Disgust rolled over me, and heat climbed up my neck, burning my cheeks. “Thomas is—” I couldn’t finish the statement.
“Every Friday afternoon when he gets off work.”
“How can you be so flippant?”
He frowned. “You asked me not to coddle you, so here’s the truth: Thomas frequents the most notorious brothel in Saint Paul at least once a week, and that’s probably where he’s at right now.”
I lifted my chin, trying not to be as innocent or naïve as he claimed I was. I had to deal with this reality, whether I liked it or not. I knew Thomas was crooked. Ruth had told me about the bribes he took and bragged about to Andrew. But I didn’t realize he had lowered himself to such depravity.
Lewis took my hand and guided me to a bench under a large maple tree.
We took a seat, and I was thankful to be off my wobbly legs in the shade.
“I shouldn’t have been so abrupt,” he said.
“I asked you to tell me the truth.”
“I know, but I should have eased into it.”
I was happy I didn’t have to look at him anymore. Sitting on the bench, I could focus on my hands or the sidewalk in front of us. I didn’t want him to see the depths of my disillusionment.
“Your brother’s a good guy,” he said. “He’s just trying to find his way.”
“At a brothel?” I said it louder than I intended.
An older couple passing on the sidewalk looked up at me, startled.
Lewis chuckled. He was still holding my hand, and I was suddenly very aware of him. Of his cologne, his gentleness, his concern.
I removed my hand from his, needing space to think.
“I can tell him you stopped by,” Lewis offered. “Maybe he’ll swing by your parents’, and you can talk to him then. From what I understand, he was kind of fond of Alice before she hooked up with Andrew.”
“Thomas was fond of her?” The realization was startling.
“From what I heard.”
It didn’t matter; what mattered was getting Alice out of thehouse. “I can’t risk my parents hearing us talk, and I don’t want to wait any longer.”
I stood, ready to face my next challenge.
“Where are you going?”
“To Nina Clifford’s brothel. Can you tell me where it is, please?”
Lewis’s mouth parted in surprise again, but he couldn’t stop me. If he didn’t tell me, someone else would.
And I was determined to talk to my brother, so I started to walk toward the east.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Lewis said as he caught up to me.
“I thought you said you weren’t going to chase me anymore.”
“If you’d ever let me catch you, maybe I could stop.”
I pushed his strange comment away and kept walking. “Am I going in the right direction?”
“No.”
