“Put down the poker?”
“I don’t think so.” The housekeeper hefted it once more. “I keep my hands on this until you’re back in the street. Where you belong.”
Vivian clenched her jaw, but it was far from the worst thing that had been said about her, even to her face. She could let the insults pass. “Lead the way, then. I promise not to get too close.”
They were on the landing of the main staircase when Vivian risked a glance back up toward the hallway. She was just in time to see the top of Bea’s head disappearing around the corner and out of sight.
Vivian let out a silent breath. At least that was one less thing to worry about. She hurried to catch up with the housekeeper.
The housekeeper’s office was downstairs, just off the kitchen. The housekeeper made her wait in the hall. Vivian shifted from foot to foot nervously, glancing up and down the hall. She hadn’t seen a telephone in there before the door closed. But what if the plan was just to leave her there in the hall until everyone else came back? She’d be arrested for sure, and then—
She jumped half a foot in the air when the door opened suddenly and the housekeeper reappeared, her cheeks bright with nervous color and an envelope in her hand.
“Maggie’s position before this one was in a shop,” she said, speaking very quickly, as though eager to be done with the conversation. “She assured me she’d had previous experience as a maid, and she seemed competent enough. But I imagine you’ll have better luck at a shop anyway than you would at someone’s home.”
“Thank you,” Vivian said as she slid the letter of reference out of its envelope. “I’ll—” She broke off as her eyes caught on the address at the top of the stationery. “Where’s the real one?”
“What?” The housekeeper scowled at her. “I just gave it to you, stupid girl.”
“Me, the stupid one?” Vivian demanded. “That’s the address for Howard’s on Seventh. It’s a store for men’s hats, and a hell of a ritzy one at that. Not this”—she thrust the letter forward and shook it—“ladies’ toiletries and cosmetics baloney. Did you even check the reference before you hired her?”
“I told you, it was a busy week,” the housekeeper snapped. “And I’m doing you a favor here. Don’t you go making trouble over it.”
Vivian felt like the bottom had dropped out of her stomach. She had been so close. There had to be something else. “But it’s a fake,” she insisted.
“I gave you what I had,” the housekeeper said, starting to sound angry now as well as nervous. “Take it or not, I don’t care. Now beat it, or I really will call the police.”
Vivian felt like she couldn’t breathe. She wanted to find Bea and tell her what had happened. To sit down and cry until she didn’t have any tears left. To run away and not stop running until she was somewhere no one knew her, and to hell with what that would mean for the people she left behind.
Instead, she folded the reference letter very carefully, her hands shaking, and slipped it into her pocket next to the crumpled letter from Honor’s mother. Then she turned and walked out of the house without a word.
Around her, people carried on with their lives, no rest for New York, even on a Sunday. Vivian pushed through the crowds without seeing them, and eventually her feet carried her home.
She closed the door behind her, finally alone again, and took both letters out of her pocket. She set aside the one from Honor’s mother and stared at the reference for Maggie Chambers.
It was a fake, no question there. But it wasn’t nothing. It proved Maggie Chambers was real, that she had been there. And it proved she had lied. That had to matter.
Her week was up tomorrow. But she could take the letter with her.She could force them to look at it. What had that lawyer, Dubinski, said? She just needed to give them someone else to suspect. Maybe Maggie Chambers was protecting whoever had met with Buchanan. Hell, maybe she had offed him herself, though Vivian had a hard time picturing that tired woman having a reason to kill someone. But she clearly mattered.
She’d prove it to them tomorrow. And then, no matter what happened, she’d know she had done all she could.
But just in case…
Vivian shoved both the letters under her pillow and turned back to the door.
Just in case it didn’t work, she knew there was only one place she wanted to be now.
TWENTY-EIGHT
Mrs. Chin handed her a tray once more, along with strict instructions to see that her sister ate at least the broth. Vivian’s hands shook as she went upstairs. Florence might’ve thought she’d been the one doing the mothering between them, but Vivian had always looked after her sister. Vivian had wanted to give her a life that made her happy, even if it meant doing things Florence wouldn’t have approved of if she’d known about them. At least Florence had that now. She had a family.
She had someone to look after her, even if Vivian was gone.
Florence was sitting in the middle of the room folding laundry when Vivian knocked. “Hey, Flo,” she said softly, poking her head around the edge of the door. “You up to a visit?”
Florence looked up. Her eyes were shadowed, from fatigue or worry or probably both. But she smiled at her sister. “Are you supposed to make me eat again?”
“Can you?” Vivian asked. “How are you feeling?” She didn’t saywhy she was there. She would, eventually. But for the moment, she just wanted everything to feel normal between them, to talk about Miss Ethel or the baby or anything but the clock that had finally run out.
