in, and if he was to guess, he’d say they were related. She had the same dark coloring and angular features.
“I am Madam Ravelle. May I have your name, sir?”
“I am Lord Stabler,” Jamie lied, giving a false name. The man no longer frequented society, so unless this woman knew him, he was safe.
“What desires do you wish us here at the Crimson Serpent to fulfill for you this evening, Lord Stabler?” She held out a tray, and he took a glass.
Unlike the women leaning out of the window, who had looked a little worn and faded, this one wore a gown of peacock blue silk, and the style could be seen at any society event. Herhair was piled high and held in place with sapphire pins that Jamie had a feeling were real jewels.
“What can you offer me?” he said after a sip of surprisingly good whiskey.
Were Anthony and Toby inside?
“Perhaps a tour, my lord?”
Those eyes were cat-like and cunning, he thought. Assessing, working out what was needed to achieve her needs. Whether he was worth her time.
“Thank you.”
Jamie followed her out the door.
“We offer viewings, where you will not be seen but can watch,” Madam Ravelle said as they climbed to the next floor. “We have prostitution at all levels. From cheap street girls to courtesans dressed in silks.”
Jamie listened as she listed all the services her girls offered as if she were reading a list of household supplies.
“Flagellation, bondage, and of course a particular favorite with nobility, role play. We also have restraints should that be your wish,” she continued as they walked down a long, dark hallway that had doors leading left and right off it.
“The depravity climbs with the floors,” she added calmly.
A loud scream followed by a crash had the woman cursing.
Was that noise due to his friends?
“Take the last door on the right. You can view what is going on in there. I shall return shortly.”
Before he could speak, she’d retraced her steps and started climbing to the upper floors.
He needed to find someone to talk. Someone he could pay to give him the information he sought, and he must do that now while Madam Ravelle wasn’t with him.
The thud of feet coming down the stairs had him reaching for the closest door. Opening it, he slid inside.
Chapter Sixteen
Acandle litthe room, and whatever light the open window offered allowed him to see the two women leaning out of it.
A huge bed dominated the space. Its massive frame of oak was scarred with age, and the posts were fitted with iron rings and worn leather cuffs dangling and ready. A set of drawers stood open in the corner, spilling their contents across a stool. Jamie ran his eyes over the whips, paddles, and lengths of knotted rope. On the wall, a chain hung from a bolt, ending in manacles.
The floor was strewn with discarded garments. Silks in bright colors, torn stockings, a gentleman’s crumpled cravat. A chair sat nearby, its arms padded but fitted with straps, angled toward the bed as though for an audience.
“Well now, you’re the one we saw below.”
The ladies he’d seen when he arrived were staring at him. One of them got off the windowsill and sauntered toward Jamie. Shorter than the other who was now doing the same, she wore a dress that did little to hold in her ample breasts.
“We’re awaiting a client, but I think, considering what you’re offering, we could make him wait a little longer when he arrives. Fancy a tumble with us, love? This is Molly, and I’m Ada,” she said.
