Before Arthur could even acknowledge Ivan, though, Eunice stepped forward, Ivan moving to stand on one side of her and the second man moving to stand on the other.
“I believe, Dr. Franklin, that it should now be obvious I’m not going to be subdued,” Eunice began. “I’m also not going to be locked away in this asylum for the rest of my life, nor examined by any other doctors with questionable qualifications.”
Dr. Franklin drew himself up. “I do not have questionable qualifications.”
“I beg to differ,” Eunice returned in a voice dripping with ice. “You proclaimed me insane after your examination, and yet I didn’t even bother to assume a mentally challenged attitude.”
“You were sent here for a reason,” Dr. Franklin argued. “Besides that, I wasn’t the only one to proclaim you insane. You were deemed insane by physicians who examined you and realized it would be safer for society if you were locked securely away in this asylum.”
“I’m sure you’ll find this distressing, but I got admitted to this asylum on my own accord with the assistance of that man.” Eunice nodded to the gentleman standing to her right. “Agent Cooper Clifton of the Pinkerton Agency arranged to have two physicians provide me with letters that allowed me admittance into your asylum.”
Dr. Franklin gave a tug of his tie. “What is a Pinkerton man doing here?”
“He works in tandem with the Bleecker Street Inquiry Agency, of which I’m a partner. We were hired by a woman to find her sister, Mrs. Clement Mills.” Eunice nodded to where two women were crouched underneath one of the long tables, peering over a bench. “I was successful in locating Mrs. Mills, and with that task completed, I intend to depart from your horrifying establishment without any obstruction by your nurses.” She gave a flick of her hand toward the nurses. “Now would be the time to instruct those women to escort the other patients back to their rooms for a nap. I’m sure this has been quite the emotional day for many of them.”
“But it’s bath day,” Nurse Grady said, drawing Eunice’s attention as well as her temper, given the way her eyes had begun flashing.
“The last thing they need is to be tossed into a cold bath, one where the water isn’t changed after each woman bathes.”
“The water is changed,” Dr. Franklin argued.
“No, it’s not,” Eunice said. “Although how interesting to learn you didn’t know that, Dr. Franklin. I imagine there’s much you don’t know about what goes on here. I’d be more than happy to have you visit me at my inquiry agency, where I’ll tell you all about the atrocities that I’ve learned occur behind the very doors of an establishment that houses the most vulnerable of our population—one you’ve been entrusted to protect and treat, something you and the other members of the staff have failed to do.”
“I don’t appreciate your tone, Mrs., er, Hickenbottom. You should tread carefully. I am the one who can see you released from here, or not.”
Eunice crossed her arms over her chest. “You don’t have a form with Eunice Holbrooke on it, which means I’m not a patient here, so you have no reason to hold me.” She lifted her chin. “And I’ll be taking Mrs. Clement Mills with me when I depart because she shouldn’t be here either. You should know that your nurses have taken to mocking her because she’s been claiming to be a womanof means, but Mrs. Millsisa woman of means. That right there begs the question of how she got admitted here in the first place.” She turned to Agent Clifton. “I’m sure the Pinkertons would be interested in uncovering how that occurred. Given what her husband has been bragging about to his cronies, it’s obvious he paid someone a very large bribe to get her committed here.”
“I’m sure nothing as untoward as a bribe was involved pertaining to Mrs. Mills’s admittance into Blackwell,” Dr. Franklin said, giving his tie another tug. “Nevertheless, I feel compelled to point out that there are many sanitoriums in the city that cater to the upper crust that accept... donations, if you will, from family members of patients to assure they’re given only the best of care. That could have been the case with this particular patient—her husband deciding to make a, ah, donation on her behalf to ascertain she received special attention from us.”
Eunice shot a look to Mrs. Mills, who was still underneath the table, her white and drawn face suggesting she’d not been pampered in the least. “I’m sure Mrs. Mills will be more than happy to speak with you about the special attention she hasn’t received here, if there was a donation made to assure she was well taken care of. As for the sanitoriums you mentioned that cater to people of means, yes, donations are often made, but you and I know those donations rarely ascertain patients receive extra care.”
As Nurse Grady sidled up to join them, still clutching the vial of morphine, resignation flickered through Dr. Franklin’s eyes. “You won’t need to be taking that patient back to her room, Nurse Grady.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’m here under false pretenses,” Eunice snapped before Dr. Franklin could respond. “You also won’t need to escort Mrs. Mills back to her room because she’ll be coming with me as well as”—she shot a glance to the woman crouching underneath the table with Mrs. Mills—“Rose Santana. She doesn’t belong here either.”
It came as no surprise when Dr. Franklin began to sputter.“That’s out of the question. You can’t tell me you’re simply going to take Mrs. Mills with you, nor will I release, ah... I can’t recall her name, but you’re not taking that other woman merely because you decided she doesn’t belong here. You’re hardly an expert on the matter of insanity.”
“I’m probably as much, if not more, of an expert than you are, Dr. Franklin,” Eunice said coolly. “I spend hours speaking with women at my agency, and that has given me great insight into their mental capacities. Unlike you, who seem to believe that looking at a woman’s tongue and then prodding her head is a sufficient enough examination to understand the workings, or lack thereof, of her mind.”
“I’m not releasing her.”
Eunice turned to Ivan. “I’m going to need to borrow your pistol.”
Ivan’s brows drew together. “Absolutely not. Shooting the doctor, no matter that he probably deserves it, will only land you out of this prison and into another one.”
When Eunice held out her hand in response, Arthur swallowed a laugh, realizing an intervention was certainly needed. He, of all people, knew Eunice was perfectly capable of shooting a man if she felt so inclined.
He turned to Dr. Franklin. “I would encourage you to agree to Eunice’s demands. But to give you more of an incentive to do that, allow me to remind you of our recent conversation in which you proclaimed how interested you were in having the New York Four Hundred become involved with this asylum. I assure you that you’ll not enjoy the type of involvement you’ll soon see from them if I allow society matrons to learn what kind of care is not being given to the patients residing here.”
Dr. Franklin narrowed his eyes on Arthur. “That sounds like a threat.”
“I would call it more of a promise.”
Dr. Franklin gave another tug of his tie before he glanced at Rose Santana, who was still crouching underneath the table withMrs. Mills. “May I assume that promise wouldn’t materialize if I allow those two women to leave the asylum?”
“You may.”
