“You could hide them at the Bishop’s house, or in the sacristy! No one would think to look there!”
“Look for…”
“Fugitive slaves!”
For the first time, Joseph felt the chill in the air. “That is madness, Ellie.”
His sister pouted. “I was hopingyou’d help me.Ican hardly ask discreet questions of sea captains; butyoucould pretend?—”
“We could be forced to compensate the slaves’ masters for their value. I don’t have that kind of money, and neither do you. We could be thrown in jail. To say nothing of the scandal!”
“What would our suffering be to the suffering that slaves endure every day, Joseph?”
“The law would probably pass over you entirely and punish Father. Or Liam!”
“I am suretheywill understand.” Even by moonlight, he knew Hélène was scowling. “I only have to learn how to do itright, so we won’t be caught. But even May and Henry and Agathe say they don’t know very much. It’s all so secretive. Ithasto be. ‘Conductors’ and ‘passengers’ communicate in code. They use?—”
“This isn’t a children’s game, Ellie.”
She lifted her chin defiantly. “‘To him therefore who knoweth to do good, and doth it not, to him it is sin.’ You said that in a homily less than a month ago.”
He’d been quoting the Epistle of Saint James. He’d been speaking about Works of Mercy, but…
The moon passed behind a bank of clouds then, and his sister was lost to him. In the darkness, Joseph proceeded as best he could. “Interfering with God’s plan is not ‘doing good,’ Ellie. Must I explain this again? Suffering isnecessary. It is the only way we become worthy to enter God’s presence. But suffering is wasted if we rebel against it. If we really wish to help the slaves, we must teach them to accept?—”
“Master Joseph? Miss Ellie?”
Joseph turned toward the light on the piazza. May was lifting a lamp, trying in vain to illuminate the distance between them.
“It’s us,” his sister sighed.
“I told your mama I heard your voices.” As May spoke, the moon emerged again. “Did you enjoy the opera?”
“Yes—but I amquiteready to be out of these clothes.” Hélène stamped toward the house but tossed over her shoulder to Joseph: “Don’t youdareleave yet!”
He still needed to bless her sleep. Joseph shed his hat and coat, then waited in the upper hall while May helped his sister disrobe. Hélène left the door wide open so she could continue spinning her plans to liberate half the slaves of Charleston.
When their mother saw Joseph’s expression, she frowned too. In explanation, he signed a half-truth: Hélène wanted to do more to evangelize the city’s colored population. Their mother looked as skeptical as Joseph about Hélène’s chances for success, but she bid them both good-night.
His sister invited him to enter her dressing room. She wore a white wrapper now. May was still undoing her coiffure. Joseph flung himself in the easy chair.
“I did find out a few signals,” Hélène prattled on. “A station master might put a light in a certain window to let potential passengers know it’s safe to enter. That gave me an idea for you and Tessa. You know Edward doesn’t spendeverynight at their house on Church Street? Sometimes, he stays at the plantation.”
Joseph’s eyes widened in horror and fixed on May. She continued to comb out Hélène’s hair, as if her mistress frequently discussed adultery in her presence. “May, would you leave us please?”
His sister opened her mouth to object, but Joseph planted both feet on the floor and silenced her with a glare.
After May obeyed him, Hélène burst out: “I can hardly talk about you and Tessa with Mama! To her, you’re a Priest first and her son second.” His sister snatched up her comb and attacked a remaining tangle. “I can hardly talk about anything with Mama—not because she is deaf, but because she weighseverythingfor its propriety in the eyes of God.”
“As should you!”
“Our mother worries that our garden is too beautiful, that she derives too much pleasure from theflowers! She thinks embracing her children is sinful gratification! It’s May who lets me sob on her shoulder.”
“You needn’t have told hermysins! This is how gossip starts, Ellie!”
She tossed aside her comb and stood. “As I was saying: You could spend the whole night with Tessa and never risk discovery, if only you knew when Edward was away—if only you had a signal. So a few?—”
“The Stratfords also have slaves,” Joseph pointed out as he gripped the chair arms. “Do you really think they won’t notice?”
