“We are nae stealing…” Aileen began, but half the hall was already on their feet, starting to move out. “Wait! Where are ye going?”
“The weavers’ union is walking out,” the original standing man said. “We have nothing more to say.”
Fenella and Deidre began to protest, but Aileen held up her hand. “Let them leave. Perhaps we can convince the remainder.”
It took Mr. James several minutes to quiet the rest of the audience down. He turned to the women. “I suggest you conclude your remarks quickly.”
Annie frowned. First the union workers walked out—she’d also seen Mr. Haines follow them, more than likely to insure their goods would stay at the warehouse—and now their group wasn’t supposed to finish speaking?
Aileen took a deep breath. “We just want to let the rest of ye ken that we just want the right to work—”
“Then be a seamstress,” someone yelled.
“Seamstresses doona make good wages,” Aileen answered. “We—”
“Doona expect tailors, cordwainers, or milliners to let ye take away their jobs,” another man interrupted.
“We doona want to take your jobs,” Cora said. “But some women have families to feed too.”
“Then get married and let your man support ye!”
Annie felt her temper rising. “Maybe we doona want to be chattel!”
“’Tis your place. A man provides a roof over your head and ye should be grateful.”
“What if we want to be independent, just like ye?”
A rumble of voices followed that remark. Mr. James hurried over. “I think you had best leave.”
Annie turned to glare at him, her hands on her hips. “Why?”
The answer she waited for did not come from Mr. James. Instead, several dozen rotten pieces of fruit and vegetables came raining down on them. Annie had started to duck, but a large cabbage hit her head. For a moment everything sparkled around her and then all went black.
****
Niall stomped up the stairs to the warehouse, found it locked, and started pounding on the door.
“You are making enough racket to wake the dead over at the Necropolis,” Owen said mildly. “Everything is dark. I do not think Annie is here.”
Niall didn’t think so either, but he kept pounding. “There was a light in the back of the warehouse when we passed by.”
“I thought she had a meeting with Haines. What would Annie be doing in the warehouse?”
“Hell, I doona ken,” Niall answered, “but she should have been home by now. If she’s nae in the office, where else can she be?”
“Did Haines say they were to meet here?” Owen asked.
Niall paused, rubbing his sore knuckles. Had Annie mentioned the location? She’d just said she had to attend a meeting with Haines and she’d insisted that Niall not accompany her or Haines would start to think she was not competent. He’d argued the point, but when she accused him of considering her a dimwit, he’d acquiesced. He didn’t want her feeling he thought she was stupid. “I doona think she said.”
“I think she may have given us the slip,” Owen said.
Niall gave him a sharp look. “Us?”
Owen shrugged. “I did not try to stop her either.”
“Well…” Niall started to go down the steps when he heard a bump and then a muffled voice on the other side of the door and turned back. “Someone is in there.”
“Aye. It sounds like someone bumped into something,” Owen said and started rapping on the door with metal head of his walking stick.
